Lipa City, Batangas: Historical Data Part V

PART V

PART I | PART II | PART III | PART IV | PART V

[p. 32]

But he did not see anyone there. At last, when he grew tired, he sat on an old coconut shell which lay face down in a corner of the garden.

By and by, he heard a soft voice say, “Hoo, old man!”

“Who is that?” the old man asked.

“Hoo, old man!” repeated the voice.

The old man searched the garden once more, but he found no one. However, when he sat down on the coconut shell to rest again, the voice came back.

“Humph!” the old man said, “this is strange. The voice sounds very near, and yet I cannot find who it is.” Then, he picked up the coconut shell on which he sat. Imagine how surprised he was to find that what he thought was a coconut shell was a tortoise. He did not know that he was sitting on the very thief he had been looking for. “At last,” he said, “I have you. Repent for your sins, for I shall place you in a rice mortar and pound you to death with a pestle.”

“Oho!” laughed the tortoise, “pounding is not new to me. Look at my abdomen. If I had not been pounded in a mortar so many times before, my abdomen would not be as flat as it is now. And yet I am still alive to keep on stealing Aunt Guinampang’s hot ginger. Do not pound me if you know what is good for your wife’s ginger.”

“Then,” the old man said, “since I cannot kill you by pounding you, I shall cut you to pieces.”

“Oho!” laughed the tortoise, “you will be making a mistake if you do that. I have been cut to many pieces and yet I am still alive to keep on stealing Aunt Guinampang’s hot ginger.”

“What proof can you give that you have been cut to pieces before?” asked the old man.

The tortoise pointed at his back and belly. “Can you see the big scars all over my body?” he asked. “You will agree that my scars are many. And yet I am still alive to keep on stealing Aunt Guinampang’s ginger.”

“In that case,” said the old man, “I shall roast your alive.”

“Go ahead if you want to roast me alive,” replied the tortoise. “But I must confess that roasting is the last thing that will kill me. I have gone through so many roastings that now roasting, to me, is sweeter than life itself.”

“Can you give me proof that you have been roasted before?” asked the old man.

“Answer me this first,” asked the tortoise, “what color has the roasted crab?”

“A roasted crab is red, of course,” said the old man.

[p. 33]

“Good,” said the tortoise. “Now look at my shell,” he continued. “What color is it?”

“It is red in some parts,” replied the man. “But you are not a crab.”

“I am the crab’s cousin,” said the tortoise. “How do you still think you should waste your time in trying to kill me by roasting me alive?” asked the tortoise.

“Well, I shall do this, then,” answered the man. If you cannot be killed by being pounded flat, by being cut to pieces, or yet by being roasted alive, you should be killed by drowning in the river. Confess your sins now,” the man added, “for I am going to throw you into the water.”

The tortoise started to weep. “Oh please, good Uncle,” he said, “have pity upon me, a helpless little tortoise. Please do not throw me into the river.”

“Confess your sins and prepare to die!” repeated the man firmly.

“Pound me flat in the mortar, or cut me to pieces with a bolo, or roast me alive in a roaring fire, but please do not throw me into the river because I shall surely die. I do not know how to swim.”

“Have you confessed your sins?” insisted the old man.

“Please, good Uncle.”

“That is enough!” the old man as he swung his arm and threw the tortoise into the river. “Now Guinampang,” he called to his wife as he watched the tortoise sink in the water, “your ginger plants will never be stolen again. The thief is dead. He is . . . . .” He had not finished speaking when he saw the tortoise raise his head above the water.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha! Ha-ha-ha-ha!” said the tortoise. “So you think you have drowned me, don’t you? Foolish man! If you knew what was good for your wife’s ginger, you should have pounded me in the mortar, or cut me to pieces with a bolo, or roasted me alive. You should have done almost everything except throwing me in the water, for the water is my home.”

HOW HONSAI ENSLAVED HIS MASTER
(A Filipino Folktale)

Honsai was a poor boy who wandered from place to place and lived by his wits. One day, he met Sabandar, a man who loved nothing but idleness and pleasure. Sabandar called Honsai and said, “Be my slave and I will teach you the ways of the world.”

“What will be my duties?” asked Honsai.

“You will carry my sword and my hotel bag, and you will do what I do?” replied Sabandar.

[p. 34]

“I think that will suit me, master,” said Honsai.

The next day, Sabandar decided to visit his sweetheart in Misir. He rode on his horse and Honsai walked behind him holding his master’s sword and hotel bag. When they reached Misir, Sabandar sat beside his sweetheart. Then, Honsai walked to the other side of the lady and sat down near her. At this, Sabandar became very angry and said, “Honsai, slave, depart from here!”

“Master,” replied Honsai, “I am sorry, but I am only following what you told me when I became your slave. You told me to do whatever you do.”

Sabandar saw that his slave had taken his word literally. He felt very much embarrassed, and he said, “Get out of my sight. I shall be your slave before I see your face again.”

