Rizal's Morga and Views of Philippine History PDF

Rizal's Morga and Views of Philippine History Author(s): Ambeth R. Ocampo Source: Philippine Studies, Vol. 46, No. 2 (Second Quarter 1998), pp. 184-214 Published by: Ateneo de Manila University Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/42634257. Accessed: 28/06/2014 15:43 Your use of the JSTOR archiv...

Rizal's Morga and Views of Philippine History Author(s): Ambeth R. Ocampo Source: Philippine Studies, Vol. 46, No. 2 (Second Quarter 1998), pp. 184-214 Published by: Ateneo de Manila University Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/42634257. Accessed: 28/06/2014 15:43 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at. http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].. Ateneo de Manila University is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Philippine Studies. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  Rizal's Morga and Views of Philippine History Ambetb R. Ocampo M I Antonio de Morga, lieutenantgovernorof the Philippines in the late sixteenthcentury,described the food of the indios as follows: Theirdailyfareis composedof:ricecrushedin woodenpillarsand when the land); cooked is called morisqueta(thisis the staple throughout cooked fishwhichtheyhave in abundance;pork,venison,mountain buffaloeswhichtheycall carabaos,beefand fishwhichtheyknowis bestwhenit has startedto rotand stink(Retana1909,174). Reading this textin the BritishMuseum 280 years later,Rizal was so incensed that he later responded in print with: This is anotherpreoccupation of the Spaniardswho, like any other nation,treatfoodto whichtheyare notaccustomedor is unknownto themwithdisgust.The English,forexample,feelhorrorto see a Span- iardeatingsnails.To theSpaniardroastbeefis repugnantand he can- notunderstand how SteakTartaror rawbeefcan be eaten;theChinese who have tahuriand eat sharkcannotstandRoquefort cheeseetc.etc. This fishthatMorgamentions, thatcannotbe good untilit beginsto rot,is bagoong[saltedand fermented fishor shrimppaste used as a sauce in Filipinocuisine]and thosewho have eaten it and tastedit knowthatit neitheris norshouldbe rotten(Rizal 1890,264).1 Rizal's sarcastic rebuttalappears, surprisingly,not in his satirical novels or his polemical tracts,but in a scholarlywork- his annotated rééditionof Morga's Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas. Aside fromthe ra- cial slurs to which he was reacting,however, Rizal maintainedmixed Conference at theInternational was a paperpresented Thisarticle on JoseRizal KualaLumpur, andtheAsianRenaissance, Malaysia, 1995. 3 October 184 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  S MORGA RIZAL' feelingsforthe Morga, depending on its usefulnessforhis thesis that Spanish colonization retarded,ratherthan broughtcivilizationto, the Philippines and its inhabitants. UnfortunatelyRizal's Morga has been relegated in the canon, un- der his "minor writings" (Craig 1927), and remains largely unread due to the pre-eminence of his novels, Noli me tangere and El Filibusterismo.Unlike the novels, which have been attacked and con- demned regularly in the past century,the Morga remains largely ignored. It is lamentable that, despite being a classic of nationalist historicalwriting,Rizal's Morga is seldom read today. That Rizal's annotations are largely disregarded today stems basi- cally fromthe recentadvances in historical,archeological and ethno- graphic research. Although many of Rizal's assertions have been validated by recentresearch, the fact is that his work is now dated. Moreover Rizal's annotations are secondary, and today's scholars concentratemore on the primarysource,Morga, than on Rizal's notes. Few Filipinos today, even the most patriotic,would find the time and energyto read the small textof Rizal's footnotes,even if penned by the national hero. Another factorin the relative obscurityof Rizal's annotations to Morga was censorship during the Spanish colonial period. Like Noli me tangereand El Filibusterismo , the Rizal edition of Morga was banned in the Philippines in the late nineteenthcentury.Therefore copies confiscatedby Spanish customs in Manila and other ports of entrywere destroyed. Due to the burning of one particularlylarge shipmentof the Morga, the book attained "rare" and "out of print" status withina year of its publication. It did not have a second print- ing, and the few copies in circulation were lefthidden and unread by frightenedowners. There is also the problem of language, which restrictedthe im- pact of the Morga to a small, educated, Spanish-reading elite in Manila. Among this already minute circle,one could count with the fingersof one hand, the people who would read a historicalwork like Morga rather than the more entertainingRizal novels. Rizal's Morga was not read by the masses, although people heard a great deal about this controversial work. Rizal's Morga, thus unread, is almost forgotten. This article deals with Rizal's views on Philippine history.It at- temptsto place Rizal's Morga within the frameworkof his work, as well as in the larger context of Philippine historiography.Rizal's Morga may not have been read widely, but its significancelies in 185 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES the fact that with this edition, Rizal began the task of writingthe firstPhilippine historyfromthe viewpoint of a Filipino. Philippine History One matterhas to be clarified at the outset. Rizal is often cred- ited with "rewritingPhilippine history."The notion of "Philippine history"is ambiguous to begin with. It can mean either the history of the place or the historyof the people of the place. The difference between these two historiesis related to the differentconcepts of the Filipinoand the FilipinoNation. The formerdid not exist untilRizal's time,and the latterdid not exist until the establishmentof the short- lived PhilippineRepublic under Aguinaldo in 1898. If Philippine his- toryis taken to mean the historyof the place, then Rizal was indeed rewritinghistory,because there are numerous Spanish chronicles writtenfromthe late sixteenthto the nineteenthcenturies.However, if we mean the historyof the Filipinos, then,being the firsthistory and having nothingto rewrite,Rizal was actually writingPhilippine history.The historiographicalimportanceof this little-readscholarly work by Rizal is that it was the firsthistorical work on the Philip- pines by a Filipino. It is the firsthistorywrittenfrom the point of view of the colonized not the colonizer. Rizal seems to have been reflectingon his country'shistoryshortly aftercompletingNoli me tangere,in late February1887, and obviously drawing on the popular Tagalog proverb, "ang hindi marunong" lumingpn hindimakararating sa pinanggalingan sa pinaroroonan (he who does not know where he came from,will never reach his destina- tion). He realized the importanceof the past as a tool to understand the presentand eventually confrontthe future.Although he wished to embarkon some historicalresearch,he restrainedhimself,admitting his inadequacy in a letterto the Austrian ethnographer,Ferdinand Blumentritt, asking him to write a historyof the Philippines: The Philippineswould be gratefulto you ifyou will writea complete historyof our country,judged from impartialcriteria.I believethat you are theonly one who can do it. I have thecourageforthis,but I do notknowenough.I have notread as manybooks aboutmycoun- tryand theSpanishlibrariesare closed to me; furthermore mytimeis neededforotherthingsand everything I say will alwaysbe suspected of havingbeen inspiredby a partisanspirit,but you would be read 186 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL'SMORGA you do not have as an impartialjudge; you have no selfishinterests... to amendhistorical forthesakeof FilipinosnortheSpan- truthneither iards,and you could contemplate the past in cold blood like an out- side observer.... I thinkthatyou are theman best equippedforthis task(Epistolario1938,5:116).2 By this time, Rizal had begun another novel, a sequel to Noli me tätigere.But towards the end of June1888, he tore up the completed chapters, changed the plot entirely,and began anew to produce a work which would influence his countrymen "to think correctly" ( Epistolario1931, 2:20-21). Then, in the middle of August 1888, re- signed that Blumentrittcould not be persuaded to write a historyof the Philippines,Rizal set his literarylabors aside, and began to work on his country's history. Armed with a letterof introductionfrom the Director of the In- dia OfficeLibrary,Reinhold Rost, he applied for and was granted a reader's pass to the BritishMuseum, where he began to consult early printed materials on the Philippines. "I'm busy," he wrote to his friend, Blumentritt, "I'm assiduously reading all the ancient [i.e.primary]sources on the historyof the Philippines, and I do not think I want to leave London until I have read all the books and manuscriptsthathave referencesto the Philippines.I want to become the 'Filipino Blumentritt"'(Epistolario1938, 5:311). Close to 18 August 1888, Rizal was copying out, by hand, the entirefirstedition of Morga's Sucesosde las islas Filipinas, annotating it along the way, confidentthat Antonio Regidor, a wealthy coun- tryman,in exile in London following the Cavite Mutiny of 1872, would publish the work when completed. As an added incentive, Regidor promised Rizal that as soon as he had recovered his invest- ment in the book, all profitswould be divided equally between au- thor and publisher. Rizal, however, was a realist who accepted that scholarlybooks such as the Morga would not be financiallyreward- ing. Thus he stated in a letterto Blumentrittthat his aim was sim- ply to "present a new edition to the public, above all the Filipino public... I do this solely for my country,because this work will bring me neitherhonor nor money" (Epistolario1938).3 His fears proved correct,for he did not