Add to this the introduction of gambling. We do not mean to san that
before the coming of the Spaniards the natives did not gamble: the
passion for grumbling is innate in adventuresome and excitable races,
and such is the Malay. Pigafetta tells us of cock-fights and of bets
in the Island of Paragua. Cock-fighting must also have existed in
Luzon and in all the islands, for in the terminology of the game
are two Tagalog words: sabong, and tari (cockpit and gaff). But
there is not the least doubt that the fostering of this game is
due to the government, as well as the perfecting of it. Although
Pigafetta tells us of it, he mentions it only in Paragua, and not
in Cebu nor in any other island of the south, where he stayed long
time. Morga does not speak of it, in spite of his having spent
seven years in Manila, and yet he does describe the kinds of fowl,
the jungle hens and cocks. Neither does Morga, speak of gambling,
when he talks about vices and other defects, more or less concealed,
more or less insignificant. Moreover, excepting the two Tagalog words
sabong and tari, the others are of Spanish origin, as soltada (setting
the cocks to fight, then the fight itself), presto, (apuesta, bet),
logro (winnings), pago (payment), sentenciador (referee), case (to
cover the bets), etc. We say the same about gambling: the word sugal
(jugar, to gamble), like kumpisal (confesar, to confess to a priest),
indicates that gambling was unknown in the Philippines before the
Spaniards. The word laro (Tagalog, to play) is not the equivalent of
the word sunni. The word balasa (baraja, playing-card) proves that the
introduction of playing-cards was not due to the Chinese, who have a
kind of playing-cards also, because in that case they would have taken
the Chinese name. Is not this enough? The word taya (taltar, to bet),
paris-paris (Spanish pares, pairs of cards), politana (napolitana,
a winning sequence of cards), sapore (to stack the cards), kapote