Page:The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803 (Volume 51).djvu/61

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1801-1840]
EVENTS OF 1801-1840
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(whose duty it was to follow up smugglers in Pangasinán and Ilocos) conducted an expedition into the district of Benguet; an interesting account of this is found in the diary left by him. By royal decree of April 5, 1829, Spanish vessels were permitted to enter British ports just as British vessels were admitted to Spanish ports. Ricafort, having finished his government of Filipinas, sailed for Spain at the end of 1830. He was a governor of good judgment and much energy, and did much to improve the condition of Manila and of the country. He issued edicts imposing penalties on those who should sing obscene songs, and on blasphemers, gamblers, beggars, and parents who brought up their children in evil ways; and he "made provision for a general domiciliary visitation of Manila and the formation of a list of its citizens, which measure resulted in many persons of bad antecedents abandoning the capital. He also decreed standards for weights and measures, which unfortunately soon fell into disuse; and he created a military commission with power to execute evildoers, which fulfilled the object of its creation."

Ricafort was succeeded (December 23, 1830) by Pascual Enrile y Alcedo, a most zealous and able governor. He personally visited the northern provinces of Luzón, accompanied by his relative and adjutant, José María Peñaranda (afterward the governor of Albay), a military engineer, who afterward made journeys and surveys in a large part of the rest of that island; this resulted in carefully prepared itineraries, plans, and maps, which were utilized in the construction of highways and bridges, and the establishment of postal routes, which opened up communication between regions before destitute of such