At the hour set, our Pampangos and pickets sallied out in the best order, but scarce had they set foot outside the Parian gate, when they began to utter loud cries in disorder and make a great racket. That allowed the camp of the enemy to get into readiness to receive them. In spite of that, the Pampango troops entered their camp, killed the advance sentinels, and caused great damage to the enemy. Those Indians themselves suffered no less from the hostile musketry. They would have suffered still more if confusion had not reigned there; for the enemy, in their fear of killing one another, did not dare to play some cannon loaded with grape, which they had prepared and posted in different places. The pickets seeing this disorder, halted before the church of San Juan de Bagumbayan, whence they fired against the church of Santiago, thus protecting the retreat of the Pampangos, which took place at nine in the morning. The action was bloody on both sides. One soldier of the pickets was killed and eight wounded. The mortality among the Pampangos was heavy. It was learned afterward that the enemy having lost some of their officers, who were killed in the action, had had more than sixty Pampangos, whom they had captured and taken prisoners, hanged in their camp. That action so intimidated and disconcerted all the other Pampangos that they all retired to their respective villages, so that there remained very few of them who would return to Manila.
That action did not at all interrupt the fire of the battery against the bastion of the foundry, so that when daybreak came, it could be seen that an eighteen-pounder cannon had fallen into the ditch, and it could not be recovered. The greater part of the face and the terreplein of the same bastion had also fallen, and their ruins had dried up the ditch.
But what caused the greatest anxiety was that the engineer recognized that the enemy was busy making a new battery for the purpose of dismounting the artillery, the collateral flanks of the bastions San Andres and San Eugenio, which flanked and defended the entrance to the covered way and the approach to the breach. In fact, that battery began to play at noon with so great activity, that it dismounted the cannons of the flanks in two hours time, overthrew the parapets, and killed some fusileers and pioneers. Twice were other parapets made with beams and bags of sand, but each time they were in ruins the moment after. Consequently, the men were obliged to retire from those bastions. The bastion of San Andres did not suffer so much, for it was stronger. However, it had one cannon of the caliber of eighteen, which was placed in the elevated flank, dismounted. We had no other hope than in another cannon of equal caliber, of the two which were in this flank, for while we still had two cannons of the caliber of four in the low place, the latter could be of but little service.
Our captain-general, having been informed of everything, called the council of war in the afternoon of the same day; and that council lasted until the night. The master-of-camp, the sargento-mayor of the city, the sargento-mayor of Cavite, the sargento-mayor of the royal regiment, those of the militia, and the deputies of the merchant body, of the city, and of the various ecclesiastic orders were present, all being introduced by the ordinary engineer. The latter, having reported the fatal condition of the place, advice or opinions were mutually given. All, with the exception of the military men, were of the opinion to continue the defense, by making use of the ordinary means for the repairs necessary to the bastions, and by making ditches, etc. The military men thought that we ought to capitulate.^^ But having asked them whether they thought that we ought to capitulate immediately, they answered no, and that they said it only because the breach had commenced, and that it would be practicable next day, and it would be difficult to make the ditches and repairs necessary to prevent the city from being taken by assault.
Having been informed of everything, our captain-general gave the orders and made all the preparations necessary for beginning the work, and for making the proposed ditches. He watched all the operations and all the movements of the enemy.^^