earn anythingfrom the Morga. In fact,Regidor unexpectedlybacked out of the venturewith- out the courtesy of an explanation. One of Rizal's friendshinted at racism,as Regidor was of Spanish extraction.Afterall his work in the copying, editing,and annotationof the Sucesos Rizal had a finished 187 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  STUDIES PHILIPPINE manuscriptbut no publisher. Undaunted by the initial frustration, Rizal decided to publish the Morga himself.By the end of September 1889he had broughtthe manuscriptto Paris,where printingcostswere lower than in London, and sent a letterto Blumentritt requestinghim to write an introductionto the book (Epistolario1938, 5:441, 471). The concrete result of four months of intense historicalresearch in Bloomsburywas Rizal's second book with a typicallylong Span- ish title,Sucesos de las islas Filipinaspor el Doctor Antoniode Morga. Obra publicadaen mejicoen el año de 1609, nuevamentesacada a luz y anotada por Jose Rizal, y precedidade un prologo del prof.Fernando Blumentritt(Events in the Philippine Islands by Dr. Antonio de Morga. A work published in Mexico in the year 1609, reprintedand annotated by Jose Rizal and preceded by an introductionby profes- sor Ferdinand Blumentritt). A shortbiography of Morga and an outline of the structureof his book is necessaryat this point.Antoniode Morga was born in 1559 irt Seville.He graduated fromthe Universityof Salamanca in 1574 and in 1578 attaineda doctoratein Canon Law. He taughtbrieflyin Osuna, laterreturningto Salamanca to studyGvil Law. In 1580 hiejoined the governmentservice,and was appointed in 1593 to Manila as Lieuten- ant Governor,the second most powerfulposition in the colony,next only to the Governor General of the Philippines. In 1598 he resigned this post to assume the officeof oidoror judge in the Audiencia. Morga's fame (or infamy depending on which account you are reading) came in 1600, when he was put in charge of the Spanish fleetagainst a Dutch invasion under Olivier van Noort. Althoughthe Dutch sailed away, the Spaniards lost heavily, and according to Morga, he had jumped ship and swam ashore with nothingbut the enemy standard in his hand. The Dutch account of the battle de- scribes Morga hiding and crying in his flagship before it sank. Morga's reputationin the colony sank, like his flagship,and in 1603 he was transferredto Mexico. A particularlymalicious biographical note on Morga is provided by W.E. Retana in his three-volumeAparatoBibliografico de la Historia Generalde Filipinas(Bibliographical Apparatus for a General History of the Philippines) published in 1906. In his entry on the Sucesos, Retana cites a domestic scandal to comment on Morga's character. Briefly,Juliana,Morga's eldest daughter,was discovered in 1602 to be in love with a man of a lower social standing, a soldier from Mexico. Morga and his wife firsttriedto discourage the relationship by beating up Juliana,shaving her hair, and finallylocking her up 188 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL' S MORGA in the house. Yet Julianamanaged to escape fromher parent's house by tyingbedsheets together,and lowering herselffromher bedroom window to the street. When Morga discovered thathis daughter had eloped, he brought in the governor general himselfto persuade Juliana frommarriage. They were all unsuccesful. Juliana silenced parental opposition by threateningto commitsocial suicide by marryinga negro if she was not allowed to marryher lover.4Morga never spoke to his daughter again, and lefther in Manila when he moved to Mexico. From Mexico, Morga was moved to Quito in 1615 where he was president of the Audiencia.Again Morga found himself in trouble, and in 1625 was investigated for corruption and eventually found guilty. However he escaped humiliation,and the gallows, by dying in 1636, before the case was wound up.5 Morga began his work, Sucesos de las islas Filipinas, it is claimed, as a way of saving face afterthe disaster with the Dutch invaders in Manila in 1600. Hence, it is Morga's version of the battle of Manila Bay left to history.The work consists of eight chapters: 1. Of the firstdiscoveries of the Eastern islands. 2. Of the governmentof Dr. Francisco de Sande 3. Of the governmentof don Gonzalo Ronquillo de Peñalosa 4. Of the governmentof Dr. Santiago de Vera. 5. Of the governmentof Gomes Perez Dasmariñas. 6. Of the governmentof don Francisco Tello 7. Of the governmentof don Pedro de Acuña 8. An account of the Philippine Islands. The firstseven chaptersmainly concern the political events which occurred in the colony during the terms of the firsteleven gover- nor-generals in the Philippines, beginning with Miguel Lopez de Legaspi in 1565 to Pedro de Acuña who died in June 1606. For present-dayFilipinos chapter eight is the most interesting,because it gives a description of the pre-Hispanic Filipinos, or rather the indios, at the Spanish contact. This same chapter was indispensable for Rizal, not only forits ethnographicvalue but more to help him reconstruct the pre-Hispanic Philippines which Rizal wanted to present to his countrymen. In his preface to the Morga, Rizal states that he did not change a single word in the text,save those that required respellingin modern Spanish orthographyor correctedpunctuation: 189 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  STUDIES PHILIPPINE Bom and raised in the ignoranceof our past,like mostof you,with- out voice or authority to speak about whatwe did notsee norstudy, I consideredit necessary to invokethetestimonyofan illustrious Span- iard who governedthe destinyof the Philippinesat thebeginning of her new era and witnessedthe last momentsof our ancientnational- ity.Therefore,it is theshadowofthecivilization ofourancestors which theauthornow evokesbeforeyou.The highoffice, thenationality,and meritsof Morga,togetherwiththe data and testimonies of his con- temporaries, mostlySpanish,recommendtheworkto yourthoughtful consideration (Rizal 1890,preface).6 Rizal's Choice of Morga Why did Rizal choose Morga over other Spanish chronicles?Why does he recommend Morga to his countrymen? Surely, Antonio Pigafetta'saccount of the Magellan expeditionwas more detailed,and closer to the point of firstcontactbetween the Philippinesand Spain. Rizal's choice of reprintingMorga rather than other contemporary historicalaccounts of the Philippines was due to the followingrea- sons: the original book was rare; Morga was a layman not a reli- gious chronicler;Rizal felt Morga to be more "objective" than the religious writers whose accounts included many miracle stories; Morga, compared to religious chroniclers,was more sympatheticto the indios; and finally,Morga was not only an eyewitnessbut a major actor in the events he narrates. Morga's Sucesos was originallypublished in Mexico in 1609, and was therefore rare. In his introduction, Blumentrittnotes thatthebook is "so rare that the few librariesthat have a copy guard it with the same care as theywould an Inca treasure" (Rizal 1890,introduction). In 1971, when J.S. Cummins of UniversityCollege London trans- lated, edited and annotated the latest edition of Morga for the Hakluyt Society,he listed just twenty-five extantcopies of the Morga in libraries and other research institutions.It is possible that there are some unrecorded copies in private collections,but it is safe to assume that there are less than thirtyextant copies of the firstedi- tion Morga (Cummins 1971, 37). Ironically, Morga was disseminated 259 years after its original publication in a widely read English translationby H.E.J. Stanley, published in London by the Hakluyt Society in 1868 under the title The PhilippineIslands, Moluccas, Siam, Cambodia, Japanand Chinaat the 190 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  S MORGA RIZAL' close of theSixteenthCentury , which is misleading, since the book is basically on Spain in the Philippines,and describes,mainly,how the colony was used as a foothold in Asia, from which other Spanish expeditions were launched.7 The original Spanish textof 1609 had never been reprintedin full until the annotated Rizal edition came off the press of Gamier Hermanos in Paris in 1889.®After the Rizal edition, there was a magnificentedition by Wenceslao Emilio Retana, which saw printin 1909.9Probably the most accurate edition, as it reproduces even the misprintsof the original, Retana also supplied a great amount of supplementary material in his extensive introductionand copious notes. What makes Retana's edition invaluable is the primarysource material,by Morga himselfand other contemporaries,drawn from the Archivo General de Indias in Seville, which amplifyand enrich the main text. Its only drawback is that it is inaccessible to those who cannot read Spanish. In the Philippines,Rizal's Morga was reissued in photo-offsetre- production only in 1958, by which time few Filipinos knew or cared for books in Spanish. An English translationof Rizal's Morga was commissioned and published by the Jose Rizal National Centennial Commission in 1961, but has proven unsatisfactorycompared with the most popular English edition of Morga at present- that by J.S. Cummins published by the Hakluyt Society in 1971. These bibliographicalnotes not only stress the rarityof the origi- nal, but also reveal that Rizal was not satisfiedwith the Stanley edi- tion, which he thought contained errors of fact and interpretation which required correction.In the eighth chapter, for example, is a titillatingdescriptionof the sexual habits of the pre-Hispanic indios. Like Magellan's chronicler,Antonio Pigafetta(1969) Morga noted the use of penis rings or sagras by the indios. This short,sexually ex- plicit, passage was not rendered into English by Stanley who was obviously constrained by his Victorian scruples. On page 304 of Stanley's Morga the offendingparagraph is leftin the original Span- ish. In the Rizal edition, everythingis reproduced in full with no censorship and some annotation (Rizal 1890, 309). Although he was doing his research in London, it is strange that Rizal did not contact or correspond with Stanley regarding the Morga. Rizal felt,like Blumentrittwho wrote the introduction,that the annotationsto Morga should be made not by a foreignerbut by an indio. 