El Extranjero

By: Juan Angeles

 Chapter I: The origins
On a stormy afternoon in August of 15, 1860, almost everyone in the town of
Santiago had left their homes to evacuate. Women and children abandoned their
everyday household work to leave immediately, while their husbands stayed
behind to fix their houses. The town of Santiago was devastated, with damage
worth over a million pesos. The Spaniards couldn't do anything but ignore the
pleas for help from the residents of Santiago. The evacuees died from malaria and
fever, as did their husbands who couldn't survive the storm. One of the survivors
was Amelia Clarita y De los Santos, a poor but grateful woman who was thankful
to be with her children, Trecilio and Cristina. After the devastating storm, they
traveled to Manila for Amelia to find work as a prostitute on the streets of
Binondo, a place frequented by rich Mestizos and Sangleys. Amelia suffered great
despair and regret for resorting to prostitution to feed her children. At some point,
women like Amelia being prostitutes were not uncommon. Brothels were open
privately in the corners of Intramuros and Binondo. The brothels in Intramuros
often paid more than those in Binondo. Thus, Amelia moved to Intramuros for a
higher-paying job as a prostitute, while her children faced racial discrimination at
the schools she wanted them to attend. Despite this discrimination, she loved her
children deeply and was willing to sacrifice her life to ensure their future success.
Both Amelia and her children faced racial discrimination, but her children
experienced it more than Amelia herself, as European residents in Intramuros
lusted after her due to her natural beauty. Exploitation of female indios was not
uncommon, as they were often chosen for various roles such as servants,
mistresses, and even upper-class citizens based on their looks. Nevertheless,
Amelia managed to make a profit and had enough money to buy her own house.
With her earnings, Amelia was able to hire her own servants, mostly Chinese and
indios. Eventually, she married a rich man of Basque origins named Salcedo de
Araneta, who had recently moved to the Philippines to escape his abusive parents.
He had studied law and biology in Madrid and became a lawyer before moving to
the Philippine Islands to work as an Abogadocillo for the local Provincia Mayor.
Despite their different origins and languages, Amelia and Salcedo loved each other
deeply. Salcedo supported Amelia's children, sending them to the prestigious
Universidad de Santo Tomas for higher education. Despite their differences in
race, color, and social status, they ignored these factors and developed a strong
trust in each other.
 Chapter II: The future
When Trecilio and Cristina grew up, they obtained their degrees from Santo
Tomas and secured higher-paying jobs. Trecilio pursued his passion for science
and biology, while Cristina developed an interest in music and arts. After their
parents passed away, they decided to move to Spain because the country offered
better-paying jobs, irrespective of their education. After their parents passed away,
Trecilio and Cristina made the decision to move to Spain due to the country's
offering of better-paying jobs, regardless of their education. They purchased
tickets for an extravagant boat journey to Spain. Among the passengers on-board
were Europeans en route to Manila and others returning home. Remarkably,
Trecilio and Cristina, being pure indios, were the only ones among them who
could afford the voyage to Spain. A few weeks later, they arrived at the port of
Seville, feeling astonished as they had never seen such a place before. Seville was
replete with wealthy individuals, beautiful parks, and the most ornate houses in
every suburb. They temporarily settled at a place called Hotel de Moriones.
Despite not being able to afford the monthly payments, they continued to switch
hotels and apartments in their search around Seville. One day, while on their way
to a café, they encountered an elderly gentleman. “Good afternoon, miss. And
good afternoon to you too,” The man greeted politely. Trecilio asked the man,
"Excuse me, may we know who you are?". “Ah, forgive my manners. My name is
Pedro Lopez, a businessman in this town,” the man introduced himself. Trecilio,
having never interacted with a wealthy man before, recalled the discrimination he
faced during his childhood in Manila. “Uhmm...it’s a pleasure to meet you, sir,”
Trecilio replied nervously. “My oh my...You've never seen a rich man before, have
you?” Lopez inquired with a smile. Nervously, Trecilio responded, “Yes, I have.
Both of our parents were wealthy. Unfortunately, they passed away, so we had to
move here to Spain.” Curious, Lopez asked, “My boy, you must have faced many
struggles just to get here to Spain, haven't you?”. “Uhmm...yes, sir,” Trecilio
admitted. Lopez asked, “Hmm...have you read the newspaper lately? Natives from
the colonies were forbidden to move to Spain recently. The decree was signed by
the Queen.”. Trecilio, feeling defensive, immediately retorted, “Hey! We were
born and raised as mestizos. No need to be rude, sir.”. After his outburst, Trecilio
regretted his statement. He knew that they were born as indios to their poor mother
and should have been more careful with their response. The siblings immediately
apologized and walked off to the café.
 Chapter iii: Society

