Lineage, Life and Labors of José Rizal, Philippine Patriot
Or by the brush's magic art
Takest from nature's store a part,
To fix it on the simple canvas' length;
Go forth, and then the sacred fire
Of thy genius to the laurel may aspire;
To spread around the fame,
And in victory acclaim,
Through wider spheres the human name.
Day, O happy day,
Fair Filipinas, for thy land!
So bless the Power today
That places in thy way
This favor and this fortune grand.
The next competition at the Liceo was in honor of the fourth centennial
of the death of Cervantes; it was open to both Filipinos and Spaniards,
and there was a dispute as to the winner of the prize. It is hard
to figure out just what really happened; the newspapers speak of
Rizal as winning the first prize, but his certificate says second,
and there seems to have been some sort of compromise by which a
Spaniard who was second was put at the head. Newspapers, of course,
were then closely censored, but the liberal La Oceania contains a
number of veiled allusions to medical poets, suggesting that for the
good of humanity they should not be permitted to waste their time in
verse-making. One reference quotes the title of Rizal's first poem in
saying that it was giving a word of advice "To the Philippine Youth,"
and there are other indications that for some considerable time the
outcome of this contest was a very live topic in the city of Manila.
Rizal's poem was an allegory, "The Council of the Gods"--"El consejo de
los Dioses." It was an exceedingly artistic appreciation of the chief
figure in Spanish literature. The rector of the Ateneo had assisted
his former student by securing for him needed books, and though
Rizal was at that time a student in Santo Tomas, the rivalries were
such that he was still ranked with the pupils of the Jesuits and his
success was a corresponding source of elation to the Ateneo pupils and
alumni. Some people have stated that Father Evaristo Arias, a notably
brilliant writer of the Dominicans, was a competitor, a version I once
published, but investigation shows that this was a mistake. However,
sentiment in the University against Rizal grew, until matters became
so unpleasant that he felt it time to follow the advice of Father
Burgos and continue his education outside of the Islands.
Just before this incident Rizal had been the victim of a brutal assault
in Kalamba; one night when he was passing the barracks of the Civil
Guard he noted in the darkness a large body, but did not recognize
who it was, and passed without any attention to it. It turned out
that the large body was a lieutenant of the Civil Guard, and, without
warning or word of any kind, he drew his sword and wounded Rizal in the
back. Rizal complained of this outrage to the authorities and tried
several times, without success, to see the Governor-General. Finally
he had to recognize that there was no redress for him. By May of 1882
Rizal had made up his mind to set sail for Europe, and his brother,
Paciano, equipped him with seven hundred pesos for the journey, while
his sister, Saturnina, intrusted to him a valuable diamond ring which
might prove a resource in time of emergency.
Jose had gone to Kalamba to attend a festival there, when Mr. Hidalgo,
from Manila, notified him that his boat was ready to sail. The
telegram, asking his immediate return to the city, was couched in
the form of advice of the condition of a patient, and the name of
the steamer, Salvadora, by a play on words, was used in the sense of
"May save her life." Rizal had previously requested of Mr. Ramirez,
of the Puerta del Sol store, letters of introduction to an Englishman,
formerly in the Philippines, who was then living in Paris. He said
nothing more of his intentions, but on his last night in the city,
with his younger sister as companion, he drove all through the walled
city and its suburbs, changing horses twice in the five hours of
his farewell. The next morning he embarked on the steamer, and there
yet remains the sketch which he made of his last view of the city,
showing its waterfront as it appeared from the departing steamer. To
leave town it was necessary to have a passport; his was in the name
of Jose Mercado, and had been secured by a distant relative of his
who lived in the Santa Cruz district.
After five days' journey the little steamer reached the English colony
of Singapore. There Rizal saw a modern city for the first time. He was
intensely interested in the improvements. Especially did the assured
position of the natives, confident in their rights and not fearful of
the authorities, arouse his admiration. Great was the contrast between
the fear of their rulers shown by the Filipinos and the confidence
which the natives of Singapore seemed to have in their government.
At Singapore, Rizal transferred to a French mail Steamer and seems to
have had an interesting time making himself understood on board. He
had studied some French in his Ateneo course, writing an ode which
gained honors, but when he attempted to speak the language he was
not successful in making Frenchmen understand him. So he resorted to
a mixed system of his own, sometimes using Latin words and making
the changes which regularly would have occurred, and when words
failed, making signs, and in extreme cases drawing pictures of what
he wanted. This versatility with the pencil, for many of his offhand
sketches had humorous touches that almost carried them into the cartoon
class, interested officers and passengers, so that the young student
had the freedom of the ship and a voyage far from tedious.
The passage of the Suez Canal, a glimpse of Egypt, Aden, where East and
West meet, and the Italian city of Naples, with its historic castle,
were the features of the trip which most impressed him.
