MANILLA. 
305 
stances they narrowly escaped accident, by landing just within the 
outside coping. This brought us all to the window, and the next turn, 
more force having been given to the bell, the individual who attempted 
the feat was thrown headlong beyond the tower, and dashed to pieces 
on the pavement beneath. Although shocked at the accident, I felt 
still more so when, after a few minutes, the bell was again heard 
making its usual sound, as if nothing had occurred to interrupt the 
course of its hourly peals. 
In company with Dr. Tolben, I visited one of the convents where he 
attended on some of the monks who were sick, and who was well ac¬ 
quainted with them all. I was much struck with the extent of the build¬ 
ing, which was four stories high, with spacious corridors and galleries, 
the walls of which were furnished with pictures representing the mar¬ 
tyrdom of the Dominican friars in Japan. These were about seventy 
in number, in the Chinese style of art, and evidently painted by some 
one of that nation, calling himself an artist. From appearances, how¬ 
ever, I should think they were composed by the priests, who have not 
a little taxed their invention to find out the different modes in which a 
man can be put to death. Many evidently, if not all, had been in¬ 
vented for the pictures. So perplexed had they apparently been, that 
in one of the last it was observed that the executioner held his victim 
at arms’ length by the heels, and was about to let him drop headfore¬ 
most into a well. From the galleries we passed into the library, and 
thence into many of the rooms, and finally we mounted to the top of 
the monastery, which affords a beautiful view of the bay, city, and 
suburbs. There I was presented to three of the friars, who were 
pleasant and jolly-looking men. Upon the roof was a kind of observa¬ 
tory, or look-out, simply furnished with billiard-tables and shuffleboards, 
while the implements for various other games lay about on small tables, 
with telescopes on stands, and comfortable arm-chairs. It was a place 
where the friars put aside their religious and austere character or ap¬ 
pearance, and sought amusement. It was a delightful spot, so far as 
coolness and the freshness of the sea air were concerned, and its 
aspect gave me an insight behind the curtain of these establishments 
that very soon disclosed many things I was ignorant of before. All 
the friars were of a rotund form, and many of them bore the marks 
of good living in their full, red, and bloated faces. It seems to be 
generally understood at Manilla, that they live upon the fat of the 
land. We visited several of the rooms, and were warmly greeted by 
the padres, one of whom presented me with a meteorological table for 
the previous year. 
The revenues of all these religious establishments are considerable ; 
2 A 2 39 
VOL. V. 
