Rizal’s Life and Works

Pastorbluejeans

Rizal in France and Germany and First Homecoming

A. Rizal in France and Germany

• Rizal in Paris
• Rizal in Heidelberg, Germany
• A Las Flores del Heidelberg
• Summer Vacation in Wilhelmsfeld
• First Correspondence with Blumentrittt
• Rizal in Leipzig and dresden
• Rizal in Berlin
B. The First Homecoming
• Rizal and Viola to Dresden
• In Leitmeritz
• In Prague
• In Vienna
• In Lintz abd Rheinfall
• In Switzerland
• In Italy
• Rizal, Germany & Blumentritt
• Plan to Return to the Philippines
• Rizal Arrives in Manila
• Back to Calamba
• Terrero Summoned Rizal to Malacanan
• Calamba Agrarian Problem
• Reacton to Mass Eviction

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• Trials Went Through For His Advocac
• A Poem for Lipa
• Rizal Leaves Calamba for the Second Time

A. Rizal in France and Germany

After finishing his studies in Madrid, Rizal decided to leave the Spanish capital
and move to France and Germany. His decision to migrate into these two countries
was due to his desire to specialize in ophthalmology. His preference for ophthalmology
as a specialization in medicine was prompted by his desire to cure the eye ailment of
his mother. Side by side with his studies in ophthalmology, Rizal continued his
observations of the government and laws, as well as the customs and traditions of
France and Germany.

Rizal in Paris
Rizal was already 24 years old and a full-pledge surgeon, when he migrated
into Paris. His sudden decision to move into Paris was brought about by his intention
to specialize in ophthalmology. Before going into gay Paris, Rizal went to Barcelona,
Spain to visit Maximo Viola, a medical student from San Miguel, Bulacan. Th agreed
to have a grand tour of Europe, once Rizal completes his medical studies in France
and Germany.
Rizal worked as an assistant at the eye clinic of Dr. Louis de Wecker, Rizal
learned the following: the actual performance of eye operation. Outside his working
hours in the eye clinic, Rizal took time to visit his fellow Filipinos in the city. He
frequented the residences of Felix R. Hidalgo, Pardo de Tavera, and Juan Luna. His
frequent contacts with other Filipinos in the city contributed immensely to his ability to
learn and speak French fluently.
For a time, he stayed with Juan Luna in the latter’s studio in Paris. Here, Rizal
became Luna’s model in two of hi historical canvasses: The Blood Compact; and Death
of Cleopatra. He posed as Sikatuna in the Blood Compact and as a priest in the Death
of Cleopatra.
Before leaving the city, Rizal had completed one-fourth of his novel, the
Noli Me Tangere.
Rizal in Heidelberg, Germany

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After specializing in ophthalmology under Dr. Louis de Wecker, Rizal left Paris
for Germany. He left Paris due to its cost o living, which he could not cope with. He
arrived in Heidelberg, the university town of Germany, on February 3, 1886 after
passing by Strasbourg and other border towns of Germany. For a time, he resided in a
German boarding house where he became a friend to some German law students.
Since Rizal was a good chess player, he was eventually recommended by his board
mates to become a member of Chess Players’ Club of Heidelberg. He became
popular among these German law students because he joined them ot only in their
chess games but also in their beer drinking sprees.
While at Heidelberg, Rizal wrote letters to his sisters, Maria and Trinidad. In his
letters to his sisters, Rizal described Germany as country of order and obedience. From
the same correspondence to Maria in February, Rizal described the German student as
affectionate, respectful, modest, and not boastful. Women, however, were described by
Rizal as tall, stout and blonde.
His letter to his sister Trinidad, dated March 11, 1886:
At your young age, German women seem to be 20 or 30 years, as much
for their faces as for their ways. The German women are serious, studious,
and diligent, and as their clothes do not have plenty of color, and generally
they have only three or four, they do not pay much attention to their clothes
nor to jewels. They dress their hair simply, which is thin, but beautiful in their
childhood. They go everywhere walking so nimbly or faster than men,
carrying their books, their baskets, without minding anyone and only their
own business. As I said to Pangoy, they are home-loving and they study
cooking with much diligence as the do music and drawing.
If our sister Maria, had been educated in Germany, she would have been
notable, because German women are active and somewhat masculine. They
are not afraid of men. They are more concerned with the substance than with
 appearances. Until now I have not heard women quarreling, which in Madrid,
which in Madrid is the daily bread.
It is a pity that there in our country the principal adornment of all women
almost always consists of clothes and finery rather than of knowledge. In our
provinces, women still preserve a virtue that compensates for their little
instruction - the virtue of industry and tenderness. In no women have I
found the latter virtue in such a high degree as among the women there. If
these qualities that nature gives to the women there were exalted by
intellectual qualities, as it happens in Europe, the Filipino family would have
nothing to envy the European. For this reason, now that you are still young
and you

