Cagayan principalia pose in front of the tribunal or municipal building, 1874. On town feasts and on the day of the alcalde mayor''s visit, principalia would go to the tribunal and escort the visiting official. It was also an established practice for gobernadorcillos (or mayors) to assemble all the cabezas de barangay (barrio heads) at the casa tribunal on Sundays and from there to proceed to the church for religious services. All wore short jackets and held canes as symbols of authority, the gobernadorcillos bearing gold-headed canes to distinguish them from the rest. On special occasions, lively music was played by a local brass band. In the casa tribunal, the gobernadorcillo held office as town executive, responsible to the alcalde mayor. The cabezas as a rule held office at the casa but sometimes stayed in their respective barangays. The term principalia was used to denote the group made up of the ex-gobernadorcillos, former cabezas, tenientes, incumbent cabezas, and those who paid at least fifty pesos in land taxes. To the above might be added other personnel, such as teachers and officers of the quadrilleros, who by operation of law were called principales. The term, therefore, had acquired a broader meaning by the 1880’s.