CHAPTER VI
The Period of Preparation
Rizal disembarked at Marseilles, saw a little of that famous port, and
then went by rail to Barcelona, crossing the Pyrenees, the desolate
ruggedness of which contrasted with the picturesque luxuriance
of his tropical home, and remained a day at the frontier town of
Port-Bou. The customary Spanish disregard of tourists compared very
unfavorably with the courteous attention which he had remarked on his
arrival at Marseilles, for the custom house officers on the Spanish
frontier rather reminded him of the class of employes found in Manila.
At Barcelona he met many who had been his schoolmates in the Ateneo
and others to whom he was known by name. It was the custom of the
Filipino students there to hold reunions every other Sunday at the
cafe, for their limited resources did not permit the daily visits
which were the Spanish custom. In honor of the new arrival a special
gathering occurred in a favorite cafe in Plaza de Catalonia. The
characteristics of the Spaniards and the features of Barcelona were
all described for Rizal's benefit, and he had to answer a host of
questions about the changes which had occurred in Manila. Most of his
answers were to the effect that old defects had not yet been remedied
nor incompetent officials supplanted, and he gave a rather hopeless
view of the future of their country. Somewhat in this gloomy mood,
he wrote home for a newly established Tagalog newspaper of Manila,
his views of "Love of country," an article not so optimistic as most
of his later writings.
In Barcelona he remained but a short time, long enough, however, to
see the historic sights around that city, which was established by
Hannibal, had numbered many noted Romans among its residents, and in
later days was the scene of the return of Columbus from his voyages in
the New World, bringing with him samples of Redskins, birds and other
novel products of the unknown country. Then there were the magnificent
boulevards, the handsome dwellings, the interest which the citizens
took in adorning their city and the pride in the results, and above
all, the disgust at all things Spanish and the loyalty to Catalonia,
rather than to the "mother-fatherland."
The Catalan was the most progressive type in Spain, but he had no
love for his compatriots, was ever complaining of their "manana"
habits and of the evils that were bound to exist in a country where
Church and State were so inextricably intermingled. Many Catalans were
avowedly republicans. Signs might be seen on the outside of buildings
telling of the location of republican clubs, unpopular officials
were hooted in the streets, the newspapers were intemperate in their
criticism of the government, and a campaign was carried on openly
which aimed at changing from a monarchy to a democracy, without any
apparent molestation from the authorities. All these things impressed
the lad who had seen in his own country the most respectfully worded
complaints of unquestionable abuses treated as treason, bringing not
merely punishment, but opprobrium as well.
He, himself, in order to obtain a better education, had had to leave
his country stealthily like a fugitive from justice, and his family, to
save themselves from persecution, were compelled to profess ignorance
of his plans and movements. His name was entered in Santo Tomas at the
opening of the new term, with the fees paid, and Paciano had gone to
Manila pretending to be looking for this brother whom he had assisted
out of the country.
Early in the fall Rizal removed to Madrid and entered the Central
University there. His short residence in Barcelona was possibly for
the purpose of correcting the irregularity in his passport, for in
that town it would be easier to obtain a cedula, and with this his
way in the national University would be made smoother. He enrolled in
two courses, medicine, and literature and philosophy; besides these
he studied sculpture, drawing and art in San Carlos, and took private
lessons in languages from Mr. Hughes, a well-known instructor of the
city. With all these labors it is not strange that he did not mingle
largely in social life, and lack of funds and want of clothes, which
have been suggested as reasons for this, seem hardly adequate. Jose had
left Manila with some seven hundred pesos and a diamond ring. Besides,
he received funds from his father monthly, which were sent through
his cousin, Antonio Rivera, of Manila, for fear that the landlords
might revenge themselves upon their tenant for the slight which his
son had cast upon their university in deserting it for a Peninsular
institution. It was no easy task in those days for a lad from the
provinces to get out of the Islands for study abroad.
Rizal frequently attended the theater, choosing especially the higher
class dramas, occasionally went to a masked ball, played the lotteries
in small amounts but regularly, and for the rest devoted most of
his money to the purchase of books. The greater part of these were
second-hand, but he bought several standard works in good editions,
many with bindings de luxe. Among the books first purchased figure
a Spanish translation of the "Lives of the Presidents of the United
States," from Washington to Johnson, morocco bound, gilt-edged,
and illustrated with steel engravings--certainly an expensive book;
a "History of the English Revolution;" a comparison of the Romans
and the Teutons, and several other books which indicated interest in
the freer system of the Anglo-Saxons. Later, another "History of the
Presidents," to Cleveland, was added to his library.
The following lines, said to be addressed to his mother, were written
about this time, evidently during an attack of homesickness:
"You Ask Me for Verses"
(Translated by Charles Derbyshire)
You bid me now to strike the lyre,
That mute and torn so long has lain;
And yet I cannot wake the strain,
Nor will the Muse one note inspire!
Coldly it shakes in accents dire,
As if my soul itself to wring,