Chapter 21

Second Homecoming and the La Liga Filipina

ARRIVAL IN MANILA WITH SISTER

June 26,1892; Sunday;12:00 noon

 Rizal’s second homecoming to Manila.

 “The battlefield is in the Philippines. There we will help one another, there together we
will suffer or triumph perhaps.”
 Rizal to Blumentritt: “I believe that La Solidaridad is no longer our battlefield; now it is a
new struggle… the fight is no longer in Madrid.”
 Rizal & Lucia arrived in Manila
 At Hotel de Oriente facing Binondo Church
 Seek audience at Malacanang with Governor-General Eulogio Despujol, Conde de
Caspe
 Despujol agreed to pardon his father but not the rest of his family.

VISITING FRIENDS IN CENTRAL LUZON

 June 27,1862 in Malolos, San Fernando, Tarlac and Bacolor
OTHER INTERVIEWS WITH DESPUJOL
 very much opposed to Borneo colonization
FOUNDING OF THE LIGA FILIPINA

 Sunday, July 3, 1892

 attended a meeting of the patriots at the home of:
 the Chinese- Filipino, Doroteo Ongjunco on Ylaya St. , Tondo, Manila
 explained the objectives of the La Liga Filipina
 La Liga Filipina - a civic league of Filipinos

 with patriots who were mostly Mason (M): Pedro Serrano Laktaw, M & school teacher,
(Panday Pira); Domingo Franco, M & tobacco shopkeeper (Felipe Leal); Jose Ramos, M
(Socorro), owner of Bazar Gran Bretaña and first Worshipful Master of Nilad, the first
Filipino Masonic Lodge*; Ambrosio Salvador, M, gobernadorcillo/ capitan municipal of
Quiapo; Bonifacio Arevalo, M (Harem); Moises Salvador, M, (Araw);Luis Villareal, tailor
& M; Faustino Villareal (Ilaw), pharmacist & M; Mariano Crisostomo, landlord;
Numeriano Adriano (Ipil); notary public & M; Estanislao Legaspi, artisan & M; Teodoro
Plata, court clerk & M; Andres Bonifacio, warehouse employee; Apolinario Mabini
(Katabay), lawyer & M; and Juan Zulueta, playwright;
 Rizal explained the objectives and constitution of La Liga and was approved
unanimously
CONSTITUTION OF THE LIGA FILIPINA
 Objectives:
o To unite the whole archipelago into one compact and homogenous body
o Mutual protection in every want and necessity
o Defense against all violence and injustice
o Encouragement of education, agriculture, and commerce
o Study and application of reforms
 Motto: “Unus Instar Omnium” or One like All

RIZAL ARRESTED AND JAILED IN FORT SANTIAGO

 Wed, July 6, 1892 during an interview with Despujol, the latter suddenly showed him
some printed leaflets allegedly found in Lucia’s pillow cases (entitled Pobres Frailes, a
satire against Dominicans written by Fr. Jacinto)
 Incriminatory leaflets: “Pobres Frailes
 Satire against the rich Dominican friars who amassed fabulous riches contrary to
their monastic vow of poverty.
  Denial of Rizal-thoroughly searched upon their arrival from Hong Kong by the custom
authorities
 He was placed under arrest in Fort Santiago and was escorted by Ramon Despujol
 He was kept incommunicado in Ft. Santiago and could not talk to anyone except with the
officer on duty
 Gaceta de Manila-published the story of Rizal’s arrest which produced commotion
among the Filipino people
ARBITRARY DEPORTATION TO DAPITAN
 Reasons for Rizal’s deportation: (4 years)
 Writings:
o disloyalty to Spain
o “frankly anti-catholic” and “imprudently anti-friar”
 Incriminatory leaflets:
o “Pobres Frailes”
 His novel El Filibusterismo was dedicated to the memory of:
o three traitors (Gom-Bur-Za)
o title page “the only salvation for the Philippines was separation from the
mother country from Spain”

 12:30AM of July 15, 1892, was brought under heavy guard to the steamer Cebu under
Captain Delgras
 arrived 7PM of July 17 in Dapitan
 handed over to Captain Ricardo Carnicero, Spanish commandant of Dapitan (till July
31, 1896 or 4 years & 13 days)

Chapter 22
Exile In Dapitan

Continuation of Jacob’s Research

RIZAL’S INVENTIVE ABILITY

Among Rizal’s inventions were:

 1.Cigarette lighter which he sent as a gift to Blumentritt called “sulpukan”

-based on principle of compressed air.
 2.A wooden machine for making bricks
-can manufacture 6000 bricks daily.