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have time to learn, it is necessary that you study by reading and reading
attentively. It is a pity that you allow yourself to be dominated by laziness
when it takes so little effort to sake it off. It is not enough to form only the habit
of study abd later everything goes by itself.
From: One Hundred Letters of Jose Rizalby the National Heroes Commission.

A Las Flores de Heidelberg

Rizal visited the different. Scenic spots of Heidleberg on weekends. He usually
strolled around the city, not only to see its church and theater but also to savor the cool
breeze of the Neckar River, which was teeming with flowers. This scenery inspired Rizal
to write a poem entitled A Las Flores de Heidelberg (To The Flowers of Heidelberg) on
April 12, 1886.

TO THE FLOWERS OF HEIDELBERG

Go to my country, go, O foreign flowers,
sown by the traveler along the road,
and under that blue heaven
that watches over my loved ones,
recount the devotion
the pilgrim nurses for his native sod!
Go and say say that when dawn
opened your chalices for the first time
 beside the icy Neckar,
you saw him silent beside you,
thinking of her constant vernal clime.
Say that when dawn
which steals your aroma
was whispering playful love songs to your young
sweet petals, he, too, murmured
canticles of love in his native tongue;
that in the morning when the sun first traces
the topmost peak of Koenigssthul in gold
and with a mild warmth raises
to life again the valley, the glade, the forest,
he hails that sun, still in its dawning,
that in his country in full zenith blazes.
And tell of that day
when he collected you along the way
among the ruins of a feudal castle,
on the banks of the Neckar, or in a forest nook.

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Recount the words he said
as, with great care,
between the pages of a worn-out book
he pressed the flexible petals that he took.

Carry, carry, O flowers,

my love to my loved ones,
peace to my country and its fecund loam,
faith to its men and virtue to its women,
health to the gracious beings
that dwell within the sacred paternal home.

When you reach that shore,

deposit the kiss I gave you
on the wings of the wind above
that with the wind it may rove
and I may kiss all that I worship, honor and love!

But O you will arrive there, flowers,

and you will keep perhaps your vivid hues;
but far from your native heroic earth
to which you owe your life and worth,
your fragrances you will lose!
For fragrance is a spirit that never can forsake
and never forgets the sky that saw its birth.
Summer Vacation at Wilhelmsfeld
After composing the poem, A Las Flores de Heidelberg, Rizal took a three-month
vacation at Wilhelmsfeld, mountainous village at Heidelberg. It was at this village where
he met Dr. Karl Ulmer, a pastor of the vicarage Wilhelmsfeld. Because Rizal became a
friend of Pastor Ulmer, he stayed with the former’s family during the entire duration of
his summer vacation in the said village. Owing to his pleasant disposition and
personality as well as his talents in sketching and languages, Pastor Ulmer’s wife
greatly admired Rizal.
Rizal’s vacation at Wilhelmsfeld was quite an enjoyable one for him. He returned
to Heidelberg on June 2, 1886 remembering the hospitality and friendship accoded to
him by the Ulmers. Nonetheless, there was something Rizal appreciated so much from
his stay in the German village - the religious tolerance the people practice in the area.
He observed Pastor Ulmer being able to get along with the Catholic priest in the area,
something that will not be

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possible in the Philippines as that time due to the dominant belief of the firars that only
themselves were the only true purveyors of the word of God.

