# The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803/Volume 3/Encomiendas forbidden to royal officials

ENCOMIENDAS FORBIDDEN TO ROYAL OFFICIALS
In the city of Manila, on the twenty-sixth day of May, one thousand five hundred and seventy-six, the very illustrious doctor, Francisco de Sande, governor and captain-general for his Majesty of these islands of the West, and auditor of his royal Audiencia established in the City of Mexico in Nueba España, declared that it is an encumbrance and damage to the royal treasury for his Majesty's officials to hold encomiendas of Indians; and, as such, his Majesty has forbidden this by laws, and recently in a letter which his Majesty wrote to the said officials in the year seventy-four, in which it appears they ask from him permission to own Indians. In this letter there is a paragraph of the following tenor:
"As for what you ask concerning repartimientos of Indians—namely, that favor be granted you, because you have served as discoverers of these islands—such a thing has appeared to us unsuitable, considering your offices; and therefore there is no good reason for acceding to your request in this matter. In other affairs, there will be occasion for granting you rewards (and you will bring it to mind when you send to our Council of the Indies reports of what has been in your charge), and when it has been seen ​in what ways you have served. The same will be done in regard to increase in your salaries. Madrid, April twenty-five, one thousand five hundred and seventy-four."
The governor says the same; and because the aforesaid persons are freed from private affairs in order to fulfil their duties, as they are obliged, he did order, and now so orders, that they shall not hold the said Indians in encomiendas, and retracted those which were granted them by Guido de Laveçares, treasurer of these islands—who at that time filled the office of governor thereof, on account of the death of the governor Miguel Lopez. He said that he placed, and he did so place, the villages which the said officials at present hold, under the rule of your Majesty's royal crown. They are as follows: the natives of Balayan and the river Aguan, and of the villages of Bulabuty, Mata, Amblaca, and Mabulau; the river Mabotan, the mines of Gumun and Gaogao, the river Bacoun, the village of Longos; the river Ysin, and the villages of Minangona and Mina—who, it is reported, are held by the accountant Andres Cauchela; the natives of the coast of Tule who, according to report, are held by the factor, Andres de Mirandaola; and a thousand Indians, who, according to report are held by the treasurer, Salvador de Aldave in the Sunguian Emasingal valley. In order that his Majesty may possess them as his royal property, like the others that he personally holds, the governor ordered the officials of the royal estate, whether present or future, that they shall hold those encomiendas as the royal property, make collections, and have the natives instructed in the tenets of our holy Catholic faith. He charged this upon their con-​sciences, and in the royal name, relieved his Majesty and himself from that responsibility. And, further, he ordered a duplicate copy of this act to be drawn up, and to send the same to his Majesty.
Doctor Francisco de Sande
Before me, Fernando Riquel
In the city of Manila, on May twenty-six, one thousand five hundred and seventy-six, I, the notary undersigned, read and made known the act of his Excellency, herein contained, to the accountant, Andres Cauchela, official of his Majesty's royal treasury, who said he heard it, and that he will answer it. Witnesses, Alonso Ligero, and Balthasar de Bustamante.
Diego Aleman, notary-public.
In the city of Manila, in this said day, month, and year aforesaid, I, the notary undersigned, made known and read the act herein contained, decreed by his Excellency, to the factor and inspector, Andres de Mirandaola, official of his Majesty's royal treasury, in his own person, who said that he heard it, and that he will answer what seems to him necessary. Witnesses, Caspar de Yola and Melchior Corila.
Diego Aleman, notary-public.
In the city of Manila, in this said day, month, and year aforesaid, I, the notary undersigned, made known and read the act herein contained, decreed by his Excellency, to the treasurer, Salvador de Aldave, official of his Majesty's royal treasury, in his own person, who said that he heard it. Witness, Antonio Caballero.
Diego Aleman, notary-public.
​In the city of Manila, on May twenty-six, one thousand five hundred and seventy-six, the very illustrious Doctor Francisco de Sande, governor and captain-general for his Majesty in these islands of the West, and auditor of his royal Audiencia established in the City of Mexico in Nueva España, said that whereas, since the officials of the royal treasury have been in these islands, they have collected from the trade and royal estate in their charge, many pesos of gold; and whereas, it is reported that, on account of their salaries, they have—despite the decree of his Majesty in their letters-patent, and notwithstanding this letter which they have also received—held Indians without his Majesty's permission, and contrary to his decrees and letters: therefore the governor said that he ordered, and he did order, that whatever they have collected from the Indians held by them in encomiendas be understood as counted toward the salaries which his Majesty may have ordered to be paid to them; and from this time, each third of the year, when they shall collect their salaries, they shall go before his Excellency, so that having seen the needs and the state of the treasury, they shall be paid proportionally, in accordance with the same. And they shall do nothing contrary to this, under penalty of five hundred pesos for the exchequer for each person and for each violation. Because in this present year of seventy-six, we have been informed that each person has collected the said tributes for the whole year, they shall all declare, clearly and specifically, under oath, the amount thus collected, and for what persons and by whose hand it was collected, so that when the first third comes due, it may be suitably adjusted, according to the above declaration. From ​now on they shall collect no more, except on the account of the royal treasury, under whose royal jurisdiction they are this day placed. This act shall be filed with the other, and a duplicate shall be made of the whole, to be sent to his Majesty. It was signed by Doctor Francisco de Sande.
