Rizal’s life in Dapitan as

an Exile1892-1896

Dapitan’s Location

Dapitan is a remote town in Mindanao under the missionary jurisdiction of the Jesuits.

It is in the province of Zamboanga del Norte, Philippines.

Dapitan’s Location

Rizal’s four-year exile in Dapitan was unexciting but productive and idyllic. When he reached Dapitan, he found it a sleepy little town, but soon it became wide awake.

On Sept. 1892, he won in a lottery and he used the money to purchase a 16-hectare agricultural land along the coast of Talisay which is now known as Rizal Shrine.

Talisay

On this land, he built three houses- all made of bamboo, wood, and nipa. 1. The first house which was square in shape

was his home. 2. The second house was the living quarters of

his pupils with eight sides (octagonal). 3. And the third house was the barn where he

kept his chickens and had six sides (hexagonal).

CASA CUADRADA Rizal’s Home together with members of his family

who came to visit him.  

CASA REDONDA  An octagonal dwelling which served as a dormitory to some of his

pupils.  It was later converted to a clinic and it was here where George Taufer, the foster father of Josephine Bracken was operated

on his eyes.

CASA REDONDA PEQUEÑAThis small hexagonal hut was utilized as Rizal’s chicken coop.

 

Talisay

He built his house by the seashore of Talisay, surrounded by fruit trees.

Members of his family took turns visiting him to assuage his loneliness.

Talisay

He spent his lonely but productive and altruistic life for four years in banishment working as a rural physician, farmer, merchant, inventor, painter, sculptor, archaeologist, linguist, grammarian, teacher, architect, poet, biologist, composer, surveyor, environmentalist, aside from being a lover, father, and brother to all Dapitanons.

MI RETIRO ROCKIt is a natural heart shaped rock so called because it was here where our

national hero is known to have scribbled beautiful verses of his famous poem “Mi Retiro (A Mi Madre)” which translates to “My Retreat (For my Mother) and

“Himno a Talisay” which translates to “Hail to Talisay”. He also spent many hours watching the sunset here. 

Wins in Manila

Lotterry September 21,

1892

Wins in Manila LotteryOn September 21, 1892, the sleepy town

of Dapitan burst in hectic excitement. The mail boat Butuan was approaching the town, with colored pennants flying in the sea breezes. Captain Carnicero, thinking that a high Spanish official was coming, hastily dressed in gala uniform, ordered the town folks to gather at the shore, and himself rushed there, bringing a brass band.

Wins in Manila LotteryThe mail boat, Butuan, brought no

Spanish officials but the happy tidings that the Lottery Ticket No. 9736 jointly owned by Captain Carnicero, Dr. Rizal, and Francisco Equilor (Spanish resident of Dipolog, a neighboring town of Dapitan) won the second prize of P20, 000 in the government-owned Manila Lottery.

Wins in Manila LotteryRizal's share of the winning lottery ticket

was PHP6, 200.00. Upon receiving this sum, he gave PHP2,

000.00 to his father and PHP200.00 to his friend Basa in Hong Kong.

Rizal's winning in the Manila Lottery reveals an aspect of his lighter side.

Wins in Manila LotteryHe never drank hard liquor and never

smoked, but he was a lottery addict. Lottery was only Rizal’s vice. He invested the remaining money in

business, bought lands and built houses in Talisay which is now popularly known as the Rizal Shrine.

Rizal’s Scientific Activities while in Exile

1892 - 1896

As a PhysicianRizal practiced medicine in Dapitan. He had many patients, but most of them

were so poor that he even gave them free medicine. To his friend in Hong Kong, Dr. Marquez, he wrote: “Here the people are so poor that I have even to give medicine gratis.” He had, however, some rich patients who paid him handsomely for his surgical skill.

As a PhysicianRizal practiced medicine in Dapitan. He had many patients, but most of them

were so poor that he even gave them free medicine. To his friend in Hong Kong, Dr. Marquez, he wrote: “Here the people are so poor that I have even to give medicine gratis.” He had, however, some rich patients who paid him handsomely for his surgical skill.

As a Physician In August 1893 his mother and sister (Maria) arrived in

Dapitan and lived with him for one year and a half. He operated on his mother’s right eye. The operation was successful.

Rizal’s frame as a physician, particularly as an eye specialist, spread far and wide. He had many patients who came from different parts of the Philippines – from Luzon, Bohol, Cebu, Panay, Negros and Mindanao, and even from Hong Kong. A rich Filipino patients namely:

1. Don Ignacio Tumarong – was able to see again because of Rizal’s ophthalmic skill; and highly gratified by the restoration of his sight, he paid P3000.

2. Don Florencio Azcarraga – a rich haciendero of Aklan, was also cured by eye ailment, and paid Rizal a cargo of sugar.

As a Physician

As a Physician, Rizal became interested in local medicine and in the use of medicinal plants. He studied the medicinal plants of the Philippines and their curative values.

As an EngineerRizal applied his knowledge through the

waterworks system he constructed in Dapitan.

Going back to his academic life, Rizal obtained the title of expert surveyor (perito agrimensor) from the Ateneo Municipal.

