Near the church he met a man wearing an alpaca coat, who carried in one hand a large bundle of candles and in the other a tasseled cane, the emblem of his office as gobernadorcillo.
"You seem to be merry ?" he greeted Tasio in Tagalog.
"Truly I am, senor capitan, I'm merry because I hope for something." "Ah?
What do you hope for ?" "The storm!" "The storm?
Are you thinking of taking a bath ?" asked the gobernadorcillo in a jesting way as he stared at the simple attire of the old man.
"A bath?
That's not a bad idea, especially when one has just stumbled over some trash!" answered Tasio in a similar, though somewhat more offensive tone, staring at the other's face.

"But I hope for something better." "What, then ?" "Some thunderbolts that will kill people and burn down houses," returned the Sage seriously.
"Why don't you ask for the deluge at once ?" "We all deserve it, even you and I! You, senor gobernadorcillo, have there a bundle of tapers that came from some Chinese shop, yet this now makes the tenth year that I have been proposing to each new occupant of your office the purchase of lightning-rods.

Every one laughs at me, and buys bombs and rockets and pays for the ringing of bells.

Even you yourself, on the day after I made my proposition, ordered from the Chinese founders a bell in honor of St.Barbara, [53] when science has shown that it is dangerous to ring the bells during a storm.

Explain to me why in the year '70, when lightning struck in Binan, it hit the very church tower and destroyed the clock and altar.