First Correspondence with Blumentritt

Rizal sent his first correspondence with Ferdinand Blumentritt, after his summer
vacation at Wilhelmsfeld, on July 31, 1886. What impelled him to write Blumentritt was
the latter’s interest in ethnology and Philippine languages. Accompanying his letter was
a book entitled Aritmetica, authored by Rufino Baltazar Hernandez and published by the
UST Press in 1868.
Rizal’s first correspondence impressed Blumentritt, the Director of the Ateneo de
Leimeritz. In return, Blumentritt sent Rizal two books. This marked the beginning of the
frequent communication between Rizal and Blumentritt through the medium of writing.
Similarly, it signaled the commencement of a lasting friendship between them.
Rizal to Leipzig and Dresden
After attending the fifth centenary foundation day celebration of the University of
Heidelberg, Rizal visited other cities in Germany. He arrived in Leipzig on August 14,
1886, on board a train. Part of his activities in this city was attendance at the lectures
given by German professors in history and psychology. It was at the University of
Heidelberg where Rizal came to know prof. Friedrich Ratzel, a well-known German
historian and Dr. Hans Meyer, a famous German anthropologist. It was also in this city
where he translated Schiller’s William Tell into tagalog, for the Filipinos to become
aware of the story of the champion of Swiss independence. He also translated the Fairy
Tales, written by Hans Christian Anderson, for the benefit of his young nieces and
nephews in the Philippines.
While at Leipzig, Rizal worked as a proofreader in a publishing company to
augment his allowance. he was fortunate enough to be accepted due to his knowledge
of German, Spanish and other European languages. Owing to the lower cost of living at
Leipzig, he stayed in the city for two months.
He left Leipzig on October 29, 1886 and went to Dresden. It was at Dresden
where he met Dr. Adolph Meyer, the Director of Anthropological and Ethnological
Museum of the city. After his three-day visit to Dresden, he left Dresden for Berlin by
train.

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Rizal in Berlin
Rizal arrived in Berlin in the evening November 1, 1886. He went to Berlin due to
the following reasons: to further enhance his knowledge of ophthalmology; to
supplement his studies of languages and sciences; to study and observe the political
and economic conditions of Germany; to join the circle of famous German scientists and
scholars; and to complete and publish his novel, Noli Me Tangere.
At Berlin, Rizal was fortunate enough to meet in person Dr. Feodor Jagor, the
author of the book Travels in the Philippines. This book was one Rizal admired so much
when he was still a student as UST. His admiration of this book was due to two reasons.
First, it predicted the collapse of the Spanish regime in the Philippines. Finally, it
prophesied the coming of the Americans into thePhilippines.
His acquaintance with Dr. Jagor, through a letter of introduction from Ferdinand
Blumentritt, resulted into his friendship with numerous German intellectuals, like the
following: Dr. Rudolf Virchow, a German anthropologist; Dr. Hans Virchow, a german
professor of Descriptive Anatomy; and Dr. W. Joest, a famous German geographer; and
Dr. Karl Ernest Schweigger, a noted German ophthalmologist. His association with
these German intellectuals led to his membership in prestigious societies of scholars
and intellectuals in Berlin.
On the recommendation of Dr. Jagor and Dr. Meyer, Rizal was accepted as
member of the following societies in Berlin: Anthropological Society; Ethnological
Society; and Geographical Society. Acting on the invitation of Dr. Virchow, Rizal
presented a paper in German entitled Tagalishe Verkunst (Tagalog Metrical Art) to the
Ethnolographic Society of Berlin. The paper was well appreciated, whic proved that
Rizal was recognized for his scientific knowledge in Europe.
Life in Berlin was not that easy for Rizal. In the morning, he worked as an
assistant in Dr. Schweigger’s clinic. Then he attended lectures at the University of Berlin
in the evening. At his boarding house, Rizal continued his physical trimming exercises
and practice in speaking German, French, and Italian languages. Before resting in the
evening, he took time writing and completing his first novel.
Although Rizal was exposed to a lot of enriching experiences in Berlin, there was
a time that he found himsef penniless. This happened from November 1886 to May
1887. His brother Paciano was unable to send his monthly stipend owing to crop
failures in Calamba. In order to

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eat, he had to pawn the diamond ring given by his sister Saturnina an sell his books to
second hand bookstores. Devoid of proper nutrition, he got sick with coughs and colds,
signs of tuberculosis. Penniless at Berlin, he thought of burning the manuscript of his
first novel, which he had completed.

