him.  The governor would have been in great peril, both with the pilot and upstairs with Juan de Massa, had not the miserable man lost his head.  Had he at least extinguished the candles, and stationed himself on the stairway, which was narrow, he could have prevented the governor from ascending, and could even have killed him.  The latter went immediately to look for his wife, and found her hidden in an attic, hanging to a beam.  He stabbed her from beneath, and passed half of his sword through her body, and at that the poor lady fell.  She requested confession.  The governor restrained himself, and said that it was a timely request.  Leaving the three men whom he brought with him as a guard, he in person going to the Franciscan convent, which was near by, to summon a confessor, met a secular priest on the way, who had left his house at the disturbance.  He took the latter with him and told him to confess “that person.”  He confessed her very slowly, delaying more than half an hour.  The governor, in the meanwhile, was walking up and down.  When the father had finished, he stabbed his wife, telling her to repent of her sins and to confess to God who would pardon her.  This happened at nine o’clock at night.  A large crowd gathered immediately, and the alcaldes made investigation of what was passing.  The dead bodies of the two men were guarded until next day, for justice to do its duty.  That of the governor’s wife remained there until eight in the morning, when the master-of-camp, Don Geronimo de Silva, of the habit of St. John, ordered it to be taken up and carried to his house, in order to have it buried from there, according to the rank of her person, and not according to the so disgraceful event and death that had happened.  They buried her body in the Recollect convent, with the greatest pomp possible.  Then the two bodies of the men were buried, carrying them together from the street to the grave.  The royal Audiencia took charge of the matter.  They found almost two hundred notes from the governor’s wife in Juan de Messa’s possession, and in hers a great number from him.  A report was made of all and sent to his Majesty.  It was the first instance in which a so common person had an alliance with so powerful a lady, who was here as is the queen in Espana. [6]

Manila, July, 1621.

Letter from Fajardo to the King

Sire: 

Although at present, up to the nineteenth of June, the ship “Sant Andres,” the capitana, has not arrived from Nueva Espana, even at this late date, which is the one that I despatched last year to that province, and I have no letters from your Majesty to answer, I am making a beginning of this one in order to gain time in the despatching of those ships, so that it may be somewhat earlier than usual in past years—­although at present, having the war on our hands which we have, and as the ships are later from China than is usual, and there are very few that come for fear of the war, there will be more difficulty and labor in the despatch. [In the margin:  “Council; examined.”]