Magellan's Men in Zamboanga del Norte and Palawan

Zamboanga del Norte

Then we came to a large island [Mindanao], at a port called Chipit and met its king Raja Calanao.

• He drew blood from his left hand marking his body, face, and the tip of his tongue with it as a token of the closest friendship, and we did the same.
• When we entered a river, many fishermen offered fish to the king.
• Then the king removed the cloths which covered his privies, as did some of his chiefs.
• He began to row while singing past many dwellings which were upon the river.
• It was 2 leagues from the mouth of the river where our ships were to the king’s house.

His house had many torches of cane and palm leaves which were of the anime.

• Until the supper was brought in, Raja Calanao with two of his chiefs and two of his beautiful women drank a large jar of palm wine without eating anything.
• In drinking they observed all the same ceremonies that Raha Colambu did.
• Supper was of rice and very salty fish in porcelain dishes.
• They ate their rice as if it were bread.
  • Rice is cooked by first put in an earthen jar a large leaf which lines all of the jar.
  • Then they add the water and the rice.
  • They cover it and let it boil until the rice hardens as bread and is taken out in pieces.

When we had eaten, the king had a reed mat and another of palm leaves, and a leaf pillow brought in for me to sleep on.

• The king and his two women went to sleep in a separate place, while I slept with one of his chiefs.
• I saw many articles of gold in the houses in that island, but little food.
• After dinner on rice and fish, I asked Raja Calanao by signs whether I could see the queen.
• So we went to the summit of a lofty hill, where the queen’s house was located.
• I bowed to the queen, and sat down beside her.
• She was making a sleeping mat of palm leaves.

In her house, there was hanging a number of porcelain jars and four metal gongs—one of which was larger than the second, while the other two were still smaller—for playing upon.

• There were many male and female slaves who served her.
• The most abundant product of that island is gold.

They showed me certain large valleys, making me a sign that the gold there was as abundant as the hairs of their heads, but they have no iron with which to dig it, and they do not dare to go to the trouble [to get it].

• That part of the island belongs to the same land as Butuan and Calaghan, and lies toward Bohol, and is bounded by Masawa.

The king and the other chief men wished to accompany me, and therefore we went in the same balanghai.

• As we were returning along the river, I saw, on the summit of a hill at the right, three men suspended from one tree, the branches of which had been cut away.
• Raja Calanao said that they were malefactors and robbers.

Those people go naked.

• Chipit is an excellent harbor and is 50 leguas from Cebu.
• Rice, ginger, swine, goats, fowls, and other things are to be found there.
• It lies 8 degrees latitude toward the Arctic Pole, and 167 longitude of degrees.
• Two days’ journey thence to the northwest is a large island called Luzon, where 6-8 Chinese junks go yearly.

Mapun

We sailed west southwest to an island called Cagayan which is not very large and almost uninhabited.

• The people of that island are Moros and were banished from Borneo.
• They go naked as do the others.
• They have blowpipes and small quivers at their side, full of arrows and a poisonous herb.
• They have daggers whose hafts are adorned with gold and precious gems, spears, bucklers, and small cuirasses of buffalo horn.
• They called us holy beings.
• Little food was to be found in that island, but [there were] immense trees.
• It lies in a latitude of 7.5 degrees toward the Arctic Pole, and 43 leguas from Chippit.

Palawan

About 25 leguas west northwest from Cagayan is the large island of Palawan which has:

• rice
• ginger
• swine
• goats
• fowls
• bananas 1/2 braza long and as thick as the arm
  • They are excellent and are much better than all the others
  • The others are 1 palmo and less in length
• coconuts
• camotes [batate]
• sugarcane
• roots resembling turnips in taste.

Rice is cooked there under the fire in bamboos or in wood and it lasts better than that cooked in earthen pots.

• We called that land the land of promise, because we suffered great hunger before we found it.
• We were often on the point of abandoning the ships and going ashore in order that we might not die of hunger.
• The king made peace with us by gashing himself slightly in the breast with one of our knives, and upon bleeding, touching the tip of his tongue and his forehead in token of the truest peace, and we did the same.
• It lies in a latitude of 9.3 degrees, and a longitude of 171.3 degrees.

Those people of Palawan also go naked.

• Almost all of them cultivate their fields.
• They have blowpipes with thick wooden arrows more than one palmo long, with harpoon points, and others tipped with fishbones, and poisoned with an herb; while others are tipped with points of bamboo like harpoons and are poisoned.
• At the end of the arrow they attach a little piece of soft wood, instead of feathers.
• At the end of their blowpipes they fasten a bit of iron like a spear head and when they have shot all their arrows they fight with that.
• They place a value on brass rings and chains, bells, knives, and still more on copper wire for binding their fishhooks.
• They have large and very tame cocks, which they do not eat because of a certain veneration that they have for them. Sometimes they make them fight with one another, and each one puts up a certain amount on his cock, and the prize goes to him whose cock is the victor.
• They have distilled rice wine which is stronger and better than that made from the palm.