B. The First Homecoming

 After 5 years of sojourn to Europe, Rizal decided to return to the Philippines,
despite disapproval from family members and friends. Nonetheless, before his first
homecoming to the Philippines, he had a grand tour of Europe with Maximo Viola.

Rizal ad Viola to Dresden

Their tour of Europe began through their visit of Potsdam, a city near Berlin. Here,
they saw the imposing mausoleum enclosing the statue of Frederick the Great. Rizal
and Viola left Berlin at dawn of May 11, 1887 by train, bound for Dresden.
The visit of the two Filipino expatriates coincided with the holding of a regional
floral exposition in Dresden. It was in this city where Rizal visited Dr. Adolph B. Meyer,
who was very happy seeing him. At Dresden, Rizal and Viola visited botanical gardens
for viewing and scientific study. They were also impressed by the way the city folks were
able to maintain monuments and landmarks of aesthetic and historical significance.
While viewing the floral exposition, Rizal and Viola met Dr. Jagor. Rizal told Dr.
Jagor that he planned to visit Leitmeritz, Czechoslovakia to meet Blumentritt. Dr. Jagor,
however, told Rizal to wire the professor of their arrival at Leitmeritz.

In Leitmeritz
Rizal and Viola arrived at Leitmeritz in the afternoon of May 13, 1887. They
stepped down from the train that ferried them to Leitmeritz and were warmly received by
Ferdinand Blumetritt. Rizal was overjoyed, because he finally met the professor in
person. Blumentritt was, likewise, pleased to see Rizal and mbraced him.
After the exchange of pleasantries, Blumentritt assisted the two Filipino
expatriates to get a room at Hotel Krebs. Later, the professor invited Rizal and Viola to
his residence. Viola appreciated so much the hospitality extended to them by
Blumentritt and his wife, Rosa. In the

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conversations that transpired between Blumentritt and Viola, Blumentritt described Rizal
as the greatest product of the Philippines, whose coming into this world can be likened
to a comet, whose rare brilliance appears only every other century. To Blumentritt, Rizal
was not only the most outstanding man of the Filipino people, but the greatest man the
Malayan race has ever produced.
While at Leitmeritz, Rizal gave his host lessons in Tagalog language. It was also
during this time that Rizal met other well-known scientists of Europe, particularly Dr.
Czepelak and Dr. Klutschack. Rizal and these two scientists had some small talks about
the Philippines and Leitmeritz.
The two Filipino doctors were also invited to a meeting of the tourists’ Club of
Leitmeritz, with Blumentritt as secretary. During this meeting, extemporaneously talked
in German language about the pleasant and relaxing scenes of Austria and its
hospitable, nature loving and noble people. Those in attendance in the meeting were
very much impressed with Rizal’s fluency and eloquence in German that they gave him
a reverberating applause.
To memorialize his happy hours at the Blumentritt home, Rizal made a pencil
sketch of Blumentritt and gave it to him. Blumentritt was so pleased with this gift, which
to him as a gesture of cordial friendship. On their last night at Leitmeritz, Rizal and Viola
invited the Blumentritt family in Hotel Krebs and tendered a farewell dinner to express
their gratitude for the hospitality they were accorded by their host.
At around 9:30 in the morning of May 17, 1887, Rizal and Viola left Leitmeritz by
train bound for Prague, a historic city and the capital of Czechoslovakia.

