he encomendero does, after having collected his tributes in the
manner stated, is to return home; and for another year he neither sees
nor hears of them. He takes no more account of them than if they were
deer, until the next year, when the same thing is repeated. These
injuries the Spaniards inflicted in all places until recently. In
this district of Manila there is not so much of it now, because many
of the natives are already Christians, and there are religious among
them, and affairs are in better order. But in remote places and some
not very far away, what I have stated occurs, and even worse things
are done. Because all, or nearly all, of those who pay the tribute
are infidels, and neither know nor understand more of the matters
of our faith than they did a hundred years ago, and even more on
account of the wrongs which they suffer, they abhor and abominate
the faith. Indeed, as for the example of decency which those who
mingle with the Indians set them there is no way to describe it here
without offending your Majesty's ears; but I state it as an assured
fact that they care not whether a woman be a believer or an infidel,
single or married; all are on the same level. From this your Majesty
will gather what these unhappy Indians will have conceived of us and
of the faith which we preach.

I shall not omit to mention here a thing which is full of reproach
to the Christians who have lived here, and even to all of us who hear
it--namely, that the natives of these islands have been, from ancient
times, infidels, of whom there are many now in this and other islands;
and that the Moros have come to these islands from that of Burney to
preach the law of Mahoma, through which preaching a large number of
pagans have turned Moros. Those who have received this vile law keep
it with much pertinacity, and there is great difficulty in getting
them to leave it. Moreover it is known that the reason which they
give--to our shame and confusion--is that they were better treated by
the preachers of Mahoma than they have been and are by the preachers of
Christ. [30] Since, through kind and gentle treatment, they received
that doctrine willingly, it took root in their hearts, and so they
leave it reluctantly. But this is not the case with what we preach to
them, for, as it is accompanied with so much bad treatment and with
so evil examples, they say "yes" with the mouth and "no" with the
heart; and thus when occasion arises they leave