thirty-two.

He had come to the Philippines in the capacity of clerk in the
custom house, but after all the sea-sickness of the voyage and
after fracturing a leg on the way, he had the bad luck to receive
his discharge fifteen days after his arrival. He was left without a
single cuarto.

Distrusting the sea, he did not wish to return to Spain without having
made a fortune. So he decided to devote himself to something. Spanish
pride did not permit him to do any manual labor. The poor man would
have worked with pleasure to have earned an honorable living, but the
prestige of the Spaniard did not permit this, nor did that prestige
provide him with the necessities of life.

At first he lived at the expense of some of his countrymen, but,
as Tiburcio had some self-respect, the bread was sour to him, and
instead of getting fat he grew thin. As he had neither knowledge of
any science, money nor recommendations, his countrymen, in order to
get rid of him, advised him to go to some of the provinces and pass
himself off as a Doctor of Medicine. At first, he did not like the
idea, and opposed the plan, for although he had been a servant in the
San Carlos Hospital, he had not learned anything about the science of
healing, his duty having been to dust off the benches and light the
fires, and, even in this work, he had served only a short time. But
as necessity was pressing him hard, and as his friends pointed out the
vanity of his scruples, he took their advice, went into the provinces
and began to visit the sick, charging as much for his services as
his conscience permitted. Later on he began to charge dearly and
to put a high price on his visits. On this account, he was at once
taken to be a great doctor and would probably have made his fortune,
had not the attention of the Protective Medical Society of Manila,
been called to his exorbitant charges and to his harmful competition.

Private citizens and professors interceded in his behalf. "Man!" said
the zealous Doctor C. in speaking of him. "Let him make his little
money. Let him make his little six or seven thousand pesos. He will be
able to return to his native land then and live in peace. What does
it matter to you? Let him deceive the unwary natives. Then they may
become smarter. He is a poor, unhappy fellow. Do not take the bread
from his mouth. Be a good Spaniard!"

Doctor C. was a good Spaniard and he winked at the matter. But when the
facts reached the ears of the p