s carry little banners of different colors, with characters
written upon them in the Chinese tongue, which are said to indicate
the great authority and wide jurisdiction of the said mandarins. One
Sangley, who they say is a minister of justice, bears a piece of cane
as thick as one's arm, lacquered in black. Among these goes a Sangley
with two small kettle-drums and four others with canfonias and other
musical instruments which they use, all of them playing. Before all
these people go six Sangleys, two of whom carry two iron chains, which
are said to be to put on those whom they are ordered to arrest; two
others carry two cords tied to sticks upon their shoulders, which are
said to be to tie those whom they are ordered to flog; the other two,
who are called _upos_, which is the same as executioners in Espana,
bear two half-canes four dedos wide and a braza long, with which
they flog the delinquents, whom if they wished they could kill with
a few strokes. Between these go two Sangleys each one of whom cries
out in his own language from time to time, with loud shouts; and it
is said that they are calling out, "Make way, for the mandarins are
coming," and as soon as they come out of their houses, and until they
enter them again, these cries are kept up. When the Sangleys meet the
mandarins, they flee from them and hide themselves; and if they cannot
do this they bend their backs very low with their arms extended upon
the ground, and remain in this position while the mandarins pass,
which is quite in the form and manner which is customary in the said
kingdom of China. Sunday afternoon in front of the house of one of the
said mandarins they [_MS. torn_--whipped?] an Indian or mulatto in the
street before the house of the said mandarin (the latter being at the
window), in judicial form according to the Chinese usage. Yesterday,
Monday, they flogged a Sangley in his own house; and another one they
put to the hand-torture, quite according to their usage. Two of those
who are said to correspond to alguazils, bearing the said banners as a
sign thereof (just as the long staves of justice are borne in Espana),
seized a Christian Sangley in the [_MS. illegible_] of the licentiate
Christoval Tellez de Almacan, your auditor of the said royal Audiencia,
saying that they were going to take him before a mandarin, who had
ordered them to seize him; but when they were outside of the house of
Doctor Antonio de Morga, an auditor of the said ro