The Life and Works of Jose Rizal

(SSC 103)
MIDTERM

Topics for the Midterms

▪ Rizal’s Life: Exile, Trial and Death

▪ Annotation of Antonio Morga’s Sucesos De Las Filipinas
▪ Noli Me Tangere
▪ El Filibusterismo
Rizal’s Life: Exile, Trial and Death
Exile
Rizal’s return to Manila was his second homecoming, having stayed abroad since August 1887 or
almost five years. He had two reasons for coming home, despite the dangers he knowingly awaited: 1)
to talk personally with Governor Despujol of the British North Borneo colonization project and 2) to
establish the Liga Filipina in Manila.
As embodied in the Constitution, the aims of the Liga Filipina were the following:
1. Unity in the whole archipelago into one compact and homogeneous body;
2. Mutual protection in every want and necessity;
3. Defense against all violence and injustice;
4. Encouragement of education, agriculture, and commerce; and
5. Study and application of reforms.
The association had a motto: Unus Instar Omnimium (One Like All). All Filipinos who have the welfare of
their country and their fellowmen were qualified for membership. The membership fee was fixed at two
pesos and a monthly due of 10 centavos.
He arrived in Manila on June 26, 1892, with his widowed sister, Lucia. Immediately in the afternoon, at
4:00 pm, he went to Malacanang to seek an audience with Governor Despujol but was told to come
back at 7:00 in the evening. He came back promptly at the time required and was able to confer with
the Spanish Governor-General, wherein the latter agreed to pardon his father but not the rest of the
family.
After his first meeting with the governor, he went to see his other sisters in the city before taking a
train to see friends in Malolos, Bulacan; San Fernando, Pampanga; Bacolor, and in Tarlac, Tarlac, on the
evening of June 7, 1892, where he was lavishly welcomed and entertained. Like him, most of his friends
shared the same sentiments about their country and the reform crusade, and during his visits took the
opportunity of meeting them personally to discuss such issues. It is unknown whether he was aware that
spies followed him, and after he left, his friends’ residences were raided, and copies of his two novels,
the Noli and the Fili, and other “subversive” materials were confiscated.
In his talks with the Governor, he was shown “subversive” materials allegedly found in Lucia’s pillow
case. They were leaflets entitled Pobres Frailles (Poor Friars), a satire against the Dominican friars who
amassed wealth and fortune “contrary to their monastic vows of poverty,” written by Fr. Jacinto and
printed in Manila. Despite his protestations of innocence, that the customs inspected their pieces of
baggage and found nothing, he was arrested.
Despite his denial and insistent demand for investigation under due process of law, he was placed
under arrest and escorted to Fort Santiago by Ramon Despujol, a nephew and aide of Governor
Despujol.
Nine days later, shortly after midnight, Rizal was brought under heavy guard to the steamer Cebu
which brought him to Dapitan, arriving at his destination on July 17 at 7:00 in the morning. Here,
Captain Delgras, the ship’s captain, handed him to Captain Ricardo Canicero, the Spanish Commander
of Dapitan. Thus started the moment of the exile of Jose Rizal, at the secluded and lonely place of
Dapitan, where he stayed for four years.
Life in Dapitan
In Dapitan, Rizal was given a chance to live at the parish convent provided the following conditions were
met:
1. That Rizal publicly retracted the errors concerning religion and made statements that were
clearly pro- Spanish and against revolution.
2. That he perform the church rites and make a general confession of his past life.
3. Subsequently, he conducted himself in an exemplary manner as a Spanish subject and a man of
religion.
Jose Rizal Shrine in Dapitan
Instead of living in the living quarters where he was ordered to stay, Rizal moved into the home of the
commandant, Captain Carnicero, with whom he struck up a close friendship and pleasant relationship, to
the point where Carnicero allowed Rizal complete freedom of movement, with the requirement that he
report to his office only once a week, and even gave the accomplished horseman permission to ride the
commander’s chestnut horse. Rizal wrote his impressions about the kind commandant in his poem A
Don Ricardo Carnicero on the occasion of his birthday on August 26, 1892. Their warm friendship can
also be illustrated when both of them, together with a Spanish resident in Dipolog, Francisco Equilior,
bought a lottery ticket No. 9736 that won. So that, on the morning of September 21, 1892, the sleepy
town of Dapitan was bursting with excitement when the mail boat Butuan arrived with colored pennants
flying high. The commandant thinking that a distinguished visitor was on board dressed in his gala
uniform, ordered the town folks to assemble at the shore and hired a brass band.
It was a happy and pleasant surprise when they found that the ticket they bought won the second prize
of P20,000 in the government-owned Manila Lottery. Of his share of P6,200, Rizal gave his father P2,000;
P200, to his friend in Hong Kong, Jose Ma. Basa; and the rest he invested in agricultural lands along the
coast of Talisay, a kilometer away from Dapitan.
Community Activities
Rizal gave much of himself in the place of exile, paying off the peace and happiness it had given him.
He did this by playing an important role in its community activities and development. One of the
problems besetting the municipality of Dapitan was its water system. Rizal used the knowledge he had
gained as an expert surveyor (Perito agrimensor), one of the early degrees he obtained from Ateneo, in
improving the water system and was successful in furnishing clean water to the people. Modern
engineers of today marvel at the work of Rizal, considering the inadequacy of engineering tools at that
time and the limited funds.
Rizal was a born teacher. Inclinations started when he was young, for he realized the value of education.
While in Europe, he made it his business to observe not only customs and traditions but also their school
systems. Once in Hong Kong, the idea of building a college was in his thoughts, but it was also one
project he could not do. In Dapitan, however, in 1893, he could finally put into use the different
pedagogical methods that he had learned in Europe up to the end of his exile. Although his school
started with only three pupils, it grew into 21. And instead of charging school fees, they were required to
render services or work in the garden, fields, or on construction projects in the community.
Rizal put up a two-hour schedule for the classes every day, starting at 2:00 till 4:00 in the afternoon
under the Talisay tree, which became the subject of one of his poems later. The pupils sat on a bench
while the teacher was seated on the hammock. Subjects such as English and Spanish were taught every
other day. He followed the style at Ateneo, where the best student was called an “emperor” and sat at
the head of the bench, while the poorest student sat at the other end of the bench. During recess, they
had other activities such as gardening, and the pupils pruned the trees or built fires to get rid of the
mosquitos or put fertilizers in the garden plots.
Gymnastics was not a part of the school program, but Rizal encouraged them to do exercises to
strengthen their bodies. Aside from gymnastics, they had other sports such as swimming, wrestling,
stone-throwing, native fencing, and boating. Rizal found Dapitan and its surroundings a rich field of
specimens. Together with the students, they would go around in his baroto and explore the jungles and
coasts. They collected different specimens of insects, frogs, lizards, snakes, shells, and plants. The
exploration added to the student’s knowledge aside from their school work under the trees.
Departure to Manila
While in Dapitan, he volunteered his services as a military doctor in Cuba, where a revolution was
going on and yellow fever was raging through the advice of his friend, Blumentritt. There was no
immediate response from Governor-General Blanco. Still, a letter dated July 1, 1896, came unexpectedly
notifying him of the acceptance of his offer and provided instructions for his departure to Spain, where
“the Minister of War will assign you to the Army of Operations in Cuba detailed to the Medical Corps.”
His four-year exile in Dapitan ended on July 31, 1896. On the same day, at midnight, he boarded the
steamer España with Josephine, Narcisa, his sister, and Angelica, Narcisa’s daughter, three nephews, and
three pupils. A teary farewell from his pupils characterized his departure and the townsfolks who went to
the shore, with the town brass playing Chopin’s Funeral March.
The Trap
Rizal enjoyed his trip to Manila. Only was he imbued with the spirit of freedom but also that of a
traveler’s enthusiasm for seeing many islands on the way. The boat arrived in Manila Bay in the early
morning of Thursday, only to discover that he had missed the boat Isla de Luzon bound for Spain.
