ut one firearm in the ship, and the father
was the only one who knew how to manage it. He seeing himself so far
from land, and pursued by an enemy so keen and so swift on the sea,
availed himself of his courage, which was great, and of his skill,
which was remarkable; and, adroitly fighting, he kept firing at the
enemy, until he gained shore, being almost all the time in range of
them, and so near that they talked to one another. By that means he
saved himself and his people--a thing that would have been impossible
in any other manner; but his defense was so fiery that in less than
half an hour he fired the gun more than thirty times.

These people are the instruments of all the exploits by sea, for of
all the other nations no one will embark unless he is forced; and
on account of the little effectiveness that is found by experience
in all the others, our enemies, who are watchful for their own
safety and for fortunate results, are not hindered by those other
peoples. Consequently, he who has most men from this nation is
considered the most powerful and is the most feared, as they have
power to infest the seas and coasts, making captives and pillaging,
and making themselves masters of the crossings and passages necessary
for communication with the other islands.

For that same reason the Mindanao has become so feared in these
latter years that although he of Buhayen is the true and legitimate
king, he is coming to be less esteemed; for since the Mindanao king
has many Lutaos, he has also power to make war. And although the
king of Buhayen has twenty-fold more vassals, he can make no one
uneasy because he has no subjects of this nation; consequently,
he has no weight in these islands. For the wars of these nations,
now because of their little permanence, now because of the natural
ruggedness of their settled parts, are but seldom offensive by land;
for the enemy are immediately perceived, and the less powerful avail
themselves of the shelter of the mountains. Since the people are of
little endurance and less subordination they cannot sustain long
campaigns. Therefore, at most the valiant ones set an ambush, and
according to the way it falls out the campaign is finished without
the spoils being surrendered; for their articles of value, as there
is so little good faith among them, are always kept buried, or are
so light that they are carried along with them. On that account he
alone is judged powerful who has people to m