In Prague
To facilitate their visit into the different historic spots in Prague, Blumentritt gave
Rizal and Viola letters of recommendations to Dr. Welkomm, a history professor at the
University of Prague. The professor welcomed them and accompanied the two in
visiting the historic places and spots in Prague. They took time to visit the tomb of
Nicolaus Copernicus, a famous Polish astronomer; the museum of natural history; the
bacteriological laboratories; and the celebrated cave where San Juan Nepomuceno was
jailed. After a few days, Viola and Rizal went to Vienna via Brunn.

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In Vienna
Rizal and Viola arrived at Vienna, the capital city of Austria-Hungary on May 20,
1887. The two Filipino doctors spent four days visiting the beautiful buildings and
examining holy images and statues. They were also impressed with the songs and
beautiful stories of the city. Just like what they did in the earlier cities they visited, Rizal
and Viola took time to see art galleries, museums, public parks and recreation centers.
They stayed in the city at the Hotel Metropole.
To change the routine of their travel, the two decided to take a small boat that
took them to the famous Danube River. As the boat plied the river, Rizal was amazed by
the scenario and charmed by the lovely waltzes. What impressed him most were the
archaic village on the riversides, which were serene and peaceful.

In Lintz and Rheinfall

The end of their Dunabe River voyage ended in Lintz. They left Austria from
Salzburg, the birthplace of Mozart ad re-entered Germany upon arrival at Munich on
May 27, 1887. From Munich they proceeded to Nuremberg, where they saw the horrible
torture machines used during the Inquisition against the enemies of the Catholic
Church.
From Munich, the two proceeded to Ulm. This city was known for having the
largest and the tallest cathedral in Germany. Rizal and Viola climbed its many hundred
steps. According to Viola, he rested twice on the way to the tower to catch his breath,
while Rizal ascended continuously until he reached the top.
from Ulm, Rizal and Viola moved to Stuttgart, Baden, and Rheinfall. It was at
Rheinfall where they saw the Bin Waterfall, the most beautiful waterfall in the continent
of Europe.

In Switzerland
Rizal and Viola crossed the Swiss border via Schaffhausen from Rheinfall. The
two made brief stops at Basel, Bern, and Lausanne. From Laussane, they took a small
boat and landed at Geneva, the most beautiful and frequented city of Switzerland.
Upon arriving at Geneva, Rizal received the news from his friends in Madrid of the
deplorable conditions of the primitive Igorots who were exhibited in the Exposition on the
Philippines. From the said news, Rizal learned that some of the Igorots died and that
their G strings and crude weapons had become objects of mockery and laughter by the
 Spanish press

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and Spaniard. As an advocate of human dignity, Rizal was infuriated and resented the
degradation of his fellowmen from Northern Luzon. This protest was communicated by
Rizal to Blumentritt n June 6, 1887.
Meanwhile, the two spent some afternoons on boating at Leman Lake. These
boat trips that they had, gave Rizal the opportunity to demonstrate his skillfulness in
rowing and steering a boat. It was also at Geneva where Rizal celebrated his 26th
birthday. after being together for 15 days in the city, the two parted ways on June 23,
1887. Rizal toured Italy, while Viola returned to Barcelona.

In Italy
From Geneva, Rizal continued his travel to Italy. He visited the cities of Turin,
Milan, Venice, Florence, and Rome. The city of Rome, the Eternal City, the site of the
Vatican (the set of authority of the Roman Catholic Church), and capital of the Ancient
Roman Empire, attracted him so much.
In Rome, Rizal had the opportunity to see St. Peter’s Dome by Michaelangelo
and Giacomo dela Porta and St. Peter’s Basilica, he first known Christian Church
dedicated during the time of Emperor Constantine. Rizal was impressed by the fine
example of Renaissance architecture. At one time, he even witnessed the devout and
faithful Catholics jamming St. Peter’s square at the Vatican City to receive the blessings
of the Pope. While in Vatican, he took advantage of attending the feast day of St. Peter
and St. Paul.
The grandeur of Rome was something that Rizal did not fail to appreciate, in his
sojourn to Italy. Rizal was very much amazed with the Coliseum ad the Roman Forum.
There, he spent long hours reminiscing the past and recreating life to the ruins. After a
week of travel in Rome, Rizal prepared for his homecoming to the Philippines.

