Page:The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803 (Volume 06).djvu/163

 cathedral of these islands has no buildings, ornaments, or suitable equipment for divine worship; nor has it any income or contributions for these purposes, or for sacristan, verger, or other necessary assistants. And being built of wood and straw, as it is, and so poor, weatherbeaten, and deprived of necessities, it is a reproach and a cause of loss to our faith and Christian religion, and to our state and the men who rule the state, and even to the majesty and greatness of its king and sovereign—since we are in the gaze of so many pagans (both natives and foreigners), who come here from many regions, especially China, and who see and take note of this.

2. That nothing is paid to the bishop and prebendaries from the royal treasury, or from tithes. Second: Inasmuch as, on the one hand, the tithes are not paid, nor, on the other, has the royal treasury at Manila the wherewithal to pay the bishop or prebendaries, or provide for curates or the said helpers, they cannot exist and live as their station demands; and neither in their houses and persons, nor in the service of the church and the methodical arrangements of the hours, do they or can they observe, nor do they feel obliged to observe, the decorum due in all these matters—from which results the said diminution and loss of souls. The person who goes for this purpose will relate what he knows of this matter, besides what is here set down.

3. That the prebendaries be supplied with the necessaries of life, or be exchanged for curates. Third: It was resolved that, if the tithes were not paid, whether his Majesty ordered it or not, this evil should be remedied—as can be done, and is