The representative of the authorities did not accede to her request, but, after talking with the abbess, left her there in spite of her tears and pleadings. The youthful nun saw the door close behind him as a condemned person might look upon the portals of Heaven closing against him, if ever Heaven should come to be as cruel and unfeeling as men are. The abbess said that she was a madwoman. The man may not have known that there is in Manila a home for the demented; or perhaps he looked upon the nunnery itself as an insane asylum, although it is claimed that he was quite ignorant, especially in a matter of deciding whether a person is of sound mind.
It is also reported that General J⸺ thought otherwise, when the matter reached his ears. He wished to protect the madwoman and asked for her. But this time no beautiful and unprotected maiden appeared, nor would the abbess permit a visit to the cloister, forbidding it in the name of Religion and the Holy Statutes. Nothing more was said of the affair, nor of the ill-starred María Clara.
Glossary
- abá
-
A Tagalog exclamation of wonder, surprise, etc., often used to introduce or emphasize a contradictory statement.
- abaka
-
“Manila hemp,” the fiber of a plant of the banana family.
- achara
-
Pickles made from the tender shoots of bamboo, green papayas, etc.
- alcalde
-
Governor of a province or district with both executive and judicial authority.
- alferez
-
Junior officer of the Civil Guard, ranking next below a lieutenant.
- alibambang
-
A leguminous plant whose acid leaves are used in cooking.
- alpay
-
A variety of nephelium, similar but inferior to the Chinese lichi.
- among
-
Term used by the natives in addressing a priest, especially a friar: from the Spanish amo, master.
- amores-secos
-
“Barren loves,” a low-growing weed whose small, angular pods adhere to clothing.
- andas
-
A platform with handles, on which an image is borne in a procession.
- asuang
-
A malignant devil reputed to feed upon human flesh, being especially fond of newborn babes.
- ate
-
The sweetsop.
- Audiencia
-
The administrative council and supreme court of the Spanish regime.
- Ayuntamiento
-
A city corporation or council, and by extension the building in which it has its offices; specifically, in Manila, the capitol.
- azotea
-
The flat roof of a house or any similar platform; a roof-garden.
- babaye
-
Woman (the general Malay term).
- baguio
-
The local name for the typhoon or hurricane.
- bailúhan
-
Native dance and feast: from the Spanish baile.
- balete
-
The Philippine banyan, a tree sacred in Malay folklore.
- banka
-
A dugout canoe with bamboo supports or outriggers.
- Bilibid
-
The general penitentiary at Manila.
- buyo
-
The masticatory prepared by wrapping a piece of areca-nut with a little shell-lime in a betel-leaf: the pan of British India.
- cabeza de barangay
-
Headman and tax collector for a group of about fifty families, for whose “tribute” he was personally responsible.
- calle
-
Street.
- camisa
-
1. A loose, collarless shirt of transparent material worn by men outside the trousers.
2. A thin, transparent waist with flowing sleeves, worn by women.
- camote
-
A variety of sweet potato.
- capitan
-
“Captain,” a title used in addressing or referring to the gobernadorcillo or a former occupant of that office.
- carambas
-
A Spanish exclamation denoting surprise or displeasure.
- carbineer
-
Internal-revenue guard.
- cédula
-
Certificate of registration and receipt for poll-tax.
- chico
-
The sapodilla plum.
- Civil Guard
-
Internal quasi-military police force of Spanish officers and native soldiers.
- cochero
-
Carriage driver: coachman.
- Consul
-
A wealthy merchant; originally, a member of the Consulado, the tribunal, or corporation, controlling the galleon trade.
- cuadrillero
-
Municipal guard.
- cuarto
-
A copper coin, one hundred and sixty of which were equal in value to a silver peso.
- cuidao
-
“Take care!” “Look out!” A common exclamation, from the Spanish cuidado.
- dalag
-
The Philippine Ophiocephalus, the curious walking mudfish that abounds in the paddy-fields during the rainy season.
- dalaga
-
Maiden, woman of marriageable age.
- dinding
-
House-wall or partition of plaited bamboo wattle.
- director, directorcillo
-
The town secretary and clerk of the gobernadorcillo.
- distinguido
-
A person of rank serving as a private soldier but exempted from menial duties and in promotions preferred to others of equal merit.
- escribano
-
Clerk of court and official notary.
- filibuster
-
A native of the Philippines who was accused of advocating their separation from Spain.
- gobernadorcillo
-
“Petty governor,” the principal municipal official.
- gogo
-
A climbing, woody vine whose macerated stems are used as soap; “soap-vine.”
- guingón
-
Dungaree, a coarse blue cotton cloth.
- hermano mayor
-
The manager of a fiesta.
- husi
-
A fine cloth made of silk interwoven with cotton, abaka, or pineapple-leaf fibers.
- ilang-ilang
-
The Malay “flower of flowers,” from which the well-known essence is obtained.
- Indian
-
The Spanish designation for the Christianized Malay of the Philippines was indio (Indian), a term used rather contemptuously, the name Filipino being generally applied in a restricted sense to the children