191 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  STUDIES PHILIPPINE Rizal's second considerationfor the choice of Morga was that it was the only civil, as opposed to religious or ecclesiastical, history of the Philippines writtenduring the colonial period. Chronicles by Spanish colonial officials(or non-religious)were rare,making Morga, for over two centuries,the only secular general historyof the Phil- ippines in print (Retana 1906, 3:1169). The main complaint against religious historianswas thattheydealt more with church historythan the historyof the Philippines and its people. In an unsigned article entitled "Reflectionson historical publica- tions relatingto the Philippines"which appeared in IlustraciónFilipina in I860, the writerasked why: despitethe thousandsof documents,hundredsof historiansand the ongoingwriting ofa generalhistory of Spain,thePhilippineshas been ignoredfor threecenturies.There is much to be written,but thehisto- riansof the Philippinesof the old school(antiguosistema),writevol- umes upon volumeswhichgo down to verytrivialdetailssuch that theýfailto get readersinterested in the historyof the Philippines.A generalhistory of the Philippinesis demandedof the cultureof the century(Ilustración1860,149-51). A general historyof the Philippines was an ambitious undertak- ing considering the rarityof secular and, more importantly,indio historians.Until Rizal's edition of Morga, therewas no historyof the Philippines writtenby an indio, or one writtenfrom the viewpoint of the indio. In 1925, the American historianAustin Craig pointed out that as the Philippines had been a colony of Spain, the historiesof the Phil- ippines writtenduring the colonial period were nothing but chap- ters in the larger historyof Spain. In short,what was available was not a historyof the Philippines,but a historyof Spain in the Philip- pines. This idea was acted upon by Teodoro A. Agoncillo in the 1960/s,who, like Rizal, espoused the writingof Philippine history fromthe Filipino point of view as opposed to that of the foreigner. The main differencebetween Agoncillo and Rizal, however, is that the indios of the nineteenthcenturyhad yet to consider themselves a nation, and could not have considered themselves as Filipinos. The thirdconsiderationforthe choice of Morga was Rizal's opin- ion that this secular account was more objective, more trustworthy, than those writtenby the religious missionarieswhich were liberally sprinkled with tales of miracles and apparitions: 192 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  S MORGA RIZAL' All the historieswrittenby the religiousbeforeand afterMorga,up etc. to our days, abound withstoriesof devils,miracles,apparitions, These formthe bulk of the voluminoushistoriesof the Philippines (Rizal 1890,311 n. I).10 Rizal's annotations fall into two categories. Firstare the straight- forwardhistoricalannotations,where Rizal amplifiesor correctsthe original.Second are the annotationswhich, thoughhistoricallybased, reflecthis strong anticlericalbias. The latteris somethingnot to be expected in a scholarly work, but these notes give Rizal's edition its distinctflavor. Rizal branded religious interpretationsof events as "pious lies" (190). Rizal emphasized that Morga's Sucesos was devoid of the charac- teristicDeus ex machinainterpretationof historicalevents which was popular for the friar chroniclersof the sixteenthto the eighteenth centuries.Their aim was not to record historyas is, but to document the achievementsof theirreligious orders and, more importantly,to edifytheirreaders. Friar chroniclescannot be described as historyin the modern sense, but as a narrativewith a moral lesson. Oftenthese chronicleswere writtento encourage religious vocations or material donations for the missions in Asia. An example of this clash in historiographycan be seen in Rizal's caustic comments on the friaraccounts of the Chinese uprising of 1603. He was particularlyharsh on the claims that the Augustinián, Antonio Flores, who, in the words of Aduarte, a Dominican friar in one nighttookoffthebottomsof twohundredvessels,burnedsome biggerones and sank others,and withtwo arquebusesand something morethan400bullets,fromfivein themorning untilsixin theevening, killedmorethan600 Chinese... later,he alone killedmorethan3,000 (225 n. 2). Not to be outdone, the Franciscans attributedthe Spanish victory over the Chinese not to the gallant men who manned the cannons on the gates of Intramurosor repelled the rebels fromthe walls of the city,but to the founder of theirorder, St. Francis of Assisi, who was allegedly seen protectingIntramurosand fightingoff the Chi- nese with a flaming sword. Due to this tale, St. Francis was pro- claimed by the Archbishop of Manila, serafíncustodio de Manila (Seraphic Protectorof Manila), whose feastday was now celebrated annually as a holiday. The governmentsubsidized the ceremonythat accompanied this religious feast. 193 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  STUDIES PHILIPPINE To challenge this account, Rizal cited contemporaryaccounts of the Chinese uprising writtenby laymen, which made no mentionoř the miracle of St. Francis. According to Rizal, as two other chroni- clers, Morga and Argensola, were silent on St. Francis,perhaps the miracle was added only years afterthe event (225 n. 2). How elated Rizal would have been had he found out that the four hundred sworn statementsabout the saintlyapparition given by Chinese pris- oners sentencedto death forthe uprising,were made aftertheycon- verted to Catholicism, were baptized and pardoned (Gonzalez- Liquette). Furthermore,Rizal utilized Morga to discredit the work of the Dominican chroniclerDiego de Aduarte,whose Historiade la provincia del SonetoRosariode la ordende Predicadoresen Philippinas(History of the Province of the Holy Rosary of the Order of Preachers in the> Philippines) was published in Manila in 1640 and was considered so authoritativeit was oftencited or repeated by later historians.In an. extended footnote,spanning two pages, Rizal contrastedthe work of Aduarte and Morga, admittingthatalthoughthe Dominican's work was pleasant, charming,animated,and writtenin a picturesquestyle, it was, marredby gaps, contradictionsand distortions,unlike Morga, who was more "faithfulas a chroniclerof his time... if he covers up many things for political reasons... he never distortsevents" (Rizal 1890, 122-23). Aduarte had laterbeen named a bishop, and accordingto an ador- ing biographer,the friarwas so holy and ascetic, he wore patched shoes and afterhis death miraculously grew a beard in his coffin. Unable to resistcommenting,Rizal said acidly "we have other saints with less beard and bettershoes" (122-23).11 Apart fromtheirdeliberate distortionof events in theirpropaga- tion of a religious interpretationof Philippine history,Rizal took the friarchroniclersto task for going against theirvows of poverty.In one of his annotations,Rizal estimated the wealth held by the reli- gious corporations,particularlythe Franciscansand Dominicans,who owned much propertyand land in the Philippines.Rizal showed that the Dominicans maintainedpropertieseven in neighboringHongkong (346 n. 2). He concluded that, "of course since the beginning[of the colonial period] the.friarmissionaries had very few opportunitiesto sufferforreligion" (347 n. 1). Rizal's anticlericalismshould be seen in the contextof his educa- tion in the politicallyunstable, liberal Madrid of the late nineteenth century,where the Republicans blamed most social ills on priestsand 194 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL' S MORGA religious. In addition, there were Rizal's experiences of oppression in the colonial Philippines. That he was particularlysharp on the Dominicans can be explained by the agrarian disputes his family faced in Calamba which was a Dominican hacienda. However, Rizal had a soft spot for the Jesuits,who, incidentally are not friars,under whose tutelage he received his early education. Only afterthe religiousconsolidatedtheirposition,did theybeginto spread calumniesand to debase the races of the Philippineswitha view to givingthemselves moreimportance, makingthemselves indis- pensable,and thus excusingtheirstupidityand ignorancewiththe pretendedcoarsenessoftheindio.Thereis, however,an exception, for theJesuitswho alwayseducatedand enlightenedthe indioswithout declaringthemselvesas eternalprotectors, etc. etc. tutors,defenders, [oftheindios](329 n. 2).12 The Jesuits,unlike the other religious orders, were spared arrest and abuse by the Filipino forcesduring the second-phase of the Phil- ippine Revolution thatbegan in 1898. This can partiallybe explained by the factthatmany leaders of the revolutionwere formerstudents of the Jesuit-runAteneo Municipal. The Jesuitsdid promote a pro- gressive educational system, with its emphasis on philosophy, the humanitiesand the naturalsciences. Despite his softspot forthe Jesu- its, however, Rizal also includes the jibe in his later annotationsthat the Society of Jesuswas fiftyyears behind enlightenedsecular opin- ion and science in Europe. Moreover,the Jesuitsmaintaineda good reputationregardingtheir vows of poverty and chastity simply because the Order was sup- pressed by the Pope in the eighteenth century.The Spanish King ordered the expulsion of the Jesuitsand the confiscationof theirprop- erty in all Spanish dominions; thereforethe Jesuitshad been absent fromthe Philippines from1768 until they were allowed to returnin 1859. Upon theirreturn,the otherreligiousorders thathad takenover theirpropertyrefused to