As an EngineerFrom his practical knowledge as

agrimensor, he widened his knowledge by reading engineering-related books. As a result, despite the inadequacy of tools at hand, he successfully provided a good water system in the province.

An American engineer, Mr. H.F. Cameron, praised Rizal's engineering.

TALISAY WATER SYSTEMA pool of water that compromise Rizal’s aqueduct that

supplied potable water to Dapitan, a feat of water works engineering well ahead of his time according to modern

engineers.

Community Works in Dapitan

When Rizal arrived in Dapitan, he decided to improve it:

1. To the best of his God-given talents2. To awaken the civic consciousness of its

people.Aside from constructing the town's first

water system, he spent many months draining the marshes in order to get rid of malaria that infested Dapitan. 

Community Works in Dapitan

As a European-trained physician, he knew that the mosquitoes, which thrive in swampy places, spread malaria.

the P500 which an English patient paid him was used to equip the town with its lighting system. This lighting system consisted of coconut oil lamps placed in the dark streets of Dapitan.

Community Works in Dapitan

Another community project of Rizal was the beautification of Dapitan. With the help of his former Jesuit teacher and friend, Father Sanchez:

1. He remodeled the town plaza in order to enhance its beauty.

2. He jokingly remarked that he would make it nicely so that it could "rival the best in Europe."

3. In front of the church, Rizal and Father Sanchez made a huge relief map of Mindanao out of earth, stones and grass.

Community Works in Dapitan

Another community project of Rizal was the beautification of Dapitan. With the help of his former Jesuit teacher and friend, Father Sanchez:

1. He remodeled the town plaza in order to enhance its beauty.

2. He jokingly remarked that he would make it nicely so that it could "rival the best in Europe."

3. In front of the church, Rizal and Father Sanchez made a huge relief map of Mindanao out of earth, stones and grass.

RELIEF MAP OF MINDANAOOne of Rizal’s masterpieces is the map of Mindanao which he

perfectly and accurately made without copying from an original map as there aren’t any maps at the time. 

As a Teacher Since boyhood Rizal knew the value of

good education. During his travels abroad he observed the education system of modern nations. He himself planned to establish a modern college in Hong Kong for Filipino boys so that he could train them in modern pedagogical concepts, which were then unknown in the Philippines.

As a Teacher  His exile to Dapitan gave him the

opportunity to put into practice his education ideas. In 1893 he established a school, which existed, until the end of his exile in July, 1896. It began with three pupils and in the course of time the enrolment increased to 16 and that these pupils did not pay any tuition and later to 21.

Instead of charging them tuition fees, he made them work in his garden, fields, and construction projects in the community.

As a Teacher Rizal taught his boys reading, writing,

languages (Spanish and English), geography, history, mathematics (arithmetic and geometry), industrial work, nature study, morals and gymnastics.

He trained them how to collect specimens of plants and animals, to love work, and to "behave-like men."

As a Teacher In Rizal’s school for boys these are

follows:1. Formal classes were conducted between

2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. 2. Rizal, the teacher, sat on a hammock, while

the pupils sat on a long bamboo bench. 3. On one day the lessons were conducted in

Spanish; on the next day, in English. 4. As in the Ateneo, the best pupil was called

"emperor" and he sat at the head of the bench; the poorest pupil occupied the end of the bench.

As a Teacher

5. During the recess the pupils built fires in the garden to drive away the insects, pruned the fruit trees, and manure the soil.6. Outside the class hours, Rizal encouraged them to play games in order to strengthen their bodies. They had gymnastics, boxing, wrestling, stone-throwing, swimming, arnis (native fencing), and boating.

Linguistic StudiesA born linguist, Rizal continued his studies of languages in Dapitan:

1. He learned the Bisayan, Subanum, and Malay languages.

2. He wrote a tagalog grammar, made a comparative study of the Bisayan and Malayan languages.

3. He studied the Bisayan and Subanum languages. He studied the Bisayan and Subanum languages. On April 5 1896, his last year of exile in Dapitan, he wrote to Blumentritt. By this time, Rizal could rank with the world’s great linguists. He knew 22 languages, as follows: Tagalog, Ilokano, Bisayan, Subanum, Spanish, Latin, Greek, English, French, German, Arabic, Malay, Hebrew, Sanskrit, Dutch, Catalan, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Portugese, Swedish and Russian.

Artistic works in DapitanRizal continued his artistic pursuits in

Dapitan. He contributed his painting skill to the Sisters of Charity who were preparing the sanctuary of the Holy Virgin in their private chapel. For the sake of economy, the head of the image was “procured from abroad”.

Artistic works in Dapitan Rizal modeled the right foot of the image, the

apple, and the serpent’s head. He also designed the exquisite curtain, which was painted in oil by an artist Sister under his direction.

Rizal made sketches of persons and things that attracted him in Dapitan. The three rare species of animal life – the dragon, the frog and the beetle, which he had discovered. He had sketches of the numerous fishes he caught in Dapitan waters.

