should be abandoned, or traded to the crown of Portugal for Brazil.
The lack of knowledge regarding the Filipinas and the gains which may
be obtained with them has been the cause for many of the servants of
your Majesty, and other prominent persons, having a poor opinion of
them. Accordingly it has seemed to such persons more expedient to be
rid of those islands, and to others that they should be exchanged
with the crown of Portugal for Brazil. All the reasons which they
give for this may be reduced to five: The first is that there is
a drain upon your Majesty's royal patrimony for their maintenance,
and you derive no profit. The second is to avoid the flow, through
that method of maintaining them, of silver from Nueva España to Great
China, by cutting off commerce with the latter country. The third
is on account of the troops that are there consumed. The fourth is
that since your Majesty is in such straits it is expedient to attend
first to the relief most necessary, which is that of affairs here;
and since you cannot attend to all, it is compulsory to abandon that
country. Finally, your Majesty's dominions are widely separated,
and cannot be preserved except by withdrawing from those which
are least necessary, for power united is the stronger. Or it is
argued that, even though it be expedient to maintain the Filipinas,
the commerce should be changed from Nueva España to these kingdoms,
and ships should be sent from the city of Sevilla to the Filipinas,
as is done from Portugal to eastern India; and that for this trade
the ships should be laden with merchandise from this country [_i.e._,
España], and in exchange for that should bring back the wealth of
Great China and those regions.
In answer to the first, your Majesty expends much in the preservation
of that country, it is true; but the objectors do not consider
that those expenditures which are made are not for the purpose of
preserving the Filipinas--at least since Don Pedro de Acuña, your
governor, won the islands of Maluco, where cloves are obtained; for
since that time the expense has been to maintain the war against the
Dutch, who have been fortifying and making themselves masters there,
and because we did not understand here, in the beginning and later,
how important it would be to spend what was necessary to drive them
out once for all, and to secure those regions. This has been the
cause of spending so much in reënforcements, which have not served,
and do not serve, more than to keep the forts which your Majesty
holds in the islands of Terrenate and Tidore, and the friendship
of the king of Tidore; and this is the cause of the expenses which
your Majesty makes in the Filipinas, while the Dutch are taking away
almost all the profits--although it is true that, if your Majesty had
had ministers there zealous in your service, you might have obtained
profit enough to maintain those forts without drawing upon your royal
exchequer. The same thing could be done at any time when you wish, but
the means for this are not at hand, and accordingly I defer them. If
your Majesty should wish to know them, I will inform you of them. From
this it may be concluded that the Filipinas are not the cause of
these expenditures; and those which were made there before that time
(as will be explained later, by themselves) exceeded the support with
which your Majesty maintained the islands. This was done by the kings,
your Majesty's father and grandfather, for two reasons: in the first
place, by their aiming at the glory of God and the spread of His
holy gospel, since they enjoyed the title of patrons of the church,
upon whom it would seem this obligation rests; in the second place,
on account of the favorable situation of that post for obtaining from
it more wealth than from all the rest of the Indias--and if this has
not hitherto been enjoyed the blame is not upon the country, but, for
reasons which cannot be here set down, upon those who have governed it.