Much to his disappointment, it had left the previous afternoon but felt resigned to the unlucky
incident. However, uneasy and fearful of what might happen to him while in Manila, he requested the
Spanish government to isolate him from everybody except the family members. In acceding to his
request, the Governor assigned him to a Spanish cruiser Castilla where he stayed about a month while
waiting for a ship bound for Spain.
First Cry of Balintawak
During this period of stay on board the Castillos, the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution occurred.
From the newspaper, Rizal learned of the “Cry of Balintawak” and the “Pinaglabanan Incident” in San
Juan, where many Filipinos died. Rizal felt that the revolt was premature and feared the repercussions
and the consequences that may follow against the Filipino patriots. Eleven days after the outbreak of the
Philippine Revolution, or on August 30, 1896, after the Governor-General proclaimed a state of war in
the eight provinces of
1. Manila (as a province)
2. Bulacan
3. Cavite
4. Batangas
5. Laguna
6. Pampanga
7. Nueva Ecija
8. Tarlac
Finally, the time has arrived, before his departure. He wrote his mother a letter informing her of his
departure for Cuba and his concern about their future with the outbreak of the revolution. While
fearful of the possible events and repercussions the government may be taking, Rizal, nevertheless,
invoked the power of Divine Providence and placed in His hands his life and future. Boarding the
steamer, Isla de Panay, Rizal started his trip to Barcelona, Spain. Among the passengers on the ship
were Don Pedro Roxas, a wealthy industrialist, and his son, Periquin, who was then bound for Singapore
and feared Rizal’s safety. The two advised Rizal to stay in Singapore and take advantage of British
protection, but Rizal refused them, as he said he “gave his word of honor” to Governor Blanco.
But unknown to Rizal was the treacherous plan of the man to whom he gave his honor, plotting a trap
for him which was now being laid. In reality, Blanco was his implacable foe, who regarded him as a
dangerous Filipino who was responsible for the raging Philippine Revolution and therefore plotted his
doom. Just after the steamer left Port Said, Rizal heard of his impending arrest from a fellow
passenger. He would be arrested by order of Governor-General Blanco and would be sent to a prison in
Ceuta in Spanish Morocco. He was shocked at the news and belatedly realized that he had fallen into
the trap set by the sly governor.
The Arrest
Rizal arrived in Barcelona as a prisoner, being kept under heavy guard for three days, and was
transferred to the custody of the Military Commander of Barcelona, who incidentally was General
Eulogio Despujol, the same person who had signed his exiled order to Dapitan. The two adversaries
met again.
On his second day in Barcelona, he was escorted to the infamous prison fortress of Monjuich. In the
early afternoon of the same day, he was brought to the headquarters of General Despujol, who informed
him that he would be shipped back to Manila on board the transport ship Colon to face trial.
Trial
Rizal left Barcelona for his return trip to the Philippines on October 6, 1886, to face trial. His enemies
gathered evidence against him to successfully convict Rizal by having his friends arrested and tortured
to implicate him. Among these were Dr. Pio Valenzuela, Moisés Salvador, Jose Dizon, Timoteo Paez,
Pedro Serrano Laktaw, Domingo Paez, and Rizal’s own brother, Paciano. His brother suffered most,
with his body broken over the torture rack and his left hand crushed with the screw, but like a hero,
his spirit never gave in and remained unbroken.
On December 11, Rizal was informed of the charges against him, particularly of rebellion in his prison
cell, in the presence of his counsel. He did not object to the court’s jurisdiction but pleaded not guilty to
the charge of rebellion. Although he admitted that he wrote the Constitution of the Liga Filipina, the
association was a civic one. He further waived his right to amend or make further statements other than
those already made and affirmed the statements that he had made, except that he had not indulged in
politics since his exile in Dapitan.
At 8:00 A.M., December 26, 1896, the court martial of Rizal started in the military building called Cuartel
de España, with seven member namely:
1. Lt. Col. Jose Togores Arjona (President)
2. Capt. Ricardo Munoz Arias
3. Capt. Manuel Reguerro
4. Izquierdo Osorio
5. Capt. Braulio Rodriguez Nunez
6. Capt. Manuel Dias Escribano
7. Capt. Fermin Perez Rodriguez
8. Capt. Rafael Dominguez (Judge Advocate)
9. Lt. Enrique de Alcocer were for the prosecution, while Lt. Taviel de Andrade, was for the
defense.
After a short deliberation, the military court voted unanimously for a death sentence. On the very
same day, the court decision was forwarded to Governor-General Polavieja. After seeking the opinion of
the Judge Advocate, the latter confirmed the verdict: to be shot at the back on the morning of
December 30 at Bagumbayan Field (now the Luneta).
Execution
In the Bagumbayan field, he walked slowly to where he was told to stand -on a grassy lawn between two
lamp posts, overseeing the shores of the beautiful Manila Bay. He took time to bid farewell to his
companions and firmly shook their hands. One of the priests blessed him and offered a crucifix for him
to kiss, which he did. He then requested the commander of the firing squad to shoot him facing the
firing squad, which was refused, with the commander telling him of the orders he had to follow.
He did as ordered reluctantly, turned his back, and faced the sea, even as a Spanish military doctor, Dr.
Felipe Ruiz Castillo, asked his permission to feel his pulse. Nothing could be more extraordinary than for
a man facing the firing squad who will snuff out his life as having a normal pulse. Rizal, man, and martyr,
had no fear of dying; to die for his country was a rare opportunity, and he would want it in no other
way. When the command “fire” was heard, Rizal made a supreme effort to face the firing squad, and
his bullet-riddled body instead turned to the right with his face facing the morning sun. It was exactly
7:03 am, December 30, 1896, when Rizal died, a martyr’s death, at the prime of his life, 35 years of
age, 5 months, and 11 days.
Annotation of Antonio Morga’s Sucesos De Las Filipinas
Among the Filipino heroes, only Rizal has left a legacy of rich literature to posterity. He was so sensitive
to things and events around him that he always felt an urge to record them. No one can describe all the
literary works of Rizal and treat them with the real compassion and emotion that he had when he wrote
them; no one can ever do it with equal eloquence. One can only approximate the real feelings of the
great national hero. Rizal was a real genius.
Antonio de Morga’s Sucesos de las Islas Felipinas
Finally, in 1890, the annotated edition of Morga’s Sucesos, printed by Garner Feres, with a prologue
written by Blumentritt, as requested by Rizal, came out. Although however, Blumentritt was a very good
friend of Rizal; he did not hesitate to correct two major errors of the book, which were:
in that appraisal of the events of the past in the light of present standards and
his inferences on the church which were unfair since the faults and the cruelty of the friars did not mean
the cruelty of the church.
Nevertheless, despite the two errors, it was considered a good piece of work, which contained a
dedication to the Filipino people so that, in his words, “they would know of their glorious past.
Rizal wrote and proved that before the Spaniards came, the Filipinos already had a certain degree of
civilization; “they wore clothes, had formed a government, laws, writing, literature, religion, arts,
sciences, and commerce with other neighboring nations. “Because of the title page of his edition, which
reads: “Paris, Libreria de Garnier Hermanos, 1890,” biographers of Rizal thought that the annotated
edition of Morga’s Sucesos came out during 1890, but this was contradicted by the letter addressed to
Dr. Baldomero Roxas, dated December 18, 1889, which said that “Today I sent to Lipa four copies of
Morga. Later I will send some more” and also that of Mariano Ponce in a letter to Rizal in 1889 “I
received the book Sucesos. Many thanks. I have read only Blumentritt’s prologue.” These debunked the
assumption that Morga’s Sucesos came out during the year 1890.
Rizal’s Annotations
While in London, Rizal immediately acquainted himself with the British Museum, where he found one of
the few remaining copies of that work. At his own expense, he had the work republished with
annotations that showed the Philippines was an advanced civilization before the Spanish conquest. This
annotation emanated from Austin Craig, an early biographer of Rizal, who translated into English some
of the more important of these annotations.
