Note 6 — LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE INDIA COUNCIL

Apparently a member of the royal Council; he sent orders that during the war with Great Britain no galleon should sail from Manila for Acapulco, stating that the king thus decreed in order to prevent those rich cargoes from falling into the hands of the English. The merchants petitioned Governor Arrechedera to suspend this decree, at least by permitting them to send to Acapulco the goods which had been registered for that port three years before—which were already damaged by this delay, and would be ruined by a longer one; he did so (with the advice of his counselors), and the galleon “Rosario” and the patache “Pilar” were sent with cargoes in June, 1746. To accomplish this, in the exhausted condition of the colonial treasury, the merchants were obliged to contribute 50,000 pesos for the outfitting of the ships and other expenses; and the royal officials, with the consent of the ecclesiastical cabildo, borrowed from the funds in the treasury belonging to the cathedral 29,805 pesos. The ships were manned with crews of 500 and 350 men respectively. They made the voyage safely, and returned to Manila with the situado for that year and 30,000 pesos on the arrearages in those of previous years. The “Rosario” was again despatched with a cargo, and with request for the situados which had been held back in Mexico; as these amounted to six, the islands were in great need, and the royal treasury almost empty; but the vessel was ill-constructed, and was driven back to port by storms. ↑