The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803; explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the Catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commericial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the beginning of the nineteenth century; [Vol. 1, no. 24]

I630-I634]

MEDINA'S HISTORIA

35

sees with how much care he would watch over his
flock, striving to maintain them without quarreling,
and observing in everything the entirety of the rules.
With the obstinate, he was rigid and severe; with the
humble, most humble; with the afflicted, he held
himself as a pious father who desires their good, and
consoled them. As far as was possible, he followed
the advice of Fray Pedro de Agurto, his successor in
the bishopric, as he was so holy and learned a man.
For since the affairs of the province had somewhat
declined, and in visiting he found some religious
who were prohibited by the rules - and, in fact, trying to remove them - the holy prelate counseled him
that such religious were men of weight, and that he
should receive their renunciations secretly; and that
when the intermediate chapter should be assembled,
then he should show them and provide those convents. Thereby would he be fulfilling his obligation, and would also be considering the honor of
those religious, who if they were removed before,
would be injured, as it would be understood that it
had been because of their demerits; but it was a customary thing to do that in chapter, for it was apparent to all that religious were changed at that time.
He did this as the bishop had counseled him, and
thus the matter was remedied as far as possible without any scandal.
He visited the entire province, and went to that of
the Pintados-which was his own, where he was
reared, and where he had been prior of Panay,
Oct6ng, and Santisimo Nombre de Jesus. While he
was making the visitation there, it happened that
news was brought that the inhabitants of Mindanao
were coming with a large fleet to destroy the islands.