Artistic works in Dapitan One day in 1894, some of his pupils secretly went

to Dapitan in a boat from Talisay; a puppy of Syria (Rizal’s dog) tried to follow and was devoured by a crocodile. He then modeled a statuette representing the mother-dog killing the crocodile, by way of avenging her lost puppy, and called it “The Mother’s Revenge”.

Other sculptural works of Rizal in Dapitan were:1. A bust of Father Guerrero,2. A statue of a girl called “The Dapitan Girl”.3. A wooden carving of Josephine Bracken.4. A bust of St. Paul which he gave to Father Pastells.

As a Farmer In Dapitan, Rizal devoted much of his time to

agriculture. He bought 16 hectares of land in talisay, where he built his home, school, and hospital, and planted cacao, coffee, sugar cane, coconuts and fruit trees.

He wrote “My land” to his sister Trinidad. It is very poetic and very picturesque.

He acquired more lands until his total holdings reached 70 hectares, containing 6000 hemp plants, 1000 coconut trees, and numerous fruit trees, sugarcane, corn, coffee and cacao.

As a Farmer On his farms, Rizal introduced:

1. Modern methods of agriculture which he had observed in Europe and America.

2. He encouraged the Dapitan farmers to discard their primitive system of tillage and adopt the modern agricultural methods.

3. He imported agricultural machinery from the United States.

4. Rizal dreamed or establishing an agricultural colony in the sitio of Ponot near Sindagan Bay, where there was plenty of water and good port facilities.

5. He invited his relatives and friends, especially those in Calamba, to come to his projected agricultural colony.

As a Businessman Aside from farming, Rizal engaged in business in

partnership with Ramon Carreon, a Dapitan merchant. In that business these are follows:

1. He made profitable business ventures for fishing, copra and hemp industries.

2. He invited his relatives, particularly Saturnina and Hidalgo to come to Mindanao, for there is vast and ample field for business in the island.

3. He particularly told Saturnina that she could profitably engage in the textile, jewelry, and hemp business.

4. He expressed his plan to improve the fishing industry of Dapitan.

5. He instructed Hidalgo to help him buy a big net for trawl fishing and to send him two good Calamba fishermen who could teach the Dapitan folks better methods of fishing.

As a Businessman The most profitable business venture of Rizal in Dapitan

was in the hemp industry. In that industry these are follows:1. He shipped 150 bales of hemp to a foreign firm in Manila at

huge profit for himself and his business partner.2. He purchased hemp in Dapitan at P7 and 4 reales per picul

and sold it in Manila at P10 and 4 reales, giving him a profit of P3 per picul.

3. Rizal formed a business partnership with Ramon Carreon in lime manufacturing. Their Limeburner had a monthly capacity of more than 400 bags of lime.

4. To break the Chinese monopoly on business in Dapitan, Rizal organized on January 1, 1895 the Cooperative Association of Dapitan Farmers.

5. To improve the farm products, obtain better outlets for them, collect funds for their purchases, and help the producers and workers by taking establishing a store wherein they can buy prime commodities at moderate prices.

Rizal’s Inventive Ability While practicing medicine in Calamba, he

invented a cigarette lighter which he sent a gift to Blumentritt. He called it “sulpukan”. This unique cigarette lighter was made of wood. It’s mechanism is based on the principle of compressed air.

During his exile in Dapitan, he invented a machine for making bricks. This machine could manufacture about 6000 bricks daily.

Rizal &

Josephine Bracken

Josephine Bracken

Josephine Bracken is an Irish girl of sweet eighteen, slender, a chestnut blond, with blue eyes. She was born at Hong Kong on October 3, 1873. Her parents are James bracken, a corporal in the British garrison, and Elizabeth Jane MacBride. Her mother died in childbirth, and she was adopted by Mr. George Taufer. who later became blind.

Josephine Bracken No ophthalmic specialist in Hong Kong could

cure Mr. Taufer’s blindness so he accompanied by his adopted daughter Josephine went to manila to seek services of the famous ophthalmic surgeon, Dr. Jose Rizal.

Rizal and Josephine fell in love with each other at first sight. After a whirlwind romance of one month, they agreed to marry. But father Obach, the priest of dapitan, refused to marry then without the permission of the bishop of cebu.

Josephine Bracken When Mr. Taufer’s heard of their projected marriage,

he flared up in violent rage. Unable to endure the thought of losing Josephine, he tried to commit suicide by cutting off his throat with a razor. Rizal grabbed his wrists and prevented him for killing himself.

Mr. Taufer returned alone to hongkong. Josephine stayed in manila with Rizal’s family.

Since no priest would marry them, Rizal and Josephine held hand together and married themselves before the eyes of god.

Rizal and Josephine lived happily in Dapitan. Rizal was no longer lonely. Dapitan had become for him a heaven of bliss.

Josephine Bracken In early part of 1896 Rizal was extremely happy

because Josephine was expecting a baby. Unfortunately, she prematurely gave birth to an eight-month baby boy, who lived only for three hours.

The lost son of rizal was named “Francisco” in honor of rizal’s father, don Francisco and was buried in Dapitan.