Reading old issues of Diario de Manila (1850-1851)

WHEN we study history, everything seems to be the inevitable succession of great moments. We have been representing and explaining the facts with a certain degree of determinism and the revolutions or great changes seem to be a result of the natural evolution of things. However, among these great events that we must all memorize at school, there are great spaces that invite us to reflect. Leaving aside everything that has to do with political power and conflicts, there is a vast space inhabited by normal people who fell in love, celebrated their small successes, tried to raise their families, etc. Therein lies my pleasure in reading old newspapers, as they open a window to the past.

Taking advantage of the excellent collection of newspapers that the library of the University of Santo Tomás has digitized, I was reading with great pleasure the pages of the Diario de Manila, a newspaper that was published between December 1848 and June 1852. The monthly subscription cost P1, while buying a single number cost 2 reales.