As in the previous four installments of "History of Mindanao, Part IV," this entry excerpts from "A New Voyage Around the World" by William Dampier. Dampier was an upper class Englishman who became a privateer, a liscenced pirate, in this case liscenced by the British Crown. He began his adventure in Jamaica in the Carribean Sea when that island was rampant with both privateers AND pirates. Preying on Spanish shipping in Central and South America his travels took him around the Tierra del Fuego at the very bottom of the Americas, through the Strait of Magellan, and into the Pacific. While stopped in Guam the crew decided on heading eastward to Mindanao. Having heard from a monk and various sailors that Mindanao was "at war" with Spain the crew thought that as they sat out the impending Monsoon that the "King" of Mindanao might liscence them to prey once again upon Spanish shipping.
The "King" in this case being Sultan Barahaman Mohammed, the 9th Sultan of Maguindanao (ruled 1678 to 1699). Most of Dampier's writings on the Sultanate focus on the Raja Laut, or the "General" as Dampier refers to him time and again. The term "Rajah Laut" literally means, "Prince of the Seas," and as one might suspect refers to the man who led the Sultanate's forces at sea. This Rajah Laut was a younger brother of the Sultan and though they often were at odds with one another, as is so often the case with brothers, they closed ranks in the face of any external threat.
This excerpt covers the crew's initial reception. When Captain Swan, the commanding officer of Dampier's ship is summoned for an audience with the Sultan on the second day in port, he is presented with two letters written in English. One was posted from England by the East India Company, and told how the Company aimed to build a "factory" in Maguindanao. Factories at that time were a hybrid of military fort and commercial trading post. The second letter was from a Captain Goodlud, commanding officer of a merchant ship that had made a port call in Maguindanao. The Sultan's purpose in showing these letters was to put Captain Swan more at ease and indeed, it did just that with serious ramifications as one shall see in my next Dampier entry, Part 6.
Captain Goodlud's letter informed any Englishman who might read it that the Maguindanowans were "all thieves." Dampier remarks that they later discovered that Goodlud had been robed by one of Rajah Laut's "officers" who then fled into the bush and was never brought to justice. Rajah Laut then produces a man who he claims was the man who had robbed Captain Goodlud and offers him up to Captain Swan to do as he pleased. Swan graciously demurres and so to save face Rajah Laut has the man tied to a pole in the sun for 12 hours.
After reading the letters the audience was concluded and Captain Swan and his party made their way to the home of Rajah Laut who because of differences with the Sultan, had not been present at the audience. After serving a large meal of chicken and rice Rajah Laut reintroduces a subject he had begun after their first meeting, the day before. Because the Monsoon was fast approaching he recommended that Captain Swan moor inside the river to better protect his vessel. Having been put more at ease with the letter posted from England by the East India Company, Captain Swan finally agrees.
The very next morning with "fifty or sixty" Maguindanowans assisting the ship is partially unloaded and then towed a quarter of a mile upriver on the ebb tide. When I post Part 6 we will see just why the "letters" were shown and just why Rajah Laut had been so insistent about mooring upriver.
Chapter 13 "Our First Reception at Mindanao"
Raja Laut and his nephew sat still in their canoe and would not come aboard us; because as they said they had no orders for it from the Sultan. After about a half hour's discourse they took their leaves, first inviting Captain Swan ashore and promising to assist him in getting provisions, which they said at present was scarce, but in three or four months time the rice would be gathered in and then he might have as much as he pleased: that in the meantime he might secure his ship in some convenient place for fear of the westerly winds which they said would be very violent at the latter end of this month and all the next as we found then.
"The Mindanayans Measure their Ship"
We did not know the quality of these two persons till' after they were gone; else we should have fired some guns at their departure: when they were gone a certain officer under the Sultan came aboard and measured our ship. A custom derived from the Chinese who always measure the length and breadth and the depth of the hold of all ships that come to load here: by which means they know how much each ship will carry. But what reason this custom is used either by the Chinese or Mindanao men I never could learn: unless the Mindanayans design by this means to improve their skill in shipping against they have a trade.
"Captain Swan's Present to the Sultan: His Reception of it, Audience Given to Captain Swan with Raja Laut, the Sultan's Brother's Entertainment of Him"
Captain Swan considering that the season of the year would oblige us to spend some time at this island, thought it correct to make what interest he could with the Sultan who might afterwards either obstruct or advance his designs. He therefore immediately provided a present to send ashore to the Sultan, namely, three yards of scarlet cloth, three yards of broad gold lace, a Turkish scimtar, and a pair of pistols: to Raja Laut he sent three yards of scarlet cloth and three yards of silver lace. This present was carried by Mr.Henry More in the evening. He was first conducted to Raja Laut's house: where he remained till' report thereof was made to the Sultan, who immediately gave order to all things to be made ready to receive him.
At about 9 at night a messenger came from the Sultan to bring the present away. Then Mr.More was conducted all the way with torches and armed men till' he came to the house where the Sultan was. The Sultan with eight or ten men of his council were seated on carpets, waiting his coming. The present that Mr.More brought was laid down before them, and was very kindly accepted by the Sultan, who caused Mr.More to sit down by then and asked a great many questions of him. The discourse was in Spanish by an interpreter. This conference lasted about an hour and then he was dismissed and returned again to Raja Laut's house. There was a supper provided for him and the boat's crew after which he returned aboard.