Rizal, Germany & Blumentritt

Among the countries Rizal visited, it was 19th century Germany that he
appreciated most. A basic reason for this was Rizal’s appreciation of the qualities
possessed by the German people during those times: sober; earnest; industrious;
progressive; and prosperous. Thus, for Rizal Germany was his link to Europe and
Ferdinand Blumentritt was his link to Germany.

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Rizal became interested in Blumentritt because the latter was an authority on the
Philippines. Rizal was 25 years old and Blumentritt was 33 at the time they became
friends thru correspondence. Rizal was aware that Blumentritt had written about 250
essays and articles on Philippine ethnography. Blumentritt, nonetheless, became
interested on the Philippinesowing to the similarities and surprising analogies between
the Germans and Tagalogs, as well as between the Teutons and Igorots.
Rizal and Blumentritt, therefore, became the best of friends, with Blumentritt
becoming Rizal’s dearest confidante and most trusted counselor. The friendship that
blossomed between them, however, was a intellectual one. such kind of camaraderie
consisted of mutual teaching and correction based on differences in age, race, culture
and experience. It was thru Blumentritt that Rizal became a member of various
prominent professional and scientific societies in Europe. Thus, there were three factors
that gave rise to Rizal-Blumentritt friendship, namely: common interests; a shared love
for the Philippines and the Filipinos; and affinity of temperaments and affections.
It was at Leimeritz, where Rizal bid Europe goodbye.

Plan to Return to the Philippines

Even before 1887, Rizal wanted tog o back to the Philippines. In fact, as early as
1884, he expressed his desire to return to his homeland. This decision was due to the
following reasons: 1. Financial difficulties at Calamba
2. Dissatisfaction with his studies in Madrid
3. Desire to prove that there was no reason to fear going home
4. His belief that the Spanish Regime will not punish the innocent. This plan did not
materialize.
After five year of stay and travel in Europe, Rizal finally decided to go home. Paciano, as
well as Rizal’s fellow expatriates, was not in favor of his decision because of the
 publication of the Noli Me Tangere and the negative reactions the Noli caused to the
friars in the Philippines. Being homesick, Rizal did not bother to think of the possible
consequences of his homecoming.
So in 1887, motivated by the following reasons, Rizal decided to return to his
homeland: 1. To operate his mother’s eyes
2. To serve the people oppressed by the Spaniards

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3. To find out for himself the effects of his novel Noli to the Filipinos and the
Spaniards 4. To find out the cause of Leonor Rivera’s silence.
Despite the objection by Paciano and Rial’s friends, Rizal finally decided after
securing the permission from his father for his return to the country.

Rizal Arrives in Manila

After five years of being away from home, Rizal left Rome by train headed for
Marseilles, France on July 3, 1887. He boarded the Djemnah, the same vessel that
ferried him to the continent five years ago. The vessel was on the journey to the Orient
via the Suez Canal. From France, the vessel had its stopover in Aden. From Aden the
voyage was continued till the vessel reached Saigon.
From Saigon, Rizal transferred to the steamer Haiphong, which reached Manila
on August 5, 1887.
He stayed in Manila for three days. He visited ad called up Isabelo de los Reyes
twice but was unable to find him. Later on he visited Ateneo. At Ateneo, attempts were
made by he Jesuits to win Rizal back to the fold of its old faith. Father Faura showed
Rizal the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which he carved during his students
days. He told Rizal what was wrong wit the Noli. Rizal simply responded by saying that
what he wrote was the truth.

Back to Calamba
Rizal arrived in Calamba on August 8, 1887. He found his family in the best of
health. They shed tears of joy for seeing Rizal again. At the same time they asked Rizal
to answer several questions about his stay, travel and studies in Europe.
 Upon his arrival at Calamba, rumors were spreading that Rizal was a German
spy, an agent of Bismarck, a mason, and a soul halfway to damnation. Moreover, Rizal
was receiving threats everyday. Hi family, therefore, was very anxious about his safety,
so Paciano accompanied him wherever he went to protect Rizal from any untoward
incident. Even Don Francisco, his father, did not permit him to go out on his own for fear
that something bad might happen to him.
At any rate, Rizal kept himself busy during his entire stay in Calamba. He opened
a medical clinic and started practicing his profession. He cured the sick and soon
gained fame as an eye specialist and surgeon. He came to be called by the old folks of
Calamba as Doctor Uliman,

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as he was mistaken for a German. To discourage his town mates from indulging in
sabong and panggingue, Rizal gave them lessons in gymnastics, fencing, and even
shooting. Despite his activities in Calamba, never did he fail communicating to
Ferdinand Blumentritt.