To the second reason--that, as they say, much silver passes to the
Filipinas and does not come to España--it may be answered that the
fact is that, to obviate this difficulty, your Majesty has ordered that
the citizens of the Filipinas Islands, in order to support themselves,
be permitted, in return for the merchandise which they send to Nueva
España, to have sent back to them 500U [_i.e._, 500,000] pesos of eight
reals; and in the course of this, it is said, a much greater quantity
passes. As it is an easy thing to increase the zeros in an account,
in this manner they have increased it more than double and triple,
basing their figures on what was written to this court by an auditor
of the Filipinas, who was alleging services so that favors might be
granted to him. He said that when he was going from Nueva España as
commander, and the capitana in which he sailed was wrecked, he had
placed the commercial silver in a place of safety, and there were three
millions of it. The truth is that he exaggerated this to enhance the
value of his service, increasing the sum by more than half; for from
us, who were there, this matter could not be concealed, and there
has never passed so much silver as in that year. If this service was
placed at such figures, it deserved a heavy punishment, and not the
reward which he seeks. Since that time it is true that as much more
passes, to Filipinas, by the permission which your Majesty gives. The
causes of this excess are two. In the first place, the necessity of
the citizens, who are unable to support themselves with so small a
quantity, or to gain profit in trade; since, if there are no more than
five hundred [thousand pesos] they need all which is sent them for
their living alone. Accordingly, even at a great cost to themselves,
they seek means to get profits from their property. The limitation of
this permission entails a difficulty which I have mentioned; for in
the first place measures must be taken to enrich them, since it is
of so great importance to kings that their subjects should be rich,
while the poverty of the latter causes such diminution of their
power. If this reason holds in all the kingdoms of your Majesty,
it does so much more in that one which is so distant, where, when
necessary, they lend to the royal treasury on occasions of need--as
they did last year to Don Alonso Faxardo de Tença, your governor,
whom they lent 200U ducados to lead an army against the Dutch, and
likewise their slaves to man four galleys. They have done this same
thing on other occasions, and expose their persons in war and lose
their lives, as many of the best men of that city have done--their
misfortune lying in this, that they were so far distant from the royal
eyes of your Majesty, wherefore their services are not conspicuous.
In the second place, there is the greediness of the merchants from
Mexico, to whom the greater part of this silver which passes to the
Filipinas belongs; if this could be remedied, the difficulty of so
much outflow of silver as is reported would be obviated. But the
remedy is not to send thither judges and guards who are not to allow
it to pass; for on the contrary, as our experience shows, they go
to enrich themselves by the salaries which your Majesty gives them,
and the profit which they there make. For in all countries ill-gained
wealth is thus christened. The silver which goes there is of no less
value to the royal exchequer than that which comes here, since the
investment of it pays no fewer duties, but more; and at least it
comes finally into the hands of our friends, and is not like that
which comes to España--which for the most part is enjoyed by the
enemies of your Majesty; and the fleets go more heavily laden with
the enemy's property than with that of your vassals.
The merchants of Sevilla complain that the trade with China has been
destroyed by the Indias, but they do not understand the cause of its
ruin. The Marquis de Montesclaros, who governed Nueva España and Piru,
and understood this matter very well (as he did many things), wrote
your Majesty a letter from the Indias, which is in your royal Council,
where he says with clear and evident arguments: "But what strikes
me is, that as the commonest and most universal means of working
the mines is quicksilver, this loss is caused by giving that metal
at so high a price to the miners. For in the first place, as most
of them are poor, they cannot buy it, and therefore a great deal of
metal is left unworked; and in the second place, because those who
are able to buy it cannot work poor mines (for they would be ruined
thereby), and as the greater part of those in the Indias are of this
kind, double the amount of silver [obtained] is left unmined. If your
Majesty would order the quicksilver to be given at cost and expenses,
it would be of incomparably more profit than today; and the Indias
would be in a better condition, more merchandise would be bought,
the duties would increase, and the merchants would not feel the want
of the silver which goes to the Filipinas--as they did not feel it
in times past, although there came much more merchandise from there
than at present. I would that there were so great an abundance of
quicksilver in the Indias, and so cheap, that it could be bought,
not only by the miners, but by other Spaniards and Indians, who would
then have so much silver that their complaints would cease."
If the trade were transferred to España, those who say that the
merchandise from this country would be carried to Filipinas, to be
exchanged for the goods of that country, are not aware that in those
regions there is no one to use Spanish goods except the Spaniards,
who with four pipas of wine, and other wares of little importance,
would be quite sufficiently supplied; and that, if this were so, the
Portuguese and Dutch would take the merchandise away, for nothing
escapes their notice. Both of these take silver, and whatever else
they take is of small importance; so that it would soon be necessary,
in order to maintain the trade, to carry silver from España and risk
it again. It is less trouble to carry it from the Indias, beside the
incomparably greater risk from the sea and from enemies [by the other
route]; and Nueva España would be ruined.