yield both physical and ecclesiasticaljuris- diction. Thus the Jesuitswere sent to establish missions in the south- ern, predominantlyMuslim, island of Mindanao. A twist of history made them lose an opportunity to become a wealthy landowning religious corporationdespised by indios. The fourthconsiderationin Rizal's choice of the Morga was that it appeared more sympathetic,at least in parts,to the indios, in con- trastto the friaraccounts, many of which were biased or downright 195 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES racist in tone and interpretation.In a letterto Blumentritt,on Sep- tember17, 1888, shortlybefore embarkingon his annotations,Rizal expressed his preferencefor Morga: The Morgais an excellentbook; it can be said thatMorga is a mod- ern learnedexplorer(moderno sabioexplorador).He has nothingof the and superficiality exaggerationso typicalof Spaniards.He present-day writesverysimply,butin readinghimthereis muchbetweenthelines because he was governorgeneralin the Philippinesand after,head (Alcalde)of theInquisition(Epistolario 1938,5:308)." The fifthand last consideration was that Morga was an eyewit- ness, and thereforea primarysource, on the Philippines and its peo- ple at the point of firstcontact with Spain. Rizal spoke highly of Morga's integrityas a colonial official,which may have been true of his termof officein Manila, but, according to more recenteditions, by Retana (1909) and Cummins (1971), his scruples seem to have deteriòratedas he advanced in age and career. Rizal's oftenhumorlessrebuttalsof biased Spanish accounts of his countryand his people emphasized, on one level, the need for an indio interpretationof history,while on another recreatingthe glo- ries of the lost pre-Hispanic Philippines. Rizal argued that the pre- Hispanic Filipinos had theirown culture before 1521, and thus were not saved frombarbarism,and did not require "civilization"or a new religion from Spain. Rizal insists that the flourishingpre-Hispanic Philippinecivilization,obliteratedby Spain and the friars,could have developed on its own into something great. Rizal emphasizes that the pre-Hispanic civilization had metallurgy,a ship-buildingindus- try,trade contacts with China, and even a system of writingand accompanying literature,all ruined by Spanish colonization. Rizal commentsthatthe Philippinesof his time was no betterthan the pre- Hispanic Philippines. If Spain had not come, or had leftthe Philip- pines to its own devices, everyone would be betteroff. Rizal's Interpretation of History of historymakes Rizal both a boon and a bane This interpretation to Philippinenationalism.He made historicalassertionsnecessaryfor his time and purposes, but Filipinos a centurylater,educated on the same viewpoint,refuse to see Rizal's work in the contextof recent 196 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  S MORGA RIZAL' scholarship. Most of Rizal's historicalassertions have been validated by recent research. However thereare flaws in his reconstructionof pre-Hispanic Philippine civilization,Three examples centralto Rizal's arguments will sufficeto prove his influence. Generationsof Filipino schoolchildrenfromthe Americancolonial period to the present have been raised to accept that the pre-His- panic Filipinos had a system of writingand an accompanying writ- ten literaturewhich was destroyedby the missionarieswho saw these as "works of the devil." Second is the view that the pre-Hispanic Filipinos had an advanced knowledge of metallurgy,the evidence being the finecannons made by an indio named Panday Pira. Third was the existenceof a pre-Hispanic ship-buildingindustry.All these, it is said, were systematicallyruined by the Spanish. Filipino histo- rians today have to reconsider the assertions made by Rizal a cen- tury ago in the light of currentarchaeological and anthropological research. In Morga's fourth chapter, for example, on the term of Governor Santiago de Vera, thereis a referenceto a foundryrun by an indio fromPampanga named Panday Pira: [de Vera]builtthe stonefortress of Our Lady of the Way,insidethe cityof Manila on the land side, and foritsdefense,he had set up a foundryforthe makingof artillery underthe hands of an old indio called Pandapira,a nativeof the provinceof Pampanga.He and his sons servedin thisline of workuntiltheirdeaths manyyearslater (Rizal 1890,23).14 The word "panday" in Java and Borneo means "metalworker"or "ironsmith."How Panday Pira became a "cannon-maker"can only be traced to Rizal. Although Morga made only a passing reference to this indio artillery-maker, Rizal elaboratedin his annotation,stress- ing that. That is, an indiowhoalreadyknewhowtofoundcannonsevenbefore the arrivaloftheSpaniards, hencethe epithet'old/ In thisdifficult branch of metallurgy,as in others,thepresent-dayFilipinosor thenew indios are verymuchbehindtheold indios(italicsmine;23).15 In the next chapter, the fifth,on the term of Governor General Gomez Perez Dasmariñas, thereis anotherreferenceby Morga to the foundry:"[Perez-Dasmariñas] established a foundryfor artilleryin Manila where, owing to the lack of expert or master founders,few 197 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES large pieces were made" (27).16Rizal now takes the opportunityto point out, in a footnote,thatthe indigenous foundryrun by Panday Pira disappeared afterthe Spanish settled in Manila, conquered from the indios: "This demonstratesthat,when the indio Panday Pira died, therewere no Spaniards who know how to do what he did, nor were his children as skilled as theirfather"(27 n. 4).17 Today Panday Pira, the cannon-founder,joins the Pantheon of Heroes and other "great" Filipinos who are immortalizedin school textbooks,despite historicaland archeological evidence to the con- trary.In Retana's editionof Morga, his long footnoteson Panday Pira contain transcriptionsof sixteenthcenturyarchival documents from Seville which refute Rizal's assertions that cannon-making was a flourishingindigenous industry.The documents from the colonial governmentin Manila requestinghigherauthoritiesin Mexico to send cannon makers show thatthe Filipinos were unable to forgethe thick European-stylecannons. A letter fromgovernorVera on 26 June 1587, to the Viceroy in Mexico gives an account of his artilleryand requests more. I cannotfindanyonewhoknowshow to foundcannons,becausethose providedare by indioswhocannotmakelargecannons.I requestYour Excellencyto send fromNew Spain foundersand officers to manufac- turecannons(Retana1909,406). Retana continues, This is to say,thatthenativesdid notknow how to foundlargecan- nons.The twenty-six largepieces alluded to by de Vera could very well come fromtheSpanishshipsor thosewell-madeby Robles,the Spanishmasterfounder. IfPandayPiraand his sons wereindeedsuch experts makinglargecannonstherewould be no reason forde at Vera's request(406). Robles, he notes elsewhere,died before 1587. Thus his arrival in the Philippines could be dated to about 1575-76. Retana takes Fili- - - pino historians above all Rizal to task fortryingto claim too much ¡fromso little,by insistingthat cannon-makingwas a flourishingin- digenous industry.The documents he cites prove otherwise. Retana has more to say. He cites an ethnographic article by Blumentritt(whose opinion was held in high esteem by Rizal and otherFilipino writers)which statedthat the pre-Hispanicfoundrythe Spaniards encountered in Manila was run by a Portugese c?nnon- 198 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  S MORGA RIZAL' maker! It is odd that Rizal, who read practically every word Blumentritthad writtenon the Philippines,overlooked an important line in Filipinas en tiempode la Conquista (Boletín1886, 217), which states that the Portuguese taught the Tagalogs the foundingof can- nons. Blumentrittstates furtherthat cannons were brought to the Philippinesby Portuguese adventurersand deserters,challengingthe opinion of other scholars who maintained that this "indigenous" in- dustrycould trace its provenance to Borneo. Retana (1909, 418-19) gives the coup de grace : withrelationto the foundingof in a word,in the art of metallurgy cannons,theFilipinosdid notretrogress, on thecontrary,theygained, thanksto thetraininggivenby the Spaniards. Historical evidence provided by Retana is supported by recent archeological research. Dr. Eusebio Dizon, Chief of the Archaeology Division of the National Museum of the Philippines,wrote his doc- toral dissertationon pre-Hispanic Philippine metal implements.His research showed that the indios were a metal-usingpeople, but did not possess the metallurgicalknowledge attributedto themby Rizal or the subsequent historians who drew on Rizal's work. He noted, however, that it is possible that the indios were capable of forging the small cannons, or lantakas, which are still manufacturedby the Muslims in the Southern island of Mindanao, although they are not used for warfarebut as ornaments for interiordecoration. The pre- Hispanic indios, as far as currentarchaeological data is concerned, were not capable of foundingthe heavy European-stylecannons used in the sixteenthcentury(Dizon 1991, interview). It may be argued that Rizal did not have the benefitof late twen- tieth centuryresearch. His work, no doubt, was commendable for its time,but in his zeal to recreate the greatnessof the lost pre-His- panic Philippinecivilization,he sometimesdrew on imaginationmore than evidence. Rizal's historicalannotations have to be seen in this light. They were part of a propaganda effort.Scholarlyannotations to a sixteenthcentury chronicle were used as propaganda: history was utilized as a weapon against Spain. Another example may be necessary to demonstrateRizal's exag- geration.Morga describes Filipino boats large enough to carry "one hundred rowers on the border (vanda) and thirtysoldiers on top (pelea)/' on which Rizal (1890, 267-68 n. 1) elaborates to mourn the extinctionof the indigenous