Mentioning the Christian religion, Dr. Antonio Morga means the Roman Catholic, which by fire and sword
he would preserve in its purity in the Philippines.
Kingdoms and civilizations were indeed discovered and conquered in the remote and unknown parts
of the world by Spanish ships. Still, to the Spaniards who sailed in them, we may add Portuguese,
Italians, French, Greeks, and even Africans and Polynesians. The expeditions captained by Columbus
and Magellan, one a Genoese Italian and the other a Portuguese, as well as those that came after
them, although Spanish fleets, still were manned by many nationalities and in them were Negroes,
Moluccans, and even men from the Philippines and the Marianes Islands.
The conversions by the Spaniards were not as general as their historians claim. The missionaries only
succeeded in converting a part of the people of the Philippines. Some still follow the religion of
Mohammed, known as the Moros, who live in the southern islands of the Philippines. Some people
follow other religions, known as the Negritos and Igorots, who live in the highlands of the Philippines’
northern region. Other non-Christians occupy the majority of the Philippines’ landmass. Then the
islands which the Spaniards early held but soon lost were non-Christian Formosa, Borneo, and the
Moluccas. And if there are Christians in the Carolines, that is due to Protestants, whom neither the
Roman Catholics of Morga’s day nor many Catholics in our day consider Christians.
It is not the fact that the Filipinos were unprotected before the coming of the Spaniards. Morga
himself says, further on in telling of the pirate raids from the islands had arms and defended
themselves. But after the natives were disarmed, the pirates pillaged them with impunity, coming at
times when the government unprotected them. It was the reason for many of the insurrections.
Pre-Spanish Filipinos’ civilization regarding life duties for that age was well advanced, as the Morga
history shows in its eighth chapter.
The islands came under Spanish sovereignty and control through compacts, treaties of friendship, and
alliances for reciprocity. Under the prior arrangement, according to some historians, Magellan lost his
life on Mactan, and the soldiers of Legaspi fought under the banner of King Tupas of Cebu.
The term “conquest” is admissible but for a part of the islands and then only in its broadest sense.
Cebu, Panay, Luzon, Mindoro, and some others cannot be said to have been conquered.
The discovery, conquest, and conversion cost Spanish blood but still more Filipino blood. It will be seen
later in Morga that with the Spaniards and on behalf of Spain, there were always more Filipinos fighting
than Spaniards.
Morga shows that the ancient Filipinos had an army and navy with artillery and other implements of
warfare. Their prized krises and kampilans for their magnificent temper are worthy of admiration, and
some of them are richly damascened. Their coats of mail and helmets, of which there are specimens in
various European museums, attest to their great advancement in this industry.
Morga’s expression that the Spaniards “brought war to the gates of the Filipinos” is in marked contrast
with the word used by subsequent historians whenever recording Spain possesses herself of a province,
that she pacified it. Perhaps “to make peace” then meant the same as “to stir up war.”
According to historical documents, Ferdinand Magellan’s transfer from the service of his king (i.e., the
Portuguese) to employment under the King of Spain was because the Portuguese King had refused to
grant him the raise in salary which he asked for.
Now it is known that Magellan was mistaken when he represented to the King of Spain that the
Moluccas Islands were within limits assigned by the Pope to the Spaniards. But through this error and
the inaccuracy of the nautical instruments of that time, the Philippines did not fall into the hands of the
Portuguese.
Cebu, which Morga calls “The City of the Most Holy Name of Jesus,” was at first called “The village of
San Miguel.”
The image of the Holy Child of Cebu, which many religious writers believed was brought to Cebu by
the angels, was, given by the worthy Italian chronicler of Magellan’s expedition, the Chevalier
Pigafetta, to the Cebuan queen.
The expedition of Villalobos, intermediate between Magellan’s and Legaspi’s, gave the name
“Philipína” to one of the southern islands, Tendaya, now perhaps Leyte, and this name later was
extended to the whole archipelago.
Of the native Manila rulers at the coming of the Spaniards, Raja Soliman was called “Rahang mura,” or
young king, in distinction from the old king, “Rahang Matanda.” Historians have confused these
personages.
The native fort at the mouth of the Pasig river, which Morga speaks of as equipped with brass lantkas
and artillery of larger caliber, had its ramparts reinforced with thick hardwood posts such as the
Tagalogs used for their houses and called “harigues,” or “haligui,”
Morga has confused the pacific coming of Legaspi with the attack of Goiti and Salcedo as of date.
According to other historians, it was in 1570 that Manila was burned, and with it, a great plant for
manufacturing artillery. Goiti did not take possession of the city but withdrew to Cavite and afterward
to Panay, which makes one suspicious of his alleged victory. When it came to the date, the Spaniards
were sixteen hours behind Europe because they had followed the sun’s path. This situation lasted until
the end of 1844, when December 31 was taken off the calendar for that year because the authorities
agreed to do so. Accordingly, Legaspi did not arrive in Manila on the 19th but on May 20, and
consequently, it was not on the festival of Santa Potenciana but San Baudelio’s day. The same mistake
was made concerning the other early events still wrongly commemorated, like San Andres’s day for the
repulse of the Chinese pirate Li Ma-hong.
Though not mentioned by Morga, the Cebuanos aided the Spaniards in their expedition against
Manila, so they were long exempted from tribute.
The southern islands, the Bisayas, were also called “The land of the Painted People (or Pintados, in
Spanish because the natives had their bodies decorated with tracings made with fire, somewhat like
tattooing.
The Spaniards retained the native name for the new capital of the archipelago, a little changed, for the
Tagalogs had called their city “Maynila.”
When Morga says that the lands were “entrusted (given as encomiendas) to those who had “pacified”
them, he means “divided up among.” Similar to “pacify,” the word “entrust” eventually took on a
sarcastic overtone. In light of this nobility’s ill manners, it seems safe to conclude that entrusting a
province was equivalent to abandoning it to the harshness and greediness of the encomendero.
Legaspi’s grandson, Salcedo, called the Hernando Cortez of the Philippines, was the “conqueror’s
intelligent right arm and the hero of the “conquest.” His honesty, fine qualities, talent, and personal
bravery all won the admiration of the Filipinos. Because of him, they yielded to their enemies, making
peace and friendship with the Spaniards. He saved Manila from Li Ma-hong; he died at the early age of
twenty-seven and is the only encomendero’ recorded to have left the great part of his possessions to the
Indians of his encomienda. Vigan was his encomienda, and the Illokanos there were his heirs.
The expedition which followed the Chinese corsair Li Ma-hong, after his unsuccessful attack upon
Manila, to Pangasinan province, with the Spaniards of whom Morga tells, had in it 1,500 friendly
Indians from Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, and Panay, besides the many others serving as laborers and crew of
the ships. Former Raja Lakandola, of Tondo, with his sons and his kinsmen went too, with 200 more
Bisayans and other Filipinos joined them in Pangasinan.
If discovery and occupation justify annexation, Borneo should belong to Spain. In the Spanish expedition
to replace on its throne a Sirela or Malacla, as he is variously called, who his brother had driven out,
more than fifteen hundred Filipino bowmen from the provinces of Pangasinan, Kagayan, and the Bisayas
participated.
It is notable how strictly the early Spanish governors hold to account. Some stayed in Manila as
prisoners. One Governor Corcuers passed five years with Fort Santiago as his prison.
In the fruitless expedition against the Portuguese in the island of Ternate, in the Molucca group, which
was abandoned because of the prevalence of beriberi among the troops, there went 1,500 Filipino
soldiers from the more warlike provinces, principally Kagayans and Pampangans.
The “pacification” of Kagayan was accomplished by taking advantage of the jealousies among its people,
particularly the rivalry between two brothers who were chiefs. An early historian asserts that without
this fortunate circumstance, for the Spaniards, it would have been impossible to subjugate them.