The next day the Sultan sent for Captain Swan: he immediately went ashore with a flag flying in the boat's head and two trumpets sounding all the way. When he came ashore he was met at his landing by two principal officers, guarded along with soldiers and abundance of people gazing to see him. The Sultan waited for him in his chamber of audience where Captain Swan was treated with tobacco and betel, which was all his entertainment.
"The Contents of Two English Letters Shown Them by the Sultan of Mindanao"
The Sultan sent for two English letters for Captain Swan to read, purposely to let him know that our East Indian merchants did design to settle here, and that they already sent a ship hither. One of these was sent to the Sultan from England by the East India merchants. The chiefist thing contained in it, as I remember, for I saw it afterwards in the Secretary's hand, who was very proud to show it to us was to desire some privleges in order to the building a fort there. The letter was written in a very fair hand; and between each line there was a gold line drawn. The other was left by Captain Goodlud, directed to any Englishman who should happen to come thither. This related wholly to trade, giving an account at what rate he had agreed with them for goods on the island and how European goods should be sold to them with an account of their weights and measures, and their difference from ours.
"Of the Commodities and the Punishments There"
The rate agreed on for Mindanao gold was 14 Spanish Dollars (which is current coin all over India), the English ounce, and 18 Dollars the Mindanao ounce. But for beeswax and clove bark I do not remember the rates, neither do I well remember the rates of European commodities; but I think the rate of iron was not above 4 Dollars a hundred. Captain Goodlud's letter concludes thus, "Trust none of them for they are all thieves but tace is Latin for candle." We understood afterwards that Captain Goodlud was robbed of some goods by one of the General's men and that he that robbed him was fled into the mountains and could not be found while Captain Goodlud was there. But the fellow returning back to the city sometime after our arrival there, Raja Laut brought him bound to Captain Swan and told him what he had done, desiring him to punish him for it as he pleased; but Captain Swan excused himself and said it did not belong to him, therefore he would have nothing to do with it. However the General Raja Laut would not pardon him, according to their own custom, which I did never see but at this time.
He was stripped stark naked in the morning at sun rising and bound to a post so he could not stir hand nor foot but as he moved, and was placed with his face eastward against the sun. In the afternoon they moved his face towards the west that the sun might still be in his face; and thus he stood all day, parched in the sun (which shines here exceedingly hot) and tormented with the mosquitoes or gnats; after this the General would have killed him if Captain Swan had consented to it. I never did see any put to death; but I believe they are barbarous in it. The General told us himself that he put two men to death in a town where some of us were with him; but I heard not the manner of it. Their common way of punishing is to strip them in this manner and place them in the sun; but sometimes they lay them flat on their backs in the sand, where they remain all day in the scorching sun with the mosquitoes biting them all the time.
The action of the General in offering Captain Swan the punishment of the thief caused Captain Swan afterwards to make him the same offer of his men when any bad offended the Mindanao men; but the General left such offenders be punished by Captain Swan as he thought convenient. So for the least offence Captain Swan punished his men and that in the sight of the Mindanayans; and I think sometimes only for revenge; as he did once punish his Chief Mate Mr.Teat, he that came Captain of the bark to Mindanao. Indeed at the time Captain Swan had his men as much under command as if he had been in a King's ship; and had he known how to use his authority he might have led them to any settlement, and have brought them to assist him in any design he had planned.
"The General's Caution How to Demean Themselves; at His Persuasion They Lay Up Their Ships in the River"
Captain Swan being dismissed from the Sultan, with abundance of civility, after about two hours discourse with him went there to Raja Laut's house: Raja Laut had then some difference with the Sultan and therefore he was not present at the Sultan's reception of our Captain, but awaited his return and treated him and all his men with boiled rice and fowls. He then told Captain Swan again and urged it to him that it would be best to get his ship into the river as soon as he could because of the usual tempestuous weather at this time of the year; and that he should want no assistance to further him in anything. He told them also that, as we must of necessity stay there some time, so our men would often come ashore; and he therefore desired him to warn his men to be careful to give no affront to the natives; who he said, were very vengeful. That their customs being different than ours, he feared that Captain Swan's men might sometime or other offend them, though ignorantly; that therefore he gave him his friendly warning to prevent it; that his home should always be open to receive him or any of his men, and that he, knowing our customs, would never be offended at anything. After a great deal of such discourse he dismissed the Captain and his company, who took their leave and came aboard.
Captain Swan having seen the two letters, did not doubt but the English did design to settle a factory here, therefore he did not much scruple the honesty of these people, but immediately ordered us to get the ship into the river. The river upon which the city of Mindanao stands is but small and has not above 10 or 11 feet of water on the bar at a spring-tide: therefore we lightened our ship. And the spring coming on, we with much ado got her into the river, being assisted by fifty or sixty Mindanayan fishermen who lived at the mouth of the river; Raja Laut himself being aboard our ship to direct them. We carried her about a quarter of a mile up, within the mouth of the river and there we moored her head and stern in a hole where we always rode afloat.
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