boat-makingindustry: 199 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  STUDIES PHILIPPINE The Filipinos... [were]celebratedand skilledin navigation,but far fromprogressing, havebecomebackward.Although boatsare stillbuilt in the islands now, we can say thattheyare almostall oř the Euro- pean model. The ships thatcarriedone hundredrowersand thirty fighting soldiersdisappeared.The countrythatat one time,withprimi- tivemeans,builtshipsof around2,000tons,now has to resortto for- eign portslike Hongkong... forunserviceablecruisers.18 On the same page, Rizal laments the environmentalcosts of Span- ish boat-building,by describingthe pre-HispanicPhilippinelandscape as being "covered in shadows/' as an abundance of trees were cut down with no thoughtof conservation,so that some species became extinct(268). There is no doubt that the pre-Hispanic indios were a seafaring people who built swiftand lightvessels thatcould traversethe length of the archipelago or cross into neighboringcountriesfor trade. Re- cent archeological excavations in the southern city of Butuan in Mindanao have enlarged our understandingof pre-Hispanic Philip- pine boats. Some remains are as large as Morga describes,but noth- ing comes close to the massive 2,000 ton boats of which Rizal boasts.19 Spanish colonization is furtherblamed forthe loss of the pre-His- panic Philippine syllabary,and thus the extinctionof a writtenlit- erature. Aside froma few signaturesby indios, in theirown script, on early Spanish legal documents of the sixteenthand seventeenth centuries, no full document writtenin the pre-Hispanic Philippine scripthas ever been found. During the FirstEuropean Philippine Studies Conferencein Am- sterdam in April 1991, Antoon Postma (1992, 183-203) presented a paper on a copper plate allegedly discovered in Laguna, with an inscriptionthat has been dated to 900 A.D. He stated,among other things,that "Philippine officialhistoryhas been enlarged with the revelationof this copper 'document/7and called fora reexamination of historical data in the light of this find. Postma has been largely ignored, simply because the provenance of the copper plate has not been fully established. It was sold by an antique dealer to the Na- tional Museum, which has not verified the site where it was alleg- edly found. The inscriptionon this copper plate is neither in the pre-Hispanic Philippine script,nor is it in any of the various Philip- pine languages. The so-called Laguna copper plate was probably im- ported from elsewhere in Southeast Asia. This is a further demonstrationof the need to prove certain aspects of pre-Hispanic 200 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL'SMORGA Philippine civilization. It is a vain attempt to validate Rizal' s asser- tions on the widespread use of pre-Hispanic writingand the written literaturethat presumably accompanied it. Morga observed that writingwas widely in use all over the pre- Hispanic Philippines, that all indios, men as well as women, could read and writeat least properlyin theirown language (290-92). Rizal cites similarobservationsby the JesuitPedro Chirino,who claims that there was universal literacy,that everyone in the late sixteenthcen- tury Philippines could read and write in theirown language. Rizal uses Chirino and Morga to express his opinion on literacyin the late nineteenthcenturyPhilippines: Now the same thingcannotbe said. The government, in printand in words,triesto procurethe instruction of the Filipinos20 but in deed and at bottom,it fomentsignorance,placing the instruction in the hands of the friarswho are accused by the PeninsularSpaniards,In- sularSpaniards,and Foreigners[i.e. Europeans]of thebrutalization of the countryand prove themselveswith theirconductand writings (290-92n. 2).21 Using Morga, Chirino and other early chroniclesthatmentionthe pre-Hispanic Philippine syllabary,Rizal goes one step furtherin as- suming thattherewas a great volume of writtenliteratureat the time the Spaniards arrived in the Philippines. However, at present,there is no extantbody, not even a fragment,of this pre-Hispanic written literature.The JesuitChirinomentionsthathe burned a "book" which was condemned as the "work of the devil." From this small refer- ence has sprung the general view that the missionariesdestroyedall pre-Hispanic "books" and manuscripts. That all trace of pre-Hispanic writing was destroyed is highly improbable.The missionariesare blamed fora long-lostpre-Hispanic literaturewhich probably did not exist. As pre-Hispanic documents continueto elude scholars,recentanthropologicalresearchhas yielded a wealth of oral literature,which is believed to go back to pre-His- panic times. The Philippines has a large body of complex literature, such as that in Palawan, which has a complete cosmology and my- thology.But this is an oral literature,and is only now being recorded and transcribed,to be preserved in printed form. To be fairto the much maligned early missionaries,knowledge of the pre-Hispanic syllabary was probably preserved ratherthan ob- literated by the friars,who learned and documented the different 201 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES languages and alphabets they encountered in their mission fields. They undertooknumerouslinguisticand grammaticalstudies of Phil- ippine languages, and compiled the firstdictionaries.Instead of blam- ing the friars for the loss of pre-Hispanic literature, nationalist historiansshould thank these men for preservingthe syllabarythey are accused of destroying. The firstbook printed in the Philippines, in 1593, the Doctrina cristianaen lenguatagala(ChristianDoctrine in the Tagalog language) is a translationof the Roman Catholic Catechism and prayers into Spanish and Tagalog, with the latterprintedin both the pre-Hispanic syllabaryand the Roman alphabet. Anotherwork which used thepre- Hispanic syllabarywas a later catechism printed in 1621, translated into Ilocano. Both these and other missionary studies on Philippine languages and grammarslike Artey reglasde la lengua tagala by Fr. Blancas de San Jose (1610) and Arte de la lengua iloca by Fr. Fran- cisco Lopez (1617) suggest that the friarsdocumented and preserved, ratherthan destroyedpre-Hispanic writing(Retana 1895; 1906). One of the few artifactsin the National Museum of the Philip- pines raised to the level of a "National Treasure" is an earthenware pot excavated at a site in Calatagan, Batangas in 1962, which has pre- Hispanic charactersclearly incised around the rim. Often taken as firmevidence of the widespread use of pre-Hispanic writing,nobody has asked why only one specimen has been found to date, and, more importantly, why the charactersresemblingthe Tagalog syllabaryon the Calatagan pot do not translate into anything intelligible.The National Museum has yet to release their expert deciphered texton the Calatagan pot. Are these incised characters really pre-Hispanic writing,or are they simple decorative motifs? The Calatagan pot unfortunately leaves more questions than it answers. Rizal's Annotations The importanceof Rizal's annotations to Morga was that he tried to use historyand historicalrevision,not just to express his personal views on the historiography,but to create a sense of national con- sciousness or identity.Historical revision is always met with vary- ing degrees of opposition, and Rizal's first attempt at writing Philippine historywas no exception. That the Spaniards would ob- ject was inevitable,and Rizal was prepared forthis.When the Morga was officiallybanned in the Philippines, Rizal was not surprised. 202 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL'SMORGA However, the firstcriticismof Rizal's historicalwork was not by a Spaniard or by one of Rizal's enemies, but by Blumentrittin the in- troductionto the book itself.Oftenoverlooked, this introductioncon- tains observations which are hidden under a mountain of praise. Blumentrittnoted, for example, that Rizal's "observations on the conduct of the European conquerors and civilizersare in general not new to the historian.The Germans specially discussed this theme" (Rizal 1890, introduction).Nevertheless,Blumentrittcontinued with: These new pointsof view give yournotesan imperishable value,an undeniablevalue even forthosewho dreamof an inaccessiblesuperi- orityof raceor nationality. The scholarwill saluteyoureruditeanno- tationswithenthusiasm, the colonialpoliticiangratitudeand respect. Throughtheselines runa floodof seriousobservations equallyinter- estingand important to historians and ministers of overseascolonies alike (ibid.). Then he cites two defects of Rizal's scholarship which have been condemned, and rightlyso, by later historians:an ahistoricaluse of hindsight,and a stronganticlericalbias. Blumentritt,in his glowing introduction,did not forgetto state that My greatesteemforyournotesdoes notimpedeme fromconfessing that,morethanonce,I have observedthatyou participate in theerror of manymodernhistorianswho censurethe eventsof past centuries accordingto theconceptsthatcorrespondto contemporary ideas.This should not be so. The historianshouldnot imputeto the men of the sixteenth century thebroadhorizonof ideas thatmovesthenineteenth century.The second pointwithwhichI do not agree is againstCa- tholicism. I believethatyou cannotfindtheoriginof numerousevents regrettableforSpain and forthe good nameof the Europeanrace in religion, in the hardbehaviorand abuses of manypriests(xii).22 but Hindsight and anticlericalismare fatal defects in a purely schol- arly work but, as mentioned earlier,Rizal used historyas a propa- ganda weapon against the abuses of the colonial Spaniards. Rizal's Morga should be seen and excused in this context.The problem with Rizal is his constant ambiguity. Is he tryingto be a scholar or a propagandist?Hence the Morga was deemed too historical,too schol- arly forpropagandists,while historiansand scholars found the work too