To the third reason, in which they say that many troops are used up,
I would say that it is true that there go each year sometimes two
hundred men, and other years less, and again none at all; and of
these more die from their excesses than from the war, and they do not
count those who return and go through India and other regions. If
those islands were to be abandoned on account of this difficulty,
the same reason holds in Flandes and Italia, which use up more men
in one campaign than do the Filipinas in twenty years.
To the fourth, that because your Majesty is so hard pressed he needs
must attend to matters here, etc., we could say that it is in no wise
expedient that your Majesty should abandon that country, on account
of the dependence of all the Indias upon it; because if the Dutch
possessed themselves of that archipelago (which they are attempting
to do), they would draw from it resources sufficient to destroy the
Indias--not only by the power which they have, but also through the
opportunity of keeping an open port in those regions where your Majesty
could not defend himself without spending much more than the profits of
the Indias. For that reason it is necessary to preserve that country,
as well as all the rest; for your Majesty is under expense for the
same reason in preserving Habana, Puerto Rico, Santo Domingo, Jamayca,
Florida, and the whole continent, without securing profit, merely on
account of the damage which enemies could inflict upon the Indias. Not
alone for this reason are the Filipinas important to your Majesty,
but for another of no less consequence, and which these countries do
not have, namely, the great profits which can be drawn from them.
To the fifth I say that although this maxim, that united forces are
stronger, is usually true, yet there are occasions when this union
consists not alone in compressing them, but in conserving the parts
of which the whole is composed, although these are distant from one
another, as are those which your Majesty possesses in his monarchy. At
first, when the Filipinas were discovered, this might have been done
without any harm while that country was new and strange, unknown to
the nations of Europe, uncultivated and in disorder. No one desired
it until Filipo Second of blessed memory brought it to notice; and
at that time, even if it had been abandoned, there was no one who
coveted it; but now that the great wealth contained in it is well
known, all are desirous of it, and are trying to take it from your
Majesty, so that they may thereby carry on their war. This was well
considered by the exceedingly prudent grandfather of your Majesty;
for he considered not only the service which he was doing to our Lord
God, by spreading His Catholic faith and bringing so many souls to
recognize Him, but likewise that, at the rate at which it was growing,
it would increase for his posterity with greater magnificence. He told
those who were persuading him to abandon it that, if the silver of the
Indias was not enough, he would send what was needed from España. For
if your Majesty possesses the Indias with so honorable a warrant as
that of the Catholic church for the purpose of converting souls, and
there has been and is being taken so much wealth from the Indias,
where your reputation and royal conscience are to such an extent
engaged, what reason can be so pressing that you should not attempt
with great care and energy the preservation of that country, where
the obligation of your Majesty is so pressing? And what excuse would
your Majesty have before the Divine Majesty for not aiding it in time,
if for this reason so many millions of souls should retrograde from
the faith? Then, too, consider the great multitude who, it is hoped,
will come to the knowledge of the true God, in whose hand, as David
says: _Domini est terra, et plenitudo eius, orbis terrarum, et omnes
qui habitant in eo_. [44] Who but He gives kingdoms and monarchies? for
how could He be under greater obligation--if there is any way in which
to oblige Him from whom nothing is due--than to procure His own greater
honor and glory in the salvation of souls, which cost him so much? For
these services are paid for, both here and in heaven, bountifully,
and the holy Scriptures are full of examples to this effect. How many
blessings did He shower upon Obededon for preserving the ark of the
testament, and what favors has the most fortunate house of Austria
[45] received from His hand, which was presaged in that manna which
was once sent! God is very generous, and knows well how to further the
affairs of him who charges himself with His; but as for those who,
on the contrary, put temporal good before His service, what success
can they hope in this? I might well cite many examples which I do not,
that I may not pass the bounds of my memoir.
Although some give as an example the king of Great China, who abandoned
many kingdoms of which he was the lord in order to preserve his own,
this is not suited to your Majesty's position; for Great China is
very extensive and holds as many people as eight Españas, and its
king has one hundred and fifty millions of revenue, or even more,
and is made thoroughly secure by nature and art. What he abandoned,
moreover, was not taken from him, nor was there any risk of putting
himself in a position to make enemies--although where these reasons
are present, those who advised this are right.