“My Retreat” (“Mi Retiro”)- a beautiful poem about his serene life as an exile

 February,1895
 Upon restoring her eyesight, Dona Teodora returned to Manila.
 Seeing how busy Rizal is, she regretted neglecting her muses.
 She requested Rizal to write poetry.
 As a response, Rizal wrote “Mi Retiro” relating his serene life as an exile in Dapitan

RIZAL AND JOSEPHINE BRACKEN

 the death of Leonor Rivera left a poignant void in Rizal’s heart. In his loneliness, he met
Josephine
 Josephine Bracken – 18 years old, slender, a chestnut blond Irish girl born in Hong Kong
on Oct 3, 1876
 James Bracken and Elizabeth Jane MacBride – Josephine’s parents who are both Irish
in citizenship
 Mr. George Taufer – man who adopted Josephine after her mother died of childbirth
 Mr. Taufer became blind so he sought for an ophthalmic specialist. This is how
Josephine and Rizal met.
 Manuela Orlac – Filipina companion who accompanied Josephine Bracken to Dapitan.
  Rizal and Josephine Bracken decided to get married but Father Obach refused to marry
them without the permission of Bishop of Cebu.
 Hearing of the planned marriage and unable to endure the thought of losing Josephine,
Mr. Taufer tried to commit suicide by cutting off his throat with a razor but Rizal was able
to prevent this.

 To avoid a tragedy, Josephine accompanied Mr. Taufer back to Manila. Mr. Taufer
returned to Hong Kong alone while Josephine stayed with the Rizals in Manila and Rizal
went back to Dapitan
 Having no priests to marry them, Rizal and Josephine married themselves before the
eyes of God.
 “They held hands together and married themselves before the eyes of God”; wrote
“Josephine, Josephine”
 The two were happy for they were expecting for a baby. However, Rizal played a prank
on Josephine making her give birth to an eight-month baby boy. The baby lived for only
three hours. He was named “Francisco” in honor of Rizal’s father.

RIZAL AND THE KATIPUNAN

 Pio Valenzuela – emissary to Dapitan in order to inform Rizal of the plan of Katipunan
during the meeting at a little river called Bitukang Manok.
 Venus – steamer Valenzuela boarded to reach Dapitan
 Raymundo Mata – blind man who came withValenzuela to camouflage his mission
 Rizal objected Bonifacio’s project because:
o The people are not ready for a revolution
o Arms and funds must first be collected before raising the cry of revolution.

VOLUNTEERS AS MILITARY DOCTOR IN CUBA

 When Cuba was under revolution and raging yellow fever epidemic, Rizal wrote to
Governor General Ramon Blanco offering his services as military doctor.
 Governor Blanco later notified Rizal of the acceptance of the offer. The notification came
along with an instruction of acquiring first a pass for Manila from the politico-military
commander of Dapitan.

“The Song of the Traveler”

 Upon receiving the acceptance of his offer to go to Europe then to Cuba to help in the
curing of patients suffering yellow fever, he wrote a poem “El Canto del Viajero”

ADIOS, DAPITAN

 España – steamer which brought Rizal to Manila from Dapitan

 Rizal was accompanied by Josephine, Narcisa, Angelica (Narcisa’s daughter), his three
nephews and six pupils.
 As farewell, the town brass of Dapitan played the dolorous Funeral March of Chopin.
 He stayed in Dapitan for four years, thirteen days and a few hours.