ese villages together because they carried on wars continually,
and they lived in such a state of discord that it was impossible to
govern them; moreover they were so barbarous and fierce that they
recognized only superior power. They governed through fear. He who
wished to be most respected sought to inspire fear by striking
off as many beads as possible. The one who committed the most
assassinations was thus assured of the subordination of all. They
made such a glory of it that they were accustomed to wear certain
ornaments in order to show to the eyes or all the murders they had
committed. When a person lost a relative either by a violent or
a natural death he covered his head with a strip of black cloth
as a sign of mourning and could take it off only after having
committed a murder, a thing which they were always eager to do
in order to get rid of the sadness of mourning, because so long
as they wore the badge they could not sing or dance or take part
in any festivity. One understands then that deaths became very
frequent in a country where all deaths were necessarily followed
by one or more murders. It is true that he who committed a murder
sought to atone for it by paying to the relatives of the deceased
a certain quantity of gold or silver or by giving them a slave
or a Negrito who might be murdered in his place.

The Zambal had nevertheless more religion than the inhabitants
of other provinces. There was among them a high priest, called
"Bayoc," who by certain rites consecrated the other priests. He
celebrated this ceremony in the midst of orgies and the most
frightful revels. He next indicated to the new priest the idol or
cult to which he should specially devote himself and conferred on
him privileges proportionate to the rank of that divinity, for
they recognized among their gods a hierarchy, which established
also that of their curates. They gave to their principal idol
the name of "Malyari"--that is, the powerful. The Bayoc alone
could offer sacrifice to him. There was another idol, Acasi,
whose power almost equaled that of the first. In fact, they sang
in religious ceremonies that "although Malyari was powerful,
Acasi had preeminence." In an inferior order they worshiped also
Manlobog or Mangalagan, whom they recognized as having power of
appeasing irritated spiri