Captain Gabriel de Rivera, a Spanish commander who had gained fame in a raid on Borneo and the
Malacca coast, was the first envoy from the Philippines to take up with the King of Spain the needs of the
archipelago.
The early conspiracy of the Manila and Pampangan, former chiefs, was revealed to the Spaniards by a
Filipina, a soldier’s wife, and many concerned who lost their lives.
The artillery cast for the new stone fort in Manila, says Morga, was by the hand of an ancient Filipino.
That is, he knew how to cast cannon even before the coming of the Spaniards; hence he was
distinguished as “ancient.” In this difficult art of ironworking, as in so many others, the modern or
present-day Filipinos are not so far advanced as were their ancestors.
When the English freebooter Cavandish captured the Mexican galleon, Santa Ana, with 122,000 gold
pesos, a great number of rich textiles, silks, satins and damask, musk perfume, and stores of
provisions, he took 150 prisoners. All these, because of their brave defense, were put ashore with
ample supplies, except two Japanese lads, three Filipinos, a Portuguese, and a skilled Spanish pilot
whom he kept as guides in his further voyaging.
From the earliest Spanish days, ships were built in the islands, which might be considered evidence of
native culture. Nowadays, this industry is reduced to small crafts, scows, and coasters.
The Jesuit, Father Alonso Sanchez, who visited the papal court at Rome and the Spanish King at Madrid,
had a mission much like that of deputies now but of even greater importance since he came to be a sort
of counselor or representative to the absolute monarch of that epoch. One wonders why the Philippines
could have a representative then but may not have one now.
During Governor Gomez Perez Dasmariñas, Manila was guarded against further damage such as was
suffered by Li Ma-hong by the construction of a massive stone wall around it. It was accomplished
“without expense to the royal treasury.” The same governor, in like manner, also fortified the point at
the entrance to the river where the ancient native fort of wood had been, and he gave it the name Fort
Santiago.
Chirino, a Jesuit historian, said that the early wooden cathedral, which burned down because of
carelessness at the funeral of Governor Ronquillo, Governor Dasmarias’s predecessor, was made with
hardwood pillars that were so big that two people couldn’t reach around them, and all the woodwork
above and below the pillars went with their size. It may be surmised from this how hard workers the
Filipinos were of that time.
A stone house for the bishop was built before starting on the governor-general’s residence. This
precedence is interesting for those who uphold civil power.
Morga’s mention of the scant output of large artillery from the Manila cannon works because of a lack
of master foundry workers shows that after the death of the Filipino Panday Pira, there were no
Spaniards skilled enough to take his place, nor were his sons as expert as he.
It is worthy of note that China, Japan, and Cambodia at this time maintained relations with the
Philippines. But in our day, it has been more than a century since the natives of the latter two countries
have come here. The causes which ended the relationship may be found in the interference by the
religious orders with the institutions of those lands.
For Governor Dasmariñas’ expedition to conquer Ternate, in the Moluccan group, two Jesuits there
gave secret information. In his 200 ships, besides 900 Spaniards, there must have been Filipinos, for
one chronicler speaks of Indians, as the Spaniards called the natives of the Philippines, who lost their
lives and others who were made captives when the Chinese rowers mutinied. It was the custom then
always to have a thousand or more native bowmen and besides the crew were almost all Filipinos,
mostly Bisayans.
The historian Argensola, in telling of four special galleys for Dasmariñas expedition, says that they were
manned by an expedient which was generally considered rather harsh. It was ordered that enough
Indians who had been slaves of the former Indian chiefs or principals should be bought to make these
crews. The ecomenderos would pay the price, which was the norm in pre-Spanish times, and then the
royal treasury would pay them back. Despite this promised compensation, the measures still seemed
severe since those Filipinos were not correct in calling their dependents, slaves. The masters treated
these and loved them like sons, for they seated them at their tables and gave them their daughters in
marriage.
Morga says that the 250 Chinese oarsmen who manned Governor Dasmariñas’ swift galley were
underpaid and had the special favor of not being chained to their benches. According to him,
covetousness of the wealth aboard led them to revolt and killed the governor. But the historian Gaspar
de San Agustin states that the reason for the revolt was the governor’s abusive language, and he
threatened the rowers. Both these authors’ allegations may have contributed, but more important was
that there was no law to compel these Chinamen to row in the galleys. They had come to Manila to
engage in commerce or to, work in trades or follow professions. Still, the incident contradicts the
reputation for enduring everything they have had. The Filipinos have been suffering much longer than
the Chinese since, despite having been obliged to row on more than one occasion, they never mutinied.
It is difficult to excuse the missionaries’ disregard for the laws of nations and the use of honorable
politics in their interference in Cambodia on the ground that it was to spread the Faith. Religion had a
broad field awaiting them in the Philippines, where more than nine-tenths of the natives were infidels.
That even now, there are to be found here so many tribes and settlements of non-Christians, and takes
away much of the prestige of that religious zeal which in the easy life in towns of wealth, liberal and fond
of display, grows lethargic. The truth is that the ancient activity was scarcely for the Faith alone because
the missionaries had to go to islands rich in spices and gold. However, there were at hand
Mohammedans and Jews in Spain and Africa, Indians by the million in the Americas, and more millions
of protestants, schismatics and heretics people, and still people, over six-sevenths of Europe. All of these
doubtless would have accepted the Light and the true religion if the friars, under the pretext of
preaching to them, had not abused their hospitality and if behind the name Religion had not lurked the
unnamed Domination.
In the attempt made by Rodriguez de Figueroa to conquer Mindanao according to his contract with the
King of Spain, there was fighting along the Rio Grande with the people called the Buhahayenes. Their
general, according to Argensola, was the celebrated Silonga, later distinguished for many deeds in raids
on the Bisayas and adjacent islands. Chirino relates an anecdote of his coolness under fire once during a
truce for marriage among Mindanao “principalia.” Young Spaniards fired at his feet out of bravado, but
he passed on as if unconscious of the bullets.
Argensola has preserved the name of the Filipino who killed Rodriguez de Figueroa. It was Ubal. Two
days previously, he had given a banquet, slaying for it a beef animal of his own, and then made the
promise he kept to do away with the leader of the Spanish invaders. A Jesuit writer calls him a traitor
though the justification for that term of reproach is not apparent. The Buhahayen people were in their
own country and had neither offended nor declared war upon the Spaniards. They had to defend their
homes against a powerful invader with superior forces, many of whom were, because of their armor,
invulnerable so far as rude Indians were concerned. Yet these same Indians were defenseless against the
balls from their muskets. By the Jesuit’s line of reasoning, the heroic Spanish peasantry in their war for
independence would have been a people even more treacherous. It was not Ubal’s fault that he was not
seen and, as it was wartime, it would have been the height of folly, given the immense disparity of arms,
to have first called out to this preoccupied opponent and then been killed himself.
The muskets used by the Buhayens were probably some that had belonged to Figueroa’s soldiers who
had died in battle. Though the Philippines had latakas and other artillery, muskets were unknown until
the Spaniards came.
That the Spaniards used the word “discover” very carelessly may be seen from an admiral’s turning in a
report of his “discovery” of the Solomon Islands. However, he noted that the islands had been
discovered before.
Death has always been the first sign of European civilization’s introduction to the Pacific Ocean. God
grant that it may not be the last, though to judge by statistics, the civilized islands are losing their
populations terribly. Magellan himself inaugurated his arrival in the Marianes islands, burning more than
forty houses, many small craft, and seven people because one of his ships had been stolen. Yet to the
simple savages, the act had nothing wrong with it but was done with the same naturalness that civilized
people hunt, fish, and subjugate people that are weak or ill-armed.
The Spanish historians of the Philippines never overlook any opportunity, be it suspicion or accident, that
may be twisted into something unfavorable to the Filipinos. They seem to forget that in almost every
case, the reason for the rupture has been some act of those pretending to civilize helpless peoples by
force of arms and at the cost of their native land. What would these same writers have said if the
islanders had committed the crimes that the Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch did in their colonies?
