Hi! So I posted this for those guys who are looking for an ebook of Noli Me Tangere. I don't know how I got this but I decided to share it with you guys anyway ^^

This Isn't Mine, I got this at Project Gutenberg. Anyway, this is an English version and Also an INCOMPLETE one. Sooo I wouldn't recommend using this in your classes. Still stick to the textbooks for your Filipino Class but you can use this, I guess. But i left you a warning na.

In This chapter you'll find the credits and Jose Rizal's life. But you may skip this chapter to go forth with the story


The Project Gutenberg EBook of Friars and Filipinos, by Jose Rizal This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with

almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or

re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included

with this eBook or online at .net

Title: Friars and Filipinos

An Abridged Translation of Dr. Jose Rizal's Tagalog Novel,

'Noli Me Tangere.'

Author: Jose Rizal

Translator: Frank Ernest Gannett

Release Date: October 17, 2009 [EBook #30278]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FRIARS AND FILIPINOS ***

Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed

Proofreading Team at .net (This file was

produced from images generously made available by The

Internet Archive/American Libraries.)

Friars and Filipinos

An abridged translation of

Dr. Jose Rizal's

Tagalog Novel, "Noli Me Tangere."

By

Frank Ernest Gannett.

New York:

The St. James Press.

Copyright, 1900,

by

Frank Ernest Gannett.

To

Jacob Gould Schurman,

President of Cornell University.

PREFACE.

While serving on the staff of the first United States Commission to the

Philippine Islands my attention was called to the life and writings

of Dr. Jose Rizal. I found in his novel, "Noli Me Tangere," the best

picture of the life of the people of those islands under Spanish rule,

and the clearest exposition of the governmental problems which Spain

failed to solve, and with which our own people must deal. It occurred

to me that an English translation of Rizal's work would be of great

value at the present time. My first intention was to reproduce the

entire novel as it was written, but, after careful consideration,

I thought best to abridge the story by the omission of some parts

which did not seem essential to the main purpose of the work. The

present volume is the result.

Readers should not understand any of Rizal's references to priests

and friars as reflections upon the Roman Catholic Church. He was

throughout his life an ardent Catholic, and died a firm adherent

of the Church. But he objected to the religious orders in the

Philippine Islands, because he knew well that they were more zealous

in furthering their own selfish ends than in seeking the advancement

of Christianity. From experience, Dr. Rizal knew that the friars,

under cloak of the gospel ministry, oppressed his fellow countrymen,

and took advantage of their superstition and ignorance. These wrongs

he was brave enough to expose in his writings. In the friars he saw an

obstacle to the education and enlightenment of the Filipino people,

and, using moderate means, he did his utmost to secure reform. His

writings will explain to us the cause of the hatred shown by the

Filipinos toward the religious corporations, and will make clearer

the nature of one of the present problems in the Philippines.

There are in the Philippines five religious orders: the Dominicans,

Franciscans, Recoletos, Augustines and Jesuits. According to John

Foreman, an eminent authority, the members of all of these, except

the last named, come from the lower classes in Spain, and are on

the whole comparatively ignorant and uncultured. Under the Spanish

system of government certain provinces were assigned to each of the

orders-except the Jesuits-and the friars were distributed among

the different parishes. In the town assigned to him the friar had

much authority. He was chief adviser in all civil affairs, and, by

his influence over the superstitious natives, maintained absolute

control in all matters pertaining to the local government as well

as to the local church. So firm was his hold that he led the Spanish

government to believe that the islands could not be ruled without his

aid. Knowing that his power rested on the ignorance of the people he

discouraged education among them. When native Filipinos advanced so

far as to prove an obstacle to the religious orders, as did Rizal and

many others, the friars sought to destroy them. Forgetting their holy

mission, the religious orders became commercial corporations, amassed

enormous wealth, and gained possession of the most valuable parts of

the islands, though to much of this property the titles are not clear.

From my own observation, and from information derived from the

Spaniards themselves, I am convinced that the author has not

overdrawn his pictures. In fact I have learned of instances where

the oppression and practices of the friars were even worse than those

described. Dr. Rizal has given us a portrayal of the Filipino character

from the viewpoint of the most advanced Filipino. He brings out many

facts that are pertinent to present-day questions, showing especially

the Malayan ideas of vengeance, which will put great difficulties

in the way of the pacifying of the islands by our forces. The reader

will not fail to notice the striking similarity between the life of

Ibarra, the hero, and that of Rizal, the author, a short sketch of

whose career has been given in the following pages.

For assistance in preparing this volume for publication I offer

sincere thanks to William H. Glasson, Ph.D., Instructor in History

in the George School, Newtown, Pa. Dr. Glasson has read the entire

manuscript and proofs, and I have been glad to avail myself of his

advice on many doubtful points. I desire also to acknowledge my

indebtedness for favors received to Horatio Green, Interpreter to

the Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands, to W. G. Richardson,

of New York, and to the publishers.

F. E. G.

Ithaca, N. Y., Dec. 1, 1900.


JOSE RIZAL.

Dr. Jose Rizal, of whose "Noli Me Tangere," the following story, is

an abridgement, is the most striking character to be found in the

history of the Philippine Islands. He was not only a great martyr

to the cause of liberty, and to the advancement of his fellow men,

but he was without doubt the greatest Filipino ever born, and his

memory is cherished to-day by his people as we ourselves cherish the

memory of Washington.

