Note 12 — Part II

The term situado was also applied, among other things, to the increase (1590) of two reals on each tribute (see VOL. XIV, p. 247, and XVI, p. 160). Torrubia explains this clearly in his Dissertacion, pp. 95–98; and he makes the following statement about the fund of “the fourths:” “The said father ministers are paid from the ‘fourths’ of the eight reals which remain (and these are distinct from the situado), and from the former the ministers were paid before the increase of the tributes. The present method is, to collect the ten reals, as the Ordinances provide, from each entire tribute; from this two reals are taken for paying the soldiers, etc., and this is called situado. After that, the fourth part of the eight reals (that it, two reals) is taken out, and this it to pay the ministers—to whom for every hundred tributes that are under their ministry are paid twenty or twenty-five pesos (according to various customs of provinces and tributaries, which it would be difficult to explain at this time), with which sum the support assigned to the ministers is completed. For this purpose was instituted the royal fund of ‘fourths,’ which is explained in the Recopilacion by ley 14, tit. 3, lib. 1; for this fund the encomenderos of tributes who, on account of being unbelievers, have no parish priest contribute (after having paid the two reals of the situado, which amount is set apart and separately administered) another two reals for every infidel tribute, which is called the ‘fourth’ of the eight remaining reals; thus six reals remain, which is the amount that has always been estimated for the tribute. The destination of the money from the ‘fourths’ was the support of hospitals and charitable funds; but such is not now its use, because, thanks to God, all the tributes in encomiendas are Christians. Accordingly, with those two reals of the ‘fourths’ the encomiendas pay the ministers, and hand over the two reals of the situado to the royal treasury for its fund allotted to troops, etc. This is the usual arrangement, although in some villages and encomiendas the procedure is somewhat different.” ↑