The Japanese were not in error when they suspected the Spanish and Portuguese religious
propaganda of having political motives back of the missionary activities. Witness the Moluccas, where
Spanish missionaries served as spies; Cambodia, which it was sought to conquer under the cloak of
converting; and many other nations, among them the Filipinos, where the sacrament of baptism made
of the inhabitants not only subjects of the King of Spain but also slaves of the encomenderos, and as
well slaves of the churches and converts. What would Japan have been now had not its emperors
uprooted Catholicism? A missionary record of 1625 sets forth that the King of Spain had arranged with
certain members of Philippine religious orders that, under the guise of preaching the faith and making
Christians, they should win over the Japanese and oblige them to make themselves of the Spanish
party. Finally, it told of a plan whereby the King of Spain should also become King of Japan. It may cite
the claims that Japan fell within the Pope’s demarcation lines for Spanish expansion in corroboration
of this. So there was a complaint of missionaries other than Spanish there. Therefore it was not for the
religion that they were converting the infidels!
The raid by Datus Sali and Silonga of Mindanao in 1599 with 50 sailing vessels and 3,000 warriors
against the capital of Panay is the first act of piracy by the inhabitants of the South, which is recorded
in Philippine history. I say “by the inhabitants of the South” because earlier, there had been other acts of
piracy, the earliest being that of Magellan’s expedition when it seized the shipping of friendly islands and
even of those whom they did not know extorting for them heavy ransoms. People will remember that
these Moro thefts went on for more than two hundred years. During that time, the “unconquerable
sons of the South” took prisoners and brought fire and swords not only to neighboring islands but also
to Manila Bay and Malate, right up to the gates of the capital, and not just once a year but sometimes
five or six times in a single season. Yet the government was unable to repel them or defend the people
it had disarmed and left without protection—estimating that the cost to the islands was 800 victims a
year still, the total would be more than 200,000 persons sold into slavery or killed. All sacrificed
together with so many other things for the prestige of that empty title, Spanish sovereignty.
Still, the Spaniards say that the Filipinos have contributed nothing to Mother Spain and that it is the
islands that owe everything. It may be so, but what about the enormous sum of gold that was taken
from the islands in the early years of Spanish rule, of the tributes collected by the encomenderos, of the
nine million dollars yearly collected to pay the military, expenses of the employees, diplomatic agents,
corporations and the like, charged to the Philippines, with salaries paid out of the Philippine treasury not
only for those who come to the Philippines but also for those who leave, to some who never have been
and never will be in the islands, as well as to others who have nothing to do with them. Yet all of this is
nothing in comparison with so many captives gone, such a great number of soldiers killed in expeditions,
islands depopulated, their inhabitants sold as slaves by the Spaniards themselves, the death of industry,
the demoralization of the Filipinos, and so forth, and so forth. Enormous indeed would the benefits that
that sacred civilization brought to the archipelago have to be to counterbalance so heavy a cost.
While Japan was preparing to invade the Philippines, these islands were sending expeditions to Tonquin
and Cambodia, leaving the homeland helpless, even against the undisciplined hordes from the South, so
obsessed were the Spaniards with the idea of making conquests.
In the alleged victory of Morga over the Dutch ships, the latter found upon the bodies of five Spaniards,
who lost their lives in that combat, little silver boxes filled with prayers and invocations to the saints.
Here would seem to be the origin of the anting-anting of the modern tulisanes, which are also religious.
In Morga’s time, the Philippines exported silk to Japan, whence now comes the best quality of that
merchandise.
Morga’s views on the failure of Governor Pedro de Acuña’s ambitious expedition against the Moros
unhappily still apply to the same conditions yet exist. For fear of uprisings and loss of Spain’s
sovereignty over the islands, the inhabitants were disarmed, leaving them exposed to the harassing of
a powerful and dreaded enemy. Even now, though the use of steam vessels has ended piracy from
outside, the same fatal system still is followed. The peaceful country folk is deprived of arms and thus
made unable to defend themselves against the bandits, or tulisanes, which the government cannot
restrain. It is an encouragement to banditry; thus, to make it easy, its gets booty.
Hernando Delos Rios blames these Moluccan wars for the fact that at first, the Philippines was a
source of expense to Spain instead of profitable despite the tremendous sacrifices of the Filipinos,
their practically gratuitous labor in building and equipping the galleons, and despite too, the tribute,
tariffs, and other imposts and monopolies. These wars to gain the Moluccas, which soon were lost
forever with the little that had been so laboriously obtained, were a heavy drain upon the Philippines.
They depopulated the country and bankrupted the treasury, with not the slightest compensating
benefit. True also is it that it was to gain the Moluccas that Spain kept the Philippines, the desire for
the rich spice islands being one of the most powerful arguments when, because of their expense to
him, the King thought of withdrawing and abandoning them.
Among the Filipinos who aided the government when the Manila Chinese revolted, Argensola says
there were 4,000 Pampangans “armed after the way of their land, with bows and arrows, short lances,
shields, and broad and long daggers.” Some Spanish writers say that the Japanese volunteers and the
Filipinos showed themselves cruel in slaughtering the Chinese refugees. It may very well have been so,
considering the hatred and animosity then existing, but those in command set the example.
The loss of two Mexican galleons in 1603 called forth no comment from the religious chroniclers. They
were accustomed to seeing God’s avenging hand in their enemies’ misfortunes and accidents. Yet there
were repeated shipwrecks of the vessels that carried from the Philippines wealth that encomenderos
had extorted from the Filipinos, using force, or making their laws, and when not using these open
means, cheating by the weights and measures.
At their own expense, the Filipino chiefs who went with the Spanish expedition against Ternate in the
Moluccas in 1605 were Don Guillermo Palaot, Maestro de Campo, and Captains Francisco Palaot, Juan
Lit, Luis Lont, and Agustin Lont. They had with them 400 Tagalogs and Pampangans. The leaders bore
themselves bravely, for Argensola writes that in the assault on Ternate, “No officer, Spaniard or Indian,
went unscathed!”
The Cebuanos drew a pattern on the skin before starting into tatoo. The Bisayan usage then was the
same procedure that the Japanese today follow.
Ancient traditions ascribe the origin of the Malay Filipinos to the island of Samatra. These traditions
were almost completely lost as well as the mythology and the genealogies of which the early
historians tell, thanks to the zeal of the missionaries in eradicating all national remembrances as
heathen or idolatrous. The study of ethnology is restringing this somewhat.
The chiefs used to wear upper garments, usually of Indian fine gauze, according to Colin, of red color, a
shade for which they had the same fondness that the Romans had. The barbarous tribes in Mindanao
still have the same taste.
The “easy virtue” of the native women that historians note is not solely to the simplicity with which they
obeyed their natural instincts but much more due to a religious belief that Father Chirino tells. It was
that in the journey after death to “Kalualhatiran,” the abode of the spirit, there was a dangerous river to
cross that had no bridge other than a very narrow strip of wood over which a woman could not pass
unless she had a husband or lover to extend a hand to assist her. Furthermore, the religious annals of the
early missions are filled with countless instances where native maidens chose death rather than sacrifice
their chastity to the threats and violence of encomenderos and Spanish soldiers. As to the worldwide
mercenary social evil, no nation can “throw the first stone” at the other. For the rest, today, the
Philippines has no reason to blush in comparing its womankind with the women of the most chaste
nation in the world.
Morga’s remark that the Filipinos like fish better when it is commencing to turn bad is another of
those prejudices that Spaniards, like all other nations, have. In food matters, each is nauseated with
what he is unaccustomed to or doesn’t know is eatable. The English, for example, find their gorge rising
when they see a Spaniard eating snails, while the Spanish find roast beef English-style disgusting and
can’t understand the relish of other Europeans for beef steak a la Tartar which to them is simply raw
meat. The Chinamen, who like shark’s meat, cannot bear Roquefort cheese, and these examples might
be indefinitely extended. The Filipino’s favorite fish dish is the bagoong, and whoever has tried to eat it
knows it is not considered improved when tainted. It neither is nor ought to be decayed.
