ther Juan de Zarzuela, [1] June 19, 1691.]

The governor Don Fausto Cruzat y Gongora is a royal official in these
islands, who makes every endeavor to collect the revenue of his
Majesty. He has a hasty disposition, and no one dares oppose him;
consequently there are few who wish him well, and there is no one
who desires the office of alcalde, on account of the burdens that he
imposes on them (never customary here), of completing every year the
royal revenue and its accounts, and filling out the quota of what they
must collect, even though they do not actually collect it. The result
is, that the alcaldes contribute from their own stores what they had
not collected; for, no matter what efforts they make, they cannot
during the year finish the collections, on account of the extreme
poverty of the Indians. The governor has for counselors or intimates
only Andaya and Antonio, for whom he does many things and confers many
offices. It is not known how much it costs them. His Lordship brought
over a great amount of silver from the viceroy, which is necessarily
sent as an investment; and there will be many who complain of this,
because [the goods procured by] it will occupy the greater part of
the ship. For this reason no one wished to accept command of the ship,
for it will be nothing more than to go in the governor's employ; and
finally it was given to Don Jose Mato Rayo. It is a new ship which
is sailing; it was built by Andaya as contractor, and superintendent
of the whole--whom the governor obeyed, as one who was necessary
to him, because there was no ship that could be sent. That is, the
"Santo Nino" was in such a condition that it could not be repaired;
and, as the time was short (it was then only nine months), it was
necessary to multiply the exactions [sacas]. Thus Silang, which has
two hundred and twenty-seven and a half tributes registered, had
one hundred and twenty men at one time outside of their village;
others had seventy, eighty, or more out--without being able to
take care of their grain-fields. Afterward, because there was not
enough rice for the king, through lack of foresight in the royal
officials, they levied another assessment of rice on the natives
[in Cavite] as also in La Laguna, the king paying but one-half of
what the Indians could sell it for later, and leaving them under the
necessity of buying the grain at double price. The worst thing is,
that now the rice has become so scarce that it is worth ni