The Gratitude of an ancient Manila King.pdf

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Part of The Local Government Review

extracted text: the entire Philippine Archipelago and is comprised in the limits defined by the treaties between the United States and Spain, respectively signed in the City of Paris on the tenth day of December, eighteen hu.ndred and ninety-eight, and in the City of Washington on the seventh day of November, on• e thousand nine hundred.] 1 [2657- 14.] 1. See Sec. 1, Ar:t. 1 of the Constitution of the PhiJi,ppines, published in Vol. 1 No. 7, L. G. R. SEC. 17. Distribution of powers of go'Vehmient.-The executive, legislative, and judicial powers of the Philippine Government are dis.tributed, res. pectively, among the executive, legislatjve, and judicial branche0, severally exercising the function& and powers conferred on them by law. The executive authority is vested in the following agencies.: The (Govern.orGeneral of the Phi.Jiippine Island) lP<re;:ident of the Philippines, as Chief Executive; the several Departments wrnd Bureaus of the (Insu• lar) National Gov· emment, with their lawful instrumentalities; and the provincial and local government with their subordinate· functionaries, in the exercise of the administrative powers conferred on them. The legislative power is. vested in the (\Philippine Legislature) Congress nf the '.FthilippineR. consisting of two Houses., to wit, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The judicial power is vested in the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, Courts of \First Instance, Courts of justices of the peace, and ·in such municipal and oth~r inferior courts· as may be created by law. [2657-·15; Constitution of the /Phil· ippines Art 'V'II, .sec. 1; Art VII, se.~. 1; Art 1, Sec. l.] of our liberty, and we shall no longer be rulers in our native land. Our religion is in danger and our prophetesses warn us not to let a Spaniard set foot on Philippine soil, for already they have given a name of their own to the country of the Bisayans. Page 620 THE GRATITUDE OF AN ANCIENT MANILA KING (Speech to the men of Magellan's fleet, off the Bornean coast, July 29, 1521; according to Pigafetta and Aganduru Moriz.) You find me just returning from the punishment of a rebellious city· which chose rather to pay tribute to the Maharajah of Java than to its rightful lord, the Sultan of Bruney, my grandfather, whose captain-general I am. My father was ruler of the great island of Lusung to the north hut after his death, while I was still a child, my mother was unable to guard the throne of Maynila for me against my powerful cousin who rules in nearby Tonduk. So she sent me here to Borneo and I have been learning war in my grandfather's service. The fleet which you mistakenly thought was intending to attack you has been gathered to recover my inheritance. You captured my flagship but you have released me and my ship because of the kindness shown you at my grandfather's court. Let me show that we of this land are equally capable of gratitude. Here is the Koran, the sacred scriptures of my religion, and upon it, I, Mahomet-hen-Suleiman, swear that should at any future time you or any other Spaniards meet me I will remember this day and not make war upon you for any cause, but receive and treat you or them as friends who have been my benefactors. CEBU'S KING EXHORTS HIS FOLLOWERS TO DEFEND THEIR LIBERTY (From the address to the Cel>uans, nt Cebu, April 27, 1565; recorded by th<' Augustinian chronicler Medina) Let us, then, arm ourselves and repel these invaders. We must defend our country. We can make an end of them as the men of Magtang did of their predecessors who came here in the days of our grandfathers. Get a store of darts, prepare your lances, sharpen your kampilans, ·and bring forth your largest war shield, the kasarag. Here, in the boats and on the shore, we shall make our stand. These strangers are not here to benefit us. Instead they will depriv,e u s DECEMBER, 1949
Date: 1949
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