Back in the Philippine Islands, the surroundings there look like they are stuck in
the past, where slavery rules and indios suffer under the slaver’s lash. It is
uncommon to see the abuses of the Spaniards towards the indios and the
commoners. In the excruciating summer of June 1884, the indios living outside
Intramuros suffered extreme heat, causing every small barrio to rumble like a
house of cards. Many commoners began to flock away from their houses and
move somewhere unaffected by summer. Those who stayed risked heatstroke and
deep thirst, so public water fountains became a temporary home for the poor,
where they could wash clothes, drink, and bathe publicly. A man named Don
Mariano called for better treatment of the commoners and a solution to the
summer problem in the small barrios of Manila. He tried talking to the
Abogadocillo, but he was ignored. Then, he attempted to hold a meeting with the
Gobernadorcillo, but his request was again ignored and denied. When he wanted
to meet the Gobernadorcillo for the second time, he was ignored once more. Don
Mariano suddenly had an idea of how he could solve the summer problem in
Manila. He hired one of the most professional architects in town, who designed the
Manila Cathedral and the Plaza Mexico. They met at Don Mariano’s house on
Calle Real, in Intramuros, at 5:30 in the afternoon. The two architects arrived and
greeted him with respect. Don Mariano began the meeting with a statement, “I
want to thank you for joining this meeting today at my house for the project we are
working on.”. The two architects agreed. They replied, “We build the greatest
architectures in Manila. You can count on us, Don Mariano.". Don Mariano knew
that the project he was working on would cost thousands of pesos. He began
drawing lines one by one, following the tips from his architects. Then, he
calculated how many fountains the architects should build in public areas. He
concluded with a statement, “I want you to build 520 of these fountains outside
Intramuros. I want everyone to have the ability to access them for drinking,
bathing, and other beneficial uses.” The two replied, “Sir, there is not enough
manpower to build such a large quantity. We can only build 5 fountains a week.”.
Don Mariano then hired more architects and manpower for the project he is
working on. He knew that his project would not be approved by the Spanish
government until the Gobernadorcillo decided so. Thus, he went to the Governor’s
Palace, located beside the Manila Cathedral, to seek approval from the
Gobernadorcillo personally. Although he was ignored a few times, his project was,
without a doubt, approved.
 Chapter iv: meetup
Don Mariano's project successfully transformed Manila and provided relief to
everyone during the hot summer. Almost all commoners took their time to drink
from his public fountains, and they even used the water for bathing in their
households. The project was particularly helpful for the indios in the area. The
richest architects from Spain, namely Mercado Paleta, an Andalusian businessman
and architect, and Lopez Morreno, an architect and ambassador to Portugal, were
angered by Don Mariano's success. They were the ones who designed the interior
of Manila Cathedral and were close friends of the Gobernadorcillo. The two
richest architects went to Don Mariano's house to meet him personally. They
greeted him with respect, and Don Mariano welcomed them, saying, "Welcome to
my house. May I, uhmm... know your names?". Lopez replied, "Nullum negotium
tuum," in Latin. Don Mariano was confused and didn't understand what it meant,
but he chose to ignore it and offered them a seat. He then asked them their names
once again. Mercado replied, "I am Mercado Paleta, an architect from Spain."
Lopez followed, saying, "And I am Lopez Morreno, an architect and an
ambassador to Portugal." Then, Don Mariano introduced himself, saying, "And I
am Don Mariano Augusto de Gallego, the one who designed the public fountains
in Manila.". The two architects suddenly felt a surge of anger, especially Lopez.
He then asked in an angry tone, "Is it true that you were the one who designed the
public fountains of Manila? No?" Don Mariano was confused about why Lopez
was so angry but replied, "Uhmm... why yes! I was the one who came up with the
ideas.". Lopez, driven by his anger and with the intention to trap and take over
Don Mariano's business, asked, "Is it true you were the only one who came up with
and designed the fountains? I have a feeling you didn't," speaking in a confident
manner. Don Mariano felt suspicion towards Lopez, so he conveyed it with a
cryptic message, “No matter how a sparrow tries to fly, the wolf will never let go
of it.”. Lopez and Mercado ended up leaving, annoyed. Later, Lopez held a secret
meeting with his colleagues and his friend, Mercado, in a corner of a street in
Calle Real, Intramuros. He began his statement with an unsettling laugh and
clapped, saying, “A pack of wolves is enough to kill an injured sparrow. Now then
gentlemen, you may follow me.”. Lopez and his colleagues entered his private
saloneria, a secret clubhouse with a blend of a brothel and a private salon. Wealthy
men often frequented this place to indulge themselves and interact with the poorest
but most exquisite prostitutes that Lopez owned. The salon was filled with affluent
men, as well as impoverished servants. Occasionally, he would create scenes in his
own private saloneria by whipping his poor servants. Strangely, despite his illegal
activities within the private salon, there were no news headlines mentioning him,
and Spanish journalists tended to overlook such matters. Instead, they focused on
reporting secret revolutionary activities by indios. The indios were unfairly made
scapegoats in Spanish society, subjected to abuse, discrimination, and senseless
killings simply because of their origins. One night, the night is the same as always.
Rich men drink on his salon, and engage with his private prostitutes. Don Mariano
himself entered his private salon. Immediately, he pondered, "Our current society
is an insult to our motherland. The status quo remains unchanged. I wonder if I,
myself, could one day change this goddamned system of corruption and injustice.".
When Lopez saw him, he began his statement with a greeting, “Looks like the
sparrow has landed on our roof.” Don Mariano replied confidently, “Hah! Look
at yourself. You resemble a wolf in a three-piece suit. You care more about
yourself than the status quo.”.