biased, too much a work of propaganda to be taken seriously. While Blumentritt'scritique was undeniably tempered by his friendship for Rizal, one must remember that Rizal solicited the 203 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES introduction.What finally saw print was a version approved and slightlyedited by Rizal. Unfortunately,this draftintroductionis not extant,but we can extrapolatefromthe Rizal-Blumentritt correspond- ence to see what Rizal found objectionable and what he wanted de- leted fromthe introduction. Writing from Paris on 19 November 1889, Rizal thanked Blumentritt for writingthe introductionto his edition of Morga. He liked it very much, and praised it forbeing written"both with head and heart." Be that as it may, Rizal reacted strongly against Blumentritt's mention of "Quiopquiap" (pseudonym of Pablo Feced, brotherof ex-governorJose Feced y Temprado, a prolificjournalist who wrote racist, anti-indio articles). Rizal told Blumentrittthat Quiopquiap may be highlyregarded in Spanish circlesin Manila, but he was not worthyof attention.Rizal declared that he did not want "to soil the pages of my book" with this name. "I do not write for the Spaniards in Manila, I write for my countrymenand we all de- testQuiopquiap" (Epistolario1938, 5:51o).23 Three days later, on 22 November 1889, Rizal returnedthe draft of Blumentritfsintroductiontogetherwith his "corrections."Even if Blumentritt had earlierauthorized Rizal to edit it however he wished, out of courtesyRizal sought Blumentritfsfinal approval. Apart from thedeletionof the name Quiopquiap, Rizal cut out the textrelatingto fraternidad(fraternity)between indios and Spaniards. Rizal told Blumentritt his notionof fraternal that,despite his good intentions, love betweenSpaniardsand indios was liable to give the wrongimpression. You wish thatthe Spaniardsembraceus as brothers, but we do not ask forthisby always imploring and repeatingthisbecausetheresult is humiliating forus. If theSpaniardsdo notwantus as brothers, nei- therare we eagerfortheiraffection. We willnotask forfraternallove as if it were like alms. I am convincedthatyou wish too muchand also wishthegood of Spain. But we do notsolicitthe compassionof Spain.We do notwantcompassion,butjustice.... Fraternity likealms fromtheproudSpaniardwe do notseek. I repeat,you onlyhave the bestintentions, you wantto see thewholeworldembracedbymeansof loveand reasonbut I doubtiftheSpaniardswishthesame (516-17).24 Rizal's Scholarship Despite his intense feelings,Rizal's tone remains very cordial with It must be stressed here that Rizal did not take criticism Blumentritt. 204 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL' S MORGA well, especially if it came fromracist Spaniards like Quiopquiap or Vicente Barrantes,whom Rizal answered in the propaganda paper La Solidaridad.Indeed, he was surprisinglyhostile to a fellow patriot in "A Reply to Mr. Isabelo de los Reyes," which saw print in La Solidaridadin 1891. In this articlewe see all the more clearly the real motives of Rizal's scholarship. Isabelo de los Reyes (1864-1938) was a journalist, businessman, labor leader, politician and prominent member of the schismatic Iglesia FilipinaIndependiente (Philippine Independent Church) which "canonized" Rizal. He was interestedin aspects of Philippine history and culture, especially that which concerned his home province llocos. His fieldworkand compilations of folklore,historyand cus- toms have proven to be of great ethnographicvalue forpresent-day scholars. De los Reyes had been correspondingwith European schol- ars with research interestsin the Philippines long beforeRizal came into contact with Blumentritt.De los Reyes published many books, pamphlets and articles,including:El Folk-lore Filipino(Philippine folk- lore) in two volumes, which was awarded a silver medal in the Phil- ippine Expositionin Madrid in 1887. He had lefta Historiade Filipinas unfinished,with only one volume completed. He also published Las islas Visayasen a epocade la conquista(The Visayan islands at the time of the conquest); and numerous compilations of his journalism, Filipinasartículosvariossobreetnografia , historiay costumbresde los Fili- pinos (The Philippines: various articles on the ethnography,history and customs of the Filipinos); and, a two volume Historiade llocos. Some of de los Reyes's works were even translatedby Blumentritt into German and published outside the Philippines.25 In his Historia de llocos de los Reyes upsets Rizal. De los Reyes called attentionto the discrepancy between some of Rizal's annota- tions to Morga vis-a-vishis own research. These differencesof opin- ion were explained, according to de los Reyes, by Rizal's excessive patriotism: But thatverylaudablepatriotism of his,it seemsto me,blindshimat times,and as an historianoughtto be rigorouslyimpartial, the opti- mismof the said authorturnsout to be passionatein some points, takingexceptionsof the generalrule,and vice-versa.The consensus among authorswho had no reasonto lie in thesecases oughtto be takenintoaccount.The truecharacterof that[pre-Hispanic] civiliza- tion and what is stillpreservedof it in the presentcustomsof the people (Quoted in Rizal's replyto de los Reyes,La Solidaridad). 205 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES Rizal was so irritatedthathe responded by attackingde los Reyes , using the sarcasm he in the 31 October 1890 issue of La Solidaridad normally reserved for racist Spaniards and friars 1 do notknowhow discreetit is to raise oneselfas a judge of others one or theotherwas an eyewitness... [when]neither or moreor less actor.Butthis,whichin anyoneelse couldbe censuredas an influential vain presumption, ceases to be so in Mr. Isabelo de los Reyes who knowsverywell how to interpret thehistoriansof the Philippines. As de los Reyes was fond of using Philippine terms in his work, Ilocano, Rizal took him to task especiallywords in his mothe'r-tongue, " " for (mis)translatingMorga's principales into its Ilocano equivalent, agturay. 1 have read Morgaabout seventimesand I do notrememberthathe had evermentioned agturay.I do notknowifMr.de los Reyesin his to make thinksitconvenient laudabledesireto IlocanizethePhilippines MorgaspeakIlocano.It is truethatthisauthor,in describingthecus- tomsof theTagalogs,said thattheyweregenerallycurrentin all the islands;but thisdoes notmeanthatIlocanocustomsare theones that prevail(ibid.). Rizal continues the barrage by flauntinghis familiaritywith the primarysources in Philippinehistory,findingfaultwith de los Reyes forusing "unreliable"sources,like those of the sixteenthcenturyfriar Martinde Rada who described the indios as assassins, thieves,high- waymen, and cowards. Rizal belittledde los Reyes's scholarship by claiming that de los Reyes had used a mere French translationof a manuscript,while he himselfhad used the original. Rizal claims he had read all the early accounts of the Philippines, cover to cover, except that of Plasencia, which was unavailable. "I never state anythingon my own authority,"Rizal notes. "I cite texts and when I cite them,I have them before me" (ibid.). Although de los Reyes did not have the opportunityto spend as much timeas Rizal in the BritishMuseum, he was, nonetheless,thor- ough in his research. For Historia de llocos: he "read more than a hundred historicaland non-historicalworks, just to cull two or three items from each of them." He supplemented archival research by utilizing "oral traditionsfor more recent events" (Scott 1985, 246). Notwithstandingthis,Rizal cites Pigafetta,Chirino,Morga, Argensola, Colin, San Agustin,and Aduarte, rallyingall his sources against the one main source of de los Reyes, pronouncing proudly that 206 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL'SMORGA As I based myassertionon sevencontemporary writers,I do notknow if in thiscase, I shall be the exceptionand de los Reyesthe general rule. I know thatthe authorityof de los Reyesis worthseven times morethanmine;but withmysevenauthorsand he withhis Fr.Rada, we can balance ourselves,if he does not take offense... dealing with historicalfacts,onlythe testimony of contemporariescan be authori- tative,a testimony thatoughtto be subjectedto theprocessesof criti- cism(ibid.). Rizal is being petulant in bragging about his familiaritywith the primary sources: but significantly,this sour exchange offersan im- portantinsightinto Rizal's views, especially intohis Tagalog-centered view of history. Beneath this historiographical argument lies not scholarship or the reliabilityof sources, but patriotism.Historymust be used for a purpose, not only to enlightenbut to make his coun- trymen"think correctly/'to see historynot fromthe viewpoint of the Spanish chroniclersbut fromthe indio point of view. Rizal con- cludes his tirade by washing his hands: Let it be put on recordthatthisquestionwas provokedby Mr.de los Reyes,thatuntilnow I have onlyspokenof himwithadmiration and respect,even if 1 do not agree withhis opinions,forI have always believedthatI could notraise myselfto be his judge (Replyto de los Reyes,La Solidaridad). Earlierin the essay, Rizal unconsciouslyunveiled his view of com- mitted scholarship: "had we no positive proofof de los Reyes's pa- triotism,we would believe thatby giving so much creditto Fr. Rada, he had intended to denigrate his own people" (ibid.). This is an im- portantpoint, because it shows that Rizal was an early exponent of "committedscholarship," to use a currentterm,which saw nothing wrong in driving data into a particular framework,or giving the narrativea particularbias to push home a point. Rizal, blinded by his patriotism,as de los Reyes aptly put it, forgetsthe true purpose of scholarship, distorting truth to suit the needs of propaganda against the Spaniards and theirparticularinterpretation of Philippine history. The ambiguity in Rizal becomes very clear in this little known essay against de los