When Honsai heard this, an idea occurred to him and he went away. Early the next morning, just before the customary prayers were about to be said, Honsai hurried to the mosque. He walked toward the large jar containing water with which the priests washed their hands and faces before praying. He stuck his head through the mouth of the jar and waited. Soon, the priests came to wash. There, they found Honsai and said, “Get your head out of the jar and do not stand in our way.”

“Pardon me, master,” said Honsai, “but I have to hide my face from my master.”

The priests were in a hurry to begin their prayer and they did not want to quarrel with a slave. So, they sent for Sabandar and he came down with many of his friends. “You fool and rascal!” Sabandar said, “you’re giving trouble to the holy men now, too. Get your stupid head out of that jar.”

“I am very sorry, master,” replied Honsai, his head still inside the jar. “”I am afraid to show you my face.”

“Get out!” insisted Sabandar.

“Be careful in what you say, master, or you will be sorry,” said Honsai.

“Stop blabbering,” ordered Sabandar, “and get your foolish head out of that jar. You are delaying the prayer.”

“I have to hide my face from you, master,” said Honsai.

“Get your head out of the jar,” shouted Sabandar, “or I’ll beat your brain out.”

Then, Honsai pulled his head out of the jar, “Just as you wish, Sabandar,” he said calmly. “And now,” he added, “you shall be my slave.”

“I shall be your what?” said Sabandar.

[p. 35]

“You have become a slave,” said Honsai. “Give me your horse, carry my sword and hotel bag, and follow me.” The people roared with laughter when they heard the slave command his master.

“You fool! You shall pay many times for these insults that you have done to your master,” said Sabandar. “Get out of this mosque and do not smear it with your silky talk. Get out quickly or I’ll have you flogged.”

“Sabandar, I ordered you to keep your mouth shut and obey me,” replied Honsai firmly. “Yesterday, you said that you would become my slave before you see my face again. For your sake, I came to hide my face in this jar. But you forced me to get it out, and so now I had to show my face to you. Therefore, you shall be my slave from now on. Sabandar laughed at him, but Honsai insisted on his point. The case was taken to the old man of the city for decision. After much thought, the old man declared that Honsai was right. So, they ordered his former master to become his slave.

PART THREE: OTHER INFORMATION

1. Information on books and documents treating of the Philippines and the names of their owners:

Decrees or Documents	Possessor
1. Chronicle of Lipa 2. Decreto Sobre la Villa de Lipa 3. Decreto Sobre el Esendo de Lipa 4. Decreto por Pio X 5. Ang Kasaysayan ng Lipa	Jose Alex Katigbak Atty. Gualberto Mayo Atty. Gualberto Mayo Mons. Rufino J. Santos Mons. Domingo J. Librea and Emiliano Manguiat

2. The names of Filipino authors born or residing in the community, the titles and subjects of their works, whether printed or in manuscript form and their possessors.

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. Cinco Reglas 2. De Nuestro Moral Antigua 3. El Espiritu de la Revolucion 4. La Revolucion Filipina 5. The Court Martial of Andress Bonifacio 6. La Campaña de la Kuomintang 7. Dietario Espiritual 8. Aide de Camp to Freedom 9. El Heroé del Tirar 10. Writings of Apolinario Mabini in English	: : : : : : : : : :	Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Manuscript Printed Manuscript	: : : : : : : : : :	T.M. Kalaw Mem. Library " " " " " " " " "

[p. 36]

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
11. El Ediario Politico de Apolinario Mabini 12. Las Cartas Politicas de Apolinario Mabini 13. Epistolario Pilarino 14. Epistolario Rizalino 15. Planes Constitucionales para Islas Filipinas 16. Speeches of President Quezon 17. Mazonaria en Filipinas 18. Teorias Constitucionales 19. Manual Sciencia Politica 20. Five Precepts of Ancient Morality 21. Code of Ethics for Flipinos	: : : : : : : : : : :	Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed	: : : : : : : : : : :	TMK Memorial Library " " " " " " " " " " "

2. MAXIMO M. KALAW

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. The Case for the Filipinos 2. Philippine Government 3. Development of Philippine Politics	: : :	Printed Printed Printed	: : :	TMK Memorial Library

3. MARIA KALAW KATIGBAK

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. My Father Was a Great Man	:	Manuscript	:

4. CLARO M. RECTO

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. Solo Entre Las Sombras 2. Civil Code Annotated 3. Casa de España 4. Bajo los Cocoteros 5. La Rota a Damasco 6. Three Years of Enemy Occupation	: : : : : :	Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed Printed	: : : : : :

5. MAX B. SOLIS

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. Columnas Volantes de la Federacion Malaya (Treaty on Journalism)	:	Printed	:
2. El Vuelo de la Aguila	:	Printed	:

6. BERNABE AFRICA

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. Boxer Uprising 2. Voyage to Taiwan	: :	Printed Printed	: :

7. ENRIQUE LAYGO

Title or Subject of Works	:	Printed or Manuscript	:	Possessor
1. Las Caritas	:	Printed	:	Mrs. Enrique Laygo

PART I | PART II | PART III | PART IV | PART V

Transcribed from “History and Cultural Life of the City of Lipa” 1953, online at the National Library of the Philippines Digital Collections.