Rizal was born on June 19th, 1861, in the pueblo of Calamba, in the

province of Laguna, on the Island of Luzon. He came of a Tagalog

family, which, it is said, acknowledged a slight mixture of Chinese

blood, and possessed considerable property. As a child he gave evidence

of extraordinary precocity. He is said to have written poetry in his

native tongue at eight years of age, produced a successful melodrama

at fourteen, and later to have won prizes in literary contests with

writers of recognized ability.

After passing through the University of Manila, and receiving much

instruction at the hands of the Jesuit fathers, he was sent to Europe

to complete his education. He pursued courses of study in Spanish

and German universities, and won the degrees of Doctor of Medicine

and Doctor of Philosophy. Besides acquiring a knowledge of seven

languages he gained a brilliant reputation for proficiency in the

branch of optical surgery. For a time he was the leading assistant

in the office of a world-renowned specialist at Vienna.

While in Europe Rizal wrote several books and also gave considerable

time to sculpture and painting. His artistic ability was great,

and some of his productions are now treasured by friends into whose

possession they came. Rizal's best known work is his "Noli Me Tangere,"

written in Belgium about 1886 or 1887. This novel, with its vivid

picture of life in the Philippines, and its exposure of Spanish

misrule and oppression, won for him the bitter hatred of the friars,

and inspired the relentless persecution which only ended with the

taking of his life.

In 1889 Dr. Rizal returned to the Philippines, but was soon compelled

to leave his native land in order to escape forcible banishment. After

a short residence in Japan, he went to London, where he published

a work on the History of the Philippine Islands. About the same

time a sequel to "Noli Me Tangere," entitled "El Filibusterismo,"

was published. The hatred of the priests against him was further

inflamed by this production, and the government in Manila was forced

by the friars to forbid the circulation of any of his writings. Copies

of his novels were burned in the public squares, and it was worth

one's life to be found possessing a copy. Until very recently it has

been almost impossible to obtain a copy of Rizal's works, and it was

necessary to go to Europe to secure the one from which the following

abridged translation was made.

In 1892 Dr. Rizal was so overcome with a desire to see again his

beautiful fatherland that he ventured, in the face of all the dangers

that threatened him, to return to Manila. He had scarcely set foot

on shore, however, before he was arrested and thrown in prison. The

friars demanded his execution on the ground that he carried incendiary

leaflets for the purpose of stirring up a rebellion, but subsequent

inquiries showed that such leaflets had been introduced into his

baggage at the custom house through the intrigues of the Augustine

friars. Despite his indignant protestations of innocence; Rizal was

summarily condemned by the Spanish General, Despujols, to banishment

at Dapitan in the island of Mindanao. Although the trickery of the

friars became known to him, Despujols lacked courage to revoke his

order of banishment, for fear that he, too, would incur the hatred

of the powerful religious corporations.

After four years of exile Rizal saw plainly that the hostility of

the friars would make it impossible for him to live in his native

land. In 1896 a plague of yellow fever broke out in the island

of Cuba and Rizal volunteered to lend his medical services to the

Spanish government. Ramon Blanco, then general-in-chief of the Spanish

forces in the Philippines, accepted the generous offer and recalled

the young man to Manila that he might sail at once for Cuba. Alarmed

by demonstrations of popular affection for Rizal, who represented the

aspirations of the Filipino people, the Spanish authorities broke faith

with him and imprisoned him in the Fuerza de Santiago. He was arraigned

on false charges, given a military trial, and at the dictation of

the religious orders was sentenced to be shot as a traitor.

At dawn on December 30th, 1896, he was led to the place of execution

on the beautiful Luneta, overlooking the tranquil surface of Manila

Bay. Notices of the event had been published throughout the islands

and the day on which it was to occur was proclaimed a fiesta. Thousands

gathered around the place selected, and so evident was the sympathy of

the helpless Filipinos for the man who was to die for their sake that

Spain marshalled ten regiments of her soldiers about the spot. The

populace must be intimidated. A nation's hero was about to become a

nation's martyr. With face uplifted he glanced at the multitude about

him and smiled. They tied his arms behind him and made him face the

waters of the bay. In vain he protested and begged that he might die

facing his executioners. A squad of his fellow countrymen, who were

serving in Spain's army, were selected for the bloody work. They drew

in position to shoot him in the back. The order was given to fire,

but only one had the courage to obey. The bullet went straight and the

hero fell, but another shot was necessary to despatch his life. His

newly wedded wife remained with him to the end. The best hope of the

Filipino people was crushed; a light in a dark place was snuffed out.

Rizal was no extremist, no believer in harsh and bloody methods, no

revolutionist. He aimed to secure moderate and reasonable reforms, to

lessen the oppressive exactions of the friars, to examine into titles

of their land, and to make possible the education and uplifting of

his people. He loved Spain as he did his own country, and repeatedly

used his influence against the rebellious measures proposed by other

Filipino leaders. His execution was only one of the numerous outrages

which characterized Spain's reign in the Philippines.

In closing this short sketch of Rizal's life we can do no better

than to quote the estimate of him made by Dr. Ferdinand Blumentritt,

professor in the University of Leitmeritz, Austria, who prepared a

biographical sketch of Rizal. Dr. Blumentritt said:

"Not only is Rizal the most prominent man of his own people, but the

greatest man the Malayan race has produced. His memory will never

perish in his fatherland, and future generations of Spaniards will

yet learn to utter his name with respect and reverence."