Terrero Summoned Rizal to Malacanan

After a few weeks in Calamba, Rizal received a letter from Governor-General
Terrero inviting him to go to Malacanan. This was the time when a battle over the Noli
Me Tangere was raging on. Rizal complied and had an audience with Governor Terrero.
The governor-general informed Rizal that his novel had caused much pandemonium
among the government and the clergy and that he wanted to have a copy of the novel
to find out for himself whether the novel is really subversive and inciting the people to
rise up in arms against the government. Rizal returned with a copy of the Noli and
handed it to Governor Terrero.
After reading the novel, Governor Terrero did not find anything wrong with it.
Being liberal-minded and sensing the threat on the security of Rizal, owing to the power
of the friars, Terrero gave Rizal a bodyguard in the person of of Don Jose Taviel de
Andrade. Terrero even counseled Rizal to leave the country for his own good an for the
good of his family.
Rizal was, thus, very lucky when he returned to the Philippines. This was
because the government was under the control of a liberal-minded chief executive. If
the then governor general was not liberal-minded, he could have been imprisoned upon
arriving in the ountry after his five-year sojourn in Europe.
Despite the advice given by Governor Terrero, Rizal opted to stay in his
hometown, and make it the venue of his advocacy.

Calamba Agrarian Problem

As the wod war on the Noli Me Tangere continued, Rizal was embroiled into the
Calamba Agrarian Problem. This problem started when Governor-General Terrero
ordered an investigation of the friar estates in order to remedy the agrarian problems
relating to land taxes and tenant relations. One of the friar estates affected was the
Dominican-owned hacienda in Calamba.
The tenant in Calamba sought Rizal’s assistance by making him their
spokesperson. Rizal accepted the request and started investigating the conditions
obtaining in the hacienda owned by

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the Dominicans in Calamba. Some of the findings Rizal submitted to the
Governor-General for appropriate action were as follows:
• The hacienda of the Dominican Order comprised not only the lands around Calamba,
but the whole town of Calamba;
• The profits of the Dominican Order continually increased because of the arbitrary
increase of the rentals paid by the tenants;
• The hacienda owner never contributed a single centavo for the celebration of town
fiesta, for the education of the children, and for the improvement of agriculture;
• Tenants who spent much labor in clearing the lands for flimsy reasons;
• High rates of interest were arbitrarily charged the tenants for delayed payment of
rentals; and • When the tenants could not pay, the hacienda management confiscated
the work animals, tools, and farm implements of the tenants.
Rizal’s exposure of the deplorable plight of the tenants, attested by the
complainants and hacienda officials, aroused the ire of the friars. The friars pressured
Malacanan to have Rizal eliminated. When Governor Terrero fell on deaf ears, the friars
demanded for his deportation. As a consequence, Rizal’s security was at stake.
Governor Terrero reiterated his advice to Rizal to leave the country for good. In the
same way, his parents and relatives compelled him to leave the Philippines for his own
good and to escape the wrath o the Friars.
Rial was, thus, forced by the situation to leave his homeland after six months of
stay at Calamba for two reasons. First, his presence at Calamba was endangering the
safety and happiness of his family and friends. Finally, he could be able to fight better
his detractors and serve his country’s cause in a foreign land.
To counter-attack what the tenants did in Calamba, the friars evicted all tenants
from the Dominican hacienda, the first victim of whom was Rizal’s family owing to its
refusal to pay increased rent and interest. The counter-attack by the Dominicans was
facilitated by the replacement of Terrero as Governor-General by Lt. General Valeriano
Weyler. The firars whose powers and prestige declined suddenly recovered what they
lost. Upon assuming his post, Weyler acknowledged publicly the role played by the
friars in the conquest of Luzon and Visayas. On account of this role, Weyler, stressed
the point that religion should be a means of government in the aforementioned islands
in the Philippines.