Colin says the ancient Filipinos had had minstrels who had memorized songs telling their genealogies
and of the deeds ascribed to their deities. These were chanted on voyages in cadence with the rowing,
or at festivals, or funerals, or wherever there happened to be any considerable gatherings. It is
regrettable that these chants have not been preserved; from them, it would have been possible to
learn much of the Filipinos’ past and possibly the neighboring islands’ history.
The cannon foundry mentioned by Morga as in the walled city was probably on the site of the Tagalog
one, which was destroyed by fire on the first coming of the Spaniards. That established in 1584 was in
Lamayan, Santa Ana now, and was transferred to the old site in 1590. It continued to work until 1805.
According to Gaspar San Augustin, the cannon that the pre-Spanish Filipinos cast were “as great as
those of Malaga,” Spain’s foundry. The Filipino plant was burned with all that was in it save a dozen
large cannons and some smaller pieces, which the Spanish invaders took back with them to Panay. The
rest of their artillery equipment had been thrown by the Manilans, then Moros, into the sea when
they recognized their defeat.
Malate, better Maalat, was where the Tagalog aristocracy lived after they were dispossessed by the
Spaniards of their old homes in what is now the walled city of Manila. Among the Malate residents
were the families of Raja Matanda and Raja Soliman. The men had various positions in Manila, and
some were employed in government work nearby. “They were very courteous and well-mannered,”
says San Agustin. “The women were very expert in lace-making, so much so that they were not at all
behind the women of Flanders.”
Morga’s statement that there was not a province or town of the Filipinos that resisted conversion or
did not want it may have been true of the civilized natives. But the contrary was the fact among the
mountain tribes. We have the testimony of several Dominican and Augustinian missionaries that it was
impossible to go anywhere to make conversions without other Filipinos and a guard of soldiers.
“Otherwise, says Gaspan de San Agustin, there would have been no fruit of the Evangelic Doctrine
gathered, for the infidels wanted to kill the Friars who came to preach to them.” An example of this
conversion method given by the same writer was a trip to the mountains by two Friars who had
numerous escorts of Pampangans. The escort’s leader was Don Agustin Sonson, who had a reputation
for daring and carried fire and sword into the country, killing many, including the chief, Kabadi.
“The Spaniards,” says Morga, “were accustomed to hold as slaves such natives as they bought and
others that they took in the forays in the conquest or pacification of the islands.” Consequently, the
“pacifiers” introduced no moral improvement in this respect. We do not even know if the Filipinos used
to make slaves of each other in their wars, though that would not have been strange, for the chroniclers
tell of captives returned to their own people. The practice of the Southern pirates almost proves this,
although, in these piratical wars, the Spaniards were the first aggressors and gave them their character
(Austin Craig).

Noli Me Tangere
Rizal’s first novel, Noli Me Tangere, which means “Touch Me Not,” came off the press in the year 1889.
He started writing the novel toward the end of 1884 but finished only half of it. When he was in Paris
in 1885, he finished writing half of the second half, while the last few chapters were written in April
and June 1886. The novel contains 63 chapters and an epilogue. The Noli Me Tangere is a tale of
frivolity, drama, tragedy, humor, and passion. Rizal dedicated the Noli Me Tangere to the Philippines To
My Fatherland. Recorded in the history of human suffering is cancer so malignant a character that the
slightest touch irritates it and awakens in it the sharpest pains. Thus, how many times, when amid
modern civilization I have wished to call thee before me, to accompany me in memories, now to
compare thee with other countries, hath thy dear image presented itself showing social cancer like that
other! Desiring thy welfare which is our own, and seeking the best treatment, I will do with thee what
the ancients did with their sick, exposing them on the temple’s steps so that everyone who came to
invoke the Divinity might offer them a remedy. And to this end, I will strive to reproduce thy condition
faithfully, without discrimination; I will raise a part of the veil that covers the evil, sacrificing to truth
everything, even vanity itself, as thy son I am conscious that I also suffer from thy defects and
weaknesses. Zaide explains that Noli Me Tangere is a Latin phrase, which means “Touch Me Not,” a
Biblical phrase from the Gospel of Saint Luke, although Rizal made a mistake since the Biblical source
should have come from John 20:13-17. According to St. John, on the First Easter Sunday, when Mary
Magdalene visited the Holy Sepulchre where the Lord had just risen, he said: Touch me not; for I am not
yet ascended to my Father, but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your
Father, and to my God and your God.
Ibarra in Noli Me Tangere
The story begins with the reception or dinner given in honor of a rich and young Filipino, Crisostomo
Ibarra, son of Don Rafael Ibarra. He had just returned after seven years of study in Europe by his
prospective father-in-law, Capitan Tiago (Santiago Delos Santos), in the latter’s residence. There were
many guests at the party, which included Father Damaso, a fat Franciscan friar who had been in the
parish town for 20 years at San Diego (Calamba); Father Sybila, a young Dominican parish priest at
Binondo; Señor Guevarra, an elderly and kind Lieutenant of Guardia Civil; Don Tiburcio, a fake Spanish
physician, the lame and henpecked husband of Doña Victorina and others. The guests at the reception
were impressed by the talents of young Ibarra, except for the fat priest Damaso, who was rude to him,
especially in the middle of their discussion with Ibarra. The fat priest was not in a good mood, as he got
a bony neck and a hard wing of the chicken tinola. He enjoyed irritating Ibarra. On the way to his hotel,
Lieutenant Guevarra’s company, he learned the sad story of his father’s tragic death in San Diego. Don
Rafael was a kind and noble man who defended a helpless boy from the brutality of an illiterate
Spanish tax collector who was accidentally killed by him. Don Rafael was thrown to prison, where he
died an unhappy man. Moreover, he was not buried in the local cemetery; being accused as a heretic.
Ibarra thanked the Lieutenant for his information and vowed to investigate and find the truth.
The following morning, he visited Maria Clara, his childhood sweetheart, who teased him about the
beautiful women in Germany. The next day, All Saint’s Day, he visited his father’s grave only to find out
that the order of the town priest had removed the corpse and to be buried in the Chinese cemetery.
But since it was dark and rainy, the grave digger simply threw the body into the lake.
Angered, he left the cemetery and, on the way, met Father Salvi and pounced on the priest, demanding
justice for the desecration of his father’s mortal remains, but the priest professed innocence since he
was not the town priest at that time. In the town, he met many interesting people, and one of these
was Tasio, the philosopher, who seemed to live beyond his time; people who could not understand
him called him “Tasio, the Lunatic,” who was nevertheless a very good teacher but complained of the
disinterest of the pupils to learn because of the lack of a proper school building, and the discouraging
attitude of the parish priest in both the teaching of Spanish and the use of modem methods of
teaching; the attitude of the gobernadorcillo who was very much influenced by the parish priest and
catered to his wishes; Don Filipo Lino, the Teniente-mayor and the leader of the liberal faction in the
town; the Capitan of the Cuadrilleros (town police), Don Melchor; and the former gobernadorcillos
and other prominent persons in the community Don Basilio and Don Valentin.