Reyes. Rizal was not seeking to be a scholar or historian;he was merely using historyas a weapon for the propa- ganda movement.Juan Luna wrote to Rizal immediatelyafterread- ing "Una contestación á I. de los Reyes." in La Solidaridad,warning 207 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES him thatpublic disagreementsbetween the propagandists was coun- ter-productiveas it was giving the Spaniards "a great laugh." Luna said that de los Reyes was also his friend,but he had done wrong by refutingRizal's annotations to Morga, "which are exaggerated by your excessive patriotism."He called for more restraintin contra- dicting the work of others simply because "they imagine in another manner" (Epistolario1938, 5:122). Rizal's patriotismmade him over-sensitiveor even intolerantof criticism.Parallel to his historicalbias in favor of the indio was the ilustrado concern to projectthe ideal or "correct"image of the indio. This clearly demonstratedtheir leanings and, in a sense, theirown racist conception of history,reversingthat of the Spaniards. De los Reyes's attemptat objectivity,or at least a measure of fairness,in his research and writingwas suspect in the eyes of his more zeal- ous countrymen.De los Reyes once remarkedthat Indios thinkit is shockingand shamefulto writeEl FolkloreFilipino I am an indio because,theysay,thisis to publicizeourown simplicity. and an Ilocano- whyshouldI notsayit?And whenmybelovedbroth- ers learnedabout my modestarticleson Ilocano folklorewhichthey publishedin La Oceania,theyrose up againstme, sayingI had dis- gracedmyown people" (Scott1985,252). By recreatingthe proud pre-Hispanic civilization corrupted by Spanish colonization, Rizal's Morga had set the tone for Philippine historiography,and provided one of the base positions fromwhich Filipino identitywas to be built. Any criticalremarkson the indio, no matterif supported by research,were not to be toleratedbecause this was deemed unpatriotic. Pardo de Tavera, in BibliotecaFilipina,describesde los Reyes's work as "full of curious observationsand can even be faulted for superfi- cialityat times,[but] it cannot be said thatde los Reyes falsifiedhis- toryor moreor less propagatedfalsehoodand absurditiesin an attempt to glorifythe ancient [i.e. pre-Hispanic]civilizationof the Filipinos." Contraryto popular belief,therefore, Rizal was not the only Filipino at that time interestedin the pre-Hispanic Philippine past. The im- portantpoint in the scholarshipof thesetwo men is thatde los Reyes representedobjectivescholarshipand researchwhile Rizal represented committedscholarship.Both expressed an interpretation of Philippine history for Filipinos and patriotism was the fulcrum which deter- mined the degree of objectivityand propaganda in theirwork. 208 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL'SMORGA Rizal's view of Philippine historiographyis expressed in his an- notationsto Morga's Sucesos, in his essay Filipinasdentrode cien años (The Philippines Within a Century), and most clearly in an outline periodization of Philippine historywhich he prepared for the Inter- national Association of Philippinologists,hoping that it could con- vene a conferenceof European Philippinologistsin Paris during the InternationalExposition of 1889. I. Pre HispanicPhilippines. Geography, Geology,Hydrography, Floraand Fauna,Government, Earliest Civilization,Literature, information about the Philippines in Europe,Bibliography, etc. II. Arrivalof the Spaniardsto the loss of Philippineautonomyand her incorporation intothe Spanishnation.(1521-1808) InfluenceofSpanishcivilization on thesociallifeofthePhilippines. Conversion intoCatholicism, Encomiendas, Warsand Invasions,Im- migration,Government, Commerce,Religioustroubles,etc. III. Incorporationof the Philippinesintothe Spanishnationup to the CaviteMutinyd808-1872). Government, Representation in theSpanishCortes,Loss ofherchar- acteras a Spanishprovinceand the declarationof her statusas a colony,Reforms, Criticism,InfluenceoftheMonasticOrderson the materialprogressof the Islands,the Philippinescomparedwith othercolonies,etc. IV. Linguistics Classificationof languages spoken in the PhilippinesTagalog, Visayan,Ilocano,l'espagnolde kusina[literally KitchenSpanishor thepidginSpanishspokenin CaviteJ, studieson modernliterature of the Tagalogs, modernliteratureof the Philippines,religious books,etc. (Epistolario 1938,383-89). V. Racesand IndependentRegionswhichincludesall Muslimsultan- ates,independenttribes,Negritos,etc. (406). The fifthpart, on Race and Independent regions, was an after- thought, as seen in the correspondence between Rizal and Blumentritt. It was not in the original outline, suggestingthat Rizal saw the Muslims of the Southern island of Mindanao, as well as the non-Christian,non-Hispanized indios of the mountains, differently fromthe lowland Christian indios of which he was part. Note too 209 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES that,as in the annotationsto Morga, Rizal did not referto non-Chris- tian Filipinos collectivelyas "Filipinos," in the way that he referred to the Hispanized indios of Luzon and the Visayas. An Indio Viewpoint In the outlineRizal's linear conceptionof history,and how he uses the arrival of Spain as the turningpoint is clear. It is the break in Philippine historythat stunted the pre-Hispanic Philippine civiliza- tion. Colonization, according to Rizal's view of history,led to the loss of both Philippine autonomy and its distinctcharacter. Rizal's survey and study of the Philippine past showed that all the chronicleson his county and people were writtenby Spaniards, and thus reflectedtheir biases. Unlike neighboring countries,Java, Burma, or Vietnam, which had an abundance of ancient, pre-colo-, nial, writtentexts,the Philippineshad nothingbut the Spanish chroni- cles. Furthercomplicatingthematterwas the factthatRizal attempted to writeon the pre-Hispanic Philippinesbefore the arrival of archae- ology, and was thus left with no choice but to use Spanish written sources. In the course of his research,he constantlyhad to decide which sources to use forhis historyof the Philippines,but his patri- otism largely determinedhis choice. Reading throughthese works, Rizal was continually irritatedby the racistviewpointsof Spanish historians,who oftenhighlightedthe "primitive"or "uncivilized"natureof theindios,vis-a-visthe "civilized" Spaniards, who brought both the Roman Catholic faith-and Hispanization to the archipelago.Consequently,Rizal gave himselfthe difficulttaskof rebutting thebiased chronicles,and in so doing brought into existence an indio viewpoint on the historyof the Philippines. More important,Rizal's Morga recreated the pre-Hispanic Philip- pine past, which he wanted to present to his sleeping countrymen in order to awaken in them a sense of pride in theirrace. If the book managesto awaken in you the awarenessof our past, erasedfrommemory, and to rectifywhathas been falsified and slan- dered, thenI will not have laboredin vain, and withthisbase, how- eversmallit maybe,we shallall be able to dedicateourselvesto study thefuture(Rizal 1890,preface).24 The publicationof Rizal's Morga in late 1889 clearlydivided Rizal's writingsinto threedistinctcomponents. If the Noli me tangeredealt 210 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  RIZAL'SMORGA with the present,and El Filibusterismo was to deal with the future,then Rizal decided to suspend work on El Filibusterismo in orderto dwell on the past. In his prefaceto the Morga Rizal addressed his countrymen: In the Noli me tangereI began the sketchof the presentstateof our motherland. The effectthatmy exerciseproducedin me was the un- derstanding that,beforeproceedingto unfoldbeforeyoureyes other successivepictures,it is necessaryto give you firsta knowledgeof the past in orderto enable you to judge the presentbetterand to measurethe road we have traveledduringthe last threecenturies (Rizal 1890,preface).27 In his essay, Filipinasdentrode ríenaños (The Philippines withina century) which was published in installments in the propaganda paper La Solidaridadfrom the end of September 1889 to the begin- ning of February 1890, Rizal expresses the same message summariz- ing his work on the Morga, as a prelude to his reflectionson the past and his predictions for the futureof the Philippines. 'To fore- tell the destiny of a nation/' Rizal argues, "it is necessary to open the book that tells of her past."28 It has been a centurysince Rizal' s Morga appeared, but Filipinos have still to come to terms with theirpast. The search fora national identitygoes on, and the view of historyFilipinos carryis generally thatbequeathed to them by the propagandists of the late nineteenth centuryand most articulatelyby Rizal in his edition of Morga whose effectson later Philippine historiographymay not always have been constructive.In its time, Rizal's Morga was already considered too historical,thatis too academic and scholarlyto be digested and used by patriotsand propagandists;but historiansand scholarsbelieve the Morga to be too biased for their purposes. However, the significanceof Rizal's view of Philippine historyis that its influenceis still felt and, taken in the contextof Philippine historiography remains the key to an understandingof the reconstruc- tion of the Philippine past as a means to forgea national identity. Notes 1. Estaes otrade las preocupacionesde los Españoles que,comocualquieraotra nación,tratándosede lascomidas hacenascosde aquelloa quenoetanacostumbrados o que desconocen. El Ingles,porejemplo, sientegrimaal vera un Españolcomer caracoles;a estele repugnaal roastbeef y no comprende comose puedecomerel beefsteaktartaro(carnecruda);el Chinoque tienetahuriy cometiburón,no puede sportarel quesoRoquefort, etc.etc.Estepescadoque mencionaMorganosabemejor 211 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES cuandoestacomenzado a dañar;todolo contrarío: es bagoong ycuantos lohancomido y probadoabenque niestanideberestardañado/' 2. Filipinas le habráde agradecer si Vd.escribiera unahistoria completa de nuestro país,juzgadoconcriterio imparcial. Creoque es Vd.el únicoque podríahacerlo; yo tengoel valorparaelloperonosé bastante; no he léidotantolibrossobremipaís,y las bibliotecas españolas estáncerradas paramí;ademásnecesito mitiempo paraotras cosasy todolo que diríaseríasiempre sospechoso de estarinspirado poréspiritu partidista; peroVd. le léerancomoá un juez imparcial; Vd. no tieneintereses egóistas...no tendrá Vd.queenmendar la verdadhistórica niparalosfilipinos nipara los españoles, y puedeVd. contemplar el pasado con sangrefríacomocualquier observador extraño...Yo creoque es Vd. el hombre másadecuadoparaese trabajo." 