Before me, Fernando Riquel.
In the city of Manila, on the twenty-sixth day of the month of May, one thousand five hundred and seventy-six, I, the notary undersigned, read and made known the act of his Excellency, herein contained word for word, to the accountant Andres Cauchela, official of his Majesty's royal treasury, in his own person. I took and received his oath, which he made before God and the blessed Mary, with the sign of the cross +, in due legal form; and under this charge he promised to tell the truth. Being asked what tributes he has collected from the villages herein mentioned, the form in which they were collected, and under whose direction and by what persons, he said that in this present year of seventy-six, he sent to the villages of Bacayan (which is his encomienda) Juanes de Betaria, now defunct, to collect the tribute from the natives thereof. This man went thither, and collected nine hundred small pieces of white cotton cloth, three or four of which each one gave him as tribute. Likewise he collected, and brought to this deponent, one hundred and fifty pesos in broken silver and testoons, and six tae[l]s of nejas gold, all of which he has, as said, together with seventy fowls. All this he gave and delivered to this deponent, and said that he had collected it from the natives of the said villages of Bacayan. The said ​Juanes de Guetaria [sic] went by the order of his Excellency to collect the said tributes. He declared that, during this said year of seventy-six, he had not collected anything else from the said villages; and from the others that he holds as encomiendas he has not collected anything since he has held them. This is the truth, which he signed with his name, the witnesses being Alonso Ligero and Baltasar de Bustamante.
Andres Cauchela
Before me, Diego Aleman, notary-public.
In the city of Manila, this said day, month, and year aforesaid, I, the notary undersigned, made known and read the act herein contained, decreed and ordered by his Excellency, to the factor and inspector Andres de Mirandaola, in his own person, from whom was taken and received the oath. He swore before God and the blessed Mary, and on the sign of the cross +, in due legal form, under which obligation he promised to tell the truth. This deponent, being asked what tributes he has collected in this present year of seventy-six, from the villages which he is said to hold as encomiendas, in the lowlands of Tuley, and what persons have collected them, and what they collected, says that it is true that this deponent sent to the said villages of the lowlands of Tuley one Pedro de Bustos, a soldier, who collected the tributes from the natives thereof. This was for the present year seventy-six. This said Pedro de Bustos, this deponent being out of this city, went to the villages, and collected a certain number of bales of cotton, which might weigh thirty quintals, a little more or less. This deponent did not receive ​anything else, nor did the said Pedro de Bustos give him any account of what he collected, because at that time he was out of this city with the sergeant-major, Juan de Moron. This deponent has not collected anything from the said villages during this present year, seventy-six. This is the truth, and what actually took place, which he signed with his name, the witnesses being Juan de Navarrete and Melchor Correa.
Andres de Mirandaola
Before me, Diego Aleman, notary-public.
On this said day, month, and year aforesaid, I, the notary undersigned, read and made known the act herein contained, decreed by his Excellency, to the treasurer, Salvador de Aldave, official of his Majesty's royal treasury, in his own person. From him I took and received an oath, which he took before God and the blessed Mary, and on the sign of the cross +, in due legal form, under which obligation he promised to tell the truth. Being asked what tributes this deponent has collected from the villages which it is said he holds as his encomiendas in the provinces of Yloco, and the amount thereof, and what persons have collected them in his name, he said, under obligation of his oath, that Bartolome de Vega, a soldier, who about fifteen or twenty days ago came from the province of Yloco, told this deponent that in this year of seventy-six he had collected, from the said villages, tribute from two hundred Indians. This tribute did not come to the hands of this deponent, but went to the factor Andres de Mirandaola in payment of a debt of the royal exchequer, owed to the said factor, and which this de-​ponent was ordered by his Excellency to pay, although he did not owe it. Thus this deponent has received nothing out of what the said Bartolome de Vega collected this said year, of the said two hundred tributes, beyond one hundred and sixty pieces of white cloth from Yloco, which the said Vega gave and delivered to this deponent—a little more or less, he does not remember exactly. This said treasurer said that he was making this declaration to execute his Excellency's order, and protests that he should incur no loss, because the content of the said act ought not to extend to his case, as he is not the proprietor of the said office and duty of treasurer; and because, in all the time that he has held it, he has received neither salary, gratuities, nor allowances, as will appear by his Majesty's books. To those he refers, because he, as holding and occupying the said office which the treasurer Guido de Lavacares had held, has conducted and exercised the said office as others have done, who at the present day hold encomiendas of Indians. This he said was his declaration, and he so made it, and signed the same with his name.
Salvador de Aldave
Witness, Anton Caballero.
Before me, Diego Aleman, notary-public.
I, the said Fernando Riquel, had this copy made from the original acts, which are in my possession. Therefore I here affixed my name and customary flourishes, in witness of the truth.
Hernando Riquel
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