What If Rizal Was Not Exciled
In July 1982 Jose Rizal was exiled as prisoner in Dapitan. When he arrived in Dapitan, he found it to be a sleepy little town. He thought of ways and means to make it clean, beautiful, and modern. With the help of his friend, father Sanchez, he made a map of Mindanao in front of the church. The map was made up of stones, earth, and grass and it serves as adornment that makes the town plaza beautiful. He and Father Sanchez, together with the citizens, had erected a lamp post in every corner of Dapitan.
By stroke of luck, he won six thousand pesos from lottery ticket and he spent the amount in Dapitan. Modern agriculture implements were taken and transmitted from the United State and he taught the farmers how to use them. He bought sixteen hectares of land along the bay where he himself built a little house. He had become a farmer who himself worked hard, toiled, and happy in planting coffee and cacao and from 800 to 1,000 coconuts. (Retana, 1907) As a doctor, Rizal was aware of a wide spread of malaria due to mosquito bites.
In order to get rid of malaria, he drained the swap where mosquitoes were staying. He also directed the construction of water system to have potable water for the town. (Retana, 1907) As a scientist, he collected, with the help of his pupils, different kinds of species of insects, birds, snakes, butterflies, shells, and plants which he sent, for purposes of identification, to Museum of Dresden in Europe. As payment of these species, Director A. B. Meyer sent him scientific books and journals, artificial eyes, microscopes, and surgical instruments since he did not accept money.
He also discovered three rare specimens of animals that were named in his honor by European scientist, these were: Draco rizali which is a small lizard know as a flying dragon; Apogania rizali a rare kind of beetle; and the Rhacophorus rizali, a peculiar frog species. Rizal was also an inventor although he was not as inventive wizard as Thomas Edison. He invented a cigarette lighter which he called Sulpakan. The lighter used a compressed air mechanism. He sent it as a gift to his friend, Dr. Blumentritt. He also invented a wooden machine for making bricks which can produce about 6,000 bricks per day. Bantug, 1946; Craig ,1957; Kalaw 1930; Zaide, 1984) Rizal put up a school where he himself was a teacher. There were formal classes conducted from two to five o clock in the afternoon. His students, all of them were seventeen who were sons of leading citizens in Dapitan, had learned from him Arithmetic, Geometry, and two languages, English and Spanish. (Craig, 1927) It was in Dapitan where he treated the eyes of her mother and he succeeded because her mother’s eyes were cured temporarily. Upon request of his mother when she returned in Manila after Rizal had treated her eyes, Rizal wrote a poem entitled My Retreat.
Critics had agreed that this poem was the most profound and noble he ever composed, but, it was only second to My Last Farewell. (Retana) George Taufer an American from Hong Kong proceded to Dapitan to have his eyes treated by Rizal. Mr. Taufer was accompanied by two young women, Josephine Bracken and Manuela Orlac. Rizal and Josephine met every time Mr. Taufer had scheduled for treatment. Because of their meetings, Rizal and Josephine fell in love with each other and they intended to get married. Rizal asked the Dapitan priest but the priest told him to secure permission to marry Josephine from Bishop of Cebu.
However, upon learning about the marriage, Mr. Taufer attempted to cut his own throat but was prevented by Rizal by holding his two wrists. Mr. Taufer also became temporarily insane because he would loss Josephine if he married Rizal. When Mr. Taufer went back in Manila, Josephine went along with him in order to avoid tragedy. Josephine did not go to Hongkong when Mr. Taufer proceeded there. Josephine retured in Dapitan and there, Rizal and Josephine lived together like man and wife. (Russel & Rodriguez, 1923) If Rizal was not exiled in Dapitan the forgoing events and circumstances could not have happened.
Dapitan would still be sleepy little town because it was Rizal who had awaken it. Illnesses of malaria and diarrhea are prevalent because swamp would not have drained and there will no potable water, respectably. The implements for agriculture are not modern because Rizal could no have won 6,000 pesos in lottery ticket and therefore modern agricultural implement could not have been taken from the United States. There is nothing in Europe specifically in Museum of Dresden that a Filipino people can be proud of as of today because Rizal could not have sent more than 400 articles of scientific value.
The European scientist could not have praise Rizal because he could not have discovered the three rare specimens of animals. In fact, the European scientist, as token of appreciation to Rizal, had named rare specimen the rare specimen in his honor. In effect, even in Europe Rizal is being recognize to be a science because of his discovery and collection of different specimen of animals and plants. He could not even be an inventor for having invented a lighter and a wooden machine for making bricks because if he is in Manila, he would be very active in reforming the friars through peaceful means.
If Rizal did not meet Josephine in Dapitan, the retraction issue will not exist. To allow Rizal to marry Josephine, the Spaniards wanted Rizal to sign the retraction document which contain that he is denouncing all the books and articles that he had written against catholic religion; and he had regain his faith in catholic religion. However controversy arises because some believe that Rizal signs it and so he married Josephine Bracken. Others said that his signature was not genuine and he did not marry Josephine Bracken.
If Rizal was incarcerated in Fort Santiago, his movement is limited to his prison cell. Instead of being a farmer, scientist, and inventor, his attention and works would be focus in La Liga Filipina by writing about the abuses of friars and the reforms he wanted to undergo in governance by Spanish officials in the Philippines. (he is very accessible to he could still be imprisoned in Fort Santiago where his movement is confined in a prison cell. He could have been easily approached and consulted by Filipinos who wanted to stage uprising against Spanish government.
If he was in Manila, he could have easily noticed the mistakes and mistreatments being done by the Spaniards to the Filipinos and therefore, he could have expressed his oppositions to these mistreatments. If Rizal was not exiled in Dapitan he could not have met Josephine whom he wanted to marry. Retraction controversy on Rizal regarding whether he became a catholic again or not could not have been an issue because the main reason why Rizal wanted to return in his religion is because he wanted to marry Josephine.
La Liga Filipina which he was actively involved could not be dormant. La Liga Filipina is a group which is derived from La Solidaridad and the Propaganda Movement. When Jose Rizal got exiled in Dapitan the Organization La Liga Filipina became inactive and later on split into two, the conservative had formed the Cuerpo de Compromisarios and the Radical which is led by Andres Bonifacio had formed the secret group named the Katipunan. The La Liga Filipina would have still existed if Rizal was still n Manila because he would have continued his active participation as reformist to correct and reform the misadministration being conducted by the Spanish officials as well as the misdemeanor of friars in the Philippines. ) http://joserizal. info/Biography/man_and_martyr/chapter13. htm http://joserizal. info/Biography/man_and_martyr/chapter14. htm http://www. mb. com. ph/node/236170/hero-exile-remembered http://agham. asti. dost. gov. ph/1st/rizalnat. htm http://joserizal. info/Reflections/retraction. htm