Elias in Noli Me Tangere
It is a story of happiness and frivolity, with the party at the lake, where Capitan Tiago, Maria Clara,
Isabel, cousin of Capitan Tiago, who took care of Maria Clara after her mother’s death; Maria Clara’s
friends, the lively Siniang, the serious Victoria, the beautiful Iday, and the thoughtful Neneng;
Capitana Tika, Siniang’s mother; Andeng, foster sister of Maria Clara; Albino, the extheological student
who was in love with Siniang, and Ibarra and his friends. With them was one of the boatmen, Elias,
who was a strong and silent youth. During the picnic, Ibarra saved the life of Elias, who was attacked
by a crocodile caught in the fish corral, which Elias found difficult to subdue, so Ibarra jumped into the
water and killed the crocodile. It was during this party that preceded the tragedy mentioned above that
Maria Clara rendered a song accompanied by a harp. Afterward, they went ashore and made merry in
the cool meadow, where the town officials gathered and joined the picnic. The picnic ended with
everybody happy and satisfied. After the meal, Ibarra and Capitan Basilio played chess while Maria
Clara and her friends played the “Wheel of Chance,” based on telling fortunes. However, the happy
event was marred by Father Salvi, who came and tore the book to pieces, saying that it was the work
of the devil. At this time, a sergeant and four soldiers of the Guardia Civil suddenly arrived, looking for
Elias, who was suspected of 1) assaulting Father Damaso and 2) throwing the alferez into a mudhole.
Fortunately, Elias had disappeared. Matching the incident was the arrival of the telegram from the
Spanish government accepting Ibarra’s offer of donation for the school building for the children in San
Diego.
Happy over the prospect, he immediately went to Tasio about the project, and Tasio, wise as he was,
was pessimistic about the project. However, the construction of the school building started under the
supervision of an architect. During the preparation of the celebration in honor of the patron saint of
San Diego de Alcala, participated in by many visitors from other places, a mass was given with Father
Salvi officiating and Father Damaso giving the sermon. After the mass, Elias moved to the side of
Ibarra, who was praying together with Maria Clara, and warned him of a plot to kill him and to be
careful during the laying of the cornerstone of the school building. It was proved true, for the derrick
collapsed when Ibarra went down into the trench to cement the cornerstone. Ibarra was saved by
Elias, who pushed him suddenly aside, and killed the suspected plotter instead. At the dinner that
night, a sad incident occurred. Father Damaso insulted the memory of Ibarra’s father in the presence of
many guests who had a personal dislike for Ibarra. Ibarra, being a very sensitive fellow, jumped on
Father Damaso with a sharp knife and would have killed the priest if not for the timely intervention of
Maria Clara. This incident resulted in the 1) cancellation of his engagement to Maria Clara and 2) his
excommunication from the church. The liberal governor-general at that time, however, provided to
help him and persuaded Capitan Tiago to accept Ibarra as his son-in-law and promised likewise solve
the problem of excommunication.
Basilio and Crispin
After the fiesta, however, Maria Clara became ill and was treated by a quack Spanish physician,
Tiburcio de Espadana. The latter’s wife introduced Maria Clara to a young Spaniard by the name of
Linares de Espadana, who was wife-hunting for a rich heiress in the country, and who happened to be
the godson of Father Damaso’s brother-in-law. Despite the encouragement of Father Damaso in favor of
the young Spaniard, Maria Clara refused, for she loved Ibarra. A chapter of the novel is a tragedy. It is the
story of Sisa, a former rich girl who married a man below her station, also a gambler and a wastrel. She
had two sons, Basilio and Crispin, whom she loved very dearly. These two sons served as sacristans
(sextons) in the church to support their mother. Unfortunately, however, Crispin, the younger of the
two brothers, was accused by the chief sacristan of stealing the money of the priest, and for this, he
was tortured till he died in the convent. Basilio, however, escaped. In looking for his two sons, Sisa lost
her mind. Another tale of human pathos and tragedy was the story of Elias. His grandfather, who was
then a young bookkeeper in a Spanish commercial firm, was accused of burning the firm’s warehouse
and, as a punishment, was flogged in public, was crippled, and almost died. His wife, who was
pregnant, begged for alms to support his sick husband and later their first son and eventually became
a prostitute. When the second child was born, she decided to leave and fled to the mountains. Years
later, the first boy became a thief or a notorious tulisan, who terrorized the provinces but was
eventually caught, and his head cut off and hung from a tree branch; this gory object shocked the
mother of Elias’ grandmother, who died.
Meanwhile, the younger brother, Balet, was the opposite of the older brother; he was kindhearted,
fled, and became a trusted laborer in a rich man’s house in the province of Tayabas. However, he fell in
love with his master’s daughter but was not liked by the girl’s father. The latter had his past
investigated and discovered, and he was sent to jail. But the girl gave birth to a set of twins, one of
which was Elias and a girl. The rich grandfather took care of them but kept their father’s past secret,
but reared them as wealthy children. Elias was educated in the Jesuit College in Manila, while the girl
studied at La Concordia College. Their origin would not have been divulged if not for a relative who
owed a particular dispute over money matters, exposed the truth, assisted by an old male servant,
whom they treated badly and who testified in court regarding their father’s past. And to hide their
shame, the twins left the place. The girl simply disappeared while Elias roamed from one place to
another looking for her, who was found dead on the beach of San Diego. Elias, after that, lived a life of
a wanderer until he met Ibarra.
Ibarra’s enemies tried every means to bring about his ruin and engineered an attack on the barracks of
the Guardia Civil and maneuvered the incident so that Ibarra would get the blame. He was arrested, but
Elias came to this rescue by burning all the papers that might incriminate him and, likewise, the house of
Ibarra. Elias went to prison and helped Ibarra escape together in a Banca. But before he made good his
escape, he stopped at Capitan Tiago’s house to say goodbye to Maria Clara. Ibarra told Maria Clara that
he forgave her for giving up his letters which the Spanish authorities used as evidence against him. At the
same time, Maria Clara revealed that the letters were in exchange for a letter from her late mother, Pia
Alba, which Father Salvi, in return, gave her. From the letter, her birth father’s identity was revealed. Her
birth father was Padre Damaso. Upon Ibarra’s return to the Banca, they were seen by a police boat with
the Guardia Civil on board, who pursued them. Fearing the police board would overtake them, Elias
jumped into the river to mislead the pursuers. The soldiers fired at Elias, and the waters in the River,
which turned red, were indicative of Elias being hit. But he was able to reach the shore and staggered
into the forest, where he met Basilio, who was weeping over his dead mother’s body. He requested
Basilio to build a pyre for him and his mother, to which Basilio did and prepared the funeral pyre. It was
Christmas eve when Sisa and Elias were burned to ashes, and as Elias lay dying on the pyre, he
murmured the words: “I die without seeing the dawn brighten over my native land. You, who have it to
see, welcome it and forget not those who have fallen during the night.”
With the help of Elias, Ibarra was able to escape. The novel also contained a comedy, with two señoras,
Doña Consolacion, the mistress of the Spanish Alferez, and Doña Victorina, the dressy wife of a
henpecked Spanish quack doctor, as protagonists. Both insulted each other in the language of the slums
and, not contented with their verbal insults, came to physical blows. However, the battle ended with the
timely arrival of Father Salvi, who stopped the fight. The novel ends, as mentioned in the epilogue, with
Maria Clara entering the nunnery to show her loyalty and love for Ibarra; Father Salvi left the parish of
San Diego; Father Damaso transferred to a remote province but was found dead the following day:
Capitan Tiago, a respected man with power and wealth, later became an opium addict.
Doña Victorina, the termagant wife of Don Tiburcio, ended up with poor eyesight.
Linares, the hunter for an heiress who failed to win Maria Clara’s hand, died of dysentery and was buried
in Paco cemetery.
Sisa
The Noli was a true story regarding Philippine conditions prevailing at that time in the country, during
the last decades of Spanish rule. It was said that the places, the situation, the characters, and the facts
existed and were true. The novel’s characters corresponded with the persons living during that time.
Maria Clara was Leonor Rivera, although Leonor did not enter the nunnery but married a man chosen
by her mother; Elias represented Rizal himself, Tasio, the Philosopher, was Paciano, his elder brother;
Father Salvi was Rizalist as Father Antonio Piemavieja, the hated Augustinian friar who was killed
during the Revolution; Capitan Tiago was Capitan Sunico Hilario of San Nicolas; Doña Victorina was
Doña Agustina Medel. The two brothers were the Crisostomo brothers of Hagonoy; while Father
Damaso was the typical domineering, immoral and arrogant friar during Rizal’s time. The missing
chapter. There is a missing chapter in the novel, definitely following Chapter XXIV. “Elias and Salome,”
which was deleted by Rizal for the simple reason of economy. It must remember that Rizal had
difficulty in having the novel printed for financial reasons.