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Reaction to Mass Eviction
In response to the mass eviction by the Dominican friars from their estate in
Calamba, the tenants staged a public demonstration in Manila. Doroteo Cortes
organized this movement. In the said March Demonstration, the tenants of the
Dominican Hacienda presented a petition to Queen Regent for the expulsion of the
friars from the Philippines. An immediate aftermath of
this event was the arrest of those who participated n the protest rally. This event made
the friars demand strong measures against subversion from the government.

Trials Rizal Went Through For His Advocacy

As a result of advocating the plight of tenants in Calamba, Rizal had to leave his
family again. Worst, his family was evicted from the Dominican-owned hacienda in his
hometown. When Mariano Herbosa, his brother in law died, the Roman Catholic Church
refused to give him a Christian burial. This was simply because Mariano was married to
Lucia, Rizal’s sister. Death has become a political issue as a result of Rizal’s advocacy
of the plight of the tenants. Rizal was already out of the country when this happened. In
response to this event, he wrote the essay entitled A Profanation (Una Profanacion),
which attacked the denial of Christian burial to his brother in law who died of cholera.
To add up to injury, twenty-five Calambenos, after Rizal had left the country for
the second time, were exiled or rusticated to other parts of the country. Notable among
those who were exiled were Don Francisco, Paciano, Saturnina, Narcisa, and Lucia.
Rizal felt that he was witnessing the re-enactment of what he wrote in the Noli Me
Tangere. After advocating the rights of the tenants, it’s now his own family bearing the
brunt of what he did. This, in effect had caused him so much despairs.

A Poem for Lipa

Before leaving Calamba, Rizal was requested by his friend from Lipa to compose a poem
to commemorate the conversion of Lipa from a Pueblo (town) to a villa (city). The poem was
entitled Himno al Trabajo of Hymnof Labor.

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HYMN OF LABOR

CHORUS:
For the Motherland in war,
For the Motherland in peace,
Will the Filipino keep watch,
He will live until life will cease!
MEN:

Now the East is glowing with light,

Go! To the field to till the land,
For the labour of man sustains
Fam'ly, home and Motherland.
Hard the land may turn to be,
Scorching the rays of the sun above...
For the country, wife and children
All will be easy to our love.

(Chorus)

WIVES:

Go to work with spirits high,

For the wife keeps home faithfully,
Inculcates love in her children
For virtue, knowledge and country.
When the evening brings repose,
On returning joy awaits you,
And if fate is adverse, the wife,
Shall know the task to continue.

(Chorus)

MAIDENS :

Hail! Hail! Praise to labour,

Of the country wealth and vigor!
For it brow serene's exalted,
It's her blood, life, and ardor.
If some youth would show his love
Labor his faith will sustain :
Only a man who struggles and works
Will his offspring know to maintain.
(Chorus)

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CHILDREN:

Teach, us ye the laborious work

To pursue your footsteps we wish,
For tomorrow when country calls us
We may be able your task to finish.
And on seeing us the elders will say :
"Look, they're worthy 'f their sires of yore!"
Incense does not honor the dead
As does a son with glory and valor.

A close reading of the poem will reveal to us that Hymn to Labor was Rizal’ way
of commending man’s labor and industry and extolling the country’s wealth and vigor.
For him labor plays a vital role in keeping up the dignity of man for it is work that
sustains the man, the motherland, family, and the home. Thus he considered labor as
the country’s blood, health, and life.

Rizal Leaves Calamba for the Second Time

Rizal was obliged to leave Calamba for the second time because his stay in his
hometown might expose his family and friends worry and anxiety. Harassed and
persecuted by the friars, h did ot have any option but to leave the country in February
1888. By this time he was already 27 years old, a medical practitioner and a recognized
man-of-letters.

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