sied themselves to such
an extent that the place appeared like an anthill or a beehive. These
were assisted by the inhabitants of all the neighboring villages, who,
animated and encouraged by the religious of St. Dominic, St. Francis,
and St. Augustine, and by the clergy who had them in their charge,
aided us to roof the church temporarily with canes and palm-leaves
(which is the usage there). Thus in four days was accomplished the work
of twenty or thirty days; thus the church was made fit for service,
and is being used thus until it can be properly roofed. The industry
and good-will with which the Indians assisted us on our church were
soon repaid to them by our fathers, when a general malady prevailed
among them, causing the death of many persons. Then our fathers aided
them, especially by hearing their confessions, and administering to
them the communion and extreme unction, in the church itself; hardly
ever during the day was it free from sick persons who had been carried
thither on the shoulders of men that they might receive those holy
sacraments. The devil, who slumbers not, seized the opportunity of
this malady to sow the seeds of error among some wretched old women,
his ministers--saying that at first the God of Castile had vanquished
their anitos, but that the latter were now the conquerors, and were
chastising the people for having abandoned them. To counteract this
evil, among others, a solemn procession and mass were ordered, wherein
our Lord was supplicated for the health of the people. Inasmuch
as a sermon was necessary, its preparation was assigned to Father
Diego Sanchez, at the instance of the canon, Pablo Ruiz de Talavera,
who is the priest of the Indians in Manila; he chose this father on
account of his devotion to the Society, and of the great affection of
the Indians for him, caused by his eloquence and the many and signal
services that he has rendered them. The father, discussing in his
sermon the above-mentioned error, refuted it, and expelled it from
their minds and hearts with that admirable force of expression and
persuasion with which our Lord had equipped him; while He gave to the
hearers grace and sensibility to perceive and be influenced by the
truth, as since then has been evident on many, and notable occasions.

In that very time of the malady, admirable evidence appeared of the
importance of the confraternity which, as we said above, that people
had instituted for the purpose of exerci