The missing chapter is the story where the sweethearts Elias and Salome bade each other goodbye after
he had saved Ibarra from his Spanish pursuers and he had been shot and was seriously wounded. The
chapter is a tale of love, where Elias gives his reasons for giving up their love and with the desire for
Salome to live in the nipa hut by the peaceful lake of Mindoro and to bring Elias with her. In the final
published manuscript, Elias was burned with Sisa on a funeral pyre: The Noli is a great novel, written in a
beautiful language, the words coming from a man of passion and feeling and who had experienced
bitterness as well as the happiness of life. The novel caused a stir in the Spanish community, and one of
those who was outspoken in his criticism of the novel was Father Jose Rodriguez, to which Rizal wrote a
witty, satirical booklet entitled “La Vision del Fray Rodriguez,” using one of his pen names Dimas Alang.
He also wrote another satirical work in defense of the charges of another priest, Father Ponce, who was
responsible for the banning of the novel.

El Filibusterismo
Rizal’s second novel was entitled El Filibusterismo, which he started writing in October 1887 while
practicing medicine in Calamba. The following year in London, he changed the plot and corrected
some chapters. The last chapter of the second novel was finished in Biarritz, on the famous French
Riviera, and also at the time when he had a serious romance with Nelly Bousted in the 1890s. It was,
however, only ready for publication on May 30, 1891, after he made revisions. It came out of the press
on September 18, 1891, with the help of Valentin Ventura. The novel was dedicated to the three
martyr priests, Fathers Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora. The Fili is a sequel to the Noli. Compared to the
first novel, it is less romantic, less idealistic, more revolutionary, and more open in its feelings against
the Motherland. There is, however, a difference of opinion among the Rizalists on which one is better.
Of course, some say that Noli Me Tangere is superior, while others say otherwise. Still, the author
himself believed that the first novel was better, which coincides with the opinion of Marcelo H. del
Pilar.

Most of the characters of the Fili are carried over from the Noli, although the names of some of them
were changed. There was Doña Victorina, the pro-Spanish woman, and her henpecked husband,
Tiburcio de Espadaña, who had deserted her; Father Salvi, the Franciscan friar and former cura of San
Diego: and Basilio, son of Sisa, who is a medical student supported by Captain Tiago. On the other
hand, there are new characters in the novel, among which are: Paulita Gomez, the niece of Doña
Victorina; Ben Zayb, a Spanish anti-Filipino journalist; Father Sybila, Vice-Rector of the University of
Santo Tomas; Father Camorra, the parish priest of the town of Tianni; Don Custodio, a Filipino, but
pro-Spanish and holding a high position in the government; Father Irene, a kind priest and friendly to
the Filipinos; Father Florentino, a retired and scholarly patriotic Filipino priest; Isagani, poet nephew of
Father Florentino and lover of Paulita; Juanito Pelaez, the groom of Paulita; and the Chinese Quiroga,
who wanted very much to be the consul of Manila.

Synopsis

The hero of El Filibusterismo is a rich jeweler, Simoun, who is Ibarra. It is recalled that in the last part of
the novel, he was able to escape with the help of Elias. He dug up his buried treasure and fled to Cuba,
where he did become not only rich but also an influential person with many Spanish officials as friends.
After many years, he returned to the Philippines, where he was an influential person, moving freely
around as a rich man and a close friend and adviser to the Spanish governor-general. Due to his close
association with the governor-general, he was often referred to as the “Brown Cardinal” or the “Black
Eminence.”He, however, had ulterior motives and wanted to rescue Maria Clara from the nunnery and
foment a revolution against the hated Spanish authorities. Using his wealth, he bought arms from the
Chinese merchant Quiroga. After a long illness brought about by his loss of Maria Clara, he perfected
his plan of revenge with the help of Basilio to occur at the wedding of Paulita Gomez and Juanito
Pelaez. As a wedding gift, Simoun gave Paulita a lamp that actually would explode when the wick of
the lamp would burn lower with nitroglycerine hidden in its compartment. The wedding guests,
including the governor-general, the friars, and other government officials, would be killed, followed by
the explosions of other buildings in Manila by Simoun’s followers.

The plot, however, was discovered. On the wedding night, Isagani the rejected lover of Paulita, was
lingering outside the building as he was sadly watching the merriment. Basilio, a friend, warned him to
go away because the lighted lamp would explode. Isagani, thinking only of his loved one, Paulita,
rushed into the house and threw the lamp into the river, where it exploded. The Spanish soldiers
cornered Simoun, but he escaped, mortally wounded. Carrying still his treasure chest, he sought
refuge in the house of Father Florentino by the sea. However, his presence in Father Florentino’s house
was known. Lieutenant Perez of the Guardia Civil informed the priest by letter that they were coming
to get Simoun at eight in the evening. Before the Spanish soldiers arrived, Simoun took poison. As he
lay dying, he confessed to Father Florentino his true feelings and identity, how he had used his wealth
to avenge himself, and his desire to foment a revolution against Spain.

The confession of Simoun is “long and painful,” and when Father Florentino rises and begins to
meditate, he comforts the dying man by saying God will forgive you, Senior Simoun. He knows that we
are fallible. He has seen that you have suffered and in ordaining that the chastisement for your faults
should come as death from the very ones you have instigated. He has frustrated your plans one by one,
the best conceived, first by the death of Maria Clara, then by a lack of preparation, then in some
mysterious way. Let us bow to His will and render him thanks. Beautiful passages are found in the novel,
and one of these is that spoken by Father Florentino as Simoun lay dying. These words are always
invoked when telling the story of Simoun. It is what Father Florentino said (109): Where are the youth
who will consecrate their golden hours, their illusions, and their enthusiasm to the welfare of their native
land? Where are the youth who will generously pour out their blood to wash away so much shame,
crime, an abomination? Pure and spotless must the victim be that the sacrifice may be acceptable!
Where are you, youth, who will embody in yourselves the vigor of life that has left our veins, the purity
of ideas that has been contaminated in our brains, the fire of enthusiasm that has been quenched in our
hearts! We await you, O youth! Come, for we await you.

Analysis

People always look at the El Filibusterismo through the Noli. In terms of structure, the former is
shorter. It has only 38 chapters against those of the former. Dr. Rafael Palma, Dr. Blumentritt, and
Graciano Lopez Jaena considered the Fili superior to the other for its “easy and correct dialogue,” clear
phraseology, vigorous and elegant, and profound ideas and sublime thoughts. Lopez Jaena, however,
was not contented with the novel’s ending and advised Rizal to do a third one to give a definite
solution to what he referred to as the “coining of the beautiful day of our redemption.” Mariano
Ponce, on the other hand, claimed that the Fili was more superior than the Noli when he said: “It is
indeed, excellent, I can say nothing of your book, but this, it is marvelous, like all the brilliant
productions of your pen. It is a true twin of the Noli”. The third opinion is best expressed by Zaide
when he said: The issue of which is the superior novel the Noli or the Fili is purely academic. Both are
good novels from the point of view of history. Both depict with realistic colors the actual conditions of
the Philippines and the Filipinos during the decadent days of Spanish rule. Rizal attempted to write a
third novel, as advised by Mariano Ponce, a novel that would consecrate the ethical aspect of customs
and traditions in the country. It was never finished. It was said that it was best that he did not finish
writing the novel, for there would have been more repercussions. From a modem literary point of
view, Rizal’s novels can be rated as outstanding. One goes through them experiencing the emotions
and the passions of the writer. It is quite a tragedy that Rizal had to worry about funds for the
publications of his books. He probably would have written his books better if he did not have that
problem. Rizal, even then, was a brilliant writer.