3. Original inGerman, Spanishtranslation as follows:"Estoyahoramuyocupado conMorga , piensocopiartodala obray regalaruna nuevaedicional publico, sobre todoal publicofilipino.... Hagoesosólopormipaís,porqueestaobranometraerá ni honorni dinero." 4. Retanausestheword"negro" whichcouldmeana "colored man,"as opposed toa whiteSpaniard orEuropean. Perhaps, itcouldalsomeanindio butdefinitely not "black"or African. 5. Thisbiography is basedon thelengthy biographical essayin Retana's Morga, and theintroduction to theCummins editionof Morga.Thefamily scandalis con- densedfrom Retana's Aparato. 6. Nacidoy criadoen el desconocimiento de nuestroAyer,comocasi todos vosotros;sinvozniautoridad parahablarde lo que novimosniestudiamos, considere necesario invocar el testimonio de unilustre Españolque rigiólosdestinos de Filipinas enlosprincipios de sunuevaeray presencio losúltimos momentos de nuestra antigua nacionalidad. Es,pues,la sombra de la civilización de nuestrosantepasados la que ahora,antevosotros evocarael autor...El cargo,la nacionalidad y las virtudes de Morga, juntamente conlosdatosy testimonios de suscontemporáneos, Españoles casi todos,recomiendan la obraa vuestra atentaconsideración." 7. ThePhilippine Islands, Moluccas, Siam,Cambodia, Japan,andChinaattheclose ofthesixteenth century by Antonio de Morga. Translated from theSpanish withnotes anda preface, anda letter from LuisVaezde Torres, describinghisvoyagethrough theTorres Straits bytheHon.HenryE.J.Stanley (1868). 8. Despitethecompletion and initialdistribution of copiesof Rizal'sMojgain autumn 1889,thetitle-page post-dated 1890. 9. Sucesosde las islasFilipinas , por el Dr. Antoniode Morga.Nuevaedición enriquecida conlosescritos inéditos del mismoautorilustrada connumerosas notas que amplían el texto y prologada extensamente porW.E Retana(1909). 10.Todaslas historias escritas porlos religiosos antesy despuesde Morga, hasta casi nuestros dias,abundanen cuentosde demonios, milagros,apariciones, etc., formando estoel grueso de lasvoluminosas historiasde Filipinas. 11."Santostenemos conmenosbarbasy mejores zapatos." 12.In theofficial JRNCC English translation by E. Alzona,theline,"theyalmost alwaysdidjustice totheindios," is nowhere tobe foundin theoriginal Spanish text, whichreads: Solodespuesquelosreligiosos vieron su posicion consolidada,empezaron a esarcir calumnias y a rebajarlas razasde Filipinas conla mirade darsemasimportancia, hacerse siempre necesarios y ecusarasi su torpezae ignorancia conla pretendida rudezadel indio.Hayque execptuar, sin embargo, quienescasi a los Jesuitas, siemprehanenseñadoe ilustrado, sin pretender por eso declararse comosus eternos protectores, tutores, defensores, etc.etc. 212 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions  S MORGA RIZAL' 13.Original letter in German, butI havetranslated from theSpanishtranslation. 14."Edfifico de piedrala fortaleza de Nuestra Señorade Guia,dentro de la coudad de Manila,a la partede tierra, y hizofundir algunaartillería parasu guarnición, por manode unindioantiguo, llamadoPandapira, natural de la provincia de Pampanga, que el y sus hijossirvieron destomuchos añosdespues, hastaque murieron." 15."Estoes,un Indioque yasabríafundir cañones aunantesde la llegadade los Españoles, poresod epiteto antiguo.Enestedifícil ramode metalurgia, comoenotros, se hanatrasado los actualesFilipinos o los Indiosnuevos." 16."Hizocasade fundición de artillería en Manila,donde(porfaltade maestros fundidores) se acertaron pocaspiecasgruessas/' 17. "Estodemuestra que, muertoel indioPandapira, no habiaEspañolesque supieran hacerlo que aquel,nilos hijosseriantanhabilescomoel padre." 18. "LosFilipinos... celebres y diestros en la navegación, lejosde progesar, se hanatrasado, puessi bienahorase construyen enlas islasbarcos, podemos decirque soncasitodosde modeloeuropeo. Deparecieron losnaviosquecontenían cienremeros porbanday treinta soldadosde combate; el paisqueuntiempo, conmediosprimitivos fabricaba naoscercade 2,000toneladas (Hern, de losRios,pag.24)hoytienequeacudir a puertos extraños, comoHong-Kong... inservibles cruceros." 19.Someoftheseboatsarepresently on displayin theNational Museumin Ma- nila,whileothers maybe viewed,insitu , at theNational Museumbranch in Butuan City. 20. Rizalhimself is sometimes confused in hisuse of "Filipinos," as in thiscase wherethecontext pointsto indios. 21. "Ahorano se puededecirlo mismo.El gobierno, en impresos y en palabras, procurala instrucción de los Filipinos, peroen el hechoy en el fondofomenta la ignorancia, poniendola instrucción en manosde los frailes,acusadospor los Peninsulares, Filipinos,y Extranjeros de quererel embrutecimiento del pais, y probándolo ellosmismos consu conducta y sus escritos." 22.La granestimación de tusnotasno meimpideconfesar que másde unavez heobservado quepartcipas delerror de muchos historiadores modernos, quecensuran los hechosde siglos pasados segúnconceptosque corresponden á las ideas contemporáneas. Estono debeser.El historiador debeno imputar á los hombres del sigloXVIel anchohorizonte de las ideasque conmueven al sigloXIX.Lo segundo conque no estoyconforme, sonalgunosdesahogos contra el catolicismo; creoque no enla religión, sinoen el proceder duroy en los abusosde muchos sacerdotes deben buscarse elorigen de muchos sucesoslamentables parala religión, paraEspañaypara el buennombre de la razaeuropea. 23.'Tu Prologo megustamuchísimo y meconmueve; estáescrito conla cabezay conel corazón; teagradezco muchísimo porello.Solamente quisiera llamar tuatención á algunascosas.Tú hablasenél de Quiopquiap... noquisiera manchar milibrocon talesnombres. Además,le damosdemasiadaimportancia acordándonos siempre de él. Tienesrazónal creerque Quiopquiaptieneimportancia entrelos españolesde Manila;peroentrelos nativosy los sabiosdel mundoél es unanulidad.No escribo paralos españoles de Manila;escribo paramispaisanosy todosnosotros detestamos á Quiopquiap. 24. "Mehe permitido también tachar algunaspartesreferentes a la fraternidad;tú abrigaslas mejoresintenciones, tú quieresque los españolesnos abracencomo hermanos; peronosotros no debemos pediresoimplorándolo y repitiéndolo siempre, porqueresultaalgohumillante paranosotros. Si los españoles no nosquierencomo hermanos, tampoco estamos ansiosos de su afecto; nopedimos el amorfraternal como unalimosna. Estoyconvencido de que túnosquieresmuchoy que también deseas 213 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHILIPPINE STUDIES el biende España;peronosotros nosolicitamosla compostotide España;noqueremos compasion sinojusticia... Fraternidad comouna limosnadel orgulloespañolno la pedimos.Repitoque tú solamente tieneslas mejoresintenciones; tu quieresver abrazarse a todoel mundopormediodelamory la razón;perodudoque quieran lo mismolos españoles. 25.See thethreebiographical essaysin W.H.Scott,Cracks in theParchment Cur- tain:"Isabelode los Reyes,Father of PhilippineFolklore" (235-44);"Isabelode los Reyes:Provinciano and Nationalist"(245-65);and "Reaction to American imperial- ism:Isabelode los Reyes"(285-99). 26.Si el librologradespertar envosotrosla concienciade nuestro pasado,borrado de la memoria, y rectificar lo que se ha falseadoy caluminado, entoncesno habre trabajado enbalde,y conesabase,porpequeñaque fuese, podremos todosdedicarnos a estudiar el porvenir. 27.Enel Nolimetangere principieel bosquejodelestadoactualde nuestra patria: el efectoque mi ensayoprodujo,hizomecomprender, antes de proseguir desenvolviendo antevuestros ojos otroscuadrodsucesivos,la necesidadde dar primero a conocer el pasado,a finde poderjuzgarmejor el presente ymedir el camino recorrido durante tressiglos. 28.Alzonatranslation mustbe checked withoriginal. References Boletínde la SociedadGeografica. 1886.vol. 21. Madrid. Craig,A. 1927. Rizal's and life minor writings. Manila:Philippine EducationCo. Cummins, J.S.,ed. 1971.Sucesosde las IslasFilipinas. London:HakluytSociety. Dizon, Eusebio.1991.Interview. Manila,September. EpistolarioRizalino.1931.vol. 2. Manila:Bureauof Printing.. 1938.vol. 5. Manila:Bureauof Printing. Gonzalez-Liquete. n.d. Repertorio historko, n.p. Ilustración 1860. Filipina. vol. 2 (no. 3): 149-51. Pigafetta,Antonio.1969.Magellan'sVoyage.Translatedand editedby R. A. Skelton.New Haven:Yale University Press. Postma,Antoon.1991.The Laguna copperplateinscription: Textand Com- mentary. Paperpresented at FirstEuropeanPhilippineStudiesConference. Publishedin PhilippineStudies40 (1992):183-203. Retana,W.E. 1895.Antiguos alfabeto Madrid. de Filipinas(Notasbibliográficos).. 1906.Aparatobibliographico de las historia generalde Filipinas.3 vols. Madrid.Minuesade los Rios. > ed. 1909.Sucesosde las Islas Filipinas.Madrid: LibreríaGeneralde Victoriano Suarez. Rizal,Jose,ed. 1890.Sucesosde las IslasFilipinas , porel Dr. Antoniode Morga. París:Libreríade GarnierHermanos. Scott,WilliamHenry.1985.Cracks in theparchment Quezon City:New curtain. Day Publishers. Stanley,HenryEJ. 1868.ThePhilippine islands,Molucas,Siam,Cambodia, Japan andChinaat thecloseofthesixteenth century. London:HakluytSociety. 214 This content downloaded from 193.142.30.116 on Sat, 28 Jun 2014 15:43:38 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions