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THE  LIBRx^RY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


The 
FORMER  PHILIPPINES 
THRU    FOREIGN  EYES 


EDITED   BY 

AUSTIN    CRAIG 


D.    APPLETON    AND    COMPANY 
NEW    YORK  1917 


COPTHIGHT,       1916,      BY 

AUSTIN     CRAIG 


DS 

C  ^4?- 


PREFACE 

Aviong  the  many  wrongs  done  the  Filipinos  by  Spaniards,  to  be 
charged  against  their  undeniably  large  debt  to  Spain,  one  of  the  greatest, 
if  not  the  most  frequently  mentioned,  was  taking  frotn  them  their  good 
name. 

Spanish  writers  have  never  been  noted  for  modesty  or  historical 
accuracy.  Back  in  15S9  the  printer  of  the  English  translation  of 
Padre  Juan  Gonzalez  de  Mendoza's  "History  of  the  Great  and  Mighty 
Kingdom  of  China''  felt  it  necessary  to  prefix  this  xvarning: 

*  *  *  the  Spaniards  (foUomng  their  ambitious  affections)  do 
usually  iti  all  their  tvritings  extoll  their  oivn  actions,  even  to  the  setting 
forth  of  many  untruthes  and  incredible  things,  as  in  their  descriptions 
of  the  conquisles  of  the  east  and  icest  Indies,  etc.,  doth  more  at  large 
appear  e. 

Of  early  Spanish  historians  Doctor  Antonio  de  Morga  seems  the 
single  exception,  and  perhaps  even  some  of  his  credit  comes  by  contrast, 
but  in  later  years  the  rule  apparently  has  proved  invariable.  As  the 
conditions  in  the  succe.'isive  periods  of  Spanish  influence  were  recog- 
nized to  be  indicative  of  little  progress,  if  not  actually  retrogressive,  the 
practice  grew  up  of  correspondingly  lowering  the  current  estimates  of 
the  capacity  of  the  Filipinos  of  the  conquest,  so  that  always  an  apparent 
advance  appeared.  This  in  the  closing  period,  in  order  to  fabricate 
a  sufficient  showing  for  over  three  centuries  of  pretended  progress,  led 
to  the  practical  denial  of  human  attributes  to  the  Filipinos  found  here 
by  Legaspi. 

Against  this  denial  to  his  countrymen  of  virtues  as  well  as  rights. 
Doctor  Rizal  opposed  two  briefs  whose  English  titles  are  "The  Philip- 
pines A  Century  Hence"  and  "The  Indolence  of  the  Filipino."  Almost 
every  page  therein  shows  the  influence  of  the  young  student's  early 
reading  of  the  hereinafter-printed  studies  by  the  German  scientist 
Jagor,  friend  and  counsellor  in  his  maturer  years,  and  the  liberal 
Spaniard  Comyn.  Even  his  acquaintance  with  Morga,  which  eventually 
led  to  Rizal's  republication  of  the  1609  history  long  lost  to  Spaniards, 
probably  was  owing  to  Jagor,  although  the  life-long  resolution  for  that 
action  can  be  traced  to  hearing  of  Sir  John  Bowring's  visit  to  his  uncle's 
home  and  the  proposed  Hakluyt  Society  English  translation  then 
mentioned. 


715976 


The  present  value  and  interest  of  these  now  rare  books  has  suggested 
their  republication,  to  make  available  to  Filipino  students  a  course  of 
study  which  their  national  hero  found  profitable  as  well  as  to  correct 
the  myriad  misconceptions  of  things  Philippine  in  the  minds  of  those 
who  have  taken  the  accepted  Spanish  accounts  as  gospel  truths. 

Dr.  L.  V.  Schweibs,  of  Berlin,  made  the  hundreds  of  corrections,  many 
reversing  the  meanings  of  former  readings,  which  almost  justify  calling 
the  revised  Jagor  translation  a  neiv  one.  Numerous  hitherto-untrans- 
lated passages  likewise  appear.  There  have  been  left  out  the  illustrations, 
from  crude  drawings  obsolete  since  photographic  pictures  have  famil- 
iarized the  scenes  and  objects,  and  also  the  consequently  superfluous 
references  to  these.  No  other  omission  hu^  been  allowed,  for  if  one 
author  leaned  far  to  one  side  in  certain  debatable  questions  the  other 
has  been  equally  partisan  for  the  opposite  side,  except  a  comment  on 
religion  in  general  and  discussion  of  the  world-wide  social  evil  were 
eliminated  as  having  no  particular  Philippine  bearing  to  excuse  their 
appearance  in  a  popular  work. 

The  early  American  quotations  of  course  are  for  comparison  with 
the  numerous  American  comments  of  today,  and  the  two  magazine 
extracts  give  English  accounts  a  century  apart.  Virchow's  matured 
■views  have  been  substituted  for  the  pioneer  opinions  he  furnished 
Professor  Jagor  thirty  years  earlier,  and  if  RizaVs  patron  in  the  scientific 
world  fails  at  times  in  his  facts  his  method  for  research  is  a  safe  guide. 

Finally,  three  points  should  constantly  be  borne  in  mind:  (1)  allow- 
ance must  be  made  for  the  lessening  Spxnish  influence,  surely  more 
foreign  to  this  seafearing  people  than  the  present  modified  Anglo-Saxon 
education,  and  so  more  artificial,  i.  e.,  less  assimilable,  as  well  as  for 
the  removal  of  the  unfavorable  environment,  before  attempting  to  from 
an  opinion  of  the  present-day  Filipino  from  his  prototype  pictured  in 
those  pages;  {2)  foreign  observers  are  apt  to  emphasize  what  is  strange 
to  them  in  describing  other  lands  than  their  own  and  to  leave  unnoted 
points  of  resemblance  which  may  be  much  more  numerous;  (3)  Rizal's 
judgment  that  his  countrymen  were  more  like  backward  Europeans  than 
Orientals  was  based  on  scientific  studies  of  Europe's  rural  districts  and 
Philippine  provincial  conditions  as  well  as  of  oriental  country  life,  so 
that  it  is  entitled  to  more  weight  than  the  commoner  opinion  to  the  con- 
trary which  though  more  popular  has  been  less  carefully  formed. 
University  of  the  Philippines, 
Manila,  March  11th,  1916. 


CONTENTS 


T  f      m  PAGE 

Jagor  s  Travels  IN  THE  Philippines     .  j 

(The  out-of-print  1875  English  translation  corrected  from 
the  original  German  text) 

State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810.    By  Tomas  de  Comyn  357 

{William  Walton's  1821  translation  modernized) 
Manila  AND^SuLu  in  1842.     By  Com.  Chas.  Wilkes, 

/Ar  "    1-    '  ■        •  •        -459 

{Narrative  of  U.  S.  Exploring  Expedition  1838-^2,  Vol.  6) 

Manila  IN  1819.    By  Lieut.  John  White,  U.  S.  N.'  530 

{From  the  ^'History  of  a  Voyage  to  the  China  ^m") 

The  Peopling  of  the  Philippines.    By  Doctor  Rudolf 

Virchow   ••.......  536 

(0.  T.  Mason's  translation;  Smithsonian  Institution  1899 
Report) 

People   AND   Prospects   of  the   Philippines.     By  an 

English  Merchant,  1778,  and  a  Consul,  1878    .  550 
{From  Blackwood's  and  the  Cornhill  Magazine) 

Filipino  Merchants  OF  THE  Early  1890s.   ByF  Karuth 
F.R.G.S .       «uxu, 


INDEX 

Abaca  (Manila  Hemp) — ^Abaca,  293;  Manila  hemp,  293;  abacA  districts,  294; 
Undetermined  plant  relations,  294;  Peculiar  to  the  Philippines,  295;  Su- 
periority of  fiber,  295;  Banana  varieties,  296;  Cultivation,  296;  Cutting, 
297;  Prejudice  against  cutting  after  blossoming,  297;  Differences  with  abacd, 
297;  Extracting  the  fiber,  298;  Lupis  and  bandala,  300;  Grades  of  lupis, 
300;  Lupis  fabrics,  300;  Profit,  300;  A  Pre-Spanish  product,  301 ;  Bandala 
fabrics,  301;  Abacd  production  and  prospects,  304;  Export  of  "Manila 
hemp,"  305;  Large  local  consumption,  305;  Sisal-hemp,  305;  Varieties  of 
sisal.  306;  Profit,  307;  Banana  substitute  unsatisfactory,  307;  Manila 
hemp,    469;    Abaci,  274. 

Agriculture — Fertile  fields,  42;  Java-like  rice  fields,  73;  A  famous  plantation, 
65;  Sweet  potatoes,  141;  A  French  planter,  185;  Isolation  of  fertile  regions, 
188;  A  populous  fertile  district,  194;  The  people  and  their  crops,  199; 
Rotation  of  crops,  199;  Locusts,  260;  Plan  for. their  extermination,  261; 
Lack  of  capital  for  large  plantations,  291;  Increasing  culture,  361;  Estates, 
370;  Locusts,  471. 

Americans — Mongolian  vs.  Caucasian  in  America,  336;  Chinese  problem  in 
America,  337;  China  and  America,  354;  Growing  American  influence,  354; 
The  mission  of  America,  355;  Superiority  over  Spanish  system,  356;  Amer- 
ican hemp  ships,  459;  Advantages  of  Sulu  (American)  treaty,  528. 

Amusements — ^Visitors  to  festival,  74;  A  Filipino  theater,  99;  An  indifferent 
performance,  99;  Interest  in  festival,  100;  A  danceless  ball,  165;  Amuse- 
ments, 282. 

Animals — The  carabao,  42;  Cattle  and  horses,  141;  Black  cattle,  142;  Sheep. 
142;  Swine,  143;  Cattle,  187;  The  flying  monkey,  229;  A  promise  of  rare 
animals  and  wild  people,  230;  East  Indian  monkeys,  238;  Snaring  swine, 
269;  Scarcity  of  stock,  275;  Swine,  276;  Sheep  and  goats,  276;  Draft  animals, 
466. 

Bamboo — Bamboo,  43;  Strength,  43;  Convenience,  43;  U.sefulness,  44;  Bamboo, 
raft  ferry,  74. 

Bisayas — Bisayas,  54;  Superstitions  regarding  the  "Bisayan"  bean,  255;  Leyte, 
259;  The  Bisayans,  271;  Leyte.  281;  Cebu,  287;  Cebu  island,  287;  Iloilo, 
289;  Panay,  495;   (see  Samar). 

Cacao  (Chocolate) — Cacao,  89;  High  quality,  90;  Scanty  production,  90; 
Culture,  91;  Neglect,  91;  Damage  by  storms,  91 ;  Diseases  and  pests,  92  ; 
Chocolate,  93;  An  uncertain  venture,  94;  Use  in  Europe,  94;  Cocoa,  365. 

Chinese — Spanish  coins  in  circulation  on  China  coast,  2^2;  Similarity  with' 
Chinese  conditions,  118;  Chinese  monopolize  trade,  145;  Anti-Chinese 
feeling,  303;  Importance  of  Chinese,  329;  Early  Chinese  Associations,  32  9; 
Industrial  and  commercial  activity,  330;  Unsuccessful  attempts  at  restriction  , 
330;  Early  massacre  of  Chinese,  331;  Chinese  laborers  limited,  331;  Lima- 
hong  and  the  Mandarins'  visit,   331;  Another  massacre,  332;  The  pirate 


I  n  d  e  X — (Continued) 

Kog-seng,  332;  Another  expulsion,  332;  Thrifty  traders.  333;  Anda's  and 
1819  massacres,  333;  Oppressive  taxation,  334;  Expulsion  of  merchants 
from  Manila.  334;  Excellent  element  in  population.  335;  Formidable  com- 
petitors, 335;  Sphere  of  future  influence.  335;  Efficiency  and  reliability 
of  Chinese  labor,  336;  Chinese  cleverness  and  industry,  337;  Chinese  tax,  416. 

Climate  (See  also  Earthquakes) — The  monsoons,  49;  Winds,  51;  Storms,  52; 
Sunshine  and  rain,  52;  Storm-bound  shipping.  78;  Change  of  season,  102; 
Storm  damage,  104;  Storms.  179;  Winds  and  planting  season.  207;  A 
muddy  dry  season,  211;  Seasons  and  weather,  218;  Winds  and  storms.  219. 
Typhoons,  460. 

Cock-Fighting — Cock-fighting,  26;  Probably  Malay  custom,  27;  The  cock- 
pit, 27;  Its  bad  influence,  27;  Game  cocks  a  Spanish  innovation,  200, 
Provincial  cockpit  revenue,  411;  Cockpit  licenses,  411;  Cock-fighting,  478. 

Coffee — Coffee.  95;  Highest  grades,  96;  Exports,  96;  French  preference,  96; 
Prices,  97;  Javan  and  Ceylon  crops,  97;  Philippine  exports,  97;  Coffee,  365; 
Coffee,  470. 

Commerce — Future  in  American  and  -Australian  trade,  2;  Philippine  Islands 
commercially  in  the  New  World.  3;  Slight  share  in  world  commerce.  5; 
Little  commerce  with  Spain.  5;  Former  Spanish  ships  mainly  carried  foreign 
goods,  5;  Customhouse  red  tape,  9;  Antiquated  restrictions  on  trade,  10; 
Laws  drove  away  trade.  11;  Exports  taxes,  11;  Discouragements  for  foreign 
ships.  11;  Pre-Spanish  foreign  commerce,  12;  The  1869  reform,  12;  Bet- 
tered conditions,  12;  Early  extension  under  Spain.  13;  Jealousy  of  Seville 
monopolists.  13;  Prohibition  of  China  trading.  14;  Higher  limit  on  sus- 
pension of  galleon  voyages.  14;  The  "Philippine  Company"  monopoly. 
15;  Subterfuges  of  European  traders,  15;  Losses  by  bad  management,  16; 
Daraga  market,  102;  Tagalog  women  traders,  177;  Trade.  200;  Illogical 
business,  258;  Disproportionate  prices,  258;  Uncertain  trading,  259;  No 
markets,  279;  Barter,  279;  Exports,  286;  Ports  of  entry,  286;  Customhouse 
data,  288;  Unbusinesslike  early  methods.  302;  Change  to  a  safer  basis,  303; 
Money  juggling.  325;  Neglected  market.  363;  Ship  building  advantages. 
367;  Internal  commerce  handicapped.  377;  Scanty  exports.  377;  Local 
markets.  378;  External  commerce.  379;  Business  irregularities,  380;  Mer- 
chants discouraged,  381;  Capital  employed  in  commerce,  382;  Large  sums 
hoarded,  383;  Mercantile  shi  pping,  385;  Royal  Philippine  company,  386 
Need  of  nautical  school,  386;  Local  progress  under  adverse  conditions,  387 
Handicapped  in  outside  trade,  388;  Profit  percent  to  go  to  Spain,  390 
Need  of  special  privileges,  390;  Spanish  commerce  in  its  infancy,  391 
Extension  of  monopoly  urged,  400;  Slight  concession  to  the  Company,  403 
Shipping  reform,  422;  Business,  461;  Commerce,  462;  Customs  dues,  512 
Filipino  merchants  of  the  early  1890s,  552. 

Dress — Pretty  girls  in  gay  garments.  29;  Dress  of  the  poorer  women.  30;  Men's 
clothing.  30;  The  "  Principales,"  30;  The  servants,  31;  The  dandies,  31; 
Mestiza  costume.  31;  Clothing,  148;  Women's  extras.  277;  Clothing  coat, 
277. 

Dwellings — Native  houses  comfortable  and  unchanged.  25;  Board  houses  and 
their  furniture.  58;  Homes.  145;  Household  affairs,  147;  Furniture.  148; 
Household  furniture.   278;  Dwellings.   461. 


I  n  d  e  X — (Continued) 

Dutch — Dutch  and  English  stand  well  in  their  colonies,  32;  Dutch  colonials 
well  educated,  33;  Different  English  and  Dutch  policy,  120;  Death  customs, 
201;  Dutch  opposition,  349. 

Earthquakes — Scanty  data  available,  8;  Former  heavy  shocks,  7;  The  1610 
catastrophe,  8;  The  1863  earthquake,  6;  Destruction  in  walled  city,  Manila, 
7;  Damage  in  Cavite,  7;  Frequent  minor  disturbances,  8;  Earthquake  evi- 
dences,  77;  Sorsogon  earthquake,   107;  1628  Camarines  earthquake,   129. 

English — Capture  of  "Santa  Anna,"  21;  Dutch  and  English  stand  well  in  their 
colonies,  32;  English  occupation,  349;  Contract  with  English  colonies,  353; 
English-Sulu  treaty,  515;  Sulu  victory  over  English,  517;  Balambangan 
Island  (English),  523. 

Filipinos — Dreary  and  unprogressive  life,  26;  Native  distrust  of  Europeans,  32; 
Social  standing  of  Filipinos  enhanced,  34;  Spanish-Filipino  bonds  of  union, 
34;  Initiative  and  individuality  missing,  35;  Imitation  instilled  and  self- 
respect  banished,  35;  Native  art-sense  spoiled,  36;  Educated  Filipino 
unnatural,  36;  Indolence  from  absence  of  incentive,  36;  Weakened  character 
and  want  of  dignity,  37;  Carelessness  from  lack  of  responsibility,  37;  Cir- 
cumstances have  favored  the  Filipinos,  37;  Have  fared  better  than  the 
Mexicans,  38;  Change  from  Malayan  character,  46;  Filipino  hospitality, 
79;  A  native  captain,  82;  Amateur  scientists,  97;  The  native  clergy,  123; 
Family  income,  149;  Woman's  work,  150;  Marriage  age,  150;  Infant  mortal- 
ity, 151;  Imitation-mania,  152;  The  sickness  in  Siberia,  152;  The  itch,  152; 
Running  amuck,  153;  Sense  of  smell,  154;  Respect  for  women  and  aged, 
200;  Sexual  crimes,  203;  Native  contempt  for  private  Spaniards,  211 ;  Caroline 
Islands'  possible  influence  on  Filipinos,  243;  A  pleasing  people,  262;  Debts. 
279;  Public  charity  not  accepted,  281;  Morals,  282;  Great  infant  mortal- 
ity, 283;  Origin  of  race,  359;  Filipino  farmers,  371;  Restriction  of  native 
ordinations  recommended,  443;  Native  efforts  for  self-defence,  446;  Native 
assistance,  451;  Natives,  508;  Superiority  of  women,  509;  People  and  pros- 
pects of  the  Philippines,  550;  Filipino  merchants  of  the  early   1890s,    552. 

Filipinos.  Ancient — Burial  customs,  248;  Assistance  from  history,  545;  Hair 
differences,  545;  Ancestor  worship,  546;  Tattooing,  546;  Teeth  alterations, 
547;  Skull  flattening,  548;  Hope  of  Filipino  and  American  study,  549; 
Comparison  of  Indio  and  Negrito  skulls,  550;  (See  Philippines,  Pre-Spanish) . 

Fishing — Picking  fish,  57;  Plunder,  84;  Lived  by  seafishing  and  rain  water,  241  ; 
Fishing,  251;  Fish,  479. 

Food — Easy  food,  41;  Meals,  146;  Cost  of  food,  276. 

Foreigners — M.  de  la  Gironniere,  67;  Tardy  justice  to  foreigners,  304;  Com- 
petition of  foreign  merchants,  389;   Magellan,  462. 

Friars — A  convento  and  the  parish  priest,  60;  Unwelcome  hospitality,  63;  An 
early  friar  attempt  (Mt.  Mayon),  88;  Priestly  assistance.  111;  The  priests' 
importance,  112;  Franciscan  friars,  112;  Young  men  developed  by  re- 
sponsibility, 113;  Poor  architects,  114;  Superiority  over  government  officials, 
115;  Former  legal  status,  116;  A  scientific  priest-poet,  154;  Friars  an  impor- 
tant factor,  352;  Their  defects  have  worked  out  for  good,  352;  Pious  and 


I  n  d  e  X — (Continued) 

charitable  funds'  capital.  383;  Standing  of  parish  priests.  434;  Friars 
only  check  on  officials,  436;  Missionaries'  achievements,  436;  Curtailing 
priestly  authority,  437;  Friars  bulwark  of  Spanish  rule,  438;  Unwise  to 
discredit  priests,  439;  Testimony  in  their  behalf,  439;  Ecclesiatical  organiza- 
tion, 440;  Dual  supervision  over  friars,  441;  Allowances  from  treasury,  441; 
Need  of  more  European  clergy,  442;  Monasteries,  482. 

Galleon -Trade — Galleon  story  sidelight  on  colonial  history,  17;  Chinese  part 
in  galleon  trade.  18;  Division  of  space  and  character  of  cargo,  18;  Favoritism 
in  allotment  of  cargo  space.  18;  Profit  in  trade.  18;  Evasion  of  regulations, 
19;  Route  outward,  20;  Length  of  voyage.  20;  Water-supply  crowded  out 
by  cargo,  20;  California  landfall,  21;  Galleon's  size  and  armament,  21; 
Speedy  return  voyage,  21;  Value  of  return  f.'»ight,  22;  "Philippine  Com- 
pany and  smugglers  cause  change,  22;  Gambling  rather  than  commerce,  22; 
Undervaluation  of  galleon  goods,  403;  Variations  in  valuations,  405;  Gal- 
leon graft,  423. 

Government — Low  taxes.  39;  Unreliability  of  government  reports,  54;  Wine 
and  liquor  monopoly  a  failure,  7 1 ;  Handicapped  officials.  106 ;  Funds  diverted 
to  Spain.  107;  Alcaldes  formerly  in  trade.  116;  Their  borrowed  capital,  117; 
Improvement  in  present  appointees,  117;  LTnidentified  with  country,  118; 
Similarity  with  Chinese  conditions,  118;  Dependence  on  interpreters,  119; 
Fear  of  officials'  popularity.  120;  Different  English  and  Dutch  policy,  120; 
Papal  concessions  to  Spain.  128;  Schools.  149;  An  unfortified  fort.  165; 
Policy  of  non-intercourse  with  heathens,  192;  A  policy  of  peace,  194;  No 
protection  from  Government.  212;  Electing  officers.  222;  Palapat  Revolt, 
222;  Ornamental  but  useless  forts,  232;  Speculation  with  public  funds,  317; 
Wholesale  rate  higher  than  retail  from  government.  325;  Unthinking  policy 
of  greed,  344;  The  feudal  '  'encomiendas,"  345;  Extortions  of  encomenderos, 
346;  Many  minor  uprisings  from  local  grievances,  350;  Cavite  1872  mutiny. 
351;  Menaces  to  Spanish  rule.  353;  Restricted  cultivation,  360;  Confiscating 
unused  lands,  372;  Improvement  in  public  finances  393;  Economy  over 
Spanish-American  colonial  administration.  393 ;  Custom  house,  401 ;  Former 
customs  usage,  401;  Unbusinesslike  customs  w'ays,  404;  Folly  of  monopoly 
plan.  407;  Community  funds,  416;  Disbursements  and  general  exprenses, 
421;  Defence  expenses,  422;  The  navy,  424;  Objectionable  office-holders, 
426;  Evils  from  officials  in  trade,  427;  No  check  on  extortion,  429;  Less 
complaisant  laws  needed,  430;  Pioneer  Philippine  government  a  theocracy, 
434;  Governmental  lenience,  445;  The  governor-general,  473;  Government, 
484;  Government,  510. 

Industries  (See  also  Agriculture  and  Fishing) — Tapis  weaving,  58;  Petaca  cigar 
cases,  59;  Preparation  of  material,  59;  Costly  weaving.  59;  Kupang  iron- 
foundry,  62;  Trade  in  molave,  75;  Nito  cigar  cases,  98;  Pineapple  fiber 
preparation.  131 ;  Slight  industrial  progress,  144;  Gold  mining,  166;  Abandon- 
ed workings,  169;  Manufactures,  201;  Oil  factory,  256;  Weaving,  301; 
Machine-spinning.  307;  Fiber-extracting  machinery.  308;  Methods  of 
Manufacture.  361;  Manufactures,  375;  Native  cloth  weaving,  375;  Aptitude 
for,  but  no  development  of,  manufacturing,  376;  Improved  methods  and 
machinery  needed,  376;  Pifia,  475. 

Labor — Servant  subterfuges,  101;  Petty  robberies,  101;  Wages,  149;  A  clever 
pilfering  servant,   163;  Unreliable  excuses,  182;  The  Filipino  as  a  laborer. 


I  n  d  e  X — {Continued) 

IS^-    Forced    labor,    206;    Carpentering   difficulties.    215;    Losing   a   clever 

assUtant.   216;   Unsatisfactory  forced  labor.   223;  Wages.   278;  Laborers 

work  and  wages, 299; Good  work  for  good  pay.  304;  Compulsory  labor.  372. 

No  legal  obstacle  to  forced  labor.  374;  Wages.  470. 
Lakes-The   Lagoon   of    Bay,    63;    Maycap   Lake.   60;    Lake   Palakpakan.   69; 

Batu-The  lake.  121;  Lake  Buhi.  128;  Changes  in  Batu  Lake.  208;  Jaruanan 

Lake,  265;  Bito  Lake.  267. 
Land-S^a's  encroachments.  108;  Land  for  everybody.  145;  Land  leases.  149. 

A  bare  plain  and  wretched  village.   194;  Land  tenure.  273;  Land  tenure. 

287;  Land  disputes,  291. 
Luzon-Luzon.  48;  Luzon  Provinces  and  their  languages  and  populations.  53; 

Coasting  Luzon,  80;  Camarines.  109. 

Manila-Foreign  mail  facilities,  5;  City's  appearance  mediaeval  E-';°P-"-  ^^ 
Manila's  fine  bay.  6;  Shelter  for  shipping,  9;  Few  foreign  vessels,  10,  Silt  ng 
Tpof  Hver  mouth,  io;  Manila's  favorable  location,  12;  British  occupation 
inspired  new  wants.  15;  Manila  opposition  to  trade  innovations.  15,  Port  s 
importance  lessened  under  Spain,  16;  Trade  free  but  port  charges  discri- 
minating. 16;  Entrance  of  foreign  ships  and  firms,  16;  The  ja  led  ctY  oj 
Manila,  23;  Population.  23;  Discomforts  and  high  cost  of  living,  24,  Bridges. 
23  Neglec  ed  river  and  canals  offensive.  25;  Feminine  attractiveness^  28 
The  Luneta.  28;  The  Angelus.  29;  Botanical  garden.  29;  Frequence  of  fires. 
56;  Commercial  importance  of  early  Manila^348;  Manila  as  capital  of  a 
va  t  empire.  348;  Manila's  population.  359;  P^-'^.^^'^^-'f  ^J"^  46  Ti; 
A  Spanish  oriental  city,  459;  Twin  piers,  460;  City  of  Manila,  462.  The 
Luneta.  477;  The  cemetery.  481. 

Mestizos    (Half-castes)-Friction    between   classes.    23;    Mestizas^28;    Clever 
Mestizos    Uiaii  ,  society.  31;  Mestizos,  31;  Danger  from 

business  women,  31;  ill  at  ease  in  sutici-y.  ^   , 

mestizos  and  Creoles,  351. 
Micronesians-Pearl    divers    from    the    Carolines,   239;  Hardships  and  perils 
of  thervoyage?239;Castaways  from  the  Pelews,240;  Not  the  first  time  for 
one     241;    Previous   castaways,    241;   Other  arrivals  of  Micronesians,  242. 

Mindanao-Mindanao,  54;  Old  Zamboanga  fort.  286;  Mindanao  and  Sulu 
independent  343;  Council  of  war  recommended,  450;  Mindanao  also  needs 
attentTon  452;  A  plan  for  future  policing,  453;  Mindanao,  497;  Zamboanga, 
499.  (See  "Moros.") 

Minerals-A  primitive  rock  breaker,  167;  An  -"-^^-■.^'^^•^^^it'utuTc'esshii 
The  clean-up   168;  Copper.  172;  Paying  minus  dividends,  172,  Un.uccesstu 
Ioppefnrin?ng,172;Igorot-mining  successful  172;Copperke«le^^^ 
to   Negritos,    173;   Copper-working  a   pre-Spamsh   art.    173     The    Igorots 
Method    174-TheSmelter.  175;  Smelting,  175;  The   copper       stone,      176 

Pu'f   fng  th;  product,  176;  Miners'  ^^^^^f^^^^^^'^^^'Zl 
179;  Wild  Cat  Mining,  179;  Jasper  and  coal,  235;  Gold,  368,  Copper,  .»05. 

Cinnabar,  369;  Iron.  369. 
Mountaineers-A  negrito  family.  62 ;  Remontados.  124;  Iriga  settlements,  126; 
PoTson  arrows,   126;    Crucifixes,    126;    Mountaineers'    arrow    P-son,    132 
PrmiUve  mountaineers.   191;    Christian    Mountaineers     villages.    193.    A 


I  n  d  e  X — (^Continued) 

heathen  Mountaineers'  settlement,  197;  A  giant  fern  hedge,  198;  Simple 
stringed  instruments,  198;  Religion,  200;  Medicine,  201;  Marriage,  202; 
Farewell  to  mountaineers,  205;  A  forest  home,  268;  Mountaineers,  271; 
Foreigners  and  wild  tribes,  358;  Mountaineers,  483. 

Mountains — Mt.  Arayat,  57;  Mt.  Iriga,  126;  Another  attempt  at  mountain 
climbing,  130;  Rain  prevents  another  ascent.  132;  Mt.  Isar6g,  190;  Compa- 
rison with  Javan  Mountain  district.  195;  At  the  summit,  203;  The  descent, 
204;  Mt.  Iriga,  207;  The  ascent,  207;  Altitude,  208;  Ascent  of  Mt.  Mazaraga, 
209;  Altitude,  210;  Climbing  Banajao,  488;  Mt.  Maquiling,  492; 

Moros — Moro  pirates,  103;  Pirate  rumors  and  robberies,  108;  Real  pirates,  109; 

Power   of    Moro    pirates,    211;    Government    steamer   easily   eluded,    213; 

Steam  gunboats  more  successful,  213;  Renegaa:;s  join  pirates  and  bandits, 

214;   Pirate  outrages,   222;  A  pirate   base,   224;   Moro  depredations,   443; 

Authority  for  war  not  lacking,  445;  Moro  piratical  craft,  446;  Growth  of 

Moro  power,  448;  Pirate  craft,  502. 
Palms  (Coco,  nipa,  bonga)- — Coco-palms,  42;  Nipa-palms,  42;  Palm  brandy,  69; 

Bought  by  government,  70;  Profit  in  manufacture,  70;  A  pretty  fan-palm, 

170;  Making  palm-sugar,  183;  A  petition  for  liquors,  206;  A  secret  still,  269; 
,     Coco  and  nipa  wine  monopoly,  398;  Buyo  monopoly  unsatisfactory,  406. 

Pasig  River — River  resorts,  40;  Sleeping  pilots,  40;  River's  importance,  41; 
Riverside  gaiety,  41;  The  Pasig,  64. 

Philippines,  Pre-Spanish — Ancient  Filipino  civilization,  143;  Guesses  at 
history  from  language,  143;  Regard  for  the  sleeping,  154;  Prehistoric  remains, 
155;  Ancient  Chinese  jar,  156;  Used  as  tea  canisters,  156;  Prized  by  Japanese, 
157;  Strict  search  in  Japan,  157;  $3,500  for  a  jar,  158;  A  speaking  jar,  158; 
Found  in  Borneo,  158;  A  consecrated  jar,  159;  Tea  societies,  160;  Ceremo- 
nies, 160;  Their  object,  160;  Reward  of  valor,  161;  Superstitions,  162; 
Burial  caves,  244;  Objects  destroyed  but  superstition  persists,  245;  Skulls 
from  a  rock  near  Basey,  245;  The  cavern's  contents,  246;  Impressive  loca; 
tion  of  burial  cave,  246;  Burial  caves,  247;  Chinese  dishes  from  a  cave,  247- 
Embalming,  248;  Slaves  sacrificed,  249;  Suitor's  service,  282;  Superstitions. 
283;  Festivals  and  shrines,  284;  Ancestor  worship,  284;  Ancient  literature. 
284;  Old  religion,  285;  Creation  myth,  285.      (See  Filipinos,  Ancient.) 

Poultry — Poultry,  276;  Ducks,  479;  Duck  farms,  486. 

Philippines — A  compromise  civilization,  35;  Spanish  rule  not  benevolent,  but 
beneficial,  37;  A  land  of  opportunity,  3S;  Fortunate  factors,  39;  Labor- 
saving  conditions,  40;  Archipelago's  great  extent,  47;  Favored  by  position 
and  conditions,  47;  Soil  and  sea  alike  productive,  48;  Harbors  and  water 
highways,  48;  Provinces  and  districts,  53;  Population,  53;  Language  and 
dialects,  53;  Outlying  islands,  54;  Importance  of  interpreter  in  Philippines, 
119;  Progress  under  Spain,  144;  Similarity  to  Indian  Archipelago  condi- 
tions, 192;  Yap  camotes  from  Philippines,  241;  Spain's  discovery  and  occu- 
pation, 342;  Numerous  names,  343;  Spanish  improvements,  343;  Spain  and 
Portugal  united,  348;  Phillippine  history  unimportant  and  unsatisfactory, 
349;  Summing  up,  352;  Powerful  neighbors,  354;  Nearing  predominance 
of  the  Pacific,  355;  Need  of  Phlippine  awakening.  356;  Population,  357; 
Plans  for  progress,  371;  The  undeveloped  Philippines,  373;  Philippines  a 
burden  to  Spain.  391;  War  popular  in  Philippines,  451;  Importance  of  peace 
for  Philippine  progress,  457;  Resources,  465;  Population,  472;  Population,  511. 


I  n  d  e  X — {Continued) 

Products  (See  also  Food,  Coffee,  Cacao,  Bamboo  and  Palms) — Quicksilver,  107 
A  neglected  product,  122;  Pina,  131;  Red  lead,  166;  Edible  bird's  nests,  169 
Lead  and  mica,  170;  Chrome-lead  ore,  170;  Batatas,  199;  Molave,  231 
Ignatius  bean,  253;  Strychnine,  254;  Coconuts,  255;  Getting  coco  oil,  256 
Sulphur,  263;  Prices,  263;  A  solfatara,  264;  Danan  solfatara,  265;  Balao  oil 
274;  Other  products,  274;  Wax,  275;  A  valuable  by-ixroduct,  293;  Paper 
making  materials,  309;  Increasing  use  of  wood  and  straw,  309;  Preferability 
of  discarded  cloth,  309;  Cotton,  359;  Mulberry  trees,  362;  Silk,  362;  Bees 
wax,  363;  Black  pepper,  363;  Cinnamon,  365;  Nutmeg,  366;  Timber,  367 
Dye  and  cabinet  woods,  367;  Pearls,  370;  Sulphur,  370;  Tobacco  belt,  395 
"Tuba,"  399;  Coco-wine,  399;  Nipa  brandy,  400;  Hardships  on  areca-nut 
planters,  406;  The  areca-nut,  406;  Cotton,  470;  Indigo.  471. 

Punishments — Pleasant  prison  life,  45;  Frequent  floggings  little  regarded,  46. 

Rice — Rice  cultivation.  139;  Rice  land  production.  140;  The  harvest.  140; 
Rice  and  abaca  exported,  144;  Rice-farming,  272;  Mountain  rice,  273; 
Rice,  366;  High  yield,  366;  Rice,  467. 

Rivers — Mapon  river,  73;  Sapa  river.  133;  Quinali  river.  136;  River  highways. 
188;  Many  mountain  water  courses.  195;  A  changed  river  and  a  new  town. 
225;  Up  the  river.  225;  On  the  Calbayot  River.  227;  Numerous  small  streams, 
235;  Down  the  river,  237;  Basey  and  its  river,  249;  Up  the  Maiiacagan,  263; 
Up  Mayo  River,  267.     (See  Pasig  River.) 

Roads — Albay  roads  and  bridges,  105;  Neglected  roads,  184;  Social  and  poli- 
tical reasons  for  bad  roads,  189;  Bad  roads  raise  freights,  189;  Lack  of  roads, 
291;  Poor  roads,  234;  An  unpromising  road,  267;  Communication,  279. 

Samar — Off  to  Samar,  216;  Samar.  217;  Former  names.  217;  Only  the  coast 
settled,  219;  Catbalogan  monopoly  of  interisland  traffic,  224;  Catbalogan, 
228;  Beauty  of  Samar-Leyte  strait,  243;  People  of  Samar  and  Leyte,  280. 

San  Bernardino  Strait — The  straits,  79;  Importance  of  straits,  80;  San  Ber- 
nardino current,  82. 

Snalces — Snake  bite  and  rabies  remedy,  151;  Serpent-charmers,  231;  Big 
pythons,  236;  A  sea  snake,  247;  Cholera  and  snake-bite  cure,  254. 

Spaniards — Spaniards  transient,  24;  Few  large  landowners,  24;  Spanish  officials 
undesirables,  33;  Spanish  lack  of  prestige  deserved,  34;  Latin  races  better 
for  colonists  in  the  tropics,  34;  Spanish-Filipino  bonds  of  union,  34;  .A.  worthy 
official,  85;  A  suspicious  medal,  88;  Spanish  prejudice  against  bathing.  165; 
Spanish  economic  backwardness.  190;  Native  contempt  for  private  Spaniards, 
211;  Obliging  Spanish  officials,  260;  High  character  of  early  administra- 
tors, 344;  Conquerors  on  commission,  345;  Salcedo  "most  illustrious  of  the 
conquerors,"  346;  "The  Cortes  of  the  Philippines,"  347;  Undesirable  emi- 
grants from  Spain,  349;  Credit  due  Spain,  352;  Spanish  planters,  370; 
Legaspi,  464;  Courteous  Spanish  officials,  474.  Sulu  victory  over  Spaniards 
516. 

Springs — Los  Banos  hot  springs.  66;  Igabo  hot  spring,  134;  Naglegbeng  sili- 
cious  springs,  134;  Carbonic  acid  spring,  205;  A  tideland  spring,  237; 
Hot  spring,  264;  Los  Banos,  490;  The  hot  springs,  492. 

Sugar — Sugar  venders,  258;  Sugar,  289;  Sugar  prices.  291;  The  future  sugar 
market.  292;  Sugar.  361;  Sugar.  470. 


I  n  d  e  X — {Continued) 

Sulu — Sual's  foreign  trade,  287;  Jolo,  449;  Sulu.  500;  Sulu  harbor,  501;  Visiting 
the  Sultan,  503;  Treaty  with  United  States,  504;  Interior  travel  prohibited. 
505;  A  stolen  granite  monument,  |506;  Sulu  history,  513;  Tawi-Tawi,  514; 
English-Sulu  treaty,  515;  Sulu  victory  over  Spaniards,  516;  Sulu  victory 
over  English,  517;  Sulu  piracies.  518;  Suppression  of  Sulu  pirates,  519; 
The  Bajows,  520;  Cagayan  Sulu,  521;  Balabac  straits,  522;  Balambangan 
Island  (English),  523;  Dyaks,  524;  Diwatas,  525;  Headhunting,  526;  Cre- 
mation, 527;  Advantages  of  Sulu  (American)  treaty,  52?. 

Time — Magellan's  mistake  in  reckoning,  1;  Difference  from  European  time,  1  ; 
Change  to  the  Asian  day,  2. 

Title — The  Pope's  world-partition,  3;  Faulty  Spanish  and  Portuguese  geog- 
raphy, 3;  Spain's  error  in  calculation,  4;  Extravagant  Spanish  claims  thru 
ignorance,  4;  Moluccan  rights  sold  to  Poruagal,  4. 

Tobacco — Buyo  and  cigars,  147;  Tobacco  monopoly  wars,  193;  Tobacco  prohi- 
bition, 270;  Tobacco.  274;  Tobacco  revenue,  310;  Injustice  of  the  monopoly, 
310;  Resume  of  regulations,  311;  Tobacco  from  Mexico,  313;  High  grade  of 
Philippine  product,  314;  Manila  tobacco  handicapped,  314;  Hampered 
by  government  restrictions.  315;  Origin  of  monopoly,  316;  Governor  Basco's 
innovations,  316;  Different  usages  in  Bisayas  and  Mindanao.  318;  Changes 
bring  improvement.  318;  Crude  system  of  grading.  318;  Burden  knowingly 
increased,  319;  "Killing  the  goose  that  lays  the  golden  egg,"  320;  Gift  to 
Spain  of  unusable  tobacco,  320;  De  La  Gandara's  proposed  reforms,  321; 
Slight  real  profit  from  monopoly,  321;  Suffering  and  law-breaking  thru  the 
monopoly,  322;  Growing  opposition  to  the  monopoly,  323;  Directions  for 
cultivating  tobacco,  326;  Opposition  to  tobacco  monopoly,  394;  Doubling 
of  insular  revenue  thru  tobacco,  395;  Cigar  factories,  474. 

Travel — Pleasures  of  travel,  45;  Village  rest  houses,  45;  The  familiar  field  for 
travellers,  46;  Carromata,  55;  To  Calumpit  by  carriage,  56;  Calumpit,  57; 
To  Baliwag,  58;  Town  of  Bulacan,  55;  Arrangements  for  travellers,  61; 
Talim  island,  67;  Santa  Cruz,  72;  Scenery  along  |Lucban-Mauban  road,  72; 
Lucban,  73;  Hospitality  of  tribunal,  74;  Calauan,  76;  Majaijai,  76;  Pila,  77; 
Mariveles,  78;  To  Albay  by  schooner.  78;  Batangas  coast,  81;  Batangas 
exports,  81;  An  intermittent  voyage,  83;  Legaspi,84;  Sorsogon,  84;  Daraga, 
85;  Bulusan,  104;  Casiguran,  107;  Batu,  121;  Nabua,  124;  Prison  as  hotel, 
133;  Nueva  Caceres,  137;  Naga,  137;  The  Bicols,  138;  Land  of  the  Bicols, 
138;  Bicol  language,  139;  Yamtik  and  Visita  Bicul,  162;  Trip  with  Internal 
Revenue  Collector,  164;  Rooming  in  a  powder-magazine,  171;  Labo,  178; 
Indang,  179;  On  foot  to  San  Miguel  bay,  180;  Colasi,  181;  Pasacao,  186; 
A  beautiful  coast,  187;  Cabusao  and  Pasacao  harbors,  188;  Useful  friends, 
196;  A  tedious  but  eventful  voyage,  220;  Dini  portage,  236;  Lauang, 
220;  Paranas,  233;  Running  the  rapids,  234;  Hammock-traveling.  234; 
Loquilocun,  234;  Along  the  coast,  237;  A  futile  sea  voyage  in  an  open  boat, 
243;  A  portage,  250;  Tacloban  to  Tanauan,  261;  The  height  of  hospitality. 
262;  A  country  excursion.  486;  Recent  elevation  of  coast.  252;  To  Dulag, 
266;  Paragua,  456;  Mindoro,  494;  San  Jose,  496;  Caldera  fort,  498;  Ma- 
rongas  island,  507. 

Volcanos — Volcanic  stone  quarries,  59;  Llanura  de  Imuc,  68;  Tigui-mere,  68; 
Leaf  imprints  in  lava,  68;  Bulusan  like  Vesuvius,  81;  A  chain  of  volcanos, 
110;  Ascent  of  Mayon,  86;  The  descent,  87;  Estimates  of  height,  89;  Un- 
reliable authorities,  130;  Four  volcanos,  164. 


The   Former   Philippines 
thru  Foreign  Eyes 

JAGOR'S  TRAVELS  IN  THE  PHILIPPINES 


WHEN  the  clock  strikes  twelve  in  Madrid,*  it  is  Difference 
8  hours,  18  minutes,  and  41  seconds  past  eight  Ei^opg^n  time 
in  the  evening  at  Manila;  that  is  to  say,  the  latter  city 
lies  124°  40'  15"  to  the  east  of  the  former  (7  hours,  54 
minutes,  35  seconds  from  Paris).  Some  time  ago, 
however,  while  the  new  year  was  being  celebrated  in 
Madrid,  it  was  only  New  Year's  eve  at  Manila. 

As  Magellan,  who  discovered  the  Philippines  in  his  Magellan's 
memorable  first  circumnavigation  of  the  globe,  was  ^"cfconLr 
following  the  sun  in  its  apparent  daily  path  around  the 
world,  every  successive  degree  he  compassed  on  his 
eastern  course  added  four  minutes  to  the  length  of  his 
day;  and,  when  he  reached  the  Philippines,  the  differ- 
ence amounted  to  sixteen  hours.  This,  however,  appar- 
ently escaped  his  notice,  for  Elcano,  the  captain  of  the 
only  remaining  vessel,  was  quite  unaware,  on  his  return 
to  the  longitude  of  his  departure,  why  according  to  his 
ship's  log-book,  he  was  a  day  behind  the  time  of  the 
port  which  he  had  reached  again  by  continuously  sailing 
westward,  f  X 


*  New  York  noon  is  Manila   1:04  next  morning. — C. 

t  Navarrete,  IV,  97  Obs.  2a. 

J  According  to  Albo's  ship  journal,  he  perceived  the  difference  at  the  Cape  de 
Verde  Islands  on  July  9,  1522;  "Y  este  dia  fue  miercoles,  y  este  dia  tienen  ellos 
por  jueves."  (And  this  day  was  Wednesday  and  this  day  they  had  as  Thurs- 
day.) 


;8  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPI.WES  THRU  FOREIGX  EVES 

Change  to  The  crror  remained  also  unheeded  in  the  Philippines. 

the  Asian  j^  ^^^  ^^jjj^  ^^^^  there,  the  last  day  of  the  old  year, 

while  the  rest  of  the  world  was  commencing  the  new 
one;  and  this  state  of  things  continued  till  the  close  of 
1844,  when  it  was  resolved,  with  the  approval  of  the 
archbishop,  to  pass  over  New  Year's  eve  for  once  alto- 
gether.* Since  that  time  the  Philippines  are  considered 
to  lie  no  longer  in  the  distant  west,  but  in  the  far  east, 
and  are  about  eight  hours  in  advance  of  their  mother 
country.  The  proper  field  for  their  commerce,  how- 
ever, is  what  is  to  Europeans  the  far  west;  they  were 
colonized  thence,  and  for  centuries,  till  1811,  they  had 
almost  no  other  communication  with  Europe  but  the 
indirect  one  by  the  annual  voyage  of  the  galleon  between 
Manila  and  Acapulco.  Now,  however,  when  the  eastern 
shores  of  the  Pacific  are  at  last  beginning  to  teem  with 
life,  and,  with  unexampled  speed,  are  pressing  forward 
to  grasp  their  stupendous  future,  the  Philippines  will 
no  longer  be  able  to  remain  in  their  past  seclusion.  No 
tropical  Asiatic  colony  is  so  favorably  situated  for  com- 
munication with  the  west  coast  of  America,  and  it  is 
only  in  a  few  matters  that  the  Dutch  Indies  can  compete 
with  them  for  the  favors  of  the  Australian  market.  But, 
Future  in  on  the  Other  hand,   they  will   have   to   abandon  their 

American  and     ^^^f^^  ^-^^  China,  whosc   principal    emporium    Manila 
trade.  originally  was,   as  well   as   that  with   those  westward- 

looking  countries  of  Asia,  Europe's  far  east,  which  lie 
nearest  to  the  Atlantic  ports,  j  + 


*  In  a  note  on  the  18th  page  of  the  masterly  English  (Hakluyt  Society) 
translation  of  Morga,  I  find  the  curious  statement  that  a  similar  rectification 
was  made  at  the  same  time  at  Macao,  where  the  Portuguese,  who  reached  it 
on  an  easterly  course,  had  made  the  mistake  of  a  day  the  other  way. 

t  Towards  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  duty  upon  the  exports  to 
China  amounted  to  $40,000  and  their  imports  to  at  least  $1,330,000.  In  1810. 
after  more  than  two  centuries  of  undisturbed  Spanish  rule,  the  latter  had  sunk 
to  $1,150,000.  Since  then  they  have  gradually  increased;  and  in  1861  they 
reached  $'2,130,000. 

+  The   Panama  canal   prevents  this. — C. 


JiKjor's   Travels  in  the  Philiitpines  5 

When  the  circumstances  mentioned  come  to  be  real-   Commfrdaiiu  in 
ized,  the  Philippines,  or,  at  any  rate,  the  principal  market  "'*  *^*"'  "'"■'''• 
for  their  commerce,  will  finally  fall  within  the  limits  of 
the   western    hemisphere,    to   which    indeed    they   were 
relegated    by    the    illustrious    Spanish    geographers    at 
Badajoz. 

The  Bull  issued  by  Alexander  VI,*  on  May  4,  1493,  The  i;,,>€s 
which  divided  the  earth  into  two  hemispheres,  decreed  '""^  '""  '  ""'* 
that  all  heathen  lands  discovered  in  the  eastern  half 
should  belong  to  the  Portuguese;  in  the  western  half  to 
the  Spaniards.  According  to  this  arrangement,  the 
latter  could  only  claim  the  Philippines  under  the  pretext 
that  they  were  situated  in  the  western  hemisphere.  The 
demarcation  line  was  to  run  from  the  north  to  the  south, 
a  hundred  leagues  to  the  south-west  of  all  the  so-called 
Azores  and  Cape  de  Verde  Islands.  In  accordance  with 
the  treaty  of  Tordesillas,  negotiated  between  Spain 
and  Portugal  on  June  7,  1494,  and  approved  by  Julius  II, 
in  1506,  this  line  was  drawn  three  hundred  and  seventy 
leagues  west  of  the  Cape  de  Verde  Islands. 

At  that  time  Spanish  and  Portuguese  geographers  FauUy  Spanish 
reckoned  seventeen  and  one-half  leagues  to  a  degree  "'"'  "'■'"''""'' 
on  the  equator.  In  the  latitude  of  the  Cape  de  Verde 
Islands,  three  hundred  and  seventy  leagues  made  21°  55'. 
If  to  this  we  add  the  longitudinal  difference  between  the 
westernmost  point  of  the  group  and  Cadiz,  a  difference 
of  18°  48',  we  get  40°  43'  west,  and  139°  17'  east  from 
Cadiz  (in  round  numbers  47°  west  and  133°  east),  as 
the  limits  of  the  Spanish  hemisphere.  At  that  time, 
however,  the  existing  means  for  such  calculations  were 
entirely  insufficient. 

The  latitude  was  measured  with  imperfect  astrolabes, 
or  wooden  quadrants,  and  calculated  from  very  deficient 


*  Navarretc,  IV,  54  Obs.   la. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Extravagant  ' 
Spanish  claims 
thru  ignorance. 


Spain's  error 
in  calculation. 


Moluccan  rights 
sold  to  Portugal. 


tables;  the  variation  of  the  compass,  moreover,  was 
almost  unknown,  as  well  as  the  use  of  the  log.*  Both 
method  and  instruments  were  wanting  for  useful  long- 
itudinal calculations.  It  was  under  these  circumstances 
that  the  Spaniards  attempted,  at  Badajoz,  to  prove  to 
the  protesting  Portuguese  that  the  eastern  boundary  line 
intersected  the  mouths  of  the  Ganges,  and  proceeded 
to  lay  claim  to  the  possession  of  the  Spice  Islands. 

The  eastern  boundary  should,  in  reality,  have  beeu 
drawn  463  2°  further  to  the  east,  that  is  to  say,  as  much 
further  as  it  is  from  Berlin  to  the  coast  of  Labrador,  or 
to  the  lesser  Altai;  for,  in  the  latitude  of  Calcutta  463^-2° 
are  equivalent  to  two  thousand  five  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  nautical  miles.  Albo's  log-book  gives  the  difference 
in  longitude  between  the  most  eastern  islands  of  the 
Archipelago  and  Cape  Fermoso  (Magellan's  Straits), 
as  106°  30',  while  in  reality  it  amounts  to  159°  85'. 

The  disputes  between  the  Spaniards  and  the  Portu- 
guese, occasioned  by  the  uncertainty  of  the  eastern 
boundary — Portugal  had  already  founded  a  settlement 
in  the  Spice  Islands — were  set  at  rest  by  an  agreement 
made  in  1529,  in  which  Charles  V.  abandoned  his  pre- 
tended rights  to  the  Moluccas  in  favor  of  Portugal,  for 
the  sum  of  350,000  ducats.  The  Philippines,  at  that 
time,  were  of  no  value. 


The  distance  from  Manila  to  Hongkong  is  six  hundred 
fifty  nautical  miles,  and  the  course  is  almost  exactly 
south-east.     The  mail  steamer  running  between  the  two 


*  According  to  Gehler's  Phys.  Lex.  VI,  450,  the  log  was  first  mentioned  by 
Purchas  in  an  account  of  a  voyage  to  the  East  Indies  in  1608.  Pigafetta  does 
not  cite  it  in  his  treatise  on  navigation;  but  in  the  forty-fifth  page  of  his  work 
it  is  said:  "Secondo  la  misura  che  facevamo  del  viaggio  coUa  cadena  a  poppa, 
noi  percorrevamo  60  a  70  leghe  al  giorno."  This  was  as  rapid  a  rate  as  that  of 
our  (1870)  fastest  steamboats — ten  knots  an  hour. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


ports  makes  the  trip  in  from  three  to  four  days.  This 
allows  of  a  fortnightly  postal  communication  between 
the  colony  and  the  rest  of  the  world.* 

This  small  steamer  is  the  only  thing  to  remind  an 
observer  at  Hongkong,  a  port  thronged  with  the  ships 
of  all  nations,  that  an  island  so  specially  favored  in 
conditions  and  fertility  lies  in  such  close  proximity. 

Although  the  Philippines  belong  to  Spain,  there  is 
but  little  commerce  between  the  two  countries.  Once 
the  tie  which  bound  them  was  so  close  that  Manila  was 
wont  to  celebrate  the  arrival  of  the  Spanish  mail  with 
Te  Deuvis  and  bell-ringing,  in  honor  of  the  successful 
achievement  of  so  stupendous  a  journey.  Until  Portugal 
fell  to  Spain,  the  road  round  Africa  to  the  Philippines 
was  not  open  to  Spanish  vessels.  The  condition  of  the 
overland  route  is  sufficiently  shown  by  the  fact  that 
two  Augustinian  monks  who,  in  1603,  were  entrusted 
with  an  important  message  for  the  king,  and  who  chose 
the  direct  line  through  Goa,  Turkey,  and  Italy,  needed 
three  years  for  reaching  Madrid.! 

The  trade  by  Spanish  ships,  which  the  merchants 
were  compelled  to  patronize  in  order  to  avoid  paying 
an  additional  customs  tax,  in  spite  of  the  protective 
duties  for  Spanish  products,  was  almost  exclusively  in 
foreign  goods  to  the  colony  and  returning  the  products 
of  the  latter  for  foreign  ports.  The  traffic  with  Spain 
was  limited  to  the  conveyance  of  officials,  priests,  and 


Foreign  mail 
facilities. 


Slight  share 
in  world 
commerce. 


Little  commerce 
with  Spain. 


Former  Spanish 
ships  mainly 
carried  foreign 
goods. 


*  The  European  mail  reaches  Manila  through  Singapore  and  Hongkong. 
Singapore  is  about  equidistant  from  the  other  two  places.  Letters  therefore 
could  be  received  in  the  Philippines  as  soon  as  in  China,  if  they  were  sent  direct 
from  Singapore.  In  that  case,  however,  a  steamer  communication  with  that 
port  must  be  established,  and  the  traffic  is  not  yet  sufficiently  developed  to  bear 
the  double  expense.  According  to  the  report  of  the  English  Consul  (May,  1870), 
there  is,  besides  the  Government  steamer,  a  private  packet  running  between 
Hongkong  and  Manila.  The  number  of  passengers  it  conveyed  to  China  amounted, 
in  1868,  to  441  Europeans  and  3,048  Chinese;  total,  3,489.  The  numbers 
carried  the  other  way  were  330  Europeans  and  4,664  Chinese;  in  all,  4,994. 
The  fare  is  $80  for  Europeans  and  $20  for  Chinamen. 

t  Zuniga,  Mavers,  I,  225. 


rilE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  BYES 


Manila's 
fine  bay. 


City's 
appearance 
mediaeval 
European. 


The  ISG.i 
earthquake. 


their  usual  necessaries,  such  as  provisions,  wine  and 
other  liquors;  and,  except  a  few  French  novels,  some 
atrociously  dull  books,  histories  of  saints,  and  similar 
works. 

The  Bay  of  Manila  is  large  enough  to  contain  the 
united  fleets  of  Europe;  it  has  the  reputation  of  being 
one  of  the  finest  in  the  world.  The  aspect  of  the  coast, 
however,  to  a  stranger  arriving,  as  did  the  author,  at  the 
close  of  the  dry  season,  falls  short  of  the  lively  descrip- 
tions of  some  travellers.  The  circular  bay,  one  hundred 
twenty  nautical  miles  in  circumference,  the  waters  of 
which  wash  the  shores  of  five  different  provinces,  is  fringed 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Manila  by  a  level  coast,  behind 
which  rises  an  equally  flat  table  land.  The  scanty 
vegetation  in  the  foreground,  consisting  chiefly  of  bam- 
boos and  areca  palms,  was  dried  up  by  the  sun;  while 
in  the  far  distance  the  dull  uniformity  of  the  landscape 
was  broken  by  the  blue  hills  of  San  Mateo.  In  the 
rainy  season  the  numerous  unwalled  canals  overflow 
their  banks  and  form  a  series  of  connected  lakes,  which 
soon,  however,  change  into  luxuriant  and  verdant  rice- 
fields. 

Manila  is  situated  on  both  sides  of  the  river  Pasig. 
The  town  itself,  surrounded  with  walls  and  ramparts, 
with  its  low  tiled  roofs  and  a  few  towers,  had,  in  1859, 
the  appearance  of  some  ancient  European  fortress.  Four 
years  later  the  greater  part  of  it  was  destroyed  by  an 
earthquake. 

On  June  3,  1863,  at  thirty-one  minutes  past  seven  in 
the  evening,  after  a  day  of  tremendous  heat  while  all 
Manila  was  busy  in  its  preparations  for  the  festival  of 
Corpus  Christi,  the  ground  suddenly  rocked  to  and  fro 
with  great  violence.  The  firmest  buildings  reeled  visibly, 
walls  crumbled,  and  beams  snapped  in  two.  The 
dreadful  shock  lasted  half  a  minute ;  but  this  little  interval 


./(Igor's   Traieln   in   the,  Phitippinei  7 

was  enough  to  change  the  whole  town  into  a  mass  of 
ruins,  and  to  bury  ahve  hundreds  of  its  inhabitants.* 
A  letter  of  the  governor-general,  which  I  have  seen, 
states  that  the  cathedral,  the  government-house,  the  ■ 
barracks,  and  all  the  public  buildings  of  Manila  were 
entirely  destroyed,  and  that  the  few  private  houses  which 
remained  standing  threatened  to  fall  in.  Later  accounts 
speak  of  four  hundred  killed  and  two  thousand  injured, 
and  estimate  the  loss  at  eight  millions  of  dollars.  Forty- 
six  public  and  five  hundred  and  seventy  private  buildings 
were  thrown  down ;  twenty-eight  public  and  five  hundred 
twenty-eight  private  buildings  were  nearly  destroyed, 
and  all  the  houses  left  standing  were  more  or  less  injured. 

At  the  same  time,   an  earthquake  of  forty  seconds'   O'lmaye  in 
duration  occurred  at  Cavite,  the  naval  port  of  the  Phil- 
ippines, and  destroyed  many  buildings. 

Three  years  afterwards,  the  Due  d'Alencon  (Lucon  et  De/^trurtion  in 
Mindanao;  Paris,  1870,  S.  38)  found  the  traces  of  the  "'""'''  '''"■ 
catastrophe  everywhere.  Three  sides  of  the  principal 
square  of  the  city,  in  which  formerly  stood  the  govern- 
ment, or  governor's,  palace,  the  cathedral,  and  the  town- 
house,  were  lying  like  dust  heaps  overgrown  with  weeds. 
All  the  large  public  edifices  were  "temporarily"  con- 
structed of  wood;  but  nobody  then  seemed  to  plan  any- 
thing permanent. 

Manila  is  very  often  subject  to  earthquakes;  the  most   Former  heavy 
fatal  occurred  in  1601;  in  1610  (Nov.  30);  in  1645  (Nov.   ''""'"■ 
30);  in  1658  (Aug.   20);  in  1675;  in  1699;  in  1796;  in 
1824;  in  1852;  and  in  1863.     In  1645,  six  hundredf,  or, 
according  to  some   accounts,   three   thousand t   persons 
perished,  buried  under  the  ruins  of  their  houses.     Their 


*  Dr.  Pedro  Pelaez,  in  temporary  charge  of  the  diocese  and  dying  in  the  cathe- 
dral, was  the  foremost  Filipino  victim.  Funds  raised  in  Spain  for  relief  never 
reached  the  sufferers,  but  not  till  the  end  of  Spanish  rule  was  it  safe  to  comment 
on  this  in  the  Philippines. — C. 

t  Zuniga,  XVIII,  M.  Velarde,  p.  139. 

t  Captain  Salmon,  Goch.,  S.  33. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPISES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Frequent  minor 
disturbances 


Seartty  data 
available. 


The  1610 
catastrophe. 


monastery,  the  church  of  the  Augustinians,  and  that  of 
the  Jesuits,  were  the  only  public  buildings  which 
remained  standing. 

Smaller  shocks,  which  suddenly  set  the  hanging  lamps 
swinging,  occur  very  often  and  generally  remain  un- 
noticed. The  houses  are  on  this  account  generally 
of  but  one  story,  and  the  loose  volcanic  soil  on  which 
they  are  built  may  lessen  the  violence  of  the  shock. 
Their  heavy  tiled  roofs,  however,  appear  very  inappro- 
priate under  such  circumstances.  Earthquakes  are  also 
of  frequent  occurrence  in  the  provinces,  but  they,  as  a 
rule,  cause  so  little  damage,  owing  to  the  houses  being 
constructed  of  timber  or  bamboo,  that  they  are  never 
mentioned. 

M.  Alexis  Perrey  {Mem.  de  V Academic  de  Dijon,  1860) 
has  published  a  list,  collected  with  much  diligence  from 
every  accessible  source,  of  the  earthquakes  which  have 
visited  the  Philippines,  and  particularly  Manila.  But 
the  accounts,  even  of  the  most  important,  are  very 
scanty,  and  the  dates  of  their  occurrence  very  unreliable. 
Of  the  minor  shocks,  only  a  few  are  mentioned,  those 
which  were  noticed  by  scientific  observers  accidentally 
present  at  the  time. 

Aduarte  (I.  141)  mentions  a  tremendous  earthquake 
which  occurred  in  1610.  I  briefly  quote  his  version 
of  the  details  of  the  catastrophe,  as  I  find  them  mentioned 
nowhere  else. 

"Towards  the  close  of  November,  1610,  on  St.  Andrew's 
Day,  a  more  violent  earthquake  than  had  ever  before 
been  witnessed,  visited  these  Islands;  its  effects  extended 
from  Manila  to  the  extreme  end  of  the  province  of  Nueva 
Segovia  (the  whole  northern  part  of  Luzon),  a  distance 
of  200  leagues.  It  caused  great  destruction  over  the 
entire  area;  in  the  province  of  Ilocos  it  buried  palm  trees, 
so  that  only  the  tops  of  their  branches  were  left  above  the 


Jaijor's  Traiels  in  the  Philippines  0 

earth's  surface;  through  the  power  of  the  earthquake 
mountains  were  pushed  against  each  other;  it  threw 
down  many  buildings,  and  killed  a  great  number  of 
people.  Its  fury  was  greatest  in  Nueva  Segovia,  where 
it  opened  the  mountains,  and  created  new  lake  basins. 
The  earth  threw  up  immense  fountains  of  sand,  and 
vibrated  so  terribly  that  the  people,  unable  to  stand 
upon  it,  laid  down  and  fastened  themselves  to  the  ground, 
as  if  they  had  been  on  a  ship  in  a  stormy  sea.  In  the 
range  inhabited  by  the  Mendayas  a  mountain  fell  in, 
crushing  a  village  and  killing  its  inhabitants.  An 
immense  portion  of  the  cliff  sank  into  the  river;  and  now, 
where  the  stream  was  formerly  bordered  by  a  range  of 
hills  of  considerable  altitude,  its  banks  are  nearly  level 
with  the  watercourse.  The  commotion  was  so  great  in  the 
bed  of  the  river  that  waves  arose  like  those  of  the  ocean, 
or  as  if  the  water  had  been  lashed  by  a  furious  wind. 
Those  edifices  which  were  of  stone  suffered  the  most 
damage,  our  church  and  the  convent  fell  in,  etc.,  etc." 


II 

The  customs  inspection,  and  the  many  formalities  which  Cusiomhou^. 
the  native  minor  officials  exercised  without  any  considera- 
tion appear  all  the  more  wearisome  to  the  new  arrival 
when  contrasted  with  the  easy  routine  of  the  English 
free  ports  of  the  east  he  has  just  quitted.  The  guarantee 
of  a  respectable  merchant  obtained  for  me,  as  a  particular 
favor,  permission  to  disembark  after  a  detention  of 
sixteen  hours;  but  even  then  I  was  not  allowed  to  take 
the  smallest  article  of  luggage  on  shore  with  me. 

During  the  south-west  monsoon  and  the  stormy  shelter  m 
season  that  accompanies  the  change  of  monsoons,  the 
roadstead  is  unsafe.  Larger  vessels  are  then  obliged 
to  seek  protection  in  the  port  of  Cavite,  seven  miles 
further  down  the  coast;  but  during  the  north-east 
monsoons  they  can  safely  anchor  half  a  league  from  the 
coast.     All  ships  under  three  hundred  tons  burden  pass 


ship  piny. 


THE  FORMER  PIIII.I I'PISES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Silting  up  of 
river  mouth. 


Few  foreign 
vessels. 


Antiquated 
restrictions  on 
trade. 


the  breakwater  and  enter  the  Pasig,  where,  as  far  as  the 
bridge,  they  He  in  serried  rows,  extending  from  the  shore 
to  the  middle  of  the  stream,  and  bear  witness  by  their 
numbers,  as  well  as  by  the  bustle  and  stir  going  on 
amongst  them,  to  the  activity  of  the  home  trade. 

In  every  rain-monsoon,  the  Pasig  river  sweeps  such 
a  quantity  of  sediment  against  the  breakwater  that 
just  its  removal  keeps,  as  it  seems,  the  dredging  machine 
stationed  there  entirely  occupied. 

The  small  number  of  the  vessels  in  the  roadstead, 
particularly  of  those  of  foreign  countries,  was  the  more 
remarkable  as  Manila  was  the  only  port  in  the  Archi- 
pelago that  had  any  commerce  with  foreign  countries. 
It  is  true  that  since  1855  three  other  ports,  to  which  a 
fourth  may  now  be  added,  had  gotten  this  privilege;  but 
at  th  time  of  my  arrival,  in  March,  1859,  not  one  of  them 
had  ever  been  entered  by  a  foreign  vessel,  and  it  was  a 
few  weeks  after  my  visit  that  the  first  English  ship  sailed 
into  Iloilo  to  take  in  a  cargo  of  sugar  for  Australia.* 

The  reason  of  this  peculiarity  laid  partly  in  the  feeble 
development  of  agriculture,  in  spite  of  the  unexampled 
fertility  of  the  soil,  but  chiefly  in  the  antiquated  and 
artificially  limited  conditions  of  trade.  The  customs 
duties  were  in  themselves  not  very  high.  They  were 
generally  about  seven  per  cent,  upon  merchandise  con- 
veyed under  the  Spanish  flag,  and  about  twice  as  much 
for  that  carried  in  foreign  bottoms.  When  the  cargo 
was  of  Spanish  production,  the  duty  was  three  per  cent, 
if  carried  in  national  vessels,  eight  per  cent,  if  in  foreign 
ships.  The  latter  were  only  allowed,  as  a  rule,  to  enter 
the  port  in  ballast. t 


*  The  opening  of  this  jxjrt  proved  so  advantageous  that  I  intended  to  have 
given  a  few  interesting  details  of  its  trade  in  a  separate  chapter,  chiefly  gathered 
from  the  verbal  and  written  remarks  of  the  English  Vice-Consul,  the  late  Mr. 
N.  Loney,  and  from  other  consular  reports. 

t  In  1868,  112  foreign  vessels,  to  the  aggregate  of  74,054  tons,  and  Spanish 
ships  to  the  aggregate  of  26,762  tons,  entered  the  port  of  Manila.  Nearly  all 
the  first  came  in  ballast,  but  left  with  cargoes  The  latter  bcv»-h  came  and  left 
in  freight.      (English  Consul's  Report,  1869.) 


Jaoor's   Travel.'!   in  the   l^hilippiiies 

As,  however,  the  principal  wants  of  the  colony  were   Discouragement 

for  for 
ships. 


imported  from  England  and  abroad,  these  were  either        ■'<"■«»'"' 


kept  back  till  an  opportunity  occurred  of  sending  them 
in  Spanish  vessels,  which  charged  nearly  a  treble  freight 
(from  £4  to  £5  instead  of  from  £13-2  to  £2  per  ton), 
and  which  only  made  their  appearance  in  British  ports 
at  rare  intervals,  or  they  were  sent  to  Singapore  and 
Hongkong,  where  they  were  transferred  to  Spanish 
ships.  Tonnage  dues  were  levied,  moreover,  upon  ships 
in  ballast,  and  upon  others  which  merelj'^  touched  at 
Manila  without  unloading  or  taking  in  fresh  cargo; 
and,  if  a  vessel  under  such  circumstances  landed  even 
the  smallest  parcel,  it  was  no  longer  rated  as  a  ship 
in  ballast,  but  charged  on  the  higher  scale.  Vessels  were 
therefore  forced  to  enter  the  port  entirely  devoid  of 
cargo,  or  carrying  sufficient  to  cover  the  expense  of  the 
increased  harbor  dues ;  almost  an  impossibility  for  foreign 
ships,  on  account  of  the  differential  customs  rates,  which 
acted  almost  as  a  complete  prohibition.  The  result 
was  that  foreign  vessels  came  there  only  in  ballast,  or 
when  summoned  for  some  particular  object. 

The  exports  of  the  colony  were  almost  entirely  limited  Export  taxes. 
to  its  raw  produce,  which  was  burdened  with  an  export 
duty  of  three  per  cent.  Exports  leaving  under  the 
Spanish  flag  were  only  taxed  to  the  amount  of  one  per 
cent.;  but,  as  scarcely  any  export  trade  existed  with 
Spain,  and  as  Spanish  vessels,  from  their  high  rates 
of  freight,  were  excluded  from  the  carrying  trade  of  the 
world,  the  boon  to  commerce  was  a  delusive  one.* 

These  inept  excise  laws,  hampered  with  a  hundred   Laws  drove 
suspicious  forms,   frightened  away  the  whole  carrying  "  "" 
trade  from  the  port;  and  its  commission  merchants  were 


*  In  1868  the  total  exports  amounted  to  $14,013,108;  of  this  England  alone 
accounted  for  $4,857,000,  and  the  whole  of  the  rest  of  Europe  for  only  $102,477. 
The  first  amount  does  not  include  the  tobacco  duty  paid  to  Spain  by  the  colony, 
$3,169,144.      (English    Consul's   Report,    1869.) 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Manila's 
Javorabh 
location . 


The    1869 
reform. 


Bettered 
■conditions 


Pre-Spanish 

foreign 

■commerce. 


frequently  unable  to  dispose  of  the  local  produce.  So 
trifling  was  the  carrying  trade  that  the  total  yearly 
average  of  the  harbor  dues,  calculated  from  the  returns 
often  years,  barely  reached  $10,000. 

The  position  of  Manila,  a  central  point  betwixt 
Japan,  China,  Annam,  the  English  and  Dutch  ports 
of  the  Archipelago  and  Australia,  is  in  itself  extremely 
favorable  to  the  development  of  a  world-wide  trade.* 
At  the  time  of  the  north-eastern  monsoons,  during  our 
winter,  when  vessels  for  the  sake  of  shelter  pass  through 
the  Straits  of  Gilolo  on  their  way  from  the  Indian  Archi- 
pelago to  China,  they  are  obliged  to  pass  close  to  Manila. 
They  would  find  it  a  most  convenient  station,  for  the 
Philippines,  as  we  have  already  mentioned,  are  parti- 
cularly favorably  placed  for  the  west  coast  of  America. 

A  proof  that  the  Spanish  Ultramar  minister  fully 
recognizes  and  appreciates  these  circumstances  appears 
in  his  decree,  of  April  5,  1869,  which  is  of  the  highest 
importance  for  the  future  of  the  colony.  It  probably 
would  have  been  issued  earlier  had  not  the  Spanish 
and  colonial  shipowners,  pampered  by  the  protective 
system,  obstinately  struggled  against  an  innovation 
which  impaired  their  former  privileges  and  forced  them 
to  greater  activity. 

The  most  noteworthy  points  of  the  decree  are  the 
moderation  of  the  differential  duties,  and  their  entire 
extinction  at  the  expiration  of  two  years ;  the  abrogation 
of  all  export  duties;  and  the  consolidation  of  the  more 
annoying  port  dues  into  one  single  charge. 

When  the  Spaniards  landed  in  the  Philippines  they 
found  the  inhabitants  clad  in  silks  and  cotton  stuffs, 
which  were  imported  by  Chinese  ships  to  exchange  for 


*  La  Perouse  said  that   Manila  was  perhaps  the  most  fortunately  situated 
city  in  the  world. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  /■> 

gold-dust,  sapan  wood,*  holothurian,  edible  birds' 
nests,  and  skins.  The  Islands  were  also  in  communi- 
cation with  Japan,  Cambodia,  Siamf,  the  Moluccas, 
and  the  Malay  Archipelago.  De  Barros  mentions  that 
vessels  from  Luzon  visited  Malacca  in  151 1.+ 

The  greater  order  which  reigned  in  the  Philippines   ^"''^  extension 

r      t         e~K  •        1  1-n  i  under  Spain. 

after  the  advent  of  the  Spaniards,  and  still  more  the 
commerce  they  opened  with  America  and  indirectly 
with  Europe,  had  the  effect  of  greatly  increasing  the 
Island  trade,  and  of  extending  it  beyond  the  Indies 
to  the  Persian  Gulf.  Manila  was  the  great  mart  for 
the  products  of  Eastern  Asia,  with  which  it  loaded  the 
galleons  that,  as  early  as  1565,  sailed  to  and  from  New 
Spain  (at  first  to  Navidad,  after  1602  to  Acapulco), 
and  brought  back  silver  as  their  principal  return  freight.  § 

The  merchants  in  New  Spain  and  Peru  found  this   -Jealousy  of 
commerce  so  advantageous,   that  the  result  was  very   monopolists. 
damaging  to  the  exports  from  the  mother  country,  whose 
manufactured  goods  were  unable  to  compete  with  the 
Indian    cottons    and    the    Chinese    silks.     The    spoilt 
monopolists  of  Seville  demanded  therefore  the  abandon- 


*  Sapan  or  Sibucan,  Caesalpinia  Sapan.  Pernambuco  or  Brazil  wood,  to 
which  the  empire  of  Brazil  owes  its  name,  comes  from  the  Caesalpinia  echinat 
and  the  Caesalpinia  Braziliensis.  (The  oldest  maps  of  America  remark  of 
Brazil:  "Its  only  useful  product  is  Brazil  (wood).")  The  sapan  of  the  Phil- 
ippines is  richer  in  dye  stuff  than  all  other  eastern  asiatic  woods,  but  it  ranks 
below  the  Brazilian  sapan.  It  has,  nowadays,  lost  its  reputation,  owing  to  its 
being  often  stupidly  cut  down  too  early.  It  is  sent  especially  to  China,  where 
it  is  used  for  dyeing  or  printing  in  red.  The  stuff  is  first  macerated  with  alum, 
and  then  for  a  finish  dipped  in  a  weak  alcoholic  solution  of  alkali.  The  reddish 
brown  tint  so  frequently  met  with  in  the  clothes  of  the  poorer  Chinese  is  produced 
from  sapan. 

t  Large  quantities  of  small  mussel  shells  (Cypraea  moneta)  were  sent  at  this 
period  to  Siam,  where  they  are  still  used  as  money. 

+  Berghaus'   Geo.  hydrogr.   Memoir. 

§  Manila  was  first  founded  in  1571,  but  as  early  as  1565,  Urdaneta,  Legaspi's 
pilot,  had  found  the  way  back  through  the  Pacific  Ocean  while  he  was  seeking  in 
the  higher  northern  latitudes  for  a  favorable  north-west  wind.  Strictly  speaking, 
however,  Urdaneta  was  not  the  first  to  make  use  of  the  return  passage,  for  one  of 
Legaspi's  five  vessels,  under  the  command  of  Don  Alonso  de  Arellano,  which  had 
on  board  as  pilot  Lope  Martin,  a  mulatto,  separated  itself  from  the  fleet  after 
they  had  reached  the  Islands,  and  returned  to  New  Spain  on  a  northern  course, 
in  order  to  claim  the  promised  reward  for  the  discovery.  Don  Alonso  was  dis- 
appointed, however,  by  the  speedy  return  of  Urdaneta. 


14  THE  FORMER  PHILIl'PIXES  THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 

ment  of  a  colony  which  required  considerable  yearly 
contributions  from  the  home  exchequer,  which  stood 
in  the  way  of  the  mother  country's  exploiting  her  Ameri- 
can colonies,  and  which  let  the  silver  of  His  Majesty's 
dominions  pass  into  the  hands  of  the  heathen.  Since 
the  foundation  of  the  colony  they  had  continually  thrown 
impediments  in  its  path.*  Their  demands,  however, 
were  vain  in  face  of  the  ambition  of  the  throne  and  the 
influence  of  the  clergy;  rather,  responding  to  the  views 
of  that  time  the  merchants  of  Peru  and  New  Spain  were 
forced,  in  the  interests  of  the  mother  country,  to  obtain 
merchandise  from  China,  either  directly,  or  through 
Manila.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Philippines  were  alone 
permitted  to  send  Chinese  goods  to  America,  but  only 
to  the  yearly  value  of  $250,000.  The  return  trade  was 
limited  to  $500, 000. t 
Rrohibition  of  The  first  amount  was  afterwards  increased  to  $300,000, 
China  iradinu.  ^-^j^  ^  proportionate  augmentation  of  the  return  freight; 
but  the  Spanish  were  forbidden  to  visit  China,  so  that 
they  were  obliged  to  await  the  arrival  of  the  junks. 
Finally,  in  1720,  Chinese  goods  were  strictly  prohibited 
throughout  the  whole  of  the  Spanish  possessions  in  both 
hemispheres.  A  decree  of  1734  (amplified  in  1769)  once 
more  permitted  trade  with  China,  and  increased  the 
maximum  value  of  the  annual  freightage  to  Acapulco 
to  $500,000  (silver)  and  that  of  the  return  trade  to  twice 
the  amount. 
Hiyher  limit  on  After  the  galleons  to  Acapulco,  which  had  been  main- 
su^penswn  of      ^gjned  at  the  expense  of  the  government  treasury,  had 

galleon  voyayes.  ^  ■=  -'  ' 

stopped   their   voyages,    commerce   with   America   was 


*  Kottenkamp   I.,    1594. 

t  At  first  the  maximum  value  of  the  imports  only  was  limited,  and  the  Manila 
merchants  were  not  over  scrupulous  in  making  false  statements  as  to  their  worth- 
to  put  an  end  to  these  malpractices  a  limit  was  placed  to  the  amount  of  silver 
exported.  According  to  Mas,  however,  the  silver  illegally  exported  amounted  to 
six  or  eight  times  the  prescribed  limit. 


Jagor's   Traveh   in   (lie  PliiU p-jiini-s  15 

handled  by  merchants  who  were  permitted  in  1820,  to 
export  goods  up  to  $750,000  annually  from  the  Phil- 
ippines and  to  visit  San  Bias,  Guayaquil  and  Callao, 
besides  Acapulco. 

This  concession,  however,    was  not  sufficient  to  com-   Uriiuh 
pensate  Philippine  commerce  for  the  injuries  it  suffered  °''"'^"^^""' 

inspired  neiv 

through  the  separation  of  Mexico  from  Spain.  The  wants. 
possession  of  Manila  by  the  English,  in  1762,  made  its 
inhabitants  acquainted  with  many  industrial  products 
which  the  imports  from  China  and  India  were  unable 
to  offer  them.  To  satisfy  these  new  cravings  Spanish 
men-of-war  were  sent,  towards  the  close  of  1764,  to  the 
colony  with  products  of  Spanish  industries,  such  as 
wine,  provisions,  hats,  cloth,  hardware,  and  fancy 
articles. 

The   Manila   merchants,    accustomed   to   a   lucrative   Manila 
trade  with  Acapulco,  strenuously  resisted  this  innova-   "oTJde""' 
tion,  although  it  was  a  considerable  source  of  profit  to   innovations. 
them,  for  the  Crown  purchased  the  Indian  and  Chinese 
merchandise    for    its    return    freights    from    Manila    at 
double  their  original  value.     In  1784,  however,  the  last 
of  these  ships  arrived. 

After   the   English   invasion,   European   vessels   were  Subterjuues  oj 
strictly  forbidden  to  visit  Manila;  but  as  that  city  did   f"^'"'««" 

•'  •'  traders. 

not  want  to  do  without  Indian  merchandise,  and  could 
not  import  it  in  its  own  ships,  it  was  brought  there 
in  English  and  French  bottoms,  which  assumed  a 
Turkish  name,  and  were  provided  with  an  Indian  sham- 
captain. 

In  1785,  the  Compania  de  FiUpimis  obtained  a  mono-   The 
poly  of  the  trade  between  Spain  and  the  colony,  but  it   compaw"" 
was  not  allowed  to  interfere  with  the  direct  traffic  be-   monopoly. 
tween  Acapulco  and  Manila.     The  desire  was  to  acquire 
large  quantities  of  colonial  produce,  silk,  indigo,  cinna- 
mon, cotton,  pepper,  etc.,  in  order  to  export  it  somewhat 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Losses  by  bad 
management. 


Entrance  of 
foreign  ships 
and  firms. 


Trade  free 
but  port 
charges 
discriminating. 


Port's 
importance 
lessened  under 
.Spain . 


as  was  done  later  on  by  the  system  of  culture  in  Java; 
but  as  it  was  unable  to  obtain  compulsory  labor,  it 
entirely  failed  in  its  attempted  artificial  development  of 
agriculture. 

The  Compania  suffered  great  losses  through  its  erro- 
neous system  of  operation,  and  the  incapacity  of  its 
officials  (it  paid,  for  example,  $13.50  for  a  picul  of  pepper 
which  cost  from  three  to  four  dollars  in  Sumatra). 

In  1789  foreign  ships  were  allowed  to  import  Chinese 
and  Indian  produce,  but  none  from  Europe.  In  1809 
an  English  commercial  house  obtained  permission  to 
establish  itself  in  Manila.*  In  1814,  after  the  conclusion 
of  the  peace  with  France,  the  same  permission,  with 
greater  or  less  restrictions,  was  granted  to  all  foreigners. 

In  1820  the  direct  trade  between  the  Philippines  and 
Spain  was  thrown  open  without  any  limitations  to  the 
exports  of  colonial  produce,  on  the  condition  that  the 
value  of  the  Indian  and  Chinese  goods  in  each  expedi- 
tion should  not  exceed  $50,000.  Ever  since  1834, 
when  the  privileges  of  the  Compania  expired,  free  trade 
has  been  permitted  in  Manila;  foreign  ships,  however, 
being  charged  double  dues.  Four  new  ports  have  been 
thrown  open  to  general  trade  since  1855;  and  in  1869 
the  liberal  tariff  previously  alluded  to  was  issued. 

Today,  after  three  centuries  of  almost  undisturbed 
Spanish  rule,  Manila  has  by  no  means  added  to  the 
importance  it  possessed  shortly  after  the  advent  of  the 
Spaniards.  The  isolation  of  Japan  and  the  Indo- 
Chinese  empires,  a  direct  consequence  of  the  importu- 
nities  and   pretensions    of  the    Catholic   missionaries,! 


*  La  P6rouse  mentions  a  French  firm  (Sebis),  that,  in  1787,  had  been  for  many- 
years  established   in  Manila. 

t  R.  Cocks  to  Thomas  Wilson  (Calendar  of  State  Papers,  India,  No.  823)  .... 
"The  English  will  obtain  a  trade  in  China,  so  they  bring  not  in  any  padres  (a» 
they  term  them),  which  the  Chinese  cannot  abide  to  hear  of,  because  heretofore 
they  came  in  such  swarms,  and  are  always  begging  without  shame." 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  17 

the  secession  of  the  colonies  on  the  west  coast  of  America, 
above  all  the  long  continuance  of  a  distrustful  com- 
mercial and  colonial  policy — a  policy  which  exists  even 
at  the  present  day — while  important  markets,  based 
on  large  capital  and  liberal  principles,  were  being  estab- 
lished in  the  most  favored  spots  of  the  British  and  Dutch 
Indies;  all  these  circumstances  have  contributed  to  this 
result  and  thrown  the  Chinese  trade  into  other  channels. 
The  cause  is  as  clear  as  the  effect,  yet  it  might  be  erro- 
neous to  ascribe  the  policy  so  long  pursued  to  short- 
sightedness. The  Spaniards,  in  their  schemes  of  colonisa- 
tion, had  partly  a  religious  purpose  in  view,  but  the 
government  discovered  a  great  source  of  influence  in  the 
disposal  of  the  extremely  lucrative  colonial  appoint- 
ments. The  crown  itself,  as  well  as  its  favorites,  thought 
of  nothing  but  extracting  the  most  it  could  from  the 
colony,  and  had  neither  the  intention  or  the  power  to 
develop  the  natural  wealth  of  the  country  by  agricul- 
ture and  commerce.  Inseparable  from  this  policy,  was 
the  persistent  exclusion  of  foreigners.*  It  seemed  even 
more  necessary  in  the  isolated  Philippines  than  in  America 
to  cut  off  the  natives  from  all  contact  with  foreigners, 
if  the  Spaniards  had  any  desire  to  remain  in  undisturbed 
possession  of  the  colony.  In  face,  however,  of  the 
developed  trade  of  today  and  the  claims  of  the  world 
to  the  productive  powers  of  such  an  extraordinarily 
fruitful  soil,  the  old  restrictions  can  no  longer  be  main- 
tained, and  the  lately-introduced  liberal  tariff  must  be 
hailed  as  a  thoroughly  well-timed  measure. 

*  ;;:  :!;  ;•:  :i;  :!:  :i;  :}:  H« 

The  oft-mentioned  voyages  of  the   galleons  betwixt   GaUeon  story 

.    .  nidelight  on 

Manila  and  Acapulco  hold  such  a  prominent  position   ,y,ioniai  history. 


*  As  late  as  1857  some  old  decrees,  passed  against  the  establishment  of 
foreigners,  were  renewed.  A  royal  ordinance  of  1844  prohibits  the  admission  of 
strangers  into  the  interior  of  the  colony  under  any  pretext  whatsoever. 


THE  FORMER  PHIUPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGX  EYEi 


Chinese  part  in 
galleon  trade. 


Fatoritism  in 
allotment  of 
cargo  space. 


Dirision  o:' 
space  and 
character  of 
cargo. 


Profit  in  trade. 


in  the  histon,'  of  the  Philippines,  and  afford  such  an 
interesting  ghmpse  into  the  old  colonial  system,  that 
their  principal  characteristics  deserve  some  description. 

In  the  days  of  Morga.  towards  the  close  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  from  thirty  to  forty  Chinese  junks  were  in  the 
habit  of  annually  \'isiting  I^Ianila  (generally  in  March) ; 
towards  the  end  of  June  a  galleon  used  to  sail  for  Aca- 
pulco.  The  trade  with  the  latter  place,  the  active  opera- 
tions of  which  were  limited  to  the  ti»ree  central  months 
of  the  year,  was  so  lucrative,  easy,  and  safe,  that  the 
Spaniards  scarcely  cared  to  engage  in  any  other  under- 
takings. 

As  the  carrying  power  of  the  annual  galleon  was  by 
no  means  proportioned  to  the  demand  for  cargo  room, 
the  governor  divided  it  as  he  deemed  best:  the  favorites, 
however,  to  whom  he  assigned  shares  in  the  hold,  seldom 
traded  themselves,  but  parted  with  their  concessions  to 
the  merchants. 

According  to  De  Guignes,*  the  hold  of  the  vessel  was 
divided  into  1.500  parts,  of  which  the  majority  were 
allotted  to  the  priests,  and  the  rest  to  favored  persons. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  value  of  the  cargo,  which  was 
officially  limited  to  S600.000.  was  considerably  higher. 
It  chiefly  consisted  of  Indian  and  Chinese  cottons  and 
silk  stuffs  (amongst  others  fifty  thousand  pairs  of  silk 
stockings  from  China),  and  gold  ornaments.  The  value 
of  the  return  freight  amounted  to  between  two  and  three 
millions  of  dollars. 

Everything  in  this  trade  was  settled  beforehand;  the 
number,  shape,  size,  and  value  of  the  bales,  and  even 
their  selling  price.  As  this  was  usually  double  the 
original  cost,  the  permission  to  ship  goods  to  a  certain 
amount  was  equivalent,  under  ordinary  circumstances, 
to   the  bestowal  of  a  present  of  a  like  value.     These 


*   Vide  Pinkerton. 


regulations 


Jayor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  19 

permissions  or  licenses  (boletas)  were,  at  a  later  period, 
usually  granted  to  pensioners  and  officers'  widows, 
and  to  officials,  in  lieu  of  an  increase  of  salary;  these 
favorites  were  forbidden,  however,  to  make  a  direct 
use  of  them,  for  to  trade  with  Acapulco  was  the  sole 
right  of  those  members  of  the  Consulado  (a  kind  of 
chamber  of  commerce)  who  could  prove  a  long  residence 
in  the  country  and  the  possession  of  a  capital  of  at  least 
$8,000. 

Legentil,  the  astronomer,  gives  a  full  description  Evasion  of 
of  the  regulations  which  prevailed  in  his  day  and  the 
manner  in  which  they  were  disobeyed.  The  cargo 
consisted  of  a  thousand  bales,  each  composed  of  four 
packets,*  the  maximum  value  of  each  packet  being 
fixed  at  $250.  It  was  impossible  to  increase  the  amount 
of  bales,  but  they  pretty  generally  consisted  of  more 
than  four  packets,  and  their  value  so  far  exceeded  the 
prescribed  limits,  that  a  bolcta  was  considered  to  be 
worth  from  $200  to  $225.  The  officials  took  good  care 
that  no  goods  should  be  smuggled  on  board  without  a 
boleta.  These  were  in  such  demand,  that,  at  a  later 
period,  Comynf  saw  people  pay  $500  for  the  right  to 
ship  goods,  the  value  of  which  scarcely  amounted  to 
$1,000.  The  merchants  usually  borrowed  the  money 
for  these  undertakings  from  the  ohras  pias,  charitable 
foundations,  which,  up  to  our  own  time,  fulfil  in  the 
Islands  the  purposes  of  banks.  +  In  the  early  days  of 
the  trade,  the  galleon  used  to  leave  Cavite  in  July  and 
sail   with   a   south-westerly   wind   beyond   the   tropics, 

*  Each  packet  was  5  X  2  '  ^  X  1 '  2  =  18.75  Spanish  cubic  feet.     St.  Croix. 

t   Vide  Comyn's  Comercio  exterior. 

X  The  obras  pia!<  were  pious  legacies  which  usually  stipulated  that  two-thirds 
of  their  value  should  be  advanced  at  interest  for  the  furtherance  of  maritime 
commercial  undertakings  until  the  premiums,  which  for  a  voyage  to  Acapulco 
amounted  to  50,  to  China  25,  and  to  India  35  per  cent.,  had  increased  the  original 
capital  to  a  certain  amount.  The  interest  of  the  whole  was  then  to  be  devoted 
to  masses  for  the  founders,  or  to  other  pious  and  benevolent  purposes.  A  third 
was  generally  kept  as  a  reserve  fund  to  cover  possible  losses.  The  government 
long  since  appropriated  these  reserve  funds  as  compulsory  loans,  "but  they  are 
still  considered   as  existing." 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Route  outward. 


'iVater-supply 
crowded  out  hy 
cargo. 


Length  of  voyage. 


until  it  met  with  a  west  wind  at  the  thirty-eighth  or 
fortieth  parallel.*  Later  on  the  vessels  were  ordered 
to  leave  Cavite  with  the  first  south-westerly  winds 
to  sail  along  the  south  coast  of  Luzon,  through  San 
Bernardino  straits,  and  to  continue  along  the  thirteenth 
parallel  of  north  latitude!  as  far  to  the  east  as  possible, 
until  the  north-easterly  trade  wind  compelled  them  to 
seek  a  north-west  breeze  in  higher  latitudes.  They 
were  then  obliged  to  try  the  thirtieth  parallel  as  long 
as  possible,  instead  of,  as  formerly,  the  thirty-seventh. 
The  captain  of  the  galleon  was  not  permitted  to  sail 
immediately  northward,  although  to  have  done  so  would 
have  procured  him  a  much  quicker  and  safer  passage, 
and  would  have  enabled  him  to  reach  the  rainy  zone 
more  rapidly.  To  effect  the  last,  indeed,  was  a  matter 
of  the  greatest  importance  to  him,  for  his  vessel,  over- 
laden with  merchandise,  had  but  little  room  left  for 
water;  and,  although  he  had  a  crew  of  from  four  hundred 
to  six  hundred  hands  to  provide  for,  he  was  instructed 
to  depend  upon  the  rain  he  caught  on  the  voyage;  for 
which  purpose,  the  galleon  was  provided  with  suitable 
mats  and  bamboo  pails. i 

Voyages  in  these  low  latitudes  were,  owing  to  the 
inconstancy  of  the  winds,  extremely  troublesome,  and 
often  lasted  five  months  and  upwards.  The  fear  of 
exposing  the  costly,  cumbrous  vessel  to  the  powerful 
and  sometimes  stormy  winds  of  the  higher  latitudes, 
appears  to  have  been  the  cause  of  these  sailing  orders. 


When  the  trade  with  Acapulco  came  to  an  end,  the  principals  could  no  longer 
be  laid  out  according  to  the  intentions  of  the  founders,  and  they  were  lent  out 
at  interest  in  other  ways.  By  a  royal  ordinance  of  November  3,  1854,  a  junta 
was  appointed  to  administer  the  property  of  the  obras  pias.  The  total  capital 
of  the  five  endowments  (in  reality  only  four,  for  one  of  them  nc  longer  possessed 
anything)  amounted  to  nearly  a  million  of  dollars.  The  profits  from  the  loans 
were  distributed  according  to  the  amounts  of  the  original  capital,  which,  however, 
no  longer  existed  in  cash,  as  the  government  had  disposed  of  them. 

*   Viile  Thevenot. 

t  According  to  Morga,  between  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth. 

i   Vide  De  Guignes,  Pinkerton  XI,  and  Anson  X. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


21 


As  soon  as  the  galleon  had  passed  the  great  Sargasso  California 
shoal,  it  took  a  southerly  course,  and  touched  at  the  ''*'"'^''"- 
southern  point  of  the  Californian  peninsula  (San  Lucas), 
where  news  and  provisions  awaited  it.*  In  their  earlier 
voyages,  however,  they  must  have  sailed  much  further 
to  the  north,  somewhere  in  the  neighborhood  of  Cape 
Mendocino,  and  have  been  driven  southward  in  sight 
of  the  coast;  for  Vizcaino,  in  the  voyage  of  discovery 
he  undertook  in  1603,  from  Mexico  to  California,  found 
the  principal  mountains  and  capes,  although  no  European 
had  ever  set  his  foot  upon  them,  already  christened  by 
the  galleons,  to  which  they  had  served  as  landmarks.! 

The  return  voyage  to  the  Philippines  was  an  easy  one,  speedy  reum 
andonly  occupied  from  forty  to  sixty  days. i  The  galleon  ''"y<'se. 
left  Acapulco  in  February  or  March,  sailed  southwards 
till  it  fell  in  with  the  trade  wind  (generally  in  from  10° 
to  11°  of  north  latitude),  which  carried  it  easily  to  the 
Ladrone  Islands,  and  thence  reached  Manila  by  way 
of  Samar.§ 

A  galleon  was  usually  of  from  twelve  hundred  to  Galleon's  size 
fifteen  hundred  tons  burden,  and  carried  fifty  or  sixty  "'"^  «'"««"'«"<■ 
guns.  The  latter,  however,  were  pretty  generally 
banished  to  the  hold  during  the  eastward  voyage. 
When  the  ship's  bows  were  turned  towards  home,  and 
there  was  no  longer  any  press  of  space,  the  guns  were 
remounted. 

San  Augustin  says  of  the  Santa  Anna,  which  Thomas   Capture  of 
Candish  captured  and  burnt  in  1586  off  the  Californian   "'^'""''  '^""" ' 
coast:  "Our  people  sailed  so  carelessly  that  they  used 
their  guns  for  ballast;    ....   the  pirate's   venture    was 
such  a  fortunate  one  that  he  returned  to  London  with 

*   Vide  Anson. 

t  Randolph's  History  ef  California. 

t  In  Morga's  time  the  galleons  took  seventy  days  to  the  Ladrone  Islands, 
from  ten  to  twelve  from  thence  to  Cape  Espiritu  Santo,  and  eight  more  to  Manila. 

§  A  very  good  description  of  these  voyages  may  be  found  in  the  10th  chapter 
of  Anson's  work,  which  also  contains  a  copy  of  a  sea  map,  captured  in  the  Cava- 
donga,  displaying  the  proper  track  of  the  galleons  to  and  from  Acapulco. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Value  of 
return  frei-ht. 


Gambling  rather 
than  commerce. 


"Philippine 
Company"  and 
smugglers  cause 
change. 


Spanish  coins 
in  circulation 
on  China  coast. 


sails  of  Chinese  damask  and  silken  rigging."  The 
cargo  was  sold  in  Acapulco  at  a  profit  of  100  per  cent., 
and  was  paid  for  in  silver,  cochineal,  quicksilver,  etc. 
The  total  value  of  the  return  freight  amounted  perhaps 
to  between  two  and  three  million  dollars,*  of  which  a 
quarter  of  a  million,  at  least,  fell  to  the  king. 

The  return  of  a  galleon  to  Manila,  laden  with  silver 
dollars  and  new  arrivals,  was  a  great  holiday  for  the 
colony.  A  considerable  portion  of  the  riches  they  had 
won  as  easily  as  at  the  gaming  table,  was  soon  spent  by 
the  crew;  when  matters  again  returned  to  their  usual 
lethargic  state.  It  was  no  unfrequent  event,  however, 
for  vessels  to  be  lost.  They  were  too  often  laden  with  a 
total  disregard  to  seaworthiness,  and  wretchedly  handled. 
It  was  favor,  not  capacity,  that  determined  the  patron- 
age of  these  lucrative  appointments.!  Many  galleons 
fell  into  the  hands  of  English  and  Dutch  cruisers. | 
But  these  tremendous  profits  gradually  decreased  as 
the  Campania  obtained  the  right  to  import  Indian 
cottons,  one  of  the  principal  articles  of  trade,  into  New 
Spain  by  way  of  Vera  Cruz,  subject  to  a  customs  duty 
of  6  per  cent;  and  when  English  and  American  adven- 
turers began  to  smuggle  these  and  other  goods  into  the 
country.  §  Finally,  it  may  be  mentioned  that  Spanish 
dollars  found  their  way  in  the  galleons  to  China  and  the 
further  Indies,  where  they  are  in  circulation  to  this  day. 


*  De  Guignes. 

t  The  officer  in  command  of  the  expedition,  to  whom  the  title  of  general  was 
given,  had  always  a  captain  under  his  orders,  and  his  share  in  the  gain  of  each 
trip  amounted  to  $40,000.  The  pilot  was  content  with  $20,000.  The  first 
lieutenant  (master)  was  entitled  to  9  per  cent  on  the  sale  of  the  cargo,  and 
pocketed  from  this  and  from  the  profits  of  his  own  private  ventures  upwards 
of  $350,000.      {Vide   Arenas.) 

t  The  value  of  the  cargoes  Anson  captured  amounted  to  $1,313,000,  besides 
35,682  ounces  of  fine  silver  and  cochineal.  While  England  and  Spain  were 
at  peace,  Drake  plundered  the  latter  to  the  extent  of  at  least  one  and  a  half 
million  of  dollars.  Thomas  Candish  burnt  the  rich  cargo  of  the  Santa  Anna, 
as  he  had  no  room  for  it  on  board  his  own  vessel. 

§  For  instance,  in  1 786  the  San  Andres,  which  had  a  cargo  on  board  valued  at  a 
couple  of  millions,  found  no  market  for  it  in  Acapulco;  the  same  thing  happened 
in  1787  to  the  San  Jose,  and  a  second  time  in  1789  to  the  San  Andres. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


III 


The  city  proper  of  Manila,  inhabited  by  Spaniards,   '^|'l^^^^^^|'J  ^'"'^ 
Creoles,  the  Filipinos  directly  connected  with  them,  and 
Chinese,   lies,   surrounded  by  walls   and  wide  ditches, 
on  the  left  or  southern  bank  of  the  Pasig,  looking  towards 
the  sea/'^    It  is  a  hot,  dried-up  place,  full  of  monasteries, 
convents,  barracks,  and  government  buildings.     Safety, 
not    appearance,    was    the    object    of   its    builders.     It 
reminds   the   beholder   of   a   Spanish   provincial   town, 
and    is,    next    to    Goa,    the    oldest  city  in    the  Indies. 
Foreigners  reside  ou  the  northern  bank  of  the  river;  in 
Binondo,  the  headquarters  of  wholesale  and  retail  com- 
merce, or  in  the  pleasant  suburban  villages,  which  blend 
into  a  considerable  whole.     The  total  population  of  city   population. 
and   suburbs   has  been  estimated,   perhaps   with   some 
exaggeration,  at  200,000.     A  handsome  old  stone  bridge   nridges. 
of  ten  arches  serves  as  the  communication  between  the 
two  banks  of  the  Pasig,  which,  more  recently,  has  also 
been    spanned    by    an    iron    suspension   bridge. t     Very 
little    intercourse    exists    between    the    inhabitants    of 
Manila  and  Binondo.     Life  in  the  city  proper  cannot  Frietion  between 
be  very  pleasant;  pride,  envy,  place-hunting,  and  caste 
hatred,  are  the  order  of  the  day;  the  Spaniards  consider 
themselves   superior  to  the  Creoles,  who,  in  their  turn, 
reproach  the  former  with  the  taunt  that  they  have  only 
come  to  the  colony  to  save  themselves  from  starvation. 


*  In  1855  its  population  consisted  of  586  European  Spaniards,  1,378  Creoles, 
6,323  Malay  Filipinos  and  mestizos,  332  Chinamen,  2  Hamburgers,  1  Portu- 
guese, and  1  Negro. 

t  The  earthquake  of  1863  destroyed  the  old  bridge.  It  is  intended,  however, 
to  restore  it;  the  supporting  pillars  are  ready,  and  the  supenncumbent  iron 
structure  is  shortly  expected  from  Europe  (April,  1872)  —The  central  span, 
damaged  in  the  high  water  of  1914,  was  temporarily  replaced  with  a  wooden 
structure  and  plans  have  been  prepared  for  a  new  bridge,  permitting  ships  to 
pass  and  to  be  used  also  by  the  railway,  nearer  the  river  mouth.— C. 


Few  large 
landowners. 


Spaniards 

transient. 


Discomforts  and 
high  cost  of 
living. 


S4  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THR.U  FOREIGN  EYES 

A  similar  hatred  and  envy  exists  between  the  whites 
and  the  mestizos.  This  state  of  things  is  to  be  found 
in  all  Spanish  colonies,  and  is  chiefly  caused  by  the  colo- 
nial policy  of  Madrid,  which  always  does  its  best  to 
sow  discord  between  the  different  races  and  classes  of 
its  foreign  possessions,  under  the  idea  that  their  union 
would  imperil  the  sway  of  the  mother  country.* 

In  Manila,  moreover,  this  state  of  things  was  rendered 
worse  by  the  fact  that  the  planter  class,  whose  large 
landed  possessions  always  give  it  a  strong  interest  in  the 
country  of  its  inhabitance,  was  entirely  wanting.  At 
the  present  day,  however,  the  increasing  demand  for 
the  produce  of  the  colony  seems  to  be  bringing  about  a 
pleasant  change  in  this  respect.  The  manner  in  which 
the  Spanish  population  of  the  Islands  was  affected  by 
the  gambling  ventures  of  the  galleons,  at  one  time  the 
only  source  of  commercial  wealth,  is  thus  described  by 
Murillo  Velarde  (page  272): — "The  Spaniards  who 
settle  here  look  upon  these  Islands  as  a  tavern  rather 
than  a  permanent  home.  If  they  marry,  it  is  by  the 
merest  chance ;  where  can  a  family  be  found  that  has  been 
settled  here  for  several  generations?  The  father  amasses 
wealth,  the  son  spends  it,  the  grandson  is  a  beggar. 
The  largest  capitals  are  not  more  stable  than  the  waves 
of  the  ocean,  across  the  crests  of  which  they  were 
gathered." 

There  is  nothing  like  the  same  amount  of  sociability 
amongst  the  foreigners  in  Binondo  as  prevails  in  English 
and  Dutch  colonies;  and  scarcely  any  intercourse  at  all 
with  the  Spaniards,  who  envy  the  strangers  and  almost 
seem  to  look  upon  the  gains  the  latter  make  in  the  coun- 
try as  so  many  robberies  committed  upon  themselves, 
its  owners.     Besides  all  this,  living  is  very  expensive, 


*  Roescher's  Colonies. 


Jagor's  Travels   in  the  Philippines  S3 

much  more  so  than  in  Singapore  and  Batavia.  To 
many,  the  mere  cost  of  existence  seems  greatly  out  of 
proportion  to  their  official  salaries.  The  (European 
style)  houses,  which  are  generally  spacious,  are  gloomy 
and  ugly,  and  not  well  ventilated  for  such  a  climate. 
Instead  of  light  jalousies,  they  are  fitted  with  heavy 
sash  windows,  which  admit  the  light  through  thin  oyster 
shells,  forming  small  panes  scarcely  two  square  inches 
in  area,  and  held  together  by  laths  an  inch  thick.  The 
ground  floors  of  the  houses  are,  on  account  of  the  great 
damp,  sensibly  enough,  generally  uninhabited;  and  are 
used  as  cellars,  stables,  and  servant's  offices. 

The  unassuming,  but  for  their  purposes  very  practical  Native  houses 
houses,  of  boards,  bamboos,  and  (nipa)  palm  leaves,  are  '^"'"f"''''^^^' 

^      ^     -^   ^  and  unchanged, 

supported  on  account  of  the  damp  on  isolated  beams  or 
props;  and  the  space  beneath,  which  is  generally  fenced 
in  with  a  railing,  is  used  as  a  stable  or  a  warehouse; 
such  was  the  case  as  early  as  the  days  of  Magellan. 
These  dwellings*  are  very  lightly  put  together.  La  Perouse 
estimates  the  weight  of  some  of  them,  furniture  and  all, 
at  something  less  than  two  hundred  pounds.  Nearly 
all  these  houses,  as  well  as  the  huts  of  the  natives,  are 
furnished  with  an  azotea,  that  is,  an  uncovered  space, 
on  the  same  level  as  the  dwelling,  which  takes  the  place 
of  yard  and  balcony.  The  Spaniards  appear  to  have 
copied  this  useful  contrivance  from  the  Moors,  but  the 
natives  were  acquainted  with  them  before  the  arrival 
of  the  Europeans,  for  Morga  mentions  similar  6flia7a/fes. 


In  the  suburbs  nearly  every  hut  stands  in  its  own  xegUcted  river 
garden.     The  river  is  often  quite  covered  with  green  "'"^  canau 

offensive. 

scum;  and  dead  cats  and  dogs  surrounded  with  weeds, 
which  look  like  cabbage-lettuce,  frequently    adorn    its 


*  A  brief  description  of  a  nipa  huose,    accompanying  an  illustration,  is    here 
omitted. — C. 


S6 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Dreary  and 

unprogressite 

life. 


Cock-fighting . 


waters.  In  the  dry  season,  the  numerous  canals  of  the 
suburbs  are  so  many  stagnant  drains,  and  at  each  ebb 
of  the  tide  the  ditches  around  the  town  exhibit  a  similar 
spectacle, 

Manila  offers  very  few  opportunities  for  amusement. 
There  was  no  Spanish  theatre  open  during  my  stay 
there,  but  Tagalog  plays  (translations)  were  sometimes 
represented.  The  town  possessed  no  club,  and  contained 
no  readable  books.  Never  once  did  the  least  excite- 
ment enliven  its  feeble  newspapers,  for  the  items  of 
intelligence,  forwarded  fortnightly  from  Hongkong, 
were  sifted  by  priestly  censors,  who  left  little  but  the 
chronicles  of  the  Spanish  and  French  courts  to  feed 
the  barren  columns  of  the  local  sheets.*  The  pompously 
celebrated  religious  festivals  were  the  only  events  that 
sometimes  chequered  the  wearisome  monotony. 

The  chief  amusement  of  the  Filipinos  is  cock-fighting, 
which  is  carried  on  with  a  passionate  eagerness  that  must 
strike  every  stranger.  Nearly  every  man  keeps  a  fighting 
cock.  Many  are  never  seen  out  of  doors  without  their 
favorite  in  their  arms;  they  pay  as  much  as  $50  and  up- 
wards for  these  pets,  and  heap  the    tenderest    caresses 


*  The  following  figures  will  give  an  idea  of  the  contents  of  the  newspapers. 
I  do  not  allude  to  the  Bulletin  Official,  which  is  reserved  for  official  announce- 
ments, and  contains  little  else  of  any  importance.  The  number  lying  before 
me  of  the  Comercio  (Nov.  29,  1858),  a  paper  that  appears  six  times  a  week, 
consists  of  four  pages,  the  printed  portion  in  each  of  which  is  11  inches  by  17; 
the  whole,  therefore,  contains  748  square  inches  of  printed  matter.  They  are 
distributed  as  follows: — • 

Title,  27 J 2  sq.  in.;  an  essay  on  the  population  of  Spain,  taken  from  a  book, 
10232  sq.  in.;  under  the  heading  "News  from  Europe,"  an  article,  quoted  from 
the  Annals  of  La  Caridad,  upon  the  increase  of  charity  and  Catholic  instruction 
in  France,  403-2  sq.  in.;  Part  I,  of  a  treatise  on  Art  and  its  Origin  (a  series  of 
truisms),  70  sq.  in.;  extracts  from  the  official  sheet,  20 '2  sq.  in.;  a  few  ancient 
anecdotes,  59  sq.  in.  Religious  portion  (this  is  divided  into  two  parts — official 
and  unofficial).  The  first  contains  the  saints  for  the  different  days  of  the  year, 
etc.,  and  the  announcements  of  religious  festivals;  the  second  advertises  a  forth- 
coming splendid  procession,  and  contains  the  first  half  of  a  sermon  preached 
three  years  before,  on  the  anniversary  of  the  same  festival,  99  sq.  in.,  besides  an 
instalment  of  an  old  novel,  154,  and  advertisements,  175  sq.  in. ;  total,  748  sq.  in. 
In  the  last  years,  however,  the  newspapers  sometimes  have  contained  serious 
essays,  but  of  late  these  appear  extremely  seldom. 


Jagor's  Trareh  in  the  Philippines  27 

on  them.  The  passion  for  cock-fighting  can  well  be 
termed  a  national  vice;  but  the  practice  may  have  been 
introduced  by  the  Spaniards,  or  the  Mexicans  who 
accompanied  them,  as,  in  a  like  manner,  the  habit  of 
smoking  opium  among  the  Chinese,  which  has  become 
a  national  curse,  was  first  introduced  by  the  English. 
It  is,  however,  more  probable  that  the  Malays  brought   Probably  Malay 

.  cuslojn. 

the  custom  mto  the  country.  In  the  eastern  portion 
of  the  Philippines,  cock-fighting  was  unknown  in  the 
days  of  Pigafetta.  The  first  cock-fight  he  met  with 
was  at  Palawan.  "They  keep  large  cocks,  which  from  a 
species  of  superstition,  they  never  eat,  but  keep  for 
fighting  purposes.  Heavy  bets  are  made  on  the  upshot 
of  the  contest,  which  are  paid  to  the  owner  of  the  win- 
ning bird."*  The  sight  is  one  extremely  repulsive  to 
Europeans.  The  ring  around  the  cockpit  is  crowded  The  cockpit 
with  men,  perspiring  at  every  pore,  while  their  counte- 
nances bear  the  imprint  of  the  ugliest  passions.  Each 
bird  is  armed  with  a  sharp  curved  spur,  three  inches  long 
capable  of  making  deep  wounds,  and  which  always 
causes  the  death  of  one  or  both  birds  by  the  serious 
injuries  it  inflicts.  If  a  cock  shows  symptoms  of  fear 
and  declines  the  encounter,  it  is  plucked  alive.  Incredi- 
bly large  sums,  in  proportion  to  the  means  of  the  gam- 
blers, are  wagered  on  the  result.  It  is  very  evident  that 
these  cock-fights  must  have  a  most  demoralising  effect  its  bad 
upon  a  people  so  addicted  to  idleness  and  dissipation, 
and  so  accustomed  to  give  way  to  the  impulse  of  the 
moment.  Their  effect  is  to  make  them  little  able  to 
resist  the  temptation  of  procuring  money  without  work- 
ing for  it.  The  passion  for  the  game  leads  many  to 
borrow  at  usury,  to  embezzlement,  to  theft,  and  even  to 


*  Vide  Pigafetta. 


S8 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Feminine 
attractiveness 


Meatizas. 


The  Luneta. 


highway  robbery.  The  land  and  sea  pirates,  of  whom 
I  shall  speak  presently,  are  principally  composed  of 
ruined  gamesters.* 

In  the  comeliness  of  the  women  who  lend  animation 
to  its  streets  Manila  surpasses  all  other  towns  in  the 
Indian  Archipelago.  Mallat  describes  them  in  glowing 
colors.  A  charming  picture  of  Manila  street  life,  full 
of  local  color,  is  given  in  the  very  amusing  Aventures 
cVun  Gentilhommc  Breton.] 

How  many  of  the  prettiest  Filipinas  are  of  perfectly 
unmixed  blood,  it  is,  I  confess,  difficult  to  decide.  Many 
of  them  are  very  fair  and  of  quite  an  European  type, 
and  are  thereby  easily  distinguished  from  their  sisters 
in  the  outlying  provinces.  The  immediate  environs 
of  Manila  can  boast  many  beautiful  spots,  but  they  are 
not  the  resort  of  the  local  rank  and  fashion,  the  object 
of  whose  daily  promenade  is  the  display  of  their  toilettes, 
and  not  the  enjoyment  of  nature.  In  the  hot  season,  all 
who  can  afford  it  are  driven  every  evening  along  the 
dusty  streets  to  a  promenade  on  the  beach,  which  was 
built  a  short  time  back,  where  several  times  a  week  the 
band  of  a  native  regiment  plays  fairly  good  music,  and 
there  walk  formally  up  and  down.     All  the  Spaniards 


*  Cock-fighting  is  not  alluded  to  in  the  "Ordinances  of  good  government," 
collected  by  Hurtado  Corcuera  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century.  In 
1779  cock-fights  were  taxed  for  the  first  time.  In  1781  the  government  farmed 
the  right  of  entrance  to  the  gatleras  (derived  from  nallo,  rooster)  for  the  yearly 
sum  of  $14,798.  In  1863  the  receipts  from  the  galleras  figured  in  the  budget 
for  $106,000. 

A  special  decree  of  100  clauses  was  issued  in  Madrid  on  the  21st  of  March, 
1861,  for  the  regulation  of  cock-fights.  The  1st  clause  declares  that  since  cock- 
fights are  a  source  of  revenue  to  the  State,  they  shall  only  take  place  in  arenas 
licensed  by  the  Government.  The  6th  restricts  them  to  Sundays  and  holidays; 
the  7th,  from  the  conclusion  of  high  mass  to  sunset.  The  12th  forbids  more 
than  $50  to  be  staked  on  one  contest.  The  38th  decrees  that  each  cock  shall 
carry  but  one  weapon,  and  that  on  its  left  spur.  By  the  52nd  the  fight  is  to  be 
considered  over  when  one  or  both  cocks  are  dead,  or  when  one  shews  the  white 
feather.  In  the  London  Daily  News  of  the  30th  June,  1869,  I  find  it  reported 
that  five  men  were  sentenced  at  Leeds  to  two  months'  hard  labor  for  setting 
six  cocks  to  fight  one  another  with  iron  spurs.  From  this  it  appears  that  this 
once  favorite  spectacle  is  no  longer  permitted  in  England. 

t  The  raw  materials  of  these  adventures  were  supplied  by  a  French  planter, 
M.  de  la  Gironiere,  but  their  literary  parent  is  avowedly  Alexander  Dumas. 


garden. 


gay  yaniients. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  ihe  Philippines  29 

are  in  uniform  or  in  black  frock  coats.     When  the  bells   The  AngeUs. 
ring  out  for  evening  prayer,  carriages,  horsemen,  pedes- 
trians, all  suddenly  stand  motionless;  the  men  take  off 
their  hats,  and  everybody  appears  momentarily  absorbed 
in  prayer. 

The  same  governor  who  laid  out  the  promenade  Botanical 
established  a  botanical  garden.  It  is  true  that  every- 
thing he  planted  in  it,  exposed  on  a  marshy  soil  to  the 
full  heat  of  a  powerful  sun,  soon  faded  away;  but  its 
ground  was  enclosed  and  laid  out,  and  though  it  was 
overgrown  with  weeds,  it  had  at  least  received  a  name. 
At  present  it  is  said  to  be  in  better  condition.* 

The  religious  festivals  in  the  neighborhood  of  Manila  Pretty  giru  in 
are  well  worth  a  visit,  if  only  for  the  sake  of  the  numerous 
pretty  Filipinas  and  tnestizas  in  their  best  clothes  who 
make  their  appearance  in  the  evening  and  promenade 
up  and  down  the  streets,  which  are  illuminated  and 
profusely  decked  with  flowers  and  bright  colors.  They 
offer  a  charming  spectacle,  particularly  to  a  stranger 
lately  arrived  from  Malaysia.  The  Filipinas  are 
very  beautifully  formed.  They  have  luxuriant  black 
hair,  and  large  dark  eyes;  the  upper  part  of  their 
bodies  is  clad  in  a  homespun  but  often  costly  material 
of  transparent  fineness  and  snow-white  purity;  and, 
from  their  waist  downwards,  they  are  wrapped  in  a 
brightly-striped  cloth  {my a),  which  falls  in  broad  folds, 
and  which,  as  far  as  the  knee,  is  so  tighly  compressed 
with   a   dark  shawl   (/ap/.s),   closely   drawn  around  the 

*  Botanical  gardens  do  not  seem  to  prosper  under  Spanish  auspices.  Cha- 
misso  complains  that,  in  his  day,  there  were  no  traces  left  of  the  botanical  gardens 
founded  at  Cavite  by  the  learned  Cuellar.  The  gardens  at  Madrid,  even,  are 
in  a  sorry  plight;  its  hothouses  are  almost  empty.  The  grounds  which  were 
laid  out  at  great  expense  by  a  wealthy  and  patriotic  Spaniard  at  Orotava 
(Teneriffe),  a  spot  whose  climate  has  been  of  the  greatest  service  to  invalids, 
are  rapidly  going  to  decay.  Every  year  a  considerable  sum  is  appropriated 
to  it  in  the  national  budget,  but  scarcely  a  fraction  of  it  ever  reaches  Orotava. 
When  I  was  there  in  1867,  the  gardener  had  received  no  salary  for  twenty-two 
months,  all  the  workmen  were  dismissed,  and  even  the  indispensable  water 
supply  had  been  cut  off. 


so  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

figure,  that  the  rich  variegated  folds  of  the  say  a  burst 
out  beneath  it  Hke  the  blossoms  of  a  pomegranate. 
This  swathing  only  allows  the  young  girls  to  take  very 
short  steps,  and  this  timidity  of  gait,  in  unison  with 
their  downcast  eyes,  gives  them  a  very  modest  appear- 
ance. On  their  naked  feet  they  wear  embroidered  slip- 
pers of  such  a  small  size  that  their  little  toes  protrude 
for  want  of  room,  and  grasp  the  outside  of  the  sandal.* 

Dress  of  the  The  poorcr  women  clothe  themselves  in  a  saya,  and 

poorer  women.  -^  ^  so-called  chemise,  which  is  so  extremely  short  that 
it  frequently  does  not  even  reach  the  first  fold  of  the 
former.  In  the  more  eastern  islands  grown-up  girls 
and  women  wear,  with  the  exception  of  a  Catholic 
amulet,  nothing  but  these  two  garments,  which  are, 
particularly  after  bathing,  and  before  they  get  dried  by 
the  sun,  nearly  transparent. 

Men's  clothing-  A  hat,  trousers,  and  a  shirt  worn  outside  them,  both 
made  of  coarse  Guinara  cloth,  compose  the  dress  of  the 
men  of  the  poorer  classes.  The  shirts  worn  by  the 
wealthy  are  often  made  of  an  extremely  expensive 
home-made  material,  woven  from  the  fibers  of  the  pine- 
apple or  the  banana.  Some  of  them  are  ornamented 
with  silk  stripes,  some  are  plain.  They  are  also  fre- 
quently manufactured  entirely  of  jusi  (Chinese  floret 
silk),  in  which  case  they  will  not  stand  washing,  and  can 
only  be  worn  once.  The  hat  (salacot),  a  round  piece 
of  home-made  plaiting,  is  used  as  both  umbrella  and 
sunshade,  and  is  often  adorned  with  silver  ornaments 

The  "Princi-  of  considerable  value.  The  principalia  class  enjoy  the 
special  privilege  of  wearing  short  jackets  above  their 
shirts,  and  are  usually  easily  recognizable  by  their  amus- 
ing assumption  of  dignity,  and  by  the  faded  cylindrical 
hats,    yellow  with    age,    family     heirlooms,    constantly 


pales." 


*  For  a  proof  of  this  cide  the  Berlin  Ethnoyraphical  Museum,  Nos.   294-295. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SI 

worn.  The  native  dandies  wear  patent  leather  shoes  on  The  dandies. 
their  naked  feet,  tight-fitting  trousers  of  some  material 
striped  with  black  and  white  or  with  some  other 
glaringly-contrasted  colors,  a  starched  plaited  shirt  of 
European  make,  a  chimney-pot  silk  hat,  and  carry  a  cane 
in  their  hands.  The  servants  waiting  at  dinner  in  their  The  servants. 
white  starched  shirts  and  trousers  are  by  no  means  an 
agreeable  spectacle,  and  I  never  realised  the  full  ludi- 
crousness  of  European  male  costume  till  my  eye  fell 
upon  its  caricature,  exemplified  in  the  person  of  a  "Manila 
dandy." 

The  mestizas  dress  like  the  Filipinas,  but  do  not  wear   -^i«stiza 

costume. 

the  tapis,  and  those  of  them  who  are  married  to  Europeans 
are  generally  clad  in  both  shoes  and  stockings.  Many 
of  the  mestizas  are  extremely  pretty,  but  their  gait 
drags  a  little,  from  their  habit  of  wearing  slippers.  As 
a  rule  they  are  prudent,  thrifty,  and  clever  business  <^'«""' 

J     business  women. 

women,  but  their  conversation  is  often  awkward  and 

tedious.     Their    want    of    education    is,    however,    not 

the  cause  of  this  latter  failing,  for  Andalusian  women 

who  never  learn  anything  but  the  elementary  doctrines 

of  Christianity,  are  among  the  most  charming  creatures 

in  the  world,  in  their  youth.     Its  cause  lies  rather  in  in  at  ease 

this  equivocal  position;  they  are  haughtily  repelled  by 

their  white  sisters,  whilst  they  themselves  disown  their 

mother's  kin.     They  are  wanting  in  the  ease,   in  the 

tact,  that  the  women  of  Spain  show  in  every  relation 

of  existence. 


in  society. 


The  mestizos,  particularly  those  born  of  Chinese  and 
Tagal  mothers,  constitute  the  richest  and  the  most 
enterprising  portion  of  the  native  population.  They  are 
well  acquainted  with  all  the  good  and  bad  qualities  of 
the  Filipino  inhabitants,  and  use  them  unscrupulously 
for  their  own  purposes. 


Mestizos. 


ss 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


IV 


Aadre  dastrust 
of  Europeans. 


Dutch  and 
English  stand 
well  in  their 
colonies. 


A  Scotch  merchant  to  whom  I  brought  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction invited  me  with  such  cordiahty  to  come  and 
stay  with  him,  that  I  found  myself  unable  to  refuse. 
While  thus  living  under  the  roof  and  protection  of  one  of 
the  wealthiest  and  most  respected  men  in  the  city,  the 
cabmen  I  employed  insisted  on  being  paid  beforehand 
every  time  I  rode  in  their  vehicles.  This  distrust  was 
occasioned  by  the  scanty  feeling  of  respect  most  of  the 
Europeans  in  Manila  inspired  in  the  minds  of  the  natives. 
Many  later  observations  confirmed  this  impression. 
What  a  different  state  of  things  exists  in  Java  and 
Singapore!     The  reason,  however,  is  easily  explained. 

The  Dutch  are  as  little  able  as  the  English  to  accli- 
matize themselves  in  tropical  countries.  They  get  all  they 
can  out  of  countries  in  which  they  are  only  temporary 
sojourners,  the  former  by  forced  service  and  monopoly, 
the  latter  by  commerce.  In  both  cases,  however,  the 
end  is  accomplished  by  comparatively  few  individuals, 
whose  official  position  and  the  largeness  of  whose  under- 
takings place  them  far  above  the  mass  of  the  popula- 
tion. In  Java,  moreover,  the  Europeans  constitute  the 
governing  classes,  the  natives  the  governed;  and  even 
in  Singapore  where  both  races  are  equal  before  the  law 
the  few  white  men  understand  how  to  mark  the  difference 
of  race  so  distinctively  that  the  natives  without  demur 
surrender  to  them,  though  not  by  means  of  the  law, 
the  privileges  of  a  higher  caste.  The  difference  of 
religion  does  but  widen  the  gap;  and,  finally,  every 
European  there  speaks  the  language  of  the  country, 
while  the  natives  are  totally  ignorant  of  that  spoken 
by  the  foreigners. 


uiulpitirnhlr 


Jatjor's   Travels   in   tlie  Philippines  SS 

The  Dutch  officials  are  educated  at  home  in  schools  /-•«'<''  cnio„i,ih 
specially  devoted  to  the  East  Indian  service.  The  art 
of  managing  the  natives,  the  upholding  of  prestige, 
which  is  considered  the  secret  of  the  Dutch  power  over 
the  numerous  native  populations,  forms  an  essential 
particular  in  their  education.  The  Dutch,  therefore, 
manage  their  intercourse  with  the  natives,  no  matter 
how  much  they  intend  to  get  out  of  them,  in  strict 
accordance  with  customary  usage  (adat);  they  never 
wound  the  natives'  amor  propio  and  never  expose  them- 
selves in  their  own  mutual  intercourse,  which  remains 
a  sealed  book  to  the  inhabitants. 

Things  are  different  in  the  Philippines.  With  the  Spanish  „]juuiu 
exception  of  those  officials  whose  stay  is  limited  by  the 
rules  of  the  service,  or  by  the  place-hunting  that 
ensues  at  every  change  in  the  Spanish  ministry,  few 
Spaniards  who  have  once  settled  in  the  colony  ever 
return  home.  It  is  forbidden  to  the  priests,  and  most 
of  the  rest  have  no  means  of  doing  so.  A  considerable 
portion  of  them  consist  of  subaltern  officers,  soldiers,  sail- 
ors, political  delinquents  and  refugees  whom  the  mother- 
country  has  got  rid  of;  and  not  seldom  of  adventurers 
deficient  both  in  means  and  desire  for  the  journey  back, 
for  their  life  in  the  colony  is  far  pleasanter  than  that 
they  were  forced  to  lead  in  Spain.  These  latter  arrive 
without  the  slightest  knowledge  of  the  country  and  with- 
out being  in  the  least  prepared  for  a  sojourn  there. 
Many  of  them  are  so  lazy  that  they  won't  take  the  trouble 
to  learn  the  language  even  if  they  marry  a  daughter  of 
the  soil.  Their  servants  understand  Spanish,  and 
clandestinely  watch  the  conversation  and  the  actions, 
and  become  acquainted  with  all  the  secrets,  of  their 
indiscreet  masters,  to  whom  the  Filipinos  remain  an 
enigma  which  their  conceit  prevents  them  attempting 
to  decipher. 


S4 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Spatiish  lack 
of  prctige 
deserved. 


Social  xtandiriQ 
of  FiliTpinos 
thus  enhanced. 


Spanish- 
Filiphio  bonds 
of  union. 


Latin  races 
better  for 
colonists  iti 
the  tropics. 


It  is  easy  to  understand  how  Filipino  respect  for 
Europeans  must  be  diminished  by  the  numbers  of  these 
uneducated,  improvident,  and  extravagant  Spaniards, 
who,  no  matter  what  may  have  been  their  position  at 
home,  are  all  determined  to  play  the  master  in  the  colony. 
The  relative  standing  of  the  Filipinos  naturally  profits 
by  all  this,  and  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  colony  in 
which  the  natives,  taken  all  in  all,  feel  more  comfortable 
than  in  the  Philippines.  They  have  adopted  the  religion, 
the  manners,  and  the  customs  of  their  rulers;  and  though 
legally  not  on  an  equal  footing  with  the  latter,  they  are 
by  no  means  separated  from  them  by  the  high  barriers 
with  which,  not  to  mention  Java,  the  churlish  reserve  of 
the  English  has  surrounded  the  natives  of  the  other  colonies. 

The  same  religion,  a  similar  form  of  worship,  an 
existence  intermixed  with  that  of  the  indigenous  popula- 
tion, all  tend  to  bring  the  Europeans  and  the  Indians 
together.  That  they  have  done  so  is  proved  by  the 
existence  of  the  proportionately  very  numerous  band 
of  mestizos  who  inhabit  the  Islands. 

The  Spaniards  and  the  Portuguese  appear,  in  fact, 
to  be  the  only  Europeans  who  take  root  in  tropical 
countries.  They  are  capable  of  permanent  and  fruitful 
amalgamation*  with  the  natives. f 

*  Bertillon  (,.A.c  climate  ment  et  Accli.matation,  Did.  Encycl.  des  Sciences 
Medi'-ales)  ascribes  the  capacity  of  the  Spaniards  for  acclimatization  in  tropical 
countries  to  the  large  admixture  of  Syrian  and  African  blood  which  flows  in  their 
veins.  The  ancient  Iberians  appear  to  have  reached  Spain  from  Chaldea  across 
Africa;  the  Phoenicians  and  Carthaginians  had  flourishing  colonies  in  the  penin- 
sula, and,  in  later  times,  the  Moors  possessed  a  large  portion  of  the  country  for 
a  century,  and  ruled  with  great  splendor,  a  state  of  things  leading  to  a  mixture 
of  race.  Thus  Spanish  blood  has  three  distinct  times  been  abundantly  crossed 
with  that  of  Africa.  The  warm  climate  of  the  peninsula  must  also  largely 
contribute  to  render  its  inhabitants  fit  fcr  life  in  the  tropics.  The  pure  Indo- 
European  race  has  never  succeeded  in  establishing  itself  on  the  southern  shores 
of  the  Mediterranean,  much  less  in  the  arid  soil  of  the  tropics. 

In  Martinique,  where  from  eight  to  nine  thousand  whites  live  on  the  proceeds 
of  the  toil  of  125,000  of  the  colored  race,  the  population  is  diminishing  instead  of 
increasing.  The  French  Creoles  seem  to  have  lost  the  power  of  maintaining 
themselves,  in  proportion  to  the  existing  means  of  subsistence,  and  of  multiply- 
ing. Families  which  do  not  from  time  to  time  fortify  themselves  with  a  strain 
of  fresh  European  blood,  die  out  in  from  three  to  four  generations.  The  same 
thing  happens  in  the  English,  but  not  in  the  Spanish  Antilles,  although  the  cli- 
mate and  the  natural  surroundings  are  the  same.  According  to  Ramon  de  la  Sagra, 
the  death-rate  is  smaller  among  the  Creoles,  and  greater  among  the  natives, 
than  it  is  in  Spain;  the  mortality  among  the  garrison,  however,  is  considerable. 
The  same  writer  states  that  the  real  acclimatization  of  the  Spanish  race  takes 
place  by  selection;  the  unfit  die,  and  the  others  thrive. 

t  An  unnecessary  line  is  here  omitted. — C. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


36 


A  compromise 
civilization. 


The  want  of  originality,  which  among  the  mestizos,  initiative  and 

r  , ,      •  •  ,  ...  .1  individuality 

appears  to  arise  from  their  equivocal  position,  is  also  jniasing. 
to  be  found  among  the  natives.  Distinctly  marked 
national  customs,  which  one  would  naturally  expect  to 
find  in  such  an  isolated  part  of  the  world,  are  sought 
for  in  vain,  and  again  and  again  the  stranger  remarks 
that  everything  has  been  learned  and  is  only  a  veneer. 

As  Spain  forcibly  expelled  the  civilization  of  the 
Moors,  and  in  Peru  that  of  the  Incas,  so  in  the  Philip- 
pines it  has  understood  how  to  set  aside  an  equally  well- 
founded  one,  by  appropriating  in  an  incredible  manner, 
in  order  to  take  root  itself  the  more  quickly,  all  existing 
forms  and   abuses.* 

The  uncivilized  inhabitants  of  the  Philippines  quickly  imitation 
adopted  the  rites,  forms,  and  ceremonies  of  the  strange  *";?"j^g"[^ 
religion,  and,  at  the  same  time,  copied  the  personal  exter-  banished. 
nalities  of  their  new  masters,  learning  to  despise  their 
own  manners  and  customs  as  heathenish  and  barba- 
rian. Nowadays,  forsooth,  they  sing  Andalusian  songs, 
and  dance  Spanish  dances;  but  in  what  sort  of  way? 
They  imitate  everything  that  passes  before  their  eyes 
without  using  their  intelligence  to  appreciate  it.  It  is 
this  which  makes  both  themselves  and  their  artistic 
productions  wearisome,  devoid  of  character,  and,  I 
may  add,  unnatural,  in  spite  of  the  skill  and  patience 
they  devote  to  them.  These  two  peculiarities,  moreover, 
are  invariably  to  be  found  amongst  nations  whose  civiliza- 
tion is  but  little  developed ;  the  patience  so  much  admired 
is  often  nothing  but  waste  of  time  and  breath,  quite 


*  Depons,  speaking  of  the  means  employed  in  America  to  obtain  the  same  end, 
says,  "I  am  convinced  that  it  is  impossible  to  engraft  the  Christian  religion  on  the 
Indian  mind  without  mixing  up  their  own  inclinations  and  customs  with  those  of 
Christianity;  this  has  been  even  carried  so  far,  that  at  one  time  theologians  raised 
the  questicn,  whether  it  was  lawful  to  eat  human  flesh?  But  the  most  singular 
part  cf  the  proceeding  is.  that  the  question  was  decided  in  favor  of  the  anthro- 
pophagi." 


36  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

out  of  proportion  to  the  end  in  view,  and  the  skill  is  the- 
mere  consequence  of  the  backward  state  of  the  division 
of  labor. 

Educated  If  I  entered  the  house  of  a  well-to-do  Filipino,  who 

Fihpiuo  spoke  Spanish,   I  was  received  with  the  same  phrases 

his  model,  a  Spaniard,  would  employ;  but  I  always  had 
the  feeling  that  it  was  out  of  place.  In  countries  where 
the  native  population  remains  true  to  its  ancient  customs 
this  is  not  the  case;  and  whenever  I  have  not  been  re- 
ceived with  proper  respect,  I  have  remarked  that  the 
apparent  fact  proceeded  from  a  difference  in  social  forms, 
not  more  to  be  wondered  at  than  a  difference  in  weights 
and  measures.  In  Java,  and  particularly  in  Borneo  and 
the  Moluccas,  the  utensils  in  daily  use  are  ornamented 
with  so  refined  a  feeling  for  form  and  color,  that  they  are 
praised  by  our  artists  as  patterns  of  ornamentation 
and  afford  a  proof  that  the  labor  is  one  of  love,  and  that 
Natue  -i-7-se/ise  it  is  prcsldcd  over  by  an  acute  intelligence.  Such  a 
spoiled.  sense  of  beauty  is  seldom  to  be  met  with  in  the  Phil- 

ippines. Everything  there  is  imitation  or  careless 
makeshift.  Even  the  piiia  embroideries,  which  are 
fabricated  with  such  wonderful  patience  and  skill,  and 
are  so  celebrated  for  the  fineness  of  the  work,  are,  as  a 
rule,  spiritless  imitations  of  Spanish  patterns.  One  is 
involuntarily  led  to  these  conclusions  by  a  comparison 
of  the  art  products  of  the  Spanish-American  communi- 
ties with  those  of  more  barbarous  races.  The  Berlin 
Ethnographical  Museum  contains  many  proofs  of  the 
facts  I  have  just  mentioned. 

Indolence  from         The  oars  used  in  the  Philippines  are  usually  made  of 
absence  of  bamboo  polcs,  with  a    board  tied  to  their    extremities 

tncentire. 

with  strips  of  rattan.  If  they  happen  to  break,  so  much 
the  better;  for  the  fatiguing  labor  of  rowing  must  neces- 
sarily be  suspended  till  they  are  mended  again. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  37 

In    Java    the    carabao-carts,    which    are    completely  Carelessness 
■covered  in  as  a  protection  against  the  rain,  are  oma-  /''<"'*''";*-■''/ 

responsihtlili/. 

mented  with  many  tasteful  patterns.  The  roofless 
wagons  used  in  the  Philippines  are  roughly  put  together 
at  the  last  moment.  When  it  is  necessary  to  protect 
their  contents  from  the  wet,  an  old  pair  of  mats  is  thrown 
over  them,  more  for  the  purpose  of  appeasing  the  prej- 
udices of  the  "Castilians"  than  really  to  keep  off  the  rain. 

The  English  and  the  Dutch  are  always  looked  upon   Weakened 
as  strangers  in  the  tropics ;  their  influence  never  touches  <^'""""'''^'" ""'' 

want  of  (lif/ntlij. 

the  ancient  native  customs  which  culminate  in  the  religion 
of  the  country.  But  the  populations  whom  the  Spaniards 
have  converted  to  their  religion  have  lost  all  originality, 
all  sense  of  nationality ;  yet  the  alien  religion  has  never 
really  penetrated  into  their  inmost  being,  they  never 
feel  it  to  be  a  source  of  moral  support,  and  it  is  no  acci- 
dental coincidence  that  they  are  all  more  or  less  stamped 

with  a  want  of  dignity 

With  the  exception  of  this  want  of  national  individual-  Spanish  rule 
ity,  and  the  loss  of  the  distinguishing  manners  and  cus-  f'  benevolent, 

but  beneficial. 

toms  which  constitute  the  chief  charm  of  most  eastern 
peoples,  the  Filipino  is  an  interesting  study  of  a  type 
of  mankind  existing  in  the  easiest  natural  conditions. 
The  arbitrary  rule  of  their  chiefs,  and  the  iron  shackles 
of  slavery,  were  abolished  by  the  Spaniards  shortly 
after  their  arrival;  and  peace  and  security  reigned  in  the 
place  of  war  and  rapine.  The  Spanish  rule  in  these 
Islands  was  always  a  mild  one,  not  because  the  laws, 
which  treated  the  natives  like  children,  were  wonder- 
fully gentle,  but  because  the  causes  did  not  exist  which 
caused  such  scandalous  cruelties  in  Spanish  America 
and  in  the  colonies  of  other  nations. 

It  was  fortunate  for  the  Filipinos  that  their  islands   circnmstances 
possessed  no  wealth  in  the  shape  of  precious  metals    or  '^o.ve  famred  the 

Ti  1-1  r  ■     •  rr-         Filipinos. 

valuable  spices.     In  the  earlier  days  of  maritime  trarnc 


38  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

there  was  little  possibility  of  exporting  the  numerous 
agricultural  productions  of  the  colony;  and  it  was  scarcely 
worth  while,  therefore,  to  make  the  most  of  the  land. 
The  few  Spaniards  who  resided  in  the  colony  found  such 
an  easy  method  of  making  money  in  the  commerce  with 
China  and  Mexico,  by  means  of  the  galleons,  that  they 
held  themselves  aloof  from  all  economical  enterprises, 
which  had  little  attraction  for  their  haughty  inclinations, 
and  would  have  imposed  the  severest  labor  on  the  Fili- 
pinos. Taking  into  consideration  the  wearisome  and 
dangerous  navigation  of  the  time,  it  was,  moreover, 
impossible  for  the  Spaniards,  upon  whom  their  too  large 
possessions  in  America  already  imposed  an  exhausting 
man-tax,  to  maintain  a  strong  armed  force  in  the  Phil- 
ippines. The  subjection,  which  had  been  inaugurated 
by  a  dazzling  military  exploit,  was  chiefly  accomplished 
by  the  assistance  of  the  friar  orders,  whose  missionaries 
were  taught  to  employ  extreme  prudence  and  patience. 
The  Philippines  were  thus  principally  won  by  a  peaceful 
conquest. 
Have  fared  better  The  taxes  laid  upon  the  peoples  were  so  trifling  that 
'  "" .'  *  they  did  not  suffice  for  the  administration  of  the  colony. 

The  difference  was  covered  by  yearly  contributions  from 
Mexico.  The  extortions  of  unconscientious  officials  were 
by  no  means  conspicuous  by  their  absence.  Cruelties, 
however,  such  as  were  practised  in  the  American  mining 
districts,  or  in  the  manufactures  of  Quito,  never  occurred 
in  the  Philippines. 

A  land,  of  Uncultivated  land  was  free,  and  was  at  the  service 

opportunity.        Qf  Qj^y  Qj^g  willing  to  make  it  productive;  if,  however, 

it  remained  untilled  for  two  years,  it  reverted  to  the 

crown.* 


*  As  a  matter  of  fact,  productive  land  is  always  appropriated,  and  in  many 
parts  of  the  Islands  is  difhcult  and  expensive  to  purchase.  Near  Manila,  and 
in  Bulacan,  land  has  for  many  years  past  cost  over  ^.225  (silver)  an  acre. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  39 

The  only  tax  which  the  Filipinos  pay  is  the  poll-tax,  Low  taxe> 
known  as  the  tributo,  which  originally,  three  hundred 
years  ago,  amounted  to  one  dollar  for  every  pair  of 
adults,  and  in  a  country  where  all  marry  early,  and  the 
sexes  are  equally  divided,  really  constituted  a  family- 
tax.  By  degrees  the  tribute  has  been  raised  to  two  and 
one-sixteenth  dollars.  An  adult,  therefore,  male  or 
female,  pays  one  and  one-thirty-second  dollar,  and  that 
from  his  sixteenth  to  his  sixtieth  year.  Besides  this, 
every  man  has  to  give  forty  days'  labor  every  year  to  the 
State.  This  vassalage  (polos  y  servicios)  is  divided  into 
ordinary  and  extraordinary  services:  the  first  consists 
of  the  duties  appertaining  to  a  watchman  or  messenger, 
in  cleaning  the  courts  of  justice,  and  in  other  light  labors; 
the  second  in  road-making,  and  similar  heavier  kinds 
of  work,  for  the  benefit  of  villages  and  provinces.  The 
little  use,  however,  that  is  made  of  these  services,  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  any  one  can  obtain  a  release 
from  them  for  a  sum  which  at  most  is  not  more  than  three 
dollars.  No  personal  service  is  required  of  women. 
A  little  further  on,  important  details  about  the  tax  from 
official  sources,  which  were  placed  at  my  disposal  in  the 
colonial  office,  appear  in  a  short  special  chapter. 

In  other  countries,  with  an  equally  mild  climate,  and  Fortunate 
an  equally  fertile  soil,  the  natives,  unless  they  had  reached 
a  higher  degree  of  civilization  than  that  of  the  Philippine 
Islanders,  would  have  been  ground  down  by  native 
princes,  or  ruthlessly  plundered  and  destroyed  by  for- 
eigners. In  these  isolated  Islands,  so  richly  endowed  by 
nature,  where  pressure  from  above,  impulse  from  within, 
and  every  stimulus  from  the  outside  are  wanting,  the 
satisfaction  of  a  few  trifling  wants  is  sufficient  for  an 
existence  with  ample  comfort.  Of  all  countries  in  the 
world,  the  Philippines  have  the  greatest  claim  to  be 
considered  a  lotos-eating  Utopia.     The  traveller,  whose 


factors. 


40  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU   FOREIGS  EYES 

knowledge  of  the  dolce  far  niente  is  derived  from  Naples, 
has  no  real  appreciation  of  it ;  it  only  blossoms  under  the 
shade  of  palm-trees.  These  notes  of  travel  will  contain 
plenty  of  examples  to  support  this.  One  trip  across  the 
Pasig  gives  a  foretaste  of  life  in  the  interior  of  the  country. 
Low  wooden  cabins  and  bamboo  huts,  surmounted  with 
green  foliage  and  blossoming  flowers,  are  picturesquely 
grouped  with  areca  palms,  and  tall,  feather-headed 
bamboos,  upon  its  banks.  Sometimes  the  enclosures 
run  down  into  the  stream  itself,  some  of  them  being 
duck-grounds,  and  others  bathing-places.  The  shore 
is  fringed  with  canoes,  nets,  rafts,  and  fishing  apparatus. 
Heavily-laden  boats  float  down  the  stream,  and  small 
canoes  ply  from  bank  to  bank  between  the  groups  of 
bathers.  The  most  lively  traffic  is  to  be  seen  in  the 
liendas,  large  sheds,  corresponding  to  the  Javanese 
Jtarongs,  which  open  upon  the  river,  the  great  channel  for 
traffic. 

They  are  a  source  of  great  attraction  to  the  passing 
sailors,  who  resort  to  them  for  eating,  drinking,  and  other 
convivialities;  and  while  away  the  time  there  in  gambling, 
betel  chewing,  and  smoking,  with  idle  companions  of 
both  sexes. 

At  times  somebody  may  be  seen  floating  down  the 
stream  asleep  on  a  heap  of  coconuts.  If  the  nuts  run 
ashore,  the  sleeper  rouses  himself,  pushes  off  with  a  long 
bamboo,  and  contentedly  relapses  into  slumber,  as  his 
eccentric  raft  regains  the  current  of  the  river.  One  cut 
of  his  bolo-knife  easily  detaches  sufficient  of  the  husk 
of  the  nuts  to  allow  of  their  being  fastened  together; 
in  this  way  a  kind  of  wreath  is  formed  which  encircles 
and  holds  together  the  loose  nuts  piled  up  in  the  middle. 
Labor-sawu  The  arduous  labors  of  many  centuries  have  left  as 

their  legacy  a  perfect  system  of  transport;  but  in  these 
Islands  man  can  obtain  many  of  his  requirements  direct 


.SI,  ,in,„j  i„tvU 


conditiotis. 


EdXji  fi/ixt. 


Jagor's   Trarels   in  the  Philippines  ^1 

with  proportionately  trifling  labor,  and  a  large  amount 
of  comfort  for  himself. 

Off  the  Island  of  Talim,  in  the  great  Lagoon  of  Bay, 
my  boatmen  bought  for  a  few  cuartos  several  dozens 
of  fish  quite  twelve  inches  long;  and  those  which  they 
couldn't  eat  were  split  open,  salted,  and  dried  by  a  few 
hours'  exposure  to  the  heat  of  the  sun  on  the  roof  of  the 
boat.  When  the  fishermen  had  parted  with  their  con- 
templated breakfast,  they  stooped  down  and  filled  their 
cooking-vessels  with  sand-mussels  {paludina  costata, 
2. a  G.),  first  throwing  away  the  dead  ones  from  the 
handfuls  they  picked  up  from  the  bottom  of  the  shallow 
water. 

Nearly  all  the  dwellings  are  built  by  the  water's  edge.  /?/«■,•.. 
The  river  is  a  natural  self-maintaining  highway,  on  which  ^'""""'" 
loads  can  be  carried  to  the  foot  of  the  mountains.  The 
huts  of  the  people,  built  upon  piles,  are  to  be  seen  thickly 
scattered  about  its  banks,  and  particularly  about  its 
broad  mouths.  The  appropriateness  of  their  position 
is  evident,  for  the  stream  is  at  once  the  very  center  of 
activity  and  the  most  convenient  spot  for  the  pursuit 
of  their  callings.  At  each  tide  the  takes  of  fish  are  more 
or  less  plentiful,  and  at  low-water  the  women  and  children 
may  be  seen  picking  up  shell-fish  with  their  toes,  for 
practice  has  enabled  them  to  use  their  toes  as  deftly  as 
their  fingers,  or  gathering  in  the  sand-crabs  and  eatable 
seaweed. 

The  riverside  is  a  pretty  sight  when  men,  women,  and  nim-.-^ui 
children  are  bathing  and  frolicking  in  the  shade  of  the  '■'""'"' 
palm-trees;  and  others  are  filling  their  water-vessels, 
large  bamboos,  which  they  carry  on  their  shoulders,  or 
jars,  which  they  bear  on  their  heads;  and  when  the  boys 
are  standing  upright  on  the  broad  backs  of  the  carabaos 
and  riding  triumphantly  into  the  water. 


42  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Coco-paimt.  It  IS  here  too  that  the  coco-palm  most  flourishes,  a  tree 

that  supphes  not  only  their  food  and  drink,  but  also 
every  material  necessary  for  the  construction  of  huts 
and  the  manufacture  of  the  various  articles  which  they 
use.  While  the  greatest  care  is  necessary  to  make  those 
growing  further  inland  bear  even  a  little  fruit,  the  palm- 
trees  close  to  the  shore,  even  when  planted  on  wretched 
soil,  grow  plentiful  crops  without  the  slightest  trouble. 
Has  a  palm-tree  ever  been  made  to  blossom  in  a  hot- 
house? Thomson*  mentions  that  coco-trees  growing 
by  the  sea-side  are  wont  to  incline  their  stems  over  the 
ocean,  the  waters  of  which  bear  their  fruit  to  desert  shores 
and  islands,  and  render  them  habitable  for  mankind. 
Thus  the  coco-tree  would  seem  to  play  an  essential  part 
in  the  ocean  vagabondage  of  Malaysia  and  Polynesia. 

Nipa-paims.  Close  to  the  coco-trecs  grow  clumps  of  the  stunted 

nipa-palms,  which  only  flourish  in  brackish  waters ;t 
their  leaves  furnish  the  best  roof-thatching.  Sugar, 
brandy,  and  vinegar  are  manufactured  from  their  sap. 
Three  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  Pigafetta  found  these 
manufactures  in  full  swing,  but  nowadays  they  seem  to 
be  limited  to  the  Philippines.  Besides  these,  the  pan- 
dcmus-tree,  from  the  leaves  of  which  the  softest  mats 
are  woven,  is  always  found  in  near  proximity  to  the 
shore. 

FeHiie  fields.  Towards  the  interior  the  landscape  is  covered  with 

rice-fields,  which  yearly  receive  a  fresh  layer  of  fertile 
soil,  washed  down  from  the  mountains  by  the  river, 
and  spread  over  their  surface  by  the  overflowing  of  its 
waters;   and  which  in   consequence  never  require   a*ny 

Thecarabao.  fertilizer.  The  carabao,  the  favorite  domestic  animal 
of  the  Malays,  and  which  they  keep  especially  for  agri- 


*  Ind.  Arch.  IV;  307. 

t  In  Buitenzorger's  garden,  Java,  the  author  observed,  however,  some  speci- 
mens growing  in  fresh  water. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  4S 

cultural  purposes,  prefers  these  regions  to  all  others. 
It  lcv=s  to  wallow  in  the  mud,  and  is  not  fit  for  work 
unless  permitted  to  frequent  the  water. 

BambDos  with  luxuriant  leafy  tops  grow  plentifully  Bamboo 
by  the  huts  in  the  rice-fields  which  fringe  the  banks  of 
the  river.  In  my  former  sketches  of  travel  I  have 
endeavored  to  describe  how  much  this  gigantic  plant 
contributes  to  the  comfort  and  convenience  of  tropical 
life.  Since  then  I  have  become  acquainted  with  many 
curious  purposes  to  which  it  is  turned,  but  to  describe 
them  here  would  be  out  of  place.*  I  may  be  allowed, 
however,  to  briefly  cite  a  few  examples  showing  what 
numerous  results  are  obtained  from  simple  means. 
Nature  has  endowed  these  splendid  plants,  which  per-  • 
haps  surpass  all  others  in  beauty,  with  so  many  useful 
qualities,  and  delivered  them  into  the  hands  of  mankind 
so  ready  for  immediate  use,  that  a  few  sharp  cuts  suffice 
to  convert  them  into  all  kinds  of  various  utensils.  The 
bamboo  possesses,  in  proportion  to  its  lightness,  an  strength. 
extraordinary  strength;  the  result  of  its  round  shape, 
and  the  regularity  of  the  joints  in  its  stem.  The  parallel 
position  and  toughness  of  its  fibers  render  it  easy  to 
split,  and,  when  split,  its  pieces  are  of  extraordinary 
pliability  and  elasticity.  To  the  gravelly  soil  on  which 
it  grows  it  owes  its  durability,  and  its  firm,  even,  and 
always  clean  surface,  the  brilliancy  and  color  of  which 
improve  by  use.  And  finally,  it  is  a  great  thing  for  a 
population  with  such  limited  means  of  conveyance  Convenience. 
that  the  bamboo  is  to  be  found  in  such  abundance  in  all 
kinds  of  localities  and  of  all  dimensions,  from  a  few 
millimeters  to  ten  or  fifteen  centimeters  in  diameter,  even 


*  Boyle,  in  his  Adventures  amonrj  the  Dyaks,  mentions  that  he  actually 
found  pneumatic  tinder-boxes,  made  of  bambao,  in  us;  among  the  Dyaks; 
Bastian  met  with  them  in  Burmah.  Boyle  saw  a  Dyak  place  som;  tinder  on  a 
broken  piece  of  earthenA^are,  holding  it  steady  with  his  taunb  wnil;  he  strack 
it  a  sharp  blow  with  a  piece  of  bamboo.  The  tinder  took  fire.  Wallace  ob- 
served the  same  method  of  striking  a  light  in  Ternate. 


44  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

sometimes  to  twice  this  amount;  and  that,  on  account 
of  its  unsurpassed  floating  power,  it  is  pre-eminently- 
fitted  for  locomotion  in  a  country  poor  in  roads  but  rich 
in  watercourses.  A  blow  with  a  bolo  is  generally  enough 
/usefulness.  to  cut  down  a  strong  stem.  If  the  thin  joints  are  taken 
away,  hollow  stems  of  different  thicknesses  can  be  slid 
into  one  another  like  the  parts  of  a  telescope.  From 
bamboos  split  in  half,  gutters,  troughs,  and  roofing 
tiles  can  be  made.  Split  into  several  slats,  which  can  be 
again  divided  into  small  strips  and  fibers  for  the  manu- 
facture of  baskets,  ropes,  mats,  and  fine  plaiting  work, 
they  can  be  made  into  frames  and  stands.  Two  cuts 
in  the  same  place  make  a  round  hole  through  which  a 
stem  of  corresponding  diameter  can  be  firmly  introduced. 
If  a  similar  opening  is  made  in  a  second  upright, 
the  horizontal  stem  can  be  run  through  both.  Gates, 
closing  perpendicularly  or  horizontally  in  frames  moving 
without  friction  on  a  perpendicular  or  horizontal  axis, 
can  be  made  in  this  way. 

Two  deep  cuts  give  an  angular  shape  to  the  stem; 
and  when  its  two  sides  are  wide  enough  apart  to  admit 
of  a  cross-stem  being  placed  between  them,  they  can  be 
employed  as  roof- ridges  or  for  the  framework  of 
tables  and  chairs;  a  quantity  of  flat  split  pieces  of 
bamboo  being  fastened  on  top  of  them  with  chair-cane. 
These  split  pieces  then  form  the  seats  of  the  chairs  and 
the  tops  of  the  tables,  instead  of  the  boards  and  large 
bamboo  laths  used  at  other  times.  It  is  equally 
easy  to  make  an  oblong  opening  in  a  large  bamboo  in 
which  to  fit  the  laths  of  a  stand. 

A  couple  of  cuts  are  almost  enough  to  make  a  fork, 
a  pair  of  tongs    or  a  hook. 

If  one  makes  a  hole  as  big  as  the  end  of  one's  finger 
in  a  large  bamboo  close  under  a  joint,  one  obtains  by 
fastening  a  small  piece  of  cloth  to  the  open  end,  a  syphon 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Pliilippines  4J 

or  a  filter.  If  a  piece  of  bamboo  is  split  down  to  the 
joint  in  strips,  and  the  strips  be  bound  together  with 
others  horizontally  interlaced,  it  makes  a  conical  basket. 
If  the  strips  are  cut  shorter,  it  makes  a  peddler's 
pack  basket.  If  a  long  handle  is  added,  and  it  is  filled 
with  tar,  it  can  be  used  as  a  signal  torch.  If  shallower 
baskets  of  the  same  dimensions,  but  with  their  bottoms 
cut  off  or  punched  out,  are  placed  inside  these  conical 
ones,  the  two  together  make  capital  snare  baskets  for 
crabs  and  fish.  If  a  bamboo  stem  be  cut  off  just 
below  the  joint,  and  its  lower  edge  be  split  up  into  a 
cogged  rim,  it  makes,  when  the  partition  of  the  joint 
is  punched  out,  an  earth-auger,  a  fountain-pipe,  and 
many  things  of  the  kind. 
********** 

Strangers  travelling  in  the  interior  have  daily  fresh   puasures  <,j- 
opportunities    of   enjoying    the    hospitality    of   nature.   ''"'''^'• 
The  atmosphere  is  so  equitably  warm  that  one  would 
gladly  dispense  with  all  clothing  except  a  sun-hat  and  a 
pair  of  light  shoes.     Should  one  be  tempted  to  pass  the 
night  in  the  open  air,  the  construction  of  a  hut  from  the 
leaves  of  the  palm  and  the  fern  is  the  work  of  a  few 
minutes;  but  in  even  the  smallest  village  the  traveller   VMn/e 
finds  a  "common  house"   {casa  real),  in  which  he  can   '*•'"'"""""• 
take  up  his  quarters  and  be  supplied  with  the  necessa- 
ries  of  life   at   the   market   price.     There   too   he   will 
always  meet  with  scmatieros  (those  who  perform  menial 
duties)  ready  to  serve  him  as  messengers  or  porters  for 
the    most    trifling    remuneration.     But    long    practice 
has  taught   me  that  their  services   principally  consist 
in  doing  nothing.     On  one  occasion  I  wanted  to  send  a 
man  who  was  playing  cards  and  drinking  tuba  (fresh 
or  weakly-fermented   palm-sap)   with   his   companions, 
on  an  errand.     Without  stopping  his  game  the  fellow    ,„ 
excused  himself  on  the  ground  of  being  a  prisoner,  and    prison  ///<•. 


Frequent 
floggings 
little  regarded. 


Change  from 

Malayan 

character. 


46  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

one  of  his  guardians  proceeded  in  the  midst  of  the  intense 
heat  to  carry  my  troublesome  message.  Prisoners  have 
certainly  little  cause  to  grumble.  The  only  inconve- 
nience to  which  they  are  exposed  are  the  floggings  which 
the  local  authorities  very  liberally  dispense  by  the  dozens 
for  the  most  trifling  off'ences.  Except  the  momentary 
bodily  pain,  however,  these  appear  in  most  cases  to 
make  little  impression  on  a  people  who  have  been  accus- 
tomed to  corporal  punishment  from  their  youth  upwards. 
Their  acquaintances  stand  round  the  sufferers,  while 
the  blows  are  being  inflicted,  and  mockingly  ask  them 
how  it  tastes. 

A  long  residence  amongst  the  earnest,  quiet,  and  dig- 
nified Malays,  who  are  most  anxious  for  their  honor, 
while  most  submissive  to  their  superiors,  makes  the  con- 
trast in  character  exhibited  by  the  natives  of  the  Phil- 
ippines, who  yet  belong  to  the  Malay  race,  all  the  more 
striking.  The  change  in  their  nature  appears  to  be  a 
natural  consequence  of  the  Spanish  rule,  for  the  same 
characteristics  may  be  observed  in  the  natives  of  Spanish 
America.  The  class  distinctions  and  the  despotic 
oppression  prevalent  under  their  former  chiefs  doubtless 
rendered  the  Filipinos  of  the  past  more  like  the  Malays 
of  today. 


The  familiar 
field  for 
travellers. 


V 

The  environs  of  Manila,  the  Pasig,  and  the  Lagoon  of 
Bay,  which  are  visited  by  every  fresh  arrival  in  the 
colony,  have  been  so  often  described  that  I  have  restricted 
myself  to  a  few  short  notes  upon  these  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, and  intend  to  relate  in  detail  only  my  excursions 
into  the  south-eastern  provinces  of  Luzon,  Camarines, 
and  Albay,  and  the  islands  which  lie  to  the  east  of  them, 


Archipelajo't 
great  extent. 


Jagor's  Travels  i7i  the  Philippines  47 

Samar  and  Leyte.  Before  doing  this,  however,  it  will 
not  be  out  of  place  to  glance  at  the  map  and  give  some 
slight  description  of  their  geographical  conditions. 

The  Philippine  Archipelago  lies  between  Borneo  and 
Formosa,  and  separates  the  northern  Pacific  Ocean  from 
the  China  Sea.  It  covers  fourteen  and  one-half  degrees 
of  latitude,  and  extends  from  the  Sulu  Islands  in  the 
south,  in  the  fifth  parallel  of  north  latitude,  to  the  Babu- 
yans  in  the  north  in  latitude  19°  30'.  If,  however,  the 
Bashee  or  Batanes  Islands  be  included,  its  area  may  be 
said  to  extend  to  the  twenty-first  parallel  of  north  latitude. 
But  neither  southwards  or  northwards  does  Spanish  rule 
extend  to  these  extreme  limits,  nor,  in  fact,  does  it  always 
reach  the  far  interior  of  the  larger  islands.  From  the 
eastern  to  the  western  extremity  of  the  Philippines  the 
distance  is  about  nine  degrees  of  longitude.  Two 
islands,  Luzon,  with  an  area  of  two  thousand,  and  Min- 
danao, with  one  of  more  than  one  thousand  five  hundred 
square  miles,  are  together  larger  than  all  the  rest. 
The  seven  next  largest  islands  are  Palawan,  Samar, 
Panay,  Mindoro,  Leyte,  Negros,  and  Cebu;  of  which 
the  first  measures  about  two  hundred  and  fifty,  and  the 
last  about  one  hundred  square  miles.  Then  come 
Bohol  and  Masbate,  each  about  half  the  size  of  Cebu; 
twenty  smaller  islands,  still  of  some  importance;  and 
numerous  tiny  islets,  rocks,  and  reefs. 

The  Philippines  are  extremely  favored  by  their  posi-   Favored  by 
tion   and   conditions.     Their   extension   from   north   to  p""'""^ 

and  conditions. 

south,  over  16°  of  latitude,  obtains  for  them  a  variety 
of  climate  which  the  Dutch  Indies,  whose  largest  dia- 
meter, their  extent  in  latitude  north  and  south  of  the 
equator  being  but  trifling,  runs  from  the  east  to  the 
west,  by  no  means  enjoy.  The  advantages  accruing  from 
their  neighborhood  to  the  equator  are  added  to  those 


4S  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

acquired  from  the  natural  variety  of  their  climate;  and 
the  produce  of  both  the  torrid  and  temperate  zones,  the 
palm-tree  and  the  fir,  the  pine-apple,  the  corn  ear 
and  the  potato,  flourish  side  by  side  upon  their  shores. 
Harhorsand  'pj^g  larger  islands  contain  vast  inland  seas,  consider- 

able  navigable  rivers,  and  many  creeks  running  tar  into 
the  interior;  they  are  rich,  too,  in  safe  harbors  and  count- 
less natural  ports  of  refuge  for  ships  la  distress.  Another 
attribute  which,  though  not  to  be  realized  by  a  glance 
at  the  map,  is  yet  one  of  the  most  fortunate  the  Islands 
possess,  is  the  countless  number  of  small  streams  which 
pour  down  from  the  inland  hills,  and  open  out,  ere  they 
reach  the  ocean,  into  broad  estuaries;  up  these  water- 
courses coasting  vessels  of  shallow  draught  can  sail  to 
the  very  foot  of  the  mountains  and  take  in  their  cargo. 
soti  and  .sea  Thc  fertility  of  the  soil  is  unsurpassed ;  both  the  sea 
"' !  ,.  around  the  coasts  and  the  inland  lakes  swarm  with  fish 

produelirc. 

and  shell-fish,  while  in  the  whole  archipelago  there  is 
scarcely  a  wild  beast  to  be  found.  It  seems  that  only 
two  civets  happen  to  appear:  Miro  {paradoxurus  phil- 
ippinensis  Tem.)  and  galong  (riverra  tangalunga  Gray). 
Luzon  surpasses  all  the  other  islands,  not  only  in  size, 
but  in  importance;  and  its  fertility  and  other  natural 
superiority  well  entitle  it  to  be  called,  as  it  is  by  Crawfurd, 
"the  most  beautiful  spot  in  the  tropics." 
Luzon.  The  mainland   of  the  isle  of  Luzon   stretches   itself 

in  a  compact  long  quadrangle,  twenty-five  miles  broad, 
from  18°  40'  north  latitude  to  the  Bay  of  Manila  (14°  30') ; 
and  then  projects,  amid  large  lakes  and  deep  creeks, 
a  rugged  promontory  to  the  east,  joined  to  the  main 
continent  by  but  two  narrow  isthmuses  which  stretch 
east  and  west  of  the  large  inland  Lagoon  of  Bay.  Many 
traces  of  recent  upheavals  betoken  that  the  two  portions 
were  once  separated  and  formed  two  distinct  islands. 
The  large  eastern  promontory,  well-nigh  as  long  as  the 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  .  j^9 

northern  portion,  is  nearly  cut  in  half  by  two  deep  bays, 
which,  starting  from  opposite  points  on  the  south-eastern 
and  north-western  coasts,  almost  merge  their  waters 
in  the  center  of  the  peninsula;  the  Bay  of  Ragay,  and  the 
Bay  of  Sogod.  In  fact,  the  southern  portion  of  Luzon 
may  be  better  described  as  two  small  peninsulas  lying 
next  to  one  another  in  parallel  positions,  and  joined 
together  by  a  narrow  neck  of  land  scarcely  three  miles 
broad.  Two  small  streams  which  rise  nearly  in  the  same 
spot  and  pour  themselves  into  the  two  opposite  gulfs, 
make  the  separation  almost  complete,  and  form  at  the 
same  time  the  boundary  between  the  province  of  Tayabas 
on  the  west,  and  that  of  Camarines  on  the  east.  The 
western  portion,  indeed,  consists  almost  entirely  of  the 
first-named  district,  and  the  eastern  is  divided  into  the 
provinces  of  North  Camarines,  South  Camarines,  and 
Albay.  The  first  of  these  three  is  divided  from  Tayabas 
by  the  boundary  already  mentioned,  and  from  South 
Camarines  by  a  line  drawn  from  the  southern  shore  of  the 
Bay  of  San  Miguel  on  the  north  to  the  opposite  coast. 
The  eastern  extremity  of  the  peninsula  forms  the  prov- 
ince of  Albay ;  separated  from  South  Camarines  by  a  line 
which  runs  from  Donzol,  on  the  south  coast,  northwards 
across  the  volcano  of  Mayon,  and  which  then,  inclining 
to  the  west,  reaches  the  northern  shore.  A  look  at  the 
map  will  make  these  explanations  clearer. 

There  are  two  seasons  in  the  Philippines,  the  wet  and  The  monsoons. 
the  dry.  The  south-west  monsoon  brings  the  rainy 
season,  at  the  time  of  our  summer,  to  the  provinces  which 
lie  exposed  to  the  south  and  west  winds.  On  the  north- 
ern and  eastern  coasts  the  heaviest  downpours  take 
place  (in  our  winter  months)  during  the  north-eastern 
monsoons.  The  ruggedness  of  the  country  and  its 
numerous  mountains  cause,  in  certain  distri::ts,  many 
variations   in   these   normal   meteorological   conditions. 


60  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

The  dry  season  lasts  in  Manila  from  November  till 
June  (duration  of  the  north-east  monsoon) ;  rain  prevails 
during  the  remaining  months  (duration  of  the  south- 
west monsoon).  The  heaviest  rainfall  occurs  in  Sep- 
tember; March  and  April  are  frequently  free  from  rain. 
From  October  to  February  inclusively  the  weather  is 
cool  and  dry  (prevalence  of  N.W.,  N.,  and  N.E.  winds); 
March,  April,  and  May  are  warm  and  dry  (prevalence 
of  E.N.E.,  E.,  and  E.S.E.  winds);  and  from  June  till 
the  end  of  September  it  is  humid  and  moderately  warm. 

There  has  been  an  observatory  for  many  years  past 
in  Manila  under  the  management  of  the  Jesuits.  The 
following  is  an  epitome  of  the  yearly  meteorological  report 
for  1867,  for  which  I  am  indebted  to  Professor  Dove: 

Barometrical  readings. — The  average  height  of  the 
mercury  was,  in  1867,  755.5;  in  1865,  754.57;  and  in 
1866,  753.37  millimeters. 

In  1867  the  difference  between  the  highest  and  lowest 
barometrical  readings  was  not  more  than  13.96  milli- 
metres, and  would  have  been  much  less  if  the  mercury 
had  not  been  much  depressed  by  storms  in  July  and 
September.  The  hourly  variations  amounted  to  very 
few  millimeters. 

Daily  reading  of  the  barometer. — The  mercury  rises  in 
the  early  morning  till  about  9  a.  m.,  it  then  falls  up  to 
3  or  4  p.  m.,  from  then  it  rises  again  till  9  p.  m.,  and  then 
again  falls  till  towards  day-break.  Both  the  principal 
atmospheric  currents  prevalent  in  Manila  exercise  a  great 
influence  over  the  mercury  in  the  barometer;  the  north- 
em  current  causes  it  to  rise  (to  an  average  height  of 
756  millimeters),  the  southern  causes  it  to  fall  (to  about 
753  millimeters). 

Temperature. — The  heat  increases  from  January  till 
the  end  of  May,   and  then   decreases   till   December. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  St 

Average  yearly  temperature,  27.9°  C.  The  highest 
temperature  ever  recorded  (on  the  15th  of  April  at  3 
p.  m.)  was  37.7°  C;  the  lowest  (on  the  14th  of  December 
and  on  the  30th  of  January  at  6  a.  m.),  19.4°  C.  Differ- 
ence, 18.3°  C* 

Thermometrical  variations. — The  differences  between 
the  highest  and  lowest  readings  of  the  thermometer 
were,  in  January,  13.9°;  in  February,  14.2°;  in  March, 
15°;  in  April,  14.6°;  in  May,  11.1°;  in  June,  9.9°;  in 
July,  9°;  in  August,  9°;  in  September,  10°;  in  October, 
11.9°;  in  November,  11.8°;  and  in  December,  11.7°. 

Coolest  months. — November,  December  and  January, 
with  northerly  winds. 

Hottest  months. — April  and  May.  Their  high  tempe- 
rature is  caused  by  the  change  of  monsoon  from  the  north- 
east to  the  south-west.  The  state  of  the  temperature 
is  most  normal  from  June  to  September;  the  variations 
are  least  marked  during  this  period  owing  to  the  un- 
interrupted rainfall  and  the  clouded  atmosphere. 

Daily  variations  of  the  thermometer. — The  coolest 
portion  of  the  day  is  from  6  to  7  a.  m.;  the  heat  gradually 
increases,  reaches  its  maximum  about  2  or  3  p.  m., 
and  then  again  gradually  decreases.  During  some  hours 
of  the  night  the  temperature  remains  unchanged,  but 
towards  morning  it  falls  rapidly. 

The  direction  of  the  wind  is  very  regular  at  all  seasons  winds 
of  the  year,  even  when  local  causes  make  it  vary  a  little. 
In  the  course  of  a  twelvemonth  the  wind  goes  around  the 
whole  compass.  In  January  and  February  north  winds 
prevail;  in  March  and  April  they  blow  from  the  south- 
east; and  in  May,  June,  July,  August,  and  September, 


*  Centigrade  is  changed   to  Fahrenheit   by  multiplying   by   nine-fifths   and 
adding  thirty-two.— C. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Sunehine  and 
rain. 


Stornu. 


from  the  south-west.  In  the  beginning  of  October 
they  vary  between  south-east  and  south-west,  and  settle 
down  towards  the  close  of  the  month  in  the  north-east, 
in  which  quarter  they  remain  tolerably  fixed  during  the 
two  following  months.  The  two  changes  of  monsoon 
always  take  place  in  April  and  May,  and  in  October. 
As  a  rule,  the  direction  of  both  monsoons  preserves  its 
equilibrium;  but  in  Manila,  which  is  protected  towards 
the  north  by  a  high  range  of  hills,  the  north-east  monsoon 
is  often  diverted  to  the  south-east  and  north-west. 
The  same  cause  gives  greater  force  to  the  south-west  wind. 

The  sky  is  generally  partially  clouded;  entirely  sunny 
days  are  of  rare  occurrence,  in  fact,  they  only  occur 
from  January  to  April  during  the  north-east  monsoons. 
Number  of  rainy  days  in  the  year,  168.  The  most  con- 
tinuous and  heaviest  rain  falls  from  June  till  the  end  of 
October.  During  this  period  the  rain  comes  down  in 
torrents;  in  September  alone  the  rainfall  amounted  to 
1.5  meters,  nearly  as  much  as  falls  in  Berlin  in  the  course 
of  the  whole  year,  3,072.8  millimeters  of  rain  fell  in  the 
twelve  month;  but  this  is  rather  more  than  the  average. 

The  evaporation  only  amounted  to  2,307.3  millimeters; 
in  ordinary  years  it  is  generally  about  equal  to  the  down- 
fall, taking  the  early  averages,  not  those  of  single  months. 

The  average  daily  evaporation  was  about  6.3  milli- 
meters. 

The  changes  of  monsoons  are  often  accompanied  with 
tremendous  storms;  during  one  of  these,  which  occurred 
in  September,  the  velocity  of  the  wind  was  as  much  as 
thirty-seven  or  thirty-eight  meters  per  second.  An  official 
report  of  the  English  vice-consul  mentions  a  typhoon 
which  visited  the  Islands  on  September  27,  1865,  and 
which  did  much  damage  at  Manila,  driving  seventeen 
vessels  ashore. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  53 

The  Philippines  are  divided  into  provinces  (P),  and  Provinces  ar^d- 
districts  (D),  each  of  which  is  administered  by  an  alcalde  ''"'"■<:'•'• 
of  the  1st  (Al),  2nd  (A2),  or  3rd  class  (A3)  (de  termino, 
de  ascenso,  de  entrada) ;  by  a  political  and  military  gov- 
ernor (G),  or  by  a  commandant  (C).  In  some  provinces 
an  alcalde  of  the  3rd  class  is  appointed  as  coadjutor  to 
the  governor.     These  divisions  are  frequently  changed. 

The  population  is  estimated  approximately  at  about  Population. 
five  millions. 

In  spite  of  the  long  possessions  of  the  Islands  by  the  Language 
Spaniards  their  language  has  scarcely  acquired  any  footing  "'^  diaiecu. 
there.  A  great  diversity  of  languages  and  dialects  prevails" 
amongst   them   the   Bisayan,  Tagalog,   Ilocano,   Bicol, 
Pangasinan,  and  Pampangan  are  the  most  important. 


ISLAND  OF  LUZON 


Rank  of  | 

^ 

a 

0 

Vr. 

M 

0 

fJ 

Name 


G. 

Al. 
A2. 
Al. 


Al. 

Al. 


A2. 

A2(?) 

A3. 

Al. 

Al. 

C. 

G. 

Al. 

3A1. 
C. 

A2. 

A3. 
Al. 
Al. 


A2. 


■G. 

A2. 


Abra 

Albay 

Bataan 

Batangas 

Bengust 

Bontoc 

Bulacan 

Cagayan 

Camarines  Norte 
Camarines  Sur .  . 

Cavite 

Ilocos  Norte .... 

Ilocos  Sur 

Infanta 

Isabela 

Laguna 

Lepanto 

Manila 

Morong 

Nueva  Ecija.  .  .  . 

Nueva  Vizcaya. . 

Pampanga 

Pangasinan 

Porac 

Principe 

Saltan 

Tayabas 

Tiagan 

Union 

Zambales 


Prevailing  Dialect 


Ilocano 

Bicol WW 

Tagalog,  Pampangan 

Tagalog 

Igorot,  Ilocano,   Pangasinan.  .  . 

Suflin,  Ilocano,  Igorot 

Tagalog 

Ibanag,  Itanes,  Idayan,  Gaddan 
Ilocano,  Dadaya,  Apayao,  Ma 
lan-g 

Tagalog,  Bicol 

Bicol 

Spanish,  Tagalog 

Ilocano,  Tinguian 

Ilocano 

Tagalog 

Ibanag,  Gaddan,  Tagalog 

Tagalog,  Spanish 

Igorot,  Ilocano 

Tagalog,  Spanish.  Chinjs; 

Tagalog 

Tagalog,  Pangasinan,  Pampan- 
gan, Ilocano 

Gaddan,  Ifugao,  Ibilao,  Ilongote. 

Pampangan,  Ilocano 

Pangasinan,  Ilocana 

Pampangan 

Tagalog,  Ilocano,  Ilongots 

Gaddan 

Tagalog,  Bicol ..  .  . 

Different  Igorot  dialects 

Ilocano 

Zambal,  Ilocano,  Acta,  Pampan- 
gan, Tagalog,  Pangasinan .... 


Popula- 
tion 


34,337 

330,121 

44,794 

280,100 

8,465 

7,052 

240.341 


61,437 

25,372 

81,047 

109,501 

134,767 

105,251 

7,813 

23,230 

121,251 

8,851 

323,683 

41,239 

84,523 

32,951 

193,423 

253,472 

6,950 

3,639 

6,6t0 

93,918 
5,723 

88,021 

72,936 


Luzon  Proviruei 
and  their 
languages  and 
populations. 


16 

7 

31 

17 

12 

IS 

2 

9 

25 

48 

23 

12 

12 

8 

2i 

25 

1 

3 

17 

11 

16 


Bisayat. 


64  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

ISLANDS  BETWEEN  LUZON  AND  MINDANAO 


Rank  of    | 

(S 

u 

F 

.2 

0 

U 

G 

a3. 

P. 

G 

a3. 

P. 

C 

G 

a3. 

P. 

G 

a2. 

P. 

G 

33. 

P. 

G 

a3. 

P. 
D. 

A2. 

P. 

G 

a3. 

P. 
D. 

G 

a3. 

P. 

Name. 


Antique  (Panay). 

Bohol 

Burias 

Caoiz  (Panayl .  . 

Cebu 

Iloilo  (Panay) .  .  . 

Leyte 

Masbate,  Ticao., 

Mindoro 

Negros 

Romblon 

Samar 


Prevailing  Dialect. 


Bisayan 

Bisayan 

Bicol 

Bisayan 

Bisayan 

Bisayan 

Bisayan 

Bisayan 

Tagalog 

Cebuan,  Panayan,  Bisayan. 

Bisayan 

Bisayan 


Popula- 
tion. 


88,874 
187,327 
1,786 
206,288 
318,715 
565,500 
170,591 

12,457 

23,050 
144,923 

21,579 
146,539 


Mindanao. 


D. 

G 

a3. 

D. 

G 

a3. 

D. 
D. 

G 

a3. 

D.  1 

Cotabato 

Misamis  (J)..  .  . 
Surigao  (J) .  .  .  . 
Zamboanga  (J) . 
Davao 


MINDANAO 


Spanish,  Manobo . 
Bisayan 


Mandaya,  Spanish. 
Bisayan 


1,103 

63,639 

24,104 

9,608 

1,537 


OuUying 
islands. 


G  a3.IP. 
G  a3.  P. 
G.  P. 


DISTANT  ISLANDS 

Batanes Ibanag I  8,381  I  6 

Calamianes Coyuvo,  Agutaino  Calamiano  ...  17,703  5 

Marianas Chamorro,  Carolino |  5,940  |  6 


Unreliability 
of  government 
reports. 


The  statistics  of  the  above  table  are  taken  from  a  small 
work,  by  Sr.  [Vicente]  Barrantes,  the  Secretary-General 
of  the  Philippines ;  but  I  have  arranged  them  differently 
to  render  them  more  easily  intelligible  to  the  eye. 
Although  Sr.  Barrantes  had  the  best  official  materials 
at  his  disposal,  too  much  value  must  not  be  attributed 
to  his  figures,  for  the  sources  from  which  he  drew  them 
are  tainted  with  errors  to  an  extent  that  can  hardly 
be  realized  in  Europe.  For  example,  he  derives  the 
following  contradictory  statements  from  his  official 
sources: — The  population  of  Cavite  is  set  down  as  115,300 
and  65,225;  that  of  Mindoro  as  45,630,  and  23,054;  that 
of  Manila  as  230,443,  and  323,683;  and  that  of  Capiz 
as  788,947,  and  191,818. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippinet  SS 

VI 

My  first  excursion  was  to  the  province  of  Bulacan,  on   to  Buiacan 

the  northern  shore  of  the  Bay  of  Manila.     A  couple  ^vs<eamer. 

of  hours  brought  the  steamer  to  the  bar  of  Binuanga 

(not  Bincanga  as  it  is  called  in  Coello's  map),  and  a 

third  to  Bulacan,  the  capital  of  the  province,  situated 

on  the  fiat  banks  of  an  influent  of  the  Pampanga  delta. 

I  was  the   only  European   passenger,   the  others  were 

composed   of  Tagalogs,    mestizos,    and   a    few   Chinese; 

the  first  more  particularly  were  represented  by  women, 

who  are  generally  charged  with  the  management  of  all 

business  affairs,  for  which  they  are  much  better  fitted 

than   the   men.     As   a   consequence,   there   are  usually 

more  women  than  men  seen  in  the  streets,  and  it  appears 

to  be  an  admitted  fact  that  the  female  births  are  more 

numerous  than  the  male.     According,  however,  to  the 

church-record  which  I  looked  through,  the  reverse  was, 

at  any  rate  in  the  eastern  provinces,  formerly  the  case. 

At  the  landing-place  a  number  of  cai'wmatas  were  Carromaia>. 
waiting  for  us, — brightly  painted,  shallow,  two-wheeled 
boxes,   provided  with  an  awning,   and  harnessed  to  a 
couple  of  horses,  in  which  strangers  with  money  to  spend 
are  quickly  driven  anywhere  they  may  desire. 

The  town  of  Bulacan  contains  from  11,000  to  12,000  '''o"^'''"/ 
inhabitants;  but  a  month  before  my  arrival,  the  whole 
of  it,  with  the  exception  of  the  church  and  a  few  stone 
houses,  had  been  burnt  to  the  ground.  All  were  there- 
fore occupied  in  building  themselves  new  houses,  which, 
oddly  enough,  but  very  practically,  were  commenced 
at  the  roof,  like  houses  in  a  drawing.  Long  rows  of 
roofs  composed  of  palm-leaves  and  bamboos  were  laid 
in  readiness  on  the  ground,  and  in  the  meantime  were 
used  as  tents. 


56 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Frequence 
of  fires. 


To  Calumpil 
by  carriage. 


Similar  destructive  fires  are  very  common.  The 
houses,  which  with  few  exceptions  are  built  of  bamboo 
and  wood,  become  perfectly  parched  in  the  hot  season, 
dried  into  so  much  touchwood  by  the  heat  of  the  sun. 
Their  inhabitants  are  extremely  careless  about  fire, 
and  there  are  no  means  whatever  of  extinguishing  it. 
If  anything  catches  fire  on  a  windy  day,  the  entire  village, 
as  a  rule,  is  utterly  done  for.  During  my  stay  in  Bula- 
can,  the  whole  suburb  of  San  Miguel,  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Manila,  was  burnt  down,  with  the  exception 
of  the  house  of  a  Swiss  friend  of  mine,  which  owed  its 
safety  to  the  vigorous  use  of  a  private  fire-engine,  and 
the  intermediation  of  a  small  garden  full  of  bananas, 
whose  stems  full  of  sap  stopped  the  progress  of  the  flames. 

I  travelled  to  Calumpit,  a  distance  of  three  leagues, 
in  the  handsome  carriage  of  an  hospitable  friend.  The 
roads  were  good,  and  were  continuously  shaded  by  fruit- 
trees,  coco  and  areca  palms.  The  aspect  of  this  fruit- 
ful province  reminded  me  of  the  richest  districts  of  Java ; 
but  the  pueblos  here  exhibited  more  comfort  than  the 
desas  there.  The  houses  were  more  substantial;  numer- 
ous roomy  constructions  of  wood,  in  many  cases,  even, 
of  stone,  denoted  in  every  island  the  residence  of  official 
and  local  magnates.  But  while  even  the  poorer  Java- 
nese always  give  their  wicker  huts  a  smart  appearance, 
border  the  roads  of  their  villages  with  blooming  hedges, 
and  display  everywhere  a  sense  of  neatness  and  clean- 
liness, there  were  here  far  fewer  evidences  of  taste  to  be 
met  with.  I  missed  too  the  alim-alun,  that  pretty  and 
carefully  tended  open  square,  which,  shaded  by  uaringa 
trees,  is  to  be  met  with  in  every  village  in  Java.  And 
the  quantity  and  variety  of  the  fruit  trees,  under  whose 
leaves  the  desas  of  Java  are  almost  hidden,  were  by  no 
means  as  great  in  this  province,  although  it  is  the 
garden  of  the  Philippines,  as  in  its  Dutch  prototype. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  67 

I  reached  Calumpit  towards  evening,  just  as  a  proces-  Caiumpn. 
sion,  resplendent  with  flags  and  torches,  and  melodious 
with  song,  was  marching  round  the  stately  church, 
whose  worthy  priest,  on  the  strength  of  a  letter  of  intro- 
duction from  Madrid,  gave  me  a  most  hospitable  recep- 
tion. Calumpit,  a  prosperous  place  of  12,250  inhabi- 
tants, is  situated  at  the  junction  of  the  Quingua  and 
Pampanga  rivers,  in  an  extremely  fruitful  plain,  fertilized 
by  the  frequent  overflowing  of  the  two  streams. 

About  six  leagues  to  the  north-west  of  Calumpit,  Mt.  Arayat. 
Mount  Arayat,  a  lofty,  isolated,  conical  hill,  lifts  its 
head.  Seen  from  Calumpit,  its  western  slope  meets 
the  horizon  at  an  angle  of  20°,  its  eastern  at  one  of  25°; 
and  the  profile  of  its  summit  has  a  gentle  inclination  of 
from  4°  to  5°. 

At  Calumpit  I  saw  some  Chinese  catching  fish  in  a 
peculiar  fashion.  Across  the  lower  end  of  the  bed  of  a 
brook  which  was  nearly  dried  up,  and  in  which  there  were 
only  a  few  rivulets  left  running,  they  had  fastened  a 
hurdle  of  bamboo,  and  thrown  up  a  shallow  dam  behind 
it.  The  water  which  collected  was  thrown  over  the 
dam  with  a  long-handled  winnowing  shovel.  The  shovel 
was  tied  to  a  bamboo  frame  work  ten  feet  high,  the 
elasticity  of  which  made  the  work  much  easier.  As  soon 
as  the  pool  was  emptied,  the  fisherman  was  easily  able  Pickirig  fish. 
to  pick  out  of  the  mud  a  quantity  of  small  fish  (Ophio- 
cephalus  vagus).  These  fishes,  which  are  provided  with 
peculiar  organisms  to  facilitate  respiration,  at  any  rate, 
enabling  them  to  remain  for  some  considerable  time  on 
dry  land,  are  in  the  wet  season  so  numerous  in  the 
ditches,  ponds,  and  rice-fields,  that  they  can  be  killed 
with  a  stick.  When  the  water  sinks  they  also  retire,  or, 
according  to  Professor  Semper,  bore  deeply  into  the  ooze 
at  the  bottom  of  the  watercourses,  where,  protected  by 
a  hard  crust  of  earth  from  the  persecutions  of  mankind, 


58 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


they  sleep  away  the  winter.  This  Chinese  method  of 
fishing  seems  well  adapted  to  the  habits  of  the  fish. 
The  circumstances  that  the  dam  is  only  constructed  at 
the  lower  end  of  the  watercourse,  and  that  it  is  there 
that  the  fish  are  to  be  met  with  in  the  greatest  numbers, 
seem  to  indicate  that  they  can  travel  in  the  ooze,  and 
that  as  the  brooks  and  ditches  get  dried  up,  they  seek 
the  larger  water  channels. 

To  Hniitmy-  Following  the  Quingua  in  its  upward  and  eastward 

course  as  it  meandered  through  a  well-cultivated  and 
luxuriantly  fertile  country,  past  stone-built  churches 
and  chapels  which  grouped  themselves  with  the  surround- 
ing palm-trees  and  bamboo-bushes  into  sylvan  vignettes, 
Father  Llano's  four-horsed  carriage  brought  me  to  the 
important  town  of  Baliwag,  the  industry  of  which  is 
celebrated  beyond  the  limits  of  the  province. 

I  visited  several  families  and  received  a  friendly  recep- 
tion from  all  of  them.  The  houses  were  built  of  boards 
and  were  placed  upon  piles  elevated  five  feet  above  the 
ground.  Each  consisted  of  a  spacious  dwelling  apart- 
ment which  opened  on  one  side  into  the  kitchen,  and  on 
the  other  on  to  an  open  space,  the  azotea;  a  lofty  roof 
of  palm-trees  spread  itself  above  the  dwelling,  the  en- 
trance to  which  was  through  the  azotea.  The  latter 
was  half  covered  by  the  roof  I  have  just  mentioned. 
The  floor  was  composed  of  slats  an  inch  in  width,  laid 
half  that  distance  apart.  Chairs,  tables,  benches,  a 
cupboard,  a  few  small  ornaments,  a  mirror,  and  some 
lithographs  in  frames,  composed  the  furniture  of  the 
interior.  The  cleanliness  of  the  house  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  its  contents  testified  to  the  existence  of  order 
and  prosperity. 

Tapix  weaving.  I  found  the  womcu  in  almost  all  the  houses  occupied 
in  weaving  tapis,  which  have  a  great  reputation  in  the 
Manila  market.     They  are  narrow,  thickly-woven  silk 


Hoard  houses 
and  their 
furniture. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  50 

scarves,  six  varas  in  length,  with  oblique  white  stripes 
on  a  dark-brown  ground.  They  are  worn  above  the 
sarong. 

Baliwag    is    also    especially    famous    for    its    petaca*  petaca  doar 
cigar-cases,  which  surpass  all  others  in  delicacy  of  work-   '''^''*'''- 
manship.     They  are  not  made  of  straw,  but  of  fine  strips 
of  Spanish  cane,  and  particularly  from  the  lower  ends 
of  the  leaf-stalks  of  the  calamusart,  which  is  said  to 
grow  only  in  the  province  of  Nueva  Ecija. 

A  bundle  of  a  hundred  selected  stalks,  a  couple  of  t'reparaiion .,/ 
feet  long,  costs  about  six  reals.  When  these  stalks  have 
been  split  lengthways  into  four  or  five  pieces,  the  inner 
wood  is  removed,  till  nothing  but  the  outer  part  remains. 
The  thin  strips  thus  obtained  are  drawn  by  the  hand 
between  a  convex  block  and  a  knife  fixed  in  a  sloping 
position,  and  between  a  couple  of  steel  blades  which 
nearly  meet. 

It  is  a  task  requiring  much  patience  and  practice.  cv*".7  iveavim/. 
In  the  first  operation,  as  a  rule,  quite  one-half  of  the 
stems  are  broken,  and  in  the  second  more  than  half, 
so  that  scarcely  twenty  per  cent  of  the  stalks  survive 
the  final  process.  In  very  fine  matting  the  proportionate 
loss  is  still  greater.  The  plaiting  is  done  on  wooden 
cylinders.  A  case  of  average  workmanship,  which  costs 
two  dollars  on  the  spot,  can  be  manufactured  in  six  days' 
uninterrupted  labor.  Cigar-cases  of  exceptionally  intri- 
cate workmanship,  made  to  order  for  a  connoisseur, 
frequently  cost  upwards  of  fifty  dollars. 

Following  the  Quingua  from  Baliwag  up  its  stream,    Voicanic  sJu.-n 
we  passed  several  quarries,  where  we  saw  the  thickly- 
packed  strata  of  volcanic  stone  which  is  used  as  a  build- 
ing material.     The  banks  of  the  river  are  thickly  studded 
with  prickly   bamboos   from   ten   to   twelve   feet   high. 

*  Tylor  (Anahiiac  227)  says  that  this  word  is  derived  from  the  Mexican 
petlail,  a  mat.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Philippines  call  this  petate,  and  from  the 
Mexican  pella-calli,  a  mat  "house,"  derive  petaca,  a  cigar  case. 


quarries. 


60  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

The  water  overflows  in  the  rainy  season,  and  floods  the 
plain  for  a  great  distance.  Hence  the  many  shells  of 
*  large  freshwater  mussels  which  are  to  be  seen  lying  on  the 
earth  which  covers  the  volcanic  deposit.  The  country 
begins  to  get  hilly  in  the  neighborhood  of  Tobog,  a  small 
place  with  no  church  of  its  own,  and  dependent  for  its 
services  upon  the  priest  of  the  next  parish.  The  gentle 
slopes  of  the  hills  are,  as  in  Java,  cut  into  terraces  and 
used  for  the  cultivation  of  rice.  Except  at  Lucban 
I  have  never  observed  similar  saivas  anywhere  else  in  the 
Philippines.  Several  small  sugar-fields,  which,  however, 
the  people  do  not  as  yet  understand  how  to  manage 
properly,  show  that  the  rudiments  of  agricultural  pros- 
perity are  already  in  existence.  The  roads  are  partly 
covered  with  awnings,  beneath  which  benches  are  placed 
affording  repose  to  the  weary  traveller.  I  never  saw 
these  out  of  this  province.  One  might  fancy  oneself 
in  one  of  the  most  fertile  and  thickly-populated  districts 
of  Java. 
Aconvento  I  passcd  the  night  in  a  convento,  as  the  dwelling  of  the 

parish  priest  is  called  in  the  Philippines.  It  was  ex- 
tremely dirty,  and  the  priest,  an  Augustinian,  was  full  of 
proselytish  ardor.  I  had  to  undergo  a  long  geographical 
examination  about  the  difference  between  Prussia  and 
Russia;  was  asked  whether  the  great  city  of  Nuremberg 
was  the  capital  of  the  grand-duchy  or  of  the  empire 
of  Russia;  learnt  that  the  English  were  on  the  point 
of  returning  to  the  bosom  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and 
that  the  "others"  would  soon  follow,  and  was,  in  short, 
in  spite  of  the  particular  recommendation  of  Father 
Llanos,  very  badly  received.  Some  little  time  after- 
wards I  fell  into  the  hands  of  two  young  Capuchins, 
who  tried  to  convert  me,  but  who,  with  the  exception 
of  this  little  impertinence,  treated  me  capitally.  They 
gave  me  ydtes  de  foie  gras  boiled  in  water,  which  I  quickly 


■and  the 
parish  priest 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  61 

recognized  by  the  truffles  swimming  about  in  the  grease. 
To  punish  them  for  their  importunity  I  refrained  from 
telling  my  hosts  the  right  way  to  cook  the  pates,  which 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  afterwards  eating  in  the  forest, 
as  I  easily  persuaded  them  to  sell  me  the  tins  they  had 
left.  These  are  the  only  two  occasions  on  which  I  was 
subjected  to  this  kind  of  annoyance  during  my  eighteen 
months'  residence  in  the  Philippines. 

The  traveller  who  is  provided  with  a  passport  is, 
however,  by  no  means  obliged  to  rely  upon  priestly 
hospitality,  as  he  needs  must  do  in  many  isolated  parts 
of  Europe.     Every  village,  every  hamlet,  has  its  com-  Arrangements 

for  travellers. 

mon-house,  called  casa  real  or  tribunal,  in  which  he 
can  take  up  his  quarters  and  be  supplied  with  provisions 
at  the  market  price,  a  circumstance  that  I  was  not 
acquainted  with  on  the  occasion  of  my  first  trip.  The 
traveller  is  therefore  in  this  respect  perfectly  independ- 
ent, at  least  in  theory,  though  in  practice  he  will  often 
scarcely  be  able  to  avoid  putting  up  at  the  conventos 
in  the  more  isolated  parts  of  the  country.  In  these 
the  priest,  perhaps  the  only  white  man  for  miles  around, 
is  with  difficulty  persuaded  to  miss  the  opportunity 
of  housing  such  a  rare  guest,  to  whom  he  is  only  too 
anxious  to  give  up  the  best  bedroom  in  his  dwelling, 
and  to  offer  everything  that  his  kitchen  and  cellar  can 
afford.  Everything  is  placed  before  the  guest  in  such 
a  spirit  of  sincere  and  undisguised  friendliness,  that  he 
feels  no  obligation,  but  on  the  contrary  easily  persuades 
himself  that  he  is  doing  his  host  a  favor  by  prolonging 
his  stay.  Upon  one  occasion,  when  I  had  determined, 
in  spite  of  an  invitation  from  the  padre,  to  occupy  the 
casa  real,  just  as  I  was  beginning  to  instal  myself,  the 
priest  appeared  upon  the  scene  with  the  municipal 
officials  and  a  band  of  music  which  was  in  the  neighbor- 
hood pending  the  preparations  for  a  religious  festival. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Kupang 
iTon-founihy 


A  negritu 
family. 


He  made  them  lift  me  up,  chair  and  all,  and  with  music 
and  general  rejoicing  carried  me  off  to  his  own  house. 

On  the  following  day  I  paid  a  visit  to  Kupang,  an 
iron-foundry  lying  to  the  N.N.E  of  Angat,  escorted 
by  two  armed  men,  whose  services  I  was  pressed  to 
accept,  as  the  district  had  a  bad  reputation  for  rob- 
beries. After  travelling  three  or  four  miles  in  a  northerly 
direction,  we  crossed  the  Banauon,  at  that  time  a  mere 
brook  meandering  through  shingle,  but  in  the  rainy 
season  an  impetuous  stream  more  than  a  hundred  feet 
broad;  and  in  a  couple  of  hours  we  reached  the  iron- 
works, an  immense  shed  lying  in  the  middle  of  the  forest, 
with  a  couple  of  wings  at  each  end,  in  which  the  manager, 
an  Englishman,  who  had  been  wrecked  some  years 
before  in  Samar,  lived  with  his  wife,  a  pretty  mesiiza. 
If  I  laid  down  my  handkerchief,  my  pencil,  or  any  other 
object,  the  wife  immediately  locked  them  up  to  protect 
them  from  the  kleptomania  of  her  servants.  These 
poor  people,  whose  enterprise  was  not  a  very  successful 
one,  had  to  lead  a  wretched  life.  Two  years  before  my 
visit  a  band  of  twenty-seven  robbers  burst  into  the  place, 
sacked  the  house,  and  threw  its  mistress,  who  was  alone 
with  her  maid  at  the  time,  out  of  the  window.  She 
fortunately  alighted  without  receiving  any  serious  hurt, 
but  the  maid,  whom  terror  caused  to  jump  out  of  the 
window  also,  died  of  the  injuries  she  received.  The 
robbers,  who  turned  out  to  be  miners  and  residents  in 
Angat,  were  easily  caught,  and,  when  I  was  there,  had 
already  spent  a  couple  of  years  in  prison  awaiting  their 
trial. 

I  met  a  negrito  family  here  who  had  friendly  relations 
with  the  people  in  the  iron-works,  and  were  in  the  habit 
of  exchanging  the  produce  of  the  forest  with  them  for 
provisions.  The  father  of  this  family  accompanied  me 
on  a  hunting  expedition     He  was  armed  with  a  bow 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  63 

and  a  couple  of  arrows.  The  arrows  had  spear-shaped 
iron  points  a  couple  of  inches  long ;  one  of  them  had  been 
dipped  into  arrow-poison,  a  mixture  that  looked  like 
black  tar.  The  women  had  guitars  (tahaua)  similar  to 
those  used  by  the  Mintras  in  the  Malay  peninsula.  They 
were  made  of  pieces  of  bamboo  a  foot  long,  to  which 
strings  of  split  chair-cane  were  fastened.* 

Upon  my  return,  to  avoid  spending  the  night  at  the  Unwelcome 
wretched  convento  where  I  had  left  my  servant  with 
my  luggage,  I  took  the  advice  of  my  friends  at  the  iron- 
works and  started  late,  in  order  to  arrive  at  the  priest's 
after  ten  o'clock  at  night;  for  I  knew  that  the  padre 
shut  up  his  house  at  ten,  and  that  I  could  therefore  sleep, 
without  offending  him,  beneath  the  roof  of  a  wealthy 
mestizo,  an  acquaintance  of  theirs.  About  half-past 
ten  I  reached  the  latter's  house,  and  sat  down  to  table 
with  the  merry  women  of  the  family,  who  were  just  having 
their  supper.  Suddenly  my  friend  the  parson  made  his 
appearance  from  an  inner  room,  where  with  a  couple  of 
Augustinian  friars,  he  had  been  playing  cards  with  the 
master  of  the  house.  He  immediately  began  to  com- 
pliment me  upon  my  good  fortune,  "for  had  you  been 
but  one  minute  later,"  said  he,  "you  certainly  wouldn't 
have  got  into  the  convento." 


VII 

My  second  trip  took  me  up  the  Pasig  to  the  great  Lagoon  The  Lagmn  «/ 
of  Bay.     I  left  Manila  at  night  in  a  hanca,  a  boat  hoi-  ^"^ 
lowed  out  of  a  tree-trunk,  with  a  vaulted  roof  made  of 
bamboo  and  so  low  that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  sit 
upright   under   it,    which   posture,    indeed,    the   banca- 
builder   appeared   to    have   neglected    to    consider.     A 

*  Four  lines,  re  an  omitted  sketch,  left  out. — C. 


The  Pasig. 


64  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

bamboo  hurdle  placed  at  the  bottom  of  the  boat  pro- 
tects the  traveller  from  the  water  and  serves  him  as  a 
couch.  Jurien  de  la  Graviere*  compares  the  banca  to 
a  cigar-box,  in  which  the  traveller  is  so  tightly  packed 
that  he  would  have  little  chance  of  saving  his  life  if  it  hap- 
pened to  upset.  The  crew  was  composed  of  four  rowers 
and  a  helmsman ;  their  daily  pay  was  five  reals  apiece,  in 
all  nearly  seven  pesos,  high  wages  for  such  lazy  fellows 
in  comparison  with  the  price  of  provisions,  for  the  rice 
that  a  hard-working  man  ate  in  a  day  seldom  cost  more 
than  seven  centavos  (in  the  provinces  often  scarcely 
six),  and  the  rest  of  his  food  (fish  and  vegetables),  only 
one  centavo.  We  passed  several  villages  and  tiendas 
on  the  banks  in  which  food  was  exposed  for  sale.  My 
crew,  after  trying  to  interrupt  the  journey  under  all  sorts 
of  pretences,  left  the  boat  as  we  came  to  a  village,  saying 
that  they  were  going  to  fetch  some  sails;  but  they  forgot  to 
return.  At  last,  with  the  assistance  of  the  night  watch- 
man, I  succeeded  in  hauling  them  out  of  some  of  their 
friends'  houses,  where  they  had  concealed  themselves. 
After  running  aground  several  times  upon  the  sandbanks, 
we  entered  the  land  and  hill-locked  Lagoon  of  Bay,  and 
reached  Jalajala  early  in  the  morning. 

The  Pasig  forms  a  natural  canal,  about  six  leagues 
long,  between  the  Bay  of  Manila  and  the  Lagoon  of 
Bay,  a  fresh  water  lake,  thirty-five  leagues  in  circum- 
ference, that  washes  the  shores  of  three  fertile  provinces, 
Manila,  Laguna  and  Cavite.  Formerly  large  vessels 
full  of  cargo  used  to  be  able  to  sail  right  up  to  the  borders 
of  the  lake;  now  they  are  prevented  by  sandbanks. 
Even  flat-bottomed  boats  frequently  run  aground  on  the 


*   Voyage  en  Chine,  vol.  II.,  page  33. 


Jagnr's  Trarels  in  the  Philippines  65 

Napindan  and Taguig  banks.*  Were  the  banks  removed, 
and  the  stone  bridge  joining  Manila  to  Binondo  replaced 
by  a  swing  bridge,  or  a  canal  made  round  it,  the 
coasting  vessels  would  be  able  to  ship  the  produce  of 
the  lagoon  provinces  at  the  very  foot  of  the  fields  in 
which  they  grow.  The  traffic  would  be  very  profitable, 
the  waters  would  shrink,  and  the  shallows  along  the 
shore  might  be  turned  into  rice  and  sugar  fields.  A 
scheme  of  this  kind  was  approved  more  than  thirty 
years  ago  in  Madrid,  but  it  was  never  carried  into  execu- 
tion. The  sanding  up  of  the  river  has,  on  the  contrary, 
been  increased  by  a  quantity  of  fish  reels,  the  erection 
of  which  has  been  favored  by  the  Colonial  Waterways 
Board  because  it  reaped  a  small  tax  from  them. 

Jalajala,  an  estate  which  occupies  the  eastern  of  the 
two  peninsulas  which  run  southward  into  the  lake,  is 
one  of  the  first  places  visited  by  strangers.  It  owes  this 
preference  to  its  beautiful  position  and  nearness  to 
Manila,  and  to  the  fantastic  description  of  it  by  a  former 
owner,  De  la  Gironniere.  The  soil  of  the  peninsula  is 
volcanic ;  its  range  of  hills  is  very  rugged,  and  the  water- 
courses bring  down  annually  a  quantity  of  soil  from  the 
mountains,  which  increases  the  deposits  at  their  base. 
The  shore-line,  overgrown  with  grass  and  prickly  sen- 
sitive-plants quite  eight  feet  high,  makes  capital  pasture 
for  carabaos.  Behind  it  broad  fields  of  rice  and  sugar 
extend  themselves  up  to  the  base  of  the  hills.  Towards 
the  north  the  estate  is  bounded  by  the  thickly-wooded 
Sembrano,  the  highest  mountain  in  the  peninsula;  on 
the  remaining  sides  it  is  surrounded  with  water.     With 


,4  famous 
plantation. 


*  According  to  the  report  of  an  engineer,  the  sand  banks  are  caused  by  the 
river  San  Mateo,  which  runs  into  the  Pasig  at  right  angles  shortly  after  the  latter 
leaves  the  Lagoon;  in  the  rainy  season  it  brings  down  a  quantity  of  mud,  which  is 
heaped  up  and  embanked  by  the  south-west  winds  that  prevail  at  the  time.  It 
would,  therefore,  be  of  little  use  to  remove  the  sandbanks  without  giving  the 
San  Mateo,  the  cause  of  their  existence,  a  direct  and  separate  outlet  into  the 
lake. 


springs. 


66  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

the  exception  of  the  flat  shore,  the  whole  place  is  hilly 
and  overgrown  with  grass  and  clumps  of  trees,  capital 
pasture  for  its  numerous  herds — a  thousand  carabaos, 
one  thousand  five  hundred  to  two  thousand  bullocks, 
and  from  six  to  seven  hundred  nearly  wild  horses.  As 
we  were  descending  one  of  the  hills,  we  were  suddenly 
surrounded  by  half-a-dozen  armed  men,  who  took  us 
for  cattle-thieves,  but  who,  to  their  disappointment, 
were  obliged  to  forego  their  expected  chance  of  a  reward. 
LosBanoshot  Beyond  Jalajala,  on  the  south  coast  of  the  Lagoon 

of  Bay,  lies  the  hamlet  of  Los  Banos,  so  called  from  a 
hot  spring  at  the  foot  of  the  Makiling  volcano.  Even 
prior  to  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards,  the  natives  used 
its  waters  as  a  remedy,*  but  they  are  now  very  little 
patronized.  The  shore  of  the  lake  is  at  this  point,  and 
indeed  all  round  its  circumference,  so  flat  that  it  is 
impossible  to  land  with  dry  feet  from  the  shallowest 
canoe.  It  is  quite  covered  with  sand  mussels.  North- 
west of  Los  Banos  there  lies  a  small  volcanic  lake  fringed 
with  thick  woods,  called  Dagatan  (the  enchanted  lagoon 
of  travellers),  to  distinguish  it  from  Dagat,  as  the 
Tagals  call  the  great  Lagoon  of  Bay.  I  saw  nothing  of 
the  crocodiles  which  are  supposed  to  infest  it,  but  we 
flushed  several  flocks  of  wild  fowl,  disturbed  by  our 
invasion  of  their  solitude.  From  Los  Banos  I  had 
intended  to  go  to  Lupang  Puti  (white  earth),  where, 
judging  from  the  samples  shown  me,  there  is  a  deposit  of 
fine  white  silicious  earth,  which  is  purified  in  Manila  and 
used  as  paint.  I  did  not  reach  the  place,  as  the  guide 
whom  I  had  with  difficulty  obtained,  pretended,  after 
a  couple  of  miles,  to  be  dead  beat.     From  the  inquiries 


*  They  take  baths  fcr  their  maladies,  and  have  hot  springs  for  this  purpose, 
particularly  along  the  shcre  of  the  king's  lake  (Estang  du  Roy,  instead  of  Kstang 
de  Bay  by  a  printtr's  mistake  apparently),  which  is  in  the  Island  of  Manila. — 
Thevenot. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  67 

I  made,  however,  I  apprehend  that  it  is  a  kind  of  sol- 
fatara.  Several  deposits  of  it  appear  to  exist  at  the  foot 
of  the  Makiling.* 

On  my  return  I  paid  a  visit  to  the  Island  of  Talim,  Taiim  island. 
which,  with  the  exception  of  a  clearing  occupied  by  a 
few  miserable  huts,  is  uninhabited  and  thickly  over- 
grown with  forest  and  undergrowth.  In  the  center  of 
the  Island  is  the  Susong-Dalaga  (maiden's  bosom),  a 
dolerite  hill  with  a  beautifully  formed  crest.  Upon  the 
shore,  on  a  bare  rock,  I  found  four  eggs  containing  fully 
developed  young  crocodiles.  When  I  broke  the  shells 
the  little  reptiles  made  off. 

Although  the  south-west  monsoons  generally  occur  ^-  ^e  la 
later  in  Jalajala  than  in  Manila,  it  was  already  raining 
so  hard  that  I  decided  to  go  to  Calauan,  on  the  southern 
shore  of  the  lake,  which  is  protected  by  Mount  Makiling, 
and  does  not  experience  the  effect  of  the  rainy  monsoons 
till  later  in  the  season.  I  met  M.  de  la  Gironniere  in 
Calauan,  the  ''gentilhomme  Breton"  who  is  so  well 
known  for  telling  the  most  terrible  adventures.  He 
had  lately  returned  from  Europe  to  establish  a  large 
sugar  manufactory.  His  enterprise,  however,  was  a 
failure.  The  house  of  the  lively  old  gentleman,  whose 
eccentricity  had  led  him  to  adopt  the  dress  and  the 
frugal  habits  of  the  natives,  was  neither  clean  or  well 
kept,  although  he  had  a  couple  of  friends  to  assist  him 
in  the  business,  a  Scotchman,  and  a  young  Frenchman 
who  had  lived  in  the  most  refined  Parisian  society. 


*  "One  can  scarcely  walk  thirty  paces  between  Mount  Makiling  and  a  place 
called  Bacon,  which  lies  to  the  east  of  Los  Banos,  without  meeting  several  kinds 
of  natural  springs,  some  very  hot,  some  lukewarm,  some  of  the  temp3ratur;  of 
the  atmosphere,  and  some  very  cold.  In  a  description  of  this  place  given  in  our 
archives  for  the  year  1739,  it  is  recorded  that  a  hill  called  Natognos  lies  a  mile 
to  the  south-east  of  the  village,  on  the  plateau  of  which  there  is  a  small  plain 
400  feet  square,  which  is  kept  in  constant  motion  by  the  volume  of  vapor  issuing 
from  it.  The  soil  from  which  this  vapor  issues  is  an  extremely  white  earth;  it  is 
sometimes  thrown  up  to  the  height  of  a  yard  or  a  yard  and  a  half, and  meeting 
the  lower  temperature  of  the  atmosphere  falls  to  the  ground  in  small  pieces." — 
Estado  geoyraph.,   1865. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Llanura  de 
Imuc. 


Tigui-mere. 


Leaf  imprinis 
in  lava. 


There  were  several  small  lakes  and  a  few  empty 
volcanic  basins  on  the  estate.  To  the  south-west,  not 
very  far  from  the  house,  and  to  the  left  of  the  road  lead- 
ing to  San  Pablo,  lies  the  Llanura  de  Imuc,  a  valley  of 
dolerite  more  than  a  hundred  feet  deep.  Large  blocks 
of  basalt  enable  one  to  climb  down  into  the  valley,  the 
bottom  of  which  is  covered  with  dense  growths.  The 
center  of  the  basin  is  occupied  by  a  neglected  coffee 
plantation  laid  out  by  a  former  proprietor.  The  density 
of  the  vegetation  prevented  my  taking  more  precise 
observations.  There  is  another  shallower  volcanic 
crater  to  the  north  of  it.  Its  soil  was  marshy  and  covered 
with  cane  and  grass,  but  even  in  the  rainy  season  it 
does  not  collect  sufficient  water  to  turn  it  into  a  lake. 
It  might,  therefore,  be  easily  drained  and  cultivated. 
To  the  south-west  of  this  basin,  and  to  the  right  of  the 
road  to  San  Pablo,  lies  the  Tigui-mere.  From  a  plain 
of  whitish-grey  soil,  covered  with  concentric  shells  as 
large  as  a  nut,  rises  a  circular  embankment  with  gently- 
sloping  sides,  intersected  only  by  a  small  cleft  which 
serves  as  an  entrance,  and  which  shows,  on  its  edges 
denuded  of  vegetation,  the  loose  rapilli  of  which  the 
embankment  is  formed.  The  sides  of  this  natural  am- 
phitheatre tower  more  than  a  hundred  feet  above  its 
flat  base.  A  path  runs  east  and  west  right  through  the 
center.  The  northern  half  is  studded  with  cocopalm 
trees  and  cultivated  plants;  the  southern  portion  is  full 
of  water  nearly  covered  with  green  weeds  and  slime. 
The  ground  consists  of  black  rapilli. 

From  the  Tigui-mere  I  returned  to  the  hacienda  along 
a  bank  formed  of  volcanic  lava  two  feet  in  thickness  and 
covered  with  indistinct  impressions  of  leaves.  Their 
state  of  preservation  did  not  allow  me  to  distinguish 


Jatjor's   Travels  in  the  PhiUppiiies  69 

their  species,  but  they  certainly  belonged  to  some  tropical 
genus,  and  are,  according  to  Professor  A.  Braun,  of  the 
same  kind  as  those  now  growing  there. 

There  are  two  more  small  lakes  half  a  league  to  the 
south-east.  The  road  leading  to  them  is  composed  of 
volcanic  remains  which  cover  the  soil,  and  large  blocks 
of  lava  lie  in  the  bed  of  the  stream. 

The  first  of  the  two,  the  Maycap  Lake,  is  entirely  ^f<^y':ap  Lake. 
embanked  with  the  exception  of  a  small  opening  fitted 
with  sluices  to  supply  water  to  a  canal;  and  from  its 
northern  side,  which  alone  admits  of  an  open  view,  the 
southern  peak  of  San  Cristobal  may  be  seen,  about  73° 
to  the  north-east.  Its  banks,  which  are  about  eighty 
feet  high,  rise  with  a  gentle  slope  in  a  westerly  direction, 
till  they  join  Mount  Maiba,  a  hill  about  500  feet  high. 
The  soil,  like  that  of  the  embankments  of  the  other 
volcanic  lakes,  consists  of  rapilli  and  lava,  and  is  thickly 
wooded. 


Lake 
Palakpakan. 


Close  by  is  another  lake,  Palakpakan,  of  nearly  the 
same  circumference,  and  formed  in  a  similar  manner 
(of  black  sand  and  rapilli).  Its  banks  are  from  thirty 
to  one  hundred  feet  high.  From  its  north-western  edge 
San  Cristobal  lifts  its  head  70°  to  the  northeast.  Its 
waters  are  easily  reached,  and  are  much  frequented  by 
fishermen. 

I  About  nine  o'clock,  a.  m.,  I  rode  from  Calauan  to  Paim  brandy. 
Pila,  and  thence  in  a  northeasterly  direction  to  Santa 
Cruz,  over  even,  broad,  and  well-kept  roads,  through 
a  palm-grove  a  mile  long  and  a  mile  and  a  half  broad, 
which  extends  down  to  the  very  edge  of  the  lagoons. 
The  products  of  these  palm  trees  generally  are  not  used 
for  the  production  of  oil  but  for  the  manufacture  of 
brandy.  Their  fruit  is  not  allowed  to  come  to  maturity; 
but  the  buds  are  slit  open,  and  the  sweet  sap  is  collected 


70 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Bought  by 
government. 


Profit  in 
manufacture. 


as  it  drips  from  them.  It  is  then  allowed  to  ferment, 
and  subjected  to  distillation.*  As  the  sap  is  collected 
twice  a  day,  and  as  the  blossoms,  situated  at  the  top 
of  the  tree,  are  forty  or  fifty  feet  above  the  ground, 
bamboos  are  fastened  horizontally,  one  above  the  other, 
from  one  tree  to  another,  to  facilitate  the  necessary 
ascent  and  descent.  The  sap  collector  stands  on  the 
lower  cross-piece  while  he  holds  on  to  the  upper. 

The  sale  of  palm-brandy  was  at  the  time  of  my  visit 
the  monopoly  of  the  government,  which  retailed  it  in 
the  Estanco  (government  sale  rooms)  with  cigars,  stamp- 
ed paper,  and  religious  indulgences.  The  manufacture 
was  carried  on  by  private  individuals;  but  the  whole 
of  the  brandy  was  of  necessity  disposed  of  to  the  adminis- 
tration, which,  however,  paid  such  a  high  price  for  it 
that  the  contractors  made  large  profits. 

I  afterwards  met  a  Spaniard  in  Camarines  who, 
according  to  his  own  account,  must  have  made  consider- 
able and  easy  gains  from  these  contracts.  He  had 
bought  palm-trees  at  an  average  price  of  five  reals  apiece 
(they  usually  cost  more,  though  they  can  be  sometimes 
purchased  for  two  reals).  Thirty-five  palms  will  furnish 
daily  at  least  thirty -six  quarts  of  tiiha  (sugar-containing 
sap),  from  which,  after  fermentation  and  distillation, 
six  quarts  of  brandy  of  the  prescribed  strength  can  be 
manufactured.  One  man  is  sufficient  to  attend  to  them, 
and   receives  for  his  trouble  half  the  proceeds.     The 


*  Pigafetta  says  that  the  natives,  in  order  to  obtain  palm-wine,  cut  the  top 
of  the  tree  through  to  the  pith,  and  then  catch  the  sap  as  it  oozes  out  of  the  inci- 
sion. According  to  Regnaud,  Natural  History  of  the  Coco-tree,  the  negroes 
of  Saint  Thomas  pursue  a  similar  method  in  the  present  day,  i  metho-i  that 
considerably  injures  the  trees  and  produces  a  much  smaller  quantity  of  liquor. 
Hernandez  describes  an  indigenous  process  of  obtaining  wine,  honey,  and  sago 
from  the  sacsar  palm,  a  tree  which  from  its  stunted  growth  would  seem  to  cor- 
respond with  the  arenya  sarcharifera.  The  trees  are  tapped  near  the  top,  the 
soft  part  of  the  trunks  is  hollowed  out,  and  the  sap  collects  in  this  empty  space. 
When  all  the  juice  is  extracted,  the  tree  is  allowed  to  dry  up,  and  is  then  cut  into 
thin  pieces  which,  after  desiccation  in  the  sun,  are  ground  into  meal. 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  71 

administration  pays  six  cuartos  for  a  quart  of  brandy. 
My  friend  the  contractor  was  in  annual  receipt,  there- 
fore, from  every  thirty-five  of  his  trees,  of  360X3^X5 
cuartos  =  $40.50.  As  the  thirty-five  trees  only  cost  him 
$21,875,  his  invested  capital  brought  him  in  about  200 
per  cent. 

The  proceeds  of  this  monopoly  (wines  and  liquors)  wine  and  Uquor 
were  rated  at  $1,622,810  in  the  colonial  budget  for  1861;  a  failure. 
but  its  collection  was  so  difficult,  and  so  disproportion- 
ately expensive,  that  it  nearly  swallowed  up  the  whole 
profit.  It  caused  espionage,  robberies  of  all  sorts, 
embezzlement,  and  bribery  on  a  large  scale.  The  retail 
of  the  brandy  by  officials,  who  are  paid  by  a  percentage 
on  the  consumption,  did  a  good  deal  to  injure  the  popular 
respect  for  the  government.  Moreover,  the  imposition 
of  this  improper  tax  on  the  most  important  industry  of 
the  country  not  only  crippled  the  free  trade  in  palms, 
but  also  the  manufacture  of  raw  sugar;  for  the  govern- 
ment, to  favor  their  own  monopoly,  had  forbidden  the 
sugar  manufacturers  to  make  rum  from  their  molasses, 
which  became  in  consequence  so  valueless  that  in  Manila 
they  gave  it  to  their  horses.  The  complaints  of  the 
manufacturers  at  last  stirred  up  the  administration  to 
allow  the  manufacture  of  rum;  but  the  palm-brandy 
monopoly  remained  intact.  The  Filipinos  now  drank 
nothing  but  rum,  so  that  at  last,  in  self-defence,  the 
government  entirely  abandoned  the  monopoly  (January, 
1864).  Since  that,  the  rum  manufacturers  pay  taxes 
according  to  the  amount  of  their  sale,  but  not  upon  the 
amount  of  their  raw  produce.  In  order  to  cover  the 
deficit  occasioned  by  the  abandonment  of  the  brandy 
monopoly,  the  government  has  made  a  small  increase 
in  the  poll-tax.     The  practice  of  drinking  brandy  has 


72 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Santa  Cruz. 


Scenery  along 

Luchan-Mnuhan 

road. 


naturally  much  increased;  it  is,  however,  a  very  old 
habit.*  With  this  exception,  the  measure  has  had  the 
most  favorable  consequences. 

Santa  Cruz  is  a  lively,  prosperous  place  (in  1865  it 
contained  11,385  inhabitants),  through  the  center  of 
which  runs  a  river.  As  the  day  on  which  we  passed 
through  it  was  Sunday,  the  stream  was  full  of  bathers, 
amongst  them  several  women,  their  luxuriant  hair 
covered  with  broad-brimmed  hats  to  shade  them  from 
the  sun.  From  the  ford  the  road  takes  a  sharp  turn  and 
inclines  first  to  the  east  and  then  to  the  south-east,  till 
it  reaches  Magdalena,  between  which  and  Majaijai  the 
country  becomes  hilly.  Just  outside  the  latter,  a  viaduct 
takes  the  road  across  a  deep  ravine  full  of  magnificent 
ferns,  which  remind  the  traveller  of  the  height — more 
than  600  feet — above  the  sea  level  to  which  he  has 
attained.  The  spacious  convento  at  Majaijai,  built  by 
the  Jesuits,  is  celebrated  for  its  splendid  situation.  The 
Lagoon  of  Bay  is  seen  to  extend  far  to  the  north-east; 
in  the  distance  the  Peninsula  of  Jalajala  and  the  Island 
of  Talim,  from  which  rises  the  Susong-Dalaga  volcano, 
terminate  the  vista.  From  the  convento  to  the  lake 
stretches  an  endless  grove  of  coco-trees,  while  towards 
the  south  the  slope  of  the  distant  high  ground  grows 
suddenly  steeper,  and  forms  an  abruptly  precipitous 
conical  hill,  intersected  by  deep  ravines.  This  is  the 
Banajao  or  Majaijai  volcano,  and  beside  it  Mount  San 
Cristobal  rears  its  bell-shaped  summit. 

As  everybody  was  occupied  with  the  preparations  for 
an  ensuing  religious  festival,  I  betook  myself,  through 
Lucban  on  the  eastern  shore,  to  Mauban,  situated  amidst 
deep  ravines  and  masses  of  lava  at  the  foot  of  Mount 


*  Pigafetta  mentions  that  the  natives  were  in  the  habit  of  making  oil,  vinegar, 
wine,  and  milk,  from  the  coco-palm,  and  that  they  drank  a  great  deal  of  the  wine. 
Their  kings,  he  says,  frequently  intoxicated  themselves  at  their  banquets. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  75 

Majaijai.  The  vegetation  was  of  indescribable  beauty, 
and  the  miserable  road  was  enlivened  with  cheerful 
knots  of  pedestrians  hastening  to  the  festival.* 

I  reached  Lucban  in  three  hours;  it  is  a  prosperous  J-ncUan. 
place  of  13,000  inhabitants,  to  the  north-east  of  Majaijai. 
A  year  after  my  visit  it  burnt  to  the  ground.  The 
agricultural  produce  of  the  district  is  not  very  important, 
owing  to  the  mountainous  nature  of  the  country;  but 
considerable  industrial  activity  prevails  there.  The 
inhabitants  weave  fine  straw  hats  from  the  fibre  of  the 
leaf  of  the  huri  palm-tree  (corypha  sp.),  manufacture 
pandanus  mats,  and  carry  on  a  profitable  trade  at  Mau- 
ban  with  the  placer  miners  of  North  Camarines.  The 
entire  breadth  of  the  road  is  covered  with  cement,  and 
along  its  center  flows,  in  an  open  channel,  a  sparkling 
rivulet. 

The  road  fr(5m  Lucban  to  Mauban,  which  is  situated  JuMi-uke  rice 
on  the  bay  of  Lamon,  opposite  to  the  Island  of  Alabat, 
winds  along  the  narrow  watercourse  of  the  Mapon  river, 
through  deep  ravines  with  perpendicular  cliffs  of  clay. 
I  observed  several  terrace-formed  rice-fields  similar  to 
those  so  prevalent  in  Java,  an  infrequent  sight  in  the 
Philippines.  Presently  the  path  led  us  into  the  very 
thick  of  the  forest.  Nearly  all  the  trees  were  covered 
with  aroides  and  creeping  ferns;  amongst  them  I  noticed 
the  angiopteris,  pandanus,  and  several  large  specimens 
of  the  fan  palm. 

Three  leagues  from  Lucban  the  river  flows  under  a  Vcp^n  river. 
rock  supported  on  prismatically  shaped  pillars,  and  then 
runs  through  a  bed  of  round  pebbles,  composed  of  vol- 
canic stone  and  white  lime,  as  hard  as  marble,  in  which 
impressions  of  shell-fish  and  coral  can  be  traced.  Further 
up  the  river  the  volcanic  rubble  disappears,   and  the 

*  A  number  of  the  Illuslraled  London  News,  of  December,  1857,  or  January, 
1858,  contains  a  clever  drawing,  by  an  accomplished  artist,  of  the  mode  of 
travelling  over  this  road,  under  the  title,  "A  macadamized  road  in  Manila." 


7U 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Bamboo  raft 
ferry. 


Visitor K  to 
festival. 


Hospitality  of 
Iribunul. 


containing  strata  then  consist  of  the  marble-Hke  pebbles 
cemented  together  v/ith  calcareous  spar.  These  strata 
alternate  with  banks  of  clay  and  coarse-grained  soil, 
which  contain  scanty  and  badly  preserved  imprints  of 
leaves  and  mussel-fish.  Amongst  them,  however,  I 
observed  a  flattened  but  still  recognizable  specimen  of 
the  fossil  melania.  The  river-bed  must  be  quite  five 
hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 

About  a  league  beyond  Mauban,  as  it  was  getting 
dusk,  we  crossed  the  river,  then  tolerably  broad,  on  a 
wretched  leaking  bamboo  raft,  which  sank  at  least  six 
inches  beneath  the  water  under  the  weight  of  our  horses, 
and  ran  helplessly  aground  in  the  mud  on  the  opposite 
side. 

The  tribunal  or  common-house  was  crowded  with 
people  who  had  come  to  attend  the  festival  which  was 
to  take  place  on  the  following  day.  The  cabezas  wore, 
in  token  of  their  dignity,  a  short  jacket  above  their 
shirts.  A  quantity  of  brightly  decorated  tables  laden 
with  fruit  and  pastry  stood  against  the  walls,  and  in 
the  middle  of  the  principal  room  a  dining-table  was  laid 
out  for  forty  persons. 

A  European  who  travels  without  a  servant — mine 
had  run  away  with  some  wages  I  had  rashly  paid  him 
in  advance — is  put  down  as  a  beggar,  and  I  was  over- 
whelmed with  impertinent  questions  on  the  subject, 
which,  however,  I  left  unanswered.  As  I  hadn't  had 
the  supper  I  stood  considerably  in  need  of,  I  took  the 
liberty  of  taking  a  few  savory  morsels  from  the  meat- 
pot,  which  I  ate  in  the  midst  of  a  little  knot  of  wondering 
spectators;  I  then  laid  myself  down  to  sleep  on  the 
bench  beside  the  table,  to  which  a  second  set  of  diners 
were  already  sitting  down.  When  I  awoke  on  the  fol- 
lowing morning  there  were  already  so  many  people 
stirring  that  I  had  no  opportunity  of  performing  my 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  76 

toilet.  I  therefore  betook  myself  in  my  dirty  travelling 
dress  to  the  residence  of  a  Spaniard  who  had  settled 
in  the  pueblo,  and  who  received  me  in  the  most  hospit- 
able manner  as  soon  as  the  description  in  my  passport 
satisfied  him  that  I  was  worthy  of  a  confidence  not 
inspired  by  my  appearance. 

My  friendly  host  carried  on  no  trifling  business.     Two   Trade  in 
English  ships  were  at  that  moment  in  the  harbor,  which   '""'<»''«• 
he  was  about  to  send  to  China  laden  with  niolave,  a 
species  of  wood  akin  to  teak. 

On  my  return  I  visited  the  fine  waterfall  of  Butucan,  Butucan 
between  Mauban  and  Lucban,  a  little  apart  from  the  '^''''«'"/'»"- 
high  road.  A  powerful  stream  flows  between  two  high 
banks  of  rocky  soil  thickly  covered  with  vegetation, 
and,  leaping  from  a  ledge  of  volcanic  rock  suddenly 
plunges  into  a  ravine,  said  to  be  three  hundred  and 
sixty  feet  in  depth,  along  the  bottom  of  which  it  is  hurried 
away.  The  channel,  however,  is  so  narrow,  and  the 
vegetation  so  dense,  that  an  observer  looking  at  it  from 
above  can  not  follow  its  course.  This  waterfall  has  a 
great  similarity  to  that  which  falls  from  the  Semeru  in 
Java.  Here,  as  there,  a  volcanic  stream  flowing  over 
vast  rocky  deposits  forms  a  horizontal  watercourse,  which 
in  its  turn  is  overshadowed  with  immense  masses  of 
rock.  The  water  easily  forces  its  way  between  these 
till  it  reaches  the  solid  lava,  when  it  leaves  its  high, 
narrow,  and  thickly -wooded  banks,  and  plunges  into  the 
deep  chasm  it  has  itself  worn  away.  The  pouring  rain 
unfortunately  prevented  me  from  sketching  this  fine 
fall.  It  was  raining  when  I  reached  the  convento  of 
Majaijai,  and  it  was  still  raining  when  I  left  it  three  days 
later,  nor  was  there  any  hope  of  improvement  in  the 
weather  for  another  month  to  come.  "The  wet  season 
lasts  for  eight  or  nine  months  in  Majaijai,  and  during  the 
whole  period  scarcely  a  day  passes  without  the  rain 
falling  in  torrents."— Estado  geograph. 


76  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Majaijai.  To  asccnd  the  volcano  was  under  such  circumstances 

impracticable.  According  to  some  notes  written  by 
the  Majaijai  priest,  an  ascent  and  survey  of  Mount 
Banajao  was  made  on  the  22nd  of  April,  1858,  by  Senors 
Roldan  and  Montero,  two  able  Spanish  naval  officers, 
specially  charged  with  the  revision  of  the  marine  chart 
of  the  archipelago.  From  its  summit  they  took  observa- 
tions of  Manila  cathedral,  of  Mayon,  another  volcano  in 
Albay,  and  of  the  Island  of  Polillo.  They  estimated  the 
altitude  of  Banajao  to  be  seven  thousand  and  twenty 
Spanish  feet,  and  the  depth  of  its  crater  to  be  seven 
hundred.  The  crater  formerly  contained  a  lake,  but 
the  last  eruption  made  a  chasm  in  its  southern  side 
through  which  the  water  flowed  away.* 

Caiauan.  j  reached  Calauan  in  the  pouring  rain,  wading  through 

the  soft  spongy  clay  upon  wretched,  half-starved  ponies, 
and  found  I  must  put  off  my  water  journey  to  Manila 
till  the  following  day,  as  there  was  no  boat  on  the  lake 
at  this  point.  The  next  morning  there  were  no  horses 
to  be  found;  and  it  was  not  till  the  afternoon  that  I 
procured  a  cart  and  a  couple  of  carabaos  to  take  me  to 
Santa  Cruz,  whence  in  the  evening  the  market-vessel 
started  for  Manila.  One  carabao  was  harnessed  in  front ; 
the  other  was  fastened  behind  the  cart  in  order  that 
I  might  have  a  change  of  animals  when  the  first  became 
tired.  Carabao  number  one  wouldn't  draw,  and  number 
two  acted  as  a  drag— rather  useless  apparatus  on  a  level 


*  Erd  and  Pickering,  of  the  United  States  exploring  expedition,  determined 
the  height  to  be  6,500  English  feet  (7,143  Spanish),  not  an  unsatisfactory  result, 
considering  the  imperfect  means  they  possessed  for  making  a  proper  measure- 
ment. In  the  Manila  Estado  ijeographico  for  1865,  the  height  is  given,  without 
any  statement  as  to  the  source  whence  the  estimate  is  derived,  as  7,030  feet. 
The  same  authority  says,  "the  large  volcano  is  extinct  since  1730,  in  which  year 
its  last  eruption  took  place.  The  mountain  burst  into  flames  on  the  southern 
side,  threw  up  streams  of  water,  burning  lava,  and  stones  of  an  enormous  size; 
traces  of  the  last  can  be  observed  as  far  as  the  village  of  Sariaya.  The  crater 
is  perhaps  a  league  in  circumference,  it  is  highest  on  the  northern  side,  and  its 
interior  is  shaped  like  an  egg-shell:  the  depth  of  the  crater  apparently  extends 
half-way  down  the  height  of  the  mountain." 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  77 

road — so  I  changed  them.  As  soon  as  number  two  felt 
the  load  it  laid  down.  A  few  blows  persuaded  it  to  pick 
itself  up,  when  it  deliberately  walked  to  the  nearest 
pool  and  dropped  into  it.  It  was  with  the  greatest  trouble 
that  we  unharnessed  the  cart  and  pushed  it  back  on  to 
the  road,  while  our  two  considerate  beasts  took  a  mud 
bath.  At  last  we  reloaded  the  baggage,  the  carabaos 
were  rehamessed  in  the  original  positions,  and  the 
driver,  leaning  his  whole  weight  upon  the  nose-rope  of 
the  leading  beast,  pulled  with  might  and  main.  To  my 
great  delight  the  animal  condescended  to  slowly  advance 
with  the  cart  and  its  contents.  At  Pila  I  managed  to  rua. 
get  a  better  team,  with  which  late  in  the  evening,  in  the 
midst  of  a  pouring  rain,  I  reached  a  little  hamlet  opposite 
Santa  Cruz.  The  market-vessel  had  left;  our  attempts 
to  get  a  boat  to  take  us  across  to  the  village  only  led  to 
barefaced  attempts  at  extortion,  so  I  entered  one  of  the 
largest  of  the  hamlet's  houses,  which  was  occupied  by  a 
widow  and  her  daughter.  After  some  delay  my  request 
for  a  night's  lodging  was  granted.  I  sent  for  some 
oil,  to  give  me  a  little  light,  and  something  to  eat.  The 
women  brought  in  some  of  their  relations,  who  helped 
to  prepare  the  food  and  stopped  in  the  house  to  protect 
its  owners.  The  next  morning  I  crossed  the  river,  teem- 
ing with  joyous  bathers,  to  Santa  Cruz,  and  hired  a 
boat  there  to  take  me  across  the  lake  to  Pasig,  and  from 
thence  to  Manila.  A  contrary  wind,  however,  forfced 
us  to  land  on  the  promontory  of  Jalajala,  and  there  wait 
for  the  calm  that  accompanies  the  dawn.  Betwixt  the 
extreme  southern  point  of  the  land  and  the  houses  I   f-<^>'fhquake 

rrt'lrnces. 

saw,  in  several  places,  banks  of  mussels  projecting  at 
least  fifteen  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water,  similar 
to  those  which  are  so  frequently  found  on  the  sea-coast; 
— a  proof  that  earthquakes  have  taken  place  in  this 
neighborhood. 


78 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


VIII 


To  Albay  by 
scho(mer. 


Mariveles. 


Storm-hound 
shipping. 


Towards  the  end  of  August  I  started  from  Manila  for 
Albay  in  a  schooner  which  had  brought  a  cargo  of  hemp 
and  was  returning  in  ballast.  It  was  fine  when  we  set 
sail ;  but  on  the  following  day  the  signs  of  a  coming  storm 
increased  so  rapidly  that  the  captain  resolved  to  return 
and  seek  protection  in  the  small  but  secure  harbor  of 
Mariveles,  a  creek  on  the  southern  shore  of  Bataan, 
the  province  forming  the  western  boundary  of  Manila 
bay.  We  reached  it  about  two  o'clock  in  the  night  after 
cruising  about  for  fourteen  hours  before  the  entrance ;  and 
we  were  obliged  to  remain  here  at  anchor  for  a  fortnight, 
as  it  rained  and  stormed  continuously  for  that  period. 

The  weather  obliged  me  to  limit  my  excursions  to  the 
immediate  neighborhood  of  Mariveles.  Unfortunately 
it  was  not  till  the  close  of  our  stay  that  I  learnt  that  there 
was  a  colony  of  negritos  in  the  mountains ;  and  it  was  not 
till  just  before  my  departure  that  I  got  a  chance  of 
seeing  and  sketching  a  couple  of  them,  male  and  female. 
The  inhabitants  of  Mariveles  have  not  a  very  good 
reputation.  The  place  is  only  visited  by  ships  which 
run  in  there  in  bad  weather,  when  their  idle  crews  spend 
the  time  in  drinking  and  gambling.  Some  of  the  young 
girls  were  of  striking  beauty  and  of  quite  a  light  color; 
often  being  in  reality  of  mixed  race,  though  they  passed 
as  of  pure  Tagal  blood.  This  is  a  circumstance  I  have 
observed  in  many  seaports,  and  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Manila;  but,  in  the  districts  which  are  almost  entirely 
unvisited  by  the  Spaniards,  the  natives  are  much  darker 
and  of  purer  race. 

The  number  of  ships  which  were  seeking  protection 
from  the  weather  in  this  port  amounted  to  ten,  of  which 
three  were  schooners.     Every  morning  regularly  a  small 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  79 

pontin*  used  to  attempt  to  set  sail;  but  it  scarcely  got 
a  look  at  the  open  sea  before  it  returned,  when  it  was 
saluted  with  the  jeers  and  laughter  of  the  others.  It 
was  hunger  that  made  them  so  bold.  The  crew,  who 
had  taken  some  of  their  own  produce  to  Manila,  had 
spent  the  proceeds  of  their  venture,  and  had  started  on 
their  return  voyage  scantily  provided  with  provisions, 
with  the  hope  and  intention  of  soon  reaching  their  home, 
which  they  could  have  done  with  any  favorable  wind. 
Such  cases  frequently  occur.  A  few  natives  unite  to 
charter  a  small  vessel,  and  load  it  with  the  produce  of 
their  own  fields,  which  they  set  off  to  sell  in  Manila. 

The  straits  between  the   Islands  resemble  beautiful  The  straiu. 
wide  rivers  with  charming  spots  upon  the  banks  inhab- 
ited by  small  colonies ;  and  the  sailors  generally  find  the 
weather  gets  squally  towards  evening,  and  anchor  till 
the  morning  breaks. 

The  hospitable  coast  supplies  them  with  fish,  crabs,  Filipino 
plenty  of  mussels,  and  frequently  unprotected  coconuts. 
If  it  is  inhabited,  so  much  the  better.  Filipino  hospital- 
ity is  ample,  and  much  more  comprehensive  than  that 
practised  in  Europe.  The  crews  are  accommodated  in 
the  different  huts.  After  a  repast  shared  in  common, 
and  washed  down  by  copious  draughts  of  palm-wine, 
mats  are  streched  on  the  floor;  the  lamps — large  shells, 
fitted  with  rush  wicks — are  extinguished,  and  the  occu- 
pants of  the  hut  fall  asleep  together.  Once,  as  I  was 
sailing  into  the  bay  of  Manila  after  a  five  day's  cruise, 
we  overtook  a  craft  which  had  sailed  from  the  same  port 
as  we  had  with  a  cargo  of  coconut  oil  for  Manila,  and 
which  had  spent  six  months  upon  its  trip.  It  is  by  no 
means  uncommon  for  a  crew  which  makes  a  long  stay 


hospitality. 


*  From  ponle,  deck;  a  two-masted  vessel,  with  mat  sails,  of  about  100  tons 
burden. 


so 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Coasting  Luzon. 


Importance  of 
straits. 


in  the  capital  to  squander  the  whole  proceeds  of  their 
cargo,  if  they  have  not  done  it  before  reaching 
town. 

At  last  one  evening,  when  the  storm  had  quite  passed 
away,  we  sailed  out  of  Mariveles.  A  small,  volcanic, 
pillar-shaped  rock,  bearing  a  striking  resemblance  to  the 
Island  of  the  Cyclops,  off  the  coast  of  Sicily,  lies  in  front 
of  the  harbor — like  there,  a  sharp  pyramid  and  a  small, 
flat  island.  We  sailed  along  the  coast  of  Cavite  till  we 
reached  Point  Santiago,  the  southwestern  extremity  of 
Luzon,  and  then  turned  to  the  east,  through  the  fine 
straits  that  lie  between  Luzon  to  the  north  and  the  Bisayan 
islands  to  the  south.  As  the  sun  rose,  a  beautiful 
spectacle  presented  itself.  To  the  north  was  the  peak 
of  the  Taal  volcano,  towering  above  the  flat  plains  of 
Batangas;  and  to  the  south  the  thickly- wooded,  but 
rock -bound  coast  of  Mindoro,  the  iron  line  of  which  was 
broken  by  the  harbor  of  Porto  Galera,  protected  from 
the  fury  of  the  waves  by  a  small  islet  lying  immediately 
before  it.  The  waters  around  us  were  thickly  studded 
with  vessels  which  had  taken  refuge  from  the  storm  in 
the  Bisayan  ports,  and  were  now  returning  to  Manila. 

These  straits,  which  extend  from  the  south-east  to 
the  northwest,  are  the  great  commercial  highway  of  the 
Archipelago,  and  remain  navigable  during  the  whole 
year,  being  protected  from  the  fury  of  the  north-easterly 
winds  by  the  sheltering  peninsula  of  Luzon,  which  pro- 
jects to  the  south-east,  and  by  Samar,  which  extends 
in  a  parallel  direction;  while  the  Bisayan  islands  shield 
them  from  the  blasts  that  blow  from  the  south-west.  The 
Islands  of  Mindoro,  Panay,  Negros,  Cebu  and  Bohol, 
which  Nature  has  placed  in  close  succession  to  each  other, 
form  the  southern  borders  of  the  straits ;  and  the  narrow 
cross  channels  between  them  form  as  many  outlets  to 
the  Sea  of  Mindoro,  which  is  bounded  on  the  west  by 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  81 

Palawan,  on  the  east  by  Mindanao,  and  on  the  south 
by  the  Sulu  group.  The  eastern  waters  of  the  straits 
wash  the  coasts  of  Samar  and  Leyte,  and  penetrate 
through  three  small  channels  only  to  the  great  ocean; 
the  narrow  straits  of  San  Bernardino,  of  San  Juanico, 
and  of  Surigao.  Several  considerable,  and  innumerable 
smaller  islets,  lie  within  the  area  of  these  cursorily 
explained  outlines. 

A  couple  of  bays  on  the  south  coast  of  Batangas  offer  a  Satangas  coast. 
road-stead,  though  but  little  real  protection,  to  passing 
vessels,  which  in  stormy  weather  make  for  Porto  Galera, 
in  the  Island  of  Mindoro,  which  lies  directly  opposite. 
A  river,  a  league  and  a  half  in  length,  joins  Taal,  the 
principal  port  of  the  province,  to  the  great  inland  sea 
of  Taal,  or  Bombon.  This  stream  was  formerly  navig- 
able; but  it  has  now  become  so  sanded  up  that  it  is 
passable  only  at  flood  tides,  and  then  only  by  very  small 
vessels. 

The  province  of  Batangas  supplies  Manila  with  its  Batangas 
best  cattle,  and  exports  sugar  and  coffee. 

A  hilly  range  bounds  the  horizon  on  the  Luzon  side; 
the  striking  outlines  of  which  enable  one  to  conjecture 
its  volcanic  origin.  Most  of  the  smaller  islands  to  the 
south  appear  to  consist  of  superimposed  mountainous 
ranges,  terminating  seaward  in  precipitous  cliffs.  The 
lofty  and  symmetrical  peak  of  Mount  Mayon  is  the 
highest  point  in  the  panoramic  landscape.  Towards 
evening  we  sighted  Mount  Bulusan,  in  the  south-eastern 
extremity  of  Luzon;  and  presently  we  turned  northwards, 
and  sailed  up  the  Straits  of  San  Bernardino,  which  separ- 
ate Luzon  from  Samar. 

The  Bulusan  volcano,  "which  appears  to  have  been   Buiusnnuu 

-  ,  .  .  ,  ,-,  -I  .  .      Vesuvius. 

for  a  long  time  extinct,  but  which  again  began  to  erupt 
in  1852,"*  is  surprisingly  like  Vesuvius  in  outline.     It 

*  Estado  Geogr.,  p.  314. 


ctirrenl. 


82  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

has,  like  its  prototype,  a  couple  of  peaks.  The  western 
one,  a  bell-shaped  summit,  is  the  eruption  cone.  The 
eastern  apex  is  a  tall,  rugged  mound,  probably  the  remains 
of  a  huge  circular  crater.  As  in  Vesuvius,  the  present 
crater  is  in  the  center  of  the  extinct  one.  The  intervals 
between  them  are  considerably  larger  and  more  uneven 
than  the  Atrio  del  Cavallo  of  the  Italian  volcano. 

San  Bernardino  The  current  is  SO  powerful  in  the  Straits  of  San  Ber- 
nardino that  we  were  obliged  to  anchor  twice  to  avoid 
being  carried  back  again.  To  our  left  we  had  continually 
in  view  the  magnificent  Bulusan  volcano,  with  a  hamlet 
of  the  same  name  nestling  at  the  foot  of  its  eastern  slope 
in  a  grove  of  coco-trees,  close  to  the  sea.  Struggling 
with  difficulty  against  the  force  of  the  current,  we  suc- 
ceeded, with  the  assistance  of  light  and  fickle  winds,  in 
reaching  Legaspi,  the  port  of  Albay,  on  the  following 
evening.  Our  skipper,  a  Spaniard,  had  determined  to 
accomplish  the  trip  as  rapidly  as  possible. 

A  native  On  my  return  voyage,  however,  I  fell  into  the  hands 
of  a  native  captain;  and,  as  my  cruise  under  his  auspices 
presented  many  peculiarities,  I  may  quote  a  few  pas- 
sages relating  to  it  from  my  diary The  skipper 

intended  to  have  taken  a  stock  of  vegetables  for  my 
use,  but  he  had  forgotten  them.  He  therefore  landed  on 
a  small  island,  and  presently  made  his  reappearance  with 
a  huge  palm  cabbage,  which,  in  the  absence  of  its  owner, 
he  had  picked  from  a  tree  he  cut  down  for  the  purpose. 

On  another  occasion  the  crew  made  a  descent 

upon  a  hamlet  on  the  north-western  coast  of  Leyte  to 
purchase  provisions.  Instead  of  laying  in  a  stock  for 
the  voyage  at  Tacloban,  the  sailors  preferred  doing  so 
at  some  smaller  village  on  the  shores  of  the  straits,  where 
food  is  cheaper,  and  where  their  landing  gave  them  a 
pretext  to  run  about  the  country.  The  straits  of  San 
Juanico,  never  more  than  a  mile,  and  often  only  eight 


captain. 


mje. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  83 

hundred  feet  broad,  are  about  twenty  miles  in  length :  yet 
it  often  takes  a  vessel  a  week  to  sail  up  them ;  for  contrary 
winds  and  an  adverse  current  force  it  to  anchor  frequently 
and  to  lie  to  for  whole  nights  in  the  narrower  places. 
Towards  evening  our  captain  thought  that  the  sky 
appeared  very  threatening,  so  he  made  for  the  bay  of  a>.  intermnteHt 
Navo,  of  Masbate.  There  he  anchored,  and  a  part  of 
the  crew  went  on  shore.  The  next  day  was  a  Sunday; 
the  captain  thought  "the  sky  still  appeared  very  threaten- 
ing;" and  besides  he  wanted  to  make  some  purchases. 
So  we  anchored  again  off  Magdalena,  where  we  passed 
the  night.  On  Monday  a  favorable  wind  took  us,  at 
a  quicker  rate,  past  Marinduque  and  the  rocky  islet 
of  Elefante,  which  lies  in  front  of  it.  Elefante  appears 
to  be  an  extinct  volcano;  it  looks  somewhat  like  the 
Iriga,  but  is  not  so  lofty.  It  is  covered  with  capital 
pasture,  and  its  ravines  are  dotted  with  clumps  of  trees. 
Nearly  a  thousand  head  of  half-wild  cattle  were  grazing 
on  it.  They  cost  four  dollars  a-piece;  and  their  freight 
to  Manila  is  as  much  more,  where  they  sell  for  sixteen 
dollars.  They  are  badly  tended,  and  many  are  stolen 
by  the  passing  sailors.  My  friend  the  captain  was  full 
of  regret  that  the  favorable  wind  gave  him  no  opportu- 
nity of  landing;  perhaps  I  was  the  real  obstacle.  "They 
were  splendid  beasts!  How  easy  it  would  be  to  put 
a  couple  on  board !  They  could  scarcely  be  said  to  have 
any  real  owners;  the  nominal  proprietors  were  quite 
unaware  how  many  they  possessed,  and  the  herd  was 
continually  multiplying  without  any  addition  from  its 
masters.  A  man  lands  with  a  little  money  in  his  pocket. 
If  he  meets  a  herdsman,  he  gives  him  a  dollar,  and  the 
poor  creature  thinks  himself  a  lucky  fellow.  If  not, 
so  much  the  better.  He  can  do  the  business  himself; 
a  barrel  of  shot  or  a  sling  suffices  to  settle  the 
matter." 


84  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Plunder.  As  wc  Sailed  along  we  saw  coming  towards  us  another 

vessel,  the  Luisa,  which  suddenly  executed  a  very  extra- 
ordinary tack;  and  in  a  minute  or  two  its  crew  sent  up 
a  loud  shout  of  joy,  having  succeeded  in  stealing  a  fish- 
box  which  the  fishermen  of  Marinduque  had  sunk  in 
the  sea.  They  had  lowered  a  hook,  and  been  clever 
enough  to  grapple  the  rope  of  the  floating  buoy.  Our 
captain  was  beside  himself  with  eny>'  of  their  prize. 

Leoaspi.  Lcgaspi  is  the  principal  port  of  the  province  of  Albay. 

Its  road-stead,  however,  is  very  unsafe,  and,  being 
exposed  to  the  north-easterly  storms,  is  perfectly  useless 
during  the  winter.  The  north-east  wind  is  the  prevailing 
one  on  this  coast;  the  south-west  breeze  only  blows  in  June 
and  July.  The  heaviest  storms  occur  between  October 
and  January.  They  generally  set  in  with  a  gentle 
westerly  wind,  accompanied  with  rain.  The  gale  pres- 
ently veers  round  to  the  north  or  the  south,  and  attains 
the  height  of  its  fury  when  it  reaches  the  north-east  or 
the  south-east.  After  the  storm  a  calm  generally  reigns, 
succeeded  by  the  usual  wind  of  the  prevailing  monsoon. 
The  lightly -built  elastic  houses  of  the  country  are  capi- 
tally suited  to  withstand  these  storms;  but  roofs  and 
defective  houses  are  frequently  carried  away.  The 
traffic  between  Manila  and  Legaspi  is  at  its  height 
between  January  and  October;  but  during  the  autumn 
months  all  communication  by  water  ceases.  The  letter- 
post,  which  arrives  pretty  regularly  every  week,  is  then 
the  only  link  between  the  two  places.  At  this  season  heavy 
packages  can  be  sent  only  by  a  circuitous  and  expensive 
route  along  the  south  coast,  and  thence  by  water  to 
Manila.     Much  more  favorably  situated  for  navigation 

Soriooon.  IS  the    port  of  Sorsogon,  the  mouth  of  which  opens  to 

the  west,  and  is  protected  by  the  Island  of  Bagalao,. 
which  lies  in  front  of  it.  Besides  its  security  as  a  harbor, 
it  has  the  advantage  of  a  rapid  and  unbroken  communica- 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  85 

tion  with  the  capital  of  the  archipelago,  while  vessels 
sailing  from  Legaspi,  even  at  the  most  favorable  time 
of  the  year,  are  obliged  to  go  round  the  eastern  peninsula 
of  Luzon,  and  meet  the  principal  current  of  the  Straits 
of  San  Bernardino,  frequently  a  very  difficult  under- 
taking; and,  moreover,  small  vessels  obliged  to  anchor 
there  are  in  great  danger  of  being  captured  by  pirates. 
The  country  about  Sorsogon,  however,  is  not  so  fertile 
as  the  neighborhood  of  Legaspi. 

I  took  letters  of  introduction  with  me  to  both  the  a  worthy 
Spanish  authorities  of  the  province;  who  received  me 
in  the  most  amiable  way,  and  were  of  the  greatest  use 
to  me  during  the  whole  of  my  stay  in  the  vicinity.  I 
had  also  the  good  fortune  to  fall  in  with  a  model  alcalde, 
a  man  of  good  family  and  of  most  charming  manners; 
in  short,  a  genuine  caballero.  To  show  the  popular 
appreciation  of  the  honesty  of  his  character,  it  was  said 
of  him  in  Samar  that  he  had  entered  the  province  with 
nothing  but  a  bundle  of  papers,  and  had  left  it  as  lightly 
equipped. 


IX 

My  Spanish  friends  enabled    me   to    rent    a    house    in  Daraga. 
Daraga,*  a  well-to-do  town  of  twenty  thousand  inhabit- 
ants at  the  foot  of  the  Mayon,  a  league  and  a  half  from 
Legaspi.     The  summit  of  this  volcano  was  considered 
inaccessible   until   two   young   Scotchmen,   Paton   and 


♦  Officially  called  Cagsaua.  The  old  town  of  Cagsaua,  which  was  built 
higher  up  the  hill  and  was  destroyed  by  the  eruption  of  1814,  was  rebuilt  on  the 
.spot  where  formerly  stood  a  small  hamlet  of  the  name  of  Daraga. 


Mayon. 


86  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Stewart  by  name,  demonstrated  the  contrary.*     Since 
then  several  natives  have  ascended  the  mountain,  but 
no  Europeans. 
Ascent  of  J  gg^  q^^  qj^  September  25th,  and  passed  the  night, 

by  the  advice  of  Sefior  Muiios,  in  a  hut  one  thousand 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  in  order  to  begin  the  ascent 
the  next  morning  with  unimpaired  vigor.  But  a  number 
of  idlers  who  insisted  on  following  me,  and  who  kept 
up  a  tremendous  noise  all  night,  frustrated  the  purpose 
of  this  friendly  advice;  and  I  started  about  five  in  the 
morning  but  little  refreshed.  The  fiery  glow  I  had  notic- 
ed about  the  crater  disappeared  with  the  dawn.  The 
first  few  hundred  feet  of  the  ascent  were  covered  with 
a  tall  grass  quite  six  feet  high ;  and  then  came  a  slope  of 
a  thousand  feet  or  so  of  short  grass  succeeded  by  a  quan- 
tity of  moss;  but  even  this  soon  disappeared,  and  the 
whole  of  the  upper  part  of  the  mountain  proved  entirely 
barren.  We  reached  the  summit  about  one  o'clock. 
It  was  covered  with  fissures  which  gave  out  sulphurous 
gases  and  steam  in  such  profusion  that  we  were  obliged 
to  stop  our  mouths  and  nostrils  with  our  handkerchiefs 
to  prevent  ourselves  from  being  suffocated.  We  came 
to  a  halt  at  the  edge  of  a  broad  and  deep  chasm,  from 
which  issued  a  particularly  dense  vapor.  Apparently 
we  were  on  the  brink  of  a  crater,  but  the  thick  fumes  of 
the  disagreeable  vapor  made  it  impossible  for  us  to  guess 


*  I  learnt  from  Mr.  Paton  that  the  undertaking  had  also  been  represented  as 
impracticable  in  Albay.  "Not  a  single  Spaniard,  not  a  single  native  had  ever 
succeeded  in  reaching  the  summit;  in  spite  of  all  their  precautions  they  would 
certainly  be  swallowed  up  in  the  sand."  However,  one  morning,  about  five 
o'clock,  they  set  off,  and  soon  reached  the  foot  of  the  cone  of  the  crater.  Accom- 
panied by  a  couple  of  natives,  who  soon  left  them,  they  began  to  make  the  ascent. 
Resting  half  way  up,  they  noticed  frequent  masses  of  shining  lava,  thrown  from 
the  mouth  of  the  crater,  gliding  down  the  mountain.  With  th^  greatest  exer- 
tions they  succeeded,  between  two  and  three  o'clock,  in  reaching  the  summit, 
where,  however,  they  were  prevented  by  the  noxious  gas  from  remaining  more 
than  two  or  three  minutes.  During  their  descent,  they  restored  their  strength 
with  some  refreshments  Sr.  Munoz  had  sent  to  meet  them;  and  they  reached 
Albay  towards  evening,  where  during  their  short  stay  they  were  treated  as  heroes, 
and  presented  with  an  official  certificate  of  their  achievement,  for  which  they  had 
the  pleasure  of  paying  several  dollars. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  87 

at  the  breadth  of  the  fissure.  The  absolute  top  of  the 
volcano  consisted  of  a  ridge,  nearly  ten  feet  thick,  of 
solid  masses  of  stone  covered  with  a  crust  of  lava  bleach- 
ed by  the  action  of  the  escaping  gas.  Several  irregular 
blocks  of  stone  lying  about  us  showed  that  the  peak  had 
once  been  a  little  higher.  When,  now  and  again,  the 
11  gusts  of  wind  made  rifts  in  the  vapor,  we  perceived  on 

the  northern  corner  of  the  plateau  several  rocky  columns 
at  least  a  hundred  feet  high,  which  had  hitherto  with- 
stood both  storm  and  eruption.  I  afterwards  had  an 
opportunity  of  observing  the  summit  from  Daraga  with 
a  capital  telescope  on  a  very  clear  day,  when  I  noticed 
that  the  northern  side  of  the  crater  was  considerably 
higher  than  its  southern  edge. 

Our  descent  took  some  time.  We  had  still  two-thirds  The  descent. 
of  it  beneath  us  when  night  overtook  us.  In  the  hope 
of  reaching  the  hut  where  we  had  left  our  provisions,  we 
wandered  about  till  eleven  o'clock,  hungry  and  weary, 
and  at  last  were  obliged  to  wait  for  daylight.  This  mis- 
fortune was  owing  not  to  our  want  of  proper  precaution, 
but  to  the  unreliability  of  the  carriers.  Two  of  them, 
whom  we  had  taken  with  us  to  carry  water  and  refresh- 
ments, had  disappeared  at  the  very  first;  and  a  third, 
"a  very  trustworthy  man,"  whom  we  had  left  to  take 
care  of  our  things  at  the  hut,  and  who  had  been  ordered 
to  meet  us  at  dusk  with  torches,  had  bolted,  as  I  after- 
wards discovered,  back  to  Daraga  before  noon.  My 
servant,  too,  who  was  carrying  a  woolen  blanket  and  an 
umbrella  for  me,  suddenly  vanished  in  the  darkness  as 
soon  as  it  began  to  rain,  and  though  I  repeatedly  called 
him,  never  turned  up  again  till  the  next  morning.  We 
passed  the  wet  night  upon  the  bare  rocks,  where,  as  our 
very  thin  clothes  were  perfectly  wet  through,  we  chilled 
till  our  teeth  chattered.     As  soon,  however,  as  the  sun 


88 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  suspicious 
medal. 


An  early  friar 
altempt. 


rose  we  got  so  warm  that  we  soon  recovered  our  tempers. 
Towards  nine  o'clock  we  reached  the  hut  and  got  some- 
thing to  eat  after  twenty -nine  hours'  fast. 

In  the  Trabajos  y  Heches  Notables  de  la  Soc.  Econom. 
de  los  Aynigos  del  Pais,  for  September  4th,  1823,  it  is 
said  that  "Don  Antonio  Siguenza  paid  a  visit  to  the 
volcano  of  Albay  on  March  11th,"  and  that  the  Society 
"ordered  a  medal  to  be  struck  in  commemoration  of  the 
event,  and  in  honor  of  the  aforesaid  Siguenza  and  his 
companions."  Everybody  in  Albay,  however,  assured 
me  that  the  two  Scotchmen  were  the  first  to  reach  the 
top  of  the  mountain.  It  is  true  that  in  the  above  notice 
the  ascent  of  the  volcano  is  not  directly  mentioned ;  but 
the  fact  of  the  medal  naturally  leads  us  to  suppose  that 
nothing  less  can  be  referred  to.  Arenas,  in  his  memoir, 
says:  "Mayon  was  surveyed  by  Captain  Siguenza. 
From  the  crater  to  the  base,  which  is  nearly  at  the  level 
of  the  sea,  he  found  that  it  measured  sixteen  hundred 
and  eighty-two  Spanish  feet  or  four  sixty-eight  and  two- 
third  meters."  A  little  further  on,  he  adds,  that  he  had 
read  in  the  records  of  the  Society  that  they  had  had  a 
gold  medal  struck  in  honor  of  Siguenza,  who  had  made 
some  investigations  about  the  volcano's  crater  in  1823. 
He,  therefore,  appears  to  have  had  some  doubt  about 
Siguenza's  actual  ascent. 

According  to  the  Franciscan  records  a  couple  of  monks 
attempted  the  ascent  in  1592,  in  order  to  cure  the  natives 
of  their  superstitious  belief  about  the  mountain.  One 
of  them  never  returned;  but  the  other,  although  he  did 
not  reach  the  summit,  being  stopped  by  three  deep 
abysses,  made  a  hundred  converts  to  Christianity  by 
the  mere  relation  of  his  adventures.  He  died  in  the 
same  year,  in  consequence,  it  is  recorded,  of  the  many 
variations  of  temperature  to  which  he  was  exposed  in 
his  ascent  of  the  volcano. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  89 

Some  books  say  that  the  mountain  is  of  considerable  Estimates  of 
height;  but  the  Estado  Geogrofico  of  the  Franciscans  for  *'"  '' 
1855,  where  one  could  scarcely  expect  to  find  such  a 
thoughtless  repetition  of  so  gross  a  typographical  error, 
says  that  the  measurements  of  Siguenza  give  the  moun- 
tain a  height  of  sixteen  hundred  and  eighty-two  feet. 
According  to  my  own  barometrical  reading,  the  height 
of  the  summit  above  the  level  of  the  sea  was  twenty- 
three  hundred  and  seventy-four  meters,  or  eighty-five 
hundred  and  fifty-nine  Spanish  feet. 


I  SPRAINED  my  foot  so  badly  in  ascending  Mayon  that  An  accident  and 
I  was  obliged  to  keep  the  house  for  a  month.  Under  the  " '"°""'''  "*'• 
circumstances,  I  was  not  sorry  to  find  myself  settled  in 
a  roomy  and  comfortable  dwelling.  My  house  was 
built  upon  the  banks  of  a  small  stream,  and  stood  in  the 
middle  of  a  garden  in  which  coffee,  cacao,  oranges,  papa- 
yas, and  bananas  grew  luxuriantly,  in  spite  of  the  tall 
weeds  which  surrounded  them.  Several  over-ripe  ber- 
ries had  fallen  to  the  ground,  and  I  had  them  collected, 
roasted,  mixed  with  an  equal  quantity  of  sugar,  and 
made  into  chocolate;  an  art  in  which  the  natives  greatly 
excel.  With  the  Spaniards  chocolate  takes  the  place 
of  coffee  and  tea,  and  even  the  mestizos  and  the  well- 
to-do  natives  drink  a  great  deal  of  it. 

The  cacao-tree  comes  from  Central  America.  It  Cacao. 
flourishes  there  between  the  23rd  parallel  north  and  the 
20th  south  latitude;  but  it  is  only  at  its  best  in  the 
hottest  and  dampest  climates.  In  temperate  climates, 
where  the  thermometer  marks  less  than  23°  C,  it 
produces  no  fruit. 


90  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

iiiuh  quaiitu-  It  was  first  imported  into  the  Philippines  from  Aca- 

pulco;  either,  according  to  Camarines,  by  a  pilot  called 
Pedro  Brabo  de  Lagunas,  in  1670 ;  or,  according  to  Samar, 
by  some  Jesuits,  during  Salcedo's  government,  between 
1663  and  1668.  Since  then  it  has  spread  over  the  greater 
part  of  the  Island;  and,  although  it  is  not  cultivated  with 
any  excessive  care,  its  fruit  is  of  excellent  quality.  The 
cacao  of  Albay,  if  its  cheapness  be  taken  into  considera- 
tion, may  be  considered  at  least  equal  to  that  of  Caracas, 
which  is  so  highly-prized  in  Europe,  and  which,  on 
account  of  its  high  price,  generally  is  largely  mixed  with 
inferior  kinds.*  The  bushes  are  usually  found  in  small 
gardens,  close  to  the  houses;  but  so  great  is  the  native 
laziness  that  frequently  the  berries  are  allowed  to  decay, 
although  the  local  cacao  sells  for  a  higher  price  than 
the  imported.  At  Cebu  and  Negros  a  little  more  atten- 
tion is  paid  to  its  cultivation;  but  it  does  not  suffice  to 
supply  the  wants  of  the  colony,  which  imports  the  defi- 

productioii.  ciency  from  Ternate  and  Mindanao.  The  best  cacao 
of  the  Philippines  is  produced  in  the  small  Island  of 
Maripipi,  which  lies  to  the  north-west  of  Leyte;  and  it 
is  difficult  to  obtain,  the  entire  crop  generally  being 
long  bespoke.  It  costs  about  one  dollar  per  liter,  where- 
as the  Albay  cacao  costs  from  two  to  two  and  a  half 
dollars  per  "ganta"  (three  liters). 


*  From  36,000,000  to  40,000,000  lbs.  of  cacao  are  consumed  in  Europe  annual- 
ly; of  which  quantity  nearly  a  third  goes  to  France,  whose  consumption  of  it 
between  1853  and  1866  has  more  than  doubled.  In  the  former  year  it  amounted 
to  6,215,000  lbs.,  in  the  latter  to  12,973,534  lbs.  Venezuela  sends  the  finest 
cacaos  to  the  European  market,  those  of  Porto  Cabello  and  Caracas.  That  of 
Caracas  is  the  dearest  and  the  best,  and  is  of  four  kinds.  Chuao,  Ghoroni, 
O'Cumar,  and  Rio  Chico.  England  consumes  the  cacao  grown  in  its  own  colo- 
nies, although  the  duty  (1(7  per  lb.)  is  the  same  for  all  descriptions.  Spain,  the 
principal  consumer,  imports  its  supplies  from  Cuba,  Porto  Rico,  Ecuador, 
Mexico,  and  Trinidad.  Several  large  and  important  plantations  have  recently 
been  established  by  Frenchmen  in  Nicaragua.  The  cacao  beans  of  Soconusco 
(Central  America)  and  Esmeralda  (Ecuador)  are  more  highly  esteemed  than  the 
finest  of  the  Venezuela  sorts;  but  they  are  scarcely  ever  used  in  the  Philippines, 
and  cannot  be  said  to  form  part  of  their  commerce.  Germany  contents  itself 
with  the  inferior  kinds.  Guayaquil  cacao,  which  is  only  half  the  price  of  Caracas , 
is  more  popular  amongst  the  Germans  than  all  the  other  varieties  together. 


Jagor's  Traiels  in  the  Philippinefs  91 

The  natives  generally  cover  the  kernels,  just  as  they  <^'"''""' 
are  beginning  to  sprout,  with  a  little  earth,  and,  placing 
them  in  a  spirally-rolled  leaf,  hang  them  up  beneath 
the  roof  of  their  dwellings.  They  grow  very  rapidly, 
and,  to  prevent  their  being  choked  by  weeds,  are  planted 
out  at  very  short  intervals.  This  method  of  treat- 
ment is  probably  the  reason  that  the  cacao-trees  in  the 
Philippines  never  attain  a  greater  height  than  eight  or 
ten  feet,  while  in  their  native  soil  they  frequently  reach 
thirty,  and  sometimes  even  forty  feet.  The  tree  begins 
to  bear  fruit  in  its  third  or  fourth  year,  and  in  its  fifth 
or  sixth  it  reaches  maturity,  when  it  usually  yields  a 
"ganta"  of  cacao,  which,  as  I  have  mentioned,  is  worth 
from  two  to  two  and  a  half  dollars,  and  always  finds  a 
purchaser.'" 

The  profits  arising  from  a  large  plantation  would,  x^vieci. 
therefore,  be  considerable;  yet  it  is  very  rare  to  meet 
with  one.  I  heard  it  said  that  the  Economical  Society 
had  offered  a  considerable  reward  to  any  one  who  could 
exhibit  a  plantation  of  ten  thousand  berry -bearing  trees; 
but  in  the  Society's  report  I  found  no  mention  of  this 
reward. 

The  great  obstacles  in  the  way  of  large  plantations  are  i^mage  by 
the  heavy  storms  which  recur  almost  regularly  every 
year,  and  often  destroy  an  entire  plantation  in  a  single 
day.  In  1856  a  hurricane  visited  the  Island  just  before 
the  harvest,  and  completely  tore  up  several  large  planta- 
tions by  the  roots;  a  catastrophe  that  naturally  has 
caused  much  discouragement  to  the  cultivators.!  One 
consequence  of  this  state  of  things  was  that  the  free 

*  C.  Scherzer,  in  his  work  on  Central  America,  gives  the  cacao-tree  an  exis- 
tence of  twenty  years,  and  says  that  each  tree  annually  produces  from  15  to  20 
ounces  of  cacao.  1,000  plants  will  produce  1,250  lbs.  of  cacao,  worth  $250; 
so  that  the  annual  produce  of  a  single  tree  is  worth  a  quarter  of  a  dollar.  Mit- 
scherlich  says  that  from  4  to  6  lbs.  of  raw  beans  is  an  average  produce.  A  liter 
of  dried  cacao  beans  weighs  630  grains;  of  picked  and  roasted,  610  grains. 

t  In  172  7  a  hurricane  destroyed  at  a  single  blast  the  important  cacao  planta- 
tion of  Martinique,  which  had  been  created  by  long  years  of  extraordmary  care. 
The  same  thing  happened  at  Trinidad.— .Utf.'-c/ifr/ic/i. 


)rmx 


9Z  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

importation  of  cacao  was  permitted,  and  people  were 

enabled  to  purchase  Guayaqual  cacao  at  fifteen  dollars  per 

^Diseases  and      quintal  whilc  that  grown  at  home  cost  double  the  money. 

,pe8fs. 

The  plant  is  sometimes  attacked  by  a  disease,  the 
origin  of  which  is  unknown,  when  it  suffers  severely 
from  certain  noxious  insects.*  It  is  also  attacked  by 
rats  and  other  predatory  vermin;  the  former  sometimes 
falling  upon  it  in  such  numbers  that  they  destroy  the 
entire  harvest  in  a  single  night.  Travellers  in  America 
say  that  a  well-kept  cacao  plantation  is  a  very  pictur- 
esque sight.  In  the  Philippines,  however,  or  at  any 
rate  in  East  Luzon,  the  closely-packed,  lifeless-looking, 
moss-covered  trees  present  a  dreary  spectacle.  Their 
existence  is  a  brief  one.  Their  oval  leaves,  sometimes 
nearly  a  foot  long,  droop  singly  from  the  twigs,  and  form 
no  luxuriant  masses  of  foliage.  Their  blossoms  are  very 
insignificant ;  they  are  of  a  reddish-yellow,  no  larger  than 
the  flowers  of  the  lime,  and  grow  separately  on  long 
weedy  stalks.  The  fruit  ripens  in  six  months.  When 
it  is  matured,  it  is  of  either  a  red  or  a  yellow  tint,  and 
is  somewhat  like  a  very  rough  gherkin.  Only  two  varie- 
ties appear  to  be  cultivated  in  the  Philippines. t  The 
pulp  of  the  fruit  is  white,  tender,  and  of  an  agreeable 
acid  taste,  and  contains  from  eighteen  to  twenty-four 
kernels,  arranged  in  five  rows.  These  kernels  are  as 
large  as  almonds,  and,  like  them,  consist  of  a  couple  of 
husks  and  a  small  core.     This  is  the  cacao  bean;  which, 


*  F.  Kngel  mentions  a  disease  {mancha)  which  attacks  the  tree  in  America, 
beginning  by  destroying  its  roots.  The  tree  soon  dies,  and  the  disease  spreads 
so  rapidly  that  whole  groves  of  cacao-trees  utterly  parish  and  are  turned  into 
pastures  for  cattle.  Even  in  the  most  favored  localities,  after  a  long  season  of 
prosperity,  thousands  of  trees  are  destroyed  in  a  single  night  by  this  disease, 
just  as  the  harvest  is  about  to  take  place.  An  almost  equally  aangerous  foe 
to  cultivation  is  a  moth  whose  larva  entirely  destroys  the  ripe  cacao  beans; 
and  which  only  cold  and  wind  will  kill.  Humboldt  mentions  that  cacao 
beans  which  have  been  transported  over  the  chilly  passes  of  the  Cordilleras  are 
never  attacked  by  this  pest. 

t  G.  Bornoulli  quotes  altogether  eighteen  kinds;  of  which  he  mentions  only 
■one  as  generally  in  use  in  the  Philippines. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  9S 

roasted  and  finely  ground,  produces  cacao,  and  with  the 
addition  of  sugar,  and  generally  of  spice,  makes  choco- 
late. Till  the  last  few  years,  every  household  in  the 
Philippines  made  its  own  chocolate,  of  nothing  but  cacao 
and  sugar.  The  natives  who  eat  chocolate  often  add 
roasted  rice  to  it.  Nowadays  there  is  a  manufactory 
in  Manila,  which  makes  chocolate  in  the  European  way. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  eastern  provinces  are  very  fond 
of  adding  roasted  pili  nuts  to  their  chocolate.* 

Europeans  first  learnt  to  make  a  drink  from  cacao  in  Chocolate. 
Mexico,  where  the  preparation  was  called  chocolatl.'\ 
Even  so  far  back  as  the  days  of  Cortes,  who  was  a  tre- 
mendous chocolate  drinker,  the  cacao-tree  was  exten- 
sively cultivated.  The  Aztecs  used  the  beans  as  money ; 
and  Montezuma  used  to  receive  part  of  his  tribute  in 
this  peculiar  coin.  It  was  only  the  wealthy  among  the 
ancient  Mexicans  who  ate  pure  cacao;  the  poor,  on 
account  of  the  value  of  the  beans  as  coins,  used  to  mix 
maize  and  mandioca  meal  with  them.  Even  in  our  own 
day  the  inhabitants  of  Central  America  make  use  of 
the  beans  as  small  coins,  as  they  have  no  copper  money, 
nor  smaller  silver  coins  than  the  half-real.  Both  in 
Central  America  and  in  Orinoco  there  yet  are  many 

*  Pili  is  very  common  in  South  Luzon,  Samar,  and  Leyte;  it  is  to  be  found  in 
almost  every  village.  Its  fruit,  which  is  almost  of  the  sire  of  an  ordinary  plum 
but  not  so  round,  contains  a  hard  stone,  the  raw  kernel  of  which  is  steeped  in 
syrup  and  candied  in  the  same  manner  as  the  kernel  of  the  sweet  pins,  which  it 
resembles  in  flavor.  The  large  trees  with  fruit  on  them,  "about  the  size  of 
almonds  and  looking  like  sweet-pine  kernels,"  which  Pigafetta  saw  at  Jomonjol 
were  doubtless  pi7j-trees.  An  oil  is  expressed  from  the  kernels  much  resembling 
sweet  almond  oil.  If  incisions  are  made  in  the  stems  of  the  trees,  an  abundant 
pleasant-smelling  white  resin  flows  from  them,  which  is  largely  used  in  the 
Philippines  to  calk  ships  with.  It  also  has  a  great  reputation  as  an  anti-rheu- 
matic plaster.  It  is  twenty  years  since  it  was  first  exported  to  Europe;  and  the 
first  consignees  made  large  profits,  as  the  resin,  which  was  worth  scarcely  any- 
thing in  the  Philippines,  became  very  popular  and  was  much  sought  in  Europe. 

t  The  general  name  for  the  beverage  was  Cacahoa-all  (cacao  water).  Choco- 
latl  was  the  term  given  to  a  particular  kind.  F.  Hernandez  found  four  kinds 
of  cacao  in  use  among  the  Axtecs,  and  he  describes  four  varieties  of  drinks  that 
were  prepared  from  them.  The  third  was  called  chocolatl,  and  apparently  was 
prepared  as  follows: — Equal  quantities  of  the  kernels  of  the  ponholl  {Bomhax 
eeiba)  and  cacahoatl  {cacao)  trees  were  finely  ground,  and  heated  in  an  earthen 
vessel,  and  all  the  grease  removed  as  it  rose  to  the  surface.  Maize,  crushed 
and  soaked,  was  added  to  it,  and  a  beverage  prepared  from  the  mixture;  to  which 
the  oily  parts  that  had  been  skimmed  off  the  top  were  restored,  and  the  whole 
was  drunk  hot. 


94  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

unpenetrated  forests  which  are  almost  entirely  composed 
of  wild  cacao-trees.  I  believe  the  natives  gather  some 
of  their  fruit,  but  it  is  almost  worthless.  By  itself  it 
has  much  less  flavor  than  the  cultivated  kinds.  Certain- 
ly it  is  not  picked  and  dried  at  the  proper  season,  and 
it  gets  spoilt  in  its  long  transit  through  the  damp  woods. 

An  uucertaiii  Sincc  the  aboHtion  of  slavery,  the  crops  in  America 


venture. 


have  been  diminishing  year  by  year,  and  until  a  short 
time  ago,  when  the  French  laid  out  several  large  planta- 
tions in  Central  America,  were  of  but  trifling  value. 
According  to  F.  Engel,  a  flourishing  cacao  plantation 
required  less  outlay  and  trouble,  and  yields  more  profit 
than  any  other  tropical  plant;  yet  its  harvests,  which 
do  not  yield  anything  for  the  first  five  or  six  years,  are 
very  uncertain,  owing  to  the  numerous  insects  which 
attack  the  plants.  In  short,  cacao  plantations  are  only 
suited  to  large  capitalists,  or  to  very  small  cultivators 
who  grow  the  trees  in  their  own  gardens.  Moreover, 
as  we  have  said,  since  the  abolition  of  slavery  most 
of  the  plantations  have  fallen  into  decay,  for  the  freed 
slaves  are  entirely  wanting  in  industry. 

Use  in  Eur«i>f.  The  Original  chocolate  was  not  generally  relished  in 
Europe.  When,  however,  at  a  later  period,  it  was 
mixed  with  sugar,  it  met  with  more  approbation.  The 
exaggerated  praise  of  its  admirers  raised  a  bitter  opposi- 
tion amongst  the  opponents  of  the  new  drink;  and  the 
priests  raised  conscientious  scruples  against  the  use  of  so 
nourishing  an  article  of  food  on  fast  days.  The  quarrel 
lasted  till  the  seventeenth  century,  by  which  time  cacao 
had  become  an  everyday  necessity  in  Spain.  It  was  first 
introduced  into  Spain  in  1520;  but  chocolate,  on  account 
of  the  monopoly  of  the  Conquistadores,  was  for  a  long 
time  secretly  prepared  on  the  other  side  of  the  ocean. 
In  1580,  however,  it  was  in  common  use  in  Spain,  though 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  96 

it  was  so  entirely  unknown  in  England  that,  in  1579, 
an  English  captain  burnt  a  captured  cargo  of  it  as  use- 
less. It  reached  Italy  in  1606,  and  was  introduced  into 
France  by  Anne  of  Austria.  The  first  chocolate-house 
in  London  was  opened  in  1657,  and  in  1700  Germany 
at  last  followed  suit.* 

The  history  of  coffee  in  the  Philippines  is  very  similar  to 
that  of  cacao.  The  plant  thrives  wonderfully,  and  its  berry 
has  so  strongly  marked  a  flavor  that  the  worst  Manila 
coffee  commands  as  high  a  price  as  the  best  Java.  In 
spite  of  this,  however,  the  amount  of  coffee  produced 
in  the  Philippines  is  very  insignificant,  and,  until  lately, 
scarcely  deserved  mention.  According  to  the  report  of 
an  Englishman  in  1828,  the  coffee-plant  was  almost 
unknown  forty  years  before,  and  was  represented  only 
by  a  few  specimens  in  the  Botanical  Gardens  at  Manila. 
It  soon,  however,  increased  and  multiplied,  thanks  to 
the  moderation  of  a  small  predatory  animal  (paradoxurus 
jnusanga),  which  only  nibbled  the  ripe  fruit,  and  left 
the  hard  kernels  (the  coffee  beans)  untouched,  as  indi- 
gestible. The  Economical  Society  bestirred  itself  in  its 
turn  by  offering  rewards  to  encourage  the  laying  out 
of  large  coffee  plantations.  In  1837  it  granted  toM.de 
la  Gironniere  a  premium  of  $1,000,  for  exhibiting  a 
coffee  plantation  of  sixty  thousand  plants,  which  were 
yielding  their  second  harvest;  and  four  premiums  to 
others  in  the  following  year.  But  as  soon  as  the  re- 
wards were  obtained  the  plantations  were  once  more 
allowed  to  fall  into  neglect.  From  this  it  is  pretty 
evident  that  the  enterprise,  in  the  face  of  the  then 
market  prices  and  the  artificially  high  rates  of  freight, 
did  not  afford  a  sufficient  profit. 


Coffee. 


*  Berthold  Seemann  speaks  of  a  tree  with  finger-shaped  leaves  and  small  round 
berries,  which  the  Indians  sometimes  offered  for  sale.  They  made  chocolate 
from  them,  which  in  flavor  much  surpassed  that  usually  made  from  cacao. 


96 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Exports, 


Highest  grades. 


French 
preference. 


In  1856  the  exports  of  coffee  were  not  more  than 
seven  thousand  piculs;  in  1865  they  had  increased  to 
thirty-seven  thousand,  five  hundred  and  eighty-eight; 
and  in  1871,  to  fifty-three  thousand,  three  hundred  and 
seventy.  This  increase,  however,  affords  no  criterion 
by  which  to  estimate  the  increase  in  the  number  of 
plantations,  for  these  make  no  returns  for  the  first  few 
years  after  being  laid  out.  In  short,  larger  exports  may 
be  confidently  expected.  But  even  greatly  increased 
exports  could  not  be  taken  as  correct  measures  of  the 
colony's  resources.  Not  till  European  capital  calls  large 
plantations  into  existence  in  the  most  suitable  localities 
will  the  Philippines  obtain  their  proper  rank  in  the 
coffee-producing  districts  of  the  world. 

The  best  coffee  comes  from  the  provinces  of  Laguna, 
Batangas  and  Cavite;  the  worst  from  Mindanao.  The 
latter,  in  consequence  of  careless  treatment,  is  very 
impure,  and  generally  contains  a  quantity  of  bad  beans. 
The  coffee  beans  of  Mindanao  are  of  a  yellowish-white 
color  and  flabby ;  those  of  Laguna  are  smaller,  but  much 
firmer  in  texture. 

Manila  coffee  is  very  highly  esteemed  by  connoisseurs, 
and  is  very  expensive,  though  it  is  by  no  means  so  nice 
looking  as  that  of  Ceylon  and  other  more  carefully  pre- 
pared kinds.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  in  1865 
France,  which  imported  only  $21,000  worth  of  hemp 
from  the  Philippines,  imported  more  than  $200,000 
worth  of  Manila  coffee,  a  third  of  the  entire  coffee  produce 
of  the  Islands.*  Manila  coffee  is  not  much  prized  in 
London,  and  does  not  fetch  much  more  than  good  Ceylon 
($15  per  cwt.).t  This,  however,  is  no  reproach  to  the 
coffee,  as  every  one  acquainted  with  an  Englishman's 
appreciation  of  coffee  will  allow. 


*  Report  of  the  French  consul. 

t  Myscre  and  Mocha  coffees  fetch  the  highest  prices.  From  $20  to  $22.50 
per  cwt.  is  paid  for  Mysore;  and  as  much  as  $30,  when  it  has  attained  an  age 
of  five  or  six  years,  for  Mocha. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


California,  an  excellent  customer,  always  ready  to 
give  a  fair  price  for  a  good  article,  will  in  time  become 
one  of  its  principal  consumers.*  In  1868,  coffee  in 
Manila  itself  cost  an  average  of  $16  per  picul.'\  In  Java, 
the  authorities  pay  the  natives,  who  are  compelled  to 
cultivate  it,  about  $3.66  per  picul. 

Although  the  amount  of  coffee  exported  from  the 
Philippines  is  trifling  in  comparison  with  the  producing 
powers  of  the  colony,  it  compares  favorably  with  the 
exports  from  other  countries. 

In  my  Sketches  of  Travel,  I  compared  the  decrease 
of  the  coffee  produced  in  Java  under  the  forced  system 
of  cultivation  with  the  increase  of  that  voluntarily  grown 
in  Ceylon,  and  gave  the  Javanese  produce  for  1858  as 
sixty-seven  thousand  tons,  and  the  Cingalese  as  thirty-five 
thousand  tons.  Since  that  time  the  relative  decrease 
and  increase  have  continued;  and  in  1866  the  Dutch 
Indies  produced  only  fifty-six  thousand  tons,  and  Ceylon 
thirty-six  thousand  tons.f 

During  my  enforced  stay  in  Daraga  the  natives  brought 
me  mussels  and  snails  for  sale;  and  several  of  them 
wished  to  enter  my  service,  as  they  felt  "a  particular 
vocation  for  Natural  History."  At  last  my  kitchen 
was  always  full  of  them.  They  sallied  forth  every  day 
to  collect  insects,  and  as  a  rule  were  not  particularly 


rri,c» 


I'iiilippinr 
ix/ioiis. 


Javan  and 
Ceylon  crops. 


*  In  1865-66-67  California  imported  three  and  one-half,  eight  and  ten  million 
lbs.  of  coffee,  of  which  two,  four  and  five  millions  respectively  came  from  Manila. 
In  1868  England  was  the  best  customer  of  the  Philippines. 

t  Report  of  the  Belgian  consul. 

t  Coffee  is  such  an  exquisite  beverage,  and  is  so  seldom  properly  prepared, 
that  the  following  hints  from  a  master  in  the  art  (Report  of  the  Jury,  Internat. 
Exhib.,  Paris,  1868)  will  not  be  unwelcome: — 1st.  Select  good  coffees.  2nd.  Mix 
them  in  the  proper  proportions.  3rd.  Thoroughly  dry  the  beans;  otherwise 
in  roasting  them  a  portion  of  the  aroma  escapes  with  the  steam.  4th.  Roast 
them  in  a  dry  atmosphere,  and  roast  each  quality  separately.  5th.  Allow  them 
to  cool  rapidly.  If  it  is  impossible  to  roast  the  beans  at  home,  then  purchase 
only  sufficient  for  each  day's  consumption.  With  the  exception  of  the  fourth, 
however,  it  is  easy  to  follow  all  these  directions  at  home;  and  small  roasting 
machines  are  purchasable,  in  which,  with  the  aid  of  a  spirit  lamp,  small  quan- 
tities can  be  prepared  at  a  time.  It  is  best,  when  possible,  to  buy  coffee  in  large 
quantities,  and  keep  it  stored  for  two  or  three  years  in  a  dry  place. 


.1  maleur 
scientists. 


98  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

fortunate  in  their  search;  but  this  was  of  no  consequence; 
in  fact,  it  served  to  give  them  a  fresh  appetite  for  their 
meals.  Some  of  the  neighboring  Spaniards  paid  me 
almost  daily  visits ;  and  several  of  the  native  and  mestizo 
dignitaries  from  a  distance  were  good  enough  to  call 
upon  me,  not  so  much  for  the  purpose  of  seeing  my 
humble  self  as  of  inspecting  my  hat,  the  fame  of  which 
had  spread  over  the  whole  province.  It  was  constructed 
in  the  usual  judicious  mushroom  shape,  covered  with 
nito*  and  its  pinnacle  was  adorned  with  a  powerful  oil 
lamp,  furnished  with  a  closely  fatting  lid,  like  that  of 
a  dark  lantern,  so  that  it  could  be  carried  in  the  pocket. 
This  last  was  particularly  useful  when  riding  about  on 
a  dark  night. 

Nito  cigar  j^  ^j^g  neighboring  pueblo  cigar-cases  were  made  out 

of  this  7iito.  They  are  not  of  much  use  as  an  article  of 
commerce,  and  usually  are  only  made  to  order.  To 
obtain  a  dozen  a  would-be  purchaser  must  apply  to  as 
many  individuals,  who,  at  the  shortest,  will  condescend  to 
finish  one  in  a  few  months.  The  stalk  of  the  fern,  which 
is  about  as  thick  as  a  lucifer  match,  is  split  into  four 
strips.  The  workman  then  takes  a  strip  in  his  left 
hand,  and,  with  his  thumb  on  the  back  and  his  fore- 
finger on  the  edge,  draws  the  strips  up  and  down  against 
the  knife  blade  until  the  soft  pithy  parts  are  cut  away, 
and  what  remains  has  become  fine  enough  for  the  next 
process.  The  cases  are  made  on  pointed  cylindrical 
pieces  of  wood  almost  a  couple  of  feet  long.  A  pin  is 
stuck  into  the  center  of  the  end  of  the  cylinder,  and  the 
workman  commences  by  fastening  the  strips  of  fern 
stalk  to  it.     The  size  of  the  case  corresponds  to  the 


case$. 


*  A  creeping,  or  rather  a  running  fern,  nearly  the  only  one  of  the  kind  in  the 
hole  soeciea. 


whole  species. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  99 

diameter  of  the  roller,  and  a  small  wooden  disk  is  placed 
in  the  bottom  of  the  case  to  keep  it  steady  while  the 
sides  are  being  plaited. 

When  my  ankle  began  to  get  better,  my  first  excursion  a  FHiptno 
was  to  Legaspi,  where  some  Filipinos  were  giving  a 
theatrical  performance.  A  Spanish  political  refugee 
directed  the  entertainment.  On  each  side  of  the  stage, 
roofed  in  with  palm  leaves,  ran  covered  galleries  for  the 
dignitaries  of  the  place;  the  uncovered  space  between 
these  was  set  apart  for  the  common  people.  The 
performers  had  chosen  a  play  taken  from  Persian  history. 
The  language  was  Spanish,  and  the  dresses  were,  to  say 
the  least,  eccentric.  The  stage  was  erected  hard  by  a 
public  street,  which  itself  formed  part  of  the  auditorium, 
and  the  noise  was  so  great  that  I  could  only  catch  a 
word  here  and  there.  The  actors  stalked  on,  chatter- 
ing their  parts,  which  not  one  of  them  understood,  and 
moving  their  arms  up  and  down;  and  when  they 
reached  the  edge  of  the  stage,  they  tacked  and  went  back 
again  like  ships  sailing  against  the  wind.  Their  counten- 
ances were  entirely  devoid  of  expression,  and  they  spoke 
like  automatons.  If  I  had  understood  the  words,  the 
contrast  between  their  meaning  and  the  machine-like 
movements  of  the  actors  would  probably  have  been 
droll  enough;  but,  as  it  was,  the  noise,  the  heat,  and  the 
smoke  were  so  great  that  we  soon  left  the  place. 

Both  the  theatrical  performance  and  the  whole  festival  An  indifferent 
bore  the  impress  of  laziness,  indifference,  and  mindless  p'^'"^'""'""'"^''- 
mimicry.  When  I  compared  the  frank  cheerfulness  I 
had  seen  radiating  from  every  countenance  at  the  reli- 
gious holidays  of  Europe  with  the  expressionless  and 
immobile  faces  of  the  natives,  I  found  it  difficult  to 
understand  how  the  latter  were  persuaded  to  waste  so 
much  time  and  money  upon  a  matter  they  seemed  so 
thoroughly  indifferent  to. 


IiUeiext  in 
feslivaL 


100  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Travellers  have  remarked  the  same  want  of  gaiety 
amiongst  the  Indians  of  America;  and  some  of  them 
ascribe  it  to  the  small  development  of  the  nervous  system 
prevalent  among  these  peoples,  to  which  cause  also  they 
attribute  their  wonderful  courage  in  bearing  pain.  But 
Tylor  observes  that  the  Indian's  countenance  is  so 
different  from  ours  that  it  takes  us  several  years  to 
rightly  interpret  its  expression.  There  probably  is  some- 
thing in  both  these  explanations.  And,  although  I 
observed  no  lively  expression  of  amusement  among 
my  native  friends  at  Legaspi,  I  noticed  that  they  took 
the  greatest  possible  pleasure  in  decorating  their  village, 
and  that  the  procession  which  formed  part  of  the  festival 
had  extraordinary  charms  for  them.  Every  individual 
was  dressed  in  his  very  best;  and  the  honor  of  carrying 
a  banner  inspired  those  who  attained  it  with  the  greatest 
pride,  and  raised  an  amazing  amount  of  envy  in  the 
breasts  of  the  remainder.  Visitors  poured  in  from  all 
the  surrounding  hamlets,  and  erected  triumphal  arches 
which  they  had  brought  with  them  ready-made  and  which 
bore  some  complimentary  inscription.  I  am  obliged 
to  confess  that  some  of  the  holiday-makers  were  very 
drunk.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Philippines  have  a  great 
love  for  strong  drink;  even  the  young  girls  occasionally 
get  intoxicated.  When  night  came  on,  the  strangers 
were  hospitably  lodged  in  the  dwellings  of  the  village. 
On  such  occasions  native  hospitality  shows  itself  in  a 
very  favorable  light.  The  door  of  every  house  stands 
open,  and  even  balls  take  place  in  some  of  the  larger 
hamlets.  The  Spanish  and  mestizo  cavaliers,  however, 
condescend  to  dance  only  with  mestiza  partners,  and 
very  seldom  invite  a  pretty  native  girl  to  join  them. 
The  natives  very  rarely  dance  together;  but  in  Samar 
I  was  present  on  one  occasion  at  a  by  no  means  ungrace- 
ful native  dance  where  "improvised"  verses  were  sung. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  101 

The  male  dancer  compared  his  partner  with  a  rose,  and 
she  answered  he  should  be  careful  in  touching  it  as  a 
rose  had  thorns.  This  would  have  been  thought  a  charm- 
ing compliment  in  the  mouth  of  an  Andalusian. 

The  idle  existence  we  spent  in  Daraga  was  so  agree-  senwu 
able  to  my  servants  and  their  numerous  friends  that  ■^"'''^'•''"'"'* 
they  were  anxious  I  should  stay  there  as  long  as  possible; 
and  they  adopted  some  very  ingenious  means  to  per- 
suade me  to  do  so.  Twice,  when  everything  was  pre- 
pared for  a  start  the  next  morning,  my  shoes  were  stolen 
in  the  night ;  and  on  another  occasion  they  kidnapped  my 
horse.  When  a  native  has  a  particularly  heavy  load 
to  carry,  or  a  long  journey  to  make,  he  thinks  noth- 
ing of  coolly  appropriating  the  well-fed  beast  of  some 
Spaniard;  which,  when  he  has  done  with  it,  he  turns 
loose  without  attempting  to  feed  it,  and  it  wanders 
about  till  somebody  catches  it  and  stalls  it  in  the  nearest 
'Tribunal."  There  it  is  kept  tied  up  and  hungry  until 
its  master  claims  it  and  pays  its  expenses.  I  had  a 
dollar  to  pay  when  I  recovered  mine,  although  it  was 
nearly  starved  to  death,  on  the  pretence  that  it  had 
swallowed  rice  to  that  value  since  it  had  been  caught. 

Small  robberies  occur  very  frequently,  but  they  are  Petm  rohon-ie 
committed — as  an  acquaintance,  a  man  who  had  spent 
some  time  in  the  country,  informed  me  one  evening 
when  I  was  telling  him  my  troubles — only  upon  the 
property  of  new  arrivals;  old  residents,  he  said,  enjoyed 
a  prescriptive  freedom  from  such  little  inconveniences. 
I  fancy  some  waggish  native  must  have  overheard  our 
conversation,  for  early  the  next  morning  my  friend,  the 
old  resident,  sent  to  borrow  chocolate,  biscuits,  and  eggs 
of  me,  as  his  larder  and  his  hen-house  had  been  rifled 
during  the  night. 


102 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Daraga  market.  Monday  and  Friday  evenings  were  the  Daraga  market 
nights,  and  in  fine  weather  always  afforded  a  pretty 
sight.  The  women,  neatly  and  cleanly  clad,  sat  in  long 
rows  and  offered  their  provisions  for  sale  by  the  light 
of  hundreds  of  torches;  and,  when  the  business  was 
over,  the  slopes  of  the  mountains  were  studded  all  over 
with  flickering  little  points  of  brightness  proceeding 
from  the  torches  carried  by  the  homeward-bound  market 
women.  Besides  eatables,  many  had  silks  and  stuffs 
woven  from  the  fibers  of  the  pine-apple  and  the  banana 
for  sale.  These  goods  they  carried  on  their  heads ;  and 
I  noticed  that  all  the  younger  women  were  accompanied 
by  their  sweethearts,  who  relieved  them  of  their  burdens. 


XI 


Change  of 
teason. 


■During  the  whole  time  I  was  confined  to  the  house 
at  Daraga,  the  weather  was  remarkably  fine;  but  un- 
fortunately the  bright  days  had  come  to  an  end  by  the 
time  I  was  ready  to  make  a  start,  for  the  north-east 
monsoon,  the  sure  forerunner  of  rain  in  this  part  of  the 
Archipelago,  sets  in  in  October.  In  spite,  however,  of  the 
weather,  I  determined  to  make  another  attempt  to 
ascend  the  mountain  at  Bulusan.  I  found  I  could  go 
by  boat  to  Bacon  in  the  Bay  of  Albay,  a  distance  of 
seven  leagues,  whence  I  could  ride  to  Gubat,  on  the 
east  coast,  three  leagues  further,  and  then  in  a  southerly 
direction  along  the  shore  to  Bulusan.  An  experienced 
old  native,  who  provided  a  boat  and  crew,  had  appointed 
ten  o'clock  at  night  as  the  best  time  for  my  departure. 
Just  as  we  were  about  to  start,  however,  we  were  told 
that  four  piratical  craft  had  been  seen  in  the  bay.  In 
a  twinkling,  the  crew  disappeared,  and  I  was  left  alone 
in  the  darkness;  and  it   took  me  four  hours  with  the 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  103 

assistance  of  a  Spaniard  to  find  them  again,  and  make 
a  fresh  start.  About  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  we 
reached  Bacon,  whence  I  rode  across  a  very  flat  country 
to  San  Roque,  where  the  road  leading  to  Gubat  took  a 
sharp  turn  to  the  south-east,  and  presently  became  an 
extremely  bad  one.  After  I  had  passed  Gubat,  my 
way  lay  along  the  shore;  and  I  saw  several  ruined  square 
towers,  made  of  blocks  of  coral,  and  built  by  the  Jesuits 
as  a  protection  against  the  Moros,  or  "Moors" — a  term  Moro  pirates. 
here  applied  to  the  pirates,  because,  like  the  Moors  who 
were  formerly  in  Spain,  they  are  Mahometans.  They 
come  from  Mindanao  and  from  the  north-west  coast 
of  Borneo.  At  the  time  of  my  visit,  this  part  of  the 
Archipelago  was  greatly  infested  with  them;  and  a  few 
days  before  my  arrival  they  had  carried  off  some  fisher- 
men, who  were  busy  pulling  their  fish-stakes,  close  to 
Gubat.  A  little  distance  from  the  shore,  and  parallel 
to  it,  ran  a  coral  reef,  which  during  the  south-west 
monsoon  was  here  and  there  bare  at  low  tide;  but,  when 
the  north-east  wind  blew,  the  waves  of  the  Pacific  Ocean 
entirely  concealed  it.  Upon  this  reef  the  storms  had 
cast  up  many  remains  of  marine  animals,  and  a  quantity 
of  fungi,  amongst  which  I  noticed  some  exactly  resemb- 
ling the  common  sponge  of  the  Mediterranean.  They 
were  just  as  soft  to  the  touch,  of  a  dark  brown  tint,  as 
large  as  the  fist,  and  of  a  conical  shape.  They  absorbed 
water  with  great  readiness,  and  might  doubtless  be  made 
a  profitable  article  of  commerce.  Samples  of  them  are  to 
be  seen  in  the  Zoological  Museum  at  Berlin.  As  I  went 
further  on,  I  found  the  road  excellent;  and  wooden 
bridges,  all  of  which  were  in  good  repair,  led  me  across 
the  mouths  of  the  numerous  small  rivers.  But  almost 
all  the  arches  of  the  stone  bridges  I  came  to  had  fallen 
in,  and  I  had  to  cross  the  streams  they  were  supposed 
to  span  in  a  small  boat,  and  make  my  horse  swim  after 


104  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

me.  Just  before  I  reached  Bulusan,  I  had  to  cross 
a  ravine  several  hundred  feet  deep,  composed  almost 
entirely  of  white  pumice  stone. 

Bulusan.  Bulusan  is  so  seldom   visited   by   strangers   that  the 

"tribunal"  where  I  put  up  was  soon  full  of  curiosity- 
mongers,  who  came  to  stare  at  me.  The  women,  taking 
the  places  of  honor,  squatted  round  me  in  concentric 
rows,  while  the  men  peered  over  ^heir  shoulders.  One 
morning  when  I  was  taking  a  shower-bath  in  a  shed  made 
of  open  bamboo  work,  I  suddenly  noticed  several  pairs 
of  inquisitive  eyes  staring  at  me  through  the  interstices. 
The  eyes  belonged  exclusively  to  the  gentler  sex;  and 
their  owners  examined  me  with  the  greatest  curiosity, 
making  remarks  upon  my  appearance  to  one  another, 
and  seeming  by  no  means  inclined  to  be  disturbed. 
Upon  another  occasion,  when  bathing  in  the  open  air  in 
the  province  of  Laguna,  I  was  surrounded  by  a  number 
of  women,  old,  middle-aged,  and  young,  who  crowded 
round  me  while  I  was  dressing,  carefully  inspected  me, 
and  pointed  out  with  their  fingers  every  little  detail 
which  seemed  to  them  to  call  for  special  remark. 

sinrm  damaye  I  had  travelled  the  last  part  of  the  road  to  Bulusan 

in  wind  and  rain;  and  the  storm  lasted  with  little  inter- 
mission during  the  whole  night.  When  I  got  up  in  the 
morning  I  found  that  part  of  the  roof  of  the  tribunal 
had  been  carried  away,  that  the  slighter  houses  in  the 
hamlet  were  all  blown  down,  and  that  almost  every 
dwelling  in  the  place  had  lost  its  roof.  This  pleasant 
weather  lasted  during  the  three  days  of  my  stay.  The 
air  was  so  thick  that  I  found  it  impossible  to  distinguish 
the  volcano,  though  I  was  actually  standing  at  its  foot; 
and,  as  the  weather-wise  of  the  neighborhood  could  hold 
out  no  promise  of  a  favorable  change  at  that  tim.e  of 
the  year,  I  put  off  my  intended  ascent  till  a  better  oppor- 
tunity, and  resolved  to  return.     A  former  alcalde,  Pene- 


Jayor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  iq-, 

randa,  was  reported  to  have  succeeded  in  reaching  the 
top  fifteen  years  before,  after  sixty  men  had  spent  a 
couple  of  months  in  building  a  road  to  the  summit;  and 
the  ascent  was  said  to  have  taken  him  two  whole  days. 
But  an  experienced  native  told  me  that  in  the  dry  season 
he  thought  four  men  were  quite  sufficient  to  open  a 
narrow  path  to  the  plateau,  just  under  the  peak,  in  a 
couple  of  days;  but  that  ladders  were  required  to  get 
on  to  the  actual  summit. 

The  day  after  my  arrival  the  inspector  of  highways  Arrimi  of 
and  another  man  walked  into  the  tribunal,  both  of  them  "*"«'«"^^- 
wet  to  the  skin  and  nearly  blown  to  pieces.  My  friend 
the  alcalde  had  sent  them  to  my  assistance;  and,  as 
none  of  us  could  attempt  the  ascent,  they  returned  with 
me.  As  we  were  entering  Bacon  on  our  way  back,  we 
heard  the  report  of  cannon  and  the  sound  of  music. 
Our  servants  cried  out  "Here  comes  the  alcalde,"  and 
in  a  few  moments  he  drove  up  in  an  open  carriage, 
accompanied  by  an  irregular  escort  of  horsemen, 
Spaniards  and  natives,  the  latter  prancing  about  in  silk 
hats  and  shirts  fluttering  in  the  wind.  The  alcalde 
politely  offered  me  a  seat,  and  an  hour's  drive  took  us 
into  Sorsogon. 

The  roads  of  the  province  of  Albay  are  good,  but  they  aumu  roads 
are  by  no  means  kept  in  good  repair:  a  state  of  things  "'"' ^'''''c"- 
that  will  never  be  remedied  so  long  as  the  indolence  of 
the  authorities  continues.  Most  of  the  stone  bridges 
in  the  district  are  in  ruins,  and  the  traveller  is  obliged 
to  content  himself  with  wading  through  a  ford,  or  get 
himself  ferried  across  upon  a  raft  or  in  a  small  canoe, 
while  his  horse  swims  behind  him.  The  roads  were  first 
laid  down  in  the  days  of  Alcalde  Pefiaranda,  a  retired 
officer  of  the  engineer  corps,  whom  we  have  already 
mentioned,  and  who  deserves  considerable  praise  for 
having  largely  contributed  to  the  welfare  of  his  province, 


106  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

and  for  having  accomplished  so  much  from  such  small 
resources.  He  took  care  that  all  socage  service  should 
be  duly  rendered,  or  that  money,  which  went  towards 
paying  for  tools  and  materials,  should  be  paid  in  lieu 
of  it.  Many  abuses  existed  before  his  rule;  no  real 
services  were  performed  by  anybody  who  could  trace 
the  slightest  relationship  to  any  of  the  authorities;  and, 
when  by  chance  any  redemption  money  was  paid,  it 
went,  often  with  the  connivance  of  the  alcalde  of  the 
period,  into  the  pockets  of  the  gobernadorcillos,  instead 
of  into  the  provincial  treasury.  Similar  abuses  still 
prevail  all  over  the  country,  where  they  are  not  pre- 
vented by  the  vigilance  of  the  authorities.  The  numerous 
population,  and  the  prosperity  which  the  province  now 
enjoys,  would  make  it  an  easy  matter  to  maintain 
and  complete  the  existing  highways.  The  admirable 
officials  of  the  district  are  certainly  not  wanting  in  good- 
will, but  their  hands  are  tied.  Nowadays  the  alcaldes 
remain  only  three  years  in  one  province  (in  Peharanda's 
time,  they  remained  six);  their  time  is  entirely  taken  up 
with  the  current  official  and  judicial  business;  and,  just  as 
they  are  beginning  to  become  acquainted  with  the  capa- 
bilities and  requirements  of  their  district,  they  are  obliged 
to  leave  it.  This  shows  the  government's  want  of  con- 
Handicapped  fidence  in  its  own  servants.  No  alcalde  could  now 
possibly  undertake  what  Penaranda  accomplished.  The 
money  paid  in  lieu  of  socage  service,  which  ought  to  be 
applied  to  the  wants  of  the  province  in  which  the  socage 
is  due,  is  forwarded  to  Manila.  If  an  alcalde  proposes 
some  urgent  and  necessary  improvement,  he  has  to  send 
in  so  many  tedious  estimates  and  reports,  which  frequently 
remain  unnoticed,  that  he  soon  loses  all  desire  to  attempt 
any  innovation.  Estimates  for  large  works,  to  carry 
out  which  would  require  a  considerable  outlay,  are 
invariably    returned    from    headquarters    marked    "not 


officials. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  107 

urgent."  The  fact  is,  not  that  the  colonial  government  ff^nds  diverted 
is  wanting  in  good-will,  but  that  the  Cnja  de  Comunidad 
(General  Treasury)  in  Manila  is  almost  always  empty, 
as  the  Spanish  government,  in  its  chronic  state  of  bank- 
ruptcy, borrows  the  money  and  is  never  in  a  position 
to  return  it. 

In  1840  Sorsogon  suffered  severely  from  an  earth-  ^o^sogon 
quake,  which  lasted  almost  continuously  for  thirty-five 
days.  It  raged  with  the  greatest  fury  on  the  21st  of 
March.  The  churches,  both  of  Sorsogon  and  of  Casi- 
guran,  as  well  as  the  smallest  stone  houses,  were  destroyed ; 
seventeen  persons  lost  their  lives,  and  two  hundred 
were  injured;  and  the  whole  neighborhood  sank  five 
feet  below  its  former  level. 

The  next  morning  I  accompanied  the  alcalde  in  a  C'asiffu'-an. 
falua  (felucca),  manned  by  fourteen  rowers,  to  Casi- 
guran,  which  lies  directly  south  of  Sorsogon,  on  the  other 
side  of  a  small  bay,  of  two  leagues  in  breadth,  which  it 
took  us  an  hour  and  a  half  to  cross.  The  bay  was  as 
calm  as  an  inland  lake.  It  is  almost  entirely  surrounded 
by  hills,  and  its  western  side,  which  is  open  to  the  sea, 
is  protected  by  the  Island  of  Bagalao,  which  lies  in  front 
of  it.  As  soon  as  we  landed,  we  were  received  with 
salutes  of  cannon  and  music,  and  flags  and  shirts  streamed 
in  the  wind.  I  declined  the  friendly  invitation  of  the 
alcalde  to  accompany  him  any  further;  as  to  me,  who  had 
no  official  business  to  transact,  the  journey  seemed  nothing 
but  a  continually  recurring  panorama  of  dinners,  lunches, 
cups  of  chocolate,  music,  and  detonations  of  gunpowder. 

In  1850  quicksilver  was  discovered  on  a  part  of  the 
coast  now  covered  by  the  sea.  I  examined  the  reported 
bed  of  the  deposit,  and  it  appealed  to  me  to  consist 
of  a  stratum  of  clay  six  feet  in  depth,  superimposed  over 
a  layer  of  volcanic  sand  and  fragments  of  pumice  stone. 
An  Englishman  who  was  wrecked  in  this  part  of  the 


Quicksilver. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 


.•Sea's 
,encroaclimei 


Pirate  rumors 
toiid  robberies. 


Archipelago,  the  same  individual  I  met  at  the  iron  works 
at  Angat,  had  begun  to  collect  it,  and  by  washing  the 
sand  had  obtained  something  like  a  couple  of  ounces. 
Somebody,  however,  told  the  priest  of  the  district  that 
quicksilver  was  a  poison;  and,  as  he  himself  told  me,  so 
forcibly  did  he  depict  the  dangerous  nature  of  the  new 
discovery  to  his  parishioners  that  they  abandoned  the 
attempt  to  collect  it.  Since  thtn  none  of  them  have 
ever  seen  a  vestige  of  mercury,  unless  it  might  be  from 
some  broken  old  barometer.  Towards  evening  Mount 
Bulusan  in  the  south-east,  and  Mount  Mayon  in  the 
north-west,  were  visible  for  a  short  time.  They  are  both 
in  a  straight  line  with  Casiguran. 

Every  year  the  sea  makes  great  inroads  upon  the 
coast  at  Casiguran;  as  far  as  I  could  decide  from  its 
appearance  and  from  the  accounts  given  me,  about  a 
yard  of  the  shore  is  annually  destroyed.  The  bay  of 
Sorsogon  is  protected  towards  the  north  by  a  ridge  of 
hills,  which  suddenly  terminate,  however,  at  its  north- 
eastern angle;  and  through  this  opening  the  wind  some- 
times blows  with  great  fury,  and  causes  considerable 
havoc  in  the  bay,  the  more  particularly  as  its  coast  is 
principally  formed  of  clay  and  sand. 

When  I  reached  Legaspi  again  in  the  evening  I  learnt 
that  the  alarm  about  the  pirates  which  had  interrupted 
my  departure  had  not  been  an  idle  one.  Moros  they 
certainly  could  not  have  been,  for  at  that  season  none 
of  the  Mahometan  corsairs  could  reach  that  part  of  the 
coast;  but  they  \vere  a  band  of  deserters  and  vagabonds 
from  the  surrounding  country,  who  in  this  part  of  the 
world  find  it  more  agreeable  to  pursue  their  freebooting 
career  on  sea  than  on  land.  During  my  absence  they 
had  committed  many  robberies  and  carried  off  several 
people.* 

*  The  official  accounts  stated  that  they  had  kidnapped  twenty-one  persons 
An  a  couple  of  weeks. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  io.9 

The  beginning  of  November  is  the  season  of  storms; 
when  water  communication  between  Albay  and  Manila 
entirely  ceases,  no  vessel  daring  to  put  out  to  sea,  even 
from  the  south  coast.  On  the  9th  of  the  month,  how- 
ever, a  vessel  that  had  been  given  up  for  lost  entered 
the  port,  after  having  incurred  great  perils  and  being 
obliged  to  throw  overboard  the  greater  part  of  its  cargo. 
Within  twelve  days  of  its  leaving  the  straits  of  San 
Bernardino  behind  it,  a  sudden  storm  compelled  it  to 
anchor  amongst  the  Islands  of  Balicuatro.  One  of  the 
passengers,  a  newly-arrived  Spaniard,  put  off  in  a  boat 
with  seven  sailors,  and  made  for  four  small  vessels  which 
were  riding  at  anchor  off  the  coast;  taking  them  for 
fishermen,  whereas  they  were  pirates.  They  fired  at  Kmi  piraieK. 
him  as  soon  as  he  was  some  distance  from  his  ship,  and 
his  crew  threw  themselves  into  the  water;  but  both  he 
and  they  were  taken  prisoners.  The  captain  of  the 
trading  brig,  fearing  that  his  vessel  would  fall  into  their 
clutches,  slipped  anchor  and  put  out  to  sea  again,  escap- 
ing shipwreck  with  the  greatest  difficulty.  The  pirates, 
as  a  rule,  do  not  kill  their  prisoners,  but  employ  them  as 
rowers.  But  Europeans  seldom  survive  their  captivity: 
the  tremendous  labor  and  the  scanty  food  are  too  much 
for  them.  Their  clothes  always  being  stripped  off  their 
back ,  they  are  exposed  naked  to  all  sorts  of  weather,  and 
their  sole  daily  support  is  a  handful  of  rice. 


XII 

No  favorable  change  in  the  weather  was  expected  in 
Albay  before  the  month  of  January.  It  stormed  and 
rained  all  day.  I  therefore  determined  to  change  my 
quarters  to  South  Camarines,  which,  protected  from  the 
monsoon  by  the  high  range  of  hills  running  along  its 
north-eastern  boundary,  enjoyed  more  decent  weather. 


Camarittes. 


110  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

The  two  provinces  of  Camarines  form  a  long  continent, 
with  its  principal  frontage  of  shore  facing  to  the  north- 
east and  to  the  south-west;  which  is  about  ten  leagues 
broad  in  its  middle,  and  has  its  shores  indented  by  many 
bays.  From  about  the  center  of  its  north-eastern  shore 
there  boldly  projects  the  Peninsula  of  Caramuan,  con- 
nected with  the  mainland  of  Camarines  by  the  isthmus 
of  Isarog.  The  north-eastern  portion  of  the  two  prov- 
inces contains  a  long  range  of  volcanic  hills;  the  south- 
western principally  consisted,  as  far  as  my  investiga- 
tions permitted  me  to  discover,  of  chalk,  and  coral  reefs; 
in  the  midst  of  the  hills  extends  a  winding  and  fertile 
valley,  which  collects  the  waters  descending  from  the 
slopes  of  the  mountain  ranges,  and  blends  them  into  a 
navigable  river,  on  the  banks  of  which  several  flourish- 
ing hamlets  have  established  themselves.  This  river 
is  called  the  Bicol.  The  streams  which  give  it  birth 
are  so  abundant,  and  the  slope  of  the  sides  of  the  valley, 
which  is  turned  into  one  gigantic  rice-field,  is  so  gentle 
that  in  many  places  the  lazy  waters  linger  and  form 
small  lakes. 
A  chain  of  Beginning  at    the  south-eastern  extremity,   the  vol- 

canoes of  Bulusan,  Albay,  Mazaraga,  Iriga,  Isarog,  and 
Colasi — the  last  on  the  northern  side  of  San  Miguel  bay 
— are  situated  in  a  straight  line,  extending  from  the 
south-east  to  the  north-west.  Besides  these,  there  is 
the  volcano  of  Buhi,  or  Malinao,  a  little  to  the  north- 
east of  the  line.  The  hamlets  in  the  valley  I  have 
mentioned  are  situated  in  a  second  line  parallel  to  that 
of  the  volcanoes.  The  southern  portion  of  the  province 
is  sparsely  inhabited,  and  but  few  streams  find  their 
way  from  its  plateau  into  the  central  valley.  The  range 
of  volcanoes  shuts  out,  as  I  have  said,  the  north-east 
winds,  and  condenses  their  moisture  in  the  little  lakes 
scattered  on  its  slopes.    The  south-west  portion  of  Cama- 


Tolcanoes. 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  111 

rines,  therefore,  is  dry  during  the  north-east  monsoon,  and 
enjoys  its  rainy  season  during  the  prevalence  of  the 
winds  that  blow  from  the  south-west.  The  so-called 
dry  season  which,  so  far  as  South  Camarines  is  con- 
cerned, begins  in  November,  is  interrupted,  however, 
by  frequent  showers;  but  from  January  to  May  scarcely 
a  drop  of  rain  falls.  The  change  of  monsoon  takes  place 
in  May  and  June;  and  its  arrival  is  announced  by  violent 
thunderstorms  and  hurricanes,  which  frequently  last 
without  cessation  for  a  couple  of  weeks,  and  are  accom- 
panied by  heavy  rains.  These  last  are  the  beginning  of 
the  wet  season  proper,  which  lasts  till  October.  The 
road  passes  the  hamlets  of  Camalig,  Guinobatan,  Ligao, 
Oas  and  Polangui,  situated  in  a  straight  line  on  the 
banks  of  the  river  Quinali,  which,  after  receiving  numer- 
ous tributary  streams,  becomes  navigable  soon  after 
passing  Polangui.  Here  I  observed  a  small  settlement 
of  huts,  which  is  called  after  the  river.  Each  of  the 
hamlets  I  have  mentioned,  with  the  exception  of  the  last, 
has  a  population  of  about  fourteen  thousand  souls,  although 
they  are  situated  not  more  than  half  a  league  apart. 

The  convents  in  this  part  of  the  country  are  large,   Priestly 

,.,,.  j^i--  1         ^  1  assistance. 

imposing  buildings,  and  their  incumbents,  who  were 
mostly  old  men,  were  most  hospitable  and  kind  to  me. 
Every  one  of  them  insisted  upon  my  staying  with  him, 
and,  after  doing  all  he  could  for  me,  passed  me  on  to 
his  next  colleague  with  the  best  recommendations.  I 
wished  to  hire  a  boat  at  Polangui  to  cross  the  lake  of 
Batu,  but  the  only  craft  I  could  find  were  a  couple  of 
barotos  about  eight  feet  long,  hollowed  out  of  the  trunks 
of  trees  and  laden  with  rice.  To  prevent  my  meeting 
with  any  delay,  the  padre  purchased  the  cargo  of  one 
of  the  boats,  on  the  condition  of  its  being  immediately 
unladen;  and  this  kindness  enabled  me  to  continue  my 
journey  in  the  afternoon. 


Frain-i 
friars. 


112  THE  FORMER  PHILTPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

The  prieais-  If  a  traveller  gets  on  good  terms  with  the  priests  he 

unn<>rnni-<.  seldoiTi  meets  with  any  annoyaiices.  Upon  one  occasion 
I  wished  to  make  a  little  excursion  directly  after  lunch, 
and  at  a  quarter  past  eleven  everything  was  ready  for 
a  start;  when  I  happened  to  say  that  it  was  a  pity  to 
have  to  wait  three-quarters  of  an  hour  for  the  meal. 
In  a  minute  or  two  twelve  o'clock  struck;  all  work  in 
the  village  ceased,  and  we  sat  down  to  table:  it  was 
noon.  A  message  had  been  sent  to  the  village  bell- 
ringer  that  the  Senor  Padre  thought  he  must  be  asleep, 
and  that  it  must  be  long  past  twelve  as  the  Senor  Padre 
was  hungry.     //  est  Vheure  que  voire  Majeste  desire. 

Most  of  the  priests  in  the  eastern  provinces  of  Luzon 
and  Samar  are  Franciscan  monks  (The  barefooted 
friars  of  the  orthodox  and  strictest  rule  of  Our  Holy 
Father  St.  Francis,  in  the  Philippine  Islands,  of  the  Holy 
and  Apostolic  Province  of  St.  Gregory  the  Great), 
brought  up  in  seminaries  in  Spain  specially  devoted  to 
the  colonial  missions.  Formerly  they  were  at  liberty, 
after  ten  years'  residence  in  the  Philippines,  to  return 
to  their  own  country;  but,  since  the  abolition  of  the 
monasteries  in  Spain,  they  can  do  this  no  longer,  for 
they  are  compelled  in  the  colonies  to  abandon  all  obe- 
dience to  the  rule  of  their  order,  and  to  live  as  laymen. 
They  are  aware  that  they  must  end  their  days  in  the 
colony,  and  regulate  their  lives  accordingly.  On  their 
first  arrival  they  are  generally  sent  to  some  priest  in 
the  province  to  make  themselves  acquainted  with  the 
language  of  the  country;  then  they  are  installed  into 
a  small  parish,  and  afterwards  into  a  more  lucrative 
one,  in  which  they  generally  remain  till  their  death. 
Most  of  them  spring  from  the  very  lowest  class  of  Span- 
iards. A  number  of  pious  trusts  and  foundations  in 
Spain  enable  a  very  poor  man,  who  cannot  afford  to  send 
his  son  to  school,  to  put  him  into  a  religious  seminary, 


developed  by 
responsibility. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  US 

where,  beyond  the  duties  of  his  future  avocation,  the 
boy  learns  nothing.  If  the  monks  were  of  a  higher 
social  grade,  as  are  some  of  the  English  missionaries, 
they  would  have  less  inclination  to  mix  with  the  common 
people,  and  would  fail  to  exercise  over  them  the  influence 
they  wield  at  present.  The  early  habits  of  the  Spanish 
monks,  and  their  narrow  knowledge  of  the  world,  pecu- 
liarly fit  them  for  an  existence  among  the  natives.  This 
mental  equality,  or  rather,  this  want  of  mental  dis- 
parity, has  enabled  them  to  acquire  the  influence  they 
undoubtedly  possess. 

When  these  young  men  first  come  from  their  seminaries  Young  men 
they  are  narrow-brained,  ignorant,  frequently  almost 
devoid  of  education,  and  full  of  conceit,  hatred  of  heretics, 
and  proselytish  ardor.  These  failings,  however,  grad- 
ually disappear;  the  consideration  and  the  comfortable 
incomes  they  enjoy  developing  their  benevolence.  The 
insight  into  mankind  and  the  confidence  in  themselves 
which  distinguish  the  lower  classes  of  the  Spaniards, 
and  which  are  so  amusingly  exemplified  in  Sancho  Panza, 
have  plenty  of  occasions  to  display  themselves  in  the 
responsible  and  influential  positions  which  the  priests 
occupy.  The  padre  is  frequently  the  only  white  man 
in  his  village,  probably  the  only  European  for  miles 
around.  He  becomes  the  representative  not  only  of 
religion,  but  of  the  government;  he  is  the  oracle  of  the 
natives,  and  his  decisions  in  everything  that  concerns 
Europe  and  civilization  are  without  appeal.  His  advice 
is  asked  in  all  important  emergencies,  and  he  has  no 
one  whom  he  in  his  turn  can  consult.  Such  a  state  of 
things  naturally  develops  his  brain.  The  same  indi- 
viduals who  in  Spain  would  have  followed  the  plough, 
in  the  colonies  carry  out  great  undertakings.  Without 
any  technical  education,  and  without  any  scientific 
knowledge,  they  build  churches  and  bridges,  and  con- 


m  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU   FOREIGN  EYES 

Struct  roads.  The  circumstances  therefore  are  greatly 
in  favor  of  the  development  of  priestly  ability;  but  it 
Poor  architects,  would  probably  be  better  for  the  buildings  if  they  were 
erected  by  more  experienced  men,  for  the  bridges  are 
remarkably  prone  to  fall  in,  the  churches  look  like  sheep- 
pens,  and  the  roads  soon  go  to  rack  and  ruin.  I  had 
much  intercourse  in  Camarines  and  Albay  with  the 
priests,  and  conceived  a  great  liking  for  them  all.  As 
a  rule,  they  are  the  most  unpretending  of  men;  and  a 
visit  gives  them  so  much  pleasure  that  they  do  all  in 
their  power  to  make  their  guest's  stay  as  agreeable  as 
possible.  Life  in  a  large  convent  has  much  resemblance 
to  that  of  a  lord  of  the  manor  in  Eastern  Europe.  Nothing 
can  be  more  unconstrained,  more  unconventional.  A 
visitor  lives  as  independently  as  in  an  hotel,  and  many 
of  the  visitors  behave  themselves  as  if  it  were  one.  I 
have  seen  a  subaltern  official  arrive,  summon  the  head 
servant,  move  into  a  room,  order  his  meal,  and  then 
inquire  casually  whether  the  padre,  who  was  an  utter 
stranger  to  him,  was  at  home. 

The  priests  of  the  Philippines  have  often  been  re- 
proached with  gross  immorality.  They  are  said  to 
keep  their  convents  full  of  bevies  of  pretty  girls,  and  to 
lead  somewhat  the  same  sort  of  life  as  the  Grand  Turk. 
This  may  be  true  of  the  native  padres;  but  I  myself 
never  saw,  in  any  of  the  households  of  the  numerous 
Spanish  priests  I  visited,  anything  that  could  possibly 
cause  the  least  breath  of  scandal.  Their  servants  were 
exclusively  men,  though  perhaps  I  may  have  noticed 
here  and  there  an  old  woman  or  two.  Ribadeneyra 
says: — "The  natives,  who  observe  how  careful  the 
Franciscan  monks  are  of  their  chastity,  have  arrived  at 
the  conclusion  that  they  are  not  really  men,  and  that, 
though  the  devil  had  often  attempted  to  lead  these  holy 
men  astray,   using  the  charms  of  some  pretty  Indian 


Jagor's  Travels  in  tht  Philippines  116 

girl  as  a  bait,  yet,  to  the  confusion  of  both  damsel  and 
devil,  the  monks  had  always  come  scathless  out  of  the 
struggle."  Ribadeneyra,  however,  is  a  very  unreliable 
author;  and,  if  his  physiological  mistakes  are  as  gross 
as  his  geographical  ones  (he  says  somewhere  that  Luzon 
is  another  name  for  the  island  of  Cebu!),  the  monks 
are  not  perhaps  as  fireproof  as  he  supposes.  At  any 
rate,  his  description  does  not  universally  apply  now- 
adays. The  younger  priests  pass  their  existence  like 
the  lords  of  the  soil  of  old;  the  young  girls  consider  it 
an  honor  to  be  allowed  to  associate  with  them;  and 
the  padres  in  their  turn  find  many  convenient  opportu- 
nities. They  have  no  jealous  wives  to  pry  into  their 
secrets,  and  their  position  as  confessors  and  spiritual 
advisers  affords  them  plenty  of  pretexts  for  being  alone 
with  the  women.  The  confessional,  in  particular, 
must  be  a  perilous  rock-a-head  for  most  of  them.  In 
an  appendix  to  the  "Tagal  Grammar"  (which,  by-the- 
bye,  is  not  added  to  the  editions  sold  for  general  use) 
a  list  of  questions  is  given  for  the  convenience  of  young 
priests  not  yet  conversant  with  the  Tagal  language. 
These  questions  are  to  be  asked  in  the  confessional,  and 
several  pages  of  them  relate  exclusively  to  the  relations 
between    the    sexes. 

As  the  alcaldes  remain  only  three  years  in  any  one  Superiority  over 
province,  they  never  understand  much  of  its  language;  (''"'«'■"'»«"' 

officials. 

and,  being  much  occupied  with  their  official  business, 
they  have  neither  the  time  nor  the  desire  to  become 
acquainted  with  the  peculiarities  of  the  districts  over 
which  they  rule.  The  priest,  on  the  other  hand,  re- 
sides continually  in  the  midst  of  his  parishioners,  is 
perfectly  acquainted  with  each  of  them,  and  even,  on 
occasion,  protects  them  against  the  authorities;  his, 
therefore,  is  the  real  jurisdiction  in  the  district.  The 
position  of  the  priests,  in. contradistinction  to  that  of  the 


116 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN    EYES 


Former  legal 

status. 


AlcaUiem 
formerly  tn 
trade. 


government  officials,  is  well  expressed  by  their  respective 
dwellings.  The  casas  reales,  generally  small,  ugly,  and 
frequently  half-ruined  habitations,  are  not  suited  to  the 
dignity  of  the  chief  authority  of  the  province.  The 
convento,  on  the  contrary,  is  almost  always  a  roomy, 
imposing,  and  well-arranged  building.  In  former  days, 
when  governorships  were  sold  to  adventurers  whose  only 
care  was  to  enrich  themselves,  the  influence  of  the 
minister  of  religion  was  •^ven  greater  than  it  is  now.* 
The  following  extract  from  the  General  Orders,  given  by 
Le  Gentil,  will  convey  a  clear  idea  of  their  former 
position: — 

"Whereas  the  tenth  chapter  of  the  ordinances,  where- 
in the  governor  of  Arandia  ordained  that  the  alcaldes 
and  the  justices  should  communicate  with  the  missionary 
priests  only  by  letter,  and  that  they  should  never  hold 
any  interview  with  them  except  in  the  presence  of  a 
witness,  has  been  frequently  disobeyed,  it  is  now  com- 
manded that  these  disobediences  shall  no  longer  be 
allowed;  and  that  the  alcaldes  shall  make  it  their  busi- 
ness to  see  that  the  priests  and  ministers  of  religion 
treat  the  gobcrnadorcillos  and  the  subaltern  officers  of 
justice  with  proper  respect,  and  that  the  aforesaid 
priests  be  not  allowed  either  to  beat,  chastise,  or  ill- 
treat  the  latter,  or  make  them  wait  at  table." 

The  former  alcaldes  who,  without  experience  in  official 
business,  without  either  education  or  knowledge,  and 
without  either  the  brains  or  the  moral  qualifications  for 
such  responsible  and  influential  posts,  purchased  their 
appointments  from  the  State,  or  received  them  in  con- 
sequence of  successful  intrigues,  received  a  nominal 
salary  from  the  government,  and  paid  it  tribute  for  the 
right  to  carry  on  trade.     Arenas  considered  this  tribute 


*  Le  GentU,  in  his  Travels  in  the  Indian  Seas,  (1761)  says:  "The  monks  are 
the  real  rulers  of  the  provinces.  *  *  *  Their  power  is  so  unlimited  that  no 
Spaniard  cares  to  settle  in  the  neighborhood.  *  *  *  The  monks  would  give 
him  a  great  deal  of  trouble." 


Jagor's  Tratels  in  the  Philippines  117 

paid  by  the  alcaldes  as  a  fine  imposed  upon  them  for 
an  infringement  of  the  law;  "for  several  ordinances  were 
in  existence,  strenuously  forbidding  them  to  dabble 
in  any  kind  of  commerce,  until  it  pleased  his  Catholic 
Majesty  to  grant  them  a  dispensation."  The  latter 
sources  of  mischief  were,  however,  abolished  by  royal 
decree  in  September  and  October,  1844. 

The  alcaldes  were  at  the  same  time  governors,  magis-  ^*<'»''"  horrovoed 
trates,  commanders  of  the  troops,  and,  in  reality,  the  '^"^''" ' 
only  traders  in  their  province.*  They  purchased  with 
the  resources  of  the  ohras  pi  as  the  articles  required  in 
the  province;  and  they  were  entirely  dependent  for  their 
capital  upon  these  endowments,  as  they  almost  always 
arrived  in  the  Philippines  without  any  means  of  their 
own.  The  natives  were  forced  to  sell  their  produce  to 
the  alcaldes  and,  besides,  to  purchase  their  goods  at 
the  prices  fixed  by  the  latter.*  In  this  corrupt  state 
of  things  the  priests  were  the  only  protectors  of  the 
unfortunate  Filipinos;  though  occasionally  they  also 
threw  in  their  lot  with  the  alcaldes,  and  shared  in  the 
spoil  wrung  from  their  unfortunate  flocks. 

Nowadays  men  with  some  knowledge  of  the  law  are  improvement  in 
sent  out  to  the  Philippines  as  alcaldes;  the  government  IppHuees. 
pays  them  a  small  salary,  and  they  are  not  allowed  to 
trade.  The  authorities  also  attempt  to  diminish  the 
influence  of  the  priests  by  improving  the  position  of 
the  civil  tribunals;  a  state  of  things  they  will  not  find 
easy  of  accomplishment  unless  they  lengthen  the  period 
of  service  of  the  alcaldes,  and  place  them  in  a  pecuniary 
position  that  will  put  them  beyond  the  temptation  of 
pocketing  perquisites.! 


*  St.  Croix. 

t  There  are  three  classes  of  alcaldeships,  namely,  cntrada,  astcenso.  and  tennino 
(ride  Royal  Ordinances  of  March,  1837) ;  in  each  of  which  an  alcalde  must  serve 
for  three  years.  No  official  is  allowed,  under  any  pretence,  to  serve  more  than 
ten  years  in  any  of  the  Asiatic  magistracies. 


US 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Similarity  with 

Chinese 

conditions. 


Unidentified 
vith  country. 


In  Hue's  work  on  China  I  find  the  following  passage, 
relating  to  the  effects  of  the  frequent  official  changes 
in  China,  from  which  many  hints  may  be  gathered: — 

"The  magisterial  offices  are  no  longer  bestowed 
upon  upright  and  just  individuals,  and,  as  a  con- 
sequence, this  once  flourishing  and  well-governed 
kingdom  is  day  by  day  falling  into  decay,  and  is 
rapidly  gliding  down  the  path  that  leads  to  a  terrible 
and,  perhaps,  speedy  dissolution.  When  we  seek 
to  discover  the  cause  of  the  general  ruin,  the 
universal  corruption  which  too  surely  is  undermining 
all  classes  of  Chinese  society,  we  are  convinced  that 
it  is  to  be  found  in  the  complete  abandonment  of 
the  old  system  of  government  effected  by  the  Man- 
chu  dynasty.  It  issued  a  decree  forbidding  any 
mandarin  to  hold  any  post  longer  than  three  years 
in  the  same  province,  and  prohibiting  any  one  from 
possessing  any  official  appointment  in  his  native 
province.  One  does  not  form  a  particularly  high 
idea  of  the  brain  which  conceived  this  law;  but, 
when  the  Manchu  Tartars  found  that  they  were 
the  lords  of  the  empire,  they  began  to  be  alarmed 
at  their  small  numbers,  which  were  trifling  in  com- 
parison with  the  countless  swarms  of  the  Chinese; 
and  they  dreaded  lest  the  influence  which  the  higher 
officials  would  acquire  in  their  districts  might 
enable  them  to  excite  the  populace  against  their 
foreign  rulers. 

"The  magistrates,  being  allowed  to  remain 
only  a  year  or  two  in  the  same  province,  lived  there 
like  strangers,  without  acquainting  themselves 
with  the  wants  of  the  people  they  governed; 
there  was  no  tie  between  them.  The  only  care  of 
the  mandarins  was  to  amass  as  much  wealth  as 
possible  before  they  quitted  their  posts;  and  they 
then  began  the  same  game  in  a  fresh  locality,  until 
finally  they  returned  home  in  possession  of  a  hand- 
some fortune  gradually  collected  in  their  different 
appointments.  They  were  only  birds  of  passage. 
What  did  it  matter?  The  morrow  would  find  them 
at  the  other  end  of  the  kingdom,  where  the  cries 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


of  their  plundered  victims  would  be  unable  to  reach 
them.  In  this  manner  the  governmental  policy 
rendered  the  mandarins  selfish  and  indifferent.  The 
basis  of  the  monarchy  is  destroyed,  for  the  magis- 
trate is  no  longer  a  paternal  ruler  residing  amongst 
and  mildly  swaying  his  children,  but  a  marauder, 
who  arrives  no  man  knows  whence,  and  who  de- 
parts no  one  knows  whither.  The  consequence  is 
universal  stagnation;  no  great  undertakings  are 
accomplished;  and  the  works  and  labors  of  former 
dynasties  are  allowed  to  fall  into  decay.  The 
mandarins  say  to  themselves:  'Why  should  we 
undertake  what  we  can  never  accomplish?  Why 
should  we  sow  that  others  may  reap?'  *  *  *They 
take  no  interest  in  the  affairs  of  the  district;  as  a 
rule,  they  are  suddenly  transplanted  into  the  midst 
of  a  population  whose  dialect  even  they  do  not  Dependence  on 
understand.  When  they  arrive  in  their  mandarin-  interpreters. 
ates  they  usually  find  interpreters,  who,  being  per- 
manent officials  and  interested  in  the  affairs  of  the 
place,  know  how  to  make  their  services  indispen- 
sable; and  these  in  reality  are  the  absolute  rulers 
of  the  district." 


Interpreters  are  especially  indispensable  in  the  Phil- 
ippines, where  the  alcaldes  never  by  any  chance  under- 
stand any  of  the  local  dialects.  In  important  matters 
the  native  writers  have  generally  to  deal  with  the  priest, 
who  in  many  cases  becomes  the  virtual  administrator 
of  authority.  He  is  familiar  with  the  characters  of  the 
inhabitants  and  all  their  affairs,  in  the  settlement  of 
which  his  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  female  sex 
stands  him  in  good  stead.  An  eminent  official  in  Madrid 
told  me  in  1867  that  the  then  minister  was  considering 
a  proposal  to  abolish  the  restriction  of  office  in  the 
colonies  to  three  years.* 


I mporlance  uf 
interpreters  in 
Philippines. 


The  law  limiting  the  duration  of  appointments  to  this  short  period  dates 
trom  the  earliest  days  of  Spanish  colonization  in  America.  There  was  also  a 
variety  of  minor  regulations,  based  on  suspicion,  prohibiting  the  higher  officials 
trom  mixing  in  friendly  intercourse  with  the  colonists. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Fear  of  officials' 
popularity. 


Different 
English  and 
Dutch  policy. 


The  dread  which  caused  this  restriction,  viz.,  that 
an  official  might  become  too  powerful  in  some  distant 
province,  and  that  his  influence  might  prove  a  source 
of  danger  to  the  m.other  country,  is  no  longer  entertained. 
Increased  traffic  and  easier  means  of  communication 
have  destroyed  the  former  isolation  of  the  more  distant 
provinces.  The  customs  laws,  the  increasing  demand 
for  colonial  produce,  and  the  right  conceded  to  foreigners 
of  settling  in  the  country,  will  give  a  great  stimulus  to 
agriculture  and  commerce,  and  largely  increase  the 
number  of  Chinese  and  European  residents.  Then  at 
last,  perhaps,  the  authorities  will  see  the  necessity  of 
improving  the  social  position  of  their  officials  by  decreas- 
ing their  number,  by  a  careful  selection  of  persons,  by 
promoting  them  according  to  their  abilities  and  conduct, 
and  by  increasing  their  salaries,  and  allowing  them  to 
make  a  longer  stay  in  one  post.  The  commercial  relations 
of  the  Philippines  with  California  and  Australia  are 
likely  to  become  very  active,  and  liberal  ideas  will  be 
introduced  from  those  free  countries.  Then,  indeed, 
the  mother  country  will  have  earnestly  to  consider 
whether  it  is  advisable  to  continue  its  exploitation  of 
the  colony  by  its  monopolies,  its  withdrawal  of  gold, 
and  its  constant  satisfaction  of  the  unfounded  claims 
of  a  swarm  of  hungry  place-hunters.* 

English  and  Dutch  colonial  officials  are  carefully  and 
expressly  educated  for  their  difficult  and  responsible 
positions.     They  obtain  their  appointments  after  pas- 


*  A  secular  priest  in  the  Philippines  once  related  to  me,  quite  of  his  own 
accord,  what  had  led  him  to  the  choice  of  his  profession.  One  day,  when  he  was 
a  non-commissioned  officer  in  the  army,  he  was  playing  cards  with  some  com- 
rades in  a  shady  balcony.  "See,"'  cried  one  of  his  friends,  observing  a  peasant 
occupied  in  tilling  the  fields  in  the  full  heat  of  the  sun,  "how  the  donkey  yonder 
is  toiling  and  perspiring  while  we  are  lolling  in  the  shade."  The  happy  conceit 
of  letting  the  donkeys  work  while  the  idle  enjoyed  life  made  such  a  deep  impres- 
sion on  him  that  he  determined  to  turn  priest;  and  it  is  the  same  felicitous 
thought  that  has  impelled  so  many  impecunious  gentlemen  to  become  colonial 
officials.  The  little  opening  for  civil  labor  in  Spain  and  Portugal,  and  the  pros- 
pect of  comfortable  perquisites  in  the  colonies,  have  sent  many  a  starving  caha- 
llero  across  the  ocean. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  121 

sing  a  stringent  examination  at  home,  and  are  promoted 
to  the  higher  colonial  offices  only  after  giving  proofs  of 
fitness  and  ability.  What  a  different  state  of  things 
prevails  in  Spain!  When  a  Spaniard  succeeds  in  getting 
an  appointment,  it  is  difficult  to  say  whether  it  is  due 
to  his  personal  capacity  and  merit  or  to  a  series  of  suc- 
cessful political  intrigues.* 


XIII 

In  an  hour  and  a  half  after  leaving  Polangui  we  reached  '^'»'"- 
Batu,  a  village  on  the  north-western  shore  of  the  lake 
of  the  same  name.  The  inhabitants,  particularly  the 
women,  struck  me  by  their  ugliness  and  want  of  clean- 
liness. Although  they  lived  close  to  the  lake,  and  drew 
their  daily  drinking  water  from  it,  they  never  appeared 
to  use  it  for  the  purpose  of  washing.  The  streets  of 
the  village  also  were  dirty  and  neglected ;  a  circumstance 
explained,  perhaps,  by  the  fact  of  the  priest  being  a 
native. 

Towards  the  end  of  the  rainy  season,  in  November,  The  lake. 
the  lake  extends  far  more  widely  than  it  does  in  the  dry, 
and  overflows  its  shallow  banks,  especially  to  the  south- 
west. A  great  number  of  water-plants  grow  on  its 
borders;  amongst  which  I  particularly  noticed  a  delicate 
seaweed,!  as  fine  as  horse  hair,  but  intertwined  in  such 
close  and  endless  ramifications  that  it  forms  a  flooring 
strong    enough    to    support    the    largest    waterfowl.     I 


*  The  exploitation  of  the  State  by  party,  and  the  exploitation  of  party  by 
individuals,  are  the  real  secrets  of  all  revolutions  in  the  Peninsula.  They  are 
causi^d  by  a  constant  and  universal  struggle  for  office.  No  one  will  work,  and 
everybody  wants  to  live  luxuriously;  and  this  can  only  be  done  at  the  expense 
of  the  State,  which  all  attempt  to  turn  and  twist  to  their  own  ends.  Shortly 
after  the  expulsion  of  Isabella,  an  alcalde's  appointment  has  been  known  to 
have  been  given  away  three  times  in  one  day.  {Prussian  Year-Bouk,  January, 
1869.) 

t  According  to  Grunow,  Cladophona  arrisgona  Kuetzing — Conferva  arrisgona 
Montague. 


122  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

saw  hundreds  of  them  hopping  about  and  eating  the 
shell  fish  and  prawns,  which  swarmed  amidst  the  meshes 
of  the  net-like  seaweed  and  fell  an  easy  prey  to  their 
feathered  enemies.  The  natives,  too,  were  in  the  habit 
of  catching  immense  quantities  of  the  prawns  with  nets 
made  for  the  purpose.  Some  they  ate  fresh;  and  some 
they  kept  till  they  were  putrid,  like  old  cheese,  and  then 
used  them  as  a  relish  to  swallow  with  their  rice.  These 
small  shell-fish  are  not  limited  to  the  Lake  of  Batu. 
They  are  caught  in  shoals  in  both  the  salt  and  the  fresh 
waters  of  the  Philippine  and  Indian  archipelagos,  and, 
when  salted  and  dried  by  the  natives,  form  an  important 
article  of  food,  eaten  either  in  soup  or  as  a  kind  of  potted 
paste.  They  are  found  in  every  market,  and  are  largely 
exported  to  China.  I  was  unable  to  shoot  any  of  the 
waterfowl,  for  the  tangles  of  the  seaweed  prevented  my 
boat  from  getting  near  them. 
A  neiiiecied  When  I  rcvisited  the  same  lake  in  February,  I  found 

its  waters  so  greatly  fallen  that  they  had  left  a  circular 
belt  of  shore  extending  all  around  the  lake,  in  most  places 
nearly  a  hundred  feet  broad.  The  withdrawal  of  the 
waters  had  compressed  the  tangled  seaweed  into  a  kind 
of  matting,  which,  bleached  by  the  sun,  and  nearly  an 
inch  thick,  covered  the  whole  of  the  shore,  and  hung 
suspended  over  the  stunted  bushes  which,  on  my  first 
visit,  had  been  under  water.  I  have  never  either  seen 
elsewhere,  or  heard  any  one  mention,  a  similar  phenom- 
enon. This  stuff,  which  could  be  had  for  nothing, 
was  excellent  for  rifle-stoppers  and  for  the  stuffing  of 
birds,  so  I  took  a  great  quantity  of  it  with  me.  This 
time  the  bird-hunting  went  well,  too. 

The  native  priest  of  Batu  was  full  of  complaints  about 
his  parishioners,  who  gave  him  no  opportunities  of 
gaining  an  honest  penny.  "I  am  never  asked  for  a  mass, 
sir;  in  fact,  this  is  such  a  miserable  hole  that  it  is  shunned 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  123 

by  Death  itself.  In  D.,  where  I  was  for  a  long  time 
coadjutor,  we  had  our  couple  of  burials  regularly  every 
day  at  three  dollars  a  head,  and  as  many  masses  at  a 
dollar  apiece  as  we  had  time  to  say,  besides  christenings 
and  weddings,  which  always  brought  a  little  more  grist 
to  the  mill.  But  here  nothing  takes  place,  and  I  scarcely 
make  anything."  This  stagnant  state  of  things  had 
induced  him  to  turn  his  attention  to  commerce.  The 
average  native  priest,  of  those  I  saw,  could  hardly 
be  called  a  credit  to  his  profession.  Generally  ignorant, 
often  dissipated,  and  only  superficially  acquainted  with 
his  duties,  the  greater  part  of  his  time  was  given 
over  to  gambling,  drinking,  and  other  objectionable 
amusements.  Little  care  was  taken  to  preserve  a 
properly  decorous  behavior,  except  when  officiating 
in  the  church,  when  they  read  with  an  absurd  assump- 
tion of  dignity,  without  understanding  a  single  word. 
The  conventos  are  often  full  of  girls  and  children,  all 
of  whom  help  themselves  with  their  fingers  out  of  a 
common  dish.  The  worthy  padre  of  Batu  introduced 
a  couple  of  pretty  girls  to  me  as  his  two  poor  sisters, 
whom,  in  spite  of  his  poverty,  he  supported;  but  the 
servants  about  the  place  openly  spoke  of  these  young 
ladies'  babies  as  being  the  children  of  the  priest. 

The  guiding  principle  of  Spanish  colonial  policy — to  rhe  native 
set  one  class  against  another,  and  to  prevent  either  from 
becoming  too  powerful — seems  to  be  the  motive  for 
placing  so  many  native  incumbents  in  the  parsonages 
of  the  Archipelago.  The  prudence  of  this  proceeding, 
however,  seems  doubtful.  A  Spanish  priest  has  a  great 
deal  of  influence  in  his  own  immediate  circle,  and  forms, 
perhaps,  the  only  enduring  link  between  the  colony  and 
the  mother-country.  The  native  priest  is  far  from 
affording  any  compensation  for  the  lack  of  either  of 
these  advantages.     He  generally  is  but  little  respected 


clergy. 


nit  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

by  his  flock,  and  certainly  does  nothing  to  attach  them 
to  Spain;  for  he  hates  and  envies  his  Spanish  brethren, 
who  leave  him  only  the  very  worst  appointments,  and 
treat  him  with  contempt. 

Nabua.  I  rode  from  Batu  to  Nabua  over  a  good  road  in  half 

an  hour.  The  country  was  flat,  with  rice-fields  on  both 
sides  of  the  road;  but,  while  in  Batu  the  rice  was  only 
just  planted,  in  Nabua  it  already  was  almost  ripe.  I 
was  unable  to  obtain  any  explanation  of  this  incongruity, 
and  know  not  how  to  account  for  such  a  difference  of 
climate  between  two  hamlets  situated  in  such  close 
proximity  to  one  another,  and  separated  by  no  range 
of  hills.  The  inhabitants  of  both  were  ugly  and  dirty, 
and  were  different  in  these  respects  from  the  Tagalogs. 
Nabua,  a  place  of  10,875  inhabitants,  is  intersected  by 
several  small  streams,  whose  waters,  pouring  down  from 
the  eastern  hills,  form  a  small  lake,  which  empties  itself 
into  the  river  Bicol.  Just  after  passing  the  second  bridge 
beyond  Nabua  the  road,  inclining  eastwards,  wends  in 
a  straight  line  to  Iriga,  a  place  lying  to  the  south-west 
of  the  volcano  of  the  same  name. 

Memontados.  I  visited  a  Small  settlement  of  pagans  situated  on  the 

slope  of  the  volcano.  The  people  of  the  plains  call  them 
indifferently  Igorots,  Cimarrons,  Remontados,  In- 
fieles,  or  Montesinos.  None  of  these  names,  however, 
with  the  exception  of  the  two  last,  are  appropriate  ones. 
The  first  is  derived  from  the  term  applied  in  the  north 
of  the  Island  to  the  mixed  descendants  of  Chinese  and 
Filipino  parents.  The  word  Cimarron  (French,  marrow) 
is  borrowed  from  the  American  slave  colonies,  where 
it  denoted  negroes  who  escaped  from  slavery  and  lived 
in  a  state  of  freedom;  but  here  it  is  applied  to  natives 
who  prefer  a  wild  existence  to  the  comforts  of  village 
life,  which  they  consider  are  overbalanced  by  the  servi- 
tude and  bondage  which  accompany  them.     The  term 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  li-5 

Remontado  explains  itself,  and  has  the  same  significa- 
tion as  Cimarron.  As  the  difference  between  the  two 
states — on  account  of  the  mildness  of  the  climate,  and 
the  ease  with  which  the  wants  of  the  natives  are  supplied — 
is  far  less  than  it  would  be  in  Europe,  these  self-constituted 
exiles  are  more  frequently  to  be  met  with  than  might 
be  supposed;  the  cause  of  their  separation  from  their 
fellowmen  sometimes  being  some  offence  against  the 
laws,  sometimes  annoying  debts,  and  sometimes  a  mere 
aversion  to  the  duties  and  labors  of  village  life.  Every 
Filipino  has  an  innate  inclination  to  abandon  the  hamlets 
and  retire  into  the  solitude  of  the  woods,  or  live  isolated 
in  the  midst  of  his  own  fields;  and  it  is  only  the  village 
prisons  and  the  priests — the  salaries  of  the  latter  are 
proportionate  to  the  number  of  their  parishioners — that 
prevent  him  from  gradually  turning  the  puehlos  into 
visitas*  and  the  latter  into  ranchos.  Until  a  visit  to 
other  ranchos  in  the  neighborhood  corrected  my  first 
impression,  I  took  the  inhabitants  of  the  slopes  of  the 
Iriga  for  cross-breeds  between  the  low-landers  and 
negritos.  The  color  of  their  skin  was  not  black,  but 
a  dark  brown,  scarcely  any  darker  than  that  of  Filipinos 
who  Have  been  much  exposed  to  the  sun;  and  only  a 
few  of  them  had  woolly  hair.  The  negritos  whom  I 
saw  at  Angat  and  Mariveles  knew  nothing  whatever 
about  agriculture,  lived  in  the  open  air,  and  supported 
themselves  upon  the  spontaneous  products  of  nature; 
but  the  half-savages  of  the  Iriga  dwell  in  decent  huts, 
and  cultivate  several  vegetables  and  a  little  sugar-cane. 
No  pure  negritos,  as  far  as  I  could  ascertain,  are  to  be 
met  with  in  Camarines.  A  thickly-populated  province, 
only  sparsely  dotted  with  lofty  hills,  would  be  ill-suited 
for  the  residence  of  a  nomadic  hunting  race  ignorant 
of  agriculture. 

*  A  visila  i?  a  small  hamlet  or  village  with  no  priest  of  its  own,   and  dependent 
upon  its  largest  neighbor  for  its  religious  ministrations. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Iriga 
settlements. 


Poison  arrowti 


Crucifixes. 


Mt.  Iriga. 


The  ranches  on  the  Iriga  are  very  accessible,  and  their 
inhabitants  carry  on  a  friendly  intercourse  with  the 
lowlanders;  indeed,  if  they  didn't,  they  would  have  been 
long  ago  exterminated.  In  spite  of  these  neighborly  com- 
munications, however,  they  have  preserved  many  of 
their  own  primitive  manners  and  customs.  The  men 
go  about  naked  with  the  exception  of  a  cloth  about  the 
loins;  and  the  women  are  equally  unclad,  some  of  them 
perhaps  wearing  an  apron  reaching  from  the  hip  to  the 
knee.*  In  the  larger  ranclios  the  women  were  decently 
clad  in  the  usual  Filipino  fashion.  Their  household 
belongings  consisted  of  a  few  articles  made  of  bamboo, 
a  few  calabashes  of  coconut-shell,  and  an  earthen  cooking- 
pot,  and  bows  and  arrows.  These  latter  are  made  very 
carefully,  the  shaft  from  reeds,  the  point  from  a  sharp- 
cut  bamboo,  or  from  a  palm-tree,  with  one  to  three  sharp 
points.  In  pig-hunting  iron-pointed  poison  arrows  are 
used.  Although  the  Igorots  are  not  Christians,  they 
decorate  their  huts  with  crucifixes,  which  they  use  as 
talismans.  If  they  were  of  no  virtue,  an  old  man  re- 
marked to  me,  the  Spaniards  would  not  employ  them  so 
numerously. t  The  largest  rancho  1  visited  was  nomi- 
nally under  the  charge  of  a  captain,  who,  however,  had 
little  real  power.  At  my  desire  he  called  to  some  naked 
boys  idly  squatting  about  on  the  trees,  who  required 
considerable  persuasion  before  they  obeyed  his  summons; 
but  a  few  small  presents — brazen  earrings  and  combs 
for  the  women,  and  cigars  for  the  men — soon  put  me 
on  capital  terms  with  them. 

After  a  vain  attempt  to  reach  the  top  of  the  Iriga 
volcano   I   started   for  Buhi,   a  place  situated  on  the 

*  Pigafetta  mentions  that  the  female  musicians  of  the  King  of  Cebu  were 
quite  naked,  or  only  covered  with  an  apron  of  bark.  The  ladies  of  the  Court 
were  content  with  a  hat,  a  short  cloak,  and  a  clotli  around  the  waist. 

t  Perhaps  the  same  reason  induced  the  Chinese  to  purchase  crucifixes  at  the 
time  of  their  first  intercourse  with  the  Portuguese;  for  Pigafetta  says:  "The 
Chinese  are  white,  wear  clothes,  and  eat  from  tables.  They  also  possess  crucifixes 
but  it  is  difficult  to  say  why  or  where  they  got  them." 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  137 

southern  shore  of  the  lake  of  that  name.  Ten  minutes 
after  leaving  Iriga  I  reached  a  spot  where  the  ground 
sounded  hollow  beneath  my  horse's  feet.  A  succession 
of  small  hillocks,  about  fifty  feet  high,  bordered  each 
side  of  the  road ;  and  towards  the  north  I  could  perceive 
the  huge  crater  of  the  Iriga,  which,  in  the  distance, 
appeared  like  a  truncated  cone.  I  had  the  curiosity 
to  ascend  one  of  the  hillocks,  which,  seen  from  its  sum- 
mit, looked  like  the  remains  of  some  former  crater, 
which  had  probably  been  destroyed  by  an  earthquake 
and  split  up  into  these  small  mounds. 

When  I  got  to  Buhi  the  friendly  priest  had  it  proclaimed  Advertising. 
by  sound  of  drum  that  the  newly-arrived  strangers 
wished  to  obtain  all  kinds  of  animals,  whether  of  earth, 
of  air,  or  of  water ;  and  that  each  and  all  would  be  paid 
for  in  cash.  The  natives,  however,  only  brought  us 
moths,  centipedes,  and  other  vermin,  which,  besides 
enabling  them  to  have  a  good  stare  at  the  strangers, 
they  hoped  to  turn  into  cash  as  extraordinary  curiosities. 

The  following  day  I  was  the  spectator  of  a  gorgeous  ^  church 
procession.  First  came  the  Spanish  flag,  then  the 
village  kettle-drums,  and  a  small  troop  of  horsemen  in 
short  jackets  and  shirts  flying  in  the  wind,  next  a  dozen 
musicians,  and  finally,  as  the  principal  figure,  a  man 
carrying  a  crimson  silk  standard.  The  latter  individual 
evidently  was  deeply  conscious  of  his  dignified  position, 
and  his  countenance  eloquently  expressed  the  quantity 
of  palm  wine  he  had  consumed  in  honor  of  the  occasion. 
He  sat  on  his  horse  dressed  out  in  the  most  absurd  manner 
in  a  large  cocked  hat  trimmed  with  colored  paper  instead 
of  gold  lace,  with  a  woman's  cape  made  of  paper  out- 
side his  coat,  and  with  short,  tight-fitting  yellow  breeches 
and  immense  white  stockings  and  shoes.  Both  his  coat 
and  his  breeches  were  liberally  ornamented  with  paper 
trimmings.     His  steed,  led  by  a  couple  of  cabezas,  was 


procession. 


128  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

appointed     with     similar     trappings.     After     marching 
through  all  the  streets  of  the  village  the  procession  came 
to  a  halt  in  front  of  the  church. 
Papal  This  festival  is  celebrated  every  year  in  commemora- 

s^iT*""'  "  ^^^^  '-'^  ^^^  concession  made  by  the  Pope  to  the  King 
of  Spain  permitting  the  latter  to  appropriate  to  his 
own  use  certain  revenues  of  the  Church.  The  Spanish 
Throne  consequently  enjoys  the  right  of  conferring 
different  indulgences,  even  for  serious  crimes,  in  the  name 
of  the  Holy  See.  This  right,  which,  so  to  speak,  it 
acquired  wholesale,  it  sells  by  retail  to  its  customers 
(it  formerly  disposed  of  it  to  the  priests)  in  the  estanco, 
and  together  with  its  other  monopolies,  such  as  tobacco, 
brandy,  lottery  tickets,  stamped  paper,  etc.,  all  through 
the  agency  of  the  priests ;  without  the  assistance  of  whom 
very  little  business  would  be  done.  The  receipts  from 
the  sale  of  these  indulgences  have  always  been  very 
fluctuating.  In  1819  they  amounted  to  $15,930;  in 
1839  to  $36,390;  and  in  1860  they  were  estimated  at 
$58,954.  In  the  year  1844-5  they  rose  to  $292,115. 
The  cause  of  this  large  increase  was  that  indulgences 
were  then  rendered  compulsory;  so  many  being  alloted 
to  each  family,  with  the  assistance  and  under  the  super- 
intendence of  the  priests  and  tax-collectors  who  received 
a  commission  of  five  and  eight  per  cent  on  the  gross 
amount  collected.* 
Lake  Buhi.  The  Lake  of  Buhi  (300  feet  above  the  sea-level)  pre- 

sents an  extremely  picturesque  appearance,  surrounded 
as  it  is  on  all  sides  by  hills  fully  a  thousand  feet  high; 
and  its  western  shore  is  formed  by  what  still  remains 
of  the  Iriga  volcano.  I  was  informed  by  the  priests  of 
the  neighboring  hamlets  that  the  volcano,  until  the 
commencement  of  the  seventeenth  century,  had  been 
a  closed   cone,   and  that  the   lake   did   not   come  into 

*  One  line  here  omitted. — C. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  1S9 

existence  till  half  of  the  mountain  fell  in,  at  the  time  of 
its  great  eruption.  This  statement  I  found  confirmed 
in  the  pages  of  the  Estado  Geografico: — "On  the  fourth 
of  January,  1641 — a  memorable  day,  for  on  that  date 
all  the  known  volcanoes  of  the  Archipelago  began  to 
erupt  at  the  same  hour — a  lofty  hill  in  Camarines,  in- 
habited by  heathens,  fell  in,  and  a  fine  lake  sprang  into 
existence  upon  its  site.  The  then  inhabitants  of  the 
village  of  Buhi  migrated  to  the  shores  of  the  new  lake, 
which,  on  this  account,  was  henceforward  called  the 
Lake  of  Buhi." 

Perrey,  in  the  Memoires  de  V Academie  de  Dijon,  i';;is  CamaHnea 
mentions  another  outbreak  which  took  place  in  Cama-  '^"'^  9"«"- 
rines  in  1628:  "In  1628,  according  to  trustworthy 
reports,  fourteen  different  shocks  of  earthquake  occurred 
on  the  same  day  in  the  province  of  Camarines.  Many 
buildings  were  thrown  down,  and  from  one  large  moun- 
tain which  the  earthquake  rent  asunder  there  issued 
such  an  immense  quantity  of  water  that  the  whole 
neighborhood  was  flooded,  trees  were  torn  up  by  the 
roots,  and,  in  one  hour,  from  the  seashore  all  plains 
were  covered  with  water  (the  direct  distance  to  the 
shore  is  two  and  one-half  leagues).* 

It  is  very  strange  that  the  text  given  in  the  a  mis- 
footnote  does  not  agree  with  A.  Perrey's  translation.  "■'i"''««""' 
The  former  does  not  mention  that  water  came  out  of 
the  mountains  and  says  just  the  contrary,  that  trees, 
which  were  torn  up  by  the  roots,  took  the  place  of 
the  sea  for  one  hour  on  the  shore,  so  that  no  water 
could   be   seen. 

*  Apud  Camarines  quoque  terram  eodem  die  quator  decies  contremuisse,  fide 
dignis  testimoniis  renuntiatum  est:  multa  interim  asdificia  diruta.  Ingentem 
montem  medium  crepuisse  immani  hiatu,  ex  immensa  vi  excussisse  arborss  per 
oras  pelagi,  ita  ut  leucam  occuparent  aequoris,  nee  humor  per  illud  intervallum 
appareret.  Accidit  hoc  anno  1628. — S.  Eut<ebius  Xierembcrgius,  Uistona 
Naturae,  lib.  xvi.,  383.      Antwerpiae,  1635. 


ISO  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Unreliable  The    data    of   the    Estado  Geografico    are    apt    to 

auihoniies.  create  distrust  as  the  official  report  on  the  great 
earthquake  of  1641  describes  in  detail  the  eruptions 
of  three  volcanoes,  which  happened  at  the  same  time 
(of  these  two  were  in  the  South  of  the  Archipelago 
and  one  in  Northern  Luzon)  while  Camarines  is  not 
mentioned  at  all.  This  suspicion  is  further  strengthened 
by  the  fact  that  the  same  author  (Nierembergius) 
whose  remarks  on  the  eruptions  of  1628  in  Camarines 
are  quoted,  gives  in  another  book  of  his  a  detailed 
report  on  the  events  of  1641  without  mentioning  this 
province.  If  one  considers  the  indifference  of  the 
friars  toward  such  events  in  Nature,  it  is  not  improbable 
that  the  eruptions  of  1641  when  a  mountain  fell  in  in 
Northern  Luzon  and  a  lake  took  its  place,  has  been 
transferred  on  the  Iriga.  To  illustrate  the  indifference 
it  may  be  mentioned  that  even  the  padres  living  at 
the  foot  of  the  Albay  could  not  agree  upon  the  dates 
of  its  very  last  eruptions. 
Another  atiempt  When  I  was  at  Tambong,  a  small  hamlet  on  the  shore 
of  the  lake  belonging  to  the  parochial  district  of  Buhi, 
I  made  a  second  unsuccessful  attempt  to  reach  the  highest 
point  of  the  Iriga.  We  arrived  in  the  evening  at  the 
southern  point  of  the  crater's  edge  (1,041  meters  above 
the  level  of  the  sea  by  my  barometrical  observation), 
where  a  deep  defile  prevented  our  further  progress. 
Here  the  Igorots  abandoned  me,  and  the  low-landers 
refused  to  bivouac  in  order  to  pursue  the  journey  on 
the  following  day;  so  I  was  obliged  to  return.  Late 
in  the  evening,  after  passing  through  a  coco  plantation, 
we  reached  the  foot  of  the  mountain  and  found  shelter 
from  a  tempest  with  a  kind  old  woman;  to  whom  my 
servants  lied  so  shamelessly  that,  when  the  rain  had 
abated,  we  were,  in  spite  of  our  failure,  conducted  with 
torches  to  Tambong,  where  we  found  the  palm-grove 


at  mountain 
climbing. 


Jagor's  Travels  ui  the  Philippines  131 

round  the  little  hamlet  magically  illuminated  with 
bright  bonfires  of  dry  coconut-leaves  in  honor  of  the 
Conquistadores  del  Iriga;  and  where  I  was  obliged  to 
remain  for  the  night,  as  the  people  were  too  timorous 
or  too  lazy  to  cross  the  rough  water  of  the  lake. 

Here  I  saw  them  preparing  the  fiber  of  the  pine-apple  Pineapple  fihi 
for  weaving.  The  fruit  of  the  plants  selected  for  this  p'"*?"'""'"'" 
purpose  is  generally  removed  early;  a  process  which 
causes  the  leaves  to  increase  considerably  both  in  length 
and  in  breadth.  A  woman  places  a  board  on  the  ground, 
and  upon  it  a  pine-apple-leaf  with  the  hollow  side  up- 
wards. Sitting  at  one  end  of  the  board,  she  holds  the 
leaf  firmly  with  her  toes,  and  scrapes  its  outersurface 
with  a  potsherd;  not  with  the  sharp  fractured  edge  but 
with  the  blunt  side  of  the  rim ;  and  thus  the  leaf  is  reduc- 
ed to  rags.  In  this  manner  a  stratum  of  coarse  lon- 
gitudinal fiber  is  disclosed,  and  the  operator,  placing  her 
thumb-nail  beneath  it,  lifts  it  up,  and  draws  it  away 
in  a  compact  strip ;  after  which  she  scrapes  again  until  a 
second  fine  layer  of  fiber  is  laid  bare.  Then,  turning  the 
leaf  round,  she  scrapes  its  back,  which  now  lies  upwards, 
down  to  the  layer  of  fiber,  which  she  seizes  with  her 
hand  and  draws  at  once,  to  its  full  length,  away  from 
the  back  of  the  leaf.  When  the  fiber  has  been  washed, 
it  is  dried  in  the  sun.  It  is  afterwards  combed,  with 
a  suitable  comb,  like  women's  hair,  sorted  into  four 
classes,  tied  together,  and  treated  like  the  fiber  of  the 
Iwpi.  In  this  crude  manner  are  obtained  the  threads 
for  the  celebrated  web  nipis  de  Pina,  which  is  considered  PifM. 
by  experts  the  finest  in  the  world.  Two  shirts  of 
this  kind  are  in  the  Berlin  Ethnographical  Museum 
(Nos.  291  and  292).  Better  woven  samples  are  in  the 
Gewerbe  Museum  of  Trade  and  Commerce.  In  the 
Philippines,    where    the    fineness    of    the    work  is  best 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Rain  prevents 
another  asceiit 


MountaineerH 
arrow  poison 


understood  and  appreciated,  richly- embroidered  costumes 
of  this  description  have  fetched  more  than  $1,400 
each.* 

At  Buhi,  which  is  not  sufficiently  sheltered  towards 
the  north-east,  it  rained  almost  as  much  as  at  Daraga. 
I  had  found  out  from  the  I  go  rots  that  a  path  could  be 
forced  through  the  tall  canes  up  to  the  summit;  but  the 
continual  rain  prevented  me;  so  I  resolved  to  cross  the 
Malinao,  returning  along  the  coast  to  my  quarters,  and 
then,  freshly  equipped,  descend  the  river  Bicol  as  far 
as  Naga. 

Before  we  parted  the  Igorots  prepared  for  me  some 
arrow  poison  from  the  bark  of  two  trees.  I  happened 
to  see  neither  the  leaves  nor  the  blossoms,  but  only  the 
bark.  A  piece  of  bark  was  beaten  to  pieces,  pressed  dry, 
wetted,  and  again  pressed.  This  was  done  with  the 
bare  hand,  which,  however,  sustained  no  injury.  The 
juice  thus  extracted  looked  like  pea-soup,  and  was  warm- 
ed in  an  earthen  vessel  over  a  slow  fire.  During  the 
process  it  coagulated  at  the  edges;  and  the  coagulated 
mass  was  again  dissolved,  by  stirring  it  into  the  boiling 
fluid  mass.  When  this  had  reached  the  consistency  of 
syrup,  a  small  quantity  was  scraped  off  the  inner  surface 
of  a  second  piece  of  bark,  and  its  juice  squeezed  into 
the  vessel.  This  juice  was  a  dark  brown  color.  When 
the  mass  had  attained  the  consistency  of  a  thin  jelly, 
it  was  scraped  out  of  the  pot  with  a  chip  and  preserved 
on  a  leaf  sprinkled  with  ashes.  For  poisoning  an  arrow 
they  use  a  piece  of  the  size  of  a  hazel-nut,  which,  after 
being  warmed,  is  distributed  uniformly  over  the  broad 
iron  point;  and  the  poisoned  arrow  serves  for  repeated 
use. 


*  At  Fort  William,  Calcutta,  experiments  have  proved  the  extraordinary 
endurance  of  the  pine-apple  fibre.  A  cable  eight  centimeters  in  circumference 
was  not  torn  asunder  until  a  force  of  2,850  kilogrannmes  had  been  applied  to  it. — 
Report  of  the  Jury,  Londoti  I nternational  Exhibition. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  tSS 

At  the  end  of  November  I  left  the  beautiful  lake  of  s«p»j  river 
Buhi,  and  proceeded  from  its  eastern  angle  for  a  short 
distance  up  the  little  river  Sapa,*  the  alluvial  deposits 
of  which  form  a  considerable  feature  in  the  configura- 
tion of  the  lake.  Across  a  marshy  meadow  we  reached 
the  base  of  the  Malinao  or  Buhi  mountain,  the  slippery- 
clay  of  the  lower  slope  merging  higher  up  into  volcanic 
sand.  The  damp  undergrowth  swarmed  with  small 
leeches;  I  never  before  met  with  them  in  such  numbers.  Leeches 
These  little  animals,  no  stouter  when  streched  out  than 
a  linen  thread,  are  extraordinarily  active.  They  attach 
themselves  firmly  to  every  part  of  the  body,  penetrat- 
ing even  into  the  nose,  the  ears,  and  the  eyelids,  where, 
if,  they  remain  unobserved,  they  gorge  themselves  to 
such  excess  that  they  become  as  round  as  balls  and  look 
like  small  cherries.  While  they  are  sucking  no  pain 
is  felt;  but  afterwards  the  spots  attacked  often  itch  the 
whole  day  long.f  In  one  place  the  wood  consisted  for 
the  most  part  of  fig-trees,  with  bunches  of  fruit  quite  Fig-trees 
six  feet  in  length  hanging  from  the  stems  and  the  thicker 
branches;  and  between  the  trees  grew  ferns,  aroids,  and 
orchids.  After  nearly  six  hours'  toil  we  reached  the 
pass  (841  meters  above  the  sea  level),  and  descended 
the  eastern  slope.  The  forest  on  the  eastern  side  of  the 
mountain  is  still  more  magnificent  than  that  on  the  west. 
From  a  clearing  we  obtained  a  fine  view  of  the  sea,  the 
Island  of  Catanduanes,  and  the  plain  of  Tabaco.  At 
sunset  we  reached  Tibi,  where  I  quartered  myself  in  Pn-sun 
the  prison.  This,  a  tolerably  clean  place,  enclosed  with 
strong  bamboos,  was  the  most  habitable  part  of  a  long 


*  Sapa  means  shallow. 

t  To  the  extraordinary  abundance  of  these  annulates  in  Sikkin,  Hooker 
{Himalayan  Journal,  i,  167)  ascribes  the  death  of  many  animals,  as  also  the 
murrain  known  as  rinderpest,  if  it  occurred  after  a  very  wet  season,  when  the 
leech  appears  in  incredible  numbers.  It  is  a  known  fact  that  these  worms  have 
existed  for  days  together  in  the  nostrils,  throat,  and  stomach  of  man,  causing 
inexpressible  pain  and,  finally,  death. 


IS:^  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

shed  which  supplied  the  place  of  the  tribunal  destroyed 
in  a  storm  two  years  before.  At  Tibi  I  had  an  opportu- 
nity of  sketching  Mount  Malinao  (called  also  Buhi  and 
Takit),  which  from  this  side  has  the  appearance  of  a 
large  volcano  with  a  distinct  crater.  From  the  lake 
of  Buhi  it  is  not  so  clearly  distinguishable. 
loabo  hot  Not  far  from  Tibi,  exactly  north-east  of  Malinao,  we 

spring.  fouud  a  Small  hot  spring  called  Igabo.     In  the  middle  of  a 

plot  of  turf  encircled  by  trees  was  a  bare  spot  of  oval  form, 
nearly  a  hundred  paces  long  and  seventy  wide.  The 
whole  space  was  covered  with  stones,  rounded  by  attri- 
tion, as  large  as  a  man's  head  and  larger.  Here  and 
there  hot  water  bubbled  out  of  the  ground  and  discharged 
into  a  little  brook;  beside  it  some  women  were  engaged 
in  cooking  their  food,  which  they  suspended  in  nets  in 
the  hottest  parts  of  the  water.  On  the  lower  surfaces 
of  some  of  the  stones  a  little  sulphur  was  sublimated; 
of  alum  hardly  a  trace  was  perceptible.  In  a  cavity 
some  caolin  had  accumulated,  and  was  used  as  a  stain. 
Nagiegbeng  From  here   I   visited   the  stalactite   springs,   not   far 

distant,  of  Nagiegbeng.*  I  had  expected  to  see  a  cal- 
careous fountain,  but  found  the  most  magnificent  masses 
of  silica  of  infinite  variety  of  form;  shallow  cones  with 
cylindrical  summits,  pyramidal  flights  of  steps,  round 
basins  with  ribbed  margins,  and  ponds  of  boiling  water. 
One  spot,  denuded  of  trees,  from  two  to  three  hundred 
paces  in  breadth  and  about  five  hundred  in  length,  was, 
with  the  exception  of  a  few  places  overgrown  with  turf, 
covered  with  a  crust  of  silicious  dross,  which  here  and 
there  formed  large  connected  areas,  but  was  generally 
broken  up  into  flaky  plates  by  the  vertical  springs  which 
pierced  it.  In  numerous  localities  boiling  hot  mineral 
water   containing   silica   was    forcing   itself   out    of  the 


silicious 
springs 


*  Gemelli  Careri  has  already  mentioned  them. 


Jagor's  Travels'in  the  Philippines  133 

ground,  spreading  itself  over  the  surface  and  depositing 
a  crust,  the  thickness  of  which  depended  on  its  distance 
from  the  center  point.  In  this  manner,  in  the  course 
of  time,  a  very  flat  cone  is  formed,  with  a  basin  of  boil- 
ing water  in  the  middle.  The  continuous  deposit  of 
dross  contracts  the  channel,  and  a  less  quantity  of  water 
overflows,  while  that  close  to  the  edge  of  the  basin 
evaporates  and  deposits  a  quantity  of  fine  silicious  earth ; 
whence  the  upper  portion  of  the  cone  not  only  is  steeper 
than  its  base,  but  frequently  assumes  a  more  cylindrical 
form,  the  external  surface  of  which  on  account  of  the 
want  of  uniformity  in  the  overflow,  is  ribbed  in  the  form 
of  stalactites.  When  the  channel  becomes  so  much 
obstructed  that  the  efflux  is  less  than  the  evaporation, 
the  water  ceases  to  flow  over  the  edge,  and  the  mineral 
dross,  during  the  continual  cooling  of  the  water,  is  then 
deposited,  with  the  greatest  uniformity,  over  the  inner 
area  of  the  basin.  When,  however,  the  surface  of  the 
water  sinks,  this  formation  ceases  at  the  upper  portion 
of  the  basin;  the  interior  wall  thickens;  and,  if  the 
channel  be  completely  stopped  up  and  all  the  water 
evaporated,  there  remains  a  bell-shaped  basin  as  even 
as  if  excavated  by  the  hand  of  man.  The  water  now 
seeks  a  fresh  outlet,  and  bursts  forth  where  it  meets 
with  the  least  obstruction,  without  destroying  the 
beautiful  cone  it  has  already  erected.  Many  such 
examples  exist.  In  the  largest  cones,  however,  the  vapors 
generated  acquire  such  power  that,  when  the  outlet  is 
completely  stopped  up,  they  break  up  the  overlying 
crust  in  concentrically  radiating  flakes;  and  the  water, 
issuing  anew  copiously  from  the  center,  deposits  a  fresh 
crust,  which  again,  by  the  process  we  have  just  described 
is  broken  up  into  a  superimposed  layer  of  flakes.  In 
this  manner  are  formed  annular  layers,  which  in  turn 
are  gradually  covered  by  fresh  deposits  from  the  over- 


136 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  wotH- 
wonder. 


flowing  water.  After  the  pyramid  of  layers  is  complete 
and  the  outlet  stopped  up,  the  water  sometimes  breaks 
forth  on  the  slope  of  the  same  cone;  a  second  cone  is 
then  formed  near  the  first,  on  the  same  base.  In 
the  vicinity  of  the  silicious  springs  are  seen  deposits 
of  white,  yellow,  red,  and  bluish-grey  clays,  overlaying 
one  another  in  narrow  strata-like  variegated  marl, 
manifestly  the  disintegrated  produce  of  volcanic  rocks 
transported  hither  by  rain  and  stained  with  oxide  of 
iron.  These  clays  perhaps  come  from  the  same  rocks 
from  the  disintegration  of  which  the  silicious  earth  has 
been  formed.  Similar  examples  occur  in  Iceland  and 
in  New  Zealand;  but  the  products  of  the  springs  of 
Tibi  are  more  varied,  finer,  and  more  beautiful  than 
those  of  the  Iceland  Geysers. 

The  wonderful  conformations  of  the  red  cone  are 
indeed  astonishing,  and  hardly  to  be  paralleled  in  any 
other  quarter  of  the  world.* 


XIV 

Quinaii  river.  On  my  sccoud  joumcy  in  Camarines,  which  I  undertook 
in  February,  I  went  by  water  from  Polangui,  past  Batu, 
as  far  as  Naga.  The  Quinaii,  which  runs  into  the  south- 
eastern corner  of  the  lake  of  Batu,  runs  out  again  on 
the  north  side  as  the  Bicol  River,  and  flows  in  a  north- 
westerly direction  as  far  as  the  Bay  of  San  Miguel. 
It  forms  the  medium  of  a  not  inconsiderable  trade  be- 
tween Albay  and  Camarines,  particularly  in  rice;  of 
which  the  supply  grown  in  the  former  province  does  not 
suffice  for  the  population,  who  consume  the  super- 
fluity of  Camarines.  The  rice  is  conveyed  in  large 
boats  up  the  river  as  far  as  Quinaii,  and  thence  trans- 

*  I  discovered  similar  formations,  of  extraordinary  beauty  and  extent,  in  the 
great  silicious  beds  of  Steamboat  Springs  in  Nevada. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  137 

ported  further  on  in  carabao  carts;  and  the  boats 
return  empty.  During  the  dry  season  of  the  year,  the 
breadth  of  the  very  tortuous  Bicol,  at  its  mouth,  is  a 
little  over  sixty  feet,  and  increases  but  very  gradually. 
There  is  considerable  variety  of  vegetation  upon  its 
banks,  and  in  animal  life  it  is  highly  attractive.  I  was 
particularly  struck  with  its  numerous  monkeys  and 
water-fowl.  Of  the  latter  the  Plotus  variety  was  most  ^''"'"s 
abundant,  but  difficult  to  shoot.  They  sit  motionless  '""""-^'^'^' 
on  the  trees  on  the  bank,  only  their  thin  heads  and  necks, 
like  those  of  tree-snakes,  overtopping  the  leaves.  On 
the  approach  of  the  boat  they  precipitate  themselves 
hastily  into  the  water;  and  it  is  not  until  after  many 
minutes  that  the  thin  neck  is  seen  rising  up  again  at 
some  distance  from  the  spot  where  the  bird  disappeared. 
The  Plotus  appears  to  be  as  rapid  on  the  wing  as  it  is 
in  swimming  and  diving. 

In  Naga,  the  chief  city  of  South  Camarines,  I  alighted  A'wa 
at  the  tribunal,  from  which,  however,  I  was  immediately 
invited  by  the  principal  official  of  the  district — who  is 
famed  for  his  hospitality  far  beyond  the  limits  of  his 
province — to  his  house,  where  I  was  loaded  with  civilities 
and  favors.  This  universally  beloved  gentleman  put 
everybody  under  contribution  in  order  to  enrich  my 
collections,  and  did  all  in  his  power  to  render  my  stay 
agreeable  and  to  further  my  designs. 

Naga  is  the  seat  of  a  bishopric  and  of  the  provincial  Nueva 
government.  In  official  documents  it  is  called  Nueva  ^"'■*'"''* 
Caceres,  in  honor  of  the  Captain-General,  D.  Fr.  de 
Sande,  a  native  of  Caceres,  who  about  1578  founded 
Naga  (the  Spanish  town)  close  to  the  Filipino  village. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century  it  num- 
bered nearly  one  hundred  Spanish  inhabitants;  at  the 
present  time  it  hardly  boasts  a  dozen.  Murillo  Velarde 
remarks  (xiii,  272),  in  contrast  to  the  state  of  things  in 


tSS  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

America,  that  of  all  the  towns  founded  in  the  Philippines, 
with  the  exception  of  Manila,  only  the  skeletons,  the 
names  without  the  substance,  have  been  preserved. 
The  reason  is,  as  has  been  frequently  shown,  that  up 
to  the  present  time  plantations,  and  consequently  proper 
settlers,  have  been  wanting.  Formerly  Naga  was  the 
principal  town  of  the  whole  of  that  district  of  Luzon 
lying  to  the  east  of  Tayabas,  which,  on  account  of  the 
increased  population,  was  divided  into  the  three  prov- 
inces of  North  and  South  Camarines  and  Albay.  The 
boundaries  of  these  governmental  districts,  those  be- 
tween Albay  and  South  Camarines  more  especially, 
have  been  drawn  very  arbitrarily;  although,  the  whole 
of  the  territory,  as  is  shown  by  the  map,  geographically 

Land  oj  is  very  well  defined.     The  country  is  named  Camarines; 

but  it  might  more  suitably  be  called  the  country  of  the 
Bicols,  for  the  whole  of  it  is  inhabited  by  one  race,  the 
Bicol-Filipinos,  who  are  distinguished  by  their  speech 
and  many  other  peculiarities  from  their  neighbors,  the 
Tagals  on  the  west,  and  the  Bisayans  on  the  islands 
to  the  south  and  east. 

The  Bicols.  The  Bicols  are  found  only  in  this  district  and  in  a  few 

islands  lying  immediately  in  front  of  it.  Of  their  coming 
hither  no  information  is  to  be  obtained  from  the  compre- 
hensive but  confused  histories  of  the  Spanish  monks. 
Morga  considers  them  to  be  natives  of  the  island;  on 
the  other  hand,  it  is  asserted  by  tradition  that  the 
inhabitants  of  Manila  and  its  vicinity  are  descended  from 
Malays  who  have  migrated  thither,  and  from  the  inhabit- 
ants of  other  islands  and  more  distant  provinces.*  Their 
speech  is  midway  between  that  of  the  Tagalog?;  and  the 
Bisayans,   and   they   themselves   appear,   in   both   their 


*  Arenas  thinks  that  the  ancient  annals  of  the  Chinese  probably  contain 
information  relative  to  the  settlement  of  the  present  inhabitants  of  Manila, 
as  that  people  had  early  intercourse  with  the  Archipelago. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  139 

manners  and  customs,  to  be  a  half-breed  between  these 
two  races.  Physically  and  mentally  they  are  inferior 
to  the  Tagalogs,  and  superior  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  i^^coi 
eastern  Bisayan  Islands.  Bicol  is  spoken  only  in  the  ^'^""^"^'^ 
two  Camarines,  Albay,  Luzon,  the  Islands  of  Masbate, 
Burias,  Ticao,  and  Catanduanes,  and  in  the  smaller 
adjoining  islands.  The  inhabitants  of  the  volcanic 
mountain  Isarog  and  its  immediate  neighborhood  speak 
it  in  the  greatest  purity.  Thence  towards  the  west 
the  Bicol  dialect  becomes  more  and  more  like  Tagalog, 
and  towards  the  east  like  Bisayan,  until  by  degrees, 
even  before  reaching  the  boundaries  of  their  ethno- 
graphical districts,  it  merges  into  these  two  kindred 
languages. 

In  South  Camarines  the  sowing  of  the  rice  in  beds  iUce 
begins  in  June  or  July,  always  at  the  commencement  of  '"""'''"'"• 
the  rainy  season;  but  in  fields  artificially  watered, 
earlier,  because  thus  the  fruit  ripens  at  a  time  when, 
the  store  in  the  country  being  small,  its  price  is  high. 
Although  the  rice  fields  could  very  well  give  two  crops 
yearly,  they  are  tilled  only  once.  It  is  planted  out 
in  August,  with  intervals  of  a  hand's-breadth  between 
each  row  and  each  individual  plant;  and  within  four 
months  the  rice  is  ripe.  The  fields  are  never  fertilized, 
and  but  seldom  ploughed;  the  weeds  and  the  stubble 
being  generally  trodden  into  the  already  soaked  ground 
by  a  dozen  carabaos,  and  the  soil  afterwards  simply 
rolled  with  a  cylinder  furnished  with  sharp  points,  or 
loosened  with  the  harrow  (sorod).  Besides  the  agricul- 
tural implements  named  above,  there  are  the  Spanish 
hatchet  (azadon)  and  a  rake  of  bamboo  (kag-kag)  in 
use.  The  harvest  is  effected  in  a  peculiar  manner. 
The  rice  which  is  soonest  ripe  is  cut  for  ten  per  cent, 
that  is,  the  laborer  receives  for  his  toil  the  tenth  bundle 
for  himself.     At  this  time  of  year  rice  is  very  scarce, 


140 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Rice  land 
production. 


The  harvesi. 


want  is  imminent,  and  labor  reasonable.  The  more 
fields,  however,  that  ripen,  the  higher  become  the 
reapers'  wages,  rising  to  twenty,  thirty,  forty,  even  fifty 
per  cent;  indeed,  the  executive  sometimes  consider  it 
to  be  necessary  to  force  the  people  to  do  harvest  by 
corporal  punishment  and  imprisonment,  in  order  to  pre- 
vent a  large  portion  of  the  crop  from  rotting  on  the  stalk. 
Nevertheless,  in  very  fruitful  years  a  part  of  the  harvest 
is  lost.  The  rice  is  cut  halm  by  halm  (as  in  Java)  with 
a  peculiarly-formed  knife,  or,  failing  such,  with  the 
sharp-edged  flap  of  a  mussel*  found  in  the  ditches  of 
the  rice-fields,  which  one  has  only  to  stoop  to  pick  up. 

A  quinon  of  the  best  rice  land  is  worth  from  sixty  to 
one  hundred  dollars  ($5.50  to  $9  per  acre).  Rice  fields 
on  rising  grounds  are  dearest,  as  they  are  not  exposed  to 
devastating  floods  as  are  those  in  the  plain,  and  may 
be  treated  so  as  to  insure  the  ripening  of  the  fruit  at 
the  time  when  the  highest  price  is  to  be  obtained. 

A  ganta  of  rice  is  sufficient  to  plant  four  topones 
(1  topon=l  loan);  from  which  100  ?/?ano/os  (bundles) 
are  gathered,  each  of  which  yields  half  a  ganta  of  rice. 
The  old  ganta  of  Naga,  however,  being  equal  to  a  modern 
ganta  and  a  half,  the  produce  may  be  calculated  at 
75  cavanes  per  quinon,  about  9'^i  bushels  per  acre.f 
In  books  250  cavanes  are  usually  stated  to  be  the  average 
produce  of  a  quinon;  but  that  is  an  exaggeration.  The 
fertility  of  the  fields  certainly  varies  very  much;  but, 
when  it  is  considered  that  the  land  in  the  Philippines 
is  never  fertilized,  but  depends,  for  the  maintenance  of 
its  vitality,  exclusively  upon  the  overflowing  of  the  mud 
which  is  washed  down  from  the  mountains,  it  may  be 
believed  that  the  first  numbers  better  express  the  true 


*  Probably  the  Anodonta  Purpurea,  according  to  V.  Martens, 
t   1    ganta  =  Z   liters.     1    guifion=100   lodnes=  2.79495   hectares  =  6.89   acres. 
1    cohare  =  25   gantas. 


pntatoea. 


Jayor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  HI 

average.  In  Java  the  harvest,  in  many  provinces, 
amounts  to  only  50  ca vanes  per  quinon;  in  some,  indeed, 
to  three  times  this  amount;  and  in  China,  with  the 
most  careful  culture  and  abundant  manure,  to  180  ca- 
banes.*  Besides  rice,  they  cultivate  the  camote  (sweet 
potato.  Convolvulus  batatas).  This  flourishes  like  a  Sweet 
weed;  indeed,  it  is  sometimes  planted  for  the  purpose  of 
eradicating  the  weeds  from  soil  intended  for  coffee  or 
cacao.  It  spreads  out  into  a  thick  carpet,  and  is  an 
inexhaustible  storehouse  to  its  owner,  who,  the  whole 
year  through,  can  supply  his  wants  from  his  field.  Gobi 
{Caladium),  Ubi  {Dioscorea),  maize,  and  other  kinds  of 
grain,  are  likewise  cultivated. 

After  the  rice  harvest  the  carabaos,  horses,  and  bul-   Caiiieand 

homes. 

locks,  are  allowed  to  graze  in  the  fields.  During  the 
rice  culture  they  remain  in  the  gogonales,  cane-fields 
which  arise  in  places  once  cultivated  for  mountain-rice 
and  afterwards  abandoned.  (Gogo  is  the  name  of  a  cane 
7  to  8  feet  high,  Saccharum  sp.).  Transport  then  is 
almost  impossible,  because  during  the  rainy  season  the 
roads  are  impassable,  and  the  cattle  find  nothing  to 
eat.  The  native  does  not  feed  his  beast,  but  allows  it 
to  die  when  it  cannot  support  itself.  In  the  wet  season 
of  the  year  it  frequently  happens  that  a  carabao  falls 
down  from  starvation  whilst  drawing  a  cart.  A  carabao 
costs  from  $7  to  $10;  a  horse  $10  to  $20;  and  a  cow 
$6  to  $8.  Very  fine  horses  are  valued  at  from  $30  to 
$50,  and  occasionally  as  much  as  $80;  but  the  native 
horses  are  not  esteemed  in  Manila,  because  they  have 
no  stamina.  The  bad  water,  the  bad  hay,  and  the  great 
heat  of  the  place  at  once  point  out  the  reason ;  otherwise 
it  would  be  profitable  to  export  horses  in  favorable 
seasons  to  Manila,  where  they  would  fetch  twice  their 


*  Scherzer,    Miscellaneous    Information. 


14Z  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

value.  According  to  Morga,  there  were  neither  horses 
nor  asses  on  the  Island  until  the  Spaniards  imported 
them  from  China  and  New  Spain.*  They  were  at  first 
small  and  vicious.  Horses  were  imported  also  from 
Japan,  "not  swift  but  powerful,  with  large  heads  and 
thick  manes,  looking  like  Friesland  horses;"!  and  the 
breed  improved  rapidly.  Those  born  in  the  country, 
mostly  cross-breeds,  drive  well. 

Biad:  caitic.  Black   Cattle   are   generally   in   the   hands   of    a   few 

individuals;  some  of  whom  in  Camarines  possess  from 
1000  to  3000  head;  but  they  are  hardly  saleable  in  the 
province,  although  they  have  been  exported  profitably 
for  some  years  past  to  Manila.  The  black  cattle  of  the 
province  are  small  but  make  good  beef.  They  are  never 
employed  for  labor,  and  the  cows  are  not  milked.  The 
Filipinos,  who  generally  feed  on  fish,  crabs,  mussels,  and 
wild  herbs  together  with  rice,  prefer  the  flesh  of  the 
carabao  to  that  of  the  ox;  but  they  eat  it  only  on  feast- 
days. 

Sheep.  The  old  race  of  sheep,   imported  by  the  Spaniards 

previous  to  this  century,  still  flourishes  and  is  easily 
propagated.  Those  occasionally  brought  from  Shanghai 
and  Australia  are  considered  to  be  deficient  in  endurance, 
unfruitful,  and  generally  short-lived.  Mutton  is  procur- 
able every  day  in  Manila;  in  the  interior,  however,  at 
least  in  the  eastern  provinces,  very  rarely;  although 
the  rearing  of  sheep  might  there  be  carried  on  without 
difficulty,  and  in  many  places  most  profitably;  the 
people  being  too  idle  to  take  care  of  the  young  lambs, 
which  they  complain   are  torn  to  pieces  by  the  dogs 


*  More  than  one  hundred  years  later,  Father  Taillandier  writes: — "The 
Spaniards  have  brought  cows,  horses,  and  sheep  from  America;  but  these  animals 
cannot  live  there  on  account  of  the  dampness  and  inundations." — (Letters  from 
Father  Taillandier  to  Father  Willard.) 

t  At  the  present  time  the  Chinese  horses  are  plump,  large-headed,  hairy,  and 
with  bushy  tails  and  manes;  and  the  Japanese,  elegant  and  enduring,  similar  to 
the  Arabian.  Good  Manila  horses  are  of  the  latter  type,  and  are  much  prized 
by  the  Europeans  in  Chinese  seaport  towns. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  /^g 

when  they  wander  about  free.  The  sheep  appear  to 
have  been  acclimatized  with  difficulty.  Morga  says 
that  they  were  brought  several  times  from  New  Spain, 
but  did  not  multiply;  so  that  in  his  time  this  kind  of 
domestic  animal  did  not  exist.  Pork  is  eaten  by  wealthy 
Europeans  only  when  the  hog  has  been  brought  up  from  Swine. 
the  litter  at  home.  In  order  to  prevent  its  wandering 
away,  it  is  usually  enclosed  in  a  wide  meshed  cylindrical 
hamper  of  bamboo,  upon  filling  which  it  is  slaughtered. 
The  native  hogs  are  too  nauseous  for  food,  the  animals 
maintaining  themselves  almost  entirely  on  ordure. 

Crawfurd  observes  that  the  names  of  all  the  domestic  Guesses  at 
animals  in  the  Philippines  belong  to  foreign  languages.  \an7ualT" 
Those  of  the  dog,  swine,  goat,  carabao,  cat,  even  of  the 
fowl  and  the  duck,  are  Malay  or  Javanese;  while  those 
of  the  horse,  ox,  and  sheep,  are'  Spanish.  Until  these 
animals  were  first  imported  from  Malaysia,  the  aborigines 
were  less  fortunate  in  this  respect  than  the  Americans, 
who  at  least  had  the  alpaca,  llamanda,  vicuna.  The 
names  likewise  of  most  of  the  cultivated  plants,  such  as 
rice,  yams,  sugar-cane,  cacao  and  indigo,  are  said  to  be 
Malay,  as  well  as  those  for  silver,  copper,  and  tin.  Of 
the  words  relating  to  commerce,  one-third  are  Malay; 
to  which  belong  most  of  the  terms  used  in  trades,  as  well 
as  the  denominations  for  weights  and  measures,  for  the 
calendar — so  far  as  it  exists — and  for  numbers,  besides 
the  words  for  writing,  reading,  speaking,  and  narrative. 
On  the  other  hand,  only  a  small  number  of  terms  which 
refer  to  war  are  borrowed  from  the  Malay. 

Referring  to  the  degree  of  civilization  which  the  Phil-  Ancient 
ippines  possessed  previous  to  their  intercourse  with  the  ciilii"aHon 
Malays,  Crawfurd  concludes  from  the  purely  domestic 
words   that   they   cultivated   no   corn,    their   vegetable 
food  consisting  of  batata  (?)  and  banana.     They  had  not 
a  single  domestic   animal;  they  were  acquainted  with 


progress  under 


tU  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

iron  and  gold,  but  with  no  other  metal,  and  were  clothed 
in  stuffs  of  cotton  and  alpaca,  woven  by  themselves. 
They  had  invented  a  peculiar  phonetic  alphabet;  and 
their  religion  consisted  in  the  belief  in  good  and  evil 
spirits  and  witches,  in  circumcision,  and  in  somewhat 
of  divination  by  the  stars.  They  therefore  were  superior 
to  the  inhabitants  of  the  South  Sea,  inasmuch  as  they 
possessed  gold,  iron,  and  woven  fabrics,  and  inferior 
to  them  in  that  they  had  neither  dog,  pig,  nor  fowl. 
Assuming  the  truth  of  the  above  sketch  of  pre- 
Spain.  Christian   culture,    which   has   been   put   together   only 

with  the  help  of  defective  linguistic  sources,  and  compar- 
ing it  with  the  present,  we  find,  as  the  result,  a  consider- 
able progress,  for  which  the  Philippines  are  indebted 
to  the  Spaniards.  The  influence  of  sociaj  relations  has 
been  already  exhibitecf  in  the  text.  The  Spaniards  have 
imported  the  horse,  the  bullock,  and  the  sheep;  maize, 
coffee,  sugar-cane,  cacao,  sesame,  tobacco,  indigo,  many 
fruits,  and  probably  the  batata,  which  they  met  with 
in  Mexico  under  the  name  of  camotli.*  From  this 
circumstance  the  term  camote,  universal  in  the  Phil- 
ippines, appears  to  have  had  its  origin,  Crawfurd,  indeed, 
erroneously  considering  it  a  native  term.  According 
to  a  communication  from  Dr.  Witmack,  the  opinion  has 
lately  been  conceived  that  the  batata  is  indigenous  not 
only  to  America,  but  also  to  the  East  Indies,  as  it  has 
two  names  in  Sanscrit,  sharkarakanda  and  ruktaloo. 
Slight  industrial  With  the  cxccptiou  of  embroidcry,  the  natives  have 
progress.  madc  but  little  progress  in  industries,  in  the  weaving 

and  the  plaiting  of  mats ;  and  the  handicrafts  are  entirely 
carried  on  by  the  Chinese. 
Rice  and  ahaca        The  cxports  cousist  of  ricc  and  abaca.     The  province 
exported.  exports  about  twice  as  much  rice  as  it  consumes;  a  large 


*   Compare  Hernandez,  Opera  Omnia;  Torqueniada,  Monarchia  Indica. 


Jagor's  Traveln  in  the  Philippines  Ho 

quantity  to  Albay,  which,  less  adapted  for  the  cultiva- 
tion of  rice,  produces  only  abaca;  and  a  fair  share  to 
North  Camarines,  which  is  very  mountainous,  and  little 
fertile.  The  rice  can  hardly  be  shipped  to  Manila,  as 
there  is  no  high  road  to  the  south  side  of  the  province, 
near  to  the  principal  town,  and  the  transport  by  water 
from  the  north  side,  and  from  the  whole  of  the  eastern 
portion  of  Luzon,  would  immediately  enhance  the  price 
of  the  product.  The  imports  are  confined  to  the  little 
that  is  imported  by  Chinese  traders.  The  traders  are  Chinese 
almost  all  Chinese,  who  alone  possess  shops  in  which  ''*°'^°p°^'^« 
clothing  materials  and  woolen  stuffs,  partly  of  native 
and  partly  of  European  manufacture,  women's  embroid- 
ered slippers,  and  imitation  jewelry,  may  be  obtained. 
The  whole  amount  of  capital  invested  in  these  shops 
certainly  does  not  exceed  $200,000.  In  the  remaining 
pueblos  of  Camarines  there  are  no  Chinese  merchants; 
and  the  inhabitants  are  consequently  obliged  to  get 
their  supplies  from  Naga. 

The  land  belongs  to  the  State,  but  is  let  to  any  one  Land  for 
who  will  build   upon   it.     The  usufruct  passes   to   the  ""''^^'"^"^ 
children,   and  ceases  only  when  the  land  remains  un- 
employed for  two  whole  years ;  after  which  it  is  competent 
for  the  executive  to  dispose  of  it  to  another  person. 

Every  family  possesses  its  own  house;  and  the  young  Glomes. 
husband  generally  builds  with  the  assistance  of  his 
friends.  In  many  places  it  does  not  cost  more  than 
four  or  five  dollars,  as  he  can,  if  necessary,  build  it  him- 
self free  of  expense,  with  the  simple  aid  of  the  forest- 
knife  (bolo),  and  of  the  materials  to  his  hand,  bamboo, 
Spanish  cane,  and  palm-leaves.  These  houses,  which 
are  always  built  on  piles  on  account  of  the  humidity 
of  the  soil,  often  consist  of  a  single  shed,  which  serves 
for  all  the  uses  of  a  dwelling,  and  are  the  cause  of  great 
laxity  and  of  filthy  habits,   the  whole  family  sleeping 


1J,6  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

therein  in  common,  and  every  passer-by  being  a  welcome 
guest.  A  fine  house  of  boards  for  the  family  of  a  cabeza 
perhaps  costs  nearly  $100;  and  the  possessions  of  such 
a  family  in  stock,  furniture,  ornaments,  etc.  (of  which 
they  are  obliged  to  furnish  an  annual  inventory),  would 
range  in  value  between  $100  and  $1,000.  Some  reach 
even  as  much  as  $10,000,  while  the  richest  family  of  the 
whole  province  is  assessed  at  $40,000. 

People  not  In  general  it  may  be  said  that  every  pueblo  supplies 

its  own  necessaries,  and  produces  little  more.  To  the 
indolent  native,  especially  to  him  of  the  eastern  prov- 
inces, the  village  in  which  he  was  born  is  the  world;  and 
he  leaves  it  only  under  the  most  pressing  circumstances. 
Were  it  otherwise  even,  the  strictness  of  the  poll-tax 
would  place  great  obstacles  in  the  way  of  gratifying  the 
desire  for  travel,  generated  by  that  oppressive  impost. 

Meals.  The  Filipino  eats  three  times  a  day — about  7  a.  m., 

12,  and  at  7  or  8  in  the  evening.  Those  engaged  in 
severe  labor  consume  at  each  meal  a  chupa  of  rice;  the 
common  people,  half  a  chupa  at  breakfast,  one  at  mid- 
day, and  half  again  in  the  evening,  altogether  two  chupas. 
Each  family  reaps  its  own  supply  of  rice,  and  preserves 
it  in  barns,  or  buys  it  winnowed  at  the  market;  in  the 
latter  case  purchasing  only  the  quantity  for  one  day  or 
for  the  individual  meals.  The  average  retail  price  is 
3  cuartos  for  2  chupas  (14  chupas  for  1  real).  To  free 
it  from  the  husk,  the  quantity  for  each  single  meal  is 
rubbed  in  a  mortar  by  the  women.  This  is  in  accord- 
ance with  an  ancient  custom;  but  it  is  also  due  to  the 
fear  lest,  otherwise,  the  store  should  be  too  quickly 
consumed.  The  rice,  however,  is  but  half  cooked;  and 
it  would  seem  that  this  occurs  in  all  places  where  it 
constitutes  an  essential  part  of  the  sustenance  of  the 
people,  as  may  be  seen,  indeed,  in  Spain  and  Italy. 
Salt   and   much   Spanish   pepper   {capsicimi)   are   eaten 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  147 

as  condiments;  the  latter,  originally  imported  from 
America,  growing  all  round  the  houses.  To  the  common 
cooking-salt  the  natives  prefer  a  so-called  rock-salt, 
which  they  obtain  by  evaporation  from  sea-water  pre- 
viously filtered  through  ashes ;  and  of  which  one  chinanta 
(12  lbs.  German)  costs  from  one  and  one-half  to  two 
reals.     The  consumption  of  salt  is  extremely  small. 

The  luxuries  of  the  Filipinos  are  buyo*  and  cigars — -  Buyoand 
a  cigar  costing  half  a  centavo,  and  a  buyo  much  less.  *^""*" 
Cigars  are  rarely  smoked,  but  are  cut  up  into  pieces, 
and  chewed  with  the  buyo.  The  women  also  chew  buyo 
and  tobacco,  but,  as  a  rule,  very  moderately;  but  they 
do  not  also  stain  their  teeth  black,  like  the  Malays;  and 
the  young  and  pretty  adorn  themselves  assiduously 
with  veils  made  of  the  areca-nut  tree,  whose  stiff  and 
closely  packed  parallel  fibers,  when  cut  crosswise,  form 
excellent  tooth-brushes.  They  bathe  several  times 
daily,  and  surpass  the  majority  of  Europeans  in  clean- 
liness. Every  native,  above  all  things,  keeps  a  fighting- 
cock;  even  when  he  has  nothing  to  eat,  he  finds  money 
for  cock-fighting. 

The  details  of  domestic  economy  may  be  summarized  Household 

r    1 1  affairs. 

as  iollows: 

For  cooking  purposes  an  earthen  pot  is  used,  costing 
between  3  and  10  cuartos;  which,  in  cooking  rice,  is 
closed  firmly  with  a  banana-leaf,  so  that  the  steam  of 
a  very  small  quantity  of  water  is  sufficient.  No  other 
cooking  utensils  are  used  by  the  poorer  classes;  but 
those  better  off  have  a  few  cast-iron  pans  and  dishes. 
In  the  smaller  houses,  the  hearth  consists  of  a  portable 
earthen  pan  or  a  flat  chest,  frequently  of  an  old  cigar- 


*  Buyo  is  the  name  given  in  the  Philippines  to  the  preparation  of  betel  suit- 
able for  chewing.  A  leaf  of  betel  pepper  (Chavica  betel),  of  the  form  and  size 
of  a  bean-leaf,  is  smeared  over  with  a  small  piece  of  burnt  lime  of  the  size  of  a 
pea,  and  rolled  together  from  both  ends  to  the  middle;  when,  one  end  of  the  roll 
being  inserted  into  the  other,  a  ring  is  formed,  into  which  a  smooth  piece  of 
areca  nut  of  corresponding  size  is  introduced. 


H8  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

chest  full  of  sand,  with  three  stones  which  serv  e  as  a  tri- 
pod. In  the  larger  houses  it  is  in  the  form  of  a  bedstead, 
filled  with  sand  or  ashes,  instead  of  a  mattress.  The 
water  in  small  households  is  carried  and  preserved  in 
thick  bamboos.  In  his  bolo  (forest-knife),  moreover, 
every  one  has  an  universal  instrument,  which  he  carries 
in  a  wooden  sheath  made  by  himself,  suspended  by  a 
cord  of  loosely-twisted  bast  fibers  tied  round  his  body. 
This,  and  the  rice-mortar  (a  block  of  wood  with  a  suitable 
cavity),  together  with  pestles  and  a  few  baskets,  con- 

Furniture.  stitutc  the  wholc  of  the  household  furniture  of  a  poor 

family;  sometimes  a  large  snail,  with  a  rush  wick,  is 
also  to  be  found  as  a  lamp.  They  sleep  on  a  mat  of 
pandanus  (fan-palm,  Corypha),  when  they  possess  one; 
if  not,  on  the  splittings  of  bamboo,  with  which  the  house 
is  floored.  By  the  poor  oil  for  lighting  is  rarely  used; 
but  torches  of  resin,  which  last  a  couple  of  days,  are 
bought  in  the  market  for  half  a  cuarto. 

Clothing.  Their  clothing  requirements  I  ascertained  to  be  these: 

A  woman  wears  a  camisa  de  guinara  (a  short  shift  of 
abaca  fiber),  a  patadion  (a  gown  reaching  from  the  hip 
to  the  ancles),  a  cloth,  and  a  comb.  A  piece  of  guinara, 
costing  1  real,  gives  two  shifts;  the  coarsest  patadion 
costs  3  reals;  a  cloth,  at  the  highest,  1  real;  and  a  comb, 
2  cuartos;  making  altogether  4  reals,  12  cuartos.  Women 
of  the  better  class  wear  a  camisa,  costing  between  1  and 
2  r.,  a  patadion  6  r.,  cloth  between  2  and  3  r.,  and  a 
comb  2  cu.  The  men  wear  a  shirt,  1  r.,  hose,  3  r.,  hat 
{tararura)  of  Spanish  cane,  10  cu.,  or  a  salacot  (a  large 
rain-hat,  frequently  decorated),  at  least  2  r. — often,  when 
ornamented  with  silver,  as  much  as  $50.  At  least 
three,  but  more  commonly  four,  suits  are  worn  out 
yearly;  the  women,  however,  taking  care  to  weave 
almost  the  whole  quantity  for  the  family  themselves. 


Jagor's  Travels  iti  the  Philippines  1^9 

The  daily  wages  of  the  common  laborer  are  1  real,  ""'»»««• 
-without  food;  and  his  hours  of  work  are  from  6  to  12, 
and  from  2  to  6  o'clock.  The  women,  as  a  rule,  per- 
form no  field  labor,  but  plant  out  the  rice  and  assist  in 
the  reaping;  their  wages  on  both  occasions  being  equal 
to  those  of  the  men.  Wood  and  stone-cutters  receive 
1.5  r.  per  day,  and  calkers  1.75  r. 

The  Tercio  is  a  pretty  general  contract  in  the  cultiva-  ^"'"^  leases. 
tion  of  the  land.  The  owner  simply  lets  arable  land  for 
the  third  part  of  the  crop.  Some  mestizos  possess  several 
pieces  of  ground;  but  they  are  seldom  connected  together, 
as  they  generally  acquire  them  as  mortgages  for  sums 
bearing  but  a  small  proportion  to  their  real  value. 

Under  the  head  of  earnings  I  give  the  income  of  a  Family  income. 
small  family.  The  man  earns  daily  one  real,  and  the 
woman,  if  she  weaves  coarse  stuff,  one-fourth  real,  and 
her  food  (thus  a  piece  of  guindra,  occupying  the  labor 
of  two  days,  costs  half  a  real  in  weavers'  wages).  The 
most  skilful  female  weaver  of  the  finer  stuffs  obtains 
twelve  reals  per  piece ;  but  it  takes  a  month  to  weave ;  and 
the  month,  on  account  of  the  numerous  holy-days,  must 
be  calculated  at  the  most  as  equal  to  twenty-four  work- 
ing days;  she  consequently  earns  one-fourth  real  per 
day  and  her  food.  For  the  knitting  of  the  fibers  of  the 
ananas  for  the  pina  web  (called  sugot)  she  gets  only  an 
eighth  of  a  real  and  her  food. 

In  all  the  pueblos  there  are  schools.  The  schoolmaster  Schooh. 
is  paid  by  the  Government,  and  generally  obtains  two 
dollars  per  month,  without  board  or  lodging.  In  large 
pueblos  the  salary  amounts  to  three  dollars  and  a  half; 
out  of  which  an  assistant  must  be  paid.  The  schools 
are  under  the  supervision  of  theecclesiastics  of  the  place. 
Reading  and  writing  are  taught,  the  writing  copies 
being  Spanish.  The  teacher,  who  has  to  teach  his 
scholars  Spanish  exactly,  does  not  understand  it  him- 


150 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Marriage  agn. 


WuTnan'a  work. 


self,  while  the  Spanish  officers,  on  the  other  hand,  do 
not  understand  the  language  of  the  country;  and  the 
priests  have  no  inclination  to  alter  this  state  of  things, 
which  is  very  useful  to  them  as  a  means  of  influence. 
Almost  the  only  Filipinos  who  speak  Spanish  are  those 
who  have  been  in  the  service  of  Europeans.  A  kind 
of  religious  horn-book  is  the  first  that  is  read  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  country  (Bicol) ;  and  after  that  comes  the 
Christian  Doctrine,  the  reading-book  called  CasayayaJi. 
On  an  average,  half  of  all  the  children  go  to  school, 
generally  from  the  seventh  to  the  tenth  year.  They 
learn  to  read  a  little;  a  few  even  write  a  little:  but  they 
soon  forget  it  again.  Only  those  who  are  afterwards 
employed  as  clerks  write  fluently;  and  of  these  most 
write  well. 

Some  priests  do  not  permit  boys  and  girls  to  attend 
the  same  school;  and  in  this  case  they  pay  a  second 
teacher,  a  female,  a  dollar  a  month.  The  Filipinos  learn 
arithmetic  very  quickly,  generally  aiding  themselves 
by  the  use  of  mussels  or  stones,  which  they  pile  in  little 
heaps  before  them  and  then  count  through. 

The  women  seldom  marry  before  the  fourteenth  year, 
twelve  years  being  the  legal  limit.  In  the  church-register 
of  Polangui  I  found  a  marriage  recorded  (January,  1837) 
between  a  Filipino  and  a  Filipina  having  the  ominous 
name  of  Hilaria  Concepcion,  who  at  the  time  of  the 
performance  of  the  marriage  ceremony  was,  according 
to  a  note  in  the  margin,  only  nine  years  and  ten  months 
old.  Frequently  people  live  together  unmarried,  be- 
cause they  cannot  pay  the  expenses  of  the  ceremony.* 

European  females,  and  even  mestizas,  never  seek 
husbands  amongst  the  natives.  The  women  generally 
are  well  treated,  doing  only  light  work,  such  as  sewing, 


*  Twelve  lines  are  omitted  here. — C. 


A  patriarch. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  ISl 

weaving,  embroidery,  and  managing  the  household; 
while  all  the  heavy  labor,  with  the  exception  of  the 
beating  of  the  rice,   falls  to  the  men.* 

Instances  of  longevity  are  frequent  amongst  the 
Filipinos,  particularly  in  Camarines.  The  Diario  de 
Manila,  of  March  13th,  1866,  mentions  an  old  man  in 
Daraja  (Albay)  whom  I  knew  well — Juan  Jacob,  born 
in  1744,  married  in  1764,  and  a  widower  in  1845.  He 
held  many  public  posts  up  to  1840,  and  had  thirteen 
children,  of  whom  five  are  living.  He  has  one  hundred 
and  seventy  direct  descendants,  and  now,  at  one  hundred 
and  twenty-two  years  of  age,  is  still  vigorous,  with 
good  eyes  and  teeth.  Extreme  unction  was  administered 
to  him  seven  times! 

The  first  excretion  of  a  new-born  child  is  carefully  -S'^a^^  bi<«  and 
preserved,  and  under  the  name  of  triaca  (theriacum)  is  '^^  '"  '^^'"^  "' 
held  to  be  a  highly  efficacious  and  universal  remedy 
for  the  bites  of  snakes  and  mad  dogs.     It  is  applied  to 
the  wound  externally,  and  at  the  same  time  is  taken 
internally. 

A  large  number  of  children  die  in  the  first  two  weeks  infant 
after  birth.  Statistical  data  are  wanting;  but,  according  "*  '  "  ''^' 
to  the  opinion  of  one  of  the  first  physicians  in  Manila, 
at  least  one-fourth  die.  This  mortality  must  arise  from 
great  uncleanliness  and  impure  air ;  since  in  the  chambers 
of  the  sick,  and  of  women  lying-in,  the  doors  and  windows 
are  so  closely  shut  that  the  healthy  become  sick  from 
the  stench  and  heat,  and  the  sick  recover  with  difficulty. 
Every  aperture  of  the  house  is  closed  up  by  the  husband 
early  during  travail,  in  order  that  Patianac  may  not 
break  in — an  evil  spirit  who  brings  mischief  to  lying-in 
women,  and  endeavors  to  hinder  the  birth.  The  custom 
has  been  further  maintained  even  amongst  many  who 


*  Four  lines  are  omitted. — C. 


152  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

attach  no  belief  to  the  superstition,  but  who,  from  fear 
of  a  draught  of  air  through  a  hole,  have  discovered  a  new 
explanation  for  an  old  custom — namely,  that  instances 
of  such  practices  occur  amongst  all  people.     One  very 

The  Itch.  widely-spread  malady  is  the  itch,  although,  according  to 

the  assurance  of  the  physician  above  referred  to,  it  may 
be  easily  subdued;  and,  according  to  the  judgment  of 
those  who  are  not  physicians  and  who  employ  that  term 
for  any  eruptions  of  the  skin,  the  natives  generally  live 
on  much  too  low  a  diet;  the  Bicols  even  more  than  the 
Tagalogs.*  Under  certain  conditions,  which  the  physi- 
cians, on  being  questioned,  could  not  define  more  pre- 
cisely, the  natives  can  support  neither  hunger  nor  thirst ; 
of  which  fact  I  have  on  many  occasions  been  a  witness. 
It  is  reported  of  them,  when  forced  into  such  a  situation 
as  to  suffer  from  unappeased  wants,  that  they  become 
critically  ill;   and  thus   they  often   die. 

Imitation-  Hcncc  ariscs  the  morbid  mania  for  imitation,  which 

is  called  in  Java  Sakit-latar,  and  here  Mali-mali.  In 
Java  many  believe  that  the  sickness  is  only  assumed, 
because  those  who  pretend  to  be  afflicted  with  it  find 
it  to  their  advantage  to  be  seen  by  newly  arrived  Euro- 
peans. Here,  however,  I  saw  one  instance  where  indeed 
no  simulation  could  be  suspected.  My  companions 
availed  themselves  of  the  diseased  condition  of  a  poor 
old  woman  who  met  us  in  the  highway,  to  practice  some 
rough  jokes  upon  her.  The  old  woman  imitated  every 
motion  as  if  impelled  by  an  irresistible  impulse,  and 
expressed  at  the  same  time  the  most  extreme  indigna- 
tion against  those  who  abused  her  infirmity. 

The  sickness  in  Jn  R.  Maak's  "Joumey  to  the  Amour,"  it  is  re- 
corded:— "It  is  not  unusual  for  the  Maniagri  to  suffer 
also  from  a  nervous  malady  of  the  most  peculiar  kind,  with 


*  In  the  country  it  is  believed  that  swine's  flesh  often  causes  this  malady.  A 
friend,  a  physiologist,  conjectures  the  cause  to  be  the  free  use  of  very  fat  pork; 
but  the  natives  commonly  eat  but  little  flesh,  and  the  pigs  are  very  seldom  fat. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  153 

which  we  had  already  been  made  acquainted  by  the 
descriptions  of  several  travellers.*  This  malady  is  met 
with,  for  the  most  part,  amongst  the  wild  people  of 
Siberia,  as  well  as  amongst  the  Russians  settled  there. 
In  the  district  of  the  Jakutes,  where  this  affliction  very 
frequently  occurs,  those  affected  by  it,  both  Russians 
and  Jakutes,  are  known  by  the  name  of  'Emiura;'  but 
here  (that  is,  in  that  part  of  Siberia  where  the  Maniagri 
live)  the  same  malady  is  called  by  the  Maniagri  'Olon,' 
and  by  the  Argurian  Cossacks  'Olgandshi.'  The  attacks 
of  the  malady  which  I  am  now  mentioning  consist  in 
this,  that  a  man  suffering  from  it  will,  if  under  the  in- 
fluence of  terror  or  consternation,  unconsciously,  and 
often  without  the  smallest  sense  of  shame,  imitate 
everything  that  passes  before  him.  Should  he  be  offend- 
ed, he  falls  into  a  rage,  which  manifests  itself  by  wild 
shrieks  and  raving;  and  he  precipitates  himself  at  the 
same  time,  with  a  knife  or  any  other  object  which  may 
fall  to  his  hand,  upon  those  who  have  placed  him  in  this 
predicament.  Amongst  the  Maniagri,  women,  especially 
the  very  aged,  are  the  chief  sufferers  from  this  malady; 
and  instances,  moreover,  of  men  who  were  affected  by 
it  are  likewise  known  to  me.  It  is  worthy  of  remark 
that  those  women  who  returned  home  on  account  of 
this  sickness  were  notwithstanding  strong,  and  in  all 
other  respects  enjoyed  good  health." 

Probably  it  is  only  an  accidental  coincidence  that  Running 
in  the  Malay  countries  Sakit-latar  and  Amok  exist 
together,  if  not  in  the  same  individual,  yet  amongst 
the  same  people.  Instances  of  Amok  seem  to  occur 
also  in  the  Philippines. f  I  find  the  following  account 
in  the  Diario    de  Manila    of   February    21,    1866:     In 


*  Compare  A.  Erman,  Journey  Round  the  Earth  through  Northern  Asia,   vol. 
iii,  sec.  i,  p.  191. 

t  According  to  Semper,  p.  69,  in  Zamboanga  and  Basilan. 


1S4 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Regard  for  the 
sleeping. 


Sense  of  smell. 


Cavite,  on  February  18,  a  soldier  rushed  into  the 
house  of  a  school-teacher,  and,  struggling  with  him, 
stabbed  him  with  a  dagger,  and  then  killed  the  teacher's 
son  with  a  second  stab.  Plunging  into  the  street,  he 
stabbed  two  young  girls  of  ten  and  twelve  years  of  age 
and  wounded  a  woman  in  the  side,  a  boy  aged  nine  in 
the  arm,  a  coachman  (mortally)  in  the  abdomen,  and, 
besides  another  woman,  a  sailor  and  three  soldiers;  and 
arriving  at  his  barracks,  where  he  was  stopped  by  the 
sentry,  he  plunged  the  dagger  into  his  own  breast. 

It  is  one  of  the  greatest  insults  to  stride  over  a  sleeping 
native,  or  to  awaken  him  suddenly.  They  rouse  one 
another,  when  necessity  requires,  with  the  greatest 
circumspection  and  by  the  slowest  degrees.* 

The  sense  of  smell  is  developed  amongst  the  natives 
to  so  great  a  degree  that  they  are  able,  by  smelling  at 
the  pocket-handkerchiefs,  to  tell  to  which  persons 
they  belong  ("Reisesk.,"  p.  39);  and  lovers  at  parting 
exchange  pieces  of  the  linen  they  may  be  wearing,  and 
during  their  separation  inhale  the  odor  of  the  beloved 
being,   besides   smothering  the   relics  with  kisses. f 


XV 


A  scientific 
priest-poet 


From  Naga  I  visited  the  parish  priest  of  Libmanan 
(Ligmanan),  who,  possessing  poetical  talent,  and  having 
the  reputation  of  a  natural  philosopher,  collected  and 


*  The  fear  of  waking  sleeping  persons  really  refers  to  the  widely-spread  super- 
stition that  during  sleep  the  soul  leaves  the  body;  numerous  instances  of  which 
occur  in  Bastian's  work.  Amongst  the  Tinguianes  (North  Luzon)  the  worst  of  all 
curses  is  to  this  effect:  "May'st  thou  die  slaepin^!" — Informe,  i.  14. 

t  Lewin  ("Chittagong  Hill  Tracks,"  1859,  p.  46)  relates  of  the  mountain 
people  at  that  place:  "Their  manner  of  kissing  is  peculiar.  Instead  of  pressing 
lip  to  lip.  they  place  the  mouth  and  nose  upon  the  cheek,  and  inhale  the  breath 
strongly.     Their  form  of  speech  is  not  'Give  me  a  kiss,'  but  'Smell  me.'  " 


I 


remains 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  166 

named  pretty  beetles  and  shells,  and  dedicated  the  most 
elegant  little  sonnets.  He  favored  me  with  the  following 
narrative : — 

In  1851,  during  the  construction  of  a  road  a  little  Prehistoric 
beyond  Libmanan,  at  a  place  called  Poro,  a  bed  of  shells 
was  dug  up  under  four  feet  of  mould,  one  hundred  feet 
distant  from  the  river.  It  consisted  of  Cyrenae  (C 
suborhicularis,  Busch.),  a  species  of  bivalve  belonging 
to  the  family  of  Cyclades  which  occurs  only  in  warm 
waters,  and  is  extraordinarily  abundant  in  the  brackish 
waters  of  the  Philippines.  On  the  same  occasion,  at 
the  depth  of  from  one  and  a  half  to  three  and  a  half  feet, 
were  found  numerous  remains  of  the  early  inhabitants — 
skulls,  ribs,  bones  of  men  and  animals,  a  child's  thigh- 
bone inserted  in  a  spiral  of  brass  wire,  several  stags' 
horns,  beautifully-formed  dishes  and  vessels,  some  of 
them  painted,  probably  of  Chinese  origin;  striped  brace- 
lets, of  a  soft,  gypseous,  copper-red  rock,  gleaming  as 
if  they  were  varnished;*  small  copper  knives,  but  no 
iron  utensils ;  and  several  broad  flat  stones  bored  through 
the  middle;!  besides  a  wedge  of  petrified  wood,  embed- 
ded in  a  cleft  branch  of  a  tree.  The  place,  which  to 
this  day  may  be  easily  recognized  in  a  hollow,  might, 
by  excavation  systematically  carried  on,  yield  many 
more  interesting  results.  What  was  not  immediately 
useful  was  then  and  there  destroyed,  and  the  remainder 
dispersed.  In  spite  of  every  endeavor,  I  could  obtain, 
through  the  kindness  of  Seiior  Focinos  in  Naga,  only 
one   small  vessel.     Similar  remains   of  more  primitive 

*  Probably  pot-stone,  which  is  employed  in  China  in  the  manufacture  of 
cheap  ornaments.     Gypseous  refers  probably  only  to  the  degree  of  hardness. 

t  In  the  Christy  collection,  in  London,  I  saw  a  stone  of  this  kind  from  the 
Schiffer  Islands,  employed  in  a  contrivance  for  the  purpose  of  protection  against 
rats  and  mice.  A  string  being  drawn  through  the  ston;,  ona  end  of  it  is  sus- 
pended from  the  ceiling  of  the  room,  and  the  objects  to  be  preserved  hang  from 
the  other.  A  knot  in  the  middle  of  the  string  prevents  its  sliding  b;low  that 
point,  and,  every  touch  drawing  it  from  its  equilibrium,  it  is  impossible  for  rats 
to  climb  upon  it.  A  similar  contrivance  used  in  the  Viti  Islands,  but  of  wood, 
is  figured  in  the  Atlas  to  Dumont  D'Urville's  "Voyage  to  the  South  Pole," 
(i.  95). 


156 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


^Ancient 
•Chinese  jar. 


.Used  as 
ttea  canisters. 


inhabitants  have  been  found  at  the  mouth  of  the  Bigajo, 
not  far  from  Libmanan,  in  a  shell-bed  of  the  same  kind; 
and  an  urn,  with  a  human  skeleton,  was  found  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Perlos,  west  of  Sitio  de  Poro,  in  1840. 
At  the  time  when  I  wrote  down  these  statements  of  the 
priest,  neither  of  us  was  familiar  with  the  discoveries 
made  within  the  last  few  years  relating  to  the  lake  dwel- 
lings (pile  villages) ;  or  these  notes  might  have  been  more 
exact,  although  probably  they  would  not  have  been  so 
easy  and  natural. 

Mr.  W.  A.  Franks,  who  had  the  kindness  to  examine 
the  vessel,  inclines  to  the  opinion  that  it  is  Chinese,  and 
pronounces  it  to  be  of  very  great  antiquity,  without^ 
however,  being  able  to  determine  its  age  more  exactly; 
and  a  learned  Chinese  of  the  Burlingame  Embassy 
expressed  himself  to  the  same  effect.  He  knew  only 
of  one  article,  now  in  the  British  Museum,  which  was 
brought  from  Japan  by  Kaempfer,  the  color,  glazing,  and 
cracks  in  the  glazing,  of  which  (craqueles)  corresponded 
precisely  with  mine.  According  to  Kaempfer,  the  Japan- 
ese found  similar  vessels  in  the  sea;  and  they  value 
them  very  highly  for  the  purpose  of  preserving  their 
tea  in  them. 

Morga  writes: — 

"On  this  island,  Luzon,  particularly  in  the  provinces  of 
Manila,  Pampanga,  Pangasinan,  and  Ilocos,  very  ancient 
clay  vessels  of  a  dark  brown  color  are  found  by  the  natives, 
of  a  sorry  appearance;  some  of  a  middling  size,  and 
others  smaller;  marked  with  characters  and  stamps. 
They  are  unable  to  say  either  when  or  where  they  obtain- 
ed them;  but  they  are  no  longer  to  be  acquired,  nor 
are  they  manufactured  in  the  islands.  The  Japanese 
prize  them  highly,  for  they  have  found  that  the  root  of 
a  herb  which  they  call  Tscha  (tea),  and  which  when 
drunk  hot  is  considered  as  a  great  delicacy  and  of  medi- 
cinal efficacy  by  the  kings  and  lords  in  Japan,  cannot 
be  effectively  preserved  except  in  these  vessels;  which 


search 

in  Japan. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  157 

are  so  highly  esteemed  all  over  Japan  that  they  form 
the  most  costly  articles  of  their  show-rooms  and  cabinets. 
Indeed,  so  highly  do  they  value  them  that  they  overlay 
them  externally  with  fine  gold  embossed  with  great  skill, 
and  enclose  them  in  cases  of  brocade ;  and  some  of  these 
vessels  are  valued  at  and  fetch  from  two  thousand  tael 
to  eleven  reals.  The  natives  of  these  islands  purchase 
them  from  the  Japanese  at  very  high  rates,  and  take 
much  pains  in  the  search  for  them  on  account  of  their 
value,  though  but  few  are  now  found  on  account  of  the 
eagerness  with  which  they  have  been  sought  for." 

When  Carletti,  in  1597,  went  from  the  Philippines  to  S(rict 
Japan,  all  the  passengers  on  board  were  examined  care- 
fully, by  order  of  the  governor,  and  threatened  with 
capital  punishment  if  they  endeavored  to  conceal  "certain 
earthen  vessels  which  were  wont  to  be  brought  from  the 
Philippines  and  other  islands  of  that  sea,"  as  the  king 
wished   to   buy   them   all. 

"These  vessels  were  worth  as  much  as  five,  six,  and   ^'«^«'  '^'J 

Japanese 

even  ten  thousand  scudi  each;  but  they  were  not  permit- 
ted to  demand  for  them  more  then  one  Giulio  (about 
a  half  Paolo)."  In  1615  Carletti  met  with  a  Franciscan 
who  was  sent  as  ambassador  from  Japan  to  Rome,  who 
assured  him  that  he  had  seen  one  hundred  and  thirty 
thousand  scudi  paid  by  the  King  of  Japan  for  such  a 
vessel;  and  his  companions  confirmed  the  statement. 
Carletti  also  alleges,  as  the  reason  for  the  high  price, 
"that  the  leaf  cia  or  tea,  the  quality  of  which  improves 
with  age,  is  preserved  better  in  those  vessels  than  in 
all  others.  The  Japanese  besides  know  these  vessels  by 
certain  characters  and  stamps.  They  are  of  great  age  and 
very  rare,  and  come  only  from  Cambodia,  Siam,  Cochin- 
China,  the  Philippines,  and  other  neighboring  islands. 
From  their  external  appearance  they  would  be  estimated 
at  three  or  four  quatrini  (two  dreier) It  is  per- 
fectly true  that  the  king  and  the  princes  of  that  kingdom 
possess  a  very  large  number  of  these  vessels,  and  prize 


158  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

them  as  their  most  valuable  treasure  and  above  all 
other  rarities ....  and  that  they  boast  of  their  acquisi- 
tions, and  from  motives  of  vanity  strive  to  outvie  one 
another  in  the  multitude  of  pretty  vessels  which  they 
possess."* 

^'*"'"'  *"  Many     travellers     mention     vessels     found     likewise 

amongst  the  Dyaks  and  the  Malays  in  Borneo,  which, 
from  superstitious  motives,  were  estimated  at  most 
exaggerated  figures,  amounting  sometimes  to  many 
thousand  dollars. 

$3,600  for  St.    Johnf    relates    that     the     Datu     of    Tamparuli 

(Borneo)  gave  rice  to  the  value  of  almost  $3,500  for  a 
jar,  and  that  he  possessed  a  second  jar  of  almost  fabulous 
value,  which  was  about  two  feet  high,  and  of  a  dark 
olive  green.  The  Datu  fills  both  jars  with  water, 
which,  after  adding  plants  and  flowers  to  it,  he  dispenses 

A  speaking  jar.   ^^  ^jj  ^^^  ^-^j^  persous  in  the  country.      But  the  most 

famous  jar  in  Borneo  is  that  of  the  Sultan  of  Brunei, 
which  not  only  possesses  all  the  valuable  properties  of 
the  other  jars  but  can  also  speak.  St.  John  did  not  see 
it,  as  it  is  always  kept  in  the  women's  apartment;  but 
the  sultan,  a  credible  man,  related  to  him  that  the  jar 
howled  dolefully  the  night  before  the  death  of  his  first 
wife,  and  that  it  emitted  similar  tones  in  the  event  of 
impending  misfortunes.  St.  John  is  inclined  to  explain 
the  mysterious  phenomenon  by  a  probably  peculiar 
form  of  the  mouth  of  the  vessel,  in  passing  over  which 
the  air-draught  is  thrown  into  resonant  verberations, 
like  the  Aeolian  harp.  The  vessel  is  generally  enveloped 
in  gold  brocade,  and  is  uncovered  only  when  it  is  to  be 
consulted;  and  hence,  of  course,  it  happens  that  it  speaks 
only  on  solemn  occasions.     St.  John  states  further  that 


*  "Carletti's  Voyages,"  ii.   11. 

t  "Life  in  the  Forests  of  the  Far  East,"  i.  300. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  169 

the  Bisayans  used  formerly  to  bring  presents  to  the 
sultan ;  in  recognition  of  which  they  received  some  water 
from  the  sacred  jar  to  sprinkle  over  their  fields  and 
thereby  ensure  plentiful  harvests.  When  the  sultan 
was  asked  whether  he  would  sell  his  jar  for  $100,000, 
he  answered  that  no  offer  in  the  world  could  tempt  him 
to  part  with  it. 

Morga's  description  suits  neither  the  vessel  of  Lib- 
manan  nor  the  jar  of  the  British  Museum,  but  rather  a 
vessel  brought  from  Japan  a  short  time  ago  to  our 
Ethnographical  Museum.  This  is  of  brown  clay,  small 
but  of  graceful  shape,  and  composed  of  many  pieces 
cemented  together;  the  joints  being  gilt  and  forming 
a  kind  of  network  on  the  dark  ground.  How  highly 
ancient  pots  of  a  similar  kind,  even  of  native  origin, 
are  esteemed  in  Japan  down  to  the  present  day,  is  shown 
by  the  following  certificate  translated  by  the  interpreter 
of  the  German  Consulate : — 

"This  earthen  vessel  was  found  in  the  porcelain  factory 
of  Tschisuka  in  the  province  of  Odori,  in  South  Idzumi, 

and  is  an  object  belonging  to  the  thousand  graves 

It  was  made  by  Giogiboosat  (a  celebrated  Buddhist 
priest),  and  after  it  had  been  consecrated  to  heaven  was 
buried  by  him.  According  to  the  traditions  of  the  peo- 
ple, this  place  held  grave  mounds  with  memorial  stones. 

That  is   more  than   a  thousand  years   ago In 

the  pursuit  of  my  studies,  I  remained  many  years  in 
the  temple  Sookuk,  of  that  village,  and  found  the  vessel. 
I  carried  it  to  the  high  priest  Shakudjo,  who  was  much 
delighted  therewith  and  always  bore  it  about  with  him 
as  a  treasure.  When  he  died  it  fell  to  me,  although  I 
could  not  find  it.  Recently,  when  Honkai  was  chief 
priest,  I  saw  it  again,  and  it  was  as  if  I  had  again  met 
the  spirit  of  Shakudjo.  Great  was  my  commotion, 
and  I   clapped  my  hands  with  astonishment;  and,   as 


Morga's 
description. 


A  consecrated 
jar. 


160  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

often  as  I  look  upon  the  treasure,  I  think  it  is  a  sign  that 
the  spirit  of  Shakudjo  is  returned  to  life.  Therefore  I 
have  written  the  history,  and  taken  care,  of  this  treasure. 

FUDJI  KUZ  DODJIN." 

Baron  Alexander  von  Siebold  communicates  the  fol- 
lowing : — 

Tea  societies  Xhc  valuc  which  the  Japanese  attach  to  vessels  of 

this  kind  rests  upon  the  use  which  is  made  of  them  by 
the  mysterious  tea  societies  called  Cha-no-yu.  Respect- 
ing the  origin  of  these  societies,  which  still  are  almost 
entirely  unknown  to  Europeans,  different  legends  exist. 
They  flourished,  however,  principally  during  the  reign 
of  the  emperor  Taikosama,  who,  in  the  year  1588,  furnish- 
ed the  society  of  Cha-no-yu  at  Kitano  near  Myako  with 
new  laws.  In  consequence  of  the  religious  and  civil 
wars,  the  whole  of  the  people  had  deteriorated  and  be- 
come ungovernable,  having  lost  all  taste  for  art  and 
knowledge,  and  holding  only  rude  force  in  any  esteem; 
brute  strength  ruling  in  the  place  of  the  laws.  The  ob- 
servant Taikosama  perceived  that,  in  order  to  tame  these 
rough  natures,  he  must  accustom  them  to  the  arts  of  peace, 
and  thus  secure  prosperity  to  the  country,  and  safety 
for  himself  and  his  successors.  With  this  in  view  he  re- 
called the  Cha-no-yu  society  anew  into  life,  and  assembled 
its  masters  and  those  acquainted  with  its  customs  around 
him. 

Their  object.  The  objcct  of  the  Cha-no-yu  is  to  draw  man  away  from 

the  influences  of  the  terrestrial  forces  which  surround 
him,  to  plant  within  him  the  feeling  of  complete  repose, 
and  to  dispose  him  to  self-contemplation.  All  the 
exercises  of  the  Cha-no-yu  are  directed  to  this  object. 

Ceremonies.  Clothcd  in  light  whitc  garments,  and  without  weapons, 

the  members  of  the  Cha-no-yu  assemble  round  the  mas- 
ter's house,  and,  after  resting  some  time  in  the  ante-room, 
are  conducted  into  a  pavilion  appropriated  exclusively 
to  these  assemblies.  This  consists  of  the  most  costly 
kinds  of  wood,  but  is  without  any  ornament  which  could 
possibly  be  abstracted  from  it;  without  color,  and  with- 
out varnish,  dimly  lighted  by  small  windows  thickly 
overgrown  with  plants,  and  so  low  that  it  is  impossible 


i 


Jayor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  161 

to  Stand  upright.  The  guests  tread  the  apartment 
with  solemn  measured  steps,  and,  having  been  received 
by  him  according  to  the  prescribed  formulas,  arrange 
themselves  in  a  half-circle  on  both  sides  of  him.  All 
distinctions  of  rank  are  abolished.  The  ancient  vessels 
are  now  removed  with  solemn  ceremonies  from  their 
wrappings,  saluted  and  admired;  and,  with  the  same 
solemn  and  rigidly  prescribed  formulas,  the  water  is 
heated  on  the  hearth  appropriated  to  the  purpose,  and 
the  tea  taken  from  the  vessels  and  prepared  in  cups. 
The  tea  consists  of  the  young  green  leaves  of  the  tea- 
shrub  rubbed  to  powder,  and  is  very  stimulating  in  its 
effect.  The  beverage  is  taken  amidst  deep  silence, 
while  incense  is  burning  on  the  elevated  pedestal  of  honor, 
toko;  and,  after  the  thoughts  have  thus  been  collected, 
conversation  begins.  It  is  confined  to  abstract  subjects; 
but  politics  are  not  always  excluded. 

The  value  of  the  vessels  employed  in  these  assemblages 
is  very  considerable;  indeed,  they  do  not  fall  short  of 
the  value  of  our  most  costly  paintings;  and  Taikosama 
often  rewarded  his  generals  with  vessels  of  the  kind, 
instead  of  land,  as  was  formerly  the  practice.  After 
the  last  revolution  some  of  the  more  eminent  Daimios 
(princes)  of  the  Mikado  were  rewarded  with  similar 
Cha-no-yu  vessels,  in  acknowledgment  of  the  aid  render- 
ed to  him  in  regaining  the  throne  of  his  ancestors.  The 
best  of  them  which  I  have  seen  were  far  from  beautiful, 
simply  being  old,  weather-worn,  black  or  dark-brown 
jars,  with  pretty  broad  necks,  for  storing  the  tea  in; 
tall  cups  of  cracked  Craquele,  either  porcelain  or  earthen- 
ware, for  drinking  the  infusion;  and  deep,  broad  cisterns; 
besides  rusty  old  iron  kettles  with  rings,  for  heating 
the  water:  but  they  were  enwrapped  in  the  most  costly 
silken  stuffs,  and  preserved  in  chests  lacquered  with 
gold.  Similar  old  vessels  are  preserved  amongst  the 
treasures  of  the  Mikado  and  the  Tycoon,  as  well  as  in 
some  of  the  temples,  with  all  the  care  due  to  the  most 
costly  jewels,  together  with  documents  relating  to  their 
history. 


lii-ward 
of  viilor 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Yamlik 
and  Visita 
Bicul. 


Ant 

Aclivities. 


Superstitions . 


From  Libmanan  I  visited  the  mountain,  Yamtik 
(Amtik,  Hantu),*  which  consists  of  lime,  and  contains 
many  caverns.  Six  hours  westward  by  water,  and  one 
hour  S.S.W.  on  foot,  brought  us  to  the  Visita  Bicul, 
surrounded  by  a  thousand  little  limestone  hills;  from 
which  we  ascended  by  a  staircase  of  sinter  in  the  bed 
of  a  brook,  to  a  small  cavern  tenanted  by  multitudes 
of  bats,  and  great  long-armed  spiders  of  the  species 
Phrynus,  known  to  be  poisonous. f 

A  thick  branch  of  a  tree  lying  across  the  road  was 
perforated  from  end  to  end  by  a  small  ant.  Many  of 
the  natives  did  not  venture  to  enter  the  cave;  and  those 
who  did  enter  it  were  in  a  state  of  great  agitation,  and 
were  careful  first  to  enjoin  upon  each  other  the  respect 
to  be  observed  by  them  towards  Calapnitan.l 

One  of  the  principal  rules  was  to  name  no  object  in  the 
cave  without  adding  "Lord  Calapnitan's."  Thus  they 
did  not  bluntly  refer  to  either  gun  or  torch,  but  devoutly 
said  "Lord  C.'s  gun,"  or  "Lord  C.'s  torch."  At  a  thou- 
sand paces  from  this  lies  another  cave,  "San  Vicente," 
which  contains  the  same  insects,  but  another  kind  of 
bat.  Both  caves  are  only  of  small  extent;  but  in  Lib- 
manan a  very  large  stalactite  cave  was  mentioned  to 
me,  the  description  of  which,  notwithstanding  the  fables 
mixed  up  with  it,  could  not  but  have  a  true  foundation. 
Our  guides  feigned  ignorance  of  it;  and  it  was  not  till 
after  two  days'  wandering  about,  and  after  many  debates, 
that  they  came  to  the  decision,  since  I  adhered  to  my 
purpose,  to  encounter  the  risk;  when,  to  my  great  as- 
tonishment, they  conducted  me  back  to  Calapnitan's 


*  According  to  Father  Camel  ("Philisoph.  Trans.  London,"  vol  xxvi,  p.  246), 
hantu  means  black  ants  the  size  of  a  wasp;  amtig,  smaller  black;  and  hantic,  red 
ants. 

t  According  to  Dr.  Gerstaecker,  probably  Phrynus  Grayi  Walck  Gerv.,  bringing 
forth  alive.  "S.  Sitzungsb.  Ges.  Naturf.  Freunde,  Berl."  March  18,  1862, 
and  portrayed  and  described  in  G.  H.  Bronn,  "Ord.  Class.,"  vol.  v.  184. 

t  Calap7i.it,  Tagal  and  Bicol,  the  bat;  calapnilan,  consequently,  lord  of  the 
bats. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  IBS 

cave;  from  which  a  narrow  fissure,  hidden  by  a  projec- 
tion of  rock,  led  into  one  of  the  most  gorgeous  stalactite 
caves  in  the  world.  Its  floor  was  everywhere  firm  and 
easy  to  the  tread,  and  mostly  dry;  and  it  ran  out  into 
several  branches,  the  entire  length  of  which  probably 
exceeds  a  mile;  and  the  whole  series  of  royal  chambers 
and  cathedrals,  with  the  columns,  pulpits,  and  altars 
which  it  contained,  reflected  no  discredit  upon  its  descrip- 
tion. No  bones  or  other  remains  were  to  be  found 
in  it.  My  intention  to  return  subsequently  with  laborers, 
for  the  purpose  of  systematic  excavation,  was  not  carried 
out. 

I  was  not  lucky  enough  to  reach  the  summit  of  the  Unsucceaifui 
mountain,  upon  which  was  to  be  found  a  lake,  "from  ''*"*■ 
where  else  should  the  water  come?"  For  two  days  we 
labored  strenuously  at  different  points  to  penetrate 
the  thick  forest;  but  the  guide,  who  had  assured  the 
priest  in  Libmanan  that  he  knew  the  road,  now  expressed 
himself  to  the  contrary  eff"ect.  I  therefore  made  the 
fellow,  who  had  hitherto  been  unburdened,  now  carry 
a  part  of  the  baggage  as  a  punishment;  but  he  threw  it 
off  at  the  next  turning  of  the  road  and  escaped,  so  that 
we  were  compelled  to  return.  Stags  and  wild  boars  are 
very  numerous  in  these  forests;  and  they  formed  the 
principal  portion  of  our  meals,  at  which,  at  the  com- 
mencement of  our  expedition,  we  had  as  many  as  thirty 
individuals;  who,  in  the  intervals  between  them,  affected 
to  search  for  snails  and  insects  for  me,  but  with  success 
not  proportionate   to   their  zeal. 

Upon   my  departure   from   Daraga   I   took  with   me   a  deter 
a  lively  little  boy,  who  had  a  taste  for  the  calling  of  a  ^gj^^nt" 
naturalist.     In  Libmanan  he  was  suddenly    lost,    and 
with  him,  at  the  same  time,  a  bundle  of  keys;  and  we 
looked  for  him  in  vain.     The  fact  was,  as  I  afterwards 
came  to  learn,   that   he  went   straight   to   Naga,  and, 


164 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Trip  with 
Internal 
Revenue 
Collector 


Four  volcani 


identifying  himself  by  showing  the  stolen  keys,  got  the 
majordomo  of  my  host  to  deliver  to  him  a  white  felt 
hat;  with  which  he  disappeared.  I  had  once  seen  him, 
with  the  hat  on  his  head,  standing  before  a  looking- 
glass  and  admiring  himself;  and  he  could  not  resist  the 
temptation  to  steal  it. 

In  the  beginning  of  March  I  had  the  pleasure  of  accom- 
panying the  Collector  (Administrador)  of  Camarines 
and  a  Spanish  head-man,  who  were  travelling  across  Daet 
and  Mauban  to  the  chief  town.  At  five  p.  m.  we  left 
Butungan  on  the  Bicol  River,  two  leagues  below  Naga, 
in  a  falua  of  twelve  oars,  equipped  with  one  6-pounder 
and  two  4-pounders,  and  reinforced  by  armed  men;  and 
about  six  we  reached  Cabusao,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Bicol,  whence  we  put  to  sea  about  nine.  The  falua 
belonged  to  the  collector  of  taxes,  and  had,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  another  under  the  command  of  the  alcalde, 
to  protect  the  north  coast  of  the  province  against 
smugglers  and  pirates,  who  at  this  time  of  the  year  are 
accustomed  to  frequent  the  hiding-places  of  the  bay 
of  San  Miguel.  Two  similar  gun-boats  performed  the 
duty  on  the  south  coast  of  the  province. 

Both  the  banks  of  the  Bicol  River  are  flat,  and  expand 
into  broad  fields  of  rice;  and  to  the  east  are  simultane- 
ously visible  the  beautiful  volcanos  of  Mayon,  Iriga, 
Malina,  and  Isarog. 

At  daybreak  we  reached  the  bar  of  Daet,  and,  after 
two  hours'  travelling,  the  similarly  named  chief  city 
of  the  province  of  North  Camarines,  where  we  found 
an  excellent  reception  at  the  house  of  the  alcalde,  a 
polished  Navarrese;  marred  only  by  the  tame  monkey, 
who  should  have  welcomed  the  guests  of  his  master, 
turning  his  back  towards  them  with  studiously  discourte- 
ous gestures,  and  going  towards  the  door.  However, 
upon  the  majordomo  placing  a  spirit  flask    preserving 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the.  Philippines  166 

a  small  harmless  snake  on  the  threshold,  the  monkey 
sprang  quickly  back  and  concealed  himself,  trembling, 
behind  his  master.  In  the  evening  there  was  a  ball, 
but  there  were  no  dancers  present.  Some  Filipinas,  ^  <i<i>ie.eie8R 
who  had  been  invited,  sat  bashfully  at  one  end  of  the 
apartment  and  danced  with  one  another  when  called 
upon,  without  being  noticed  by  the  Spaniards,  who 
conversed  together  at  the  other  end. 

Our  departure  hence  was  delayed  by  festivities  and  Sva,u.<h 
sudden  showers  for  about  two  days,  after  which  the  spir-  agaii-it  batunu. 
ited  horses  of  the  alcalde  carried  us  within  an  hour  on 
a  level  road  north-west,  to  Talisay,  and  in  another 
hour  to  Indang,  where  a  bath  and  breakfast  were  ready. 
Up  to  this  time  I  had  never  seen  a  bath-room  in  the 
house  of  a  Spaniard;  whereas  with  the  Northern  Euro- 
peans it  is  never  wanting.  The  Spaniards  appear  to 
regard  the  bath  as  a  species  of  medicine,  to  be  used  only 
with  caution;  many,  even  to  the  present  day,  look  upon 
it  as  an  institution  not  quite  Christian.  At  the  time  of 
the  Inquisition  frequent  bathing,  it  is  known,  was  a 
characteristic  of  the  Moors,  and  certainly  was  not  wholly 
free  from  danger.  In  Manila,  only  those  who  live  near 
the  Pasig  are  the  exceptions  to  the  rule;  and  there  the 
good  or  bad  practice  prevails  of  whole  families  bathing, 
in  the  company  of  their  friends,  in  the  open  air. 

The  road  ends  at  Indang.  In  two  boats  we  went  down  An  „nj.,ru/ie.i 
the  river  till  stopped  by  a  bar,  and  there  at  a  well-sup-  ^'"^'' 
plied  table  prepared  for  us  by  the  kindness  of  the  alcalde 
we  awaited  the  horses  which  were  being  brought  thither 
along  a  bad  road  by  our  servants.  In  the  waste  of  Barre 
a  tower,  surrounded  by  two  or  three  fishermen's  huts  and 
as  many  camarines,  has  been  erected  against  the  Moros, 
who,  untempted  by  the  same,  seldom  go  so  far  westward, 
for  it  consists  only  of  an  open  hut  covered  with  palm- 
leaves — a  kind  of  parasol — supported  on  stakes  as  thick 


166  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

as  one's  arm  and  fifteen  feet  high;  and  the  two  cannons 
belonging  to  it  ought,  for  security,  to  be  buried.  We 
followed  the  sea-shore,  which  is  composed  of  silicious 
sand,  and  covered  with  a  carpet  of  creeping  shore  plants 
in  full  bloom.  On  the  edge  of  the  wood,  to  the  left, 
were  many  flowering  shrubs  and  pandanus  with  large 
scarlet-red  flowers.  After  an  hour  we  crossed  the  river 
Longos  in  a  ferry,  and  soon  came  to  the  spur  of  a  crystal- 
line chain  of  mountains,  which  barred  our  road  and 
extended  itself  into  the  sea  as  Point  Longos.  The  horses 
climbed  it  with  difficulty,  and  we  found  the  stream  on 
the  other  side  already  risen  so  high  that  we  rode  knee- 
deep  in  the  water.  After  sunset  we  crossed  singly,  with 
great  loss  of  time,  in  a  miserable  ferry-boat,  over  the 
broad  mouth  of  the  Pulundaga,  where  a  pleasant  road 
through  a  forest  led  us,  in  fifteen  minutes,  over  the 
mountain-spur,  Malanguit,  which  again  projected  itself 
right  across  our  path  into  the  sea,  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Paracale.  The  long  bridge  here  was  so  rotten  that  we 
were  obliged  to  lead  the  horses  over  at  wide  intervals 
apart;  and  on  the  further  side  lies  the  place  called  Pa- 
racale, from  which  my  companions  continued  their 
journey  across  Mauban  to  Manila. 

Red  lead.  Paracalc  and  Mambulao  are  two  localities  well  known 

to  all  mineralogists,  from  the  red  lead  ore  occurring  there. 
On  the  following  morning  I  returned  to  Longos;  which 
consists  of  only  a  few  miserable  huts  inhabited  by  gold- 
washers,  who  go  about  almost  naked,  probably  because 
they  are  laboring  during  the  greater  part  of  the  day 
in  the  water;  but  they  are  also  very  poor. 

Gold  mining.  The  soil  is  composcd  of  Tubbish,  decomposed  fragments 

of  crystalline  rock,  rich  in  broken  pieces  of  quartz.  The 
workmen  make  holes  in  the  ground  two  and  one-half  feet 
long,  two  and  one-half  broad,  and  to  thirty  feet  deep. 
At  three  feet  below  the  surface  the  rock  is  generally 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  167 

found  to  contain  gold,  the  value  increasing  down  to 
eighteen  feet  of  depth,  and  then  again  diminishing,  though 
these  proportions  are  very  uncertain,  and  there  is  much 
fruitless  search.  The  rock  is  carried  out  of  the  holes 
in  baskets,  on  ladders  of  bamboo,  and  the  water  in  small 
pails ;  but  in  the  rainy  season  the  holes  cannot  possibly 
be  kept  free  from  water,  as  they  are  situated  on  the 
slope  of  the  mountain,  and  are  filled  quicker  than  they 
can  be  emptied.  The  want  of  apparatus  for  discharging 
water  also  accounts  for  the  fact  that  the  pits  are  not 
dug  deeper. 

The  breaking  of  the  auriferous  rock  is  effected  with   ^  vomitive 

.  ,      ,  ,  rock  breaker. 

two  stones;  of  which  one  serves  as  anvil,  and  the  other 
as  hammer.  The  former,  which  is  slightly  hollowed  in 
the  center,  is  laid  flat  upon  the  ground;  and  the  latter, 
four  by  eight  by  eight  inches  in  dimensions,  and  there- 
fore of  about  twenty-five  pounds  weight,  is  made  fast 
with  rattan  to  the  top  of  a  slender  young  tree,  which  lies 
in  a  sloping  position  in  a  fork,  and  at  its  opposite  end 
is  firmly  fixed  in  the  ground.  The  workman  with  a  jerk 
forces  the  stone  that  serves  for  hammer  down  upon  the 
auriferous  rock,  and  allows  it  to  be  again  carried  up- 
wards by  the  elasticity  of  the  young  tree. 

The  crushing  of  the  broken  rock  is  effected  with  an  An  arraatre. 
apparatus  equally  crude.  A  thick  stake  rises  from  the 
center  of  a  circular  support  of  rough-hewn  stones  (which 
is  enclosed  in  a  circle  of  exactly  similar  stones)  having 
an  iron  pin  at  its  top,  to  which  a  tree,  bent  horizontally 
in  the  middle,  and  downwards  at  the  two  ends,  is  fixed, 
Being  set  in  motion  by  two  carabaos  attached  in  front, 
it  drags  several  heavy  stones,  which  are  bound  firmly 
to  it  with  rattans,  round  the  circle,  and  in  this  manner 
crushes  the  broken  rock,  which  has  been  previously 
mixed  with  water,  to  a  fine  mud.  The  same  apparatus 
is  employed  by  the  Mexican  gold-washers,  under  the 


168         THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

G»u-washi,i.j.  name  of  Rastra.  The  washing-out  of  the  mud  is  done 
by  women.  They  kneel  before  a  small  wooden  gutter 
filled  with  water  up  to  the  brim,  and  provided  with 
boards,  sloping  downwards,  in  front  of  the  space  assign- 
ed to  each  woman;  the  gutter  being  cut  out  at  these 
places  in  a  corresponding  manner,  so  that  a  very  slender 
stream  of  water  flows  evenly  across  its  whole  breadth 
downwards  over  the  board.  With  her  hand  the  work- 
woman distributes  the  auriferous  mud  over  the  board, 
which,  at  the  lower  edge,  is  provided  with  a  cross-piece; 
and,  when  the  light  sand  is  washed  away,  there  remains 
a  stratum  consisting  chiefly  of  iron,  flint,  and  ore,  which 
is  taken  up  from  time  to  time  with  a  flat  piece  of  board, 
and  laid  on  one  side;  and  at  the  end  of  the  day's  work, 
it  is  washed  out  in  a  flat  wooden  dish  (hatea),  and,  for 
the  last  time,  in  a  coco-shell;  when,  if  they  are  lucky, 
a  fine  yellow  dust  shows  itself  on  the  edge.*  During 
the  last  washing  the  slimy  juice  of  the  Gogo  is  added  to 
the  water,  the  fine  heavy  sand  remaining  suspended 
therein  for  a  longer  time  than  in  pure  water,  and  thus 
being  more  easily  separated  from  the  gold-dust. t 

The  ch:an-u,,.  It  is  further  to  be  mentioned  that  the  refuse  from  the 

pits  is  washed  at  the  upper  end  of  the  water-gutter, 
so  that  the  sand  adhering  to  the  stones  intended  for 
pounding  may  deposit  its  gold  in  the  gutter  or  on  the 
washing-board.  In  order  to  melt  the  gold  thus  obtained 
into  a  lump,  in  which  form  it  is  bought  by  the  dealers, 
it  is  poured  into  a  small  heart-shell  (cardiiun),  and, 
after  being  covered  with  a  handful  of  charcoal,  placed 


*  In  only  one  out  of  several  experiments  made  in  the  Berlin  Mining  College 
did  gold-sand  contain  0.014  gold;  and,  in  one  experiment  on  the  heavy  sand 
remaining  on  the  mud-board,  no  gold  was  found. 

t  The  Gogo  is  a  climbing  Mimosa  (Entada  purseta)  with  large  pods,  very 
abundant  in  the  Philippines;  the  pounded  stem  of  which  is  employed  in  washing, 
like  the  soap-bark  of  ChiVi  (QuiUaja  saponaria);  and  for  many  purposes,  such  as 
baths  and  washing  the  hair  of  the  head,  is  preferred  to  soap. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  169 

in  a  potsherd;  when  a  woman  blows  through  a  narrow 
bamboo-cane  on  the  kindled  coals,  and  in  one  minute 
the  work  is  completed.* 

The  result  of  many  inquiries  shows  the  profit  per  head 
to  average  not  more  than  one  and  one-half  reals 
daily.  Further  to  the  south-west  from  here,  on  the  moun- 
tain Malaguit,  are  seen  the  ruins  of  a  Spanish  mining 
company;  a  heap  of  rubbish,  a  pit  fifty  feet  deep,  a  large 
house  fallen  to  ruin,  and  a  stream-work  four  feet  broad 
and  six  feet  high.  The  mountain  consists  of  gneiss 
much  decomposed,  with  quartz  veins  in  the  stream- work, 
with  the  exception  of  the  bands  of  quartz,  which  are  of 
almost  pure  clay  earth  with  sand. 

On  the  sides  hung  some  edible  nests  of  the  salangane,  Enhu 
but  not  of  the  same  kind  as  those  found  in  the  caverns 
on  the  south  coast  of  Java.  These,  which  are  of  much 
less  value  than  the  latter,  are  only  occasionally  collected 
by  the  Chinese  dealers,  who  reckon  them  nominally 
at  five  cents  each.  We  also  found  a  few  of  the  nest- 
building  birds  (CoUocalia  troglodytes,  Gray).! 

Around  lay  so  large  a  number  of  workings,  and  there 
were  so  many  little  abandoned  pits,  wholly  or  half  fallen 
to  ruin,  and  more  or  less  grown  over,  that  it  was  neces- 
sary to  step  between  with  great  caution.     Some  of  them 

*  A  small  gold  nugget  obtained  in  this  manner,  tested  at  the  Berlin  Mining 
College,  consisted  of — 

Gold 77.4 

Silver 19.0 

Iron 0.5 

Flint  earth 3 . 

Loss 0.1 

100. 

t  The  nest  and  bird  are  figured  in  Gray's  "Genera  of  Birds";  but  the  nest 
does  not  correspond  with  those  found  here.  These  are  hemispherical  in  form, 
and  consist  for  the  most  part  of  coir  (coco  fibers);  and,  as  if  prepared  by  the  hand 
of  man,  the  whole  interior  is  covered  with  an  irregular  net-work  of  fine  threads 
of  the  glutinous  edible  substance,  as  well  as  the  upper  edge,  which  swells  gently 
outwards  from  the  center  towards  the  sides,  and  expands  into  two  wing-shaped 
prolongations,  resting  on  one  another,  by  which  the  nest  is  fixed  to  the  wall. 
Dr.  V.  Martens  conjectures  that  the  designation  salangane  comes  from  langa- 
yan,  bird,  and  the  Malay  prefix  sa,  and  signifies  especially  the  neat  as  something 
coming  from  the  bird. — ("Journal  of  Ornith.,"  Jan.,  1866.) 


Aliandoned 
W'lrkings. 


170 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Lead  and 
mica. 


Chrome-lead 
ore. 


A  pretty 
fan-palm. 


were  still  being  worked  after  the  mode  followed  at  Longos, 
but  with  a  few  slight  improvements.  The  pits  are  twice 
as  large  as  those  excavated  there,  and  the  rock  is  lifted, 
up  by  a  pulley  to  a  cylindrical  framework  of  bamboo, 
which  is  worked  by  the  feet  of  a  lad  who  sits  on  a  bank 
higher  up. 

Ten  minutes  north  of  the  village  of  Malaguit  is  a  moun- 
tain in  which  lead-glance  and  red  lead  have  been  ob- 
tained; the  rock  consisting  of  micaceous  gneiss  much 
decomposed.  There  is  a  stream-work  over  one  hundred 
feet  in  length.     The  rock  appears  to  have  been  very  poor. 

The  highly  prized  red-lead  ores  have  been  found  on  the 
top  of  this  same  hill,  N.  30°  W.  from  the  village.  The 
quarry  was  fallen  to  ruin  and  flooded  with  rain,  so  that 
only  a  shallow  hollow  in  the  ground  remained  visible; 
and  after  a  long  search  amongst  the  bushes  growing 
there  a  few  small  fragments  were  found,  on  which  chrome- 
lead  ore  was  still  clearly  to  be  recognized.  Captain 
Sabino,  the  former  governor  of  Paracale,  a  well-informed 
Filipino,  who,  at  the  suggestion  of  the  alcalde,  accom- 
panied me,  had  for  some  years  caused  excavations  to  be 
carried  on,  in  order  to  find  specimens  for  a  speculator  who 
had  in  view  the  establishment  of  a  new  mining  company 
in  Spain;  but  the  specimens  which  were  found  had  not 
been  removed,  as  speculation  in  mines  in  the  Philip- 
pines had,  in  the  interval,  fallen  into  discredit  on  the 
Exchange  of  Madrid ;  and  as  yet  only  a  little  box  full  of 
sand,  out  of  a  few  small  drusy  cavities,  has  been  fixed 
upon  and  pounded,  to  be  sold  as  variegated  writing- 
sand,  after  being  carefully  sifted. 

A  peculiarly  beautiful  fan-palm  grows  on  this  hill. 
Its  stem  is  from  thirty  to  forty  feet  high,  cylindrical 
and  dark-brown,  with  white  rings  a  quarter  of  an  inch 
broad  at  distances  of  four  inches,  and,  at  similar  inter- 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  171 

vals,  crown-shaped  bands  of  thorns  two  inches  long. 
Near  the  crown-leaf  the  stem  passes  into  the  richest 
brown  of  burnt  sienna. 

Notwithstanding  a  very  bad  road,  a  pleasant  ride  ^oo^^^o 
carried  us  from  Paracale  to  the  sea-shore,  and,  through  majazine. 
a  beautiful  wood,  to  Mambulao,  which  lies  W.  by  N. 
I  alighted  at  the  tribunal,  and  took  up  my  lodgings  in 
the  room  where  the  ammunition  was  kept,  as  being  the 
only  one  that  could  be  locked.  For  greater  security, 
the  powder  was  stored  in  a  comer  and  covered  with 
carabao-hide ;  but  such  were  my  arrangements  that  my 
servant  carried  about  a  burning  tallow  light,  and  his 
assistant  a  torch  in  the  hand.  When  I  visited  the  Fili- 
pino priest,  I  was  received  in  a  friendly  manner  by  a 
young  girl  who,  when  I  offered  my  hand,  thanked  me 
with  a  bow,  saying,  "Teiigo  las  sarnas"  ("I  have  the  itch"). 
The  malady,  which  is  very  common  in  the  Philippines, 
appears  to  have  its  focus  in  this  locality. 

A  quarter  of  a  league  N.N.E.  we  came  upon  the  ruins 
of  another  mining  undertaking,  the  Anda  de  Oro.  Shaft 
and  water-cutting  had  fallen  in,  and  were  thickly  grown 
over;  and  only  a  few  of  the  considerable  buildings  were 
still  standing;  and  even  those  were  ready  to  fall.  In  a 
circle  some  natives  were  busily  employed,  in  their 
manner,  collecting  grains  of  gold.  The  rock  is  gneiss, 
weathered  so  much  that  it  cannot  be  recognized;  and 
at  a  thousand  paces  on  the  other  side  is  a  similar  one, 
clearly  crystalline. 

Half  a  league  N.  by  E.  from  Mambulao  is  the  lead-   ffomhhnde  and 

,     .  _    _,•     •  XT  ,  tt       <  ,  hornblende  slate. 

mountain  oi  Dinianan.  Here  also  all  the  works  were 
fallen  in,  choked  with  mud  and  grown  over.  Only 
after  a  long  search  were  a  few  fragments  found  with 
traces  of  red-lead  ore.  This  mountain  consists  of  horn- 
blende rock ;  in  one  place,  of  hornblende  slate,  with  very 
beautiful  large  crystals. 


Gneiss  and 
crystalline  rock. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Copper. 


Unsuccessful 
copper-mining. 


Paying  minus 
dividends. 


IgoTot-mininy 
tucccsful. 


Long-established 
and  consider- 
able. 


A  league  and  a  half  S.  from  Mambulao  a  shallow  hollow 
in  the  ground  marks  the  site  of  an  old  copper-mine,  which 
must  have  been  eighty-four  feet  deep.  Copper  ores  are 
found  in  several  places  in  Luzon ;  and  specimens  of  solid 
copper  were  obtained  by  me  at  the  Bay  of  Luyang, 
N.  of  the  Enseiiada  de  Patag,  in  Caramuan. 

Very  considerable  beds  of  copper  ore  occur  in  Man- 
cayan,  in  the  district  of  Lepanto,  and  in  the  central 
mountain-range  of  Luzon  between  Cagayan  and  Ilocos, 
which  have  been  worked  by  a  mining  company  in  Manila 
since  1850;  but  the  operations  seem  to  have  been  most 
unsuccessful.  In  1867  the  society  expended  a  consider- 
able capital  in  the  erection  of  smelting  furnaces  and 
hydraulic  machinery;  but  until  a  very  recent  date, 
owing  to  local  difficulties,  particularly  the  want  of  roads, 
it  has  not  produced  any  copper.* 

In  1869  I  heard,  in  London,  that  the  undertaking 
had  been  given  up.  According  to  my  latest  information, 
however,  it  is  certainly  in  progress;  but  the  manage- 
ment have  never,  I  believe,  secured  a  dividend.  The 
statement  of  1872,  in  fact,  shows  a  loss,  or,  as  the  Span- 
iards elegantly  say,  a  dividendo  pasivo. 

What  Europeans  yet  appear  unable  to  accomplish, 
the  wild  Igorots,  who  inhabit  that  trackless  range  of 
mountains,  have  carried  on  successfully  for  centuries,  and 
to  a  proportionally  larger  extent;  and  this  is  the  more 
remarkable  as  the  metal  in  that  district  occurs  only  in 
the  form  of  flints,  which  even  in  Europe  can  be  made 
profitable  only  by  particular  management,  and  not 
without  expense. 

The  copper  introduced  into  commerce  by  the  Igorots 
from  1840  to  1855,  partly  in  a  raw  state,  partly  manu- 
factured, is  estimated  at  three  hundred  piculs  yearly. 


*  Spanish  Catalogue  of  the  Paris  Exhibition,  1867. 


nttrihuted 
In  Neoritos. 


art. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  17 S 

The  extent  of  their  excavations,  and  the  large  existing 
masses  of  slag,  also  indicate  the  activity  of  their  opera- 
tions for  a  long  period  of  time. 

In  the  Ethnographical  Museum  at  Berlin  is  a  copper  f"»vi'er  keities 
kettle  made  by  those  wild  tribes.  Meyer,  who  brought 
it,  states  that  it  was  made  by  the  Negritos  in  the  interior 
of  the  island,  and  certainly  with  hammers  of  porphyry, 
as  they  have  no  iron;  and  that  he  further  found,  in 
the  collection  of  the  Captain  General  of  the  Philippines, 
a  large  shallow  kettle  of  three  and  one-half  feet  in 
diameter,  which  had  been  bought  for  only  three  dollars; 
whence  it  may  be  inferred  that,  in  the  interior  of  the 
island,  the  copper  occurs  in  large  masses,  and  probably 
solid;  for  how  could  those  rude,  uncultivated  negritos 
understand  the  art  of  smelting  copper? 

The  locality  of  these  rich  quarries  was  still  unknown  Copper- wnrkinQ 
to  the  Governor,  although  the  copper  implements  brought  ^  ^"■«-'Sp"n>s'i 
thence  had,  according  to  an  official  statement  of  his 
in  1833,  been  in  use  in  Manila  over  two  centuries.  It  is 
now  known  that  the  copper-smiths  are  not  Negritos  but 
Igorots;  and  there  can  be  no  question  that  they  prac- 
ticed this  art,  and  the  still  more  difficult  one  of  obtaining 
copper  from  flint,  for  a  long  period  perhaps  previous  to 
the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards.  They  may  possibly  have 
learnt  them  from  the  Chinese  or  Japanese.  The  chief 
engineer,  Santos*,  and  many  others  with  him,  are  of 
opinion  that  this  race  is  descended  from  the  Chinese  or 
Japanese,  from  whom  he  insists  that  it  acquired  not  only 
its  features  (several  travellers  mention  the  obliquely 
placed  eyes  of  the  Igorots),  its  idols,  and  some  of  its 
customs,  but  also  the  art  of  working  in  copper.  At  all 
events,  the  fact  that  a  wild  people,  living  isolated  in  the 
mountains,  should  have  made  such  progress  in  the  science 
of  smelting,  is  of  so  great  interest  that  a  description  of 
their  procedure  by  Santos  (essentially  only  a  repetition 
of  an  earlier  account  by  Hernandez,  in  the  Revista  Minera, 
i.  112)  will  certainly  be  acceptable. 

*  "Informe  sobre  las  Minas  de  Cobre,"  Manila,  1862. 


174  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Theigorois'  fhe  present  mining  district  acquired  by  the  society 

mentioned,  the  Sociedad  Miner o^meialurgica  Cantabro- 
filipina  de  Mancayan,  was  divided  amongst  the  Igorots 
into  larger  or  smaller  parcels  strictly  according  to  the 
number  of  the  population  of  the  adjacent  villages,  whose 
boundaries  were  jealously  watched;  and  the  possessions 
of  each  separate  village  were  again  divided  between 
certain  families;  whence  it  is  that  those  mountain  dis- 
tricts exhibit,  at  the  present  day,  the  appearance  of  a 
honeycomb.  To  obtain  the  ore,  they  made  cavities, 
in  which  they  lighted  fires  in  suitable  spots,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  breaking  the  rock  into  pieces  by  means  of  the 
elasticity  of  the  heated  water  contained  in  the  crevices, 
with  the  additional  assistance  of  iron  implements.  The 
first  breaking-up  of  the  ore  was  done  in  the  stream-work 
itself,  and  the  dead  heaps  lay  piled  up  on  the  ground,  so 
that,  in  subsequent  fires,  the  flame  of  the  pieces  of  wood 
always  reached  the  summit ;  and  by  reason  of  the  quality 
of  the  rock,  and  the  imperfection  of  the  mode  of  proce- 
dure, very  considerable  down-falls  frequently  occurred. 
The  ores  were  divided  into  rich  and  quartziferous ; 
the  former  not  being  again  melted,  but  the  latter  being 
subjected  to  a  powerful  and  persistent  roasting,  during 
which,  after  a  part  of  the  sulphur,  antimony,  and  arsenic 
had  been  exhaled,  a  kind  of  distillation  of  sulphate  of 
copper  and  sulphate  of  iron  took  place,  which  appeared 
as  "stone,"  or  in  balls  on  the  surface  of  the  quartz,  and 
could  be  easily  detached.* 

*  According  to  the  Catalogue,  the  following  ores  are  found: — Variegated 
copper  ore  (cobre  gris  abigarrado) ,  arsenious  copper  (c.  gris  arsenical),  vitreous 
copper  (c.  rilreo),  copper  pyrites  {pirila  de  cobre),  solid  copper  (mata  cohriza), 
and  black  copper  (c.  negro).  The  ores  of  most  frequent  occurrence  have  the 
following  composition — A,  according  to  an  analyzed  specimen  in  the  School 
of  Mines  at  Madrid;  B,  according  to  the  analysis  of  Santos,  the  mean  of  several 
specimens   taken   from   different   places: — 

.4         B 

Silicious  Acid 25.800  47.06 

Sulphur 31.715  44.44 

Copper 24.640   16.64 

Antimony 8.206     5.12 

Arsenic 7 .  539     4 .  65 

Iron 1.837     1.84 

Lime in  traces      — 

Loss 0.263     0.25 

100.000  100.00 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippinea  175 

The  furnace  or  smelting  apparatus  consisted  of  a  "^^^  Smelter. 
round  hollow  in  clayey  gound,  thirty  centimeters  in 
diameter  and  fifteen  deep;  with  which  was  connected  a 
conical  funnel  of  fire-proof  stone,  inclined  at  an  angle 
of  30°,  carrying  up  two  bamboo-canes,  which  were 
fitted  into  the  lower  ends  of  two  notched  pine-stems; 
in  these  two  slips,  covered  all  over  with  dry  grass  or 
feathers,  moved  alternately  up  and  down,  and  produced 
the  current  required  for  the  smelting. 

When  the  Igorots  obtained  black  copper  or  native  Smelting. 
copper  by  blasting,  they  prevented  loss  (by  oxidation) 
by  setting  up  a  crucible  of  good  fire-proof  clay  in  the 
form  of  a  still;  by  which  means  it  was  easier  for  them 
to  pour  the  metal  into  the  forms  which  it  would  acquire 
from  the  same  clay.  The  furnace  being  arranged,  they 
supplied  it  with  from  eighteen  to  twenty  kilograms  of 
rich  or  roasted  ore,  which,  according  to  the  repeated 
experiments  of  Hernandez,  contained  twenty  per  cent 
of  copper ;  and  they  proceeded  quite  scientifically,  always 
exposing  the  ore  at  the  mouth  of  the  funnel,  and  conse- 
quently to  the  air-drafts,  and  placing  the  coals  at  the 
sides  of  the  furnace,  which  consisted  of  loose  stones 
piled  one  over  another  to  the  height  of  fifty  centimeters. 
The  fire  having  been  kindled  and  the  blowing  apparatus, 
already  described,  in  operation,  thick  clouds  of  white, 
yellow,  and  orange-yellow  smoke  were  evolved  from  the 
partial  volatilization  of  the  sulphur,  arsenic,  and  anti- 
mony, for  the  space  of  an  hour;  but  as  soon  as  only 
sulphurous  acid  was  formed,  and  the  heat  by  this  pro- 
cedure had  attained  its  highest  degree,  the  blowing 
was  discontinued  and  the  product  taken  out.  This 
consisted  of  a  dross,  or,  rather,  of  the  collected  pieces 
of  ore  themselves,  which,  on  account  of  the  flinty  contents 
of  the  stones  composing  the  funnel,  were  transformed  by 
the  decomposition  of  the  sulphurous  metal  into  a  porous 


t76  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

mass,  and  which  could  not  be  converted  into  dross  nor 
form  combinations  with  silicious  acid,  being  deficient  in 
the  base  as  well  as  in  the  requisite  heat ;  and  also  of  a  very- 
impure  "stone,"  of  from  four  to  five  kilograms  weight, 
and  containing  from  fifty  to  sixty  per  cent  of  copper. 

Theropvn-  Scveral  of  these  "stones"  were  melted  down  together 

for  the  space  of  about  fifteen  hours,  in  a  powerful  fire; 
and  by  this  means  a  great  portion  of  the  three  volatile 
substances  above  named  was  again  evolved;  after  which 
they  placed  them,  now  heated  red-hot,  in  an  upright 
position,  but  so  as  to  be  in  contact  with  the  draught; 
the  coals,  however,  being  at  the  sides  of  the  furnace. 
After  blowing  for  an  hour  or  half-an-hour,  they  thus 
obtained,  as  residuum,  a  silicate  of  iron  with  antimony 
and  traces  of  arsenic,  a  "stone"  containing  from  seventy 
to  seventy-five  per  cent  of  copper,  which  they  took 
off  in  very  thin  strips,  at  the  same  time  using  refrigerat- 
ing vessels;  and  at  the  bottom  of  the  hollow  there  re- 
mained, according  as  the  mass  was  more  or  less  freed 
from  sulphur,  a  larger  or  smaller  quantity  (always, 
however,  impure)  of  black  copper. 

PuTifymii  The  purified  stones  obtained  by  this  second  process 

were  again  made  red-hot  by  placing  them  between  rows 
of  wood,  in  order  that  they  might  not  melt  into  one 
another  before  the  fire  had  freed  them  from  impurities. 
The  black  copper  obtained  from  the  second  operation, 
and  the  stones  which  were  re-melted  at  the  same  time, 
were  then  subjected  to  a  third  process  in  the  same 
furnace  (narrowed  by  quarry  stones  and  provided  with 
a  crucible) ;  which  produced  a  residuum  of  silicious  iron 
and  black  copper,  which  was  poured  out  into  clay  moulds, 
and  in  this  shape  came  into  commerce.  This  black 
copper  contained  from  ninety-two  to  ninety-four  per 
cent  of  copper,  and  was  tinged  by  a  carbonaceous  com- 
pound of  the  same  metal  known  by  its  yellow  color,  and 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  177 

the  oxide  on  the  surface  arising  from  the  slow  cooling, 
which  will  occur  notwithstanding  every  precaution; 
and  the  surface  so  exposed  to  oxidation  they  beat  with 
green  twigs.  When  the  copper,  which  had  been  thus 
extracted  with  so  much  skill  and  patience  by  the  Igorots, 
was  to  be  employed  in  the  manufacture  of  kettles,  pipes, 
and  other  domestic  articles,  or  for  ornament,  it  was  sub- 
mitted to  another  process  of  purification,  which  differed 
from  the  preceding  only  in  one  particular,  that  the 
quantity  of  coals  was  diminished  and  the  air-draught 
increased  according  as  the  process  of  smelting  drew 
near  to  its  termination,  which  involved  the  removal 
of  the  carbonaceous  compound  by  oxidation.  Santos 
found,  by  repeated  experiment,  that  even  from  ores 
of  the  mean  standard  of  twenty  per  cent,  only  from 
eight  to  ten  per  cent  of  black  copper  was  extracted  by 
the  third  operation;  so  that  between  eight  to  twelve 
per  cent  still  remained  in  the  residuum  or  porous  quartz 
of  the  operation. 

It  was  difficult  to  procure  the  necessary  means  of  Tagaiog  women 
transport  for  my  baggage  on  the  return  journey  to 
Paracale,  the  roads  being  so  soaked  by  the  continuous 
rains  that  no  one  would  venture  his  cattle  for  the  purpose. 
In  Mambulao  the  influence  of  the  province  on  its  western 
border  is  very  perceptible,  and  Tagaiog  is  understood 
almost  better  than  Bicol;  the  Tagaiog  element  being 
introduced  amongst  the  population  by  women,  who 
with  their  families  come  here,  from  Lucban  and  Mauban, 
in  the  pursuit  of  trade.  They  buy  up  gold,  and  import 
stuffs  and  other  wares  in  exchange.  The  gold  acquired 
is  commonly  from  fifteen  to  sixteen  carats,  and  a  mark 
determines  its  quality.  The  dealers  pay  on  the  average 
$11  per  ounce;  but  when,  as  is  usually  the  case,  it  is 


178  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Miners' 

uricertnin 

reluriix. 


offered  in  smaller  quantities  than  one  ounce,  only  $10.* 
They  weigh  with  small  Roman  scales,  and  have  no  great 
reputation  for  honesty. 

North  Camarines  is  thinly  inhabited,  the  population 
of  the  mining  districts  having  removed  after  the  many 
undertakings  which  were  artificially  called  into  existence 
by  the  mining  mania  had  been  ruined.  The  gold- 
washers  are  mostly  dissolute  and  involved  in  debt,  and 
continually  expecting  rich  findings  which  but  very  seldom 
occur,  and  which,  when  they  do  occur,  are  forthwith 
dissipated; — a  fact  which  will  acount  for  champagne 
and  other  articles  of  luxury  being  found  in  the  shops  of 
the  very  poor  villagers. 

Malaguit  and  Matango,  during  the  dry  season,  are 
said  to  be  connected  by  an  extremely  good  road;  but, 
when  we  passed,  the  two  places  were  separated  by  a 
quagmire  into  which  the  horses  sank  up  to  their  middle. 
Labo.  In  Labo,  a  little  village  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river 

Labo  (which  rises  in  themountainof  the  same  name),  the 
conditions  to  which  we  have  adverted  are  repeated — 
vestiges  of  the  works  of  former  mining  companies  fast 
disappearing,  and,  in  the  midst,  little  pits  being  worked 
by  the  natives.  Red  lead  has  not  been  found  here, 
but  gold  has  been,  and  especially  "platinum,"  which 
some  experiments  have  proved  to  be  lead-glance.  The 
mountain  Labo  appears  from  its  bell-shape  and  the 
strata  exposed  in  the  river  bed  to  consist  of  trachytic 
hornblende.  Half  a  league  W.S.W.,  after  wading  through 
mud  a  foot  deep,  we  reached  the  mountain  Dallas 
where  lead-glance  and  gold  were  formerly  obtained  by 
a  mining  company;  and  to  the  present  Jay  gold  is- 
obtained  by  a  few  natives  in  the  usual  mode. 


*  According  to  the  prices  current  with  us,  the  value  would  be  calculated  at 
about  $12;  the  value  of  the  analyzed  specimen,  to  which  we  have  before  referred, 
$14.50. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  179 

Neither  in  the  latter  province,  nor  in  Manila,  could   '^''''  ^''' 

....  Mining. 

I  acquire  more  precise  information  respecting  the  his- 
tories of  the  numerous  unfortunate  mining  enterprises. 
Thus  much,  however,  appears  certain,  that  they  were 
originated  only  by  speculators,  and  never  properly 
worked  with  sufficient  means.  They  therefore,  of  neces- 
sity, collapsed  so  soon  as  the  speculators  ceased  from 
their  operations. 

North  Camarines  yields  no  metal  with  the  exception  Smaii  output. 
of  the  little  gold  obtained  by  the  natives  in  so  unprofit- 
able a  manner.  The  king  of  Spain  at  first  received  a 
fifth,  and  then  a  tenth,  of  the  produce;  but  the  tax  subse- 
quently ceased.  In  Morga's  time  the  tenth  amounted  on 
an  average  to  $10,000  ("which  was  kept  quite  secret"); 
the  profit,  consequently,  to  above  $100,000.  GemelU 
Carreri  was  informed  by  the  governor  of  Manila  that 
gold  to  the  value  of  $200,000  was  collected  annually 
without  the  help  of  either  fire  or  quicksilver,  and  that 
Paracale,  in  particular,  was  rich  in  gold.  No  data  exist 
from  which  I  could  estimate  the  actual  rate  of  produce ; 
and  the  answers  to  several  inquiries  deserve  no  mention. 
The  produce  is,  at  all  events,  very  small,  as  well  on 
account  of  the  incompleteness  of  the  mode  of  procedure 
as  of  the  irregularity  of  labor,  for  the  natives  work  only 
when  they  are  compelled  by  necessity. 

I  returned  down  the  stream  in  a  boat  to  Indang,  a  imiang. 
comparatively  flourishing  place,  of  smaller  population 
but  more  considerable  trade  than  Daet;  the  export  con- 
sisting principally  of  abacii,  and  the  import  of  rice. 

An  old  mariner,  who  had  navigated  this  coast  for  storm>. 
many  years,  informed  me  that  the  same  winds  prevail 
from  Daet  as  far  as  Cape  Engano,  the  north-east  point 
of  Luzon.  From  October  to  March  the  north-east 
wind  prevails,  the  monsoon  here  beginning  with  north 
winds,  which  are  of  short  duration  and  soon  pass  into 


180  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

the  north-east;  and  in  January  and  February  the  east 
winds  begin  and  terminate  the  monsoon.  The  heaviest 
rains  fall  from  October  to  January,  and  in  October 
typhoons  sometimes  occur.  Beginning  from  the  north 
or  north-east,  they  pass  to  the  north-west,  where  they 
are  most  violent;  and  then  to  the  north  and  east,  some- 
times as  far  as  to  the  south-east,  and  even  to  the  south. 
In  March  and  April,  and  sometimes  in  the  beginning  of 
May,  shifting  winds  blow,  which  bring  in  the  south- 
west monsoon;  but  the  dry  season,  of  which  April  and 
May  are  the  driest  months,  is  uninterrupted  by  rain. 
Thunder  storms  occur  from  June  to  November;  most 
frequently  in  August.  During  the  south-west  monsoon 
the  sea  is  very  calm;  but  in  the  middle  of  the  north- 
east monsoon  all  navigation  ceases  on  the  east  coast. 
In  the  outskirts  of  Baler  rice  is  sown  in  October,  and 
reaped  in  March  and  April.  Mountain  rice  is  not 
cultivated. 


XVI 

On  foot  to  Sending    my    baggage    from    Daet    to    Cabusao    in    a 

San  Miguel  i     i  r  -l         i 

bay.  schooner,  I  proceeded  on  foot,  by  the  road  to  that  place, 

to  the  coast  on  the  west  side  of  the  Bay  of  San  Miguel. 
We  crossed  the  mouth  of  the  river  in  a  boat,  which  the 
horses  swam  after;  but  they  were  soon  abandoned  from 
unfitness.  At  the  mouth  of  the  next  river,  Sacavin, 
the  water  was  so  high  that  the  bearers  stripped  them- 
selves naked  and  carried  the  baggage  over  on  their 
heads.  In  simple  jacket  and  cotton  hose,  I  found  this 
precaution  needless;  indeed,  according  to  my  experience, 
it  is  both  refreshing  and  salutary  to  wear  wet  clothes, 
during  an  uniformly  high  temperature;  besides  which, 
one  is  thereby  spared  many  a  spring  over  ditches,  and 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  181 

many  a  roundabout  course  to  avoid  puddles,  which, 
being  already  wet  through,  we  no  longer  fear.  After 
having  waded  over  eight  other  little  rivers  we  were  obliged 
to  leave  the  shore  and  pursue  the  road  to  Colasi  along 
steep,  slippery,  forest  paths,  the  place  lying  right  in  the 
middle  of  the  west  side  of  the  bay.  The  sea-shore 
was  very  beautiful.  Instead  of  a  continuous  and,  at 
the  ebb,  ill-smelling  border  of  mangroves,  which  is 
never  wanting  in  those  places  where  the  land  extends 
into  the  sea,  the  waves  here  reach  the  foot  of  the  old 
trees  of  the  forest,  many  of  which  were  washed  under- 
neath. Amongst  the  most  remarkable  was  a  fringe 
of  stately  old  Barringtoni,  covered  with  orchids  and 
other  epiphytes — gorgeous  trees  when  in  flower;  the 
red  stamens,  five  inches  long,  with  golden  yellow  anthers 
like  tassels,  depending  from  the  boughs;  and  their  fruit, 
of  the  size  of  the  fist,  is  doubly  useful  to  the  fisherman, 
who  employs  them,  on  account  of  their  specific  gravity, 
in  floating  his  nets,  and  beats  them  to  pieces  to  stupefy 
the  fish.  The  foremost  trees  stood  bent  towards  the 
sea,  and  have  been  so  deflected  probably  for  a  long  time, 
like  many  others  whose  remains  still  projected  out  of 
the  water.  The  destruction  of  this  coast  appears  to 
be  very  considerable.  Amongst  the  climbing  palms 
one  peculiar  kind  was  very  abundant,  the  stem  of  which, 
as  thick  as  the  arm,  either  dragged  itself,  leafless,  along 
the  ground,  or  hung  in  arches  above  the  branches, 
carrying  a  crown  of  leaves  only  at  its  extremity;  while 
another,  from  its  habitat  the  common  calamus,  had 
car y Ota  leaves.  Wild  boars  are  very  plentiful  here; 
a  hunter  offered  us  two  at  one  real  each. 

The  direction  of  the  flat  coast  which  extends  N.N.W.   CoUui. 
to  S.S.E.  from  the  point  of  Daet  is  here  interrupted  by 
the  little  peak  of  Colasi,   which  projects  to  the  east, 
and  has  grown  so  rapidly  that  all  old  people  remember 


18$ 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


By  tea  to 
Cabusao. 


Unreliable 
excuses. 


A  shipwre 
family. 


ked 


it  to  have  been  lower.  In  the  Visita  Colasi,  on  the 
northern  slope  of  the  mountain,  the  sea  is  so  rough 
that  no  boat  can  live  in  it.  The  inhabitants  carry  on 
fishing;  their  fishing-grounds  lie,  however,  on  the  south- 
ern slope  of  the  mountain,  in  the  sheltered  bay  of  La- 
lauigan,  which  we  reached  after  thee  hours'  journey  over 
the  ridge. 

A  four-oared  haroto,  hired  at  this  place,  as  the  weather 
was  favorable,  was  to  have  conveyed  us  in  two  hours 
to  Cabusao,  the  port  of  Naga;  but  the  wind  swung  round, 
and  a  storm  ensued.  Thoroughly  wet  and  not  without 
loss,  we  ran  to  Barceloneta,  a  visita  situated  at  a  third 
of  the  distance.  The  intelligent  Teniente  of  Colasi, 
whom  we  met  here,  also  confirmed  the  fact  of  the  rapid 
growth  of  the  little  peak. 

In  opposition  to  my  wish  to  ascend  the  mountain, 
great  obstacles  were  said  to  exist  when  every  one  would 
be  occupied  in  preparations  for  the  Easter  festival,  which 
would  hardly  occur  during  the  succeeding  weeks.  As 
these  objections  did  not  convince  me,  a  more  substantial 
reason  was  discovered  the  next  morning.  Inland  shoes 
are  excellent  for  the  mud,  and  particularly  for  horse- 
back; but  for  climbing  mountains,  or  rough  ground, 
they  would  not  last  a  day;  and  the  one  remaining  pair  of 
strong  European  shoes,  which  I  reserved  for  particular 
purposes,  had  been  given  away  by  my  servant,  who  did 
not  like  climbing  mountains,  on  the  pretext  they  were 
very  much  too  heavy  for  me. 

The  shore  from  Barceloneta  to  Cabusao  is  of  the  same 
character  as  the  Daet-Colasi  but  running  north  and 
south;  the  ground,  sandy  clay,  is  covered  with  a 
thick  stratum  of  broken  bivalves.  The  road  was  very 
difficult,  as  the  high  tide  forced  us  to  climb  between 
the  trees  and  thick  underwood.  On  the  way  we  met 
an  enterprising  family  who  had  left  Daet  with  a  cargo 


pnlm-nui/af 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  183 

of  coconuts  for  Naga,  and  had  been  wrecked  here; 
saving  only  one  out  of  five  tinajas  of  oil,  but  recovering 
all  the  nuts.*  They  were  living  in  a  small  hastily- 
run-up  hut,  upon  coconuts,  rice,  fish,  and  mussels,  in 
expectation  of  a  favorable  wind  to  return.  There  were 
several  varieties  of  shore-birds;  but  my  gun  would  not 
go  off,  although  my  servant,  in  expectation  of  a  hunt, 
had  cleaned  it  with  especial  care.  As  he  had  lost  the 
•  ramrod  whilst  cleaning  it,  the  charge  was  not  withdrawn 
before  we  reached  Cabusao,  when  it  was  discovered  that 
both  barrels  were  full  of  sand  to  above  the  touchhole. 

The  coast  was  still  more  beautiful  than  on  the  prece-  i^inking 
ding  day,  particularly  in  one  place  where  the  surge 
beat  against  a  wood  of  fan-palms  (Corypha  sp.).  On 
the  side  facing  the  sea,  in  groups  or  rows  stood  the  trees, 
bereft  of  their  crowns,  or  lying  overthrown  like  columns 
amid  the  vast  ruins  of  temples  (one  of  them  was  three 
feet  in  diameter);  and  the  sight  immediately  reminded 
me  of  Pompeii.  I  could  not  account  for  the  bareness 
of  the  trunks,  until  I  discovered  a  hut  in  the  midst  of  the 
palms,  in  which  two  men  were  endeavoring  to  antici- 
pate the  waves  in  their  work  of  destruction  by  the  prepa- 
ration of  sugar  (Jtunguleh).  For  this  purpose,  after  strip- 
ping off  the  leaves  (this  palm  flowering  at  the  top), 
the  upper  end  of  the  stem  is  cut  across,  the  surface  of 
the  incision  being  inclined  about  five  degrees  towards 
the  horizon,  and,  near  its  lower  edge,  hollowed  out  to  a 
very  shallow  gutter.  The  juice  exudes  over  the  whole 
surface  of  the  cut,  with  the  exception  of  the  intersected 
exterior  petioles,  and,  being  collected  in  the  shallow 
channel,  is  conducted  by  a  piece  of  banana -leaf,  two 
inches  broad,  and  four  inches  long,  into  a  bamboo-cane 


*  In  Daet  at  that  season  six  nuts  cost  one  cuarto;  and  in  Naga,  only  fifteen 
leagues  away  by  water,  they  expected  to  sell  two  nuts  for  nine  cuartos  (twenty- 
sevenfold).  The  fact  was  that  in  Naga,  at  that  time,  one  nut  fetched  two 
cuartos; — twelve  times  as  much  as  in  Daet. 


184 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


The  money 
aide. 


Neglected 
roods. 


attached  to  the  trunk.  In  order  to  avert  the  rain  from 
the  saccharine  issue,  which  has  a  faint,  pleasantly  aro- 
matic flavor  as  of  barley-sugar,  all  the  trees  which  have 
been  tapped  are  provided  with  caps  formed  of  bent  and 
folded  palm-leaves.  The  average  daily  produce  of 
each  tree  is  four  bamboos,  the  interior  of  which  is  about 
three  inches  and  a  half  in  diameter.  When  removed, 
they  are  full  to  about  eighteen  inches ;  which  gives  some- 
what more  than  ten  quarts  daily. 

The  produce  of  each  tree  of  course  is  very  unequal. 
Always  intermittent,  it  ceases  completely  after  two 
months — at  the  utmost,  three  months;  but,  the  propor- 
tion of  those  newly  cut  to  those  cut  at  an  earlier  date 
being  the  same,  the  yield  of  the  incisions  is  about  equal. 
The  juice  of  thirty- three  palms,  after  evaporation  in  an 
iron  pan  immediately  upon  each  collection,  produces  one 
ganta,  or  (there  being  four  such  collections)  four  gantas, 
daily;  the  weekly  result  being  twenty  gantas,  or  two 
tinajas  of  sugar,  each  worth  two  dollars  and  a  half  on 
the  spot.  This  statement,  derived  from  the  people 
themselves,  probably  shows  the  proportion  somewhat 
more  unfavorable  than  it  really  is;  still,  according  to 
the  opinion  of  an  experienced  mestizo,  the  difference 
cannot  be  very  considerable.  Assuming  the  above 
figures  as  correct,  however,  one  of  these  magnificent 
trees  would  give  about  one  dollar  and  two-thirds,  or, 
after  deducting  the  laborers'  wages  one  real  per  diem, 
about  a  thaler  and  two-thirds;  not  a  large  sum  truly; 
but  it  is  some  consolation  to  know  that,  even  if  man  did 
not  interfere,  these  trees  would  in  process  of  time  fall 
victims  to  the  breakers,  and  that,  even  if  protected 
against  external  ravages,  they  are  doomed  to  natural 
extinction  after  once  producing  fruit. 

Cabusao  lies  in  the  southern  angle  of  San  Miguel 
Bay  which  is,  almost  on  every  side,  surrounded  by  high 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


186 


A  French 
planter. 


mountains,  and  affords  good  anchorage  for  ships.  From 
here  I  repaired  across  Naga  to  the  south  coast.  Four 
leagues  from  Naga,  in  the  heart  of  Ragay,  on  the  south- 
ern border  of  Luzon,  is  the  small  but  deep  harbor  of 
Pasacao;  and  two  hours  by  water  conducted  us  to  the 
intermediate  Visita  Pamplona,  whence  the  route  is 
pursued  by  land.  The  still-existing  remnant  of  the  old 
road  was  in  a  miserable  condition,  and  even  at  that  dry 
season  of  the  year  scarcely  passable ;  the  bridges  over  the 
numerous  little  ditches  were  broken  down,  and  in  many 
places,  right  across  the  road,  lay  large  stones  and  bran- 
ches of  trees  which  had  been  brought  there  years  before 
to  repair  the  bridges,  and,  having  been  unused,  have 
ever  since  continued  to  obstruct  the  road. 

In  Quitang,  between  Pamplona  and  Pasacao,  where 
two  brooks  unite  themselves  into  one  little  river  debouch- 
ing at  the  latter  place,  a  young  Frenchman  had  establish- 
ed a  hacienda.  He  was  contented  and  hopeful,  and 
loudly  praised  the  industry  and  friendliness  of  his  people. 
Probably  because  they  make  fewer  exactions,  foreigners, 
as  a  rule,  seem  to  agree  better  with  the  natives  than 
Spaniards.  Of  these  exactions,  the  bitterest  com- 
plaints are  rife  of  the  injustice  of  the  demands  made 
upon  the  lower  classes  in  the  settlement  of  their  wages; 
which,  if  they  do  not  immediately  find  the  necessary 
hands  for  every  employment,  do  not  correspond  with 
the  enhanced  value  of  the  products;  and,  according  to 
them,  the  natives  must  even  be  driven  from  public 
employments,  to  labor  in  their  service.* 

The  Filipino  certainly  is  more  independent  than  the   The  Filipino 
European  laborer,  because  he  has  fewer  wants  and,  as  a  "' "  i<iborer. 

*  N.  Loney  asserts,  in  one  of  his  excellent  reports,  that  there  never  is  a  defi- 
ciency of  suitable  laborers.  As  an  example,  at  the  unloading  of  a  ship  in  Iloilo, 
many  were  brought  together  at  one  time,  induced  by  the  small  rise  of  wages 
from  one  to  one  and  one-half  reales;  evtn  more  hands  than  could  be  employed. 
The  Belgian  consul,  too,  rep>orts  that  in  the  provinces  where  the  abacd  grows 
the  whole  of  the  male  population  is  engaged  in  its  cultivation,  in  consequence 
of  a  small  rise  of  wages. 


186  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

native  landowner,  is  not  compelled  to  earn  his  bread 
as  the  daily  laborer  of  another;  yet,  with  reference  to 
wages,  it  may  be  questioned  whether  any  colony  what- 
ever offers  more  favorable  conditions  to  the  planter  than 
the  Philippines.  In  Dutch  India,  where  the  prevalence 
of  monopoly  almost  excludes  private  industry,  free 
laborers  obtain  one-third  of  a  guilder — somewhat  more 
than  one  real,  the  usual  wages  in  the  wealthy  provinces 
of  the  Philippines  (in  the  poorer  it  amounts  to  only  the 
half);  and  the  Javanese  are  not  the  equals  of  the  Fili- 
pinos, either  in  strength,  or  intelligence,  or  skill;  and  the 
rate  of  wages  in  all  the  older  Slave  States  is  well  known. 
For  the  cultivation  of  sugar  and  coffee,  Mauritius  and 
Ceylon  are  obliged  to  import  foreign  laborers  at  great 
expense,  and  to  pay  them  highly;  and  yet  they  are 
successful. 

From  Quitang  to  Pasacao  the  road  was  far  worse  than 
it  had  heretofore  been;  and  this  is  the  most  important 
road  in  the  province!  Before  reaching  Pasacao,  evi- 
dent signs  are  visible,  on  the  denuded  sides  of  the  lime- 
stone, of  its  having  been  formerly  washed  by  the  sea. 
Pasacao  is  picturesquely  situated  at  the  end  of  the  valley 
which  is  intersected  by  the  Itulan,  and  extends  from 
Pamplona,  between  wooded  mountains  of  limestone, 
as  far  as  the  sea.  The  ebb  tides  here  are  extremely 
irregular.  From  noon  to  evening  no  difference  was 
observable,  and,  when  the  decrease  just  became  visible, 
the  tide  rose  again.  Immediately  to  the  south,  and 
facing  the  district,  the  side  of  a  mountain,  two  thousand 
feet  high  and  above  one  thousand  feet  broad,  had  two 
years  ago  given  way  to  the  subterranean  action  of 
the  waves.  The  rock  consists  of  a  tough  calcareous 
breccia,  full  of  fragments  of  mussels  and  corals;  but, 
being  shoeless,  I  could  not  remain  on  the  sharp  rock 
sufficiently  long  to  make  a  closer  examination. 


Jailor's  Trarels  >n  the  Philippines  187 

For  the  same  reason,  I  was  obliged  to  leave  the  ascent 
of  the  Yamtik,  which  I  had  before  vainly  attempted 
from  Libmanan,  unaccomplished  from  this  point, 
although  I  had  the  advantage  of  the  company  of  an 
obliging  French  planter  in  a  boat  excursion  in  a  north- 
westerly direction  along  the  coast.  Here  our  boat 
floated  along  over  gardens  of  coral,  swarming  with  magni- 
ficently colored  fishes;  and  after  two  hours  we  reached 
a  cavern  in  the  limestone,  Snminahang,  so  low  that 
one  could  stir  in  it  only  by  creeping;  which  contained 
a  few  swallows  and  bats.  On  the  Calebayan  river, 
on  the  further  side  of  Point  Tanaun,  we  came  upon  a 
solitary  shed,  our  night-quarters.  Here  the  limestone 
range  is  interrupted  by  an  isolated  cliff  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  little  river,  consisting  of  a  crystalline  rock  chiefly 
composed  of  hornblende;  which  moreover,  on  the  side 
exposed  to  the  water,  is  surrounded  completely  by  lime- 
stone. 

The  surrounding  mountains  must  swarm  with  wild 
boars.  Under  the  thatched  roof  of  our  hut,  which  serves 
as  a  shelter  to  occasional  hunters,  more  than  a  hundred 
and  fifty  lower  jaw-bones  were  set  up  as  hunting  tro- 
phies. The  place  appeared  as  if  created  for  the  breed- 
ing of  cattle.  Soft  with  fodder  grass,  and  covered  with 
a  few  groups  of  trees,  with  slopes  intersected  by  rustling 
brooks,  it  rose  up  out  of  the  sea,  and  was  encompassed 
by  a  steep  wall  of  rock  in  the  form  of  a  semicircle;  and 
here  cattle  would  find  grass,  water,  shade,  and  the  pro- 
tection of  an  enclosing  rampart.  While  travelling  along 
the  coast,  we  had  remarked  a  succession  of  similar  local- 
ities, which  however,  from  lack  of  enterprise  and  from 
the  dread  of  pirates,  were  not  utilized.  As  soon  as  our 
supper  was  prepared,  we  carefully  extinguished  our  fire, 
that  it  might  not  serve  as  a  signal  to  the  vagabonds  of 
the  sea,  and  kept  night  watches. 


.1  bc-.iuttful 
ri'dst. 


C'Mle. 


188 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  delusive 
cave. 


Isolation  of 
fertile  regions- 


River  highways. 


Cabusao  and 

Pasacao 

harbors. 


On  the  following  morning  we  intended  to  visit  a  cave 
never  before  entered;  but,  to  our  astonishment,  we  found 
no  proper  cavern,  but  only  an  entrance  to  a  cavern 
a  few  feet  in  depth.  Visible  from  a  distance,  it  must 
often  have  been  passed  by  the  hunters,  although,  as 
we  were  assured  by  our  companions — who  were  aston- 
ished at  the  delusion — no  one  had  ventured  to  enter  it 
from  stress  of  superstitious  terror. 

The  north  coast  of  Camarines,  as  I  have  frequently 
mentioned,  is,  during  the  north-east  monsoon,  almost 
unapproachable;  while  the  south  coast,  screened  by  the 
outlying  islands,  remains  always  accessible.  The  most 
fertile  districts  of  the  eastern  provinces,  which  during 
summer  export  their  produce  by  the  northern  ports, 
in  the  winter  often  remain  for  months  cut  off  from  all 
communication  with  the  chief  town,  because  there  is 
no  road  over  the  small  strip  of  land  to  the  south  coast. 
How  much  has  been  done  by  Nature,  and  how  little  by 
man,  to  facilitate  this  intercourse,  is  very  evident  when 
we  reflect  upon  the  condition  of  the  road  to  Pasacao, 
lately  described,  in  connection  with  the  condition  of 
matters  in  the  east,  as  shown  by  the  map. 

Two  rivers,  one  coming  from  the  north-west,  and  the 
other  from  the  south-east,  and  both  navigable  before 
they  reach  the  borders  of  the  province,  flow  through 
the  middle  of  it  in  a  line  parallel  with  the  coast  (taking 
no  account  of  its  windings),  and,  after  their  junction, 
send  their  waters  together  through  the  estuary  of  Ca- 
busao into  the  Bay  of  San  Miguel.  The  whole  province, 
therefore,  is  traversed  through  its  center  by  two  navig- 
able rivers,  which,  as  regards  commerce,  form  only 
one. 

But  the  harbor  of  Cabusao,  at  the  bottom  of  the  Bay 
of  San  Miguel,  is  not  accessible  during  the  north-east 
monsoon,  and  has  this  further  disadvantage,  that  the 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  189 

intercourse  of  the  whole  of  the  eastern  part  of  Luzon 
with  Manila  can  be  carried  on  only  by  a  very  circuitous 
route.  On  the  south  coast,  on  the  other  hand,  is  the 
harbor  of  Pasacao,  into  which  a  navigable  little  river, 
above  a  mile  in  width,  discharges  itself;  so  that  the 
distance  between  this  river  highway  and  the  nearest 
point  of  the  Bicol  River  amounts  to  a  little  more  than 
a  mile.  The  road  connecting  the  two  seas,  laid  out  by 
an  active  alcalde  in  1847,  and  maintained  up  to  1852, 
was  however,  at  the  date  of  my  inquiry,  in  so  bad  a 
condition  that  a  picul  of  abaca  paid  two  reals  freight 
for  this  short  distance,  in  the  dry  season;  and  in  the  wet 
season  it  could  not  be  forwarded  for  double  the  price.* 

Many  similar  instances  may  be  brought  forward.  b<^^  '■<"'<^« 
In  1861  the  English  vice-consul  reported  that  in  Iloilo  a 
picul  of  sugar  had  risen  more  than  2  r.  in  price  (as  much 
as  the  cost  of  freight  from  Iloilo  to  Manila),  in  conse- 
quence of  the  bad  state  of  the  road  between  the  two 
places,  which  are  only  one  league  asunder. 

If,  without  reference  to  transport  by  sea,  the  islands  •^""'"^ ""'' 

political  reasons 

were  not  favored  in  so  extraordinary  a  manner  by  for  bad  roads. 
innumerable  rivers  with  navigable  mouths,  a  still  greater 
proportion  of  their  produce  would  not  have  been  con- 
vertible into  money.  The  people,  as  well  as  the  local 
authorities,  have  no  desire  for  roads,  which  they  them- 
selves construct  by  forced  labor,  and,  when  completed, 
must  maintain  by  the  same  method;  for,  when  no  roads 
are  made,  the  laborers  are  so  much  more  easily  employed 
in  private  operations.  Even  the  parish  priests,  generally, 
are  as  little  favorable  to  the  planning  of  commercial 
intercourse,  by  means  of  which  trade,  prosperity,  and 
enlightenment  would  be  introduced  into  the  country, 
and  their  authority  undermined.     Indeed  the  Govern- 

*  An  unfinished  canal,  to  run  from  the  Bicol  to  the  Pasacao  River,  was  once    . 
dug,  as  is  thought,  by  the  Chinese,  who  carried  on  commerce  in  great  numbers. — 
Arenas,  p.  140. 


190 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Spariish 
economic 
backwardness. 


ment  itself,  up  to  within  a  short  time  since,  favored  such 
a  state  of  affairs;  for  bad  roads  belong  to  the  essence  of 
the  old  Spanish  colonial  policy,  which  was  always  direct- 
ed to  effect  the  isolation  of  the  separate  provinces  of 
their  great  transmarine  possessions,  and  to  prevent  the 
growth  of  a  sense  of  national  interest,  in  order  to  facilitate 
their  government  by  the  distant  mother  country. 

Besides,  in  Spain  itself  matters  are  no  better.  The 
means  of  communication  there  are  so  very  deficient 
that,  as  an  instance,  merchandise  is  sent  from  Santander 
to  Barcelona,  round  the  whole  Iberian  peninsula,  in 
preference  to  the  direct  route,  which  is  partly  accom- 
plished by  railway.*  In  Estremadura  the  hogs  were  fed 
with  wheat  (live  animals  can  be  transported  without 
roads),  while  at  the  same  time  the  seaports  were  import- 
ing foreign  grain. f  The  cause  of  this  condition  of  affairs 
in  that  country  is  to  be  sought  less  in  a  disordered  state 
of  finance,  than  in  the  enforcement  of  the  Government 
maxim  which  enjoins  the  isolation  of  separate  provinces. 


XVII 


Mt.  isarou.  The  Isarog  (pronounced  Issaro)  rises  up  in  the  middle 
of  Camarines,  between  San  Miguel  and  Lagonoy  bays. 
While  its  eastern  slope  almost  reaches  the  sea,  it  is 
separated  on  its  western  side  by  a  broad  strip  of  inun- 
dated land  from  San  Miguel  Bay.  In  circumference 
it  is  at  least  twelve  leagues;  and  its  height  1,966  meters. t 
Very  flat  at  its  base,  it  swells  gradually  to  16°,  and  higher 


*  La  Situation  Economique  de  V Espagne. 

t  Lesage,  "Coup  d'  Oeil,"  in  Journal  des  Economisies,  September,  1868 

%  From  barometrical  observations —  m. 

Goa,  on  the  northern  slope  of  the  Isarog 32 

Uacloy,  a  settlement  of  Igorots 161 

Ravine  of  Baira 1,134 

Summit  of  the  Isarog 1,966 


Jaqor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  t91 

up  to  21°  of  inclination,  and  extends  itself,  in  its  western 
aspect,  into  a  flat  dome-shaped  summit.  But,  if  viewed 
from  the  eastern  side,  it  has  the  appearance  of  a  circular 
chain  of  mountains  rent  asunder  by  a  great  ravine.  On 
Coello's  map  this  ravine  is  erroneously  laid  down  as 
extending  from  south  to  north;  its  bearing  really  is  west 
to  east.  Right  in  front  of  its  opening,  and  half  a  league 
south  from  Goa,  lies  the  pretty  little  village  of  Rungus, 
by  which  it  is  known.  The  exterior  sides  of  the  mountain 
and  the  fragments  of  its  large  crater  are  covered  with  im- 
penetrable wood.  Respecting  its  volcanic  eruptions 
tradition    says    nothing. 

The  higher  slopes  form  the  dwelling-place  of  a  small  Prnmuoe 

-  ,,  .,  ,  1,1  ,  f    mountaineers. 

race  of  people,  whose  mdependence  and  the  customs  of 
a  primitive  age  have  almost  entirely  separated  them 
from  the  inhabitants  of  the  plain.  One  or  two  Cimar- 
rons  might  occasionally  have  been  attracted  hither, 
but  no  such  instance  is  remembered.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  Isarog  are  commonly,  though  mistakenly,  called 
Igorots;  and  I  retain  the  name,  since  their  tribal  rela- 
tionship has  not  yet  been  accurately  determined;  they 
themselves  maintaining  that  their  ancestors  always 
dwelt  in  that  locality.  There  are  some  who,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  parish  priest  of  Camarines,  speak  the 
Bicol  language  in  the  purest  manner.  Their  manners 
and  customs  are  very  similar,  in  many  respects,  to  what 
they  were  on  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards ;  and  sometimes 
they  also  remind  one  of  those  prevailing  among  the 
Dyaks  of  Borneo  at  the  present  day.*  These  circum- 
stances give  rise  to  the  conjecture  that  they  may  be  the 
last  of  a  race  which  maintained  its  independence  against 
the  Spanish  rule,  and  probably  also  against  the  little 


*  The  skull  of  a  slain  Igorot,  as  shown  by  Professor  Virchow's  investigation, 
has  a  certain  similarity  to  Malay  skulls  of  the  adjoining  Islands  of  Sunda, 
especially  to  the  skulls  of  the  Dyaks. 


192 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Similarity  to 
Indian 
Archipelago 
conditions. 


Policy  of 
■non-intercourse 
with  heathens. 


tyrants  who  ruled  over  the  plain  before  the  arrival  of 
the  Europeans.  When  Juan  de  Salcedo  undertook  his 
triumphal  inarch  round  North  Luzon  he  found  every- 
where, at  the  mouths  of  the  rivers,  seafaring  tribes  living 
under  many  chieftains  who,  after  a  short  struggle,  were 
slain  by  the  superior  discipline  and  better  arms  of  the 
Spaniards,  or  submitted  voluntarily  to  the  superior  race; 
but  he  did  not  succeed  in  subduing  the  independent 
tribes  in  the  interior;  and  these  are  still  to  be  found  in 
all  the  larger  islands  of  the  Philippine  group. 

Similar  conditions  are  found  in  many  places  in  the 
Indian  Archipelago.  The  Malays,  carrying  on  trade 
and  piracy,  possess  the  shore,  and  their  language  pre- 
vails there;  the  natives  being  either  subdued  by  them, 
or  driven  into  the  forests,  the  inaccessibility  of  which 
ensures  to  them  a  miserable  but  independent  existence.* 

In  order  to  break  down  the  opposition  of  the  wild 
races,  the  Spanish  Government  forbade  its  subjects, 
under  the  penalty  of  one  hundred  blows  and  two  years 
of  forced  labor,  "to  trade  or  to  have  any  intercourse 
with  the  heathens  in  the  mountains  who  pay  no  tribute 
to  his  Catholic  Majesty,  for  although  they  would  ex- 
change their  gold,  wax,  etc.,  for  other  necessaries,  they 
will  never  change  for  the  better."  Probably  this  law 
has  for  centuries  directly  contributed  to  save  the  bar- 
barians, notwithstanding  their  small  numbers,  from 
complete  extermination;  for  free  intercourse  between 
a  people  existing  by  agriculture,  and  another  living 
principally  by  the  chase,  speedily  leads  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  latter. 


*  Pigafetta  found  Amboyna  inhabited  by  Moors  (Mohammedans')  and 
heathens;  "but  the  first  possessed  the  seashore,  the  latter  the  interior."  In 
the  harbor  of  Brune  (Borneo)  he  saw  two  towns;  one  inhabited  by  Moors,  and 
the  other,  larger  than  that,  and  standing  entirely  in  the  salt-water,  by  heathen. 
The  editor  remarks  that  Sonnerat  ("Voyage  aux  Indes")  subsequently  found 
that  the  heathen  had  been  driven  from  the  sea,  and  had  retired  into  the  moun- 
tains. 


I 


monopoly  wars. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  193 

The  number  of  the  Igorots  of  the  Isarog  has,  however,    '^'"■^^'■^o.n 

Mountaineers' 

been  much  diminished  by  deadly  battles  between  the  villages. 
different  ranchos,  and  by  the  marauding  expenditions 
which,  until  a  short  time  since,  were  annually  under- 
taken by  the  commissioners  of  taxes,  in  the  interest  of 
the  Government  monopoly,  against  the  tobacco  fields 
of  the  Igorots.  Some  few  have  been  "pacified"  (con- 
verted to  Christianity  and  tribute);  in  which  case  they 
are  obliged  to  establish  themselves  in  little  villages  of 
scattered  huts,  where  they  can  be  occasionally  visited 
by  the  priest  of  the  nearest  place;  and,  in  order  to  render 
the  change  easier  to  them,  a  smaller  tax  than  usual  is 
temporarily  imposed  upon  such  newly-obtained  subjects. 

I  had  deferred  the  ascent  of  the  mountain  until  the  Tobacco 
beginning  of  the  dry  season  of  the  year;  but  I  learned 
in  Naga  that  my  wish  was  hardly  practicable,  because 
the  expeditions  against  the  ranchos  of  the  mountain, 
which  I  have  already  mentioned,  usually  occurred  about 
this  time.  As  the  wild  people  could  not  understand 
why  they  should  not  cultivate  on  their  own  fields  a 
plant  which  had  become  a  necessity  to  them,  they  saw 
in  the  CuadriUeros,  not  functionaries  of  a  civilized  State, 
but  robbers,  against  whom  they  were  obliged  to  defend 
themselves  by  force;  and  appearances  contributed  no 
less  to  confirm  them  in  their  error;  for  these  did  not 
content  themselves  with  destroying  the  plantations  of 
tobacco,  but  the  huts  were  burnt  to  the  ground,  the 
fruit-trees  hewn  down,  and  the  fields  laid  waste.  Such 
forays  never  occurred  without  bloodshed,  and  often 
developed  into  a  little  war  which  was  carried  on  by 
the  mountaineers  for  a  long  time  afterwards,  even 
against  people  who  were  entirely  uninterested  in  it — 
Filipinos  and  Europeans.  The  expedition  this  year 
was  to  take  place  in  the  beginning  of  April;  the  Igorots 
consequently   were   in   a   state   of  great   agitation,   and 


194 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  policy  of 
peace. 


A  populous 
fertile  district. 


A  bare  plain 
and  wretched 
village. 


had,  a  few  days  previously,  murdered  a  young  unarmed 
Spaniard  in  the  vicinity  of  Mabotoboto,  at  the  foot 
of  the  mountain,  by  bringing  him  to  the  ground  with 
a  poisoned  arrow,  and  afterwards  inflicting  twenty-one 
wounds  with  the  wood-knife  (bolo). 

Fortunately  there  arrived  soon  after  a  countermand 
from  Manila,  where  the  authorities  seemed  to  have 
been  gradually  convinced  of  the  harmful  tendency  of 
such  violent  measures.  It  could  not  be  doubted  that 
this  intelligence  would  quickly  spread  amongst  the 
ranchos;  and,  acting  upon  the  advice  of  the  commandant 
(upon  whom,  very  much  against  his  inclination,  the 
conduct  of  the  expedition  had  devolved),  I  lost  no  time 
in  availing  myself  of  the  anticipated  season  of  quiet. 
The  Government  have  since  adopted  the  prudent  method 
of  purchasing  the  tobacco,  which  is  voluntarily  culti- 
vated by  the  Igorots,  at  the  ordinary  rate,  and,  where 
practicable,  encouraging  them  to  lay  out  new  fields, 
instead  of  destroying  those  in  existence. 

The  next  day  at  noon  I  left  Naga  on  horseback.  The 
pueblos  of  Mogarao,  Canaman,  Quipayo,  and  Calabanga, 
in  this  fertile  district  follow  so  thickly  upon  one  another 
that  they  form  an  almost  uninterrupted  succession  of 
houses  and  gardens.  Calabanga  lies  half  a  league  from 
the  sea,  between  the  mouths  of  two  rivers,  the  more 
southerly  of  which  is  sixty  feet  broad  and  sufficiently 
deep  for  large  trading  vessels.* 

The  road  winds  round  the  foot  of  the  Isarog  first 
to  the  north-east  and  then  to  the  east.  Soon  the  bloom- 
ing hedges  cease,  and  are  succeeded  by  a  great  bare 
plain,  out  of  which  numerous  flat  hillocks  raise  them- 
selves. Both  hills  and  plain,  when  we  passed,  served 
for  pasturage;  but  from  August  to  January  they  are 
sown  with  rice;  and  fields  of  batata  are  occasionally 
seen.     After  four  hours  we  arrived  at  the  little  village 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  195 

of  Maguiring  (Manguirin),  the  church  of  which,  a  tumble- 
down shed,  stood  on  an  equally  naked  hillock;  and  from 
its  neglected  condition  one  might  have  guessed  that 
the  priest  was  a  native. 

This  hillock,  as  well  as  the  others  which  I  examined,  Many  mountain 
consisted  of  the  debris  of  the  Isarog,  the  more  or  less 
decomposed  trachytic  fragments  of  hornblende  rock, 
the  spaces  between  which  were  filled  up  with  red  sand. 
The  number  of  streams  sent  down  by  the  Isarog,  into 
San  Miguel  and  Lagonoy  bays,  is  extraordinarily  large. 
On  the  tract  behind  Maguiring  I  counted,  in  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour,  five  considerable  estuaries,  that 
is  to  say,  above  twenty  feet  broad;  and  then,  as  far  as 
Goa,  twenty-six  more;  altogether,  thirty-one:  but  there 
are  more,  as  I  did  not  include  the  smallest;  and  yet  the 
distance  between  Maguiring  and  Goa,  in  a  straight  line, 
does  not  exceed  three  miles.  This  accounts  for  the 
enormous  quantity  of  steam  with  which  this  mighty 
condenser  is  fed.  I  have  not  met  with  this  phenomenon 
on  any  other  mountain  in  so  striking  a  manner.  One 
very  remarkable  circumstance  is  the  rapidity  with  which 
the  brimming  rivulets  pass  in  the  estuaries,  enabling 
them  to  carry  the  trading  vessels,  sometimes  even  ships, 
into  a  main  stream  (if  the  expression  may  be  allowed), 
while  the  scanty  contributions  of  their  kindred  streams 
on  the  northern  side  have  scarcely  acquired  the  import- 
ance of  a  mill-brook.  These  waters,  from  their  breadth, 
look  like  little  rivers,  although  in  reality  they  consist 
of  only  a  brook,  up  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  and  of 
a  river's  mouth  in  the  plain ;  the  intermediate  part  being 
absent. 

The  country  here  is  strikingly  similar  to  the  remark-   Comparison 

with  J  avail 

able  mountain  district  of  the  Gelungung,  described  by  Mountain 

district. 


*  On  Coello's  map  these  proportions  are  wrongly  stated. 


t96  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Junghuhn;*  yet  the  origin  of  these  rising  grounds  differs 
in  some  degree  from  that  of  those  in  Java.  The  latter 
were  due  to  the  eruption  of  1822,  and  the  great  fissure 
in  the  wall  of  the  crater  of  the  Gelungung,  which  is 
turned  towards  them,  shows  unmistakably  whence  the 
materials  for  their  formation  were  derived;  but  the  great 
chasm  of  the  Isarog  opens  towards  the  east,  and  there- 
fore has  no  relation  to  the  numberless  hillocks  on  the 
north-west  of  the  mountain.  Behind  Maguiring  they 
run  more  closely  together,  their  summits  are  flatter,  and 
their  sides  steeper;  and  they  pass  gradually  into  a  gently 
inclined  slope,  rent  into  innumerable  clefts,  in  the  hollows 
of  which  as  many  brooks  are  actively  employed  in  con- 
verting the  angular  outlines  of  the  little  islands  into  these 
rounded  hillocks.  The  third  river  behind  Maguiring 
is  larger  than  those  preceding  it;  on  the  sixth  lies  the 
large  Visita  of  Borobod;  and  on  the  tenth,  that  of  Ragay. 
The  rice  fields  cease  with  the  hill  country,  and  on  the 
slope,  which  is  well  drained  by  deep  channels,  only 
wild  cane  and  a  few  groups  of  trees  grow.  Passing  by 
many  villages,  whose  huts  were  so  isolated  and  concealed 
that  they  might  remain  unobserved,  we  arrived  at  five 
o'clock  at  Tagunton;  from  which  a  road,  practicable 
for  carabao  carts,  and  used  for  the  transport  of  the  abaca 
grown  in  the  district,  leads  to  Goa;  and  here,  detained  by 
sickness,  I  hired  a  little  house,  in  which  I  lay  for  nearly 
four  weeks,  no  other  remedies  offering  themselves  to  me 
but  hunger  and  repose. 
Useful  friends.  During  this  time  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  some 
newly-converted  Igorots,  and  won  their  confidence. 
Without  them  I  would  have  had  great  difficulty  in  ascend- 
ing the  mountains  as  well  as  to  visit  their  tribe  in  its 


*  "Java,  seine  Gestalt  (its  formation)"  II.  125. 


settlement. 


Jagor's  Traiels  hi  the  Philippines  197 

farms  without  any  danger.*  When,  at  last,  I  was  able 
to  quit  Goa,  my  friends  conducted  me,  as  the  first  step, 
to  their  settlement;  where,  having  been  previously  re- 
commended and  expected,  I  easily  obtained  the  requi- 
site number  of  attendants  to  take  into  their  charge  the 
animals  and  plants  which  were  collected  for  me. 

On  the  following  morning  the  ascent  was  commenced.  ^  heathen 
Even  before  we  arrived  at  the  first  rancho,  I  was  convin- 
ced of  the  good  report  that  had  preceded  me.  The 
master  of  the  house  came  towards  us  and  conducted 
us  by  a  narrow  path  to  his  hut,  after  having  removed 
the  foot-lances,  which  projected  obliquely  out  of  the 
ground,  but  were  dexterously  concealed  by  brushwood 
and  leaves. t  A  woman  employed  in  weaving,  at  my 
desire,  continued  her  occupation.  The  loom  was  of  the 
simplest  kind.  The  upper  end,  the  chain-beam,  which 
consists  of  a  piece  of  bamboo,  is  fixed  to  two  bars  or 
posts;  and  the  weaver  sits  on  the  ground,  and  to  the  two 
notched  ends  of  a  small  lath,  which  supplies  the  place 
of  the  weaving  beam,  hooks  on  a  wooden  bow,  in  the  arch 
of  which  the  back  of  the  lath  is  fitted.  Placing  her  feet 
against  two  pegs  in  the  ground  and  bending  her  back, 
she,  by  means  of  the  bow,  stretches  the  material  out 
straight.  A  netting-needle,  longer  than  the  breadth 
of  the  web,  serves  instead  of  the  weaver's  shuttle,  but 
it  can  be  pushed  through  only  by  considerable  fric- 
tion, and  not  always  without  breaking  the  chains  of 
threads.  A  lath  of  hard  wood  (caryota),  sharpened 
like  a  knife,  represents  the  trestle,  and  after  every  stroke 
it  is  placed  upon  the  edge ;  after  which  the  comb  is  pushed 


*  An  intelligent  mestizo  frequently  visited  me  duting  my  sickness.  Accord- 
ing to  his  statements,  besides  the  copper  already  mentioned,  coal  is  found  in 
three  places,  and  even  gold  and  iron  were  to  be  had.  To  the  same  man  I 
am  indebted  for  Professor  Virchow's  skull  of  Caramuan,  referred  to  before, 
which  was  said  to  have  come  from  a  cavern  in  Umang,  one  league  from  Cara- 
muan. Similar  skulls  are  also  said  to  be  found  at  the  Visita  Paniniman,  and  on 
a  small  island  close  to  the  Visita  Guialo. 

t  They  are  made  of  bamboo. 


198  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

forward,  a  thread  put  through,  and  struck  fast,  and  so 
forth.     The  web   consisted   of  threads  of  the     abaca, 
which  were  not  spun,  but  tied  one  to  another. 
A  giant  fern  Tht   huts    I    visited   deserve   no   special    description. 

hedge. 

Composed  of  bamboos  and  palm-leaves,  they  are  not 
essentially  different  from  the  dwellings  of  poor  Fili- 
pinos ;  and  in  their  neighborhood  were  small  fields 
planted  with  batata,  maize,  caladium  and  sugar-cane, 
and  enclosed  by  magnificent  polypody  ferns.  One  of 
the  highest  of  these,  which  I  caused  to  be  felled  for  the 
purpose,  measured  in  the  stem  nine  meters,  thirty  centi- 
meters; in  the  crown,  two  meters,  twelve  centimeters; 
and  its  total  length  was  eleven  meters,  forty-two  centi- 
meters or  over  thirty-six  feet. 
simvie  sirinyed        ^  youug  lad  produccd  music  on  a  kind  of  lute,  called 

inslruments. 

haringbau;  consisting  of  the  dry  shaft  of  the  scitamina 
stretched  in  the  form  of  a  bow  by  means  of  a  thin  tendril 
instead  of  gut.  Half  a  coco  shell  is  fixed  in  the  middle 
of  the  bow,  which,  when  playing,  is  placed  against  the 
abdomen,  and  serves  as  a  sounding  board;  and  the  string 
when  struck  with  a  short  wand,  gave  out  a  pleasing 
humming  sound,  realizing  the  idea  of  the  harp  and 
plectrum  in  their  simplest  forms.  Others  accompanied 
the  musician  on  Jews'  harps  of  bamboos,  as  accurate 
as  those  of  the  Mintras  on  the  Malay  Peninsula;  and  there 
was  one  who  played  on  a  guitar,  which  he  had  himself 
made,  but  after  a  European  pattern.  The  hut  contained 
no  utensils  besides  bows,  arrows,  and  a  cooking  pot. 
The  possessor  of  clothes  bore  them  on  his  person.  I 
found  the  women  as  decently  clad  as  the  Filipino 
Christian  women,  and  carrying,  besides,  a  forest  knife, 
or  bolo.  As  a  mark  of  entire  confidence,  I  was  taken 
into  the  tobacco  fields,  which  were  well  concealed 
and  protected  by  foot-lances;  and  they  appeared  to  be 
carefully  looked  after. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  199 

The  result  of  my  familiarity  with  this  people,  both   ^''«  p«°p'^  ""'^. 

,.,.  .  ii-n  their  crops. 

before  and  after  this  opportunity,  may  be  briefly  sum- 
med up:  They  live  on  the  higher  slopes  of  the  mountain, 
never,  indeed,  below  1,500  feet;  each  family  by  itself. 
It  is  difficult  to  ascertain  how  many  of  them  there  may 
now  be,  as  but  little  intercourse  takes  place  amongst 
them.  In  the  part  of  the  mountain  belonging  to  the 
district  of  Goa,  their  number  is  estimated  at  about  fifty 
men  and  twenty  women,  including  the  children:  but 
twenty  years  before  the  population  was  more  numerous. 
Their  food  consists  principally  of  batata,  besides  some 
gabi  (caladium).  A  little  maize  is  likewise  cultivated, 
as  well  as  some  ubi  (dioscorca),  and  a  small  quantity  of 
sugar-cane  for  chewing. 

In  laying  out  a  batata  field,  a  wood  is  partially  cleared.  Batatas. 
the  earth  loosened  with  the  blunt  forest  knife  (bolo),  and 
the  bulbs  or  layers  then  planted ;  and  within  four  months 
the  harvest  begins,  and  continues  uninterruptedly  from  the 
time  the  creeping  plant  strikes  root  and  forms  tubers. 
After  two  years,  however,  the  produce  is  so  much  dimin-  Rotation  of 
ished  that  the  old  plants  are  pulled  up,  in  order  to  '"^°^^' 
make  room  for  new  ones  obtained  from  the  runners. 
The  field  is  then  changed,  or  other  fruits  cultivated 
thereon,  but  with  the  addition  of  manure.  A  piece  of 
land,  fifty  brazas  long,  and  thirty  wide,  is  sufficient  for 
the  support  of  a  family.  Only  occasionally  in  the  wet 
season  does  this  resource  fail,  and  then  they  resort  to 
gabi,  which  appears  to  be  as  easily  cultivated  on  wet 
as  on  dry  ground,  but  is  not  so  profitable  as  batata.  The 
young  shoots  of  the  gabi  are  planted  at  distances  of  a 
vara,  and  if  consumed  in  a  proper  manner,  ought  not  to 
be  cropped  till  after  a  year.  Each  family  kills  weekly 
one  or  two  wild  hogs.  Stags  are  rare,  although  I  ob- 
tained a  fine  pair  of  horns;  and  they  do  not  use  the  skin. 
Bows  and  arrows  are  used  in  hunting;  some  poisoned, 


I 


zoo 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Game  cocks 
a  Spanish 
innovation. 


Religion. 


Respect  for 
women  and 


and  some  not.  Every  rancho  keeps  dogs,  which  live 
principally  on  batata,  and  also  cats  to  protect  the  fields 
against  rats;  and  they  also  have  poultry,  but  no  game 
cocks;  which,  having  been  first  introduced  into  the  Phil- 
ippines by  the  Spaniards,  are  seldom,  if  ever,  wanting 
in  the  huts  of  the  Filipinos;  but  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Isarog  are  as  yet  free  from  this  passion. 

The  few  products  of  a  more  advanced  civilization 
which  they  require,  they  obtain  by  the  sale  of  the  spon- 
taneous productions  of  their  forests,  chiefly  wax  and  resin 
(pili),*  apnik,  dagiangan  (a  kind  of  copal),  and  some 
abaca.  Wax,  which  is  much  in  request  for  church  solemn- 
ities, fetches  half  a  dollar  per  catty;  and  resin  averages 
half  a  real  per  chinanta.  Business  is  transacted  very 
simply.  Filipinos,  having  intercourse  with  the  Igorots, 
make  a  contract  with  them ;  and  they  collect  the  products 
and  bring  them  to  a  place  previously  agreed  on,  where 
the  Filipinos  receive  them,  after  paying  down  the  sti- 
pulated price. 

Physicians  and  magicians,  or  persons  supposed  to  be 
possessed  of  secret  powers,  are  unknown;  every  one 
helps  himself.  In  order  to  arrive  at  a  clear  understand- 
ing of  their  religious  views,  a  longer  intercourse  would 
be  necessary.  But  they  certainly  believe  in  one  God, 
or,  at  least,  say  so,  when  they  are  closely  questioned 
by  Christians;  and  have  also  loosely  acquired  several 
of  the  external  practices  of  Catholicism,  which  they 
employ  as  spells. 

Hunting  and  hard  labor  constitute  the  employment 
of  man  in  general,  as  well  as  in  the  Philippines.  The 
practice  of  employing  women  as  beasts  of  burden — 
which,  although  it  exists  among  many  of  the  peoples  of 
Europe,    for   example,    the   Basques,    Wallachians,    and 


*  The  fruit  of  the  wild  piH  is  unfit  for  food. 


Jagor's  Trarch  in  the  Philippirjes  SOI 

Portuguese,  is  almost  peculiar  to  barbarous  nations, — 
seems  to  have  been  lost  in  the  Philippines  as  far  back  as 
the  time  of  its  discovery  by  the  Spaniards;  and  even 
among  the  wild  people  of  the  Isarog,  the  women  engage 
only  in  light  labor,  and  are  well  treated.  Every  family 
supports  its  aged  and  those  unfit  for  labor.  Headaches 
and  fevers  were  stated  to  me  as  the  prevalent  maladies;  Medicine. 
for  which  burnt  rice,  pounded  and  mixed  to  a  pap  with 
water,  is  taken  as  a  remedy;  and  in  case  of  severe  head- 
ache they  make  an  incision  in  the  forehead  of  the  sufferer. 
Their  prevalence  is  explained  by  the  habit  of  neutralizing 
the  ill  effects  of  drinking  water  in  excess,  when  they  are 
heated,  by  the  consumption  of  warm  water  in  large 
doses;  and  the  rule  holds  with  regard  to  coco- water; 
the  remedy  for  immoderate  use  of  which  is  warm  coco- 
water.  Their  muscular  power  is  small,  and  they  are  not 
able  to  carry  more  than  fifty  pounds  weight  to  any  con- 
siderable distance. 

Besides  the  chase  and  agriculture,  their  occupations  Manufactures. 
are  restricted  to  the  manufacture  of  extremely  rude 
weapons,  for  which  they  purchase  the  iron,  when  re- 
quired, from  the  Filipinos,  and  of  the  coarse  webs 
made  by  the  women,  and  of  wicker  work.  Every  father 
of  a  family  is  master  in  his  own  house,  and  acknowledges 
no  power  higher  than  himself.  In  the  event  of  war 
with  neighboring  tribes,  the  bravest  places  himself  at 
the  head,  and  the  rest  follow  him  as  long  as  they  are  able; 
there  is  no  deliberate  choosing  of  a  leader. 

On  the  whole,  they  are  peaceful  and  honorable  towards  i^^atJi  customs. 
each  other,  although  the  idle  occasionally  steal  the  fruits 
of  the  fields;  and,  should  the  thief  be  caught,  the  person 
robbed  punishes  him  with  blows  of  the  rattan,  without 
being  under  any  apprehensions  of  vengeance  in  conse- 
quence. If  a  man  dies,  his  nearest  kinsmen  go  out 
to  requite  his  death  by  the  death  of  some  other  individual, 


£0Z  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

taken  at  random.  The  rule  is  strictly  enforced.  For 
a  dead  man  a  man  must  be  killed ;  for  a  woman  a  woman ; 
and  for  a  child  a  child.  Unless,  indeed,  it  be  a  friend 
they  encounter,  the  first  victim  that  offers  is  killed. 
Latterly,  however,  owing  to  the  unusual  success  attained 
by  some  of  them  in  representing  the  occurrence  of  death 
as  an  unavoidable  destiny,  the  custom  is  said  to  have 
fallen  into  desuetude;  and  the  relatives  do  not  exact 
the  satisfaction.  This  was  easy  in  the  case  of  the  de- 
ceased being  an  ordinary  person;  but,  to  the  present  day, 
vengeance  is  required  in  the  event  of  the  death  of  a 
beloved  child  or  wife.  If  a  man  kills  a  woman  of  another 
house,  her  nearest  kinsman  endeavors  to  kill  a  woman 
of  the  house  of  the  murderer;  but  to  the  murderer 
himself  he  does  nothing;  and  the  corpse  of  the  victim 
thus  slain  as  a  death-offering  is  not  buried,  nor  is  its 
head  cut  off;  and  her  family,  in  their  turn,  seek  to  avenge 
the  death  by  murder.  This  is  reckoned  the  most  honor- 
able course.  Should  the  murderer,  however,  be  too 
strong  to  be  so  overcome,  any  weaker  person,  be  it  who 
it  may,  is  slain  in  retaliation;  and  hence,  probably, 
the  comparatively  small  number  of  women. 

Marriage.  Polygamy  is  permitted;  but  even  the  most  courageous 

and  skilful  seldom  or  never  have  more  than  one  wife. 
A  young  man  wishing  to  marry  commissions  his  father 
to  treat  with  the  father  of  the  bride  as  to  the  price; 
which  latterly  has  greatly  increased;  but  the  average 
is  ten  bolos,  costing  from  four  to  six  reals  each,  and 
about  $12  in  cash;  and  the  acquisition  of  so  large  a  sum 
by  the  sale  of  wax,  resin,  and  abaca,  often  takes  the 
bridegroom  two  years.  The  bride-money  goes  partly 
to  the  father,  and  partly  to  the  nearest  relations;  every 
one  of  whom  has  an  equal  interest.     If  there  should 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SOS 

be  many  of  them,  almiost  nothing  remains  for  the  father, 
who  has  to  give  a  great  feast,  on  which  occasion  much 
palm-wine  is  drunk. 

Any  man  using  violence  towards  a  girl  is  killed  by  'S«^"<*^  crimes. 
her  parents.  If  the  girl  was  willing,  and  the  father 
hears  of  it,  he  agrees  upon  a  day  with  the  former,  on 
which  he  is  to  bring  the  bride's  dowry;  which  should 
he  refuse  to  do,  he  is  caught  by  the  relations,  bound 
to  a  tree,  and  whipped  with  a  cane.  Adultery  is  of 
most  rare  occurrence;  but,  when  it  does  take  place,  the 
dowry  is  returned  either  by  the  woman,  who  then 
acquires  her  freedom,  or  by  the  seducer,  whom  she  then 
follows.  The  husband  has  not  the  right  to  detain  her, 
if  he  takes  the  money,  or  even  if  he  should  refuse  it; 
but  the  latter  contingency  is  not  likely  to  arise,  since 
that  sum  of  money  will  enable  him  to  buy  for  himself 
a  new  wife. 

In  the  afternoon  we  reached  a  vast  ravine,  called  Basna  raime. 
"Basira,"  973  meters  above  Uacloy,  and  about  1,134 
meters  above  the  sea,  extending  from  south-east  to  north- 
west between  lofty,  precipitous  ranges,  covered  with 
wood.  Its  base,  which  has  an  inclination  of  33°,  con- 
sists of  a  naked  bed  of  rock,  and,  after  every  violent 
rainfall,  gives  issue  to  a  torrent  of  water,  which  dis- 
charges itself  violently.  Here  we  bivouacked;  and  the 
Igorots,  in  a  very  short  time,  built  a  hut,  and  remained 
on  the  watch  outside.  At  daybreak  the  thermometer 
stood  at  13.9°  R.* 

The  road  to  the  summit  was  very  difficult  on  account  At  the  summit. 
of  the  slippery  clay  earth  and  the  tough  network  of 
plants;  but  the  last  five  hundred  feet  were  unexpectedly 
easy,  the  very  steep  summit  being  covered  with  a  very 
thick  growth  of  thinly  leaved,  knotted,  mossy  thibaudia, 
rhododendra,  and  other  dwarf  woods,  whose  innumerable 

*  17.375  Cent,  or  63  Far.— C. 


ZOJf  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

tough  branches,  running  at  a  very  small  height  along 
the  ground  and  parallel  to  it,  form  a  compact  and  secure 
lattice-work,  by  which  one  mounted  upwards  as  on  a 
slightly  inclined  ladder.  The  point  which  we  reached 
*  *  *  was  evidently  the  highest  spur  of  the  horse- 
shoe-shaped mountain  side,  which  bounds  the  great 
ravine  of  Rungus  on  the  north.  The  top  was  hardly 
fifty  paces  in  diameter,  and  so  thickly  covered  with  trees 
that  I  have  never  seen  its  like;  we  had  not  room  to  stand. 
My  active  hosts,  however,  went  at  once  to  work,  though 
the  task  of  cutting  a  path  through  the  wood  involved 
severe  labor,  and,  chopping  off  the  branches,  built  there- 
with, on  the  tops  of  the  lopped  trees,  an  observatory, 
from  which  I  should  have  had  a  wide  panoramic  view, 
and  an  opportunity  for  taking  celestial  altitudes,  had 
not  everything  been  enveloped  in  a  thick  mist.  The 
neighboring  volcanoes  were  visible  only  in  glimpses, 
as  well  as  San  Miguel  Bay  and  some  lakes  in  the  interior. 
Immediately  after  sunset  the  thermometer  registered 
12.5°  R.* 
The  descent.  Qn  the  following  moming  it  was  still  overcast;  and 

when,  about  ten  o'clock,  the  clouds  became  thicker,  we 
set  out  on  our  return.  It  was  my  intention  to  have 
passed  the  night  in  a  rancho,  in  order  next  day  to  visit 
a  solfatara  which  was  said  to  be  a  day's  journey  further; 
but  my  companions  were  so  exhausted  by  fatigue  that 
they  asked  for  at  least  a  few  hours'   rest. 

On  the  upper  slope  I  observed  no  palms,  with  the 
exception  of  calamus;  but  polypodies  (ferns)  were  very 
frequent,  and  orchids  surprisingly  abundant.  In  one  place 
all  the  trees  were  hung,  at  a  convenient  height,  with 
flowering    aerids;    of   which    one    could    have    collected 


Ferns  and 
oichids. 


*  15.6  Cent,  or  60  Far.— C. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SOS 

thousands  without  any  trouble.  The  most  beautiful 
plant  was  a  Medinella,  of  so  delicate  a  texture  that  it 
was  impossible  to  preserve  it. 

Within  a  quarter  of  an  hour  north-east  of  Uacloy,  a   Carbonic 

acid  spring. 

considerable  spring  of  carbonic  acid  bursts  from  the 
ground,  depositing  abundance  of  calcareous  sinter. 
Our  torches  were  quickly  extinguished,  and  a  fowl 
covered  with  a  cigar-box  died  in  a  few  minutes,  to  the 
supreme  astonishment  of  the  Igorots,  to  whom  these 
phenomena  were  entirely  new. 

On  the  second  day  of  rest,   my  poor  hosts,  who  had  f''""«'^'«" '" 

mountaineers. 

accompanied  me  back  to  Uacloy,  still  felt  so  weary  that 
they  were  not  fit  for  any  undertaking.  With  naked 
heads  and  bellies  they  squatted  in  the  burning  sun  in 
order  to  replenish  their  bodies  with  the  heat  which  they 
had  lost  during  the  bivouac  on  the  summit;  for  they  are 
not  allowed  to  drink  wine.  When  I  finally  left  them  on 
the  following  day,  we  had  become  such  good  friends  that 
I  was  compelled  to  accept  a  tamed  wild  pig  as  a 
present.  A  troop  of  men  and  women  accompanied  me 
until  they  saw  the  glittering  roofs  of  Maguiring,  when, 
after  the  exchange  of  hearty  farewells,  they  returned 
to  their  forests.  The  natives  whom  I  had  taken  with 
me  from  Goa  had  proved  so  lazy  and  morose  that  nearly 
the  whole  task  of  making  the  path  through  the  forest  had 
fallen  upon  the  Igorots.  From  sheer  laziness  they  threw 
away  the  drinking  water  of  which  they  were  the  porters ; 
and  the  Igorots  were  obliged  to  fetch  water  from  a  con- 
siderable distance  for  our  bivouac  on  the  summit.  In 
all  my  troublesome  marches,  I  have  always  done  better 
with  Cimarrons  than  with  the  civilized  natives.  The 
former  I  have  found  obliging,  trustworthy,  active  and 
acquainted  with  localities,  while  the  latter  generally 
displayed  the  opposite  qualities.  It  would,  however, 
be  unjust  to  form  a  conclusive  opinion  as  to  their  com- 


toe 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Forced  labor. 


A  petition 
for  liquors. 


parative  merits  from  these  facts;  for  the  wild  people  are 
at  home  when  in  the  forest;  what  they  do  is  done  volun- 
tarily, and  the  stranger,  when  he  possesses  their  confi- 
dence, is  treated  as  a  guest.  But  the  Filipinos  are  reluc- 
tant companions,  Polistas,  who,  even  when  they  receive  a 
high  rate  of  wages,  consider  that  they  are  acting  most 
honorably  when  they  do  as  little  as  possible.  Atany  rate, 
it  is  no  pleasure  to  them  to  leave  their  village  in  order  to 
become  luggage-porters  or  beaters  of  roads  on  fatiguing 
marches  in  impracticable  districts,  and  to  camp  out 
in  the  open  air  under  every  deprivation.  For  them, 
still  more  than  for  the  European  peasant,  repose  is  the 
most  agreeable  refreshment.  The  less  comfort  any 
one  enjoys  at  home,  the  greater  is  the  reluctance  with 
which  he  leaves  it;  and  the  same  thing  may  be  observed 
in  Europe. 

As  the  Igorots  were  not  permitted  to  have  cocoa- 
palms  for  the  preparation  of  wine,  vinegar  and  brandy, 
so  that  they  might  not  infringe  the  monopoly  of  the 
government,  they  presented  me  with  a  petition  entreat- 
ing me  to  obtain  this  favor  for  them.  The  document 
was  put  together  by  a  Filipino  writer  in  so  ludicrously 
confused  a  manner  that  I  give  it  as  a  specimen  of  Phil- 
ippine clerkship.*  At  all  events,  it  had  the  best  of 
results,  for  the  petitioners  were  accorded  twice  as  much 
as  they  had  prayed  for. 


*  Sor  Inspector  por  S.  M. 

Nosotros  dos  Capnes  actuales  de  Rancherias  de  Lalud  y  Uacloy  comprension 
del  pueblo  de  Goa  prov.a  de  Camarines  Sur.  Ante  los  pies  de  vmd  postramos 
y  decimos.  Que  por  tan  deplorable  estado  en  que  nos  hallabamos  de  la  infede- 
lidad  recienpoblados  esta  visitas  de  Rancherias  ya  nos  Contentamos  bastante- 
mente  en  su  felis  Uegada  y  suvida  de  este  eminente  monte  Je  Isarog  loque  havia 
con  quiztado  industriamente  de  V.  bajo  mis  consuelos,  y  alibios  para  poder 
con  seguir  a  doce  ponos  (i.  e.  arboles)  de  cocales  de  mananguiteria  para 
Nuestro  uso  y  alogacion  a  los  demas  Igorotes,  o  montesinos  q.  no  quijran  ven- 
dirnos;  eta  utilidad  publica  y  reconocer  a  Dios  y  a  la  soberana  Reyna  y  Sora 
Dona  Isabel  2a  (que  Dios  Gue)  Y  por  intento. 

A.  V.  pedimos,  y  suplicamos  con  humildad  secirva  proveer  y  mandar,  si  es 
gracia  segun  lo  q.  imploramos,  etc.     Domingo  Talesf.     Jose  Laurencianof . 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  207 

The  south-west  monsoon  lasts  in  this  region  (district   ^^ndaand 

plantiiig  season. 

of  Goa)  from  April  to  October.  April  is  very  calm 
(navegacion  de  senoras).  From  June  to  August  the 
south-west  winds  blow  steadily;  March,  April,  and 
May  are  the  driest  months;  there  are  shifting  winds  in 
March  and  the  beginning  of  April;  while  from  October 
to  December  is  the  time  of  storms;  "S.  Francisco  (4th 
October)  brings  bad  weather."  Rice  is  planted  in 
September   and   reaped   in   February. 


XVIII 


From  the  Isarog  I  returned  through  Naga  and  Nabua  ml  iriga. 
to  Iriga,  the  ascent  of  which  I  at  length  accomplished. 
The  chief  of  the  Montesinos  had  received  daily  rations 
for  twenty-two  men,  with  whom  he  professed  to  make 
a  road  to  the  summit ;  but  when,  on  the  evening  of  the 
third  day,  he  came  himself  to  Iriga,  in  order  to  fetch 
more  provisions,  on  the  pretext  that  the  work  still 
required  some  time  for  execution,  I  explained  that  I 
should  endeavor  to  ascend  the  mountain  on  the  follow- 
ing morning,  and  requested  him  to  act  as  guide.  He 
consented,  but  disappeared,  together  with  his  companions, 
during  the  night;  the  Filipinos  in  the  tribunal  having 
been  good  enough  to  hold  out  the  prospect  of  severe 
punishment  in  case  the  work  performed  should  not 
correspond  to  the  working  days.  After  fruitless  search  The  ascent. 
for  another  guide,  we  left  Buhi  in  the  afternoon,  and 
passed  the  night  in  the  rancho,  where  we  had  previously 
been  so  hospitably  received.  The  fires  were  still  burn- 
ing, but  the  inhabitants,  on  our  approach,  had  fled. 
About  six  o'clock  on  the  following  morning  the  ascent 
began.  After  we  had  gone  through  the  forest,  by  avail- 
ing  ourselves   of  the   path   which   we   had   previously 


W8  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

beaten,  it  led  us  through  grass  three  or  four  feet  in  height, 
with  keen-edged  leaves;  succeeded  by  cane,  from  seven 
to  eight  feet  high,  of  the  same  habitat  with  our  Arundo 
phragmites  (but  it  was  not  in  flower),  which  occupied 
the  whole  of  the  upper  part  of  the  mountain  as  far  as 
the  edge.  Only  in  the  ravine  did  the  trees  attain  any 
height.  The  lower  declivities  were  covered  with  aroids 
and  ferns;  towards  the  summit  were  tendrils  and  mosses; 
and  here  I  found  a  beautiful,  new,  and  peculiarly  shaped 
orchid.*  The  Cimarrons  had  cut  down  some  cane;  and, 
beating  down  our  road  for  ourselves  with  bolos,  we  arrived 
at  the  summit  a  little  before  ten  o'clock.  It  was  very 
foggy.  In  the  hope  of  a  clear  evening  or  morning  I 
caused  a  hut  to  be  erected,  for  which  purpose  the  cane 
was  well  fitted.  The  natives  were  too  lazy  to  erect  a 
lodging  for  themselves,  or  to  procure  wood  for  a  watch- 
fire.  They  squatted  on  the  ground,  squeezed  close  to 
one  another  to  warm  themselves,  ate  cold  rice,  and  suf- 
fered thirst  because  none  of  them  would  fetch  water.  Of 
the  two  water-carriers  whom  I  had  taken  with  me,  one 
had  "inadvertently"  upset  his  water  on  the  road,  and 
the  other  had  thrown  it  away  "because  he  thought  we 
should  not  require  it." 

Altitude.  I  found  the  highest  points  of  the  Iriga  to  be  1,212 

meters,  1,120  meters  above  the  surface  of  the  Buhi 
Lake.     From  Buhi  I  went  to  Batu. 

Changes  in  The  Batu  Lake   (one  hundred  eleven  meters  above 

the  sea)  had  sunk  lower  since  my  last  visit  in  February. 
The  carpet  of  algae  had  increased  considerably  in  breadth, 
its  upper  edge  being  in  many  places  decomposed ;  and  the 
lower  passed  gradually  into  a  thick  consistency  of  putrid 
water-plants  (charae,  algae,  pontederiae,  valisneriae, 
pistiae,  etc.),  which  encompassed  the  surface  of  the  water 
so  that  only  through  a  few  gaps  could  one  reach  the  bank. 

*  Dendrobium  ceraula,  Reichenbach. 


I 


Jayor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S09 

Right  across  the  mouth  of  the  Quinali  lies,  in  the  lake, 
a  bar  of  black  mud,  the  softest  parts  of  which  were 
indicated  by  some  insignificant  channels  of  water.  As 
we  could  not  get  over  the  bar  in  a  large  boat,  two  small 
skiffs  were  bound  together  with  a  matting  of  bamboo, 
and  provided  with  an  awning.  By  means  of  this  con- 
trivance, which  was  drawn  by  three  strong  carabaos 
(the  whole  body  of  men  with  evident  delight  and  loud 
mirth  wading  knee-deep  in  the  black  mud  and  assisting 
by  pushing  behind)  we  succeeded,  as  if  on  a  sledge,  in 
getting  over  the  obstacle  into  the  river;  which  on  my 
first  visit  overflowed  the  fields  in  many  places,  till  the  huts 
of  the  natives  rose  out  of  the  water  like  so  many  ships: 
but  now  (in  June)  not  one  of  its  channels  was  full. 
We  were  obliged  in  consequence  to  continue  our  sledge 
journey  until  we  were  near  to  Quinali. 

At  Ligao  I  alighted  at  a  friendly  Spaniard's,  a  great 
part  of  the  place,  together  with  the  tribunal  and  con- 
vent, having  been  burnt  down  since  my  last  visit.  After 
making  the  necessary  preparations,  I  went  in  the  even- 
ing to  Barayong,  a  little  rancho  of  Cimarrons  at  the  foot 
of  the  Mazaraga,   and,   together  with   its   inhabitants,   -^«c«"^'  "^ 

.  .  Ml.  Mazaraua. 

ascended  the  mountain  on  the  followmg  morning. 
The  women  also  accompanied  us  for  some  distance,  and 
kept  the  company  in  good  humor;  and  when,  on  the  road, 
a  Filipino  who  had  been  engaged  for  the  purpose  wished 
to  give  up  carrying  a  bamboo  full  of  water,  and,  throw- 
ing it  away,  ran  off,  an  old  woman  stepped  forward  in  his 
stead,  and  dragged  the  water  cheerfully  along  up  to 
the  summit.  This  mountain  was  moister  than  any  I 
had  ever  ascended,  the  Semeru  in  Java,  in  some  respects, 
excepted;  and  half-way  up  I  found  some  rotten  rafflesia.* 
Two  miserable-looking  Cimarron  dogs  drove  a  young 
stag  towards  us,  which  was  slain  by  one  of  the  people 

*  Rafflesia  Cumingii  R.  Brown,  according  to  Dr.  Kuhn. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Altitude. 


Butterflies. 


with  a  blow  of  his  bolo.  The  path  ceased  a  third  of  the 
way  up,  but  it  was  not  difficult  to  get  through  the 
wood.  The  upper  portion  of  the  mountain,  however, 
being  thickly  overgrown  with  cane,  again  presented 
great  obstacles.  About  twelve  we  reached  the  summit- 
level,  which,  pierced  by  no  crater,  is  almost  horizontal, 
smoothly  arched,  and  thickly  covered  with  cane.  Its 
height  is  1,354  meters.  In  a  short  time  the  indefatig- 
able Cimarrons  had  built  a  fine  large  hut  of  cane:  one 
room  for  myself  and  the  baggage,  a  large  assembly-room 
for  the  people,  and  a  special  apartment  for  cooking. 
Unfortunately  the  cane  was  so  wet  that  it  would  not 
burn.  In  order  to  procure  firewood  to  cook  the  rice, 
thick  branches  were  got  out  of  the  wood,  and  their  com- 
paratively dry  pith  extracted  with  great  labor.  The 
lucifer-matches,  too,  were  so  damp  that  the  phos- 
phorus was  rubbed  away  in  friction;  but,  being  collected 
on  blotting-paper,  and  kneaded  together  with  the  sul- 
phurous end  of  the  match-wood,  it  became  dry  and  was 
kindled  by  friction.  Not  a  trace  of  solid  rock  was  to 
be  seen.  All  was  obstructed  by  a  thick  overgrowth 
from  where  the  path  ceased,  and  the  ground  covered 
with  a  dense  bed  of  damp  wood-earth.  The  following 
morning  was  fine,  and  showed  a  wide  panorama;  but, 
before  I  had  completed  my  drawing,  it  again  became 
misty ;  and  as,  after  several  hours  of  waiting,  the  heavens 
were  overspread  with  thick  rain-clouds,  we  set  out 
on  our  return. 

Numerous  butterflies  swarmed  around  the  summit. 
We  could,  however,  catch  only  a  few,  as  the  passage 
over  the  cane-stubble  was  too  difficult  for  naked  feet; 
and,  the  badly-stitched  soles  of  two  pairs  cf  new  shoes 
which  I  had  brought  from  Manila  having  dropped  off 
some  time  before  I  reached  the  summit,  I  was  compelled 
to  perform  the  journey  to  Ligao  barefoot. 


Jayor's  Trarels  in  the  Philippines  SI  I 

On  the  following  day  my  Spanish  host  went  twice  Native  contempt 
to  the  tribunal  to  procure  the  carabao  carts  which  were  slanilrdl 
necessary  for  the  furtherance  of  my  collections.  His 
courteous  request  was  unsuccessful;  but  the  command  of 
the  parish  priest,  who  personally  informed  the  Gober- 
nadorcillo  in  his  house,  was  immediately  obeyed.  The 
Filipino  authorities  have,  as  a  rule,  but  little  respect 
for  private  Spanish  people,  and  treat  them  not  seldom 
with  open  contempt.  An  official  recommendation  from 
the  alcalde  is  usually  effectual,  but  not  in  all  the  provin- 
ces; for  many  alcaldes  do  hurt  to  their  own  authority 
by  engaging  the  assistance  or  connivance  of  the  native 
magistrates  in  the  furtherance  of  their  personal  interests. 

I  here  shot  some  panikes,  great  bats  with  wings  nearly  <?«»«<  bats. 
five  feet  wide  when  extended,  which  in  the  day  time 
hang  asleep  from  the  branches  of  trees,  and,  among 
them,  two  mothers  with  their  young  sucking  ones  un- 
injured. It  was  affecting  to  see  how  the  little  animals 
clung  more  and  more  firmly  to  the  bodies  of  their  dying 
parents,  and  how  tenderly  they  embraced  them  even  after 
these  were  dead.  The  apparent  feeling,  however,  was 
only  self-interest  at  bottom,  for,  when  their  store  of 
milk  was  exhausted,  the  old  ones  were  treated  without 
respect,  like  empty  bottles.  As  soon  as  the  young  ones 
were  separated,  they  fed  on  bananas,  and  lived  several 
days,  until  I  at  length  placed  them  in  spirits. 

Early  in  the  morning  I  rode  on  the  priest's  horse  to   a  muddy 
Legaspi,  and  in  the  evening  through  deep  mud  to  the  ^''^  season. 
alcalde  at  Albay.     We  were  now  (June)  in  the  middle 
of  the  so-called  dry  season,  but  it  rained  almost  every 
day;  and  the  road  between  Albay  and  Legaspi  was  worse 
than  ever.     During  my  visit  information  arrived  from 
the  commandant  of  the  faluas  on  the  south  coast  that, 
as  he  was  pursuing  two  pirate  vessels,  six  others  suddenly  Power  of 
made  their  appearance,  in  order  to  cut  off  his  return ;   ^'"'°  virates. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


No  proleclion 
from  Govern- 
ment. 


for  which  reason  he  had  quickly  made  his  way  back. 
The  faluas  are  very  strongly  manned,  and  provided  with 
cannon,  but  the  crews  furnished  by  the  localities  on  the 
coast  are  entirely  unpractised  in  the  use  of  fire-arms, 
and  moreover  hold  the  Moros  in  such  dread  that,  if  the 
smallest  chance  offers  of  flight,  they  avail  themselves 
of  it  to  ensure  their  safety  by  making  for  the  land. 
The  places  on  the  coast,  destitute  of  other  arms  than 
wooden  pikes,  were  completely  exposed  to  the  pirates, 
who  had  firmly  established  themselves  in  Catanduanes, 
Biri,  and  several  small  islands,  and  seized  ships  with 
impunity,  or  robbed  men  on  the  land.  Almost  daily 
fresh  robberies  and  murders  were  announced  from  the 
villages  on  the  shore.  During  a  plundering  expedition 
the  men  caught  are  employed  at  the  oars  and  at  its 
close  sold  as  slaves;  and,  on  the  division  of  the  spoil, 
one  of  the  crew  falls  to  the  share  of  the  dato  (Moro 
chief)  who  fitted  out  the  vessel.*  The  coasting  vessels 
in  these  waters,  it  is  true,  are  mostly  provided  with 
artillery,  but  it  is  generally  placed  in  the  hold  of  the 
ship,  as  no  one  on  board  knows  how  to  use  it.  If  the 
cannon  be  upon  deck,  either  the  powder  or  the  shot  is 
wanting;  and  the  captain  promises  to  be  better  prepared 
next  time.j  The  alcalde  reported  the  outrages  of  the 
pirates  by  every  post  to  Manila,  as  well  as  the  great 
injury  done  to  trade,  and  spoke  of  the  duty  of  the  Gov- 
ernment to  protect  its  subjects,  especially  as  the  latter 
were   not   permitted   to   use   fire-arms ;+   and   from   the 

*  According  to  E.  Bernaldez  ("Guerra  al  Sur")  the  number  of  Spaniards  and 
Filipinos  kidnapped  and  killed  within  thirty  years  amounted  to  twenty  thousand. 

t  The  richly  laden  Nao  (Mexican  galleon)  acted  in  this  way. 

t  Extract  from  a  letter  of  the  alcalde  to  the  captain-general,  June  20,  '60: — 
"For  ten  days  past  ten  pirate  vessels  have  been  lying  undisturbed  at  the  island 
of  San  Miguel,  two  leagues  from  Tabaco,  and  interrupt  the  communication  with 
the  island  of  Catanduanes  and  the  eastern  part  of  Albay.  *  *  *  They  have 
committed  several  robberies,  and  carried  off  six  men.  Nothing  can  be  done 
to  resist  them  as  there  are  no  fire-arms  in  the  villages,  and  the  only  two  faluas 
have  been  detained  in  the  roads  of  San  Bernardino  by  stress  of  weather." 

Letter  of  June  25: — "Besidesthe  above  private  ships  four  large  pancos  and  four 
small  vintas  have  made  their  appearance  in  the  straits  of  San  Bernardino.  *  *  * 
Their  force  amounts  from  four  hundred  and  fifty  to  five  hundred  men.  *  *  * 
Already  they  have  killed  sixteen  men,  kidnapped  ten,  and  captured  one  ship." 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


steamer 
easily  eluded. 


Steam 

gunboats  more 
successful. 


Bisayan  Islands  came  the  same  cry  for  help.  The  Gov- 
ernment, however,  was  powerless  against  the  evil.  If 
the  complaints  were  indeed  very  urgent,  they  would 
send  a  steamer  into  the  waters  most  infested;  but  it 
hardly  ever  came  in  sight  of  pirates,  although  the  latter 
were  carrying  on  their  depredations  close  in  front  and 
behind. 

At  Samars,  the  principal  town,  I  subsequently  met  Government 
with  a  Government  steamer,  which  for  fourteen  days 
past  had  been  nominally  engaged  in  cruising  against  the 
pirates;  but  the  latter,  generally  forewarned  by  their  spies, 
perceive  the  smoke  of  the  steamers  sufficiently  soon  to 
slip  away  in  their  flat  boats ;  and  the  officers  knew  before- 
hand that  their  cruise  would  have  no  other  result  than 
to  show  the  distressed  provinces  that  their  outcry  was 
not  altogether  unnoticed.* 

Twenty  small  steam  gunboats  of  light  draught  had 
shortly  before  been  ordered  from  England,  and  were 
nearly  ready.  The  first  two  indeed  arrived  soon  after  in 
Manila  (they  had  to  be  transported  in  pieces  round  the 
Cape),  and  were  to  be  followed  by  the  rest;  and  they 
were  at  one  time_  almost  successful  in  delivering  the 
archipelago  from  these  burdensome  pests  ;t  at  least, 
from  the  proscribed  Moros  who  came  every  year  from 
the  Sulu  Sea,  mostly  from  the  island  of  Tawitawi,  arriv- 
ing in  May  at  the  Bisayas,  and  continuing  their  depreda- 
tions in  the  archipelago  until  the  change  of  the  monsoon 

*  In  Chamisso's  time  it  was  even  worse.  "The  expeditions  in  armed  vessels, 
which  were  sent  from  Manila  to  cruise  against  the  enemy  (the  pirates)  *  *  * 
-serve  only  to  promote  smuggling,  and  Christians  and  Moros  avoid  one  another 
with  equal  diligence  on  such  occasions."  ("Observations  and  Views,"  p.  73.) 
*  *  *  Mas  (i.  iv.  43)  reports  to  the  same  effect,  according  to  notices  from  the 
secretary-general's  office  at  Manila,  and  adds  that  the  cruisers  sold  even  the 
royal  arms  and  ammunition,  which  had  been  entrusted  to  them,  whence  much 
passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Moros.  The  alcaldes  were  said  to  influence  the 
commanders  of  the  cruisers,  and  the  latter  to  overreach  the  alcaldes;  but  both 
usually  made  common  cause.  La  Perouse  also  relates  (ii.,  p.  357),  that  the  alcal- 
des bought  a  very  large  number  of  persons  who  had  been  made  slaves  by  the 
pirates  (in  the  Philippines) ;  so  that  the  latter  were  not  usually  brought  to  Batavia 
where  they  were  of  much  less  value. 

t  According  to  the  Diario  dp  Manila,  March  14,  1866,  piracy  on  the  seas  had 
diminished,  but  had  not  ceased.  Paragua,  Calamianes,  Mindoro,  Mindanao, 
-and  the  Bisayas  still  suffer  from  it.  Robberies  and  kidnapping  are  frequently 
carried  on  as  opportunity  favors;  and  such  casual  pirates  are  to  be  extirpated 
only  by  extreme  severity.  According  to  my  latest  accounts,  piracy  is  again 
•on  the  increase. 


SI  4 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Renegades  join 
pirates  and 
bandits. 


Plants  from 
Berlin. 


in  October  or  November  compelled  them  to  return.* 
In  the  Philippines  they  gained  new  recruits  among 
vagabonds,  deserters,  runaway  criminals,  and  ruined 
spendthrifts;  and  from  the  same  sources  were  made  up 
the  bands  of  highway  robbers  (tulisanes),  which  some- 
times started  up,  and  perpetuated  acts  of  extraordinary 
daring.  Not  long  before  my  arrival  they  had  made 
an  inroad  into  a  suburb  of  Manila,  and  engaged  with 
the  military  in  the  highways.  Some  of  the  latter  are 
regularly  employed  in  the  service  against  the  tulisanes. 
The  robbers  are  not,  as  a  rule,  cruel  to  their  victims  when 
no  opposition  is  offered. f 

In  Legaspi  I  found  awaiting  me  several  chests  with 
tin  lining,  which  had  been  sixteen  months  on  their 
passage  by  overland  route,  instead  of  seven  weeks, 
having  been  conveyed  from  Berlin  by  way  of  Trieste, 
on  account  of  the  Italian  war.  Their  contents,  which 
had  been  intended  for  use  in  the  Philippines  exclusively, 
were  now  for  the  most  part  useless.  In  one  chest  there 
were  two  small  flasks  with  glass  stoppers,  one  filled  with 
moist  charcoal,   and   the   other  with   moist   clay,   both 


*  The  Spaniards  attempted  the  conquest  of  the  Sulu  Islands  in  1628,  1629, 
1637,  1731,  and  1746;  and  frequent  expeditions  have  since  taken  place  by  way  of 
reprisals.  A  great  expedition  was  likewise  sent  out  in  October,  1871,  against 
Sulu,  in  crdtr  to  restrain  the  piracy  which  recently  was  getting  the  upper  hand; 
indeed,  a  year  cr  two  ago,  the  pirates  had  ventured  as  far  as  the  neighborhood 
of  Manila;  but  in  April  of  this  year  (1872)  the  fleet  returned  to  Manila  without 
having  effected  its  object.  The  Spaniards  employed  in  this  expedition  almost 
the  whcle  marine  fcrce  of  the  colony,  fourteen  ships,  mostly  steam  gunboats; 
and  they  bombarded  the  chief  town  without  inflicting  any  particular  damage, 
while  the  ^/!c^os  withdrew  into  the  interior,  and  awaited  the  Spaniards  (who, 
indeed,  did  not  venture  to  land)  in  a  well-equippsd  body  of  five  thousand  men. 
After  months  of  inactivity  the  Spaniards  burnt  down  an  unarmed  place  on  the 
coast,  committing  many  barbarities  on  the  occasion,  but  drew  back  when  the 
warricrs  advanced  to  the  combat.  The  ports  of  the  Sulu  archipelago  are  closed 
to  trade  by  a  decree,  although  it  is  questionable  whether  all  navigatiors  will  pay 
any  regard  to  it.  Not  long  since  the  sovereignty  of  his  district  was  offered  by  the 
Sultan  of  Sulu  to  the  King  of  Prussia;  but  the  offer  was  declined. 

tThe  Diario  de  Manila  of  June  4,  1866,  states: — "Yesterday  the  military 
commissicn,  established  by  ordinance  of  the  3rd  August,  1855,  discontinued 
its  functions.  The  ordinary  tribunals  are  again  in  force.  The  numerous  bands 
of  thirty,  forty,  and  more  individuals,  armed  to  the  teeth,  which  have  left  be- 
hind them  their  traces  of  blood  and  fire  at  the  doors  of  Manila  and  in  so  many 
other  places,  are  annihilated.  *  *  *  More  than  fifty  robbers  have  expiated 
their  crimes  on  the  gallows,  and  one  hundred  and  forty  have  been  condemned 
to  presidio  (forced  labor)  or  to  other  punishments." 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S16 

containing  seeds  of  the  Victoria  Regia  and  tubers  of  red 
and  blue  nymphae  (water-lily).  Those  in  the  first  flask 
were  spoiled,  as  might  have  been  expected;  but  in  that 
filled  with  moist  clay  two  tubers  had  thrown  out  shoots 
of  half  an  inch  in  length,  and  appeared  quite  sound.  I 
planted  them  at  once,  and  in  a  few  days  vigorous  leaves 
were  developed.  One  of  these  beautiful  plants,  which  had 
been  originally  intended  for  the  Buitenzorg  Garden  in 
Java,  remained  in  Legaspi;  the  other  I  sent  to  Manila, 
where,  on  my  return,  I  saw  it  in  full  bloom.  In  the 
charcoal  two  Victoria  seeds  had  thrown  out  roots  above 
an  inch  in  length,  which  had  rotted  off.  Most  likely  they 
had  been  torn  up  by  the  custom-house  inspectors,  and  had 
afterwards  rotted,  for  the  neck  of  the  bottle  was  broken, 
and  the  charcoal  appeared  as  if  it  had  been  stirred.  I 
communicated  the  brilliant  result  of  his  mode  of  packing 
to  the  Inspector  of  the  Botanical  Gardens  at  Berlin, 
who  made  a  second  consignment  direct  to  Java,  which 
arrived  in  the  best  condition;  so  that  not  only  the  Vic- 
toria, but  also  the  one  which  had  been  derived  in  Berlin 
from  an  African  father  and  an  Asiatic  mother,  now  adorn 
the  water-basins  of  Java  with  red  pond-roses  (the  latter 
plants  probably  those  of  the  Philippines  also). 

Being  compelled  by  the  continuous  rain  to  dry  my  carpenurinu 
collections  in  two  ovens  before  packing  them,  I  found  J'ffi<:''i^'««- 
that  my  servant  had  burned  the  greater  part,  so  that  the 
remains  found  a  place  in  a  roomy  chest  which  I  purchased 
for  a  dollar  at  an  auction.  This  unfortunately  lacked 
a  lid;  to  procure  which  I  was  obliged,  in  the  first  place, 
to  liberate  a  carpenter  who  had  been  imprisoned  for 
a  small  debt;  secondly,  to  advance  money  for  the  pur- 
chase of  a  board  and  the  redemption  of  his  tools  out  of 
pawn;  and  even  then  the  work,  when  it  was  begun, 
was  several  times  broken  off  because  previous  claims  of 
violent   creditors   had   to  be   discharged  by   labor.     In 


S16  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

five  days  the  lid  was  completed,  at  the  cost  of  three 

dollars.     It  did  not  last  long,  however,  for  in  Manila  I 

had  to  get  it  replaced  by  a  new  one. 

Off  to  At  Legaspi  I  availed  myself  of  an  opportunity  to  reach 

amar.  ^^  island  of  Samar  in  a  small  schooner.     It  is  situated 

south-east  from  Luzon,  on  the  farther  side  of  the  Strait 

of  San  Bernardino,  which  is  three  leagues  in  breadth. 

At  the  moment  of  my  departure,  to  my  great  regret, 

my  servant  left  me,  "that  he  might  rest  a  little  from  his 

fatigue,"  for  Pepe  was  good-natured,  very  skilful,  and 

Losi7iga  always    even-tempered.     He    had    learned    much    from 

'^'*''^'"  the  numerous  Spanish  soldiers  and  sailors  resident  in 

assistant. 

Cavite,  his  native  place,  where  he  used  to  be  playfully 
called  the  "Spaniard  of  Cavite."  Roving  from  one  place 
to  another  was  his  delight;  and  he  quickly  acquired 
acquaintances.  He  knew  especially  how  to  gain  the  favor 
of  the  ladies,  for  he  possessed  many  social  accomplish- 
ments, being  equally  able  to  play  the  guitar  and  to  milk 
the  carabao-cows.  When  we  came  to  a  pueblo,  where  a 
mestiza,  or  even  a  "daughter  of  the  country"  (creole), 
dwelt,  he  would,  when  practicable,  ask  permission  to 
milk  a  cow;  and  after  bringing  the  seiiora  some  of  the 
milk,  under  pretext  of  being  the  interpreter  of  my  wishes, 
he  would  maintain  such  a  flow  of  ingeniously  courteous 
conversation,  praising  the  beauty  and  grace  of  the  lady, 
and  most  modestly  allowing  his  prodigious  travelling 
adventures  to  be  extracted  from  him,  that  both  knight 
and  esquire  beamed  with  brilliant  radiance.  A  present 
was  always  welcome,  and  brought  us  many  a  little 
basket  of  oranges;  and  carabao  milk  is  excellent  with 
chocolate:  but  it  seemed  as  if  one  seldom  has  the  oppor- 
tunity of  milking  a  cow.  Unfortunately  Pepe  did  not 
like  climbing  mountains,  and  when  he  was  to  have 
gone  with  me  he  either  got  the  stomach-ache  or  gave 
away  my  strong  shoes,  or  allowed  them  to  be  stolen; 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SI  7 

the  native  ones,  however,  being  allowed  to  remain  un- 
touched, for  he  knew  well  that  they  were  fit  only  for 
riding,  and  derived  comfort  from  the  fact.  In  company 
with  me  he  worked  quickly  and  cheerfully;  but,  when 
alone,  it  became  tedious  to  him.  Particularly  he  found 
friends,  who  hindered  him,  and  then  he  would  abandon 
his  skinning  of  the  birds,  which  therefore  became  putrid 
and  had  to  be  thrown  away.  Packing  was  still  more 
disagreeable  to  him,  and  consequently  he  did  it  as  quickly 
as  possible,  though  not  always  with  sufficient  care,  as 
on  one  occasion  he  tied  up,  in  one  and  the  same  bundle, 
shoes,  arsenic-soap,  drawings,  and  chocolate.  Not- 
withstanding trifling  faults  of  this  kind,  he  was  very 
useful  and  agreeable  to  me;  but  he  did  not  go  willingly 
to  such  an  uncivilized  island  as  Samar;  and  when  he 
received  his  wages  in  full  for  eight  months  all  in  a  lump, 
and  so  became  a  small  capitalist,  he  could  not  resist 
the  temptation  to  rest  a  little  from  his  labors. 


XIX 

The  island  of  Samar,  which  is  of  nearly  rhomboidal  Sa 
outline,  and  with  few  indentations  on  its  coasts,  stretches 
from  the  north-west  to  the  south-east  from  12°  37'  to 
10°  54'  N.;  its  mean  length  being  twenty-two  miles,  its 
breadth  eleven,  and  its  area  two  hundred  and  twenty 
square  miles.  It  is  separated  on  the  south  by  the  small 
strait  of  San  Juanico  from  the  island  of  Leyte,  with 
which  it  was  formerly  united  into  one  province.  At  the 
present  time  each  island  has  its  separate  governor. 

By  the  older  authors  the  island  is  called  Tendaya,  ^orm 
Ibabao,  and  also  Achan  and  Filipina,     In  later  times 
the  eastern  side  was  called  Ibabao,   and  the  western 


cr  names. 


Seasons  and 
weather. 


SIS  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Samar,  which  is  now  the  official  denomination  for  the 
whole  island,  the  eastern  shore  being  distinguished  as  the 
Contracosta.* 

As  on  the  eastern  coasts  of  Luzon,  the  north-east 
monsoon  here  exceeds  that  from  the  south-west  in  dura- 
tion and  force,  the  violence  of  the  latter  being  arrested 
by  the  islands  lying  to  the  southwest,  while  the  north- 
east winds  break  against  the  coasts  of  these  easterly 
islands  with  their  whole  force,  and  the  additional  weight 
of  the  body  of  water  which  they  bring  with  them  from 
the  open  ocean.  In  October  winds  fluctuating  between 
north-west  and  north-east  occur;  but  the  prevalent  ones 
are  northerly.  In  the  middle  of  November  the  north- 
east is  constant;  and  it  blows,  with  but  little  intermis- 
sion, from  the  north  until  April.  This  is  likewise  the 
rainy  season,  December  and  January  being  the  wettest, 
when  it  sometimes  rains  for  fourteen  days  without  inter- 
ruption. In  Lauang,  on  the  north  coast,  the  rainy  season 
lasts  from  October  to  the  end  of  December.  From 
January  to  April  it  is  dry;  May,  June,  and  July  are 
rainy;  and  August  and  September,  again,  are  dry;  so 
that  here  there  are  two  wet  and  two  dry  seasons  in  the 
year.  From  October  to  January  violent  storms  (baguios 
or  typhoons)  sometimes  occur.  Beginning  generally 
with  a  north  wind,  they  pass  to  the  north-west,  accom- 
panied by  a  little  rain,  then  back  to  the  north,  and  with 
increasing  violence  to  the  north-east  and  east,  where 
they  acquire  their  greatest  power,  and  then  moderate 


*  According  to  Arenas  ("Memorias,"  21")  Albay  was  formerly  called  Ibalon; 
Tayabas,  Calilaya;  Batangas,  Comintan;  Negros,  Buglas;  Cebu,  Sogbu;  Min- 
doro,  Mait;  Samar.  Ibabao;  and  Basilan,  Taguima.  Mindanao  is  called  Cesarea 
by  B.  de  la  Torre,  and  Samar,  by  R.  Dudleo  "Arcano  del  Mare"  (Florence,  1761), 
Camiaia.  In  Hondiv's  map  of  the  Indian  islands  (Purchas,  60  5)  Luzon  is 
Luconia;  Samar,  Achan;  Leyte,  Sabura;  Camarines,  Nebui.  In  Albo's  "Jour- 
nal," Cebu  is  called  Suba;  and  Leyte,  Seilani.  Pigafetta  describes  a  city  called 
Cingapola  in  Zubu,  and  Leyte,  on  his  map,  is  in  the  north  called  Baybay,  and 
in  the  south  Ceylon. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  £19 

to  the  south.  Sometimes,  however,  they  change  rapidly 
from  the  east  to  the  south,  in  which  quarter  they  first 
acquire  their  greatest  force. 

From  the  end  of  March  to  the  middle  of  June  incon-  Winds 
stant  easterly  winds  (N.E.E.  and  S.  E.)  prevail,  with  a  '""^  *""''"' 
very  heavy  sea  on  the  east  coast.  May  is  usually  calm; 
but  in  May  and  June  there  are  frequent  thunderstorms, 
introducing  the  south-west  monsoon,  which  though  it 
extends  through  the  months  of  July,  August,  and  Sep- 
tember, is  not  so  constant  as  the  north-east.  The  last- 
named  three  months  constitute  the  dry  season,  which, 
however,  is  often  interrupted  by  thunderstorms.  Not 
a  week,  indeed,  passes  without  rain;  and  in  many  years 
a  storm  arises  every  afternoon.  At  this  season  of  the 
year  ships  can  reach  the  east  coast ;  but  during  the  north- 
east monsoon  navigation  there  is  impossible.  These 
general  circumstances  are  subject  to  many  local  devia- 
tions, particularly  on  the  south  and  west  coasts,  where 
the  uniformity  of  the  air  currents  is  disturbed  by  the 
mountainous  islands  lying  in  front  of  them.  According 
to  the  Estado  geografico  of  1855,  an  extraordinarily 
high  tide,  called  doJo,  occurs  every  year  at  the  change  of 
the  monsoon  in  September  or  October.  It  rises  sometimes 
sixty  or  seventy  feet,  and  dashes  itself  with  fearful 
violence  against  the  south  and  east  coasts,  doing  great 
damage,  but  not  lasting  for  any  length  of  time.  The 
climate  of  Samar  and  Leyte  appears  to  be  very  healthy 
on  the  coasts;  in  fact,  to  be  the  best  of  all  the  islands 
of  the  archipelago.  Dysentery,  diarrhoea,  and  fever 
occur  less  frequently  than  in  Luzon,  and  Europeans  also 
are  less  subject  to  their  attacks  than  in  that  place. 

The  civilized  natives  live  almost  solely  on  its  coasts,   Only  the 
and  there  are  also  Bisayans  who  differ  in  speech  and   '^°"*' »«"'«^- 
manners  from  the  Bicols  in  about  the  same  degree  that 
the  latter  do  from  the  Tagalogs.     Roads  and  villages 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A.  tedious 
hut  eventful 
■voyage. 


JLauang. 


are  almost  entirely  wanting  in  the  interior,  which  is 
covered  with  a  thick  wood,  and  affords  sustenance  to 
independent  tribes,  who  carry  on  a  little  tillage  (vege- 
table roots  and  mountain  rice),  and  collect  the  products 
of  the  woods,  particularly  resin,  honey,  and  wax,  in 
which  the  island  is  very  rich. 

On  the  3rd  of  July  we  lost  sight  of  Legaspi,  and, 
detained  by  frequent  calms,  crawled  as  far  as  Point 
Montufar,  on  the  northern  edge  of  Albay,  then  onwards 
to  the  small  island  of  Viri,  and  did  not  reach  Lauang 
before  evening  of  the  5th.  The  mountain  range  of 
Bacon  (the  Pocdol  of  Coello),  which  on  my  previous 
journeys  had  been  concealed  by  night  or  mist,  now 
revealed  itself  to  us  in  passing  as  a  conical  mountain; 
and  beside  it  towered  a  very  precipitous,  deeply-cleft 
mountain-side,  apparently  the  remnant  of  a  circular 
range.  After  the  pilot,  an  old  Filipino  and  native  of 
the  country,  who  had  made  the  journey  frequently 
before,  had  conducted  us,  to  begin  with,  to  a  wrong 
port,  he  ran  the  vessel  fast  on  to  the  bar,  although  there 
was  sufficient  water  to  sail  into  the  harbor  conveniently. 

The  district  of  Lauang  (Lahuan),  which  is  encumbered 
with  more  than  four  thousand  five  hundred  inhabitants, 
is  situated  at  an  altitude  of  forty  feet,  on  the  south- 
west shore  of  the  small  island  of  the  same  name,  which  is 
separated  from  Samar  by  an  arm  of  the  Catubig.  Accord- 
ing to  a  widely-spread  tradition,  the  settlement  was 
originally  in  Samar  itself,  in  the  middle  of  the  rice-fields, 
which  continue  to  the  present  day  in  that  place,  until 
the  repeated  inroads  of  sea-pirates  drove  the  inhabitants, 
in  spite  of  the  inconvenience  attending  it,  to  protect 
themselves  by  settling  on  the  south  coast  of  the  little 
island,  which  rises  steeply  out  of  the  sea.*     The  latter 


*  No  mention  is  made  of  it  in  the  Estado    geografico    of    the    Franciscans, 
published  at  Manila  in  1855. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  tSt 

consists  of  almost  horizontal  banks  of  tufa,  from  eight 
to  twelve  inches  in  thickness.  The  strata  being  con- 
tinually eaten  away  by  the  waves  at  low  watermark,  the 
upper  layers  break  off;  and  thus  the  uppermost  parts 
of  the  strata,  which  are  of  a  tolerably  uniform  thick- 
ness, are  cleft  by  vertical  fissures,  and  look  like  the  walls 
of  a  fortress.  Pressed  for  space,  the  church  and  the 
convent  have  taken  up  every  level  bit  of  the  rock  at 
various  heights;  and  the  effect  of  this  accommodation 
of  architecture  to  the  requirements  of  the  ground,  though 
not  designed  by  the  architect,  is  most  picturesque. 

The  place  is  beautifully  situated;  but  the  houses  are 
not  so  frequently  as  formerly  surrounded  by  little  gardens 
while  there  is  a  great  want  of  water,  and  foul  odors 
prevail.  Two  or  three  scanty  springs  afford  a  muddy, 
brackish  water,  almost  at  the  level  of  the  sea,  with  which 
the  indolent  people  are  content  so  that  they  have  just 
enough.  Wealthy  people  have  their  water  brought 
from  Samar,  and  the  poorer  classes  are  sometimes  com- 
pelled, by  the  drying-up  of  the  springs,  to  have  recourse 
to  the  same  place.  The  spring-water  is  not  plentiful 
for  bathing  purposes;  and,  sea-bathing  not  being  in 
favor,  the  people  consequently  are  very  dirty.  Their 
clothing  is  the  same  as  in  Luzon;  but  the  women  wear 
no  tapis,  only  a  camisa  (a  short  chemise,  hardly  covering 
the  breast),  and  a  say  a,  mostly  of  coarse,  stiff  guinara, 
which  forms  ugly  folds,  and  when  not  colored  black  is 
very  transparent.  But  dirt  and  a  filthy  existence  form  a 
better  screen  than  opaque  garments.  The  inhabitants 
of  Lauang  rightly,  indeed,  enjoy  the  reputation  of  being 
very  idle.  Their  industry  is  limited  to  a  little  tillage, 
even  fishing  being  so  neglected  that  frequently  there  is  a 
scarcity  of  fish.     In  the  absence  of  roads  by  land,  there 


Deterioration 
i)i  the  town. 


The  Palapat 
revolt. 


Pirate  outrages. 


Electing 
officers. 


S2S  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

is  hardly  any  communication  by  water;  and  trade  is 
mostly  carried  on  by  mariners  from  Catbalogan,  who 
exchange  the  surplus  of  the  harvests  for  other  produce. 

From  the  convent  a  view  is  had  of  part  of  the  island 
of  Samar,  the  mountain  forms  of  which  appear  to  be  a 
continuation  of  the  horizontal  strata.  In  the  centre 
of  the  district,  at  the  distance  of  some  miles,  a  table 
mountain,  famous  in  the  history  of  the  country,  towers 
aloft.  The  natives  of  the  neighboring  village  of  Palapat 
retreated  to  it  after  having  killed  their  priest,  a  too 
covetous  Jesuit  father,  and  for  years  carried  on  a 
guerilla  warfare  with  the  Spaniards  until  they  were 
finally  overpowered  by  treachery. 

The  interior  of  the  country  is  difficult  to  traverse 
from  the  absence  of  roads,  and  the  coasts  are  much 
infested  by  pirates.  Quite  recently  several  pontins 
and  four  schooners,  laden  with  abaca,  were  captured, 
and  the  crews  cruelly  murdered,  their  bodies  having 
been  cut  to  pieces.  This,  however,  was  opposed  to 
their  general  practice,  for  the  captives  are  usually  em- 
ployed at  the  oars  during  the  continuance  of  the  foray, 
and  afterwards  sold  as  slaves  in  the  islands  of  the  Sulu 
sea.  It  was  well  that  we  did  not  encounter  the  pirates, 
for,  although  we  carried  four  small  cannons  on  board, 
nobody  understood  how  to  use  them.* 

The  governor,  who  was  expected  to  conduct  the  elec- 
tion of  the  district  officials  in  person,  but  was  prevented 
by  illness,  sent  a  deputy.  As  the  annual  elections  are 
conducted  in  the  same  manner  over  the  whole  country, 
that  at  which  I  was  present  may  be  taken  as  typical 
of  the  rest.     It  took  place  in  the  common  hall;  the  gov- 

*  Small  ships  which  have  no  cannon  should  be  provided  with  pitchers  filled 
with  water  and  the  fruit  of  the  sacchariferous  arenga,  for  the  purpose  of  be- 
sprinkling the  pirates,  in  the  event  of  an  attack,  with  the  corrosive  mixture, 
which  causes  a  burning  heat.  Dumont  d'Urville  mentions  that  the  inhabitants 
of  Solo  had,  during  his  visit,  poisoned  the  wells  with  the  same  fruit.  The  kernels 
preserved  in  sugar  are  an  agreeable  confection. 


I 


Jayor's  Travels  in  the  Fhilippines  i£S 

emor  (or  his  deputy)  sitting  at  the  table,  with  the  pastor 
on  his  right  hand,  and  the  clerk  on  his  left — the  latter 
also  acting  as  interpreter;  while  Cabezas  de  Barangay, 
the  gobernadorcillo,  and  those  who  had  previously 
filled  the  office,  took  their  places  all  together  on  benches. 
First  of  all,  six  cabezas  and  as  many  gobernadorcillos 
are  chosen  by  lot  as  electors;  the  actual  gobernadorcillo 
is  the  thirteenth,  and  the  rest  quit  the  hall.  After  the 
reading  of  the  statutes  by  the  president,  who  exhorts 
the  electors  to  the  conscientious  performance  of  their 
duty,  the  latter  advance  singly  to  the  table,  and  write 
three  names  on  a  piece  of  paper.  Unless  a  valid  protest 
be  made  either  by  the  parish  priest  or  by  the  electors, 
the  one  who  has  the  most  votes  is  forthwith  named 
gobernadorcillo  for  the  coming  year,  subject  to  the 
approval  of  the  superior  jurisdiction  at  Manila;  which, 
however,  always  consents,  for  the  influence  of  the  priest 
would  provide  against  a  disagreeable  election.  The 
election  of  the  other  functionaries  takes  place  in  the  same 
manner,  after  the  new  gobernadorcillo  has  been  first 
summoned  into  the  hall,  in  order  that,  if  he  have  any 
important  objections  to  the  officers  then  about  to  be 
elected,  he  may  be  able  to  make  them.  The  whole 
affair  was  conducted  very  quietly  and  with  dignity.* 

On  the  following  morning,  accompanied  by  the  oblig-   i^' "satisfactory 

forced  labor. 

ing  priest,  who  was  followed  by  nearly  all  the  boys 
of  the  village,  I  crossed  over  in  a  large  boat  to  Samar. 
Out  of  eleven  strong  baggage  porters  whom  the  governor's 
representative  had  selected  for  me,  four  took  possession 
of  some  trifling  articles  and  sped  away  with  them,  three 


*  There  were  also  elected  a  teniente  mayor  (deputy  of  the  gobernadorcillo), 
a  juez  mayor  (superior  judge)  for  the  fields,  who  is  always  an  ex-captain;  a 
second  judge  for  the  police;  a  third  judge  for  disputes  relating  to  cattle;  a 
second  and  third  teniente;  and  first  and  second  policemen;  and  finally,  in  addi- 
tion, a  teniente,  a  judge,  and  a  policeman  for  each  visita.  All  three  of  the  judges 
can  be  ex-capitanes,  but  no  ex-capitan  can  be  teniente.  The  first  teniente  must 
be  taken  from  the  higher  class,  the  others  may  belong  either  to  that  or  to  the 
common  people.     The  policemen  (alguacils)  are  always  of  the  latter  class. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  pirate  base. 


Calbalogan 
monopultj  of 
interidand 
Irafic. 


others  hid  themselves  in  the  bush,  and  four  had  previously 
decamped  at  Lauang.  The  baggage  was  divided  and 
distributed  amongst  the  four  porters  who  were  detained, 
and  the  little  boys  who  had  accompanied  us  for  their 
own  pleasure.  We  followed  the  sea-shore  in  a  westerly 
direction,  and  at  a  very  late  hour  reached  the  nearest 
visita  (a  suburban  chapel  and  settlement)  where  the 
priest  was  successful,  after  much  difficulty,  in  supplying 
the  places  of  the  missing  porters.  On  the  west  side 
of  the  mouth  of  the  Pambujan  a  neck  of  land  projects 
into  the  sea,  which  is  a  favorite  resort  of  the  sea-pirates, 
who  from  their  shelter  in  the  wood  command  the  shore 
which  extends  in  a  wide  curve  on  both  sides,  and  forms 
the  only  communication  between  Lauang  and  Catarman. 
Many  travellers  had  already  been  robbed  in  this  place; 
and  the  father,  who  was  now  accompanying  me  thus 
far,  had,  with  the  greatest  difficulty,  escaped  the  same 
danger  only  a  few  weeks  before. 

The  last  part  of  our  day's  journey  was  performed  very 
cautiously.  A  messenger  who  had  been  sent  on  had 
placed  boats  at  all  the  mouths  of  rivers,  and,  as  hardly 
any  other  Europeans  besides  ecclesiastics  are  known  in 
this  district,  I  was  taken  in  the  darkness  for  a  Capuchin 
in  travelling  attire;  the  men  lighting  me  with  torches 
during  the  passage,  and  the  women  pressing  forward 
to  kiss  my  hand.  I  passed  the  night  on  the  road,  and 
on  the  following  day  reached  Catarman  (Caladman  on 
Coello's  map),  a  clean,  spacious  locality  numbering 
6,358  souls,  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  of  the  same  name. 
Six  pontins  from  Catbalogan  awaited  their  cargoes  of 
rice  for  Albay.  The  inhabitants  of  the  north  coast  are 
too  indifferent  sailors  to  export  their  products  them- 
selves, and  leave  it  to  the  people  of  Catbalogan,  who, 
having  no  rice-fields,  are  obliged  to  find  employment 
for  their  activity  in  other  places. 


Jagor's  Trarels  in  the  Philippines  235 

The  river  Catarman  formerly  emptied  further  to  the  -■^  changed 
east,  and  was  much  choked  with  mud.  In  the  year  ^Zlltown^ 
1851,  after  a  continuous  heavy  rain,  it  worked  for  itself, 
in  the  loose  soil  which  consists  of  quartz  sand  and  frag- 
ments of  mussels,  a  new  and  shorter  passage  to  the  sea — 
the  present  harbor,  in  which  ships  of  two  hundred  tons 
can  load  close  to  the  land;  but  in  doing  so  it  destroyed 
the  greater  part  of  the  village,  as  well  as  the  stone 
church  and  the  priest's  residence.  In  the  new  convent 
there  are  two  salons,  one  16.2  by  8.8,  the  other  9  by 
7.6  paces  in  dimensions,  boarded  with  planks  from  a 
single  branch  of  a  dipterocarpus  (guiso).  The  pace  is 
equivalent  to  30  inches;  and,  assuming  the  thickness  of 
the  boards,  inclusive  of  waste,  to  be  one  inch,  this  would 
give  a  solid  block  of  wood  as  high  as  a  table  (two  and 
one-half  feet),  the  same  in  breadth,  eighteen  feet  in 
length,  and  of  about  one  hundred  and  ten  cubic  feet.*  The 
houses  are  enclosed  in  gardens;  but  some  of  them  only 
by  fencing,  within  which  weeds  luxuriate.  At  the  re- 
building of  the  village,  after  the  great  flood  of  water, 
the  laying  out  of  gardens  was  commanded;  but  the  indus- 
try which  is  required  to  preserve  them  is  often  wanting. 
Pasture  grounds  extend  themselves,  on  the  south  side 
of  the  village,  covered  with  fine  short  grass;  but,  with  the 
exception  of  some  oxen  and  sheep  belonging  to  the 
priest,  there  are  no  cattle. 

Still  without  servants,  I  proceeded  with  my  baggage  I'p  'he  river. 
in  two  small  boats  up  the  river,  on  both  sides  of  which 
rice-fields  and  coco-groves  extended;  but  the  latter, 
being  concealed  by  a  thick  border  of  Nipa  palms  and 
lofty  cane,  are  only  visible  occasionally  through  the  gaps. 
The  sandy  banks,  at  first  flat,  became  gradually  steeper. 


*G.  Squier  ("States  of  Central  America,"  192)  mentions  a  block  of  mahogany, 
seventeen  feet  in  length,  which,  at  its  lowest  section,  measured  five  feet  six, 
inches  square,  and  contained  altogether  five  hundred  fifty  cubic  feet. 


Salta  Sangley 
ridge. 


S26  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

and  the  rock  soon  showed  itself  close  at  hand,  with  firm 
banks  of  sandy  clay  containing  occasional  traces  of 
indistinguishable  petrifactions.  A  small  mussel*  has 
pierced  the  clay  banks  at  the  water-line,  in  such  number 
that  they  look  like  honeycombs.  About  twelve  we 
cooked  our  rice  in  an  isolated  hut,  amongst  friendly 
people.  The  women  whom  we  surprised  in  dark  ragged 
clothing  of  guinara  drew  back  ashamed,  and  soon  after 
appeared  in  clean  chequered  sayas,  with  earrings  of 
brass  and  tortoise-shell  combs.  When  I  drew  a  little 
naked  girl,  the  mother  forced  her  to  put  on  a  garment. 
About  two  we  again  stepped  into  the  boat,  and  after 
rowing  the  whole  night  reached  a  small  visita,  Cobocobo, 
about  nine  in  the  forenoon.  The  rowers  had  worked 
without  interruption  for  twenty-four  hours,  exclusive 
of  the  two  hours'  rest  at  noon,  and  though  somewhat 
tired  were  in  good  spirits. 

At  half-past  two  we  set  out  on  the  road  over  the  Salta 
Sangley  (Chinese  leap)  to  Tragbucan,  which,  distant 
about  a  mile  in  a  straight  line,  is  situated  at  the  place 
where  the  Calbayot,  which  empties  on  the  west  coast  at 
Point  Hibaton,  becomes  navigable  for  small  boats.  By 
means  of  these  two  rivers  and  the  short  but  troublesome 
road,  a  communication  exists  between  the  important 
stations  of  Catarman  on  the  north  coast,  and  Calbayot 
on  the  west  coast.  The  road,  which  at  its  best  part  is 
a  small  path  in  the  thick  wood  uninvaded  by  the  sun, 
and  frequently  is  only  a  track,  passes  over  slippery 
ridges  of  clay,  disappearing  in  the  mud  puddles  in  the 
intervening  hollows,  and  sometimes  running  into  the 
bed  of  the  brooks.  The  watershed  between  the  Catar- 
man and  Calbayot  is  formed  by  the  Salta  Sangley  already 

*  According  to  Dr.  V.  Martens,  Modiola  striatula,  Hanley,  who  found  the 
same  bivalve  at  Singajxire,  in  brackish  water,  but  considerably  larger.  Reeve 
also  delineates  the  species  collected  by  Gumming  in  the  Philippines,  without 
precise  mention  of  the  locality,  as  being  larger  (38  mm.),  that  from  Catarman 
being  17  mm. 


JagoT's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SS7 

mentioned,  a  flat  ridge  composed  of  banks  of  clay  and 
sandstone,  which  succeed  one  another  ladder-wise  down- 
wards on  both  its  sides,  and  from  which  the  water 
collected  at  the  top  descends  in  little  cascades.  In  the 
most  difficult  places  rough  ladders  of  bamboo  are  fixed. 
I  counted  fifteen  brooks  on  the  north-east  side  which 
feed  the  Catarman,  and  about  the  same  number  of 
feeders  of  the  Calbayot  on  the  south-west  side.  About 
forty  minutes  past  four  we  reached  the  highest  point 
of  the  Salta  Sangley,  about  ninety  feet  above  the  sea; 
and  at  half-past  six  we  got  to  a  stream,  the  highest  part 
of  the  Calbayot,  in  the  bed  of  which  we  wandered  until 
its  increasing  depth  forced  us,  in  the  dark,  laboriously 
to  beat  out  our  path  through  the  underwood  to  its  bank ; 
and  about  eight  o'clock  we  found  ourselves  opposite 
the  visita  Tragbucan.  The  river  at  this  place  was 
already  six  feet  deep,  and  there  was  not  a  boat.  After 
shouting  entreaties  and  threats  for  a  long  time,  the  people, 
who  were  startled  out  of  sleep  by  a  revolver  shot,  agreed 
to  construct  a  raft  of  bamboo,  on  which  they  put  us 
and  our  baggage.  The  little  place,  which  consists 
of  only  a  few  poor  huts,  is  prettily  situated,  surrounded 
as  it  is  by  wooded  hillocks  on  a  plateau  of  sand  fifty  feet 
above  the  reed -bordered  river. 

Thanks  to  the  activity  of  the  teniente  of  Catarman  On  the 

,  .     ,  1         ,  J         -iL        i.    Calbayot  River. 

who  accompanied  me,  a  boat  was  procured  without 
delay,  so  that  we  were  able  to  continue  our  journey  about 
seven  o'clock.  The  banks  were  from  twenty  to  forty 
feet  high;  and,  with  the  exception  of  the  cry  of  some 
rhinoceros  birds  which  fluttered  from  bough  to  bough 
on  the  tops  of  the  trees,  we  neither  heard  nor  saw  a 
trace  of  animal  life.  About  half-past  eleven  we  reached 
Taibago,  a  small  visita,  and  about  half-past  one  a  similar 
one,  Magubay;  and  after  two  hours'  rest  at  noon,  about 
five  o'clock,  we  got  into  a  current  down  which  we  skil- 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Calbalogan. 


An  ingenious 
mechanic. 


fully  floated,  almost  without  admitting  any  water. 
The  river,  which  up  to  this  point  is  thirty  feet  broad, 
and  on  account  of  many  projecting  branches  of  trees 
difficult  to  navigate,  here  is  twice  as  broad.  About 
eleven  at  night  we  reached  the  sea,  and  in  a  complete 
calm  rowed  for  the  distance  of  a  league  along  the  coast  to 
Calbayot,  the  convent  at  which  place  affords  a  command- 
ing view  of  the  islands  lying  before  it. 

A  thunderstorm  obliged  us  to  postpone  the  journey 
to  the  chief  town,  Catbalogan  (or  Catbalonga),  which 
was  seven  leagues  distant,  until  the  afternoon.  In  a 
long  boat,  formed  out  of  the  stem  of  one  tree,  and  fur- 
nished with  outriggers,  we  travelled  along  the  shore, 
which  is  margined  by  a  row  of  low-wooded  hills  with 
many  small  visitas ;  and  as  night  was  setting  in  we  rounded 
the  point  of  Napalisan,  a  rock  of  trachytic  conglomerate 
shaped  by  perpendicular  fissures  with  rounded  edges 
into  a  series  of  projections  like  towers,  which  rises  up 
out  of  the  sea  to  the  height  of  sixty  feet,  like  a  knight's 
castle.  At  night  we  reached  Catbalogan,  the  chief 
town  of  the  island,  with  a  population  of  six  thousand, 
which  is  picturesquely  situated  in  the  middle  of  the 
western  border,  in  a  little  bay  surrounded  by  islands  and 
necks  of  land,  difficult  to  approach  and,  therefore,  little 
guarded.  Not  a  single  vessel  was  anchored  in  the 
harbor. 

The  houses,  many  of  which  are  of  boards,  are  neater 
than  those  in  Camarines;  and  the  people,  though  idle, 
are  more  modest,  more  honorable,  more  obliging,  and 
of  cleaner  habits,  than  the  inhabitants  of  South  Luzon. 
Through  the  courtesy  of  the  governor  I  quickly  obtained 
a  roomy  dwelling,  and  a  servant  who  understood  Spanish. 
Here  I  also  met  a  very  intelligent  Filipino  who  had 
acquired  great  skill  in  a  large  variety  of  crafts.  With  the 
simplest  tools  he  improved  in  many  points  on  my  instru- 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


gg9 


ments  and  apparatus,  the  purpose  of  which  he  quickly 
comprehended  to  my  entire  satisfaction,  and  gave  many 
proofs  of  considerable  intellectual  ability. 

In  Samar  the  flying  monkey  or  lemur  (the  kaguang 
of  the  Bisayans — galeopithecus)  is  not  rare.  These 
animals,  which  are  of  the  size  of  the  domestic  cat,  belong 
to  the  quadrumana;  but,  like  the  flying  squirrels,  they 
are  provided  with  a  bird-like  membrane,  which,  com- 
mencing at  the  neck,  and  passing  over  the  fore  and  hinder 
limbs,  reaches  to  the  tail;  by  means  of  which  they  are 
able  to  glide  from  one  tree  to  another  at  a  very  obtuse 
angle.*  Body  and  membrane  are  clothed  with  a  very 
short  fur,  which  nearly  equals  the  chinchilla  in  firmness 
and  softness,  and  is  on  that  account  in  great  request. 
While  I  was  there,  six  live  kaguangs  arrived  as  a  present 
for  the  priest  (three  light  grey,  one  dark  brown,  and  two 
greyish  brown;  all  with  irregularly  distributed  spots); 
and  from  these  I  secured  a  little  female  with  her  young. 

It  appeared  to  be  a  very  harmless,  awkward  animal. 
When  liberated  from  its  fetters,  it  remained  lying  on  the 
ground  with  all  its  four  limbs  stretched  out,  and  its 
belly  in  contact  with  the  earth,  and  then  hopped  in  short 
awkward  leaps,  without  thereby  raising  itself  from  the 
ground,  to  the  nearest  wall,  which  was  of  planed  boards. 
Arrived  there,  it  felt  about  it  for  a  long  time  with  the 
sharp  claw,  which  is  bent  inwards,  of  its  fore-hand, 
until  at  length  it  realized  the  impossiblity  of  climbing 
it  at  any  part.  It  succeeded  by  means  of  a  corner  or 
an  accidental  crevice  in  climbing  a  foot  upwards,  and 
fell  down  again  immediately,  because  it  had  abandoned 
the  comparatively  secure  footing  of  its  hinder  limbs 
before    its    fore-claws    had    obtained    a    firm    hold.     It 

*  In  Sumatra  Wallace  saw,  in  the  twilight,  a  lemur  run  up  the  trunk  of  a 
tree,  and  then  glide  obliquely  through  the  air  to  another  trunk,  by  which  he 
nearly  reached  the  ground.  The  distance  between  the  two  trees  amounted  to 
210  feet,  and  the  difference  of  height  was  not  above  35  or  40  feet;  consequently, 
less  than  1:5. — ("Malay  Archipelago,"  i.  211). 


The  flying 
monkey. 


A  hasty  and 

unfounded 

judgment. 


SSO  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

received  no  hurt,  as  the  violence  of  the  fall  was  broken 
by  the  flying  membrane  which  was  rapidly  extended. 
These  attempts,  which  were  continued  with  steady 
perseverance,  showed  an  astonishing  deficiency  of  judg- 
ment, the  animal  endeavoring  to  do  much  more  than 
was  in  its  power  to  accomplish.  All  its  endeavors, 
therefore,  were  unsuccessful,  though  made  without  doing 
itself  any  hurt — thanks  to  the  parachute  with  which 
Nature  had  provided  it.  Had  the  kaguang  not  been  in 
the  habit  of  relying  so  entirely  on  this  convenient  con- 
trivance, it  probably  would  have  exercised  its  judgment 
to  a  greater  extent,  and  formed  a  more  correct  estimate 
of  its  ability.  The  animal  repeated  its  fruitless  efforts 
so  often  that  I  no  longer  took  any  notice  of  it,  and  after 
some  time  it  disappeared:  but  I  found  it  again  in  a  dark 
corner,  under  the  roof,  where  it  would  probably  have 
waited  for  the  night  in  order  to  continue  its  flight. 
Evidently  it  had  succeeded  in  reaching  the  upper  edge 
of  the  boarded  wall  by  squeezing  its  body  between  this 
and  the  elastic  covering  of  bamboo  hurdle-work  which 
lay  firmly  imposed  upon  it;  so  that  the  poor  creature, 
which  I  had  rashly  concluded  was  stupid  and  awkward, 
had,  under  the  circumstances,  manifested  the  greatest 
possible  skill,  prudence,  and  perseverance. 
A  promise  of  A  pricst  who  was  present  on  a  visit  from  Calbigan 

rare  animals  .        .  ,.,.,..  ,  , 

and  wild  people,  promised  mc  SO  many  wonders  m  his  district — abundance 
of  the  rarest  animals,  and  Cimarrones  uncivilized  in  the 
highest  degree — that  I  accompanied  him,  on  the  follow- 
ing day,  in  his  journey  home.  In  an  hour  after  our 
departure  we  reached  the  little  island  of  Majava, 
which  consists  of  perpendicular  strata  of  a  hard,  fine- 
grained, volcanic  tufa,  with  small,  bright  crystals  of 
hornblende.  The  island  of  Buat  (on  Coello's  map)  is 
called  by  our  mariners  Tubigan.  In  three  hours  we 
reached   Umauas,    a   dependency   of  Calbigan.     It     is 


Serpent- 
charmers. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SSI 

situated,  fifty  feet  above  the  sea,  in  a  bay,  before  which 
(as  is  so  often  the  case  on  this  coast)  a  row  of  small  pictur- 
esque islands  succeed  one  another,  and  is  exactly  four 
leagues  from  Catbalogan.  But  Calbigan,  which  we 
reached  towards  evening,  is  situated  two  leagues  N.N.E. 
from  Umauas,  surrounded  by  rice -fields,  forty  feet 
above  the  river  of  the  same  name,  and  almost  a  league 
and  a  half  from  its  mouth.  A  tree  with  beautiful 
violet-blue  panicles  of  blossoms  is  especially  abundant 
on  the  banks  of  the  Calbigan,  and  supplies  a  most 
valuable  wood  for  building  purposes  in  the  Philippines. 
It  is  considered  equal  to  teak,  like  which  it  belongs 
to  the  class  verbenaceae;  and  its  inland  name  is  molave  Moiave. 
(Vitex  geniculata,  Blanco). 

According  to  the  statements  of  credible  men,  there  are 
serpent-tamers  in  this  country.  They  are  said  to  pipe 
the  serpents  out  of  their  holes,  directing  their  move- 
ments, and  stopping  and  handling  them  at  will,  without 
being  injured  by  them.  The  most  famous  individual 
amongst  them,  however,  had  been  carried  off  by  the 
sea-pirates  a  short  time  before;  another  had  run  away 
to  the  Cimarronese  in  the  mountains;  and  the  third, 
whose  reputation  did  not  appear  to  be  rightly  established, 
accompanied  me  on  my  excursion,  but  did  not  justify 
the  representations  of  his  friends.  He  caught  two  poi- 
sonous serpents,*  which  we  encountered  on  the  road, 
by  dexterously  seizing  them  immediately  behind  the 
head,  so  that  they  were  incapable  of  doing  harm;  and, 
when  he  commanded  them  to  lie  still,  he  took  the  precau- 
tion of  placing  his  foot  on  their  necks.  In  the  chase  I 
hurt  my  foot  so  severely  against  a  sharp-pointed  branch 
which  was  concealed  by  the  mud  that  I  was  obliged  to 
return  to  Catbalogan  without  effecting  my  object. 
The  inhabitants  of  Calbigan  are  considered  more  active 

*  According  to  W.  Peters,  Tropidolaenus  Philippinensis,  Gray. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  coral  garden. 


Ornamental  but 
useless  forts. 


and  circumspect  than  those  on  the  west  coast,  and  they 
are  praised  for  their  honesty.  I  found  them  very  skil- 
ful; and  they  seemed  to  take  an  evident  pleasure  in 
making  collections  and  preparing  plants  and  animals, 
so  that  I  would  gladly  have  taken  with  me  a  servant 
from  the  place;  but  they  are  so  reluctant  to  leave  their 
village  that  all  the  priest's  efforts  to  induce  one  to 
ride  with  us  were  fruitless. 

At  a  short  distance  north-west  from  Catbalogan  a  most 
luxuriant  garden  of  corals  is  to  be  observed  in  less  than 
two  fathoms,  at  the  ebb.  On  a  yellow  carpet  of  calca- 
reous polyps  and  sponges,  groups  of  leather-like  stalks, 
finger-thick,  lift  themselves  up  like  stems  of  vegetable 
growth;  their  upper  ends  thickly  covered  with  polyps 
{Sarcophyton  puhno  Esp.),  which  display  their  roses  of 
tentacula  wide  open,  and  resplendent  with  the  most 
beautiful  varying  colors,  looking,  in  fact,  like  flowers 
in  full  bloom.  Very  large  serpulites  extend  from  their 
calcareous  tubes,  elegant  red,  blue,  and  yellow  crowns 
of  feelers,  and,  while  little  fishes  of  marvellously  gor- 
geous color  dart  about  in  this  fairy  garden,  in  their  midst 
luxuriantly  grow  delicate,   feathered  plumulariae. 

Bad  weather  and  the  flight  of  my  servant,  who  had 
gambled  away  some  money  with  which  he  had  been 
entrusted,  at  a  cock-fight,  having  detained  me  some  days 
in  the  chief  town,  I  proceeded  up  the  bay,  which  extends 
southwards  from  Catbalogan  and  from  west  to  east  as  far 
as  Paranas.  Its  northern  shore  consists  of  ridges  of 
earth,  regular  and  of  equal  height,  extending  from  north 
to  south,  with  gentle  slopes  towards  the  west,  but  steep 
declivities  on  the  east,  and  terminating  abruptly  towards 
the  sea.  Nine  little  villages  are  situated  on  this  coast 
between  Catbalogan  and  Paranas.  From  the  hollows, 
amidst  coco  and  betel  palms,  they  expand  in  isolated 
groups  of  houses  up  the  gentle  western  slopes,  and,  on 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S33 

reaching  the  summit,  terminate  in  a  little  castle,  which 
hardly  affords  protection  against  the  pirates,  but  gen- 
erally forms  a  pretty  feature  in  the  landscape.  In  front 
of  the  southern  edge  of  the  bay,  and  to  the  south- 
west, many  small  islands  and  wooded  rocks  are  visible, 
with  the  mountains  of  Leyte  in  the  high-ground,  consti- 
tuting an  ever-shifting  series  of  views. 

As  the  men,  owing  to  the  sultry  heat,  the  complete  Paranas. 
calm,  and  almost  cloudless  sky,  slept  quite  as  much  as 
they  rowed,  we  did  not  reach  Paranas  before  the  after- 
noon. It  is  a  clean  village,  situated  on  a  declivity  be- 
tween twenty  and  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the 
sea.  The  sides,  which  stand  perpendicularly  in  the 
sea,  consist  of  grey  banks  of  clay  receding  landwards, 
and  overspread  with  a  layer  of  fragments  of  mussels, 
the  intervals  between  which  are  filled  up  with  clay, 
and  over  the  latter  is  a  solid  breccia,  cemented  with 
lime,  composed  of  similar  fragments.  In  the  clay  banks 
are  well-preserved  petrifactions,  so  similar  in  color, 
habitat,  and  aspect  to  many  of  those  in  the  German 
tertiary  formations  that  they  might  be  taken  for  them. 
The  breccia  also  is  fossil,  probably  also  tertiary;  at  all 
events,  the  identity  of  the  few  species  which  were  re- 
cognisable in  it — Cerithium,  Pecten,  and  Venus — with 
living  species  could  not  be  determined.* 

On  the  following  morning  I  proceeded  northwards  by  a  yi  canal  through 
small  canal,  through  a  stinking  bog  of  rhizophora  (man-  '^''  ^""■ 
groves),  and  then  continued  my  journey  on  land  to 
Loquilocun,  a  little  village  which  is  situated  in  the  forest. 
Half-way  we  passed  through  a  river,  twenty  feet  broad, 
flowing  east  to  west,  with  steep  banks  rendered  accessible 
by  ladders. 

*  V.  Martens  identified  amongst  the  tertiary  mussels  of  the  banks  of  clay  the 
following  species,  which  still  live  in  the  Indian  Ocean: — Venus  (Hemilapes) 
hiantina.  Lam.;  V.  squamosa,  L.;  Area  recillei,  Phil.;  A.  inaequisahis,  Brag.; 
A.  chalranthum,  Rv.,  and  the  genera  Yoldia,  Pleurotoma,  Cuvieria,  Dentalium, 
without  being  able  to  assert  their  identity  with  living  species. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Hammock- 
travelling. 


Poor  roads. 


Running  the 
rapids. 


Loquilocun. 


As  I  still  continued  lame  (wounds  in  the  feet  are  diffi- 
cult to  heal  in  warm  countries),  I  caused  myself  to  be 
carried  part  of  the  way  in  the  manner  which  is  customary 
hereabouts.  The  traveller  lies  on  a  loose  mat,  which 
is  fastened  to  a  bamboo  frame,  borne  on  the  shoulders 
of  four  robust  polistas.  About  every  ten  minutes  the 
bearers  are  relieved  by  others.  As  a  protection  against 
sun  and  rain,  the  frame  is  furnished  with  a  light  roof 
of  pandanus. 

The  roads  were  pretty  nearly  as  bad  as  those  at  the 
Salta  Sangley;  and,  with  the  exception  of  the  sea-shore, 
which  is  sometimes  available,  there  appear  to  be  none 
better  in  Samar.  After  three  hours  we  reached  the 
Loquilocun,  which,  coming  from  the  north,  here  touches 
its  most  southerly  point,  and  then  flows  south-east  to 
the  great  ocean.  Through  the  kind  care  of  the  governor, 
I  found  two  small  boats  ready,  which  were  propelled 
with  wonderful  dexterity  by  two  men  squatted  at  the 
extreme  ends,  and  glided  between  the  branches  of  the 
trees  and  rocks  into  the  bed  of  the  rapid  mountain 
torrent.  Amidst  loud  cheers  both  the  boats  glided  down 
a  cascade  of  a  foot  and  a  half  in  height  without  shipping 
any  water. 

The  little  village  of  Loquilocun  consists  of  three  groups 
of  houses  on  three  hillocks.  The  inhabitants  were 
very  friendly,  modest,  and  obliging,  and  so  successful 
in  collecting  that  the  spirits  of  wine  which  I  had  with 
me  was  quickly  consumed.  In  Catbalogan  my  messen- 
gers were  able  with  difficulty  to  procure  a  few  small 
flasks.  Through  the  awkward  arrangements  of  a  too 
obliging  friend,  my  own  stores,  having  been  sent  to  a 
wrong  address,  did  not  reach  me  until  some  months 
afterwards;  and  the  palm-wine,  which  was  to  be  bought 
in  Samar,  was  too  weak.  One  or  two  boats  went  out 
daily  to  fish  for  me;  but  I  obtained  only  a  few  specimens, 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


tS6 


which  belonged  to  almost  as  many  species  and  genera. 
Probably  the  bad  custom  of  poisoning  the  water  in  order 
to  kill  the  fish  (the  pounded  fruit  of  a  Barringtonia 
here  being  employed  for  the  purpose)  is  the  cause  of 
the  river  being  so  empty  of  fish. 

After  a  few  days  we  left  the  little  place  about  half- 
past  nine  in  the  forenoon,  packed  closely  in  two  small 
boats;  and,  by  seven  minutes  past  one  when  we  reached 
an  inhabited  hut  in  the  forest,  we  had  descended  more 
than  forty  streams  of  a  foot  and  a  foot  and  a  half  and 
more  in  depth.  The  more  important  of  them  have  names 
which  are  correctly  given  on  Coello's  map;  and  the 
following  are  their  distances  by  the  watch: — At  ten 
o'clock  we  came  to  a  narrow,  rocky  chasm,  at  the  ex- 
tremity of  which  the  water  falls  several  feet  below  into 
a  large  basin;  and  here  we  unloaded  the  boats,  which 
hitherto  had,  under  skilful  management,  wound  their 
way,  like  well-trained  horses,  between  all  the  impedi- 
ments in  the  bed  of  the  river  and  over  all  the  cascades 
and  waves,  almost  without  taking  any  water;  only  two 
men  remaining  in  each  boat,  who,  loudly  cheering, 
shot  downwards;  in  doing  which  the  boats  were  filled 
to  the  brim. 

Opposite  this  waterfall  a  bank  of  rubbish  had  been 
formed  by  the  alluvium,  in  which,  besides  fragments  of 
the  subjacent  rock,  were  found  well-rounded  pieces  of 
jasper  and  porphyry,  as  well  as  some  bits  of  coal  con- 
taining several  pyrites,  which  had  probably  been  brought 
during  the  rain  from  higher  up  the  river.  Its  origin 
was  unknown  to  the  sailors.  From  fifty-six  minutes 
past  eleven  to  twelve  o'clock  there  was  an  uninterrupted 
succession  of  rapids,  which  were  passed  with  the  greatest 
dexterity,  without  taking  in  water.  Somewhat  lower 
down,  at  about  three  minutes  past  twelve,  we  took  in 
so  much  water  that  we  were  compelled  to  land  and  bale 


Numerous  small 
streams. 


Jasper  and  coal. 


S36  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

it  out.  At  about  fifteen  minutes  past  twelve,  we  pro- 
ceeded onwards,  the  river  now  being  on  the  average 
sixty  feet  broad.  On  the  edge  of  the  wood  some  slender 
palms,  hardly  ten  feet  high,  were  remarkable  by  their 
frequency,  and  many  phalaenopses  by  their  display  of 
blossoms,  which  is  of  rare  occurrence.  Neither  birds 
nor  apes,  nor  serpents  were  observed;  but  large  pythons, 
as  thick  as  one's  leg  are  said  to  be  not  unfrequent. 

Big  pythons.  About  thirty-six  minutes  past  twelve  we  reached  one 

of  the  most  difficult  places — a  succession  of  waves,  with 
many  rocks  projecting  out  of  the  water,  between  which 
the  boats,  now  in  full  career,  and  with  rapid  evolutions, 
glided  successfully.  The  adventure  was  accomplished 
with  equal  skill  by  the  two  crews,  who  exerted  their 
powers  to  the  utmost.     At  seventeen  minutes  past  one 

Dint  poTtaye.  ^g  arrived  at  Dini,  the  most  considerable  waterfall  in 
the  whole  distance;  and  here  we  had  to  take  the  boats 
out  of  the  water;  and,  availing  ourselves  of  the  lianas 
which  hung  down  from  the  lofty  forest  trees  like  ropes, 
we  dragged  them  over  the  rocks.  At  twenty-one  minutes 
past  two  we  resumed  our  journey;  and  from  twenty- 
two  minutes  past  to  half  past  eight  we  descended  an 
irregular  stair  composed  of  several  ledges,  shipping 
much  water.  Up  to  this  point  the  Loquilocun  flowed 
in  a  rocky  bed,  with  (for  the  most  part)  steep  banks, 
and  sometimes  for  a  long  distance  under  a  thick  canopy 
of  boughs,  from  which  powerful  tendrils  and  ferns,  more 
than  a  fathom  in  length,  were  suspended.  Here  the 
country  was  to  some  extent  open;  flat  hillocks,  with  low 
underwood,  came  to  view,  and,  on  the  north-west,  loftier 
wooded  mountains.  The  last  two  hours  were  notable  for 
a  heavy  fall  of  rain,  and,  about  half  past  five,  we  reached 
a  solitary  house  occupied  by  friendly  people,  where 
we  took  up  our  quarters  for  the  night. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SS7 

On  the  following  morning  the  journey  was  continued  O""'"  "*«  '^''^• 
down  the  river.  Within  ten  minutes  we  glided  past  the 
last  waterfall,  between  white  calcareous  rocks  of  a  kind  of 
marble,  covered  with  magnificent  vegetation.  Branches, 
completely  covered  with  phakpnopses  (P.  Aphrodite, 
Reichb.  fls.),  projected  over  the  river,  their  flowers 
waving  like  large  gorgeous  butterflies  over  its  foaming 
current.  Two  hours  later  the  stream  became  two  hun- 
dred feet  broad,  and,  after  leaping  down  a  ladder  of 
fifty  meters  in  height  from  Loquilocun,  it  steals  away 
in  gentle  windings  through  a  flat  inundated  country  to 
the  east  coast;  forming  a  broad  estuary,  on  the  right 
bank  of  which,  half  a  league  from  the  sea,  the  district 
of  Jubasan  or  Paric  (population  2,300)  is  situated.  The 
latter  give  their  names  to  the  lower  portion  of  the  stream. 
Here  the  excellent  fellows  of  Loquilocun  left  me  in  order 
to  begin  their  very  arduous  return  journey. 

Owing  to  bad  weather,  I  could  not  embark  for  Tubig  Along  the  coast. 
(population  2,858),  south  of  Paric,  before  the  following 
day;  and,  being  continually  hindered  by  difficulties  of 
land  transit,  I  proceeded  in  the  rowboat  along  the  coast 
to  Borongan  (population  7,685),  with  the  equally  in- 
telligent and  obliging  priest  with  whom  I  remained 
some  days,  and  then  continued  my  journey  to  Guiuan 
(also  Guiuang,  Guiguan),  the  most  important  district 
in  Samar  (population  10,781),  situated  on  a  small  neck 
of  land  which  projects  from  the  south-east  point  of  the 
island  into  the  sea. 

Close  to  the  shore  at  the  latter  place  a  copious  spring  a  udeiand 

spring- 

bursts  out  of  five  or  six  openings,  smelling  slightly  of 
sulphuretted  hydrogen.  It  is  covered  by  the  sea  during 
the  flow,  but  is  open  during  the  ebb,  when  its  salt  taste 
is  hardly  perceptible.  In  order  to  test  the  water,  a  well 
was  formed  by  sinking  a  deep  bottomless  jar,  and  from 
this,  after  the  water  had  flowed  for  the  space  of  half 


238  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

an  hour,  a  sample  was  taken,  which,  to  my  regret,  was 
afterwards  lost.  The  temperature  of  the  water  of  the 
spring,  at  eight  o'clock  in  the  forenoon,  was  27.7°;  of 
the  atmosphere,  28.7°;  of  the  sea-water,  31.2°C.  The 
spring  is  used  by  the  women  to  dye  their  sarongs.  The 
materials,  after  being  steeped  in  the  decoction  of  a  bark 
abounding  in  tannin  (materials  made  of  the  abaca  are 
first  soaked  in  a  calcareous  preparation),  and  dried  in 
the  sun,  are  placed  in  the  spring  during  the  ebb,  taken 
out  during  the  flow,  re-dried,  dipped  in  the  decoction 
of  bark,  and  again,  while  wet,  placed  in  the  spring; 
and  this  is  repeated  for  the  space  of  thr^e  days;  when 
the  result  is  a  durable,  but  ugly  inky  black  (gallussaures, 
oxide  of  iron). 
East  Indian  ^|-  LoQuilocun  and  Borongan  I  had  an  opportunity 

of  purchasing  two  live  macaques.*  These  extremely 
delicate  and  rare  little  animals,  which  belong  to  the 
class  of  semi-apes,  are,  as  I  was  assured  in  Luzon  and 
Leyte,  to  be  found  only  in  Samar,  and  live  exclusively 
on  charcoal.  My  first  "mago"  was,  in  the  beginning, 
somewhat  voracious,  but  he  disdained  vegetable  food, 
and  was  particular  in  his  choice  of  insects,  devouring 
live  grasshoppers  with  delight. f  It  was  extremely 
ludicrous,  when  he  was  fed  in  the  day  time,  to  see  the 
animal  standing,  perched  up  perpendicularly  on  his 
two  thin  legs  with  his  bare  tail,  and  turning  his  large 
head — round  as  a  ball,  and  with  very  large,  yellow, 
owl-like  eyes — in  every  direction,  looking  like  a  dark 
lantern  on  a  pedestal  with  a  circular  swivel.  Only 
gradually  did  he  succeed  in  fixing  his  eyes  on  the  object 
presented  to  him;  but,  as  soon  as  he  did  perceive  it, 


*   Tarsius  spectrum.  Tern.;  in  the  language  of  the  country — mago. 

t  Father  Camel  mentions  that  the  little  animal  is  said  to  live  only  on  coal, 
but  that  it  was  an  error,  for  he  ate  the  ficus  Indica  (by  which  we  here  understand 
him  to  mean  the  banana)  and  other  fruits.  (Camel  de  quadruped.  Phil.  Trans., 
1706 — 7.  London.)  Camel  also  gives  (p.  194)  an  interesting  account  of  the 
kaguang,  which  is  accurate  at  the  present  day. — Ibid.,  ii.  S.  2197. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


839 


he  immediately  extended  his  little  arms  sideways,  as 
though  somewhat  bashful,  and  then,  like  a  delighted 
child,  suddenly  seizing  it  with  hand  and  mouth  at  once, 
he  deliberately  tore  the  prey  to  pieces.  During  the  day 
the  mago  was  sleepy,  short-sighted,  and,  when  disturbed, 
morose;  but  with  the  decreasing  daylight  he  expanded 
his  pupils,  and  moved  about  in  a  lively  and  agile  manner, 
with  rapid  noiseless  leaps,  generally  sideways.  He  soon 
became  tame,  but  to  my  regret  died  after  a  few  weeks; 
and  I  succeeded  only  for  a  short  time  in  keeping  the 
second  little  animal  alive. 


XX 


In  Guiuan  I  was  visited  by  some  Micronesians,  who 
for  the  last  fourteen  days  had  been  engaged  at  Sulangan 
on  the  small  neck  of  land  south-east  from  Guiuan,  in 
diving  for  pearl  mussels  (mother-of-pearl),  having  under- 
taken the  dangerous  journey  for  the  express  purpose.* 
They  had  sailed  from  Uleai  (UHai,  7°  20'  N.,  143°  57' 
E.  Gr.)  in  five  boats,  each  of  which  had  a  crew  of  nine 
men  and  carried  forty  gourds  full  of  water,  with  coconuts 
and  batata.  Every  man  received  one  coconut  daily, 
and  two  batatas,  which  they  baked  in  the  ashes  of  the 
coco  shells;  and  they  caught  some  fish  on  the  way,  and 
collected  a  little  rain-water.  During  the  day  they 
directed  their  course  by  the  sun,  and  at  night  by  the 


*  The  following  communication  appeared  for  the  first  time  in  the  reports  of 
a  session  of  the  Anthropological  Society  of  Berlin;  but  my  visitors  were  there 
denominated  Palaos  islanders.  But,  as  Prof.  Semper,  who  spent  a  long  time  on 
the  true  Palaos  (Pelew)  islands,  correctly  shows  in  the  "Corresp.-Bl.  f.  Anthro- 
pol.,"  1871,  No.  2,  that  Uliai  belongs  to  the  group  of  the  Carolinas,  I  have  here 
retained  the  more  common  expression,  Micronesian,  although  those  men, 
respecting  whose  arrival  from  Uliai  no  doubt  existed,  did  not  call  themselves 
Caroline  islanders,  but  Palaos.  As  communicated  to  me  by  Dr.  Graeffe,  who 
lived  many  years  in  Micronesia,  Palaos  is  a  loose  expression  like  Kanaka  and 
many  others,  and  does  not,  at  all  events,  apply  exclusively  to  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Pelew  group. 


Pearl  divers 
from  the 
Carolines. 


Hardships  and 
perils  of  their 
voyage. 


«40  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

stars.  A  storm  destroyed  the  boats.  Two  of  them  sank, 
together  with  their  crews,  before  the  eyes  of  their  com- 
panions, and  of  these,  only  one — probably  the  sole 
individual  rescued — two  weeks  afterwards  reached  the 
harbor  of  Tandag,  on  the  east  coast  of  Mindanao.  The 
party  remained  at  Tandag  two  weeks,  working  in  the 
fields  for  hire,  and  then  proceeded  northwards  along 
the  coast  to  Cantilang,  8°  25'  N.;  Banouan  (called  erro- 
neously Bancuan  by  Coello),  9°  1'  N.;  Taganaan,  9°  25' 
N.;  thence  to  Surigao,  on  the  north  point  of  Mindanao; 
and  then,  with  an  easterly  wind,  in  two  days,  direct 
to  Guiuan.  In  the  German  translation  of  Captain 
Salmon's  "History  of  the  Oriental  Islands"  (Altona, 
1733),  it  is  stated  that: 

Castaways  from       "Somc  Other  islands  on  the  east  of  the  Philippines  have 
the  Peiews.  lately  been  discovered  which  have  received  the  name  of 

the  New  Philippines  because  they  are  situated  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  old,  which  have  been  already  de- 
scribed. Father  Clan  (Clain),  in  a  letter  from  Manila, 
which  has  been  incorporated  in  the  'Philosophical 
Transactions,'  makes  the  following  statement  respecting 
them: — It  happened  that  when  he  was  in  the  town  of 
Guivam,  on  the  island  of  Samar,  he  met  twenty-nine 
Palaos  (there  had  been  thirty,  but  one  died  soon  after 
in  Guiuan),  or  natives  of  certain  recently  discovered 
islands,  who  had  been  driven  thither  by  the  east  winds, 
which  prevail  from  December  to  May.  According  to 
their  own  statement,  they  were  driven  about  by  the  winds 
for  seventy  days,  without  getting  sight  of  land,  until  they 
arrived  opposite  to  Guivam.  When  they  sailed  from 
their  own  country,  their  two  boats  were  quite  full, 
carrying  thirty-five  souls,  including  their  wives  and  child- 
ren; but  several  had  died  miserably  on  the  way  from  the 
fatigue  which  they  had  undergone.  When  some  one 
from  Guivam  wished  to  go  on  board  to  them,  they  were 
thrown  into  such  a  state  of  terror  that  all  who  were  in 
one  of  the  boats  sprang  overboard,  along  with  their 
wives  and  children.     However,  they  at  last  thought  it 


Jagor's  Trrweh  in  the  Philippines  2^1 

best  to  come  into  the  harbor;  so  they  came  ashore  on 
December  28,  1696.  They  fed  on  coconuts  and  roots, 
which  were  charitably  supplied  to  them,  but  refused 
even  to  taste  cooked  rice,  which  is  the  general  food  of 
the  Asiatic  nations.  Two  women  who  had  previously  Previous 
been  cast  away  on  the  same  islands  acted  as  interpreters  castaways. 
for  them.*  *  * 

"The  people  of  the  country  went  half  naked,  and  the  Lived  by  sea- 
men painted  their  bodies  with  spots  and  all  kinds  of  ^'JlZtuef 
devices.  *  *  *  As  long  as  they  were  on  the  sea  they 
lived  on  fish,  which  they  caught  in  a  certain  kind  of 
fish-basket,  with  a  wide  mouth  but  tapering  to  a  point 
at  the  bottom,  which  was  dragged  along  underneath 
the  boats;  and  rain-water,  when  they  could  catch  it 
(or,  as  is  stated  in  the  letter  itself,  preserved  in  the  shells 
of  the  coconut),  served  them  for  drink.  When  they 
were  about  to  be  taken  into  the  presence  of  the  Father, 
whom,  from  the  great  respect  which  was  shown  to  him, 
they  took  for  the  governor,  they  colored  their  bodies 
entirely  yellow,  an  operation  which  they  considered 
highly  important,  as  enabling  them  to  appear  as  persons 
of  consideration.  They  are  very  skilful  divers,  and  now 
and  then  find  pearls  in  the  mussels  which  they  bring  up, 
which,  however,  they  throw    away  as    useless    things." 

But  one  of  the  most  important  parts  of  Father  Clain's  -^"^ «''« /''"»■' 
letter  has  been  omitted  byCapt.  Salmon: — "The  oldest  of  ^'""^ ^'""""'■ 
these  strangers  had  once  before  been  cast  away  on  the  coast 
of  the  province  of  Caragan,  on  one  of  our  islands  (Min- 
danao); but  as  he  found  only  heathens  (infidels),  who 
lived  in  the  mountains  or  on  the  desert  shore,  he 
returned  to  his  own  country." 

In  a  letter  from  Father  Cantova  to  Father  d'Aubenton,    Yap  camoies 
dated  from  Agdana  (/.  e.  Agana,  of  the  Marianne  Islands),   p7«T/'''^"' 
March  20,1722,  describing  the  Caroline  and  Pelew  Islands , 
it  is  said: — "The  fourth  district  lies  to  the  west.     Yap 
(9°  25'  N.,  138°  1'  E.  Gr.),*  which  is  the  principal  island, 


*  Dumont  d'Urville,  Vutjii:/!  to  Ih,  Smitli  Pole.  v.  206,  remarks  that  the 
natives  call  their  island  Gouap  or  Ouap.  but  never  Yap;  and  that  the  husbandry 
in  that  place  was  superior  to  anything  he  had  seen  in  the  South  Sea. 


us  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

is  more  than  forty  leagues  in  circumference.  Besides 
the  different  roots  which  are  used  by  the  natives  of  the 
island  instead  of  bread,  there  is  the  batata,  which  they 
call  camote,  and  which  they  have  acquired  from  the 
Philippines,  as  I  was  informed  by  one  of  our  Caroline 
Indians,  who  is  a  native  of  the  island.  He  states  that 
his  father,  named  Coorr,  *  *  *  three  of  his  brothers,  and 
himself  had  been  cast  away  in  a  storm  on  one  of  the  prov- 
inces in  the  Philippines,  which  was  called  Bisayas;  that 
a  missionary  of  our  society  (Jesus)  received  them  in  a 
friendly  manner  *  *  *  that  on  returning  to  their  own 
island  they  took  with  them  the  seeds  of  different  plants, 
other  arrivals  of  amongst  othcrs  the  batata,  which  multiplied  so  fast 
that  they  had  sufficient  to  supply  the  other  islands  of 
the  Archipelago  with  them."  Murillo  Velarde  states 
that  in  1708  some  Palaos  were  wrecked  in  a  storm  on 
Palapag  (north  coast  of  Samar) ;  and  I  personally  had  the 
opportunity,  in  Manila,  of  photographing  a  company  of 
Palaos  and  Caroline  islanders,  who  had  been  the  year 
before  cast  on  the  coast  of  Samar  by  foul  weather.  Apart 
from  the  question  of  their  transport,  whether  voluntary 
or  not,  these  simply  were  six  examples,  such  as  still 
occur  occasionally,  of  Micronesians  cast  up  on  the  shore 
of  the  Philippines;  and  probably  it  would  not  be  difficult 
to  find  several  more;  but  how  often,  both  before  and  after 
the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards,  might  not  vessels  from  those 
islands  have  come  within  the  influence  of  the  north- 
east storms,  and  been  driven  violently  on  the  east  coast 
of  the  Philippines  without  any  record  of  such  facts 
being  preserved?*  Even  as,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Archipelago,  the  type  of  the  race  seems  to  have  been 
modified  by  its  long  intercourse  with  China,  Japan, 
Lower  India,  and  later  with  Europe,  so  likewise  may  Poly- 


*  The  voyages  of  the  Polynesians  were  also  caused  by  the  tyranny  of  the  victo- 
rious parties,  which  compelled  the  vanquished  to  emigrate. 


Jauor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S43 

nesian  influences  have  operated  in  a  similar  manner  on  ^"^^^e 

•  1  11.-1-  ti-ii         influence  on 

the  east  side ;  and  the  further  circumstance  that  the  mhab-   Filipinos. 
itants   of    the   Ladrones*    and   the    Bisayansf  possess 
the  art  of  coloring  their  teeth  black,   seems  to  point 
to    early    intercourse    between    the    Bisayans    and    the 
Polynesians,  t 

At  Guiuan  I  embarked  on  board  an  inconveniently  -^/"'I'esea 

,  ,  ,   .    ,  .  ,     ,        .    ,  .  voyage  in  an 

cranky,  open  boat,  which  was  provided  with  an  awning  open  boat. 
only  three  feet  square,  for  Tacloban,  the  chief  town  of 
Leyte.  After  first  experiencing  an  uninterrupted  calm, 
we  incurred  great  danger  in  a  sudden  tempest,  so  that 
we  had  to  retrace  the  whole  distance  by  means  of  the 
oars.  The  passage  was  very  laborious  for  the  crew, 
who  were  not  protected  by  an  awning  (temperature  in  the 
sun  35°  R.,  of  the  water  25°  R.§),  and  lasted  thirty-one 
hours,  with  few  intermissions;  the  party  voluntarily 
abridging  their  intervals  of  rest  in  order  to  get  back 
quickly  to  Tacloban,  which  keeps  up  an  active  intercourse 
with  Manila,  and  has  all  the  attractions  of  a  luxurious 
city  for  the  men  living  on  the  inhospitable  eastern 
coast.  It  is  questionable  whether  the  sea  anywhere 
washes  over  a  spot  of  such  peculiar  beauty  as  the  narrow  Beauty  of 

,.,,..._  -  _  /-vi  Samar-Leyte 

strait  which  divides  Samar  from  Leyte.  On  the  west  g^raiu 
it  is  enclosed  by  steep  banks  of  tuff,  which  tolerate  no 
swamps  of  mangroves  on  their  borders.  There  the  lofty 
primeval  forest  approaches  in  all  its  sublimity  close  to 
the  shore,  interrupted  only  here  and  there  by  groves 
of  cocos,    in   whose    sharply    defined   shadows   solitary 

*  Pigafetta,  p.  51. 

t  Morga,  f.  127. 

t  "The  Bisayans  cover  their  teeth  with  a  shining  varnish,  which  is  either 
black,  or  of  the  color  of  fire,  and  thus  their  teeth  become  either  black,  or  red 
like  cinnabar;  and  they  make  a  small  hole  in  the  upper  row,  which  they  fill 
with  gold,  the  latter  shining  all  the  more  on  the  black  or  red  ground." — (Thfive- 
not,  Religieux,  54.)  Of  a  king  of  Mindanao,  visited  by  Magellan  at  Massana, 
it  is  written: — "In  every  tooth  he  had  three  mar.hie  (spots?)  of  gold,  so  that  they 
had  the  appearance  of  being  tied  together  with  gold;"  which  Ramusio  inter- 
prets— "On  each  finger  he  had  three  rings  of  gold." — Pigafetta,  p.  66;  and  com- 
pare also  Carletti,  Voya:jes,  i.  153. 

§  42  and  30  Cent,  or  108  and  86  Fahr. — C. 


2JtJt  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

huts  are  to  be  found;  and  the  steep  hills  facing  the  sea^ 
and  numerous  small  rocky  islands,  are  crowned  with 
little  castles  of  blocks  of  coral.  At  the  eastern  entrance 
of  the  strait  the  south  coast  of  Samar  consists  of  white 
limestone,  like  marble,  but  of  quite  modern  date,  which 
in  many  places  forms  precipitous  cliffs.*  At  Nipa- 
Nipa,  a  small  hamlet  two  leagues  from  Basey,  they 
project  into  the  sea  in  a  succession  of  picturesque  rocks, 
above  one  hundred  feet  in  height,  which,  rounded  above 
like  a  dome,  thickly  covered  with  vegetation,  and  cor- 
roded at  the  base  by  the  waters  of  the  sea,  rise  out  of  the 
waves  like  gigantic  mushrooms.  A  peculiar  atmosphere 
of  enchantment  pervades  this  locality,  whose  influence 
upon  the  native  mariner  must  be  all  the  more  powerful 
when,  fortunately  escaping  from  the  billows  outside 
and  the  buffeting  of  the  north-east  wind,  he  suddenly 
enters  this  tranquil  place  of  refuge.  No  wonder  that 
superstitious  imagination  has  peopled  the  place  with 
spirits. 
Burial  caves.  In  the  cavcms  of  these  rocks  the  ancient  Pintados  inter- 

red the  corpses  of  their  heroes  and  ancestors  in  well- 
locked  coffins,  surrounded  by  those  objects  which  had 
been  held  in  the  highest  regard  by  them  during  life. 
Slaves  were  also  sacrificed  by  them  at  their  obsequies,  in 
order  that  they  might  not  be  without  attendance  in  the 
world  of  shadows;!   and  the  numerous  coffins,   imple- 

*  In  one  of  these  cliffs,  sixty  feet  above  the  sea,  beds  of  mussels  were  found: 
ostrea,  pinna,  chama;  according  to  Dr.  V.  M. — O.  denticula,  Bron. ;  O.  cornu- 
copiae,  Chemn.;  0.  rosacea,  Desh.;  Chama  sulfurea.  Reeve;  Pinna  Nigrina, 
Lam.   (?). 

t  In  the  Athenaeum  of  January  7,  1871,  Captain  Ullmann  describes  a  funeral 
ceremony  (tiiva)  of  the  Dyaks,  which  corresponds  in  many  points  with  that  of  the 
ancient  Bisayans.  The  coffin  is  cut  out  of  the  branch  of  a  tree  by  the  nearest 
male  kinsman,  and  it  is  so  narrow  that  the  body  has  to  be  pressed  down  into  it, 
lest  another  member  of  the  family  should  die  immediately  after  to  fill  up  the 
gap.  As  many  as  possible  of  his  effects  must  be  heaped  on  the  dead  person, 
in  order  to  prove  his  wealth  and  to  raise  him  in  the  estimation  of  the  spirit  world; 
and  under  the  coffin  are  placed  two  vessels,  one  containin'^  rice  and  the  other 
water. 

One  of  the  principal  ceremonies  of  the  tiwa  consisted  formerly  (and  does  still 
in  some  places)  in  human  sacrifices.  Where  the  Dutch  Government  extended 
these  were  not  permitted;  but  sometimes  carabaos  or  pigs  were  killed  in  a  cruel 
manner,  with  the  blood  of  which  the  high  priest  smeared  the  forehead,  breast, 
and  arms  of  the  head  of  the  family.  Similar  sacrifices  of  slaves  or  pigs  were 
practised  amongst  the  ancient  Filipinos,  with  peculiar  ceremonies  by  female 
priests    (Catalonas). 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  H5 

•ments,  arms,  and  trinkets,  protected  by  superstitious 
terrors,  continued  to  be  undisturbed  for  centuries.  No 
boat  ventured  to  cross  over  without  the  obsevance  of  a 
religious  ceremony,  derived  from  heathen  times,  to 
propitiate  the  spirits  of  the  caverns  who  were  believed 
to  punish  the  omission  of  it  with  storm  and  ship-wreck. 

About  thirty  years  ago  a  zealous  young  ecclesiastic.   Objects  destroyed 

,  .  .  but  superstition 

to  whom  these  heathen  practices  were  an  abommation,  persists. 
determined  to  extirpate  them  by  the  roots.  With  several 
boats  well  equipped  with  crosses,  banners,  pictures  of 
saints,  and  all  the  approved  machinery  for  driving  out  the 
Devil,  he  undertook  the  expedition  against  the  haunted 
rocks,  which  were  climbed  amidst  the  sounds  of  music, 
prayers,  and  the  reports  of  fireworks.  A  whole  pailful 
of  holy  water  first  having  been  thrown  into  the  cave  for 
the  purpose  of  confounding  the  evil  spirits,  the  intrepid 
priest  rushed  in  with  elevated  cross,  and  was  followed 
by  his  faithful  companions,  who  were  fired  with  his 
example.  A  brilliant  victory  was  the  reward  of  the  well- 
contrived  and  carefully  executed  plot.  The  coffins 
were  broken  to  fragments,  the  vessels  dashed  to  pieces, 
and  the  skeletons  thrown  into  the  sea;  and  the  remaining 
caverns  were  stormed  with  like  results.  The  objects 
of  superstition  have  indeed  been  annihilated,  but  the 
superstition  itself  survives  to  the  present  day. 

I  subsequently  learned  from  the  priest  at  Basey  that  Skuiis  from  a 
there  were  still  some  remains  on  a  rock,  and  a  few  days 
afterwards  the  worthy  man  surprised  me  with  several 
skulls  and  a  child's  coffin,  which  he  had  had  brought 
from  the  place.  Notwithstanding  the  great  respect 
in  which  he  was  held  by  his  flock,  he  had  to  exert  all 
his  powers  of  persuasion  to  induce  the  boldest  of  them 
to  engage  in  so  daring  an  enterprise.  A  boat  manned 
by  sixteen  rowers  was  fitted  out  for  the  purpose;  with  a 
:  smaller  crew  they  would  not  have  ventured  to  under- 


rock  near  Basey. 


S40 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


The  cavtrn'. 
wrAerda. 


Impressive 
location  of 
burial  cave. 


take  the  journey.  On  their  return  home  a  thunder- 
storm broke  over  them,  and  the  sailors,  believing  it  to 
be  a  punishment  for  their  outrage,  were  prevented  only 
by  the  fear  of  making  the  matter  worse  from  throwing 
coffin  and  skulls  into  the  sea.  Fortunately  the  land  was 
near,  and  they  rowed  with  all  their  might  towards  it; 
and,  when  they  arrived,  I  was  obliged  to  take  the  objects 
out  of  the  boat  myself,  as  no  native  would  touch  them. 

Notwithstanding,  I  was  the  next  morning  successful 
in  finding  some  resolute  individuals  who  accompanied 
me  to  the  caverns.  In  the  first  two  which  we  examined 
we  found  nothing;  the  third  contained  several  broken 
coffins,  some  skulls,  and  potsherds  of  glazed  and  crudely 
painted  earthenware,  of  which,  however,  it  was  impos- 
sible to  find  two  pieces  that  belonged  to  each  other. 
A  narrow  hole  led  from  the  large  cavern  into  an  obscure 
space,  which  was  so  small  that  one  could  remain  in 
it  only  for  a  few  seconds  with  the  burning  torch.  This 
circumstance  may  explain  the  discovery,  in  a  coffin 
which  was  eaten  to  pieces  by  worms,  and  quite  mouldered 
away,  of  a  well-preserved  skeleton,  or  rather  a  mummy, 
for  in  many  places  there  were  carcasses  clothed  with  dry 
fibers  of  muscle  and  skin.  It  lay  upon  a  mat  of  pan- 
danus,  which  was  yet  recognizable,  with  a  cushion  under 
the  head  stuffed  with  plants,  and  covered  with  matting 
of  pandanus.  There  were  no  other  remains  of  woven 
material.  The  coffins  were  of  three  shapes  and  without 
any  ornament.  Those  of  the  first  form,  which  were 
of  excellent  molave-wood,  showed  no  trace  of  worm- 
holes  or  decay,  whereas  the  others  had  entirely  fallen 
to  dust;  and  those  of  the  third  kind,  which  were  most 
numerous,  were  distinguishable  from  the  first  only  by 
a  less  curved  form  and  inferior  material. 

No  legend  could  have  supplied  an  enchanted  royal 
sepulchre  with  a  more  suitable  approach  than  that  of 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  2t^7 

the  last  of  these  caverns.  The  rock  rises  out  of  the  sea 
with  perpendicular  sides  of  marble,  and  only  in  one 
spot  is  to  be  observed  a  natural  opening  made  by  the 
water,  hardly  two  feet  high,  through  which  the  boat 
passed  at  once  into  a  spacious  court,  almost  circular, 
and  over-arched  by  the  sky,  the  floor  of  which  was  cover- 
ed by  the  sea,  and  adorned  with  a  garden  of  corals.  The 
steep  sides  are  thickly  hung  with  lianas,  ferns,  and  or- 
chids, by  help  of  which  one  climbs  upwards  to  the  cav- 
ern, sixty  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water.  To  add 
to  the  singularity  of  the  situation,  we  also  found  at  the 
entrance  to  the  grotto,  on  a  large  block  of  rock  project- 
ing two  feet  above  the  ground,  a  sea-snake,  which  tran-  .4  s«a  snake. 
quilly  gazed  at  us,  but  which  had  to  be  killed,  because, 
like  all  genuine  sea-snakes,  it  was  poisonous.  Twice 
before  I  had  found  the  same  species  in  crevices  of  rock 
on  the  dry  land,  where  the  ebb  might  have  left  it;  but  it 
was  strange  to  meet  with  it  in  this  place,  at  such  a  height 
above  the  sea.  It  now  reposes,  as  Platurus  fasciatus 
Daud.,  in  the  Zoological  Museum  of  the  Berlin  University. 

In  Guiuan  I  had  an  opportunity  of  purchasing  four  Chinese  dishera 
richly  painted  Chinese  dishes  which  came  from  a  similar  ■^™"* "  ''"''*• 
cavern,  and  a  gold  signet  ring;  the  latter  consisting  of 
a  plate  of  gold,  originally  bent  into  a  tube  of  the  thickness 
of  a  quill  with  a  gaping  seam,  and  afterwards  into  a  ring 
as  large  as  a  thaler,  which  did  not  quite  meet.  The 
dishes  were  stolen  from  me  at  Manila. 

There  are  similar  caverns  which  have  been  used  as  burial-  suriai  caves. 
places  in  many  other  localities  in  this  country;  on  the 
island  of  Andog,  in  Borongan  (a  short  time  ago  it  con- 
tained skulls);  also  atBatinguitan,  three  hours  fromBoron- 
gan,  on  the  banks  of  a  little  brook;  and  in  Guiuan,  on  the 
little  island  of  Monhon,  which  is  difficult  of  approach 
by  reason  of  the  boisterous  sea.  In  Catubig  trinkets  of 
gold  have  been  found,  but  they  have  been  converted 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


into  modern  articles  of  adornment.  One  cavern  at 
Lauang,  however,  is  famous  over  the  whole  country  on 
account  of  the  gigantic,  flat,  compressed  skulls,  without 
sutures,  which  have  been  found  in  it.*  It  will  not  be 
uninteresting  to  compare  the  particulars  here  described 
with  the  statements  of  older  authors ;  and  for  this  reason 
I  submit  the  following  extracts: — 

Embalming.  Mas  {Infoi'vie,  \.  21),  who  docs  not  give  the  sources 

of  his  information,  thus  describes  the  customs  of  the 
ancient  inhabitants  of  the  archipelago  at  their  inter- 
ments:— They  sometimes  embalmed  their  dead  with 
aromatic  substances  *  *  *  and  placed  those  who  were 
of  note  in  chests  carved  out  of  a  branch  of  a  tree,  and 
furnished  with  well-fitted  lids  *  *  *  The  coffin  was 
placed,  in  accordance  with  the  wish  of  the  deceased, 
expressed  before  his  death,  either  in  the  uppermost 
room  of  the  house,  where  articles  of  value  were  secreted, 
or  under  the  dwelling-house,  in  a  kind  of  grave,  which 
was  not  covered,  but  enclosed  with  a  railing;  or  in  a 
distant  field,  or  on  an  elevated  place  or  rock  on  the 
bank  of  a  river,  where  he  might  be  venerated  by  the 
pious.  A  watch  was  set  over  it  for  a  certain  time,  lest 
boats  should  cross  over,  and  the  dead  person  should 
drag  the  living  after  him. 

Burial  customs.  According  to  Gaspar  San  Agustin  (p.  169),  the  dead 
were  rolled  up  in  cloths,  and  placed  in  clumsy  chests, 
carved  out  of  a  block  of  wood,  and  buried  under  their 
houses,  together  with  their  jewels,  gold  rings,  and  some 
plates  of  gold  over  the  mouth  and  eyes,  and  furnished 
with  provisions,  cups,  and  dishes.  They  were  also 
accustomed  to  bury  slaves  along  with  men  of  note,  in 
order  that  they  might  be  attended  in  the  other  world. 

*  In  the  chapter  De  vionstris  et  quasi  monstris  *  *  *  of  Father  Camel, 
London  Philos.  Trans.,  p.  2269,  it  is  stated  that  in  the  mountains  between 
Guiuan  and  Borongan,  footsteps,  three  times  as  large  as  those  of  ordinary  men, 
have  been  found.  Probably  the  skulls  of  Lauang,  which  are  pressed  out  in 
Ijreadth,  and  covered  with  a  thick  crust  of  calcareous  sinter,  the  gigantic  skulls 
(skulls  of  giants)  have  given  rise  to  the  fable  of  the  giants'  footsteps. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S49 

"Their  chief  idolatry  consisted  in  the  worship  of  those 
of  their  ancestors  who  had  most  distinguished  themselves 
by  courage  and  genius,  whom  they  regarded  as  deities  *  * 
*  *  They  called  them  humalagar,  which  is  the  same  as 
manes  in  the  Latin  *  *  *  Even  the  aged  died  under 
this  conceit,  choosing  particular  places,  such  as  one  on 
the  island  of  Leyte,  which  allowed  of  their  being  interred 
at  the  edge  of  the  sea,  in  order  that  the  mariners  who 
crossed  over  might  acknowledge  them  as  deities,  and 
pay  them  respect."     (Thevenot,  Religieux,  p.  2.) 

"They  did  not  place  them  (the  dead)  in  the  earth,  ■s'aves 
but  in  coffins  of  very  hard,  indestructible  wood  *  *  * 
Male  and  female  slaves  were  sacrificed  to  them,  that 
they  should  not  be  unattended  in  the  other  world.  If 
a  person  of  consideration  died,  silence  was  imposed 
upon  the  whole  of  the  people,  and  its  duration  was 
regulated  by  the  rank  of  the  deceased ;  and  under  certain 
circumstances  it  was  not  discontinued  until  his  relations 
had  killed  many  other  persons  to  appease  the  spirit 
of  the  dead."     {Ibid.,  p.  7.) 

"For  this  reason  (to  be  worshipped  as  deities)  the  oldest 
of  them  chose  some  remarkable  spot  in  the  mountains, 
and  particularly  on  headlands  projecting  into  the  sea, 
in  order  to  be  worshipped  by  the  sailors."  (Gemelli 
Careri,  p.  449.) 

From  Tacloban,  which  I  chose  for  my  headquarters  Basey  and  iu 
on  account  of  its  convenient  tribunal,  and  because  it 
is  well  supplied  with  provisions,  I  returned  on  the  follow- 
ing day  to  Samar,  and  then  to  Basey,  which  is  opposite 
to  Tacloban.  The  people  of  Basey  are  notorious  over 
all  Samar  for  their  laziness  and  their  stupidity,  but  are 
advantageously  distinguished  from  the  inhabitants  of 
Tacloban  by  their  purity  of  manners.  Basey  is  situated 
on  the  delta  of  the  river,  which  is  named  after  it.  We 
proceeded  up  a  small  arm  of  the  principal  stream,  which 


river. 


e50  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

winds,  with  a  very  slight  fall,  through  the  plain;  the 
brackish  water,  and  the  fringe  of  nipa-palms  which 
accompanies  it,  consequently  extending  several  leagues 
into  the  country.  Coco  plantations  stretch  behind 
them;  and  there  the  floods  of  water  (avenidas),  which 
sometimes  take  place  in  consequence  of  the  narrow  rocky 
bed  of  the  upper  part  of  the  river,  cause  great  devasta- 
tion, as  was  evident  from  the  mutilated  palms  which,  torn 
away  from  their  standing-place,  rise  up  out  of  the 
middle  of  the  river.  After  five  hours'  rowing  we  passed 
out  of  the  flat  country  into  a  narrow  valley,  with  steep 
sides  of  marble,  which  progressively  closed  in  and 
became  higher.  In  several  places  they  are  under- 
washed,  cleft,  and  hurled  over  each  other,  and  with  their 
naked  side-walls  form  a  beautiful  contrast  to  the  blue 
sky,  the  clear,  greenish  river,  and  the  luxuriant  lianas, 
which,  attaching  themselves  to  every  inequality  to  which 
they  could  cling,  hung  in  long  garlands  over  the  rocks. 

A  frontage.  The  Stream  became  so  rapid  and  so  shallow  that  the 

party  disembarked  and  dragged  the  boat  over  the  stony 
bed.  In  this  manner  we  passed  through  a  sharp  curve, 
twelve  feet  in  height,  formed  by  two  rocks  thrown 
opposite  to  each  other,  into  a  tranquil  oval-shaped  basin 
of  water  enclosed  in  a  circle  of  limestone  walls,  inclining 
inwards,  of  from  sixty  to  seventy  feet  in  height;  on  the 
upper  edge  of  which  a  circle  of  trees  permitted  only  a 
misty  sunlight  to  glimmer  through  the  thick  foliage. 
A  magnificent  gateway  of  rock,  fifty  to  sixty  feet  high, 
and  adorned  with  numerous  stalactites,  raised  itself  up 
opposite  the  low  entrance;  and  through  it  we  could  see, 
at  some  distance,  the  upper  portion  of  the  river  bathed 

A  beautiful  in  the  sun.  A  cavern  of  a  hundred  feet  in  length,  and 
easily  climbed,  opened  itself  in  the  left  side  of  the  oval 
court,  some  sixty  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water; 
and  it  ended  in  a  small  gateway,  through  which  you 


grotto. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S51 

stepped  on  to  a  projection  like  a  balcony,  studded  with 
stalactites.  From  this  point  both  the  landscape  and  the 
rocky  cauldron  are  visible,  and  the  latter  is  seen  to  be 
the  remainder  of  a  stalactitic  cavern,  the  roof  of  which 
has  fallen  in.  The  beauty  and  peculiar  character  of  the 
place  have  been  felt  even  by  the  natives,  who  have  called 
it  Sogoton  (properly,  a  bay  in  the  sea).  In  the  very 
hard  limestone,  which  is  like  marble,  I  observed  traces 
of  bivalves  and  multitudes  of  spines  of  the  sea-urchin, 
but  no  well-defined  remains  could  be  knocked  off.  The 
river  could  still  be  followed  a  short  distance  further 
upwards;  and  in  its  bed  there  were  disjointed  fragments 
of  talcose  and  chloritic  rocks. 

A  few  small  fishes  were  obtained  with  much  difficulty;  Fishing- 
and  amongst  them  was  a  new  and  interesting  species, 
viviparous.*  An  allied  species  (H.  fluviatilis,  Bleeker) 
which  I  had  two  years  previously  found  in  a  limestone 
cavern  on  Nusa  Kambangan,  in  Java,  likewise  contained 
living  young  ones.  The  net  employed  in  fishing  appears 
to  be  suited  to  the  locality,  which  is  a  shallow  river, 
full  of  transparent  blocks.  It  is  a  fine-meshed,  longish, 
four-cornered  net,  having  its  ample  sides  fastened  to 
two  poles  of  bamboo,  which  at  the  bottom  were  provided 
with  a  kind  of  wooden  shoes,  which  curve  upwards 
towards  the  stems  when  pushed  forwards.  The  fisher- 
man, taking  hold  of  the  upper  ends  of  the  poles,  pushes 
the  net,  which  is  held  obliquely  before  him,  and  the 
wooden  shoes  cause  it  to  slide  over  the  stones,  while 
another  person  drives  the  fish  towards  him. 

On  the  right  bank,  below  the  cavern,  and  twenty  feet  Fossu  beds. 
above  the  surface  of  the  water,  there  are  beds  of  fossils, 
pectunculus,  tapes,  and  placuna,  some  of  which,  from 
the  fact  of  their  barely  adhering  by  the  tip,  must  be  of 
very  recent  date.     I  passed  the  night  in  a  small  hut, 

*    Hemiramphus  tiviparus,  W.  Peters  {Berlin  Monatsb.,  March  16,  1865). 


S52  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

which  was  quickly  erected  for  me,  and  on  the  following 
day  attempted  to  pass  up  the  river  as  far  as  the  limits 
of  the  cyrstalline  rock,  but  in  vain.  In  the  afternoon 
we  set  out  on  our  return  to  Basey,  which  we  reached  at 
night. 
decent  elevation  Basey  is  situated  on  a  bank  of  clay,  about  fifty  feet 
.0/  coast.  above  the  sea,  which  towards  the  west  elevates  itself  into  a 

hill  several  hundred  feet  in  height,  and  with  steep  sides. 
At  twenty-five  to  thirty  feet  above  the  sea  I  found  the 
same  recent  beds  of  mussels  as  in  the  stalactitic  cavern 
of  Sogoton.  From  the  statements  of  the  parish  priest 
and  of  other  persons,  a  rapid  elevation  of  the  coasts 
seems  to  be  taking  place  in  this  country.  Thirty  years 
ago  ships  could  lie  alongside  the  land  in  three  fathoms 
ofwater  at  the  flood,  whereas  the  depth  at  the  same  place 
now  is  not  much  more  than  one  fathom.  Immediately 
opposite  to  Basey  lie  two  small  islands,  Genamok  and 
Tapontonan,  which,  at  the  present  time,  appear  to  be 
surrounded  by  a  sandbank  at  the  lowest  ebb-tide. 
Twenty  years  ago  nothing  of  the  kind  was  to  be  seen. 
Supposing  these  particulars  to  be  correct,  we  must  next 
ascertain  what  proportion  of  these  changes  of  level  is 
due  to  the  floods,  and  how  much  to  volcanic  elevation; 
which,  if  we  may  judge  by  the  neighboring  active  sol- 
fatara  at  Leyte,  must  always  be  of  considerable  amount. 
•Crocodiles.  As  the  pricst  assured  us,  there  are  crocodiles  in  the 

river  Basey  over  thirty  feet  in  length,  those  in  excess 
of  twenty  feet  being  numerous.  The  obliging  father 
promised  me  one  of  at  least  twenty-four  feet,  whose 
skeleton  I  would  gladly  have  secured;  and  he  sent  out 
some  men  who  are  so  practised  in  the  capture  of  these 
animals  that  they  are  dispatched  to  distant  places  for 
the  purpose.  Their  contrivance  for  capturing  them, 
which  I,  however,  never  personally  witnessed,  consists 
of  a  light  raft  of  bamboo,  with  a  stage,  on  which,  several 


r 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  333 

feet  above  the  water,  a  dog  or  a  cat  is  bound.  Along- 
side the  animal  is  placed  a  strong  iron  hook,  which  is 
fastened  to  the  swimming  bamboo  by  means  of  fibers 
of  abaca.  The  crocodile,  when  it  has  swallowed  the 
bait  and  the  hook  at  the  same  time,  endeavors  in  vain 
to  get  away,  for  the  pliability  of  the  raft  prevents  its 
being  torn  to  pieces,  and  the  peculiar  elasticity  of  the 
bundle  of  fibers  prevents  its  being  bitten  through.  The 
raft  serves  likewise  as  a  buoy  for  the  captured  animal. 
According  to  the  statements  of  the  hunters,  the  large 
crocodiles  live  far  from  human  habitations,  generally 
selecting  the  close  vegetation  in  an  oozy  swamp,  in  which 
their  bellies,  dragging  heavily  along,  leave  trails  behind 
them  which  betray  them  to  the  initiated.  After  a  week 
the  priest  mentioned  that  his  party  had  sent  in  three 
crocodiles,  the  largest  of  which,  however,  measured  only 
eighteen  feet,  but  that  he  had  not  kept  one  for  me,  as  he 
hoped  to  obtain  one  of  thirty  feet.  His  expectation, 
however,  was  not  fulfilled. 

In  the  environs  of  Basey  the  Ignatius  bean  grows  in 
remarkable  abundance,  as  it  also  does  in  the  south  of 
Samar  and  in  some  other  of  the  Bisayan  islands.  It 
is  not  met  with  in  Luzon,  but  it  is  very  likely  that  I 
have  introduced  it  there  unwittingly.  Its  sphere  of 
propagation  is  very  limited;  and  my  attempts  to  trans- 
plant it  to  the  Botanical  Garden  of  Buitenzorg  were 
fruitless.  Some  large  plants  intended  for  that  purpose, 
which  during  my  absence  arrived  for  me  at  Daraga, 
were  incorporated  by  one  of  my  patrons  into  his  own 
garden;  and  some,  which  were  collected  by  himself  and 
brought  to  Manila,  were  afterwards  lost.  Every  effort 
to  get  these  seeds  (kernels),  which  are  used  over  the 
whole  of  Eastern  Asia  as  medicine,  to  germinate  mis- 


Ignaliits  bean^ 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Strychnine. 


Cholera  and 

snake-bite 

cure. 


carried,  they  having  been  boiled  before  transmission, 
ostensibly  for  their  preservation,  but  most  probably 
to  secure  the  monopoly  of  them. 

According  to  Flueckinger,*  the  gourd-shaped  berry 
of  the  climbing  shrub  {Ignatia  amara,  L.  Strychnos 
Ignatii,  Berg.  Ignatiana  Philippinica.  Lour.)  contains 
twenty-four  irregular  egg-shaped  seeds  of  the  size  of  an 
inch  which,  however,  are  not  so  poisonous  as  the  Ig- 
natius beans,  which  taste  like  crack-nuts.  In  these 
seeds  strychnine  was  found  by  Pelletier  and  Caventou 
in  1818,  as  it  subsequently  was  in  crack-nuts.  The 
former  contained  twice  as  much  of  it  as  the  latter,  viz. 
one  and  a  half  per  cent;  but,  as  they  are  four  times  as 
dear,  it  is  only  produced  from  the  latter. 

In  many  households  in  the  Philippines  the  dangerous 
drug  is  to  be  found  as  a  highly  prized  remedy,  under  the 
name  of  Pepita  de  Catbalonga.  Gemelli  Careri  mentions 
it,  and  quotes  thirteen  different  uses  of  it.  Dr.  Rosenthal 
("Synopsis  Plantarum  Diaphor."  p.  363)  says: — "In 
India  it  has  been  employed  as  a  remedy  against  cholera 
under  the  name  of  Papeda."  Papecta  is  probably  a 
clerical  error.  In  K.  Lall  Dey's  "Indigenous  Drugs 
of  India,"  it  is  called  Papeeta,  which  is  pronounced 
Pepita  in  English;  and  Pepita  is  the  Spanish  word  for 
the  kernel  of  a  fruit.  It  is  also  held  in  high  estimation  as  an 
antidote  for  the  bite  of  serpents.  Father  Blanco  ("Flora 
of  the  Philippines,"  61),  states  that  he  has  more  than 
once  proved  its  efficacy  in  this  respect  in  his  own  person; 
but  he  cautions  against  its  employment  internally,  as 
it  had  been  fatal  in  very  many  cases.  It  should  not  be 
taken  into  the  mouth,  for  should  the  spittle  be  swallowed, 
and  vomiting  not  ensue,  death  would  be  inevitable. 
The  parish  priest  of  Tabaco,   however,   almost  always 


*  Lehrbuch    der    Pharmakognosie    dea    Pflauzenreichs    (Compendium    of    the 
"Pharmacopoeia  of  the  Vegetable  Kingdom,")  p.  698. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S56 

carried  a  pepita  in  his  mouth.  From  1842  he  began 
occasionally  to  take  an  Ignatius  bean  into  his  mouth 
as  a  protection  against  cholera,  and  so  gradually  accus- 
tomed himself  to  it.  When  I  met  him  in  1860  he  was 
quite  well,  and  ascribed  his  health  and  vigor  expressly 
to  that  habit.  According  to  his  communication,  in 
cases  of  cholera  the  decoction  was  successfully  adminis- 
tered in  small  doses  introduced  into  tea;  but  it  was  most 
efficacious  when,  mixed  with  brandy,  it  was  applied  as 
a  liniment. 

Hue  also  ("Thibet,"  I.  252)  commends  the  expressed  supersutioiu 
juice  of  the  kouo-kouo  {{Faha  Ign.  amar.),  both  for  "Bisa^o""'* 
internal  and  external  use,  and  remarks  that  it  plays  a  bean. 
great  part  in  Chinese  medicine,  no  apothecary's  shop 
being  without  it.  Formerly  the  poisonous  drug  was 
considered  a  charm,  as  it  is  still  by  many.  Father 
Camel*  states  that  the  Catbalogan  or  Bisayan-bean, 
which  the  Indians  call  Igasur  or  Mananaog  (the  vic- 
torious), was  generally  worn  as  an  amulet  round  the 
neck,  being  a  preservative  against  poison,  contagion, 
magic,  and  philtres,  so  potent,  indeed,  that  the  Devil 
in  propia  persona  could  not  harm  the  wearer.  Especially 
efficacious  is  it  against  a  poison  communicated  by 
breathing  upon  one,  for  not  only  does  it  protect  the 
wearer,  but  it  kills  the  individual  who  wishes  to  poison 
him.  Camel  further  mentions  a  series  of  miracles  which 
superstition  ascribed  to  the   Ignatius  bean. 

On  the  southern  half  of  the  eastern  border,  on  the  Coconuts. 
shore  from  Borongan  by  Lauang  as  far  as  Guiuan,  there 
are  considerable  plantations  of  cocos,  which  are  most 
imperfectly  applied  to  the  production  of  oil.  From 
Borongan  and  its  visitas  twelve  thousand  pitchers  of 
coconut  oil  are  yearly  exported  to  Manila,  and  the  nuts 
consumed  by  men  and  pigs  would  suffice  for  at  least 

*  Philos.  Trans.  1699,  No.  249,  pages  44,  87. 


256  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

eight  thousand  pitchers.  As  a  thousand  nuts  yield  eight 
pitchers  and  a  half,  the  vicinity  of  Borongan  alone  yields 
annually  six  million  nuts ;  for  which,  assuming  the 
average  produce  at  fifty  nuts,  one  hundred-twenty 
thousand  fullbearing  palms  are  required.  The  state- 
ment that  their  number  in  the  above-mentioned  district 
amounts  to  several  millions  must  be  an  exaggeration. 

Getiing  coco  oil.  The  oil  is  obtained  in  a  very  rude  manner.  The 
kernel  is  rasped  out  of  the  woody  shell  of  the  nut  on 
rough  boards,  and  left  to  rot;  and  a  few  boats  in  a  state 
of  decay,  elevated  on  posts  in  the  open  air,  serve  as 
reservoirs,  the  oil  dropping  through  their  crevices  into 
pitchers  placed  underneath;  and  finally  the  boards  are 
subjected  to  pressure.  This  operation,  which  requires 
several  months  for  its  completion,  yields  such  a  bad, 
dark-brown,  and  viscid  product  that  the  pitcher  fetches 
only  two  dollars  and  a  quarter  in  Manila,  while  a 
superior  oil  costs  six  dollars.* 

Oil  factory.  Recently  a  young  Spaniard  has  erected  a  factory  in 

Borongan  for  the  better  preparation  of  oil.  A  winch, 
turned  by  two  carabaos,  sets  a  number  of  rasps  in 
motion  by  means  of  toothed  wheels  and  leather  straps. 
They  are  somewhat  like  a  gimlet  in  form,  and  consist 
of  five  iron  plates,  with  dentated  edges,  which  are  placed 
radiating  on  the  end  of  an  iron  rod,  and  close  together, 
forming  a  blunt  point  towards  the  front.  The  other 
end  of  the  rod  passes  through  the  center  of  a  disk,  which 
communicates  the  rotary  motion  to  it,  and  projects 
beyond  it.  The  workman,  taking  a  divided  coconut 
in  his  two  hands,  holds  its  interior  arch,  which  contains 
the  oil-bearing  nut,  with  a  firm  pressure  against  the 
revolving  rasp,  at  the  same  time  urging  with  his  breast. 


*  At  Borongan  the  tinaja  of  12  gantas  cost  six  reals  (one  quart  about  two 
pesetas),  the  pet  two  reals,  the  freight  to  Manila  three  reals,  or,  if  the  product 
is  carried  as  cargo  (matrose),  two  and  one-half  reals.  The  price  at  Manila 
refers  to  the  tinaja  of  sixteen  gantas. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  _  .  $57 

which  is  protected  by  a  padded  board,  against  the  pro- 
jecting end  of  the  rod.  The  fine  shreds  of  the  nut 
remain  for  twelve  hours  in  flat  pans,  in  order  that  they 
may  be  partially  decomposed.  They  are  then  lightly 
pressed  in  hand-presses;  and  the  liquor,  which  consists 
of  one-third  oil  and  two-thirds  water,  is  caught  in  tubs, 
from  which,  at  the  end  of  six  hours,  the  oil,  floating  on 
the  surface,  is  skimmed  ofl".  It  is  then  heated  in  iron 
pans,  containing  100  liters,  until  the  whole  of  the  water 
in  it  has  evaporated,  which  takes  from  two  to  three 
hours.  In  order  that  the  oil  may  cool  rapidly,  and  not 
become  dark  in  color,  two  pailfuls  of  cold  oil,  freed  from 
water,  are  poured  into  it,  and  the  fire  quickly  removed 
to  a  distance.  The  compressed  shreds  are  once  more 
exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  and  then  subjected  to  a 
powerful  pressure.  After  these  two  operations  have 
been  twice  repeated,  the  rasped  substance  is  suspended 
in  sacks  between  two  strong  vertical  boards  and  crushed 
to  the  utmost  by  means  of  clamp  screws,  and  repeatedly 
shaken  up.  The  refuse  serves  as  food  for  pigs.  The 
oil  which  runs  from  the  sacks  is  free  from  water,  and  is 
consequently  very  clear,  and  is  employed  in  the  cooling 
of  that  which  is  obtained  in  the  first  instance.* 

The  factory  produces  fifteen  hundred  tinajas  of  oil.  Limited  output. 
It  is  in  operation  only  nine  months  in  the  year ;  from 
December  to  February  the  transport  of  nuts  being  pre- 
vented by  the  tempestuous  seas,  there  being  no  land 
communication.  The  manufacturer  was  not  successful 
in  procuring  nuts  from  the  immediate  vicinity  in  suffi- 
cient quantity  to  enable  him  to  carry  on  his  operations 


*  Newly  prepared  coconut  oil  serves  for  cooking,  but  quickly  becomes  rancid. 
It  is  very  generally  used  for  lighting.  In  Europe,  where  it  seldom  appears  in  a 
fluid  state,  as  it  does  not  dissolve  until  16°  R.,  (20  C.  or  68  Fahr.)  it  is  used  in  the 
manufacture  of  tapers,  but  especially  for  soap,  for  which  it  is  peculiarly  adapted. 
Coconut  soap  is  very  hard,  and  brilliantly  white,  and  is  dissolved  in  salt  water 
more  easily  than  any  other  soap.  The  oily  nut  has  lately  been  imported  from 
Brazil  into  England  under  the  name  of  "copperah,"  (copra)  and  pressed  after 
heating. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Illogical 
business. 


Siigar  venders. 


Disproportion- 
ate prices. 


without  interruption,  nor,  during  the  favorable  season 
of  the  year,  could  he  lay  up  a  store  for  the  winter  months, 
although  he  paid  the  comparatively  high  price  of  three 
dollars  per  thousand. 

While  the  natives  manufactured  oil  in  the  manner 
just  described,  they  obtained  from  a  thousand  nuts 
three  and  a  half  pots,  which,  at  six  reals  each,  fetched 
twenty-one  reals;  that  is  three  reals  less  than  was 
offered  them  for  the  raw  nuts.  These  data,  which  are 
obtained  from  the  manufacturers,  are  probably  exagger- 
ated, but  they  are  in  the  main  well  founded;  and  the 
traveller  in  the  Philippines  often  has  the  opportunity 
of  observing  similar  anomalies.  For  example,  in  Daet, 
North  Camarines,  I  bought  six  coconuts  for  one  cuarto, 
at  the  rate  of  nine  hundred  and  sixty  for  one  dollar, 
the  common  price  there.  On  my  asking  why  no  oil- 
factory  had  been  erected,  I  received  for  answer  that  the 
nuts  were  cheaper  singly  than  in  quantities.  In  the 
first  place,  the  native  sells  only  when  he  wants  money; 
but  he  knows  that  the  manufacturer  cannot  well  afford 
to  have  his  business  suspended;  so,  careless  of  the  result, 
he  makes  a  temporary  profit,  and  never  thinks  of  ensuring 
for  himself  a  permanent  source  of  income. 

In  the  province  of  Laguna,  where  the  natives  prepare 
coarse  brown  sugar  from  sugar-cane,  the  women  carry 
it  for  leagues  to  the  market,  or  expose  it  for  sale  on  the 
country  roads,  in  small  loaves  (panoche),  generally 
along  with  buyo.  Every  passenger  chats  with  the  seller, 
weighs  the  loaf  in  the  hand,  eats  a  bit,  and  probably 
passes  on  without  buying  any.  In  the  evening  the 
woman  returns  to  her  home  with  her  wares,  and  the 
next  day  repeats  the  same  process. 

I  have  lost  my  special  notes,  but  I  remember  that 
in  two  cases  at  least  the  price  of  the  sugar  in  these 
loaves  was  cheaper  than  by  the  picul.     Moreover,  the 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S39 

Government  of  the  day  anticipated  the  people  in  setting 
the  example,  by  selling  cigars  cheaper  singly  than  in 
quantities. 

In  Europe  a  speculator  generally  can  calculate  before- 
hand, with  the  greatest  certainty,  the  cost  of  production 
of  any  article;  but  in  the  Philippines  it  is  not  always  so 
easy.  Independently  of  the  uncertainty  of  labor,  the 
regularity  of  the  supply  of  raw  material  is  disturbed, 
not  only  by  laziness  and  caprice,  but  also  by  jealousy 
and  distrust.  The  natives,  as  a  rule,  do  not  willingly 
see  Europeans  settle  amongst  them  and  engage  success- 
fully in  local  operations  which  they  themselves  do  not 
understand  how  to  execute;  and  in  like  manner  the 
Creoles  are  reserved  with  foreigners,  who  generally  are 
superior  to  them  in  capital,  skill,  and  activity.  Besides 
jealousy,  suspicion  also  plays  a  great  part,  and  this 
influences  the  native  as  well  against  the  mestizo  as  against 
the  Castilian.  Enough  takes  place  to  the  present  day 
to  justify  this  feeling;  but  formerly,  when  the  most 
thrifty  subjects  could  buy  governorships,  and  shame- 
lessly fleece  their  provinces,  such  outrageous  abuses  are 
said  to  have  been  permitted  until,  in  process  of  time, 
suspicion  has  become  a  kind  of  instinct  amongst  the 
Filipinos. 


Uncertaii 
trading. 


XXI 

The  island  of  Leyte,  between  9°  49'  and  11°  34'  N.,  Leyte 
and  124°  7'  and  125°  9'  E.  Gr.,  is  above  twenty-five 
miles  in  length,  and  almost  twelve  miles  broad,  and 
contains  one  hundred  seventy  square  miles.  As  I 
have  already  remarked,  it  is  divided  from  Samar  only  by 
the  small  strait  of  San  Juanico.  The  chief  town,  Ta- 
cloban  or  Taclobang,  lies  at  the  eastern  entrance  of  this 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Obliging 
Spanish  ofv- 
dais. 


Locusts. 


Strait,  with  a  very  good  harbor  and  uninterrupted  com- 
munication with  Manila,  and  has  consequently  become 
the  chief  emporium  of  trade  to  Leyte,  Biliran,  and  South 
and  East  Samar.* 

The  local  governor  likewise  showed  me  much  obliging 
attention;  indeed,  almost  without  exception  I  have, 
since  my  return,  retained  the  most  agreeable  remem- 
brances of  the  Spanish  officials;  and,  therefore,  if  fitting 
opportunity  occurred,  I  could  treat  of  the  improprieties 
of  the  Administration  with  greater  impartiality. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  day  after  my  arrival  at  Taclo- 
ban,  on  a  sudden  there  came  a  sound  like  the  rush  of  a 
furious  torrent;  the  air  became  dark,  and  a  large  cloud 
of  locusts  swept  over  the  place. f  I  will  not  again  re- 
count that  phenomenon,  which  has  been  so  often  de- 
scribed, and  is  essentially  the  same  in  all  quarters  of  the 
globe,  but  will  simply  remark  that  the  swarm,  which  was 
more  than  five  hundred  feet  in  width,  and  about  fifty 
feet  in  depth,  its  extremity  being  lost  in  the  forest,  was 
not  thought  a  very  considerable  one.  It  caused  vigi- 
lance, but  not  consternation.  Old  and  young  eagerly 
endeavored  to  catch  as  many  of  the  delicate  creatures 
as  they  could,  with  cloths,  nets,  and  flags,  in  order,  as 
Dampier  relates,  "to  roast  them  in  an  earthen  pan  over 
fire  until  their  legs  and  wings  drop  off,  and  their  heads 
and  backs  assume  the  color  of  boiled  crabs;"  after  which 


*  On  Pigafetta's  map  Leyte  is  divided  into  two  parts,  the  north  being  called 
Baibay,  and  the  south  Ceylon.  When  Magellan  in  Massana  (Limasana) 
inquired  after  the  most  considerable  places  of  business,  Ceylon  (i.  e.  Leyte), 
Calagan  (Caraga),  and  Zubu  (Cebu)  were  named  to  him.     Pigaf.,  70. 

t  According  to  Dr.  Gerstaceker:  Oedipoda  subfasciala,  Haan,  Acridium  Mani- 
lense,  Meyen.  The  designation  of  Meyen  which  the  systemists  must  have 
overlooked,  has  the  priority  of  Haan's;  but  it  requires  to  be  altered  to  Oedipoda 
Manilensis,  as  the  species  does  not  belong  to  the  genus  acridium  in  the  modem 
sense.  It  occurs  also  in  Luzon  and  in  Timor,  and  is  closely  allied  to  our  European 
migratory  locusts   Oedipoda   migratoria. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  361 

process  he  says  they  had  a  pleasant  taste.  In  Burma 
at  the  present  day,  they  are  considered  as  deHcacies 
at  the  royal  court.* 

The  locusts  are  one  of  the  greatest  plagues  of  the  P^an  for  their 
Philippines,  and  sometimes  destroy  the  harvest  of  entire 
provinces.  The  Legislacion  Ultramarina  (iv.  604)  con- 
tains a  special  edict  respecting  the  extirpation  of  these 
devastating  pests.  As  soon  as  they  appear,  the  popula- 
tion of  the  invaded  localities  are  to  be  drawn  out  in  the 
greatest  possible  numbers,  under  the  conduct  of  the 
authorities,  in  order  to  effect  their  destruction.  The 
most  approved  means  for  the  attainment  of  this  object 
are  set  forth  in  an  official  document  referring  to  the  adop- 
tion of  extraordinary  measures  in  cases  of  public  emer- 
gency; and  in  this  the  locusts  are  placed  midway  be- 
tween sea-pirates  and  conflagrations.  Of  the  various 
means  that  have  been  contrived  against  the  destructive 
creatures,  that,  at  times,  appear  in  incredible  numbers, 
but  have  been  as  frequently  ineffectual  as  otherwise,  only 
a  few  will  be  now  mentioned.  On  April  27, 1824,  the  Socie- 
dadEconomica  determined  to  import  the  bird,  the  martin 
(Gracula  sp.),  "which  feeds  by  instinct  on  locusts."  In 
the  autumn  of  the  following  year  the  first  consignment 
arrived  from  China;  in  1829  a  second;  and  in  1852  again 
occurs  the  item  of  $1,311  for  martins. 

On  the  following  day  I  proceeded  with  the  priest  of  Tadoban  to 
Dagami  (there  are  roads  in  Leyte)  from  Tacloban  south-  Tanauan. 
wards  to  Palos  and  Tanauan,  two  flourishing  places  on 
the  east  coast.  Hardly  half  a  league  from  the  latter  place, 
and  close  to  the  sea,  a  cliff  of  crystal  lime  rock  rises  up 
out  of  the  sandy  plain,  which  was  level  up  to  this  point. 
It  is  of  a  greyish-green  quartzose  chlorite  schist,  from 

*  After  the  king  had  withdrawn  *  *  *  "sweetmeats  and  cakes  in  abun- 
dance were  brought,  and  also  roasted  locusts,  which  were  pressed  upon  the  guests 
as  great  delicacies." — "Col.  Fytche's  Mission  to  Mandalay  Parliament,"  Papers, 
June,  1869. 


S62  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

which  the  enterprising  Father  had  endeavored,  with 
a  perseverance  worthy  of  better  success,  to  procure  hme 
by  burning.  After  an  ample  breakfast  in  the  convent, 
we  proceeded  in  the  afternoon  to  Dagami,  and,  on  the 
next  day,  to  Burauen.* 
A  pleasing  /pj^^   country   was   still   flat.     Coco-groves   and   rice- 

people. 

fields  here  and  there  interrupted  the  thick  forest;  but  the 
country  is  thinly  inhabited,  and  the  people  appear  more 
cheerful,  handsomer,  and  cleaner  than  those  of  Samar. 
South  of  Burauen  rises  the  mountain  ridge  of  Manacagan, 
on  the  further  slope  of  which  is  a  large  solfatara,  which 
yields  sulphur  for  the  powder  manufactory  in  Manila, 
and  for  commerce.  A  Spanish  sailor  accompanied  me. 
Where  the  road  passed  through  swamp  we  rode  on  cara- 
baos.  The  pace  of  the  animals  is  not  unpleasant,  but 
the  stretching  across  the  broad  backs  of  the  gigantic 
carabaos  of  the  Philippines  is  very  fatiguing.  A  quarter 
of  an  hour  beyond  Burauen  we  crossed  the  Daguitan, 
which  flows  south-west  to  north-east,  and  is  a  hundred 
feet  broad,  its  bed  being  full  of  large  volcanic  blo2ks; 
and,  soon  after,  a  small  river  in  a  broad  bed;  and,  some 
hundred  paces  farther,  one  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet 
in  breadth;  the  two  latter  being  arms  of  the  Burauen. 
They  flow  from  west  to  east,  and  enter  the  sea  at  Dulag. 
The  second  arm  was  originated  only  the  preceding  year, 
during  a  flood. 
The  height  of  We  passcd  the  night  in  a  hut  on  the  northern  slope  of 

the  Manacagan,  which  the  owner,  on  seeing  us  approach, 
had  voluntarily  quitted,  and  with  his  wife  and  child 
sought  other  lodgings.  The  customs  of  the  country 
require  this  when  the  accommodation  does  not  suffice 
for  both  parties;  and  payment  for  the  same  is  neither 
demanded  nor,  except  very  rarely,  tendered. 

*  The  names  of  these  two  localities,  on  Coello's  map,  are  confounded.     Bura- 
uen lies  south  of  Dagami. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S6S 

About  six  o'clock  on  the  following  morning  we  started;  Up  the 
and  about  half-past  six  climbed,  by  a  pleasant  path  ^^"""""i""' 
through  the  forest,  to  the  ridge  of  the  Manacagan,  which 
consists  of  trachytic  hornblende;  and  about  seven  o'clock 
we  crossed  two  small  rivers  flowing  north-west,  and  then, 
by  a  curve,  reached  the  coast  at  Dulag.  From  the 
ridge  we  caught  sight,  towards  the  south,  of  the  great 
white  heaps  of  debris  of  the  mountain  Danan  glimmering 
through  the  trees.  About  nine  o'clock  we  came  through 
the  thickly-wooded  crater  of  the  Kasiboi,  and,  further 
south,  to  some  sheds  in  which  the  sulphur  is  smelted. 

The  raw  material  obtained  from  the  solfatara  is  Suipkur. 
bought  in  three  classes:  firstly,  sulphur  already  melted 
to  crusts;  secondly,  sublimated,  which  contains  much 
condensed  water  in  its  interstices;  and  thirdly,  in  the 
clay,  which  is  divided  into  the  more  or  less  rich,  from 
which  the  greatest  quantity  is  obtained.  Coconut 
oil,  which  is  thrown  into  flat  iron  pans  holding  six  arrobas, 
is  added  to  the  sulphurous  clay,  in  the  proportion  of  six 
quarts  to  four  arrobas,  and  it  is  melted  and  continually 
stirred.  The  clay  which  floats  on  the  surface,  now  freed 
from  the  sulphur,  being  skimmed  off,  fresh  sulphurous 
clay  is  thrown  into  the  cauldron,  and  so  on.  In  two  or 
three  hours  six  arrobas  of  sulphur,  on  an  average,  may 
be  obtained  in  this  manner  from  twenty-four  arrobas 
of  sulphurous  clay,  and,  poured  into  wooden  chests,  it  is 
moulded  into  blocks  of  about  four  arrobas.  Half  the 
oil  employed  is  recovered  by  throwing  the  clay  which 
has  been  saturated  with  it  into  a  frame  formed  by 
two  narrow  bamboo  hurdles,  placed  at  a  sharp  angle. 
The  oil  drops  into  a  sloping  gutter  of  bamboo  which  is 
placed  underneath,  and  from  that  flows  into  a  pot. 
The  price  of  the  sulphur  at  Manila  varies  between  prices. 
$1.25  and  $4.50  per  picul.  I  saw  the  frames,  full  of  clay, 
from  which  the  oil  exuded ;  but  the  operation  itself  I  did 


264 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Hot  spring. 


A  solfaiara. 


not,  unfortunately,  then  witness,  and  I  cannot  explain 
in  what  manner  the  oil  is  added.  From  some  experi- 
ments made  on  a  small  scale,  therefore  under  essentially 
different  conditions,  and  never  with  the  same  material, 
it  appeared  that  the  oil  accelerates  the  separation  of  the 
sulphur,  and  retards  the  access  of  the  air  to  the  sulphur. 
In  these  experiments,  the  sulphur  contained  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  crucible  was  always  colored  black  by  the  sepa- 
ration of  charcoal  from  the  oil,  and  it  was  necessary 
to  purify  it  by  distillation  beforehand.  Of  this,  however, 
the  smelters  at  Leyte  made  no  mention,  and  they  even 
had  no  apparatus  for  the  purpose,  while  their  sulphur 
was  of  a  pure  yellow  color. 

Some  hundreds  of  paces  further  south,  a  hot  spring 
(50°  R.),*  twelve  feet  broad,  flows  from  the  east,  deposit- 
ing silicious  sinter  at  its  edges. 

As  we  followed  a  ravine  stretching  from  north  to  south, 
with  sides  one  hundred  to  two  hundred  feet  in  height, 
the  vegetation  gradually  ceased,  the  rock  being  of  a 
dazzling  white,  or  colored  by  sublimated  sulphur.  In 
numerous  places  thick  clouds  of  vapor  burst  from  the 
ground,  with  a  strong  smell  of  sulphurated  water.  At 
some  thousand  paces  further,  the  ravine  bends  round 
to  the  left  (east),  and  expands  itself  to  the  bay;  and  here 
numerous  silicious  springs  break  through  the  loose 
clay-earth,  which  is  permeated  with  sulphur.  This 
solfatara  must  formerly  have  been  much  more  active 
than  it  is  now.  The  ravine,  which  has  been  formed  by 
its  destruction  of  the  rock,  and  is  full  of  lofty  heaps  of 
debris,  may  be  one  thousand  feet  in  breadth,  and  quite 
five  times  as  long.  At  the  east  end  there  are  a  number 
of  small,  boiling  quagmires,  which,  on  forcing  a  stick 
into  the  matted  ground,   send   forth  water  and  steam. 


♦  62.5  Cent,  or  144.5  Fahr.— C. 


r 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S65 

In  some  deep  spots  further  west,  grey,  white,  red,  and 
yellow  clays  have  been  deposited  in  small  beds  over  each 
other,  giving  them  the  appearance  of  variegated  marls. 

To  the  south,  right  opposite  to  the  ridge  which  leads  to  Petrifying 
Burauen,  may  be  seen  a  basin  twenty-five  feet  broad,  ""''^'^ 
in  a  cavern' in  the  white  decomposed  rock,  from  which 
a  petrifying  water  containing  silicious  acid  flows  abun- 
dantly. The  roof  of  the  cavern  is  hung  with  stalactites, 
which  either  are  covered  with  solid  sulphur,  or  consist 
entirely  of  that  substance. 

On  the  upper  slope  of  the  Danan  mountain,  near  to  the  Danan 
summit,  so  much  sulphur  is  deposited  by  the  vapors  from  ^'''•^"''"■°- 
the  sulphurated  water  that  it  may  be  collected  with 
coconut  shells.  In  some  crevices,  which  are  protected 
against  the  cooling  effects  of  the  atmospheric  air,  it 
melts  together  in  thick,  brown  crusts.  The  solfatara 
of  Danan  is  situated  exactly  south  of  that  below,  at  the 
end  of  the  ravine  of  the  Kasiboi.  The  clay  earth,  from 
which  the  silicic  acid  has  been  washed  out  by  the  rains, 
is  carried  into  the  valley,  where  it  forms  a  plain,  the 
greater  part  of  which  is  occupied  by  a  small  lake,  Ma- 
laksan  (sour),  slightly  impregnated  with  sulphuric  acid. 
Its  surface,  which,  by  reason  of  the  very  flat  banks,  is 
protected  against  the  weather,  I  found  to  be  about 
five  hundred  paces  long  and  one  hundred  broad.  From 
the  elevation  of  the  solfatara,  a  rather  large  fresh-water 
lake,  surrounded  by  wooded  mountains,  is  seen  through 
a  gap,  exactly  south,  which  is  named  Jaruanan.  The 
night  was  passed  in  a  ruined  shed  at  the  south-east 
of  the  lake  Malaksan ;  and  on  the  following  morning  we 
climbed  the  south  side  of  the  mountain  ridge  and,  skirt- 
ing the  solfatara  of  the  Danan,  arrived  in  an  hour  and  a 
half  at  lake   Jaruanan. 

This  lake,  as  well  as  the  Malaksan,  inspires  the  natives  Jaruanan  Lake. 
with   superstitious    fear   on    account   of  the   suspicious 


see  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

neighborhood  of  the  solfatara,  and  therefore  has  not 
been  profaned  by  either  mariner,  fisher,  or  swimmer,  and 
was  very  full  of  fish.  For  the  purpose  of  measuring 
its  depth,  I  had  a  raft  of  bamboos  constructed;  and  when 
my  companions  saw  me  floating  safely  on  the  lake,  they 
all,  without  exception,  sprang  into  it,  and  tumbled  about 
in  the  water  with  infinite  delight  and  loud  outcries,  as  if 
they  wished  to  indemnify  themselves  for  their  long  ab- 
stinence; so  that  the  raft  was  not  ready  before  three 
o'clock.  The  soundings  at  the  centre  of  the  basin, 
which  was,  at  the  southern  edge,  steeper  than  on  the 
north,  gave  thirteen  brazas,  or  over  twenty-one  meters 
of  depth;  the  greatest  length  of  the  lake  amounted  to 
nearly  eight  hundred  varas  (six  hundred  and  sixty- 
eight  meters),  and  the  breadth  to  about  half  as  much. 
As  we  returned  in  the  evening,  by  torchlight,  over  the 
crest  of  the  mountain  to  our  night-quarters  at  the  lake, 
we  passed  by  the  very  modest  dwelling-place  of  a  married 
pair.  Three  branches,  projecting  outwards  from  the 
principal  trunk  of  a  tree,  and  lopped  at  equal  points, 
sustained  a  hut  of  bamboos  and  palm-leaves  of  eight 
feet  square.  A  hole  in  the  floor  formed  the  entrance, 
and  it  was  divided  into  a  chamber  and  ante-chamber, 
and  four  bamboo  poles  supported,  above  and  below, 
two  layers  of  bamboos,  one  of  which  furnished  a  balcony, 
and  the  other  a  shop  in  which  betel  was  sold. 
ToDuiag.  The   day   after   my   return   to   Burauen   an   obliging 

Spanish  merchant  drove  me  through  the  fertile  plain 
of  volcanic  sand,  on  which  rice,  maize,  and  sugar-cane 
were  cultivated,  to  Dulag,  which  lies  directly  to  the  west, 
on  the  shore  of  the  tranquil  sea.  The  distance  (accord- 
ing to  Coello  three  leagues)  hardly  amounts  to  two 
leagues.  From  this  place,  Point  Guiuan,  the  south  point 
of  Samar,  appears  like  an  island  separated  from  the 
mainland,  and  further  south  (N.  102°  4'  to  103°  65°  S.)  Jo- 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


S67 


monjol  is  seen,  the  first  island  of  the  Archipelago  sighted 
by  Magellan  on  April  16,  1521.  At  Dulag,  my  former 
companion  joined  us  in  order  to  accompany  us  on  the 
journey  to  the  Bito  Lake.  The  arrangement  of  trans- 
portation and  of  provisions,  and,  still  more,  the  due  con- 
sideration of  all  the  propositions  of  three  individuals, 
each  of  whose  claims  were  entitled  to  equal  respect, 
occupied  much  time  and  required  some  address.  We 
at  length  sailed  in  a  large  casco  (barge)  southwards 
along  the  coast  to  the  mouth  of  the  river  Mayo,  which,  Up  Mayo  River 
according  to  the  map  and  the  information  there  given, 
is  said  to  come  from  the  Bito  Lake.  We  proceeded 
upwards  in  a  boat,  but  were  informed  at  the  first  hut 
that  the  lake  could  be  reached  only  by  making  a  long 
circuit  through  swampy  forest;  when  most  of  our  party 
proposed  to  return.  Various  reasons  besides  the  want 
of  unanimity  in  the  conduct  of  our  adventure,  which  had 
proceeded  thus  far,  delayed  our  arrival  at  Abuyoj  until 
eleven  o'clock  at  night.  In  the  first  placs,  on  our 
way,  we  had  to  cross  a  small  branch  of  the  Mayo,  and 
after  that  the  Bito  River.  The  distance  of  the  latter 
from  Abuyog  (extravagantly  set  down  on  Coello's 
map)  amounts  to  fourteen  hundred  brazas,  according 
to  the  measurement  of  the  gobernadorcillo,  which  is  prob- 
ably correct.* 

The  following  day,  as  it  rained  heavily,  was  employed 
in  making  inquiries  respecting  the  road  to  the  Bito  Lake. 
We  received  very  varied  statements  as  to  the  distance, 
but  all  agreed  in  painting  the  road  thither  in  a  discour- 
aging light.  A  troublesome  journey  of  at  least  ten  hours 
appeared  to  us  to  be  what  most  probably  awaited  us. 

On  the  morrow,  through  a  pleasant  forest  road,  we 
reached  in  an  hour  the  Bito  River,  and  proceeded  in 
boats,  which  we  met  there,  up  the  river  between  flat 


An  unprnmisiny 
road. 


*  A  small  river  enters  the  sea  950  brazas  south  of  the  tower  of  Abuyog. 


S6S  THE  FORMEB  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

sandy  banks  covered  with  tall  cane  and  reeds.  In  about 
ten  minutes,  some  trees  fallen  right  across  the  stream 
compelled  us  to  make  a  circuit  on  land,  which  in  half 
an  hour  brought  us  again  to  the  river,  above  the  ob- 
stacles. Here  we  constructed  rafts  of  bamboo,  upon 
which,  immersed  to  the  depth  of  half  a  foot,  the  material 
being  very  loosely  adjusted,  we  reached  the  lake  in  ten 
minutes.  We  found  it  covered  with  green  confervae; 
a  double  border  of  pistia  and  broad-leaved  reed  grasses, 
six  to  seven  feet  high,  enclosing  it  all  round.  On  the 
south  and  west  some  low  hillocks  rose  up,  while  from 
the  middle  it  appeared  to  be  almost  circular,  with  a  girdle 
of  forest.  Coello  makes  the  lake  much  too  large  (four 
instead  of  one  square  mile),  and  its  distance  from  Abuyog 
can  be  only  a  little  over  a  league.  With  the  assistance 
of  a  cord  of  lianas  tied  together,  and  rods  placed  in  a 
line,  we  found  its  breadth  five  hundred  and  eighty-five 
brazas  or  nine  hundred  and  seventy-seven  meters, 
(in  the  broadest  part  it  might  be  a  little  over  one  thou- 
sand meters);  and  the  length,  as  computed  from  some 
imperfect  observations,  one  thousand  and  seven  brazas 
(sixteen  hundred  and  eighty  meters),  consequently 
less  than  one  square  mile.  Soundings  showed  a  gently 
inclined  basin,  eight  brazas,  or  over  thirteen  meters, 
deep  in  the  middle.  I  would  gladly  have  determined 
the  proportions  with  more  accuracy;  but  want  of  time, 
the  inaccessibility  of  the  edge  of  the  bank,  and  the  miser- 
able condition  of  our  raft,  allowed  of  only  a  few  rough 
measurements. 
A  forest  home.  Not   a   tracc   of  humau   habitations   was   observable 

on  the  shore;  but  a  quarter  of  an  hour's  distance  from  the 
northern  edge  we  found  a  comfortable  hut,  surrounded 
by  deep  mud  and  prickly  calamus,  the  tenants  of  which, 
however,  were  living  in  plenty,  and  with  greater  con- 
veniences than  many  dwellers  in  the  villages.     We  were 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippinet  S69 

very  well  received  and  had  fish  in  abundance,  as  well 
as  tomatoes,  and  capsicum  to  season  them  with,  and 
dishes  of  English  earthenware  out  of  which  to  eat  them. 

The  abundance  of  wild  swine  had  led  the  settlers  to  snarint,  smine, 
invent  a  peculiar  contrivance,  by  which  they  are 
apprised  of  their  approach  even  when  asleep,  and 
guided  to  their  trail  in  the  darkness.  A  rope  made 
of  strips  of  banana  tied  together,  and  upwards  of  a  thou- 
sand feet  in  length,  is  extended  along  the  ground,  one 
end  of  which  is  attached  to  a  coconut  shell,  full  of  water, 
which  is  suspended  immediately  over  the  sleeping- 
place  of  the  hunter.  When  a  pig  comes  in  contact  with 
the  rope,  the  water  is  overturned  by  the  jerk  upon  the 
sleeper,  who,  seizing  the  rope  in  his  hand,  is  thereby 
conducted  to  his  prey.  The  principal  employment 
of  our  hosts  appeared  to  be  fishing,  which  is  so  productive 
that  the  roughest  apparatus  is  sufficient.  There  was 
not  a  single  boat,  but  only  loosely -bound  rafts  of  bamboo, 
on  which  the  fishers,  sinking,  as  we  ourselves  did  on  our 
raft,  half  a  foot  deep,  moved  about  amongst  the  croco- 
diles, which  I  never  beheld  in  such  numbers  and  of  so 
large  a  size  as  in  this  lake.  Some  swam  about  on  the 
surface  with  their  backs  projecting  out  of  the  water. 
It  was  striking  to  see  the  complete  indifference  with 
which  even  two  little  girls  waded  in  the  water  in  the  face 
of  the  great  monsters.  Fortunately  the  latter  appeared 
to  be  satisfied  with  their  ample  rations  of  fish.  Four 
kinds  of  fish  are  said  to  be  found  in  the  lake,  amongst 
them  an  eel;  but  we  got  only  one.* 

Early  on  the  following  morning  our  native  attendants   -^  secret  suii. 
were   already   intoxicated.     This   led   to   the   discovery 
of  another  occupation  of  the  settlers,  which  I  do  not  hesi- 
tate to  disclose  now  that  the   Government  monopoly 


*  Gobius  giuris  Buch.  Ham. 


$70  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

has  been  abolished.  They  secretly  distilled  palm-brandy 
and  carried  on  a  considerable  trade  in  it;  and  this  also 
explained  to  me  why  the  horrors  of  the  road  to  the  Mayo 
River  and  to  Abuyog  had  been  painted  in  such  warm 
colors.*  We  returned  on  our  rafts  to  the  place  where  we 
had  found  them,  a  distance  of  about  fifteen  hundred 
feet;  and  onwards,  through  wild  cane  with  large  clusters 
of  flowers  (Saccharum  sp.),  sixteen  feet  high,  east  by 
north,  we  got  to  our  boats,  and  then  to  the  bar,  whence, 
after  a  march  of  an  hour  and  a  half,  we  reached  Abuyog. 
From  Abuyog  we  returned  by  water  to  Dulag,  and  by 
land  to  Burauen,  where  we  arrived  at  night,  sooner 
than  our  hostlers  had  expected,  for  we  caught  them  sleep- 
ing in  our  beds. 

Tobacco  Not  loug  ago  much  tobacco  was  cultivated  in  this 

country,  and  was  allowed  to  be  sold  to  the  peasantry 
under  certain  conditions;  but  recently  it  was  forbidden 
to  be  sold,  except  by  the  Government,  who  themselves 
determined  its  value  at  so  very  low  a  rate  that  the  culture 
of  tobacco  has  almost  entirely  ceased.  As  the  tobacco 
company,  however,  had  already  erected  stores  and  ap- 
pointed collectors,  the  knowing  ones  rightly  foresaw 
that  these  steps  would  be  followed  by  compulsory 
labor,  even  as  it  occurred  in  other  places.  The  east 
coast  of  Leyte  is  said  to  be  rising  while  the  west  is 
being  destroyed  by  the  sea,  and  at  Ormog  the  sea  is 
said  to  have  advanced  about  fifty  ellsf  in  six  years. 


*   The  lake  at  that  time  had  but  one  outlet,  but  in  the  wet  season  it  may  be  in 
connection  with  the  Mayo,  which,  at  its  north-east  side,  is  quite  flat, 
t  Or  some  thirty-eight  yards  if  the  old  Dutch  ell  is  meant. — C. 


prohibition. 


Jagor's  Tratels  in  the  Philippines  S7t 

XXII 

The  Bisayans — at  least  the  inhabitants  of  the  Islands  of  The  Biaayan* 
Samar  and  Leyte  (I  have  not  become  closely  acquainted 
with  any  others) — belong  to  one  race.*  They  are, 
physically  and  intellectually,  in  character,  dress,  man- 
ners and  customs,  so  similar  that  my  notes,  which  were 
originally  made  at  different  points  of  the  two  Islands, 
have,  after  removal  of  the  numerous  repetitions,  fused 
into  one,  which  affords  a  more  complete  picture,  and 
affords,  at  the  same  time,  opportunity  for  the  small 
differences,  where  they  do  occur,  to  stand  out  more  con- 
spicuously. 

There  are  no  Negritos  either  in  Samar  or  Leyte,  but  Mountainctrs. 
Cimarronese,  who  pay  no  tribute,  and  who  do  not  live 
in  villages,  but  independently  in  the  forests.  Unfortu- 
nately I  have  had  no  personal  intercourse  with  them, 
and  what  I  have  learned  respecting  them  from  the 
Christian  inhabitants  of  Samar  is  too  uncertain  to  be 
repeated.  But  it  does  seem  certain  that  all  these  Ci- 
marronese or  their  ancestors  have  traded  with  the  Span- 
iards, and  that  their  religion  has  appropriated  many 
Catholic  forms.  Thus,  when  planting  rice,  and,  accord- 
ing to  ancient  practices,  setting  apart  some  of  the  seed 
to  be  offered  in  the  four  corners  of  the  field  as  sacrifice, 
they  are  accustomed  to  repeat  some  mutilated  Catholic 


*  Pintados,  or  Bisayas,  according  to  a  native  word  denoting  the  same,  must 
be  the  inhabitants  of  the  islands  between  Luzon  and  Mindanao,  and  must  have 
been  so  named  bv  the  Spaniards  from  their  practice  of  tattoing  thsmsilves. 
Crawfurd  ("Diet."  339)  thinks  these  facts  not  firmly  established,  and  they  are 
certainly  not  mentioned  by  Pigafetta;  who,  however,  writes,  p.  80: — "He  (the 
king  of  Zubut)  was  *  *  *  painted  in  various  ways  with  fire."  Purchas 
("Pilgrirrage,"  fo.  i.  603) — "The  king  of  Zubut  has  his  skinn;  painted  with  a  hot 
iron  pensill;"  and  Mcrga,  fo.  4 — "Traen  todo  il  cuerpo  labrado  con  faego." 
From  this  they  appear  to  have  tattoed  themselves  in  the  manner  of  the  Papuas, 
by  burning  in  spots  and  stripes  into  the  skin.  But  Morga  states  in  anot.ier 
place  (f.  138) — "They  are  distinguished  from  the  inhabitants  of  Luzon  by  ttieir 
hair  which  the  men  cut  into  a  pigtail  after  the  old  Spanish  manner,  and  paint 
their  bodits  in  many  patterns,  without  touching  the  face."  The  custom  of 
tattooing,  which  appears  to  have  ceased  with  the  introduction  of  Christianity, 
for  the  chrgyman  so  often  quoted  (Thevenot,  p.  4)  describ-s  it  as  unknown, 
cannot  be  regarded  as  a  characteristic  of  the  Bisayans;  and  tribes  of  the  northern 
part  of  Luzon  tattoo  at  the  present  day. 


S72  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

prayers,  which  they  appear  to  consider  as  efficacious 
as  their  old  heathenish  ones.  Some  have  their  children 
baptized  as  well,  as  it  costs  nothing ;  but,  save  in  these 
respects,  they  perform  no  other  Christian  or  civil  obliga- 
tions. They  are  very  peaceable,  neither  making  war 
with  one  another,  nor  having  poisoned  arrows.  Instan- 
ces of  Cimarronese,  who  go  over  to  Christianity  and  vil- 
lage life,  together  with  tribute  and  servitude,  are  very 
rare;  and  the  number  of  the  civilized,  who  return  to 
the  forests  in  order  to  become  Cimarronese,  is,  on  the 
other  hand,  very  inconsiderable  indeed — still  smaller 
than  in  Luzon,  as  the  natives,  from  the  dull,  almost 
vegetating  life  which  they  lead,  are  not  easily  brought 
into  such  straitened  circumstances  as  to  be  compelled 
to  leave  their  village,  which,  still  more  than  in  Luzon, 
is  all  the  world  to  them. 
Rice-farming.  -pj^^  culture  of  ricc  follows  the  seasons  of  the  year.     In 

some  places  where  there  are  large  fields  the  plough 
(arado)  and  the  sod-sod  (here  called  surod)  are  employed ; 
but,  almost  universally,  the  rice-field  is  only  trodden 
over  by  carabaos  in  the  rainy  season.  Sowing  is  done 
on  the  west  coast  in  May  and  June,  planting  in  July 
and  August,  and  reaping  from  November  to  January. 
One  ganta  of  seed-corn  gives  two,  sometimes  from  three 
to  four,  cabanes  (i.  e.,  fifty,  seventy-five,  and  a  hundred 
fold).  In  the  chief  town,  Catbalogan,  there  are  but 
very  few  irrigated  fields  (JLuhigan,  from  tuhig,  water), 
the  produce  of  which  does  not  suffice  for  the  require- 
ments, and  the  deficiency  is  made  up  from  other  places 
on  the  coasts  of  the  Island.  On  the  other  hand,  Catba- 
logan produces  abaca,  coco-nut  oil,  wax,  balate  (edible 
holothuria,  sea  cucumber),  dried  fish,  and  woven  stuffs. 
On  the  north  and  east  coasts  sowing  takes  place  from 
November  to  January,  and  reaping  six  months  later. 
During  the   remaining  six   months   the  field  serves   as 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


Land  tenure. 


pasture  for  the  cattle;  but  in  many  places  rice  culture 
goes  on  even  during  these  months,  but  on  other  fields. 
A  large  portion  of  this  rice  is  frequently  lost  on  account 
of  the  bad  weather. 

Purchases  of  land  are  seldom  made,  it  being  gen- 
erally acquired  by  cultivation,  by  inheritance,  or  for- 
feiture. In  Catbalogan  the  best  rice  land  was  paid  for 
at  the  rate  of  one  dollar  for  a  ganta  of  seed-corn,  and, 
on  the  north  coast  of  Lauang,  a  field  producing  yearly 
one  hundred  cabanes  was  purchased  for  thirty  dollars. 
Reckoning,  as  in  Naga,  one  ganta  of  seed-corn  at  four 
loanes,  and  seventy-five  cabanes  of  produce  at  one 
quifion,  the  eastern  rice  land  costs,  in  the  first  instance, 
three  thalers  and  a  third,  in  the  second  three  thalers. 
The  owner  lets  the  bare  property  out  on  leases,  and 
receives  one-half  the  harvest  as  rent.*  The  cultivation 
of  rice  in  Leyte  is  conducted  as  in  Samar,  but  it  has  given 
way  to  the  cultivation  of  abaca;  the  governors,  while 
they  were  allowed  to  trade,  compelled  the  natives  to 
devote  a  part  of  their  fields  and  of  their  labor  to  it. 
Should  a  peasant  be  in  arrears,  it  is  the  prevalent  cus- 
tom in  the  country  for  him  to  pay  to  the  dealer  double 
the  balance  remaining  due  at  the  next  harvest. 

Mountain-rice  culture,  which  in  Catbalogan  is  almost  Mountain  rice. 
the  only  cultivation,  requires  no  other  implement  of 
agriculture  than  the  bolo  to  loosen  the  soil  somewhat, 
and  a  sharp  stick  for  making  holes  at  distances  of  six 
inches  for  the  reception  of  five  or  six  grains  of  rice. 
Sowing  is  done  from  May  to  June,  weeding  twice,  and 
five  months  later  it  is  cut  stalk  by  stalk;  the  reaper 
receiving  half  a  real  daily  wages  and  food.  The  produce 
is    between    two  and  three  cabanes  per  ganta,  or  fifty 


*  Mezzeria  (Italian);  metayer  (French). 


274 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Other  prodxicts. 


Abatd. 


Tobacco. 


Balao  oil. 


to  seventy  fold.  The  land  costs  nothing,  and  wages 
amount  to  nearly  five  reals  per  ganta  of  seed-corn.  After 
a  good  harvest  the  caban  fetches  four  reales;  but  just 
before  the  harvest  the  price  rises  to  one  dollar,  and  often 
much  higher.  The  ground  is  used  only  once  for  dry 
rice;  camote  (batata),  abaca,  and  caladium  being  planted 
on  it  after  the  harvest.  Mountain  rice  is  more  remuner- 
ative than  watered  rice  about  in  the  proportion  of  nine 
to  eight. 

Next  to  rice  the  principal  articles  of  sustenance  are 
camote  (convolvulus  batatas),  ubi  (dioscorea),  gabi  (cala- 
dium),  palauan  (a  large  arum,  with  taper  leaves  and  spot- 
ted stalk).  Camote  can  be  planted  all  the  year  around, 
and  ripens  in  four  months;  but  it  takes  place  generally 
when  the  rice  culture  is  over,  when  little  labor  is  avail- 
able. When  the  cultivation  of  camote  is  retained,  the 
old  plants  are  allowed  to  multiply  their  runners,  and  only 
the  tubers  are  taken  out  of  the  ground.  But  larger 
produce  is  obtained  by  cleaning  out  the  ground  and 
planting  anew.  From  eighteen  to  fifteen  gantas  may 
be  had  for  half  a  real. 

Although  there  are  large  plantations  of  abaca,  during 
my  visit  it  was  but  little  cultivated,  the  price  not  being 
sufficiently  remunerative. 

Tobacco  also  is  cultivated.  Formerly  it  might  be 
sold  in  the  country,  but  now  it  has  to  be  delivered  to 
the  government. 

A  resinous  oil  (halao  or  malapajo)  is  found  in  Samar 
and  Albay,  probably  also  in  other  provinces.  It  is 
obtained  from  a  dipterocarpus  (apitoyi),  one  of  the 
loftiest  trees  of  the  forest,  by  cutting  in  the  trunk  a 
wide  hole,  half  a  foot  deep,  hollowed  out  into  the  form 
of  a  basin,  and  from  time  to  time  lighting  a  fire  in  it, 
so  as  to  free  the  channels,  through  which  it  flows,  of 
obstructions.     The  oil  thus  is  collected  daily  and  comes 


1 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S76 

into  commerce  without  any  further  preparation.  Its 
chief  application  is  in  the  preservation  of  iron  in  ship- 
building. Nails  dipped  in  the  oil  of  the  balao,  before 
being  driven  in,  will,  as  I  have  been  assured  by  credible 
individuals,  defy  the  action  of  rust  for  ten  years;  but 
it  is  principally  used  as  a  varnish  for  ships,  which  are 
painted  with  it  both  within  and  without,  and  it  also 
protects  wood  against  termites  and  other  insects.  The 
balao  is  sold  in  Albay  at  four  reals  for  the  tinaja  of  ten 
gantas  (the  liter  at  eight  pence).  A  cement  formed  by 
the  mixture  of  burnt  lime,  gum  elemi,  and  coconut  oil, 
in  such  proportions  as  to  form  a  thick  paste  before 
application,  is  used  for  the  protection  of  the  bottoms 
of  ships;  and  the  coating  is  said  to  last  a  year.*  Wax  wax. 
is  bartered  by  the  Cimarronese.  The  whole  of  Samar 
annually  yields  from  two  hundred  to  three  hundred 
piculs,  whose  value  ranges  between  twenty-five  and 
fifty  dollars  per  picul,  while  in  Manila  the  price  is  gen- 
erally five  to  ten  dollars  higher;  but  it  fluctuates  very 
much,  as  the  same  product  is  brought  from  many  other 
localities  and  at  very  irregular  intervals  of  time. 

There  is  hardly  any  breeding  of  cattle,  notwith-  scardiyof 
standing  the  luxuriant  growth  of  grasses  and  the  absence  *''"^** 
of  destructive  animals.  Horses  and  carabao  are  very 
Tare,  and  are  said  to  have  been  introduced  late,  not 
before  the  present  century.  As  in  Samar  there  are 
hardly  any  other  country  roads  than  the  seashore  and 
the  shallow  beds  of  rivers  (it  is  better  in  the  north  of 
Leyte),  the  carabao  is  used  only  once  every  year  in 
treading  over  the  earth  of  the  rice-field.  During  the 
year  he  roams  at  large  on  the  pastures,  in  the  forest, 
or  on  a  small  island,  where  such  exists,  in  the   neighbor- 

•  In  China  an  oil  is  procured  from  the  seeds  of  vernicia  montann,  which,  by 
the  addition  of  alum,  litharge,  and  steatite,  with  a  gsntl:  heat,  easily  for.tis  a 
valuable  varnish  which,  when  mixed  with  resin,  is  employed  in  r^nderin^  the 
bottoms  of  vessels  watertight.  P.  Champion,  Indust.  Anc.  el  Mod.  de  L'Emp. 
Chinois."    114. 


276  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

hood.  Some  times  in  the  year  one  may  see  several 
carabaos,  attached  to  the  large  trunk  of  a  tree,  dragging 
it  to  the  village.  Their  number,  consequently,  is  ex- 
tremely small.  Carabaos  which  tread  the  rice  land  well 
are  worth  as  much  as  ten  dollars.  The  mean  price 
is  three  dollars  for  a  carabao,  and  five  to  six  dollars  for 
a  caraballa.  Horned  cattle  are  only  occasionally  used 
as  victims  at  festivals.  The  property  of  several  owners, 
they  are  very  limited  in  number,  and  live  half-wild 
in  the  mountains.  There  is  hardly  any  trade  in  them, 
but  the  average  price  is  three  dollars  for  a  heifer,  and 
five   or  six   dollars   for   a   cow.     Almost    every    family 

Smne.  possesscs  3  pig;  somc,   three  or  four  of  them.     A  fat 

pig  costs  six  or  seven  dollars,  even  more  than  a  cow. 
Many  Filipino  tribes  abstain  strictly  from  beef;  but 
pork  is  essential  to  their  feasts.  Grease,  too,  is  so  dear 
that  from  three  to  four  dollars  would,  under  favorable 
circumstances,  be  got  on  that  account  for  a  fat  animal. 

Sheep  and  goats.  Shccp  and  goats  thrivc  Well,  and  propagate  easily,  but 
also  exist  only  in  small  numbers,  and  are  hardly  utilized 
either  for  their  wool  or  their  flesh.  Creoles  and  mesti- 
zos are  for  the  most  part  too  idle  even  to  keep  sheep, 
preferring  daily  to  eat  chicken.  The  sheep  of  Shanghai, 
imported  by  the  governor  of  Tacloban,  also  thrive  and 

Poultry.  propagate  famously.     A  laying  hen  costs  half  a  real, 

a  rooster  the  same,  and  a  game  cock  as  much  as  three 
dollars,  often  considerably  more.  Six  or  eight  hens, 
or  thirty  eggs,  may  be  bought  for  one  real. 

Cost  of  food.  A  family  consisting  of  father,  mother,  and  five  children 

requires  daily  nearly  twenty-four  chupas  of  palay  (rice 
in  the  husk),  which,  after  winnowing,  comes  to  about 
twelve  chupas.  This  at  the  average  price  of  four  reals 
per  cavan  costs  about  half  a  real.  The  price,  however, 
varies.  Sometinies,  after  the  harvest,  it  is  three  reals 
per  cavan;  before  it,   ten;   and   in  Albay,   even  about 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S77 

thirty  reals.  Then  about  three  cuartos  are  wanted  for 
extras  (as  fish,  crabs,  vegetables,  etc.),  which,  however, 
are  generally  collected  by  the  children;  and,  lastly,  for 
oil  two  cuartos,  buyo  one  cuarto,  tobacco  three  cuartos 
(three  leaves  for  one  cuarto),  the  latter  being  smoked, 
not  chewed.  A  woman  consumes  half  as  much  buyo 
and  tobacco  as  a  man.  Buyo  and  tobacco  are  less  used 
in  Leyte  than  in  Samar. 

For  clothing  a  man  requires  yearly — four  rough  clothing  coat. 
shirts  of  guinara,  costing  from  one  to  two  reals;  three 
or  four  pairs  of  trousers,  at  one  to  two  and  a  half  reals; 
two  kerchiefs  for  the  head,  at  one  and  a  half  real  (hats 
are  not  worn  on  the  south  and  west  coasts),  and  for 
the  church  festivals  generally  one  pair  of  shoes,  seven 
reals;  one  fine  shirt,  a  dollar  or  more;  and  fine  panta- 
loons, at  four  reals.  A  woman  requires — four  to  six 
camisas  of  guinara,  at  one  real;  two  to  three  sayas  of 
guinara,  at  three  to  four  reals,  and  one  or  two  sayas  of 
European  printed  cotton,  at  five  reals ;  two  head-kerchiefs 
at  one  and  a  half  to  two  reals;  and  one  or  two  pairs 
of  slippers  (chinelas)  to  go  to  mass  in,  at  two  reals  and 
upwards. 

The  women  genrally  have,  besides,  a  fine  camisa  cost-  women's  extra.'<. 
ing  at  least  six  reals;  a  mantilla  for  churchgoing,  six 
reals  (it  lasts  four  years);  and  a  comb,  two  cuartos. 
Many  also  have  under  skirts  (nabuas),  two  pieces  at 
four  reals,  and  earrings  of  brass  and  a  rosary,  which 
last  articles  are  purchased  once  for  all.  In  the  poorer 
localities,  Lauang  for  instance,  only  the  home-woven 
guinaras  are  worn;  and  there  a  man  requires — three 
shirts  and  three  pairs  of  trousers,  which  are  cut  out 
of  three  pieces  o^  guinara,  at  two  reals,  and  a  salacot  (hat), 
generally  home  made,  worth  half  a  real;  while  a  woman 
uses  yearly — four  sayas,  value  six  reals;  and  a  camisa, 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Household 
furniture. 


Wooes. 


Industries. 


with  a  finer  one  for  the  festivals,  eight  reals.  Under- 
skirts are  not  worn;  and  the  clothing  of  the  children 
may  be  estimated  at  about  half  of  the  above  rates. 

For  household  furniture  a  family  has  a  cooking  pot* 
of  unglazed  burnt  clay,  imported  by  ships  from  Manila, 
the  cost  of  which  is  fixed  by  the  value  of  its  contents 
in  rice;  a  supply  of  bamboo-canes;  seven  plates,  costing 
between  two  and  five  cuartos;  a  carahai  (iron  pan), 
three  to  four  reals;  coconut  shells  serving  for  glasses; 
a  few  small  pots,  altogether  half  a  real;  a  sundang,  four 
to  six  reals,  or  a  holo  (large  forest  knife),  one  dollar; 
and  a  pair  of  scissors  (for  the  women),  two  reals.  The 
loom,  which  every  household  constructs  for  itself  of 
bamboo  of  course  costs  nothing. 

The  rate  of  daily  wages,  in  the  case  of  Filipino  em- 
ployers, is  half  a  real,  without  food;  but  Europeans 
always  have  to  give  one  real  and  food,  unless,  by  favor 
of  the  gobernadorcillo,  they  get  polistas  at  the  former 
rate,  which  then  regularly  goes  into  the  public  coffers. 
An  ordinary  carpenter  earns  from  one  to  two  reals;  a 
skilful  man,  three  reals  daily.  The  hours  of  work  are 
from  six  to  noon,  and  from  two  to  six  in  the  evening. 

Almost  every  village  has  a  rude  smith,  who  under- 
stands the  making  of  sundangs  and  bolos;  but  the  iron 
and  the  coal  required  for  the  purpose  mut  be  supplied 
with  the  order.  No  other  work  in  metal  is  executed. 
With  the  exception  of  a  little  ship-building,  hardly 
any  other  pursuit  than  weaving  is  carried  on;  the  loom 
is  rarely  wanting  in  a  household.  Guinara,  i.  e.,  stuff 
made  of  the  abaca,  is  manufactured,  as  well  as  also 
some  pina,  or  figured  silk  stuffs,  the  silk  being  brought 
from  Manila,  and  of  Chinese  origin.  All  these  fabrics 
are  made  in  private  homes;  there  are  no  factories. 

*  Petzholdt  ("Caucasus,"  i.  203)  mentions  that  in  Bosslswi  the  price  of  a  clay 
vessel  is  determined  by  its  capacity  of  maize. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  270 

In  places  where  rice  is  scarce  the  lower  class  of  people  Barter. 
catch  fish,  salt  and  dry  them,  and  barter  them  for  rice. 
In  the  chief  towns  purchases  are  made  with  the  current 
money;  but,  in  the  interior,  where  there  is  hardly  any 
money,  fabrics  and  dried  fish  are  the  most  usual  means 
of  exchange.  Salt  is  obtained  by  evaporating  the  sea- 
water  in  small  iron  hand-pans  (carahals),  without  pre- 
vious evaporation  in  the  sun.  The  navigation  between 
Catbalogan  and  Manila  continues  from  December  to 
July,  and  in  the  interval  between  those  months  the  ships 
lie  dismantled  under  sheds.  There  also  is  communica-  Communi- 
tion  by  the  coast  eastwards  to  Guian,  northwards  to  ''"'"'"• 
Catarman,  and  sometimes  to  Lauang.  The  crews  con- 
sist partly  of  natives,  and  partly  of  foreigners,  as 
the  natives  take  to  the  sea  with  great  reluctance;  indeed, 
almost  only  when  compelled  to  leave  their  villages. 
Samar  has  scarcely  any  other  means  of  communication 
besides  the  navigation  of  the  coast  and  rivers,  the  interior 
being  roadless;  and  burdens  have  to  be  conveyed  on  the 
shoulders.  An  able-bodied  porter,  who  receives  a  real 
and  a  half  without  food,  will  carry  three  arrobas  (seventy- 
five  pounds  at  most)  six  leagues  in  a  day,  but  he  cannot 
accomplish  the  same  work  on  the  following  day,  re- 
quiring at  least  one  day's  rest.  A  strong  man  will  carry 
an  arroba  and  a  half  daily  for  a  distance  of  six  leagues 
for  a  whole  week. 

There  are  no   markets  in  Samar  and  Leyte ;  so  that  No  markets. 
whoever  wishes  to  buy  seeks  what  he  requires  in  the 
houses,  and  in  like  manner  the  seller  offers  his  goods. 

A  Filipino  seeking  to  borrow  money  has  to  give  ample  Debu. 
security  and  pay  interest  at  the  rate  of  one  real  for  every 
dollar  per  month  (twelve  and  one-half  per  cent,  monthly) ; 
and  it  is  not  easy  for  him  to  borrow  more  than  five  dollars, 
for  which  sum  only  he  is  legally  liable.  Trade  and  credit 
are  less  developed  in  eastern  and  northern  Samar  than 


S80  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

in  the  western  part  of  the  island,  which  keeps  up  a  more 
active  communication  with  the  other  inhabitants  of  the 
Archipelago.  There  current  money  is  rarely  lent,  but 
only  its  value  in  goods  is  advanced  at  the  rate  of  a  real 
per  dollar  per  mensem.  If  the  debtor  fails  to  pay  within 
the  time  appointed,  he  frequently  has  to  part  with  one 
of  his  children,  who  is  obliged  to  serve  the  lender  for 
his  bare  food,  without  wages,  until  the  debt  has  been 
extinguished.  I  saw  a  young  man  who  had  so  served 
for  the  term  of  five  years,  in  liquidation  of  a  debt  of  five 
dollars  which  his  father,  who  had  formerly  been  a  gober- 
nadorcillo  in  Paranas,  owed  to  a  mestizo  in  Catbalogan; 
and  on  the  east  coast  a  pretty  young  girl,  who,  for  a  debt 
of  three  dollars  due  by  her  father,  had  then,  for  two 
years,  served  a  native,  who  had  the  reputation  of  being 
a  spendthrift.  I  was  shown  in  Borongan  a  coconut 
plantation  of  three  hundred  trees,  which  was  pledged 
for  a  debt  of  ten  dollars  about  twenty  years  ago,  since 
which  period  it  had  been  used  by  the  creditor  as  his  own 
property;  and  it  was  only  a  few  years  since  that,  upon 
the  death  of  the  debtor,  his  children  succeeded,  with 
great  difficulty,  in  paying  the  original  debt  and  redeem- 
ing the  property.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing  for  a  native 
to  borrow  two  dollars  and  a  half  from  another  in  order 
to  purchase  his  exemption  from  the  forty  days  of  annual 
service,  and  then,  failing  to  repay  the  loan  punctually, 
to  serve  his  creditor  for  a  whole  year.* 
People  of  samar  The  inhabitants  of  Samar  and  Leyte,  who  are  at  once 
and  Leyte.  idler  and  filthier  than  those  of  Luzon,  seem  to  be  as  much 

behind  the  Bicols  as  the  latter  are  behind  the  Tagalogs. 


*  As  usual  these  abuses  spring  from  the  non-enforcement  of  a  statute  passed 
in  1848  (Leij.  itlL,  i.  144),  which  prohibits  usurious  contracts  with  servants  or 
assistsnts,  and  t^rtatens  with  heavy  penalties  all  those  who,  under  the  pretext 
of  having  advanced  money,  cr  of  having  paid  debts  or  the  poll-tax  or  exemption 
from  service,  keep  either  individual  natives  cr  whole  families  in  a  continual  state 
of  dependence  upcn  them,  and  always  secure  the  increase  of  their  obligations 
to  them  by  net  allowing  them  wages  sufficient  to  enable  them  to  satisfy  the 
claims  against  them. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S8t 

In  Tacloban,  where  a  more  active  intercourse  with  Manila 
exists,  these  qualities  are  less  pronounced,  and  the 
women,  who  are  agreeable,  bathe  frequently.  For  the 
rest,  the  inhabitants  of  the  two  islands  are  friendly, 
obliging,  tractable,  and  peaceable.  Abusive  language 
or  violence  very  rarely  occurs,  and,  in  case  of  injury, 
information  is  laid  against  the  offender  at  the  tribunal. 
Great  purity  of  manners  seems  to  prevail  on  the  north 
and  west  coasts,  but  not  on  the  east  coast,  nor  in  Leyte. 
External  piety  is  universally  conspicuous,  through  the 
training  imparted  by  the  priests;  the  families  are  very 
united,  and  great  influence  is  wielded  by  the  women, 
who  are  principally  engaged  in  household  employments, 
and  are  tolerably  skilful  in  weaving,  and  to  whom  only 
the  lighter  labors  of  the  field  are  assigned.  The  author- 
ity of  the  parents  and  of  the  eldest  brother  is  supreme,  the 
younger  sisters  never  venturing  to  oppose  it ;  women  and 
children   are  kindly  treated. 

The  natives  of  Leyte,   clinging  as  strongly  to  their  ^«^'«- 
native  soil  as  those  of  Samar,  like  them,  have  no  par- 
tiality for  the  sea,  though  their  antipathy  to  it  is  not 
quite  so  manifest  as  that  of  the  inhabitants  of  Samar.* 

There  are  no  benevolent  institutions  in  either  of  the  puUic  charity 
two  islands.  Each  family  maintains  its  own  poor  and  ""'  "<^<^fp'*^- 
crippled,  and  treats  them  tenderly.  In  Catbalogan, 
the  chief  town  of  the  island,  with  five  to  six  thousand 
inhabitants,  there  were  only  eight  recipients  of  charity; 
but  in  Albay  mendicants  are  not  wanting.  In  Lauang, 
when  a  Spaniard,  on  a  solemn  festival,  had  caused  it  to 
be  proclaimed  that  he  would  distribute  rice  to  the  poor, 
not    a    single    applicant    came    forward.     The    honesty 


*  Formerly  it  appears  to  have  been  different  with  them.  "These  Bisayans 
are  a  people  little  disposed  to  agriculture,  but  practised  in  navigation,  and  eajer 
for  war  and  expeditions  by  sea,  on  account  of  the  pillage  and  prizes,  which  they 
call  'mangubas,'  which  is  the  same  as  taking  to  the  field  in  order  to  steal." — 
Morga,  f.   138. 


2S2  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN   EYES 

of  the  inhabitants  of  Samar  is  much  commended. 
Obligations  are  said  to  be  contracted  almost  always 
without  written  documents,  and  never  forsworn,  even 
if  they  make  default  in  payment.  Robberies  are  of  rare 
occurrence  in  Samar,  and  thefts  almost  unknown. 
There  are  schools  also  here  in  the  pueblos,  which  accom- 
plish quite  as  much  as  they  do  in  Camarines. 

Amusements.  Of  the  public  amusements  cock-fighting  is  the  chief, 

but  it  is  not  so  eagerly  pursued  as  in  Luzon.  At  the 
church  festivals  they  perform  a  drama  translated  from 
the  Spanish,  generally  of  a  religious  character;  and  the 
expense  of  the  entertainment  is  defrayed  by  voluntary 
contributions  of  the  wealthy.  The  chief  vices  of  the 
population  are  play  and  drunkenness;  in  which  latter 
even  women  and  young  girls  occasionally  indulge. 
The  marriage  feasts,  combining  song  and  dance,  often 
continue  for  several  days  and  nights  together,  where 
they  have  a  sufficient  supply  of  food  and  drink.     The 

Suitor's  service,  suitor  has  to  servc  in  the  house  of  the  bride's  parents 
two,  three,  and  even  five  years,  before  he  takes  his 
bride  home;  and  money  cannot  purchase  exemption 
from  this  onerous  restriction.  He  boards  in  the  house 
of  the  bride's  parents  who  furnish  the  rice,  but  he  has  to . 
supply  the  vegetables  himself.*  At  the  expiration  of 
his  term  of  service  he  builds,  with  the  assistance  of  his 
relations  and  friends,  the  house  for  the  family  which  is 
about  to  be  newly  established. 

Morals.  Though  adultery  is  not  unknown,  jealousy  is  rare, 

and  never  leads  to  violence.  The  injured  individual 
generally  goes  with  the  culprit  to  the   minister,   who, 


*  Ill-usage  prevails  to  a  great  extent,  although  prohibited  by  a  stringent  law; 
the  non-enforcement  of  which  by  the  alcaldes  is  charged  with  a  penalty  of  100 
dollars  fcr  every  single  case  of  neglsct.  In  many  provinces  the  bridegroom  pays 
to  the  bride's  mother,  besides  the  dower,  an  indemnity  for  the  rearing  ("mother's 
milk")  which  the  bride  has  enjoyed  {biyay  susu).  According  to  Colin  ("Labor 
Evangelico,"  p.  129)  the  penhimuyat.  the  present  which  the  mother  received 
for  night-watching  and  care  during  the  bringing  up  of  the  bride,  amounted  to 
one-fifth  of  the  dowry. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  283 

with  a  severe  lecture  to  one,  and  words  of  consolation 
to  the  other,  sets  everything  straight  again.  Married 
women  are  more  easily  accessible  than  girls,  whose 
prospect  of  marriage,  however,  it  seems  is  not  greatly 
diminished  by  a  false  step  during  single  life.  While 
under  parental  authority  girls,  as  a  rule,  are  kept  under 
rigid  control,  doubtless  in  order  to  prolong  the  time  of 
servitude  of  the  suitor.  External  appearance  is  more 
strictly  regarded  among  the  Bisayans  than  by  the  Bicols 
and  Tagalogs.  Here  also  the  erroneous  opinion  prevails, 
that  the  number  of  the  women  exceeds  that  of  the  men. 
Instances  occur  of  girls  of  twelve  being  mothers;  but 
they  are  rare ;  and  though  women  bear  twelve  or  thirteen 
children,  many  of  these,  however,  do  not  live.  So  Great  infant 
much  so  is  this  the  case,  that  families  of  more  than  six  """'''^'''J'- 
or  eight  children  are  very  rarely  met  with. 

Superstition  is  rife.  Besides  the  little  church  images  Superstitions. 
of  the  Virgin,  which  every  Filipina  wears  by  a  string 
round  the  neck,  many  also  have  heathen  amulets,  of 
which  I  had  an  opportunity  of  examining  one  that  had 
been  taken  from  a  very  daring  criminal.  It  consisted  of  a 
small  ounce  flask,  stuffed  full  of  vegetable  root  fibres, 
which  appeared  to  have  been  fried  in  oil.  This  flask, 
which  is  prepared  by  the  heathen  tribes,  is  accredited 
with  the  virtue  of  making  its  owner  strong  and  coura- 
geous. The  capture  of  this  individual  was  very  difficult ; 
but,  as  soon  as  the  little  flask  was  taken  from  him, 
he  gave  up  all  resistance,  and  allowed  himself  to  be  bound. 
In  almost  every  large  village  there  are  one  or  more 
Asuayig  families  who  are  generally  dreaded  and  avoided,  Ghouls. 
and  regarded  as  outlaws,  and  who  can  marry  only 
amongst  themselves.  They  have  the  reputation  of  being 
cannibals.*  Perhaps  they  are  descended  from  such 
tribes?     At  any  rate,  the  belief  is  very  general  and  firmly 

*  The  Aiuang  is  the  ghoul  of  the  Arabian  Nights'  tales. — C 


284 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Ancient 
literature. 


Festivals  and 
shrines. 


Ancestor 
worship. 


rooted;  and  intelligent  old  natives  when  questioned  by 
me  on  the  subject,  answered  that  they  certainly  did 
not  believe  that  the  Asuangs  ate  men  at  the  present  time, 
but  that  their  forefathers  had  assuredly  done  so.* 

Of  ancient  legends,  traditions,  or  ballads,  it  is  stated 
that  there  are  none.  It  is  true  they  have  songs  at  their 
dances,  but  these  are  spiritless  improvisations,  and  mostly 
in  a  high  key.  They  have  not  preserved  any  memorials 
of  former  civilization.  "The  ancient  Pintados  possessed 
no  temples,  every  one  performing  his  ayiitos  in  his  own 
house,  without  any  special  solemnity" — (Morga,  f.  145 
v).  Pigafetta  (p.  92)  certainly  mentions  that  the  King 
of  Cebu,  after  his  conversion  to  Christianity,  caused 
many  temples  built  on  the  seashore  to  be  destroyed; 
but  these  might  only  have  been  structures  of  a  very 
perishable  kind.  On  certain  occasions  the  Bisayans 
celebrated  a  great  festival,  called  Pandot,  at  which 
they  worshipped  their  gods  in  huts,  which  were  expressly 
built  for  the  purpose,  covered  with  foliage,  and  adorned 
with  flowers  and  lamps.  They  called  these  huts  simha 
or  simhahan  (the  churches  are  so  called  to  the  present 
day),  "and  this  is  the  only  thing  which  they  have  similar 
to  a  church  or  a  temple" — (Informe,  I.,  i.,  17).  According 
to  Gemelli  Careri  they  prayed  to  some  particular  gods, 
derived  from  their  forefathers,  who  are  called  by  the 
Bisayans  Davata  (Divata),  and  by  the  Tagalogs  Anito; 
one  anito  being  for  the  sea  and  another  for  the  house, 
to  watch  over  the  children. f  In  the  number  of  these 
anitos  they  placed  their  grandfathers  and  great-grand- 
fathers, whom  they  invoked  in  all  their  necessities,  and 


*  Veritable  cannibals  are  not  mentioned  by  the  older  authors  on  the  Phil- 
ippines. Pigafetta  (p.  127)  heard  that  a  people  lived  on  a  river  at  Cap^  B;nuian 
(north  of  Mindanao)  who  ate  only  the  hearts  of  their  captured  enemies,  along 
with  lemon-juice;  and  Dr.  Semper  ("Philippines,")  in  '62  found  the  same  custom, 
with  the  exception  of  the  lemon-juice,  on  the  east  coast  of  Mindanao. 

t  The  Anito  occurs  amongst  the  tribes  of  the  Malayan  Archipelago  as  Antu, 
but  the  Anito  of  the  Philippines  is  essentially  a  protecting  spirit,  while  the  Mala- 
yan Antu  is  rather  of  a  demoniacal  kind. 


Old  religion. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SS5 

in  whose  honor  they  preserved  little  statues  of  stone, 
wood,  gold,  and  ivory,  which  they  called  liche  or  laravan. 
Amongst  their  gods  they  also  reckoned  all  who  perished 
by  the  sword,  or  were  killed  by  lightning,  or  devoured  by 
crocodiles,  believing  that  their  souls  ascended  to  heaven 
on  a  bow  which  they  called  balangas.  Pigafetta  thus 
describes  the  idols  which  were  seen  by  him: — "They  are 
of  wood,  and  concave,  or  hollow,  without  any  hind 
quarters,  with  their  arms  extended,  and  their  legs  and 
feet  bent  upwards.  They  have  very  large  faces,  with 
four  powerful  teeth  like  boars'  tusks,  and  are  painted 
all  over."* 

In  conclusion,  let  me  take  a  brief  account  of  the  religion 
of  the  ancient  Brsayans  from  Fr.  Gaspar  San  Agustin 
(Conquest,  169): 

The  diemon,  or  genius,  to  whom  they  sacrificed  was 
called  by  them  Divata,  which  appears  to  denote  an 
antithesis  to  the  Deity,  and  a  rebel  against  him.  Hell 
was  called  Solad,  and  Heaven  (in  the  language  of  the 
educated  people)  Ologan  *  *  *  The  souls  of  the  departed 
go  to  a  mountain  in  the  province  of  Otonf,  called  Medias, 
where  they  are  well  entertained  and  served.  The 
creation  of  the  universe  is  thus  explained.  A  vulture  Creation  myth. 
hovering  between  heaven  and  earth  finds  no  place  to 
settle  himself  upon,  and  the  water  rises  towards  heaven; 
whereupon  Heaven,  in  its  wrath,  creates  islands.  The 
vulture  splits  a  bamboo,  out  of  which  spring  man  and 
woman,  who  beget  many  children,  and,  when  their 
number  becomes  too  great,  drive  them  out  with  blows. 

*  These  idol  images  have  never  come  under  my  observation.  Those  figured 
in  Bastian  and  Hartmann's  Journal  of  Elhnnlo'jy  (b.  i.  pi.  viii.  Idols  from  the 
Philippines,)  whose  originals  are  in  the  Ethnographical  Museum  of  Berlin, 
were  certainly  acquired  in  the  Philiopines,  but,  a.^coriinj  to  A.  W.  Franks,  un-  j£ 
doubtedly  belong  to  the  Solomo.T  Islands.  Sections  ii.  to  viii.,  p.  45,  in  the  cata- 
logue  of  the  Museum  at  Prague  are  entitled: — "Four  heads  of  idols,  male  of 
wood,  from  the  Philippines,  contributed  by  the  Bohemian  naturalist  Thaddaeus 
Haenke,  who  was  commissioned  by  the  King  of  Spain,  in  the  year  1817.  to  travel 
in  the  islands  of  the  South  Sea."  The  photographs,  which  were  obligingly  '' 
sent  here  at  my  request  by  the  direction  of  the  museum,  do  not  entirely  corre- 
spond to  the  above  description,  pointing  rather  to  the  west  coast  of  America,  the 
principal  field  of  Haenke's  researches.  The  R'liguiae  Kotanicae,  from  his  pos- 
thumous papers,  likewise  afford  no  information  respecting  the  origin  of  these 
idols. 

+  On  the  Island  of  Panay. 


286  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Some   conceal   themselves   in  the  chamber,  and  these 

become   the   Datos;   others   in   the   kitchen,  and   these 

become  the  slaves.     The  rest  go  down  the  stairs  and 
become  the  people. 


Ports  of  entry. 


Old  Zamboanga 
fort. 


Exports. 


XXIII 

In  1830  seven  new  ports  were  opened  as  an  experiment, 
but,  owing  to  great  frauds  in  the  charges,  were  soon 
afterwards  closed  again.  In  1831  a  custom-house  was 
established  at  Zamboanga,  on  the  south-west  point 
of  Mindanao;  and  in  1855  Sual,  in  the  Gulf  of  Lingayen, 
one  of  the  safest  harbors  on  the  west  coast  of  Luzon, 
and  Iloilo  in  Panay,  were  thrown  open;  and  in  1863 
Cebu,  on  the  island  of  the  same  name,  for  the  direct 
communication  with  foreign  countries. 

Before  1635  the  Spaniards  had  established  a  fort  at 
Zamboanga,  which,  although  it  certainly  could  not 
wholly  prevent  the  piratical  excursions  against  the 
colonies,  yet  considerably  diminished  them.*  Until 
1848  from  eight  hundred  to  fifteen  hundred  individuals 
are  stated  to  have  been  carried  off  yearly  by  the  Moros.f 
The  establishment  of  this  custom-house  has,  therefore, 
been  based  upon  political  rather  than  commercial 
motives,  it  being  found  desirable  to  open  an  easily 
accessible  place  to  the  piratical  states  of  the  Sulu  Sea 
for  the  disposal  of  their  products.  Trade,  up  to  the 
present  date,  is  but  of  very  inconsiderable  amount, 
the  exports  consisting  chiefly  of  a  little  coffee  (in  1871 
nearly  six  thousand  piculs),  which,  from  bad  manage- 
ment, is  worth  thirty  per  cent,  less  than  Manila  coffee, 
and  of  the  collected  products  of  the  forest  and  of  the 
water,  such  as  wax,  birds'-nests,  tortoise-shell,  pearls, 
mother-of-pearl,    and    edible    holothuria.     This    trade, 


*  As  an  example,  in  anticipation  of  an  attack  on  Cogseng,  all  the  available 
forces,  including  those  of  Zamboanga,  were  collected  round  Manila,  and  the 
Mcros  attacked  the  island  with  sixty  ships,  whereas  formerly  their  armaments 
used  not  to  exceed  six  or  eight  ships.     Torrubia,  p.  363. 

t  Hakluyt   Morga,   Append.   360. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  287 

as  well  as  that  with  Sulu,  is  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the 
Chinese,  who  alone  possess  the  patience,  adaptiveness, 
and  adroitness  which  are  required  for  the  purpose. 

Sual   is   specially   important   for   its   exports   of  rice;  s^a^.g /(„.«■  « 
and  its  foreign  trade  is  therefore  affected  by  the  results  trade. 
of  the  harvests  in  Saigon,  Burma,  and  China.     In  1868, 
when  the  harvests  in  those  countries  turned  out  good, 
Sual  carried  on  only  a  coasting  trade. 

Cebu  (with  a  population  of  34,000)  is  the  chief  town  Cebu. 
of  the  island  of  the  same  name,  the  seat  of  Government 
and  of  the  bishop  of  the  Bisayas,  and  within  forty- 
eight  hours  from  Manila  by  steamer.  It  is  as  favorably 
situated  with  regard  to  the  eatern  portion  of  the  Bisayan 
group  as  Iloilo  is  for  the  western,  and  is  acquiring  in- 
creased importance  as  the  emporium  for  its  products. 
Sugar  and  tobacco  are  obtained  from  Bohol;  rice  from 
Panay;  abaca  from  Leyte  and  Mindanao;  and  coffee, 
wax,  Spanish  cane,  and  mother-of-pearl  from  Misamis 
(Mindanao).  Its  distance  from  Samar  is  twenty-six, 
from  Leyte  two  and  a  half,  from  Bohol  four,  and  from 
Negros  eighteen  miles. 

The  island  of  Cebu  extends  over  seventy-five  square  Cebu  island. 
miles.  A  lofty  mountain  range  traverses  it  from  north 
to  south,  dividing  the  east  from  the  west  side,  and  its 
population  is  estimated  at  340,000, — -4,533  to  the  square 
mile.  The  inhabitants  are  peaceable  and  docile;  thefts 
occur  very  seldom,  and  robberies  never.  Their  occupa- 
tions are  agriculture,  fishing,  and  weaving  for  home  con- 
sumption. Cebu  produces  sugar,  tobacco,  maize,  rice, 
etc.,  and  in  the  mountains  potatoes;  but  the  rice  produced 
does  not  suffice  for  their  requirements,  there  being 
only  a  little  level  land,  and  the  deficiency  is  imported 
from  Panay. 

The  island  possesses  considerable  beds  of  coal,   the  Land  tenure. 
full  yield  of  which  may  now  be  looked  for,  as  the  duty 


data. 


288  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

on  export  was  abandoned  by  a  decree  of  the  5th  of  May, 
1869.*  While  in  Luzon  and  Panay  the  land  is  for  the 
most  part  the  property  of  the  peasantry,  in  Cebu  it 
mostly  belongs  to  the  mestizos,  and  is  let  out  by  them, 
in  very  small  allotments,  upon  lease.  The  owners  of 
the  soil  know  how  to  keep  the  peasants  in  a  state  of 
dependence  by  usurious  loans;  and  one  of  the  results 
of  this  abuse  is  that  agriculture  in  this  island  stands 
lower  than  in  almost  any  other  part  of  the  archipelago. f 
Customhojise  The  entire  value  of  the  exports  in  1868  amounted  to 
$1,181,050;  of  which  sugar  to  the  value  of  $481,127, 
and  abaca  to  the  value  of  $378,256;  went  to  England, 
abaca  amounting  to  $112,000  to  America,  and  tobacco 
to  $118,260  to  Spain.  The  imports  of  foreign  goods, 
mostly  by  the  Chinese,  come  through  Manila,  where 
they  purchase  from  the  foreign  import  houses.  The 
value  of  these  imports  amounted  in  1868  to  $182,522; 
of  which  $150,000  were  for  English  cotton  stuffs.  The 
entire  imports  of  the  island  were  estimated  at  $1,243,582, 
and  the  exports  at  $226,898.  Among  the  importations 
were  twenty  chests  of  images,  a  sign  of  the  deeply- 
rooted  worship  of  the  Virgin.  Formerly  the  products 
for  exportation  were  bought  up  by  the  foreign  merchants, 
mostly    Chinese    mestizos;    but   now    they    are   bought 


*  According  to  the  Miyieral  Review,  Madrid,  1866,  xvii.  244,  the  coal  from  the 
mountain  of  Alpaco,  in  the  district  of  Naga,  in  Cebu,  is  dry,  pure,  almost  free 
of  sulphur  pyrites,  burns  easily,  and  with  a  strong  flame.  In  the  experiments 
made  at  the  laboratory  of  the  School  of  Mines  in  Madrid  it  yielded  four  per  cent, 
of  ashes,  and  a  heating  power  of  4,825  caloria;  i.  e.,  by  the  burning  of  one  part 
by  weight  4,825  parts  by  weight  of  water  were  heated  to  1°  C.  Good  pit-coal 
gives  6,000  cal.  The  first  coal  pits  in  Cebu  were  excavated  in  the  Massanga 
valley;  but  the  works  were  discontinued  in  1859,  after  considerable  outlay  had 
been  made  on  them.  Four  strata  of  considerable  thickness  were  subsequently 
discovered  in  the  valley  of  Alpaco  and  in  the  mountain  of  Oling,  in  Naga.  *  * 
"The  coal  of  Cebu  is  acknowledged  to  be  better  than  that  of  Australia  and  La- 
buan,  but  has  not  sufficient  heating  power  to  be  used,  unmixed  with  other  coal, 
on  long  sea  voyages." 

According  to  the  Catalogue  of  the  Products  of  the  Philippines(  Manila,  1866), 
the  coal  strata  of  Cebu  have,  at  many  places  in  the  mountain  range  which  run? 
from  north  to  south  across  the  whole  of  the  island,  an  average  thickne??  of  two 
miles.  The  coal  is  of  middling  quality,  and  is  burnt  in  the  Government  steam 
works  after  being  mixed  with  Cardiff  coal.  The  price  in  Gebu  is  on  the  average 
six   dollars   per   ton. 

t  English   Consular  Report,   217. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S89 

direct  from  the  producers,  who  thus  obtain  better  prices 
in  consequence  of  the  abolition  of  the  high  brokerages. 
To  this  and  to  the  energy  of  the  foreign  merchants, 
under  favorable  circumstances,  is  the  gradual  improve- 
ment of  agriculture  principally  to  be  ascribed. 

Iloilo  is  the  most  important  of  the  newly  opened  ihHo. 
ports,  being  the  central  point  of  the  Bisayan  group,  and 
situated  in  one  of  the  most  thickly  populated  and  indus- 
trious provinces.  Nicholas  Loney*  estimates  the  export 
of  goods  woven  from  the  fiber  of  the  piiia,  from  Iloilo, 
and  the  neighboring  provinces,  at  about  one  million 
dollars  annually.  The  harbor  is  excellent,  being  com- 
pletely protected  by  an  island  which  lies  immediately 
before  it;  and  at  high  tide  there  is  about  twelve  feet  of 
water  close  in  shore  for  vessels  to  lie  in.  On  account 
of  the  bar,  however,  ships  of  a  deeper  draught  than  this 
are  obliged  to  complete  their  loading  outside.  Previous 
to  the  opening  of  the  new  harbors,  all  the  provinces  were 
compelled  as  well  to  bring  their  products  intended  for 
exportation  to  Manila,  as  to  receive  from  the  same 
place  their  foreign  imports;  the  cost  of  which  therefore 
was  greatly  increased  through  the  extra  expenses  incurred 
by  the  double  voyage,  reloading,  brokerage,  and  whar- 
fage charges.  According  to  a  written  account  by  N. 
Loney,  it  is  shown  how  profitable,  even  after  a  few 
years,  the  opening  of  Iloilo  has  been  to  the  provinces 
immediately  adjoining — the  islands  of  Panay  and  Negros. 

The  higher  prices  which  can  be  obtained  for  directly  Suaar. 
exported  sugar,  combined  with  the  facility  and  security 
of  the  trade  as  contrasted  with  the  late  monopoly  enjoy- 
ed by  Manila,  have  occasioned  a  great  extension  of  the 
cultivation  of  that  article.  Not  only  in  Iloilo,  but  also 
in  Antique   and    Negros,  many   new   plantations   have 


*  The  man  credited   with  the  development  of  the  sugar  industry  through 
machinery.     A  monument  has  been  erected  to  his  memory. — T. 


S90  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

arisen,  and  the  old  ones  have  been  enlarged  as  much  as 
possible;  and  not  less  important  has  been  the  progress 
in  the  manufacture.  In  1857  there  was  not  one  iron 
mill  to  be  found  on  the  island ;  so  that,  in  working  with  the 
wooden  mill,  about  thirty  per  cent,  of  the  sap  remained 
in  the  cane,  even  after  it  had  thrice  passed  through. 
The  old  wooden  presses,  which  were  worked  by  steam 
or  carabaos,  have  now  been  supplanted  by  new  ones; 
and  these  the  native  planters  have  no  difficulty  in  ob- 
taining, as  they  can  get  them  on  credit  from  the  ware- 
houses of  the  English  importers.  Instead  of  the  old 
Chinese  cast-iron  pans  which  were  in  use,  far  superior 
articles  have  been  imported  from  Europe;  and  many 
large  factories  worked  by  steam-power  and  with  all 
modern  improvements  have  been  established.  In  agri- 
culture, likewise,  creditable  progress  is  noticeable. 
Improved  ploughs,  carts,  and  farming  implements  gen- 
erally, are  to  be  had  in  plenty.  These  changes  naturally 
show  how  important  it  was  to  establish  at  different 
points,  extending  over  two  hundred  miles  of  the  Archi- 
pelago, commercial  centers,  where  it  was  desirable  that 
foreigners  should  settle.  Without  these  latter,  and  the 
facilities  afforded  to  credit  which  thereby  ensued,  the 
sudden  rise  and  prosperity  of  Iloilo  would  not  have  been 
possible,  inasmuch  as  the  mercantile  houses  in  that  capital 
would  have  been  debarred  from  trading  with  unknown 
planters  in  distant  provinces,  otherwise  than  for  ready 
money.  A  large  number  of  half-castes,  too,  who  before 
traded  in  manufactured  goods  purchased  in  Manila, 
were  enabled  after  this  to  send  their  goods  direct  to  the 
provinces,  to  the  foreign  firms  settled  there;  and  as, 
ultimately,  neither  these  latter  nor  the  Chinese  retail 
dealers  could  successfully  compete  with  them,  the 
result  has  been  that,  as  much  to  their  own  profit  as  to 
that  of  the  country,  they  have  betaken  themselves  to 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  t91 

the  cultivation  of  sugar.  In  this  manner  important 
plantations  have  been  established  in  Negros,  which  are 
managed  by  natives  of  Iloilo:  but  there  is  a  scarcity 
of  laborers  on  the  island. 

Foreigners  now  can  legally  acquire  property,  and  Lmid  disputes. 
possess  a  marketable  title;  in  which  respect  the  law, 
until  a  very  recent  period,  was  of  an  extremely  uncertain 
nature.  Land  is  to  be  obtained  by  purchase,  or,  when 
not  already  taken  up,  by  "denuncia"  (i.  e.  priority  of 
claim).  In  such  case,  the  would-be  possessor  of  the  land 
must  enter  into  an  undertaking  in  the  nearest  of  the 
native  Courts  to  cultivate  and  keep  the  said  land  in  a 
fit  and  serviceable  condition.  Should  no  other  claim  be 
put  in,  notice  is  thereupon  given  of  the  grant,  and  the 
magistrate  or  alcalde  concludes  the  compact  without 
other  cost  than  the  usual  stamp  duty. 

Many  mestizos  and  natives,  not  having  the  necessary  Lach  o/  capit,u 
capital  to  carry  on  a  large  plantation  successfully,  ■^'"' '<"■"« 
sell  the  fields  which  they  have  already  partially  cultivated 
to  European  capitalists,  who  are  thus  relieved  of  all  the 
preliminary  tedious  work.  Evidently  the  Colonial 
Government  is  now  sincerely  disposed  to  favor  the 
laying  out  of  large  plantations. 

The  want  of  good  roads  is  particularly  felt:  but,  with  Lach o/ roads. 
the  increase  of  agriculture,  this  defect  will  naturally 
be  remedied;  and,  moreover,  most  of  the  sugar  factories 
are  situated  on  rivers  which  are  unnavigable  even  by 
flat  freight  boats.  The  value  of  land  in  many  parts 
of  the  country  has  doubled  within  the  last  ten  years.* 

Up  to   1854  the  picul  of  sugar  was  worth  in  Iloilo  sugar  prices. 
from  $1.05  to  $1.25  and  seldom  over  $2.00  in  Manila; 


*  In  Jaro  the  leases  have  increased  threefold  in  six  years:  and  cattle  which 
were  worth  $10  in  1860,  fetched  $25  in  1866.  Plots  of  land  on  the  "Ria,"  in 
Iloilo,  have  risen  from  $100  to  $500,  and  even  as  high  as  $800.  (Diario,  Feb- 
ruary 1867).  These  results  are  to  ba  ascribed  to  the  sugar  trade,  which,  through 
free  exportation,  has  become  extremely  lucrative. 


393  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

in  1866,  $3.25;  and  in  1868,  $4.75  to  $5.00  in  Iloilo. 
The  business  in  Iloilo  therefore  shows  an  increase  of 
$1.75   per   picul.* 

Negros.  At  the  cnd  of  1866  there  were  as  many  as  twenty 

Europeans  established  on  the  island  of  Negros  as  sugar 
planters,  besides  a  number  of  mestizos.  Some  of  them 
were  working  with  steam  machinery  and  vacuum  pans. 
The  general  rate  of  pay  is  from  $2.05  to  $3.00  per  month. 
On  some  plantations  the  principle  of  acsa,  i.  e.  part  share, 
is  in  operation.  The  owner  lets  out  a  piece  of  ground, 
providing  draught  cattle  and  all  necessary  ploughing 
implements,  to  a  native,  who  works  it,  and  supplies  the 
mill  with  the  cut  cane,  receiving  as  payment  a  share, 
generally  a  third,  of  the  product.  In  Negros  the  violet 
cane  is  cultivated,  and  in  Manila  the  white  (Otaheiti). 
The  land  does  not  require  manuring.  On  new  ground, 
or  what  we  may  term  virgin  soil,  the  cane  often  grows 
to  a  height  of  thirteen  feet.  A  vast  improvement  is  to 
be  observed  in  the  mode  of  dress  of  the  people.  Piiia 
and  silk  stuffs  are  beoming  quite  common.  Advance 
in  luxury  is  always  a  favorable  sign;  according  to  the 
increase  of  requirements,  industry  flourishes  in  propor- 
tion. 

The  future  As    I    havc    already    mentioned,    California,    Japan, 

China,  and  Australia  appear  designed  by  nature  to  be 
the  principal  consumers  of  the  products  of  the  Philippine 
Islands.  Certainly  at  present  England  is  the  best 
customer;  but  nearly  half  the  account  is  for  sugar,  in 
consequence  of  their  own  custom  duties.  Sometimes 
it  happens  that  not  more  than  one-fourth  of  the  sugar 
crop  is  sufficiently  refined  to  compete  in  the  Australian  and 
Californian  markets  with  the  sorts  from  Bengal,  Java, 


sugar  market. 


*  In  1855  Iloilo  took  altogether  from  Negros  3,000  piculs  out  of  11,700;  in 
1860  as  much  as  90.000  piculs;  in  1863,  176,000  picuU  (in  twenty-seven  foreign 
ships);  in  1866,  250,000  piculs;  in  1871,  312,379  piculs  from  both  islands. 


JnQot's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S93 

and  the  Mauritius;  the  remaining  three-fourths,  if 
particularly  white,  must  perforce  undertake  the  long 
voyage  to  England,  despite  the  high  freight  and  certain 
loss  on  the  voyage  of  from  ten  to  twelve  per  cent,  through 
the  leakage  of  the  molasses.  The  inferior  quality  of 
the  Philippine  sugar  is  at  once  perceived  by  the  English 
refiners,  and  is  only  taxed  at  8s.  per  cwt.,  while  purer 
sorts  pay  10s.  to  12s.* 

In  this  manner  the  English  customs  favor  the  inferior 
qualities  of  manufactured  sugar.  The  colonial  Govern-  p'""'^'"'- 
ment  did  not  allow  those  engaged  in  the  manufacture 
of  sugar  to  distil  rum  from  the  molasses  until  the  year 
1862.  They  had,  therefore,  little  inducement  to  extract, 
at  a  certain  expense,  a  substance  the  value  on  which 
they  were  not  permitted  to  realize;  but  under  ordinary 
circumstances  the  distillation  of  the  rum  not  only 
covered  the  cost  of  refining,  but  gave,  in  addition,  a 
fair  margin  of  profit. 


A  valuable  by- 


XXIV 


One  of  the  most  interesting  productions  of  the  island   Manila  h,:m,>. 
is  Manila  hemp.     The  French,   who,   however,   hardly 
use  it,  call  it  "Silk-Plant,"  because  of  its  silky  appearance. 

The  natives  call  the  fiber  handala,  and  in  commerce 
(generally  speaking)  abaca,  just  as  the  plant  from  which 
it  is  obtained. 

The  latter  is  a  wild  species  of  banana  growing  in  the   Abani. 
Philippine   Islands,    known   also   as   Arbol   de   Canamo 
(hemp-tree),   Musa  textilis,  Lin.     It  does  not  differ  in 

*  The  sugar  intended  for  the  English  market  cost  in  Manila,  in  the  years  1868 
and  1869,  from  £15  to  £16  per  ton,  and  fetched  in  London  about  £20  per  ton. 
The  best  refined  sugar  prepared  in  Manila  for  Australia  was,  on  account  of  the 
higher  duty,  worth  only  £3  per  ton  more  in  London;  but,  being  £5  dearer  than 
the  inferior  quality,  it  commanded  a  premium  of  £2.  Manila  exports  the 
sugar  chiefly  from  Pangasinan,  Pampanga,  and  Laguna. — (From  private  infor- 
mation.) 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Undetermined 
■plant  relations. 


Abacd   districts. 


appearance  to  any  great  extent  from  the  edible  banana 
(Musa  paradisiaca) ,  one  of  the  most  important  plants 
of  the  torrid  zone,  and  familiar  to  us  as  being  one  of 
our  most  beautiful  hot-house  favorites. 

Whether  this  and  the  "musse"  (M.  troglodytarum,  M. 
sylvestris,  and  others),  frequently  known,  too,  as  M. 
textilis,  are  of  the  same  species,  has  not  yet  been  deter- 
mined. The  species  Musaceae  are  herbaceous  plants 
only.  The  outer  stem  consists  of-  crescent-shaped 
petioles  crossing  one  another  alternately,  and  encircling 
the  thin  main  stem.  These  petioles  contain  a  quantity 
of  bast  fiber,  which  is  used  as  string,  but  otherwise  is 
of  no  commercial  value.  The  serviceable  hemp  fiber 
has,  up  to  the  present  time,  been  exclusively  obtained 
from  the  southern  portion  of  the  Philippines. 

The  southern  Camarines  and  Albay  are  favorably 
adapted  for  the  cultivation  of  this  plant,  as  are  also 
the  islands  of  Samar  and  Leyte,  and  the  adjacent  islands; 
and  Cebu  likewise,  although  a  portion  of  the  so-called 
"Cebu  hemp"  comes  from  Mindanao.  In  Negros  the 
bast-banana  thrives  only  in  the  south,  not  in  the  north; 
and  Iloilo,  which  produces  most  of  the  hemp  cloth 
(guinara),  is  obliged  to  import  the  raw  material  from 
the  eastern  district,  as  it  does  not  flourish  in  the  island 
of  Panay.  In  Capiz,  it  is  true,  some  abaca  may  be 
noticed  growing,  but  it  is  of  trifling  value.  Hitherto  all 
attempts,  strenuous  though  the  efforts  were,  to  accli- 
matize the  growth  of  hemp  in  the  western  and  northern 
provinces  have  failed.  The  plants  rarely  grow  as  high 
as  two  feet,  and  the  trouble  and  expense  are  simply 
unremunerative.  This  failure  may  be  accounted  for 
by  the  extreme  dryness  prevailing  during  many  months 
of  the  year,  whereas  in  the  eastern  provinces  plentiful 
showers  fall  the  whole  year  round. 


Jaffor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S9S 

The  great  profit  which  the  Manila  hemp  has  yielded  pl^f^^^^^'J''' 
in  the  few  years  since  its  production,  however,  has 
given  encouragement  to  still  further  experiments;  so 
that,  indeed,  it  will  shortly  be  shown  whether  the  cultiva- 
tion of  abaca  is  to  be  confined  to  its  present  limited  area, 
while  the  edible  species  of  banana  has  spread  itself  over 
the  whole  surface  of  the  earth  within  the  tropics.  On 
the  volcanic  mountains  of  Western  Java  a  species  of 
the  Musaceffi  grows  in  great  luxuriance.  The  Govern- 
ment has  not,  however,  made  any  real  effort  to  cultivate 
it,  and  what  has  been  done  in  that  respect  has  been 
effected,  up  to  the  present  date,  by  private  enterprise. 
Various  writers  have  stated  that  abaca  is  to  be  obtained 
in  the  north  of  the  Celebes.  Bickmore,  however,  says 
positively  that  the  inhabitants  having  made  great 
efforts  in  attempting  its  successful  cultivation,  have 
abandoned  it  again  in  favor  of  the  cultivation  of  coffee, 
which  is  found  to  be  far  more  profitable.*  According 
to  previous  statements,  Guadaloupe  appears  to  be  able 
to  produce  abaca  (fiber  of  the  M.  textilis?);\  and  Pondi- 
cherry  and  Guadaloupe  have  produced  fabrics  woven 
from  abaca,  and  French  Guiana  stuffs  from  the  fiber 
of  the  edible  banana;  |  all  these,  however,  are  only 
experiments. 

Royle  affirms  that  the  Manila  hemp  (abaca  fiber)   Superiority  c 

fiber, 

excels  the  Russian  in  firmness,  lightness,  and  strength 
in  tension,  as  well  as  in  cheapness,  and  has  only  the 
one  disadvantage  that  ropes  made  from  it  become  stiff  in 
wet  weather.  The  reason,  however,  is  found  in  the 
manner  in  which  it  is  spun,  and  may  be  avoided  by 


*  The  Islands  of  the  East  Indian  Archipelajo,  1858,  p.  340. 

t  Exhibition  Catalogue;  section,  French  Colonies,  1867,  p.  80. 

t  Report  of  the  Commissioners,  Exhibition  1867,  iv.  102.  The  South  Amer- 
ican Indians  have  for  a  long  time  past  employed  the  banana  fiber  in  the  manu- 
facture of  clothing  material; — (The  Technologist.  September,  1865,  p.  89,  from 
unauthenticated  sources,)  and  in  Loo  Choo  the  banana  fiber  is  the  only  kind  in 
use  (Faits  Commerciaux,  No.  1514.  p.  36). 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Banana 
varieties. 


Cultivation. 


proper  preparation.*  Through  the  better  preparation 
of  the  raw  material  in  Manila  by  means  of  adequate 
machinery,  these  difficulties  have  been  overcome;  but 
abaca  no  longer  has  the  advantage  of  superior  cheapness, 
as  the  demand  has  increased  much  faster  than  the  supply. 
During  the  year  1859  it  was  worth  from  £22  to  £25 
per  ton;  in  1868,  £45  per  ton;  while  Russian  hemp 
fetched  £31  per  ton.  Thus  in  nine  years  it  rose  to 
double  its  value. 

In  Albay  there  are  about  twelve  varieties  of  the  best 
banana  cultivated,  which  are  particularly  favored  by 
the  qualities  of  the  soil.  The  cultivation  is  extremely 
simple,  and  entirely  independent  of  the  seasons.  The 
plants  thrive  best  on  the  slopes  of  the  volcanic  mountains 
(in  which  Albay  and  Camarines  abound),  in  open  spaces 
of  the  woods  protected  by  the  trees,  which  cast  their 
shadows  to  an  extent  of  about  sixty  feet.  In  exposed 
level  ground  they  do  not  thrive  so  well,  and  in  marshy 
land  not  at  all. 

In  the  laying  out  of  a  new  plantation  the  young  shoots 
are  generally  made  use  of,  which  sprout  so  abundantly 
from  the  roots  that  each  individual  one  soon  becomes 
a  perfect  plant.  In  favorable  ground  the  custom  is 
to  allow  a  distance  of  about  ten  feet  between  each 
plant;  in  poor  ground  six  feet.  The  only  care  necessary 
is  the  extermination  of  the  weeds,  and  clearing  away 
the  undergrowth  during  the  first  season;  later  on,  the 
plants  grow  so  luxuriantly  and  strongly  that  they 
entirely  prevent  the  growth  of  anything  else  in  their 
vicinity.  The  protection  afforded  by  the  shade  of  the 
trees  at  this  period  is  no  longer  required,  the  young 
buds  finding  sufficient  protection  against  the  sun's 
xays  under  cover  of  the  fan-like  leaves.     Only  in  excep- 


*  Abaca  not  readily  taking  tar  is,  consequently,  only  used  for  running,  and  not 
standing,  rigging. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S97 

tional  cases,  contrary  to  the  usual  practice,  are  the 
plants  raised  from  seed.  The  fruit,  when  ready,  is 
cut  off  and  dried,  though  care  must  be  taken  that  it 
is  not  over  ripe;  otherwise  the  kernels  will  not  germinate. 
These  latter  are  about  the  size  of  peppercorns;  and 
the  extraction  of  them  in  the  edible  species  almost 
always  brings  about  decay.  Two  days  before  sowing, 
the  kernels  are  taken  out  of  the  fruit,  and  steeped  over- 
night in  water;  on  the  following  day  they  are  dried  in 
a  shady  place;  and  on  the  third  day  they  are  sown  in 
holes  an  inch  deep  in  fresh,  unbroken,  and  well-shaded 
forest  ground,  allowing  six  inches  distance  between 
each  plant  and  row.  After  a  year  the  seedlings,  which 
are  then  about  two  feet  high,  are  planted  out,  and  tended 
in  the  same  way  as  the  suckers.  While  many  of  the 
edible  bananas  bear  fruit  after  one  year,  and  a  few 
varieties  even  after  six  months,  the  abaca  plant  requires  Differences  with 
on  an  average  three  years  to  produce  its  fiber  in  a  proper  °''"'^''' 
condition;  when  raised  from  suckers  four  years;  and 
raised  from  year-old  seedlings,  even  under  the  most 
favorable  conditions,   two  years. 

On  the  first  crop,  only  one  stalk  is  cut  from  each  CutHno. 
bush;  but  later  on  the  new  branches  grow  so  quickly 
that  they  can  be  cut  every  two  months.*  After  a  few 
years  the  plants  become  so  strong  and  dense  that  it 
is  scarcely  possible  to  push  through  them.  Bast  is  in 
its  best  condition  at  the  time  of  blossoming;  but,  when 
the  price  of  the  fiber  happens  to  stand  high  in  the  market, 
this  particular  time  is  not  always  waited  for. 

Plants  which  have  blossomed  cease  to  be  profitable  Prejudice 
in  any  way,  by  reason  of  the  fiber  becoming  too  weak —  T"lf  "'""*" 

°  after  blossoming. 

a  matter    of    too    great  nicety  for  the  unpractical  con- 
summers  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  to  decide 

*  Aplant  in  full  growth  produces  annually  3 f  :wt.  bandala  to  the  acre,  whereas 
from  an  acre  of  flax  not  mere  than  from  2  to  4  cwt.  of  pure  flax,  and  from  2  to 
8  cwt.  seed  can  be  obtained. 


£98  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  BYES 

upon,  and  one  in  which,  despite  inquiries  and  careful 
inspections,  they  might  be  deceived.  There  really 
is  no  perceptible  reason  why  the  fiber  should  become 
weaker  through  fructification,  which  simply  consists 
in  the  fact  of  the  contents  of  the  vascular  cells  changing 
into  soluble  matter,  and  gradually  oozing  away,  the 
consequence  of  which  is  that  the  cells  of  the  fiber  are 
not  replenished.  These,  on  the  contrary,  acquire 
additional  strength  with  the  age  of  the  plant,  because 
the  emptied  cells  cling  so  firmly  together,  by  means  of 
a  certain  resinous  deposit,  that  it  is  impossible  to  obtain 
them  unbroken  without  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  The 
idea  may  have  erroneously  arisen  from  the  circumstance 
that,  previously  to  drying,  as  with  hemp,  the  old  plants 
were  picked  out,  and  allowed  to  be  thrown  away,  though 
not  without  considerably  increasing  the  rate  of  pay, 
which  already  consumed  the  greater  part  of  the  general 
expenses.* 

Exiractino  the  In  order  to  obtain  the  bast,  the  stalk  above  ground  is 

closely  pruned  and  freed  from  leaves  and  other  encum- 
brances; each  leaf  is  then  singly  divided  into  strips — a 
cross  incision  being  made  through  the  membrane  on 
the  inner  or  concave  side,  and  connected  by  means  of 
the  pulpy  parts  (the  parenchym)  clinging  together. 
In  this  manner  as  much  as  possible  of  the  clear  outer 
skin  only  remains  behind.  Another  method  is  to  strip 
the  bast  from  the  undivided  stem.  To  effect  this  the 
operator  makes  an  oblique  incision  in  the  skin  of  the 
under  part  of  the  stalk,  drawing  the  knife  gradually 
to  the  tip,  and  stripping  off  the  whole  length  as  broad 
a  piece  as  possible;  and  the  operation  is  repeated  as 
many  times  as  practicable.     This  method  of  handling 


fiber. 


*  As  Dr.  Wittmack  communicated  to  me,  only  fiber  or  seed  can  be  obtained 
from  hemp,  as  when  the  hemp  is  ripe,  i.e.  run  to  ssed,  the  fiber  becomes  then  both 
brittle  and  coarse.  When  cultivating  flax  very  often  both  seeds  and  fiber  are 
used,  but  then  they  both  are  of  inferior  quality. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S99 

is  more  productive  than  the  one  previously  described; 
but,  on  the  other  hand,  it  takes  considerably  more 
time,  and  for  that  reason  is  not  often  practised.  The 
strips  of  bast  are  then  drawn  under  a  knife,  the  blade 
of  which  is  three  inches  broad  by  six  long,  fastened  at 
one  end  to  the  extremity  of  a  flexible  stick  so  that  it 
is  suspended  perpendicularly  over  a  well-smoothed 
block,  and  at  the  other  end  to  a  handle  connected  by 
means  of  a  cord  to  a  treadle,  which  can  be  pressed 
firmly  down,  as  occasion  requires.  The  workman 
draws  the  bast,  without  any  regard  to  quality,  between 
the  knife  and  block,  commencing  in  the  middle,  and  then 
from  side  to  side.  The  knife  must  be  free  from 
notches,  or  all  indentations,  according  to  the  direction 
of  Father  Blanco.* 

Three  hired-men  usually  get  twenty-five  pounds  per  Laborers'  work 
day.  One  worker  cuts  up  the  stalks,  strips  off  the  ""^'^"^^• 
leaves,  and  attends  to  the  supply;  the  second,  frequently 
a  boy,  spreads  out  the  strips ;  and  the  third  draws  them 
under  the  knife.  A  single  plant  has  been  known  to 
yield  as  much  as  two  pounds  of  fiber;  but  the  most 
favorable  average  rarely  affords  more  than  one  pound, 
and  plants  grown  in  indifferent  soil  scarcely  a  sixth  of 
that  quantity.  The  plantations  are  worked  either  by  the 
owner  or  by  day-laborers,  who,  when  the  market  prices 
are  very  low,  take  half  share  of  the  crop  harvested  by 
them.  In  these  cases  an  industrious  workman  may 
obtain  as  much  as  one  picul  in  a  week.  During  my 
stay  exceptionally  low  prices  ruled — sixteen  and  one- 
half  reals  per  picul  undelivered.  The  workman  could, 
therefore,  in  six  days  earn  half  the  amount,  viz.,  eight 
and  a  quarter  reals  at  a  rate  of  one  and  three-eighths 


*  Flora  dt  Filipinas. 


SOO  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

reals  per  day.  The  day's  pay  at  that  time  was  half  a 
real,  and  board  a  quarter  of  a  real,  making  together 
three-quarters  of  a  real. 

By  daily  pay.  Half  share. 

Profit.  The  workman  therefore  earned  daily 0. 75  r.       or        1 .  375  r. 

Wages  amounted  to  per  picul 12.    6  r.       or        8.    25  r. 

Profit  of  the  planters  after  deduction  of  the  wages .  .        3.    9  r.       or        8.    25  r. 

Lupis  and  The  edges  of  the  petioles,  which  contain  much  finer  fiber 

handa  a.  than  the  middle  parts,  are  separately  divided  into  strips 

an  inch  wide,  and  with  strong  pressure  are  drawn  several 
times  under  the  knife.  This  substance,  which  is  called 
lupis,  is  in  high  request,  being  employed  in  the  native 
weaving;  while  handala  is  chiefly  used  for  ships' 
rigging.  ^^ 

Grades  of  lupis.  Lupis,  accordiug  to  the  fineness  of  the  fiber,  is  sorted 
into  four  classes — first,  Binani;  second,  Totogna;  third, 
Sogotan;  and  fourth,  Cadaclan.  A  bundle  of  these  is 
then  taken  up  in  the  left  hand,  and,  while  with  the  right 
the  first  three  sorts  are  inserted  between  the  fingers,  the 
fourth  is  held  between  the  thumb  and  forefinger.  This 
last  description  is  no  longer  used  in  fine  weaving,  and  is 
therefore  sold  with  handala.  After  the  fine  sorts  have 
been  pounded  in  a  rice-mortar,  in  order  to  render  the 
fiber  soft  and  pliable,  they  are  severally  knotted  into  one 
another,  and  converted  into  web. 

Lupis  fabrics.  Generally  the  first  sort  is  worked  as  woof  with  the 

second  as  warp,  and  the  third  as  warp  with  the  second  as 
woof.  The  fabrics  so  woven  are  nearly  as  fine  as  pina 
fabrics  (Nipis  de  Pina),  and  almost  equal  the  best 
quality  of  cambric;  and,  notwithstanding  the  many  little 
nodules  occasioned  by  the  tangling  of  the  fiber,  which 
may  be  discerned  on  close  inspection,  are  clearer  and 


*  In  1868,  £100  per  ton  was  paid  for  lupis,  although  only  imported  in  small 
quantities — about  five  tons  per  annum — and  principally  used  at  one  time  in 
France  in  the  manufacture  of  a  particular  kind  of  underclothing.  The  fashion 
soon,  however,  died  out.  Quitol,  a  less  valuable  sort  of  lupis,  could  be  sold  at 
£75  per  ton. 


Jarjor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  301 

Stouter,  and  possess  a  warmer  yellowish  tint.*  As  to 
these  last  three  qualities — purity,  flexibility,  and  color — 
they  stand  in  relation  to  cambric  somewhat  as  card- 
board to  tissue-paper. 

Weaving  such  fabrics  on  very  simple  looms  is  exceed-  n'eaving. 
ingly  troublesome  as  the  fibers,  which  are  not  spun  but 
twisted,  very  frequently  break.  The  finest  stuffs  re- 
quire so  great  an  amount  of  dexterity,  patience,  and  time 
in  their  preparation,  and  for  that  reason  are  so  expensive, 
that  they  would  find  no  purchasers  in  Europe  where 
there  is  the  competition  of  cheap,  machine-made  goods. 
Their  fine,  warm  yellowish  color  also  is  objected  to  by 
the  European  women,  who  are  accustomed  to  linen  and 
calicoes  strongly  blued  in  the  washing.  In  the  country, 
however,  high  prices  are  paid  for  them  by  the  rich 
mestizos,  who  understand  the  real  goodness  of  their 
qualities. 

The  fibers  of  the  inner  petioles,  which  are  softer  but 
not  so  strong  as  the  outer,  are  called  tupus,  and  sold 
with  bandala,  or  mixed  with  tapis  and  used  in  the  native 
weaving.  Bandala  also  serves  for  weaving  purposes; 
and,  in  that  portion  of  the  Archipelago  where  the  native 
abaca  plantations  are,  the  entire  dress  of  both  sexes  is 
made  of  coarse  guinara.  Still  coarser  and  stronger  fabrics 
are  prepared  for  the  European  market,  such  as  crinoline 
and  stiff  muslin  used  by  dressmakers. 

Before  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards  the  natives  wore   .i  Pre-Spanish 
stuffs  from  abaca;  which  became  an  important  article   ^'■'"'"'^'• 
of  export  only  some  few  decades  since.     This  is  in  great 
measure  due  to  the  enterprising  spirit  of  two  American 
firms,  and  would  not  have  been  attained  without  great 
perseverance  and  liberal  pecuniary  assistance. 


Bandala 
fabrics. 


*  Inflexibility  is  peculiar  to  all  fibers  of  the  Monocotyledons,  because  they  con- 
sist of  coarsely  rounded  cells.  On  the  other  hand,  the  true  bast  fibers — the 
Dicotyledons  (flax,  for  instance) — are  the  reverse. 


SOS  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Unbusinesslike        -pjjg  plants  flouHsh  without  any  care  or  attention,  the 

early  methods. 

only  trouble  being  to  collect  the  fiber;  and,  the  bounteous- 
ness  of  Nature  having  provided  them  against  want, 
the  natives  shirk  even  this  trouble  when  the  market 
price  is  not  very  enticing.  In  general  low  prices  are 
scarcely  to  be  reckoned  on,  because  of  the  utter  indiffer- 
ence of  the  laborers,  over  whom  the  traders  do  not  possess 
enough  influence  to  keep  them  at  work.  Advances  to 
them  are  made  both  in  goods  and  money,  which  the 
creditor  must  repay  either  by  produce  from  his  own 
plantation  or  by  giving  an  equivalent  in  labor.*  As  long 
as  the  produce  stands  high  in  price,  everything  goes  on 
pretty  smoothly,  although  even  then,  through  the  dis- 
honesty of  the  workers  and  the  laziness,  extravagance, 
and  mercantile  incapacity  of  the  middlemen,  considerable 
loss  frequently  ensues.  If,  however,  prices  experience  any 
considerable  fall,  then  the  laborers  seek  in  any  and  every 
way  to  get  out  of  their  uncomfortable  position,  whilst  the 
percentage  of  profit  secured  to  the  middleman  is  barely 
sufficient  to  cover  the  interest  on  his  outlay.  Never- 
theless, they  must  still  continue  the  supplies,  inasmuch 
as  they  possess  no  other  means  of  securing  payment 
of  their  debt  in  the  future.  The  laborers,  in  their  turn, 
bring  bitter  complaints  against  the  agents,  to  the  effect 
that  they  are  forced  to  severe  labor,  unprofitable  to 
themselves,  through  their  acceptance  of  advances  made 
to  them  at  most  exorbitant  rates ;  and  the  agents  (gener- 
ally   mestizos    or    Creoles)    blame    the    crafty,    greedy, 


*  Through  the  agricultural  system,  also,  the  mestizos  and  natives  secure  the 
work  of  their  countrymen  by  making  these  advances,  and  renewing  them  before 
the  old  ones  are  paid  off.  These  thoughtless  people  consequently  fall  deeper  and 
deeper  into  debt,  and  become  virtually  the  peons  of  their  creditors,  it  being  im- 
possible for  them  to  escape  in  any  way  from  their  position.  The  "part-share 
contract"  is  much  the  same  in  its  operative  effects,  the  landlord  having  to  supply 
the  farmer  with  agricultural  implements  and  draught-cattle,  and  often  in  addition 
supplying  the  whole  family  with  clothing  and  provisions;  and,  on  division  of  the 
earnings,  the  farmer  is  unabls  to  cover  his  debt.  It  is  true  the  Filipinos  are 
responsible  legally  to  the  extent  of  five  dollars  only,  a  special  enactment  pro- 
hibiting these  usurious  bargains.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  however,  they  are  gen- 
erally practised. 


JagoT's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SOS 

extortionate  foreigners,  who  shamelessly  tempt  the  lords 
of  the  soil  with  false  promises,  and  bring  about  their 
utter  ruin.  As  a  general  rule,  the  "crafty  foreigner"  chanyetoa 
experiences  a  considerable  diminution  of  his  capital. 
It  was  just  so  that  one  of  the  most  important  firms  suf- 
fered the  loss  of  a  very  large  sum.  At  length,  however, 
the  Americans,  who  had  capital  invested  in  this  trade, 
succeeded  in  putting  an  end  to  the  custom  of  advances, 
which  hitherto  had  prevailed,  erected  stores  and  presses 
on  their  own  account,  and  bought  through  their  agents 
direct  from  the  growers.  All  earlier  efforts  tending 
in  this  direction  had  been  effectually  thwarted  by  the 
Spaniards  and  Creoles,  who  considered  the  profits  derived 
from  the  country,  and  especially  the  inland  retail  trade, 
to  be  their  own  by  prescriptive  right.  They  are  parti- 
cularly jealous  of  the  foreign  intruders,  who  enrich 
themselves  at  their  expense;  consequently  they  place 
every  obstacle  in  their  way.  If  it  depended  upon  the 
will  of  these  people,  all  foreigners  would  be  ejected  from 
the  country — the  Chinese  alone,  as  workmen  (coolies), 
being  allowed  to  remain.* 

The  same  feeling  was  exhibited  by  the  natives  towards  Anti-chinese 
the  Chinese,  whom  they  hated  for  being  industrious  and  *'^" 
trustworthy  workers.  All  attempts  to  carry  out  great 
undertakings  by  means  of  Chinese  labor  were  frustrated 
by  the  native  workmen  intimidating  them,  and  driving 
them  away  either  by  open  violence  or  by  secret  persecu- 
tion; and  the  Colonial  authorities  were  reproached  for 
not  affording  suitable  protection  against  these  and  similar 
outrages.  That,  as  a  rule,  great  undertakings  did  not 
succeed  in  the  Philippines,  or  at  least  did  not  yield  a  profit 
commensurate  with  the  outlay  and  trouble,  is  a  fact 
beyond  dispute,  and  is  solely  to  be  ascribed  to  many  of  the 

*  This  feeling  of  jealousy  had  very  nearly  the  effect  of  closing  the  new  harbors 
immediately  after  they  were  opened. 


SOi 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Good  work  for 
good  pay. 


Tardy  justice  to 
foreigners. 


Abacd  pro- 
duction and 
prospects. 


circumstances  related  above.  There  are  those,  however, 
who  explain  these  mishaps  in  other  ways,  and  insist 
upon  the  fact  that  the  natives  work  well  enough  when 
they  are  punctually  and  sufficiently  paid.  The  Govern- 
ment, at  any  rate,  appears  gradually  to  have  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  the  resources  of  the  country  cannot 
be  properly  opened  up  without  the  assistance  of  the  capi- 
tal and  enterprise  of  the  foreigners;  and,  therefore,  of 
late  years  it  has  not  in  any  way  interfered  with  their 
establishment.  In  1869  their  right  of  establishment 
was  tardily  conceded  to  them  by  law. 

At  this  period  the  prospects  of  the  abaca  cultivation 
seemed  very  promising ;  and  since  the  close  of  the  Amer- 
ican war,  which  had  the  effect  of  causing  a  considerable 
fall  in  the  value  of  this  article  in  America,  the  prices 
have  been  steadily  increasing.  It  is  stated  (on  authority) 
that,  in  1840,  136,034  piculs  of  abaca,  to  the  value  of 
$397,995  were  exported,  the  value  per  picul  being  reck- 
oned at  about  $2.09.  The  rate  gradually  rose  and  stood 
between  four  and  five  dollars — and,  during  the  civil 
war,  reached  the  enormous  sum  of  nine  dollars  per  picul — 
the  export  of  Russian  hemp  preventing,  however,  a 
further  rise.  This  state  of  affairs  occasioned  the  laying 
out  of  many  new  plantations,  the  produce  of  which, 
when  it  came  on  the  market,  after  three  years,  was  valued 
at  $3.50  per  picul,  in  consequence  of  the  prices  having 
returned  to  their  normal  condition;  and  even  then  it 
paid  to  take  up  an  existing  plantation,  but  not  to  lay 
out  a  new  one.  This  rate  continued  until  1860,  since 
which  time  it  has  gradually  risen  (only  during  the  Amer- 
ican civil  war  was  there  any  stoppage),  and  it  now  stands 
once  more  as  high  as  during  the  civil  war;  and  there  is  no 
apparent  prospect  of  a  fall  so  long  as  the  Philippines 
have  no  competitors  in  the  trade.  In  1866  the  picul  in 
Manila  never  cost  less  than  $7  which  two  years  previously 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


was  the  maximum  value;  and  it  rose  gradually,  until 
$9.50  was  asked  for  ordinary  qualities.  The  production 
in  many  provinces  had  reached  the  extreme  limit;  and 
a  further  increase,  in  the  former  at  least,  is  impossible, 
as  the  work  of  cultivation  occupies  the  whole  of  the 
male  population — an  evidence  surely  that  a  suitable 
recompense  will  overcome  any  natural  laziness  of  the 
natives.* 

An  examination  of  the  following  table  will  confirm 
the  accuracy  of  these  views: — 

EXPORT  OF  ABACA    (In   Piculs). 


To 

1861 

1864 

1866 

1868 

1870 

1871 

Great  Britain 

North     America,  . 

Atlantic    Ports  • 

California  

198,954 

158,610 

6,600 

901 

16 

2,648 

5,531 

226,258 

249,106 

9,426 
1,134 
5,194 
1,932 
302 

96,000 
280,000 

125,540 

294,728 

14,200 

200 

21,244 

3,646 

131,180 

327,728 

15,900 
244 

11,434 

1,202 

882 

143,498 

285,112 

22,500 
640 

Australia 

Singapore 

China 

6,716 
2.992 
2  294 

Total 

273,260 

Commer- 
cial 
Report 

493,352 

Prussian 

Consular 

Report 

406,682 

Belgian 

Consular 

Report 

460,558 

English 

Con-.ular 

Report 

488,570 

463,752 

Market  Report, 
T.  H.  8e  Co. 

Export  oj 
"Manila 
hemp." 


Sisal-hemp, 


The  consumption  in  the  country  is  not  contained  in  Large  locai 
the  above  schedule,  and  is  difficult  to  ascertain;  but  «<'"«"'"p'''"^ 
it  must  certainly  be  very  considerable,  as  the  natives 
throughout    entire    provinces    are    clothed    in    guinara, 
the    weaving    of   which    for    the    family    requirements 
generally  is  done  at  home. 

Sisal,  also  sisal-hemp,  or,  as  it  is  sometimes  known, 
Mexican  grass,  has  for  some  years  past  been  used  in  the 
trade  in  increasing  quantities  as  a  substitute  for  abaca, 
which  it  somewhat  resembles  in  appearance,  though 
wanting  that  fine  gloss  which  the  latter  possesses.  It  is 
somewhat  weaker,  and  costs  from  £5  to  £10  less  per  ton; 
it  is  only  used  for  ships'  rigging.  The  refuse  from  it 
has  been -found  an  extremely  useful  adjunct  to  the  ma- 

*  Rapport  Consulairt  Beige,  XIV.,  68. 


306  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

terials  ordinarily  used  in  the  manufacture  of  paper. 
The  Technologist  for  July,  1865,  calls  attention  to  the 
origin  of  this  substitute,  in  a  detailed  essay  differing  essen- 
tially from  the  representations  contained  in  the  "U.  S. 
Agricultural  Report"  published  at  Washington  in  1870; 
and  the  growing  importance  of  the  article,  and  the  igno- 
rance prevailing  abroad  as  to  its  extraction,  may  render 
a  short  account  of  it  acceptable.  The  description  shows 
the  superior  fineness  of  the  abaca  fiber,  but  not  its  greater 
strength.* 

Sisal-hemp,  which  is  named  after  the  export  harbor  of 
Sisal  (in  the  north-western  part  of  the  peninsula),  is 
by  far  the  most  important  product  of  Yucatan ;  and  this 
rocky,  sun-burnt  country  seems  peculiarly  adapted 
to  the  growth  of  the  fiber.  In  Yucatan  the  fiber  is 
known  as  jenequem,  as  indeed  the  plant  is  obtained 
Varieties  of  from  it.  Of  the  latter  there  are  seven  sorts  or  varieties 
for  purposes  of  cultivation ;  only  two,  the  first  and  seventh, 
are  also  to  be  found  in  a  wild  state.  First,  Chelem, 
apparently  identical  with  Agave  angustifolia;  this  ranks 
first.  Second,  Yaxci  (pronounced  Yachki;  from  yax, 
green,  and  tri,  agave),  the  second  in  order;  this  is  used 
only  for  fine  weaving.  Third,  Sacci  (pronounced  Sakki; 
sack,  white),  the  most  important  and  productive,  supply- 
ing almost  exclusively  the  fiber  for  exportation;  each 
plant  yields  annually  twenty-five  leaves,  weighing 
twenty-five  pounds,  from  which  is  obtained  one  pound 
of  clear  fiber.  Fourth,  Chucurnci,  similar  to  No.  3, 
but  coarser.  Fifth,  Babci;  the  fiber  very  fair,  but  the 
leaves  rather  small,  therefore  not  very  productive. 
Sixth,     Citamci    (pronounced    Kitamki;    kitarn,     hog); 


*  In  the  Agricultural  Report  of  1869,  p.  232,  another  fiber  was  highly  men- 
tioned, belonging  to  a  plant  very  closely  related  to  sisal  (Brometia  Sylrcstris),  per- 
haps even  a  variety  of  the  same.  The  Mexican  name,  jille,  is  possibly  derived 
from  the  fact  of  their  curiously  flattened,  spike-edged  leaves,  resembling  the 
dentated  knives  formed  from  volcanic  stone  (obsidian)  possessed  by  the  Aztecs 
and  termed  by  them  iztli. 


Jagor's  Trareh  in  the  Philippines 


S07 


neither  good  nor  productive.  Seventh,  Cnjim  or  Cajum, 
probably  Fourcroya  ciibcnsis;  leaves  small,  from  four 
to  five  inches  long. 

The  cultivation  of  sisal  has  only  in  recent  times  been 
prosecuted  vigorously;  and  the  extraction  of  the  fiber 
from  the  leaves,  and  the  subsequent  spinning  for  ships' 
rigging,  are  already  done  by  steam-machinery.  This 
occupation  is  especially  practiced  by  the  Maya  Indians, 
a  memorial  of  the  Toltecs,  who  brought  it  with  them 
upon  their  emigration  from  Mexico,  where  it  was  in 
vogue  long  before  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards. 

The  sisal  cultivation  yields  an  annual  profit  of  95 
per  cent.  A  mecate,  equal  to  five  hundred  seventy-six 
square  yards  (raras),  contains  sixty-four  plants,  giving 
sixty-four  pounds  of  clear  fiber,  of  the  value  of  $3.84; 
which,  after  deducting  $1.71,  the  cost  of  obtaining  it,  leaves 
$2.13  remaining.  The  harvesting  commences  from  four 
to  five  years  after  the  first  laying  out  of  the  plantation, 
and  continues  annually   for  about  fifty  or  sixty  years. 

In  tropical  countries  there  is  scarcely  a  hut  to  be  seen 
without  banana  trees  surrounding  it;  and  the  idea  pre- 
sented itself  to  many  to  utilize  the  fiber  of  these  plants, 
at  that  time  entirely  neglected,  which  might  be  done  by 
the  mere  labor  of  obtaining  it;  besides  which,  the  little 
labor  required  for  their  proper  cultivation  is  quickly 
and    amply    repaid    by    their    abundant    fruitfulness.* 


*  The  banana  trees  are  well  known  to  be  among  the  most  valuable  of  plants  to 
mankind.  In  their  unripe  state  they  afford  starch-flour;  and  when  mature,  they 
supply  an  agreeable  and  nutritious  fruit,  which,  although  partaken  of  freely,  will 
produce  neither  unpleasantness  nor  any  injurious  after-effects.  One  of  the  b?st 
of  the  edible  species  bears  fruit  as  early  as  five  or  six  months  after  being  planted, 
suckers  in  the  meantime  constantly  sprouting  from  the  roots,  so  that  continual 
fruit-bearing  is  going  on,  the  labor  of  the  growers  merely  being  confined  to  the 
occasional  cutting  down  of  the  old  plants  and  to  gathering  in  the  fruit.  The 
broad  leaves  afford  to  other  young  plants  the  shade  which  is  so  requisite  in  tropi- 
cal countries,  and  are  employed  in  many  useful  ways  about  the  house.  Many 
a  hut,  too,  has  to  thank  the  banana  trees  surrounding  it  from  the  conflagration, 
which,  generally  speaking,  lays  the  village  in  ashes.  1  should  here  like  to  make 
an  observation  upon  a  mistake  which  has  spread  rather  widely.  In  Bishop 
Pallegoix's  excellent  work.  Description  du  Hoynume  Thai  ou  Siam,  I.  144,  he 
says:  "L'arbre  n  rrrms  qui  est  utic  espece  dc  bananier,  et  que  leu  Siamois  appellcnt 
'rate,'  fournit  cc  beau  vcniis  qu'on  admire  dans  les  petilf;  nieubles  qu'on  apporte  de 
Chine."  When  I  was  in  Bangkok,  I  called  the  attention  of  the  amiable  white- 
haired,  and  at  that  time  nearly  nonogenarian,  bishop  to  this  curious  statement. 
Shaking  his  head,  he  said  he  could  not  have  written  it.  I  showed  him  the  very 
passage.  "Mafai,  j'ai  dit  une  betixe:  j'eri  ai  dit  bjen  d'autrrs."  whispered  he  in  my 
ear,  holding  up  his  hand  as  if  afraid  somebody  might  overhear  him. 


Machine- 
spinning. 


Profit. 


Banana 

substitute 

unsatisfactory. 


machinery. 


308  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

This  idea,  however,  under  the  existing  circumstances, 
would  certainly  not  be  advantageous  in  the  Philippines, 
as  it  does  not  pay  to  obtain  bast  from  the  genuine  abaca 
plant  as  soon  as  it  has  borne  fruit.  The  fiber  of  the  edible 
banana  might  very  well  be  used  as  material  for  paper- 
making,  though  obtaining  it  would  cost  more  than  the 
genuine  bandala. 
Fiber-extracting  In  the  Rcport  of  the  Couucil  of  the  Society  of  Arts, 
London,  May  11,  1860,  attention  was  called  to  a  machine 
invented  by  F.  Burke,  of  Montserrat,  for  obtaining  fiber 
from  banana  and  other  endogenous  plants.  While 
all  the  earlier  machines  worked  the  fiber  parallelwise, 
this  one  operated  obliquely  on  it;  the  consequence  of 
which  was  that  it  was  turned  out  particularly  clear. 
With  this  machine,  from  seven  to  nine  per  cent,  of  fibrous 
substance  may  be  obtained  from  the  banana.  The 
Tropical  Fiber  Company  have  sent  these  machines  to 
Demerara,  also  to  Java  and  other  places,  with  the  design 
of  spinning  the  fiber  of  the  edible  banana,  and  also  to 
utilize  some  portions  of  the  plant  as  materials  in  the  manu- 
facture of  paper.  Proofs  have  already  been  brought 
forward  of  fiber  obtained  in  this  manner  in  Java,  the 
value  of  which  to  the  spinner  has  been  reckoned  at  from 
£20  to  £25.  It  does  not  appear,  however,  that  these 
promising  experiments  have  led  to  any  important 
results;  at  least,  the  consular  reports  which  have  come 
to  hand  contain  no  information  on  the  subject.  In  the 
obtaining  of  bandala  in  the  Philippines  this  machine 
has  not  yet  been  used;  nor  has  it  even  been  seen,  though 
the  English  consul,  in  his  latest  report,  complains  that 
all  the  hitherto  ingeniously  constructed  machines  have 
proved  virtually  useless. 

The  bast  of  the  edible  banana  continues  still  to  be 
used  in  the  Philippines,  notwithstanding  that  the  plants, 
instead  of  being  grown,  as  in  many  parts  of  America, 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S09 

in  large  well-tended  gardens,  are  here  scattered  around 
the  huts;  but  the  forwarding  of  the  raw  material,  the 
local  transport,  and  the  high  freightage  will  always 
render  this  material  too  expensive  for  the  European 
market  (considering  always  its  very  ordinary  quality) — 
£10  per  ton  at  the  very  least;  while  "Sparto  grass" 
{Lygaeum  spartum,  hccffi.),  which  was  imported  some 
few  years  since  in  considerable  quantities  for  the  purpose  Paper-making 
of  paper-making,  costs  in  London  only  £5  per  ton.* 
The  jute  {Corchurus  casularis)  coffee-sacks  supply 
another  cheap  paper  material.  These  serve  in  the 
fabrication  of  strong  brown  packing  paper,  as  the  fiber 
will  not  stand  bleaching.  According  to  P.  Symmonds, 
the  United  States  in  recent  years  have  largely  used 
bamboo.  The  rind  of  the  Adansonia  digitata  also 
yields  an  extremely  good  material;  in  particular,  paper 
made  entirely  from  New  Zealand  flax  deserves  considera- 
tion, being,  by  virtue  of  its  superior  toughness,  eminently 
suited  for  "bill  paper." 

It  must  not  be  overlooked  that,  in  the  manufacture  Pre/erabiuiy  of 

r  , .  1  ,  ,  ^1  1        ^    discarded  cloth. 

of  paper,  worn  Imen  and  cotton  rags  are  the  very  best 
materials  that  can  be  employed,  and  make  the  best 
paper.  Moreover,  they  are  generally  to  be  had  for 
the  trouble  of  collecting  them,  after  they  have  once 
covered  the  cost  of  their  production  in  the  form  of 
clothing  materials;  when,  through  being  frayed  by 
repeated  washings,  they  undergo  a  preparation  which 
particularly  adapts  them  to  the  purpose  of  paper-making. 

The    more    paper-making   progresses,    the    more    are  increasing  u»e 
ligneous  fibers  brought  forward,  particularly  wood  and  "'^J^" 
straw,  which  produce  really  good  pastes;  all  the    raw 


*  In  1862,  English  took  from  Spain  155  tons:  1863.  18.074  tons;  1856.  66,913 
tons;  1868,  95,000  tons:  and  the  import  of  rags  fell  from  24.000  tons  in  1866  to 
17,000  toni  in  1668.  In  Algieri  a  large  quantity  of  sparto  (Alfa)  grows  but  the 
cOot  of  transport  is  too  expensive  to  admit  cf  sending  it  to  France. 


SIO 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


materials  being  imported  fromi  a  distance.  That  England 
takes  so  much  sparto  is  easily  explained  by  the  fact  that 
she  has  very  little  straw  of  her  own,  for  most  of  the  grain 
consumed  by  her  is  received  from  abroad  in  a  granulated 
condition. 


XXV 

Tobacco  reterme.  Of  all  the  productions  of  the  country  tobacco  is  the  most 
important,  so  far  (at  least)  as  concerns  the  Government, 
which  have  the  cultivation  of  this  plant,  its  manipula- 
tion, and  sale,  the  subjects  of  an  extensive  and  strictly 
guarded  monopoly,  and  derives  a  very  considerable  portion 
of  the  public  revenue  therefrom.*  As  to  the  objections 
raised  against  this  revenue  on  the  score  of  its  being 
opposed  to  justice  and  morality,  many  other  sources 
of  revenue  in  the  colonial  budget  might  be  condemned 
(such  as  the  poll-tax,  gaming  and  opium  licenses,  the 
brandy  trade,  and  the  sale  of  indulgences);  yet  none 
is  so  invidious  and  pernicious  as  the  tobacco  monopoly. 
Injustice  of  the  Often  in  the  course  of  this  narrative  of  my  travels 
monopoly.  J  havc  had  occasion  to  commend  the  clemency  of  the 

Spanish  Government.  In  glaring  contrast  therewith, 
however,  stands  the  management  of  the  tobacco  regula- 
tions. They  appropriated  the  fields  of  the  peasantry 
without  the  slightest  indemnification — fields  which  had 
been  brought  under  cultivation  for  their  necessary 
means  of  sustenance;  forced  them,  under  penalty  of 
bodily  punishment,  to  raise,  on  the  confiscated  property, 
an  article  which  required  an  immense  amount  of  trouble 
and  attention,  and  which  yielded  a  very  uncertain  crop; 
and  they  then  valued  the  harvested  leaves  arbitrarily 

*  The  British  Consul  estimates  the  receipts  from  this  monopoly  for  the  year 
1866-7  at  $8,418,939,  after  an  expenditure  of  $4,519,866;  thus  leaving  a  clear 
profit  of  $3,899,073.  In  the  colonial  budget  for  1867  the  profit  on  tobacco  was 
estimated  at  $2,627,976,  while  the  total  expenditure  of  the  colony,  after  deduc- 
tion of  the  expenses  occasioned  by  the  tobacco  management,  ,vas  set  down  at 
$7,033,576. 

According  to  the  official  tables  of  the  chief  of  the  Administration  in  Manila, 
1871,  the  total  annual  revenue  derived  from  the  tobacco  management  between 
the  years  1865  and  1869  amounted,  on  an  average,  to  $5,367,252.  By  reason 
of  proper  accounts  being  wanting  an  accurate  estimate  of  the  expenditure  cannot 
be  dehvered;  but  it  would  be  at  least  $4,000,000,  so  that  a  profit  of  only  $1,367,- 
262  remains. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  311 

and  without  any  appeal,  and,  in  the  most  favorable 
case,  paid  for  them  at  a  nominal  price  fixed  by  them- 
selves. To  be  paid  at  all,  indeed,  appears  to  have 
been  a  favor,  for  it  has  not  been  done  in  full  now  for 
several  years  in  succession.  Spain  regularly  remains 
indebted  to  the  unlucky  peasants  in  the  amount  of  the 
miserable  pittance  allowed,  from  one  year's  end  to 
another.  The  Government  ordered  the  officials  to 
exact  a  higher  return  from  the  impoverished  popula- 
tion of  the  tobacco  districts;  and  even  rewarded  in- 
formers who,  after  pointing  out  fields  already  owned, 
but  which  were  considered  suitable  to  the  cultivation 
of  tobacco,  were  installed  into  possession  of  the  pro- 
claimed lands  in  the  place  of  the  original  owners. 

For  proofs  of  these  accusations,  one  need  only  peruse 
a  few  paragraphs  contained  in  the  following  stringent 
regulations,  entitled  "General  Instructions,"*  and, 
further,  a  few  extracts  from  the  official  dispatches  of 
Intendant-General  Agius  to  the  Colonial  Minister: — f 

Cap.  25,  §  329.  The  compulsory  system  of  cultiva-  Resume  of 
tion  in  Cagayan,  New  Vizcaya,  Gapan,  Igorots,  and  regulations. 
Abra   to   remain   in   force. 

§  331.  The  Director-General  of  the  Government 
is  authorized  to  extend  compulsory  labor  to  the  other 
provinces,  or  to  abolish  it  where  already  introduced. 
These  instructions  may  be  altered  wholly  or  in  part  as 
occasion  requires. 

§  332.     Prices  may  be  either  increased  or  lowered. 

§  337.  Claims  or  actions  concerning  the  possession 
of  tobacco  lands  pending  before  the  usual  tribunal 
shall  not  prevent  such  lands  from  being  used  for  the 
purposes  of  tobacco  cultivation,  the  present  proprietor 
being  under  strict  obligation  to  continue  the  cultivation 
either  in  person  or  by  substitute.  (If  he  omits  to  do 
so,  the  magistrate  or  judge  takes  upon  himself  to  appoint 
such  substitute.) 

*  Instruccion  general  para  la  Direccion,  Administracion,  y  Intervencion  de  las 
Rentas  Estancadas,   1849. 

t  Mcmoria  aohre  >l  Dearxtanco  del  Tabaco  en  las  Islas  Filipinas.  Don  J. 
S.  Agius,  Binondo   (Manila),  1871. 


SIS  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

§  351.  The  collectors  have  received  denuncic.s,  i.  e. 
information,  that  land  adapted  to  tobacco  growing  is 
lying  fallow,  and  that  it  is  private  property.  In  case 
such  land  is  really  suitable  to  the  purposes  of  tobacco 
cultivation,  the  owners  thereof  are  hereby  summoned 
to  cultivate  the  same  with  tobacco  in  preference  to 
anything  else.  At  the  expiration  of  a  certain  space  of 
time  the  land  in  question  is  to  be  handed  over  to  the 
informer.  Be  it  known,  however,  that,  notwithstand- 
ing these  enactments,  the  possessory  title  is  not  lost 
to  the  owner,  but  he  is  compelled  to  relinquish  all  rights 
and  usufruct  for  three  years. 

Cap.  27,  §  357.  An  important  duty  of  the  collector 
is  to  insure  the  greatest  possible  extension  of  the  tobacco 
cultivation  upon  all  suitable  lands,  but  in  particular 
upon  those  which  are  specially  convenient  and  fertile. 
Lands  which,  although  suitable  for  tobacco  growing, 
were  previously  planted  with  rice  or  corn,  shall,  as  far 
as  practicable,  be  replaced  by  forest  clearings,  in  order, 
as  far  as  possible,  to  prevent  famine  and  to  bring  the 
interests  of  the  natives  into  harmony  with  those  of  the 
authorities. 

§  361.  In  order  that  the  work  which  the  tobacco 
cultivation  requires  may  not  be  neglected  by  the  natives, 
and  that  they  may  perform  the  field  work  necessary 
for  their  sustenance,  it  is  ordered  that  every  two  persons 
working  together  shall,  between  them  cultivate  eight 
thousand  square  varas,  that  is,  two  and  one-half  acres 
of  tobacco  land. 

§  362.  Should  this  arrangement  fail  to  be  carried 
out  either  through  age,  sickness,  or  death,  it  shall  be 
left  to  the  priest  of  the  district  to  determine  what 
quantity  of  work  can  be  accomplished  by  the  little 
children,  having  regard  to  their  strength  and  number. 

§  369.  Every  collector  who  consigns  from  his  dis- 
trict 1,000  fardos  more  than  in  former  years,  shall 
receive  for  the  overplus  a  double  gratuity,  but  this  only 
where  the  proportion  of  first-class  leaves  has  not 
decreased. 

§  370.  The  same  gratuity  will  be  bestowed  when 
there  is  no  diminution  in  bulk,  and  one-third  of  the 
leaves  is  of  first-class  quality. 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SIS 

The  following  sections  regulate  the  action  of  the 
local  authorities: — 

§  379.  Every  governor  must  present  annually  a  list, 
revised  by  the  priest  of  the  district,  of  all  the  inhabitants 
in  his  district  of  both  sexes,  and  of  those  of  their  children 
who  are  old  enough  to  help  in  the  fields. 

§  430.  The  officers  shall  forward  the  emigrants  on 
to  Cagayan  and  Nueva  Vizcaya,  and  will  be  entrusted 
with  $5  for  that  purpose,  which  must  be  repaid  by  each 
individual,  as  they  cannot  be  allowed  to  remain  indebted 
in  their  province. 

§  436.  Further  it  is  ordered  by  the  Buen  Gobierno 
(good  government)  that  no  Filipino  shall  be  liable  for 
a  sum  exceeding  $5,  incurred  either  as  a  loan  or  a  simple 
debt.  Thus  the  claim  of  a  higher  sum  can  not  impede 
emigration. 

§  437.  The  Hacienda  (Public  Treasury)  shall  pay 
the  passage  money  and  the  cost  of  maintenance  from 
I  locos. 

§  438.  They  are  to  be  provided  with  the  means  of 
procuring  cattle,  tools,  etc.,  until  the  first  harvest 
(although  the  Indian  is  only  liable  for  $5). 

§  439.  Such  advances  are,  it  is  true,  personal  and 
individual;  but,  in  the  case  of  death  or  flight  of  the 
debtor,  the  whole  village  is  to  be  liable  for  the  amount 
due. 

Tobacco  {Nicotiana  tahacum,  L.)  was  introduced  into  Tobacco  from 

lilexico. 

the  Philippines  soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards 
by  the  missionaries,  who  brought  the  seed  with  them 
from  Mexico.*  The  soil  and  climate  being  favorable 
to   its   production,    and   the   pleasure   derived   from   it 


*  The  tobacco  in  China  appears  to  have  come  from  the  Philippines.  "The 
memoranda  discovered  in  Wang-tao  leave  no  possible  doubt  that  it  was  first  in- 
troduced into  South  China  from  the  Philippine  Islands  in  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth century,  most  probably  by  way  of  Japan." — (Xotes  and  Queries,  China 
and  Japan,   May  31st,   1867.) 

From  Schlegel,  in  Batavia,  it  was  brought  by  the  Portuguese  into  Japan 
somewhere  between  the  years  1573  and  1591,  and  spread  itself  so  rapidly  in  China 
that  we  find  even  as  early  as  1638,  that  the  sale  of  it  was  forbidden  under  penalty 
of  beheading. 

According  to  Xotes  and  Queries,  China  and  Japan,  July  31,  1867,  the  use 
of  tobacco  was  quite  common  in  the  "Manchu"  army.  In  a  Chinese  work, 
Natural  History  Miscellany,  it  is  written:  "Yen  t'sao  (literally  smoke  plant) 
was  introduced  into  Fukien  about  the  end  of  the  Wan-li  Government,  between 
1573  and  1620,  and  was  known  as  Tan-pa-ku  (from  Tombaku)." 


314 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Hiyh  grade  of 

Philippine 

product. 


Manila  tobacco 
handicapped. 


being  speedily  discovered  by  the  natives,  naturally 
assisted  in  its  rapid  adoption.  Next  to  the  Cuban 
tobacco  and  a  few  sorts  of  Turkish*  it  is  admitted  to 
be  the  best ;  and  in  the  colony  it  is  asserted  by  competent 
judges  that  it  would  soon  surpass  all  others,  if  the  exist- 
ing regulations  were  abolished  and  free  trade  established. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  in  the  minds  of  impartial  observers 
that  the  quality  and  quantity  of  the  produce  might 
be  considerably  increased  by  such  a  change;  on  the 
other  hand,  many  of  the  prejudiced  officials  certainly 
maintain  the  direct  contrary.  The  real  question  is, 
to  what  extent  these  expectations  may  be  realized  in 
the  fulfilment  of  such  a  measure;  of  course,  bearing 
in  mind  that  the  judgment  is  swayed  by  a  strong  desire 
for  the  abolition  of  a  system  which  interferes  at  present 
with  their  prospects  of  gain.  But  the  fact  is  that, 
even  now,  the  native  grown  tobacco,  notwithstanding 
all  the  defects  inseparable  from  an  illicit  trade,  is  equal 
to  that  produced  by  the  Government  officials  in  their 
own  factories,  and  is  valued  at  the  same  rate  with  many 
of  the  Havana  brands;  and  the  Government  cigars  of 
the  Philippines  are  preferred  to  all  others  throughout 
Eastern  Asia.  Indeed,  rich  merchants,  to  whom  a 
difference  of  price  is  no  object,  as  a  rule  take  the  Manila 
cigars  before  Havanas. 

According  to  Agius  ("Memoria,"  1871),  in  the 
European  market  the  Manila  tobacco  was  admitted 
to  be  without  any  rival,  with  the  sole  exception  of  the 
Vuelta  aha  jo  of  Cuba;  and  most  certainly  in  the  Asiatic 
and  Oceanic  ports  its  superior  quality  was  undisputed, 

*  West  Cuba  produces  the  best  tobacco,  the  famous  Vuelta  abajo,  400,000 
cwt.  at  from  $14.28  to  $99,96  the  cwt.;  picked  sorts  being  valued  at  from  $571.20 
to  $714  00  per  cwt.  Cuba  produces  640,000  cwt.  The  cigars  exhibited  in  the 
Paris  Exhibition  of  1867  were  worth  from  $24.99  to  $406.98  per  thousand.  The 
number  of  cigars  annually  exported  is  estimated  at  about  5,000,000.  (Jury 
Report,  v.,  375.)  In  Jenidje-Karasu  (Salonica)  17,500  cwt.  are  obtained  an- 
nually, of  which  2,500  cwt.  are  of  the  first  quality;  the  cost  is  $1.75  the  oka  (about 
.75  per  lb.).  Picked  sorts  are  worth  15s.  per  lb.,  and  even  more. — Saladin 
Bey,  La  Turquie  a  I' Exposition,  p.  91. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SIS 

as  the  Havana  tobacco  loses  its  flavor  on  the  long 
voyage  to  these  countries;  but  now,  from  year  to  year, 
it  is  surely  losing  its  reputation.  If,  then,  the  Manila 
cigars  have  not  hitherto  succeeded  in  making  themselves 
acceptable  in  Europe  on  account  of  their  inferiority, 
the  blame  is  attributable  simply  to  the  system  of  com- 
pulsory labor,  and  the  chronic  insolvency  of  the  Insular 
Treasury,  whilst  the  produce  of  other  tobacco  countries 
has  steadily  progressed  in  quality  in  consequence  of 
free  competition.  The  fame  of  the  Manila  cigars  may 
also  have  suffered  in  some  slight  measure  from  the 
wide-spread,  though  perfectly  erroneous,  idea  that  they 
contained  opium. 

How  greatly  the  produce  might  be  increased  by  means  Hampered  by 
of  free  trade  is  shown  under  other  circumstances  by 
the  example  of  Cuba.  At  the  time  when  the  Govern- 
ment there  monopolized  the  tobacco  trade,  the  crops 
were  only  partly  sufficient  to  cover  the  home  consump- 
tion; whereas,  at  the  present  time,  Cuba  supplies  all  the 
markets  of  the  world.*  The  decision  of  Captain- 
General  De  la  Gandara  upon  this  question  is  in  the 
highest  degree  worthy  of  notice.  In  a  MS.  Report  to 
the  Colonial  Minister,  March,  1868,  concerning  a  measure 
for  rendering  the  regulations  of  the  tobacco  monopoly 
still  more  stringent,  he  says:  "If  the  tobacco  cultivation 
is  placed  without  restriction  into  the  hands  of  private 
traders,  we  shall  most  probably,  in  a  few  years,  be  in  a 
position  to  command  nearly  all  the  markets  in  the  world." 
Most   of  the   islands    produce   tobacco.     According   to 


government 


*  In  Cuba  the  tobacco  industry  is  entirely  free.  The  extraordinary  increase 
of  the  trade  and  the  improved  quaUty  of  the  tobacco  are,  in  great  measure,  to 
be  ascribed  to  the  honest  competition  existing  between  the  factories,  who  receive 
no  other  protection  from  the  Government  than  a  recognition  of  their  operations. 

—  (.Jury  Report,   1867,  v.,  375.) 


S16 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Origin  of 
monopoly. 


GorernoT 

Basco's 

innovalions. 


the  quality  of  the  produce,  the  tobacco  provinces  rank 
in  the  following  order:  First,  Cagayan  and  Isabela; 
Second,  Igorots;  Third,  Island  of  Mindanao;  Fourth, 
Bisayas;  Fifth,  Nueva  Ecija. 

From  the  Government  Order,  dated  November  20, 
1625,  it  is  evident  that  even  at  that  early  period  the  sale 
of  betel  nut,  palm  spirit  (toddy),  tobacco,  etc.,  was  a 
Government  monopoly :  but  it  does  not  seem  to  have  been 
very  strictly  carried  out.  The  tobacco  monopoly,  as  it 
stands  at  present,  the  whole  trade  of  which  from  the 
sowing  of  the  seedling  plants  to  the  sale  of  the  manufac- 
tured article  is  exclusively  in  the  hands  of  the  Govern- 
ment, was  first  introduced  by  Captain-General  Jose 
Basco  y  Vargas.  And  a  Government  Order,  under 
date  of  January  9,  1780  (confirmed  by  Departmental 
Regulations,  December  13,  1781),  further  enacted  that 
the  tobacco  regulations  should  be  extended  to  the 
Philippine  Islands,  in  like  manner  as  in  all  Spanish 
possessions  in  this  and  the  other  hemisphere  (de  uno  y 
otro  mundo). 

Before  the  administration  of  this  very  jealous  Gov- 
ernor, for  a  period  of  two  hundred  years  the  colony  re- 
ceived annual  contributions  from  New  Spain  (Situado 
de  Nueva  Espana).  In  order  to  relieve  the  Spanish 
Exchequer,  from  this  charge  Basco  introduced  (at  that 
time  national  economic  ideas  prevailed  of  making  the 
natural  resources  of  a  State  supply  its  immediate  wants) 
a  plan  upon  which,  fifty  years  later,  Java  modelled  its 
"Culture  System."  In  the  Philippines,  however,  the 
conditions  for  this  system  were  less  favorable.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  very  slight  submissiveness  of  the  population, 
there  were  two  great  obstacles  in  the  opposition  of  the 
priests  and  the  want  of  trustworthy  officials.  Of  all 
the  provincial  trades  brought  into  existence  by  the  energy 
of  Basco,  the  indigo  cultivation  is  the  only  one  that 


r 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  Hie  Philippines  317 

remains  in  the  hands  of  private  individuals,  the  tobacco 
trade  still  being  a  Government  monopoly.*  Basco 
first  of  all  confined  the  monopoly  to  the  provinces  imme- 
diately contiguous  to  the  capital,  in  all  of  which  the  culti- 
vation of  tobacco  was  forbidden  under  penalty  of  severe 
punishment,  except  by  persons  duly  authorized  and  in 
the  service  of  the  Government. f  In  the  other  provinces 
the  cultivation  was  to  a  certain  extent  permitted;  but 
the  supply  remaining  after  deduction  of  what  was 
consumed  in  each  province  was  to  be  sold  to  the  Govern- 
ment only. 

In  the  Bisayas  the  magistrates  purchased  the  tobacco  Spectdation 
for  the  Government  and  paid  for  it  at  the  rate  previously  J^^'fj^""'" 
fixed  by  the  Government  factories  at  Manila;  and  they 
were  allowed  to  employ  the  surplus  money  of  the  Gov- 
ernment treasury  chest  for  this  purpose.  A  worse 
system  .than  this  could  scarcely  be  devised.  Officials, 
thinking  only  of  their  own  private  advantage,  suffered 
no  competition  in  their  provinces,  employed  their  official 
power  to  oppress  the  producer  to  the  utmost  extent, 
and  thereby  naturally  checked  the  production;  and  the 
Government  treasury  chest  consequently  suffered  fre- 
quent losses  through  bankruptcies,  inasmuch  as  the 
magistrates,  who  drew  a  salary  of  $600  and  paid  a  license 
of  from  $100  to  $300  for  the  right  of  trading,  in  order 
to  make  money  quickly,  engaged  in  the  most  hazardous 
speculations.  In  1814  this  stupid  arrangement  was  first 
put  an  end  to;  and  forthwith  the  tobacco  supplies  from 
the  Bisayas  increased,  through  the  competition  of  the 


*  Basco  also  introduced  the  cultivation  of  silk,  and  had  4,500,009  mulberry 
trees  planted  in  the  Camarines.  This  industry,  immediately  upon  his  retirement, 
was  allowed  to  fall  into  decay. 

t  According  to  La  Perouse,  this  measure  occasioned  a  revolt  in  all  parts  of  the 
island,  which  had  to  be  suppressed  by  force  of  arms.  In  the  same  manner  the 
monopoly  introduced  into  America  at  the  same  time  brought  about  a  dangerous 
insurrection,  and  was  the  means  of  reducing  Venezuela  to  a  state  of  extreme 
poverty,  and,  in  fact,  was  the  cause  of  the  subsequent  downfall  of  the  colony. 


S18 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Changes  bring 
improvement. 


Different  usages 
in  Bisayas  and 
Mindanao. 


Crude  system  of 
grading. 


private  dealers,  who  then,  for  the  first  time,  had  the 
power  of  purchase;  and  from  1839  the  planters  were 
empowered  to  obtain  higher  prices  than  those  afforded 
by  the  greedy  monopolizing  magistrates.  At  present, 
the  following  general  regulations  are  in  force,  subject, 
however,  to  continual  variation  in  details. 

By  a  Departmental  Order,  September  5,  1865,  the 
cultivation  of  tobacco  was  permitted  in  all  the  provinces, 
though  the  produce  was  allowed  to  be  sold  only  to  the 
Government  at  the  price  regulated  by  them.  The 
wholesale  purchases  are  made  in  Luzon  and  the  adjacent 
islands  in  fardos*  by  "colleccion,"  that  is,  direct  through 
the  finance  officials,  who  have  the  management  of  the 
plants  from  the  sowing;  but  in  the  Bisayas  by  acopio; 
that  is,  the  Government  officials  buy  up  the  tobacco 
tendered  by  the  growers  or  speculators  by  the  cwt. 

In  the  Bisayas  and  in  Mindanao  everybody  is  allowed 
to  manufacture  cigars  for  his  own  particular  use,  though 
trade  therein  is  strictly  prohibited;  and  advances  to  the 
tobacco  growers  are  also  made  there;  while  in  Luzon 
and  the  neighboring  islands  the  Government  provides 
seed  and  seedling  plants.  Here,  however,  no  land  which 
is  adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  tobacco  is  allowed  to  be 
used  for  any  other  purpose  of  agriculture. 

As  the  Financial  Administration  is  unable  to  classify 
the  tobacco  at  its  true  value,  as  might  be  done  were 
free  competition  permitted,  they  have  adopted  the  ex- 
pedient of  determining  the  price  by  the  size  of  the  leaves; 
the  care  necessary  to  be  bestowed  upon  che  training 
of  the  plants  in  order  to  produce  leaves  of  the  required 


*  A  fardo  (pack)  contains  40  matios  (bundles);  1  mano=  10  manojitos,  1  mano- 
jito=  10  leaves.     Regulations,    §   7. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


319 


size  being  at  least  a  guarantee  of  a  certain  amount  of 
proper  attention  and  handling,  even  if  it  be  productive 
of  no  other  direct  good.* 

It  is  well  known  at  Madrid  how  the  tobacco  monopoly, 
by  oppressing  the  wretched  population,  interferes 
with  the  prosperity  of  the  colony;  yet,  to  the  present  day, 
the  Government  measures  have  been  so  arranged  as  to 
exact  a  still  larger  gain  from  this  very  impolitic  source 
of  revenue. 


Burden 

knowingly 

increased. 


*  Regulations  for  the  tobacco  collection  agencies  in  Luzon. — 1st.  Four  classes 
of  Tobacco  will  be  purchased.  2rirl.  These  classes  are  thus  specified:  the  first 
to  consist  of  leaves  at  least  18  inches  long  (Om  418;)  the  second  of  leaves  between 
14  and  18  inches  (Om  325);  the  third  of  leaves  between  10  and  14  inches  (Om  232); 
and  the  fourth  of  leaves  at  least  7  inches  in  length  (Om  163).  Smaller  leaves  will 
not  be  accepted.  This  last  limitation,  however,  has  recently  been  abandoned 
so  that  the  quality  of  the  tobacco  is  continually  deprecinting  in  the  hands  of 
the  Government,  who  have  added  two  other  classes. 

A  fardo,  1st  class,  weighs  60  lbs.,  and  in  1867  the  Government  rate  of  pay 
was   as   follows: — 

1  Fardo,  1st  class,  60  lbs $9.50 

1  Fardo,  2nd  class,  46  lbs 6.  00 

1  Fardo,  3rd  class,  33  lbs 2.75 

1  Fardo,  4th  class,  18  lbs 1 .  00 

— English   Consular   Report. 

The  following  table  gives  the  different  brands  of  cigars  manufactured  by  the 
Government,  and  the  prices  at  which  they  could  be  bought  in  1867  in  Estanco 
(i.  e.  a  place  privileged  for  the  sale):  — 


Menas  (Classes.) 


Imperiales 

Prima  Veguero 

Segunda  Veguero 

Prima  superior  Filipino 
2. a  Superior  Filipino.  .  . 
3. a  Superior  Filipino  .  . 
Prima  Filipino 

Segunda  Superior 

Prima   Cortado 

Segunda  Cortado 

Mista 

Prima  Batigo,  larga.  .  . 
Segunda  Batido,  largo. 


Corresponding  Ha- 
vana Brands. 


The  sam.e. 

Do. 

Regalia. 

Do. 

None. 

Londres 

Superior  Habano. 

Segunda  superior  i 

Habano  / 

The   Same 

Do. 

Segunda    Batido. 

None. 

None. 


PRICE. 

Per 

Per 

Per. 

tarroba 
Dols. 

1000. 
Dols. 

cigar 

Cents. 

37.50 

30.00 

4 

37.50 

30.00 
26.00 
26.00 

4 

38.00 

19.00 
15.10 

3 

21.00 

15.00 

2 

24.00 

8.57S 

1 

21.00 

15.00 

2 

24.00 

8.57i 

1 

20.50 

18.75 

1 

18.75 

i 

Number 

of  cigars 

in  an  ar- 

roba. 


1400 

2800 

1400 
2800 

1800 
3750 


t  Arroba,  33  lbs. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


"Killing  the 
goose  that  lays 
the  golden   egg.' 


Gift  to  Spain 
of  unusable 
tobacco. 


A  Government  Order  of  January,  1866,  directed  the 
tobacco  cultivation  in  the  PhiHppines  to  be  extended 
as  much  as  possible,  in  order  to  satisfy  the  requirements 
of  the  colony,  the  mother  country,  and  also  the  export 
trade;  and  in  the  memorial  already  quoted,  "reforms" 
are  proposed  by  the  Captain-General,  in  the  spirit  of 
the  goose  with  golden  eggs.  By  grafting  new  mono- 
polies upon  those  already  existing,  he  believes  that  the 
tobacco  produce  can  be  increased  from  182,102  cwt. 
(average  of  the  years  1860  to  1867)  to  600,000,  and  even 
800,000  cwt.  Meantime,  with  a  view  to  obtaining  in- 
creased prices,  the  Government  resolved  to  export  the 
tobacco  themselves  to  the  usual  markets  for  sale;  and 
in  the  year  1868  this  resolution  was  really  carried  out. 
It  was  sent  to  London,  where  it  secured  so  favorable 
a  market  that  it  was  at  once  decreed  that  no  tobacco 
in  Manila  should  thenceforth  be  sold  at  less  than  $25 
per  cwt.*  This  decree,  however,  referred  only  to  the 
first  three  qualities,  the  quantity  of  which  decreased 
in  a  relative  measure  with  the  increased  pressure  upon 
the  population.  Even  in  the  table  annexed  to  the  record 
of  La  Gandara  this  is  very  clearly  shown.  Whilst  the 
total  produce  for  1867  stood  at  176,018  cwt.  (not  much 
under  the  average  of  the  years  1860  to  1867,  viz.,  182,102 
cwt.),  the  tobacco  of  the  first  class  had  decreased  in 
quantity  since  1862  from  over  13,000  to  less  than  5,000 
cwt. 

The  fourth,  fifth,  and  sixth  classes,  the  greater  part 
of  which  would  before  have  been  burnt,  but  which  now 
form  no  inconsiderable  portion  of  the  total  crop,  are  in 
the  open  markets  positively  unsaleable,  and  can  be 
utilized  only  in  the  form  of  a  bonus  to  Spain,  which 


*  On  an  average  407,500,000  cigars  and  1,041,000  lbs.  raw  tobacco  are  exported 
annually,  the  weight  of  which  together  is  about  56,000  cwt.  after  deducting  what 
is  given  away  in  the  form  of  gratuities. 


Jagor'f  Trarcls  in  the  Philippines  SSI 

annually  receives,  under  the  title  of  atenciones  d  la 
peninsula,  upwards  of  100,000  cwt.  If  the  colony 
were  not  compelled  to  pay  half  the  freight  of  these  gifts, 
Spain  would  certainly  ask  to  be  relieved  of  these  "marks 
of  attention."  Seeing  that,  according  to  the  decision 
of  the  chief  of  the  Government,  the  greater  portion  of 
this  tobacco  is  of  such  inferior  quality  that  it  can  find 
no  purchaser  at  any  price,  it  is  impossible  that  its  value 
should  cover  either  the  cost  of  carriage  or  the  customs 
duty.  Moreover,  this  tobacco  tribute  is  a  great  burden 
on  the  colonial  budget;  which,  in  spite  of  all  deficits,  is 
charged  with  the  expenses  attending  the  collection  of  the 
tobacco,  its  packing,  its  cost  of  local  transport,  and  half 
the  expense  of  its  carriage  to  Europe. 

Dated  in  March,  1871, — the  beginning  of  a  Golden  Age,  ^«-^" 
if  De  La  Gandara's  plans  had  been  carried  out  and  his  pZpos^ " 
expectations  realized, — there  exists  an  excellent  state-  '■'■/'"■'»•'■ 
ment  from  the  Intendant-General  addressed  to  the 
Minister  of  Colonies  pointing  out  plainly  to  the  chief 
of  the  Government  the  disadvantages  arising  from  this 
mode  of  administration,  and  urging  the  immediate 
repeal  of  the  monopoly.  In  the  next  place  proof  was 
adduced,  supported  by  official  vouchers,  that  the  profits 
derived  from  the  tobacco  monopoly  were  much  smaller 
than  usual.  The  total  average  receipts  of  the  tobacco 
administration  for  the  five  years  1865  to  1869,  according 
to  official  accounts,  amounted  to  $5,367,262 ;  for  the  years 
1866  to  1870,  only  $5,240,935.  The  expenses  cannot 
be  accurately  estimated,  inasmuch  as  there  are  no  strict 
accounts  obtainable;  if,  however,  the  respective  expenses 
charged  in  the  colonial  budget  are  added  together, 
they  amount  to  $3,717,322  of  which  $1,812,250  is  for 
purchase  of  raw  tobacco. 

Besides  these  expenses  pertaining  exclusively  to  the  •^''"-/'"  'uu  profit 
tobacco  administration  there  are  still  many  other  differ-    ™'"  """"^^  "■ 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Suffering  and 
law-breaking 
thru  the 
monopoly. 


ent  items  to  be  taken  into  account ;  yet  the  cost  incurred 
in  this  branch  of  the  service  would  be  saved,  if  not 
altogether,  at  least  largely,  if  the  State  surrendered  the 
tobacco  monopoly.  The  total  of  the  disbursements 
must  certainly,  at  the  very  lowest,  be  estimated  at 
$4,000,000;  so,  therefore,  the  State  receives  only  a  net 
profit  of  $1,367,000;  but  even  this  is  not  to  be  reckoned 
on  in  the  future,  for  if  the  Government  does  not  speedily 
cease  carrying  on  this  trade,  they  will  be  forced  into  a 
very  considerable  and  unavoidable  expense.  To  begin 
with,  they  must  erect  new  factories  and  warehouses; 
better  machinery  must  be  bought;  wages  will  have  to  be 
considerably  increased;  and,  above  all,  means  must  be 
devised  to  pay  off  the  enormous  sum  of  $1,600,000  in 
which  the  Government  is  indebted  to  the  peasants  for 
the  crops  of  1869  and  1870,  and  to  assure  cash  payments 
for  future  harvests.  "This  is  the  only  possible  mode  of 
preventing  the  decay  of  the  tobacco  cultivation  in  the 
different  provinces,  as  well  as  relieving  the  misery  of 
the  wretched  inhabitants." 

Later  Agius  proved  how  trifling  in  reality  the  arrears 
were  on  account  of  which  the  Government  was  abandon- 
ing the  future  of  the  colony,  and  showed  the  misfortunes, 
of  which  I  shall  mention,  these  briefly,  only  a  few,  result- 
ing from  the  monopoly.  He  represented  that  the  people 
of  the  tobacco  district,  who  were  the  richest  and  most 
contented  of  all  in  the  Archipelago,  found  themselves 
plunged  into  the  deepest  distress  after  the  increase 
of  the  Government  dues.  They  were,  in  fact,  far  more 
cruelly  treated  than  the  slaves  in  Cuba,  who,  from  self- 
interested  motives,  are  well-nourished  and  taken  care  of; 
whereas  in  this  case,  the  produce  of  compulsory  labor 
has  to  be  delivered  to  the  State  at  an  arbitrarily  deter- 
mined price;  and  even  this  price  is  paid  only  when  the 
condition  of  the  treasury,  which  is  invariably  in  diffi- 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  SSS 

culties,  permits.  Frequently  their  very  means  of  sub- 
sistence failed  them,  in  consequence  of  their  being  for- 
bidden to  carry  on  the  cultivation;  and  the  unfortunate 
people,  having  no  other  resources  for  the  relief  of  their 
pressing  necessities,  were  compelled  to  alienate  the 
debtor's  bond,  which  purchased  the  fruits  of  their  en- 
forced toil  but  had  been  left  unpaid.  Thus,  for  an  incon- 
siderable deficit  of  about  $1,330,000,  the  whole  population 
of  one  of  the  richest  provinces  is  thrown  into  abject 
misery;  a  deep-rooted  hatred  naturally  arises  between 
the  people  and  their  rulers;  and  incessant  war  ensues 
between  the  authorities  and  their  subjects.  Besides 
which,  an  extremely  dangerous  class  of  smugglers  have 
recently  arisen,  who  even  now  do  not  confine  themselves 
to  mere  smuggling,  but  who,  on  the  very  first  opportunity 
presented  by  the  prevailing  discontent,  will  band  them- 
selves together  in  one  solid  body.  The  official  adminis- 
trators, too,  are  charged  with  gross  bribery  and  corrup- 
tion; which,  whether  true  or  not,  occasions  great  scandal, 
and  engenders  increasing  disrespect  and  distrust  of  the 
colonial  administration  as  well  as  of  the  Spanish  people 
generally.* 

The  preceding  memorial  has  been  not  only  written,  but  Growing 
also  printed;  and  it  seems  to  indicate  that  gradually 
in  Spain,  and  also  in  wider  circles,  people  are  becoming 
convinced  of  the  untenableness  of  the  tobacco  monopoly ; 
yet,  in  spite  of  this  powerful  review,  it  is  considered 
doubtful  by  competent  judges  whether  it  will  be  given 
up  so  long  as  there  are  any  apparent  or  appreciable 
returns  derived  therefrom.  These  acknowledged  evils 
have  long  been  known  to  the   Colonial  Government; 

*  The  poor  peasant  being  brought  into  this  situation  finds  it  very  hard  to 
maintain  his  family.  He  is  compelled  to  borrow  money  at  an  exorbitant  rate  of 
interest,  and,  consequently,  sinks  deeper  and  deeper  into  debt  and  misery.  The 
dread  of  fines  or  bodily  punishment,  rather  than  the  prospect  of  high  prices,  is 
the  chief  method  by  which  the  supplies  can  be  kept  up. — (Report  of  the  English 
Consul.) 


opposition  to 
the  monopoly. 


524  THE  FORMER   PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

but,  from  the  frequent  changes  of  ministers,  and  the 
increasing  want  of  money,  the  Government  is  compelled, 
so  long  as  they  are  in  office,  to  use  all  possible  means 
of  obtaining  profits,  and  to  abstain  from  carrying  out 
these  urgent  reforms  lest  their  own  immediate  down- 
fall should  be  involved  therein.  Let  us,  however, 
cherish  the  hope  that  increased  demand  will  cause  a 
rise  in  the  prices;  a  few  particularly  good  crops,  and 
other  propitious  circumstances,  would  relieve  at  once 
the  Insular  Treasury  from  its  difficulties;  and  then 
the  tobacco  monopoly  might  be  cheerfully  surrendered. 
One  circumstance  favorable  to  the  economical  manage- 
ment of  the  State  that  would  be  produced  by  the  sur- 
render of  the  tobacco  monopoly  would  be  the  abolition 
of  the  numerous  army  of  officials  which  its  administra- 
tion requires.  This  might,  however,  operate  reversely 
in  Spain.  The  number  of  place-hunters  created  must 
be  very  welcome  to  the  ministers  in  power,  who  thus 
have  the  opportunity  of  providing  their  creatures  with 
profitable  places,  or  of  shipping  off  inconvenient  persons 
to  the  Antipodes  from  the  mother-country,  free  of  cost. 
The  colony,  be  it  known,  has  not  only  to  pay  the  salaries, 
but  also  to  bear  the  cost  of  their  outward  and  home- 
ward voyages.  Any  way,  the  custom  is  so  liberally 
patronized  that  occasionally  new  places  have  to  be 
created  in  order  to  make  room  for  the  newly-arrived 
nominees.* 


*  From  December  1853  to  November  1854  the  colony  possessed  four  captains- 
general  (two  effective  and  two  provisional).  In  1850  a  new  nominee,  Oidor 
(member  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Judicature)  who  with  his  family  voyaged  to 
Manila  by  the  Cape,  found,  upon  his  arrival,  his  successor  already  in  office,  the 
latter  having  travelled  by  way  of  Suez.  Sach  circumstances  need  not  occasion 
surprise  when  it  is  remembered  how  such  operations  are  repeated  in  Spain  itself. 

According  to  an  essay  in  the  Revue  Xalionale,  April,  1867,  Spain  has  had, 
from  1834  to  1862,  i.e.  since  the  accession  of  Isabella,  4  Constitutions,  28  Parlia- 
ments, 47  Chief  Ministers,  529  Cabinet  Ministers,  and  58  Ministers  of  the  In- 
terior; of  which  last  class  of  officials  each,  on  an  average,  was  in  power  only  six 
months.  For  ten  years  past  the  Minister  of  Finance  has  not  remained  in  office 
longer  than  two  months;  and  since  that  time,  particularly  since  1868,  the  changes 
have  followed  one  another  with  still  greater  rapidity. 


Jagor'.s  Travels  in  the  Philippine'*  ,SS6 

At   the   time   of  my   visit,    the  royal   factories  could   Whou^au  rate 
not  turn  out  a  supply  of  cigars  commensurate  with  the  '"«'''^  """* 

'^'^  •'  =  retail  from 

requirements  of  commerce;  and  this  brought  about  a  goremment. 
peculiar  condition  of  things;  the  wholesale  dealer,  who 
purchased  cigars  in  very  considerable  quantities  at  the 
government  auctions,  paying  higher  than  the  retail 
rates  at  which  he  could  buy  them  singly  in  the  estancia. 
In  order,  therefore,  to  prevent  the  merchants  drawing 
their  stocks  from  the  estancias,  it  was  determined  that 
only  a  certain  quantity  should  be  purchased,  which 
limit  no  merchant  dared  exceed.  A  very  intricate 
system  of  control,  assisted  by  espionage,  had  to  be 
employed  in  seeing  that  no  one,  through  different 
agents  and  different  estancias,  collected  more  than  the 
authorised  supply;  and  violation  of  this  rule,  when 
discovered,  was  punished  by  confiscation  of  the  offender's 
stock.  Everybody  was  free  to  purchase  cigars  in  the 
estancia,  but  nobody  was  permitted  to  sell  a  chest  of 
cigars  to  an  acquaintance  at  cost  price.  Several  Span- 
iards with  whom  I  have  spoken  concerning  these 
strange  regulations  maintained  them  to  be  perfectly 
just,  as  otherwise  all  the  cigars  would  be  carried  off  by 
foreigners,  and  they  would  not  be  able  themselves  in 
their  own  colony  to  smoke  a  decent  cigar. 

There  was,  as  I  afterwards  learnt,  a  still  more  urgent  Money junuUnu 
reason  for  the  existence  of  these  decrees.  The  gov- 
ernment valued  their  own  gold  at  sixteen  dollars  per 
ounce,  while  in  commerce  it  fetched  less,  and  the  pre- 
mium on  silver  had,  at  one  time,  risen  to  thirty-three 
per  cent.  Moreover,  on  account  of  the  insufficient 
quantity  of  copper  money  for  minor  currency,  the  small 
change  frequently  gained  a  premium  on  the  silver 
dollar,  so  much  so  that  by  every  purchaser  not  less  than 
half  a  dollar  was  realized.  In  exchanging  the  dollar 
from   five    to    fifteen    per    cent   discount    was    charged; 


S26  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

it  was  profitable,  therefore,  to  purchase  cigars  in  the 
estancias  with  the  gold  ounce,  and  then  to  retail  them 
in  smaller  quantities  nominally  at  the  rate  of  the  estan- 
cias. Both  premiums  together  might  in  an  extreme 
case  amount  to  as  much  as  forty-three  per  cent.* 
Directions  for  j,jot  being  ablc  to  give  a  description  of  the  cultiva- 

tobacco.  ^^o^  of  tobacco  from  personal  knowledge  and  experience, 

I  refer  the  reader  to  the  following  short  extract  from 
the  Cartilla  Agricola: — 

Directions  for  preparing  and  laying  out  the  seed  beds. — 
A  suitable  piece  of  land  is  to  be  enclosed  quadrilaterally 
by  boundaries,  ploughed  two  or  three  times,  cleared 
of  all  weeds  and  roots,  made  somewhat  sloping,  and 
surrounded  by  a  shallow  ditch,  the  bed  of  which  is  to 
be  divided  by  drains  about  two  feet  wide.  The  soil 
of  the  same  must  be  very  fine,  must  be  ground  almost 
as  fine  as  powder,  otherwise  it  will  not  mix  freely  and 
thoroughly  with  the  extremely  fine  tobacco  seed.  The 
seed  is  to  be  washed,  and  then  suspended  in  cloths 
during  the  day,  in  order  to  allow  the  water  to  run  off; 
after  which  it  is  to  be  mixed  with  a  similar  quantity 
of  ashes,  and  strewn  carefully  over  the  bed.  The 
subsequent  successful  results  depend  entirely  upon  the 
careful  performance  of  this  work.  From  the  time  the 
seed  first  begins  to  sprout,  the  beds  must  be  kept  very 
clean,  in  dry  weather  sprinkled  daily,  and  protected 
from  birds  and  animals  by  brambles  strewn  over,  and 
by  means  of  light  mats  from  storms  and  heavy  rains. 
After  two  months  the  plants  will  be  between  five  and 
six  inches  high,  and  generally  have  from  four  to  six 
leaves;    they    must    then    be    replanted.     This    occurs, 

*  The  reason  of  this  premiun  on  silver  was,  that  the  Chinese  bought  up  all  the 
Spanish  and  Mexican  dollars,  in  order  to  send  them  to  China,  where  they  are 
worth  more  than  other  dollars,  being  known  from  the  voyage  of  the  galleon  thither 
in  olden  times,  and  being  current  in  the  inland  provinces.  (The  highest  price 
there  can  be  obtained  for  a  Carlos  III.) 

A  mint  erected  in  Manila  since  that  time,  which  at  least  supports  itself,  if 
the  govenment  has  derived  no  other  advantage  from  it,  has  removed  this  diffi- 
culty. The  Chinese  are  accustomed  to  bring  gold  and  silver  as  currency,  mixed 
also  with  foreign  coinage,  to  Manila  for  the  purpose  of  buying  the  produce  of  the 
country;  and  all  this  the  native  merchants  had  recoined.  At  first  only  silver 
ounces  were  usually  obtainable  in  Manila,  gold  ounces  very  rarely.  This  oc- 
casioned such  a  steady  importation  that  the  conditions  were  completely  reversed. 
In  the  Insular  Treasury  the  gold  and  silver  dollar  are  always  reckoned  at  the 
same  value. 


r 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  327 

supposing  the  seed-beds  to  have  been  prepared  in  Sep- 
tember, about  the  beginning  or  the  middle  of  November. 
A  second  sowing  takes  place  on  the  15th  of  October, 
as  much  as  a  precaution  against  possible  failure,  as  for 
obtaining  plants  for  the  lowlands. 

Concerning  the  land  most  advantageous  to  the  tobacco 
and  its  cidtivation.  Replanting  of  the  seedlings. — Land 
must  be  chosen  of  middling  grain;  somewhat  difficult, 
calciferous  soil  is  particularly  recommended,  when  it 
is  richly  fertilized  with  the  remains  of  decayed  plants, 
and  not  less  than  two  feet  deep;  and  the  deeper  the 
roots  are  inserted  the  higher  will  the  plant  grow.  Of 
all  the  land  adapted  to  the  tobacco  cultivation,  that 
in  Cagayan  is  the  best,  as  from  the  overflowing  of  the 
large  streams,  which  occurs  every  year,  it  is  laid  under 
water,  and  annually  receives  a  new  stratum  of  mud, 
which  renders  the  soil  particularly  productive.  Planta- 
tions prepared  upon  such  soil  differ  very  materially  from 
those  less  favored  and  situated  on  a  higher  level.  In 
the  former  the  plants  shoot  up  quickly  as  soon  as  the 
roots  strike;  in  the  latter  they  grow  slowly  and  only 
reach  a  middling  height.  Again  in  the  fertile  soil  the 
plants  produce  quantities  of  large,  strong,  juicy  leaves, 
giving  promise  of  a  splendid  harvest.  In  the  other 
case  the  plants  remain  considerably  smaller  and  grow 
sparsely.  Sometimes,  however,  even  the  lowlands  are 
flooded  in  January  and  February,  and  also  in  March, 
when  the  tobacco  has  already  been  transplanted,  and 
grown  to  some  little  height.  In  that  event  everything 
is  irreparably  lost,  particularly  if  the  flood  should  occur 
at  a  time  when  it  is  too  late  to  lay  out  new  plantations. 
High-lying  land  also  must,  therefore,  be  cultivated, 
in  the  hope  that  by  very  careful  attention  it  may  yield 
a  similar  return.  In  October  these  fields  must  be 
ploughed  three  or  four  times,  and  harrowed  twice  or 
thrice.  On  account  of  the  floods,  the  lowlands  cannot 
be  ploughed  until  the  end  of  December,  or  the  middle 
of  January;  when  the  work  is  light  and  simple.  The 
strongest  plants  in  the  seed-beds  are  chosen,  and  set 
in  the  prepared  grounds  at  a  distance  of  three  feet  from 
each  other,  care  being  taken  that  the  earth  clinging  to 
the  roots  is  not  shaken  off. 


S28  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

Of  the  care  necessary  to  be  bestowed  upon  the  plants. — In 
the  east  a  little  screen,  formed  by  two  clods,  is  to  be 
erected,  with  a  view  to  protecting  the  plant  from  the 
morning  sun,  and  retaining  the  dew  for  a  longer  time. 
The  weeds  to  be  carefully  exterminated,  and  the  wild 
shoots  removed.  A  grub  which  occasionally  appears 
in  great  numbers  is  particularly  dangerous.  Rain  is  very 
injurious  immediately  before  the  ripening,  when  the 
plants  are  no  longer  in  a  condition  to  secrete  the  gummy 
substance  so  essential  to  the  tobacco,  which,  being 
soluble  in  water,  would  be  drawn  off  by  the  action  of 
the  rain.  Tobacco  which  has  been  exposed  to  bad 
weather  is  always  deficient  in  juice  and  flavor,  and  is 
full  of  white  spots,  a  certain  sign  of  its  bad  quality. 
The  injury  is  all  the  greater  the  nearer  the  tobacco 
is  to  its  ripening  period;  the  leaves  hanging  down  to 
the  ground  then  decay,  and  must  be  removed.  If 
the  subsoil  is  not  deep  enough,  a  carefully  tended 
plant  will  turn  yellow,  and  nearly  wither  away.  In 
wet  seasons  this  does  not  occur  so  generally,  as  the 
roots  in  insufficient  depth  are  enabled  to  find  enough 
moisture. 

Cutting  and  manipulation  of  the  leaves  in  the  drying 
shed. — The  topmost  leaves  ripen  first;  they  are  then 
of  a  dark  yellow  color,  and  inflexible.  They  must  be 
cut  off  as  they  ripen,  collected  into  bundles,  and  brought 
to  the  shed  in  covered  carts.  In  wet  or  cloudy  weather, 
when  the  nightly  dews  have  not  been  thoroughly  evapor- 
ated by  the  sun,  they  must  not  be  cut.  In  the  shed 
the  leaves  are  to  hang  upon  cords  or  split  Spanish  cane, 
with  sufficient  room  between  them  for  ventilation  and 
drying.  The  dried  leaves  are  then  laid  in  piles,  which 
must  not  be  too  big,  and  frequently  turned  over. 
Extreme  care  must  be  taken  that  they  do  not  become 
overheated  and  ferment  too  strongly.  This  operation, 
which  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  the  quality  of  the 
tobacco,  demands  great  attention  and  skill,  and  must 
be  continued  until  nothing  but  an  aromatic  smell  of 
tobacco  can  be  noticed  coming  from  the  leaves;  but 
the  necessary  skill  for  this  manipulation  is  only  to  be 
acquired  by  long  practice,  and  not  from  any  written 
instructions. 


Jagor't  Travels  in  the  Philippines  ^Sl) 

XXVI 

An  important  portion  of  the  population  remains  to  be  importance  of 
discussed,  viz.  the  Chinese,  who  are  destined  to  play  '  ""^•'*"  .... 
a  remarkable  part,  inasmuch  as  the  development  of 
the  land-cultivation  demanded  by  the  increasing  trade 
and  commercial  intercourse  can  be  affected  only  by 
Chinese  industry  and  perseverance.  Manila  has  always 
been  a  favorite  place  for  Chinese  immigrants;  and 
neither  the  hostility  of  the  people,  nor  oppressing  and 
prohibitory  decrees  for  a  long  time  by  the  Government, 
not  even  the  repeated  massacres,  have  been  able  to 
prevent  their  coming.  The  position  of  the  Islands, 
south-east  of  two  of  the  most  important  of  the  Chinese 
provinces,  must  necessarily  have  brought  about  a  trade 
between  the  two  countries  very  early,  as  ships  can 
make  the  voyage  in  either  direction  with  a  moderate 
wind,  as  well  in  the  south-west  as  the  north-east  mon- 
soon. In  a  few  old  writers  may  even  be  found  the  asser- 
tion that  the  Philippine  Islands  were  at  one  time  sub- 
ject to  the  dominion  of  China;  and  Father  Gaubil  Early  Chinese 
(Lettres  Edifiantes)  mentions  that  Jaung-lo  (of  the 
Ming  dynasty)  maintained  a  fleet  consisting  of  30,000 
men,  which  at  different  times  proceeded  to  Manila. 
The  presence  of  their  ships  as  early  as  the  arrival  of 
Magellan  in  the  extreme  east  of  the  archipelago,  as 
well  as  the  China  plates  and  earthenware  vessels  dis- 
covered in  the  excavations,  plainly  show  that  the  trade 
with  China  had  extended  far  earlier  to  the  most  distant 
islands  of  the  archipelago.  It  formed  the  chief  sup- 
port of  the  young  Spanish  colony,  and,  after  the  rise 
of  the  Encomiendas,  was  nearly  the  only  source  of  its 
prosperity.  It  was  feared  that  the  junks  would  offer 
their  cargoes  to  the  Dutch  if  any  obstacle  was  put  in 
the  way  of  their  coming  to  Manila.     The  colony  certain- 


.4  s.sociattons. 


sso 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Indiistrial  and 

commercial 

activity. 


Vnauccessjul 
atlen^ts  at 
restriction. 


ly  could  not  maintain  its  position  without  the  "Sang- 
leys,"*  who  came  annually  in  great  numbers  in  the 
junks  from  China,  and  spread  all  over  the  country  and 
in  the  towns  as  shopkeepers,  artisans,  gardeners,  and 
fishermen;  besides  which,  they  were  the  only  skillful 
and  industrious  workers,  as  the  Filipinos  under  the 
priestly  domination  had  forgotten  altogether  many 
trades  in  which  they  had  engaged  in  former  times.  I 
take  these  facts  from  Morga. 

In  spite  of  all  this,  the  Spaniards  have,  from  the 
very  commencement,  endeavored  rigorously  to  limit 
the  number  of  the  Chinese;  who  were  then,  as  they  are 
now,  envied  and  hated  by  the  natives  for  their  industry, 
frugality,  and  cunning,  by  which  means  they  soon 
became  rich.  They  were  an  abomination,  moreover, 
in  the  eyes  of  the  priests  as  being  irreclaimable  heathens, 
whose  example  prevented  the  natives  from  making 
progress  in  the  direction  of  Christianity;  and  the  gov- 
ernment feared  them  on  account  of  the  strong  bond 
of  union  existing  between  them,  and  as  being  subjects 
of  so  powerful  a  nation,  whose  close  proximity  threatened 
the  small  body  of  Spaniards  with  destruction.!  For- 
tunately for  the  latter,  the  Ming  dynasty,  which  at 
that  time  was  hastening  to  its  downfall,  did  not  think 
of  conquest;  but  wickedly  disposed  powers  which 
sprang  into  existence  upon  their  downfall  brought  the 
colony  into  extreme  danger. 


*  The  Chinese  were  generally  known  in  the  Philippines  as  "Sangleys";  ac- 
cording to  Professor  Schott,  "sang-lui  (in  the  south  szang-loi,  also  sanng-loi) 
mercatorum  ordo."  "Sang"  is  more  specially  applied  to  the  travelling  traders, 
in  opposition  to  "ku,"  tabernarii. 

t    "They  are  a  wicked  and  vicious  people,  and,  owing  to  their  numbers, 

and  to  their  being  such  large  eaters,  they  consume  the  provisions  and  render  them 

dear It  is  true  the  town  cannot  exist  without  the  Chin:s;,  as  they  are  the 

workers  in  all  the  trades  and  business,  and  very  industrious,  and  work  for  small 
wages;  but  for  that  very  reason  a  lesser  number  of  them  would  be  sufficient." — 
Morga,  p.  349. 


massacre  o/ 
Chinese. 


J  agar' a  TraveU  in  'he  Philippines  SSI 

In  the  attack  of  the  noted  pirate,  Limahong,  in  1574,  Limahong  and 
they  escaped  destruction  only  by  a  miracle;  and  soon  ^^.*.j'  ""  """* 
new  dangers  threatened  them  afresh.  In  1603  a  few 
mandarins  came  to  Manila,  under  the  pretence  of  ascer- 
taining whether  the  ground  about  Cavite  was  really 
of  gold.  They  were  supposed  to  be  spies,  and  it  was 
concluded,  from  their  peculiar  mission,  that  an  attack 
upon  the  colony  was  intended  by  the  Chinese. 

The  archbishop  and  the  priests  incited  the  distrust  Early 
which  was  felt  against  the  numerous  Chinese  who  were 
settled  in  Manila.  Mutual  hate  and  suspicion  arose; 
both  parties  feared  one  another  and  prepared  for  hostil- 
ities. The  Chinese  commenced  the  attack;  but  the 
united  forces  of  the  Spaniards,  being  supported  by  the 
Japanese  and  the  Filipinos,  twenty- three  thousand, 
according  to  other  reports  twenty-five  thousand,  of  the 
Chinese  were  either  killed  or  driven  into  the  desert. 
When  the  news  of  this  massacre  reached  China,  a  letter 
from  the  Royal  Commissioners  was  sent  to  the  Governor 
of  Manila.  That  noteworthy  document  shows  in  so 
striking  a  manner  how  hollow  the  great  government  was 
at  that  time  that  I  have  given  a  literal  translation  of  it 
at  the  end  of  this  chapter. 

After  the  extermination  of  the  Chinese,  food  and  all 
other  necessaries  of  life  were  difficult  to  obtain  on  account 
of  the  utter  unreliability  of  the  natives  for  work;  but  by 
1605  the  number  of  Chinese*  had  again  so  increased 
that  a  decree  was  issued  limiting  them  to  six  thousand, 
"these  to  be  employed  in  the  cultivation  of  the  country;" 
while  at  the  same  time  their  rapid  increase  was  taken 
advantage  of  by  the  captain-general  for  his  own  interest, 
as  he  exacted  eight  dollars  from  each  Chinaman  for 
permission  to  remain.  In  1639  the  Chinese  population 
had  risen  to  thirty  thousand,  according  to  other  informa- 

*   "Recopilacion,"  Lib.  iv.,  Tit.  xviii.,  ley.  1. 


Chinese  laborers 
limited. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A nolher 
masxarre. 


The  pirate 
Kog-senu. 


Another 
expulsion. 


tion,  to  forty  thousand,  when  they  revolted  and  were  redu- 
ced to  seven  thousand.  "The  natives,  who  generally 
were  so  listless  and  indifferent,  showed  the  utmost 
eagerness  in  assisting  in  the  massacre  of  the  Chinese, 
but  more  from  hatred  of  this  industrious  people  than 
from  any  feeling  of  friendship  towards  the  Spaniards."* 

The  void  occasioned  by  this  massacre  was  soon  filled 
up  again  by  Chinese  immigrants;  and  in  1662  the  colony 
was  once  more  menaced  with  a  new  and  great  danger, 
by  the  Chinese  pirate  Kog-seng,  who  had  under  his 
command  between  eighty  and  one  hundred  thousand 
men,  and  who  already  had  dispossessed  the  Dutch  of  the 
Island  of  Formosa.  He  demanded  the  absolute  sub- 
mission of  the  Philippines;  his  sudden  death,  however, 
saved  the  colony,  and  occasioned  a  fresh  outbreak  of 
fury  against  the  Chinese  settlers  in  Manila,  a  great 
number  of  whom  were  butchered  in  their  own  "quarter" 
(ghetto),  t  Some  dispersed  and  hid  themselves;  a 
few  in  their  terror  plunged  into  the  water  or  hanged 
themselves;  and  a  great  number  fled  in  small  boats  to 
Formosa.  + 

In  1709  the  jealousy  against  the  Chinese  once  more 
had  reached  such  a  height  that  they  were  accused  of 
rebellion,  and  particularly  of  monopolizing  the  trades, 
and,  with  the  exception  of  the  most  serviceable  of  the 
artisans  and  such  of  them  as  were  employed  by  the 
Government,  they  were  once  again  expelled.  Spanish 
writers  praise  the  salutariness  of  these  measures ;  alleging 
that  "under  the  pretence  of  agriculture  the  Chinese 
carry  on  trade;  they  are  cunning  and  careful,  making 
money  and  sending  it  to  China,  so  that  they  defraud 
the    Philippines    annually    of    an    enormous    amount." 

*  "Informe,"  I.,  iii..  73. 

t  The  Chinese  were  not  permitted   to  live  in  the    town,    but  in   a  district 
specially  set  apart  for  them. 
X  Velarde,   274. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


SSS 


Sonnerat,  however,  complains  that  art,  trade,  and  com- 
merce had  not  recovered  from  these  severe  blows; 
though,  he  adds,  fortunately  the  Chinese,  in  spite  of 
prohibitory  decrees,  are  returning  through  the  corrupt 
connivance  of  the  governor  and  officials. 

To  the  present  day  they  are  blamed  as  being  mono-  Thn/ty  traders 
polists,  particularly  by  the  Creoles;  and  certainly,  by 
means  of  their  steady  industry  and  natural  commercial 
aptitude,  they  have  appropriated  nearly  all  the  retail 
trade  to  themselves.  The  sale  of  European  imported 
goods  is  entirely  in  their  hands;  and  the  wholesale  pur- 
chase of  the  produce  of  the  country  for  export  is  divided 
between  the  natives,  Creoles,  and  the  Chinese,  the  latter 
taking  about  one-half.  Before  this  time  only  the  natives 
and  Creoles  were  permitted  to  own  ships  for  the  purpose 
of  forwarding  the  produce  to  Manila. 

In  1757  the  jealousy  of  the  Spaniards  broke  out  again 
in  the  form  of  a  new  order  from  Madrid,  directing  the 
expulsion  of  the  Chinese;  and  in  1759  the  decrees  of 
banishment,  which  were  repeatedly  evaded,  were  carried 
into  effect:  but,  as  the  private  interests  of  the  officials 
did  not  happen  to  coincide  with  those  of  the  Creole 
traders,  the  consequence  was  that  "the  Chinese  soon 
streamed  back  again  in  incredible  numbers,"  and  made 
common  cause  with  the  English  upon  their  invasion  in 
1762.*  Thereupon,  Sr.  Anda  commanded  "that  all  the 
Chinese  in  the  Philippine  Islands  should  be  hanged," 
which  order  was  very  generally  carried  out.f  The  last 
great  Chinese  massacre  took  place  in  1819,  when  the 
aliens  were  suspected  of  having  brought  about  the  cholera 
by  poisoning  the  wells.  The  greater  part  of  the  Euro- 
peans in  Manila  also  fell  victims  to  the  fury  of  the  popu- 
lace, but  the  Spaniards  generally  were  spared.  The 
prejudice  of  the  Spaniards,  especially  of  the  Creoles,  had 


Anda's  an^l 
tSI!)  massa(rKS. 


*  See  following  chapter. 


t   Zuniga,  xvi. 


SSJ, 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Expulsion  of 
merchants  from 
Manila. 


Oppressive 
taxation. 


always  been  directed  against  the  Chinese  tradesmen,  who 
interfered  unpleasantly  with  the  fleecing  of  the  natives; 
and  against  this  class  in  particular  were  the  laws  of 
limitation  aimed.  They  would  willingly  have  let  them 
develop  the  country  by  farming  but  the  hostility  of  the 
natives  generally  prevented  this. 

A  decree,  issued  in  1804,  commanded  all  Chinese 
shopkeepers  to  leave  Manila  within  eight  days,  only 
those  who  were  married  being  allowed  to  keep  shops; 
and  their  residence  in  the  provinces  was  permitted  only 
upon  the  condition  that  they  confined  themselves 
entirely  to  agriculture.  Magistrates  who  allowed  these 
to  travel  in  their  districts  were  fined  $200;  the  deputy- 
governor  $25;  and  the  wretched  Chinese  were  punished 
with  from  two  to  three  years'  confinement  in  irons. 

In  1839  the  penalties  against  the  Chinese  were  some- 
what mitigated,  but  those  against  the  magistrates  were 
still  maintained  on  account  of  their  venality.  In  1843 
Chinese  ships  were  placed  upon  terms  of  equality  with 
those  of  other  foreign  countries  (Leg.  Ult.,  II.,  476). 
In  1850  Captain-General  Urbiztondo  endeavored  to 
introduce  Chinese  colonial  farming,  and  with  this  object 
promised  a  reduction  of  the  taxes  to  all  agricultural 
immigrants.  Many  Chinese  availed  themselves  of  this 
opportunity  in  order  to  escape  the  heavy  poll-tax;  but 
in  general  they  soon  betook  themselves  to  trading  once 
more. 

Of  late  years  the  Chinese  have  not  suffered  from  the 
terrible  massacres  which  used  formerly  to  overtake 
them ;  neither  have  they  suffered  banishment ;  the  officials 
being  content  to  suppress  their  activity  by  means  of 
heavy  and  oppressive  taxes.  For  instance,  at  the  end 
of  1867  the  Chinese  shopkeepers  were  annually  taxed 
$60  for  permission  to  send  their  goods  to  the  weekly 
market;  this  was  in  addition  to  a  tax  of  from  $12  to $100 


Formidable 
competitor!!. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S36 

on  their  occupations;  and  at  the  same  time  they  were 
commanded  thenceforth  to  keep  their  books  in  Spanish 
(English  Consular  Report,  1869). 

The  Chinese  remain  true  to  their  customs  and  mode 
of  Hving  in  the  PhiHppines,  as  they  do  everywhere  else. 
When  they  outwardly  embrace  Christianity,  it  is  done 
merely  to  facilitate  marriage,  or  from  some  motive  con- 
ducive to  their  worldly  advantage;  and  occasionally 
they  renounce  it,  together  with  their  wives  in  Manila, 
when  about  to  return  home  to  China.  Very  many  of 
them,  however,  beget  families,  are  excellent  householders,  Bxceiieru 
and  their  children  in  time  form  the  most  enterprising,  popiUation. 
industrious,  and  wealthy  portion  of  the  resident  popula- 
tion. 

Invigorated  by  the  severe  struggle  for  existence  which 
they  have  experienced  in  their  over -populated  country, 
the  Chinese  appear  to  preserve  their  capacity  for  labor 
perfectly  unimpaired  by  any  climate.  No  nation  can 
equal  them  in  contentedness,  industry,  perseverance* 
cunning,  skill,  and  adroitness  in  trades  and  mercantile 
matters.  When  once  they  gain  a  footing,  they  generally 
appropriate  the  best  part  of  the  trade  to  themselves. 
In  all  parts  of  external  India  they  have  dislodged  from 
every  field  of  employment  not  only  their  native  but, 
progressively,  even  their  European  competitors.  Not 
less  qualified  and  successful  are  they  in  the  pursuance 
of  agriculture  than  in  trade.  The  emigration  from  the 
too  thickly  peopled  empire  of  China  has  scarcely  begun. 
As  yet  it  is  but  a  small  stream,  but  it  will  by-and-by  pour 
over  all  the  tropical  countries  of  the  East  in  one  mighty 
torrent,  completely  destroying  all  such  minor  obstacles 
as  jealous  interference  and  impotent  precaution  might 
interpose. 

Sphere 

Over  every  section  of  remote   India,   in   the  South  of  future 
Sea,  in  the  Indian  Archipelago,  in  the  states  of  South  '"/'"«'«=« 


THE  FORMER   PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN   EYES 


Mongolian, 
vs.  Caucasian 
in  Amfirirn. 


Efficiency  and 
reliability  of 
Chinese  latior. 


America,  the  Chinese  seem  destined,  in  time,  either 
to  supplant  every  other  element,  or  to  found  a  mixed 
race  upon  which  to  stamp  their  individuality.  In  the 
Western  States  of  the  Union  their  number  is  rapidly 
on  the  increase;  and  the  factories  in  California  are 
worked  entirely  by  them,  achieving  results  that  cannot 
be  accomplished  by  European  labor. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  of  the  many  questions 
of  large  comprehensiveness  which  connect  themselves 
with  the  penetration  of  the  Mongolian  race  into  America, 
which  up  till  now  it  had  been  the  fashion  to  regard  as 
the  inheritance  of  the  Caucasians,  is  the  relative  capacity 
of  labor  possessed  by  both  these  two  great  races,  who 
in  the  Western  States  of  America  have  for  the  first 
time  measured  their  mutual  strength  in  friendly  rivalry. 
Both  are  there  represented  in  their  most  energetic 
individuality;*  and  every  nerve  will  be  strained  in  carry- 
ing on  the  struggle,  inasmuch  as  no  other  country  pays 
for  labor  at  so  high  a  rate. 

The  conditions,  however,  are  not  quite  equal,  as  the 
law  places  certain  obstacles  in  the  way  of  the  Chinese. 
The  courts  do  not  protect  them  sufficiently  from  insult, 
which  at  times  is  aggravated  into  malicious  manslaughter 
through  the  ill-usage  of  the  mob,  who  hate  them  bitterly 


*  No  single  people  in  Europe  can  in  any  way  compare  with  the  inhabitants  of 
California,  which,  in  the  early  years  of  its  existence,  was  composed  only  of  men  in 
the  prime  of  their  strength  and  activity,  without  aged  people,  without  women, 
and  without  children.  Their  activity,  in  a  country  where  everything  had  to  be 
provided  (no  civilised  neighbors  living  within  some  hundred  miles  or  so),  and 
where  all  provisions  were  to  be  obtained  only  at  a  fabulous  cost,  was  stimulated 
to  the  highest  pitch.  Without  here  going  into  the  particulars  of  their  history, 
it  need  only  be  remembered  that  they  founded,  in  twenty-five  years,  a  powerful 
State,  the  fame  of  which  has  spread  all  over  the  world,  and  around  whose  borders 
young  territories  have  sprung  into  existence  and  flourished  vigorously;  two  of 
them  indeed  having  attained  to  the  condition  of  independent  States.  After  the 
Californian  gold-diggers  had  changed  the  configuration  of  the  ground  of  entire 
provinces  by  having,  with  Titanic  might,  deposited  masses  of  earth  into  the  sea 
until  they  expanded  into  hilly  districts,  so  as  to  obtain  therefrom,  with  the  aid 
of  ingenious  machinery,  the  smallest  particle  of  gold  which  was  contained  therein, 
they  have  astonished  the  world  in  their  capacity  of  agriculturalists,  whose  pro- 
duce is  sent  even  to  the  most  distant  markets,  and  everywhere  takes  the  first 
rank  without  dispute.  Such  mighty  results  have  been  achieved  by  a  people 
whose  total  number  scarcely,  indeed,  exceeds  500,000;  and  therefore,  perhaps, 
they  may  not  find  it  an  easy  matter  to  withstand  the  competition  of  the  Chinese. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S37 

as  being  reserved,  uncompanionable  workers.  Never- 
theless, the  Chinese  immigrants  take  their  stand  firmly.  ■ 
The  western  division  of  the  Pacific  Railway  has  been 
chiefly  built  by  the  Chinese,  who,  according  to  the 
testimony  of  the  engineers,  surpass  workmen  of  all 
other  nationalities  in  diligence,  sobriety,  and  good 
conduct.  What  they  lack  in  physical  power  they  make 
up  for  in  perseverance  and  working  intelligently  together. 
The  unique  and  nearly  incredible  performance  that 
took  place  on  April  28,  1869,  when  ten  miles  of  rail- 
way track  were  laid  in  eleven  working  hours  along  a 
division  of  land  which  had  in  no  way  been  prepared 
beforehand,  was  accomplished  by  Chinese  workmen; 
and  indeed  only  by  them  could  it  have  been  practic- 
able.* 

Of  course,  the  superiority  of  the  European  in  respect  Chinese 
of  the  highest  intellectual  faculties  is  not  for  a  moment 
to  be  doubted;  but,  in  all  branches  of  commercial  life 
in  which  cleverness  and  perservering  industry  are  neces- 
sary to  success,  the  Chinese  certainly  appear  entitled 
to  the  award.  To  us  it  appears  that  the  influx  of 
Chinese  must  certainly  sooner  or  later  kindle  a  struggle 
between  capital  and  labor,  in  order  to  set  a  limit  upon 
demands  perceptibly  growing  beyond  moderation. 

The  increasing  Chinese  immigration  already  intrudes  Chinese  problem 
upon    the    attention    of   American  statesmen  questions 
of  the  utmost  social  and  political  importance.     What 
influence   will   this   entirely   new   and   strange   element 


cleverness 
and  industry. 


in  America. 


*  The  rails,  if  laid  in  one  continuous  line,  would  measure  about  103,000  feet, 
the  weight  of  them  being  20,000  cwt.  Eight  Chinamen  were  engaged  in  the 
work,  relieving  one  another  by  fours.  These  men  were  chosen  to  perform  this 
feat  on  account  of  their  particular  activity,  out  of  10,000. 

(The  translator  of  the  1875  London  edition  notes:  "This  statement  is 
incorrect,  so  far  as  the  fact  of  the  feat  being  accomplished  by  Chinese  is 
concerned.  Eight  Europeans  were  engaged  in  this  extraordinary  piece  of 
work.  During  the  rejoicings  which  took  place  in  Sacramento  upon  the 
opening  of  the  line,  these  men  were  paraded  in  a  van,  with  the  account  of 
their  splendid  achievement  painted  in  large  letters  on  the  outside.  Certainly 
not  one  of  them  was  a  Chinaman." — C. 


S38  THE  FORMER   PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

exercise  over  the  conformation  of  American  relations? 
Will  the  Chinese  found  a  State  in  the  States,  or  go  into 
the  Union  on  terms  of  political  equality  with  the  other 
citizens,  and  form  a  new  race  by  alliance  with  the 
Caucasian  element?  These  problems,  which  can  only 
be  touched  upon  here  in  a  transitory  form,  have  been 
dealt  with  in  a  masterly  manner  by  Pumpelly,  in 
his  work  Across  America  and  Asia,  published  in  London 
in  1870. 


Letter   of  the  Commissary-General   of   Chinchew 

To  Don  Pedro  De  AcuNa,  Governor 

OF   the   Philippines 

To  the  'powerful  Captain-General  of  Luzon: 

"Having  been  given  to  understand  that  the  Chinese 
who  proceeded  to  the  kingdom  of  Luzon  in  order  to  buy 
and  sell  had  been  murdered  by  the  Spaniards,  I  have 
investigated  the  motives  for  these  massacres,  and  begged 
the  Emperor  to  exercise  justice  upon  those  who  had 
engaged  in  these  abominable  offences,  with  a  view  to 
security  in  the  future. 

"In  former  years,  before  my  arrival  here  as  royal 
commissioner,  a  Chinese  merchant  named  Tioneg, 
together  with  three  mandarins,  went  with  the  permission 
of  the  Emperor  of  China  from  Luzon  to  Cavite,  for  the 
purpose  of  prospecting  for  gold  and  silver ;  which  appears 
to  have  been  an  excuse,  for  he  found  neither  gold  nor 
silver;  I  thereupon  prayed  the  Emperor  to  punish  this 
imposter  Tioneg,  thereby  making  patent  the  strict 
justice  which  is  exercised  in  China. 

"It  was  during  the  administration  of  the  ex- Viceroy 
and  Eunuchs  that  Tioneg  and  his  companion,  named 
Yanglion,  uttered  the  untruth  already  stated;  and 
subsequently  I  begged  the  Emperor  to  transmit  all  the 
papers  bearing  upon  the  matter,  together  with  the  minutes 
of  Tioneg's  accusation;  when  I  myself  examined  the 
before-mentioned  papers,  and  knew  that  everything  that 
the  accused  Tioneg  had  said  was  utterly  untrue. 


Jagor's  Travels  m  the  Philippines  SS9 

"I  wrote  to  the  Emperor  and  stated  that,  on  account 
of  the  untruth  which  Tioneg  had  been  guilty  of,  the 
Castilians  entertained  the  suspicion  that  he  wished  to 
make  war  upon  them,  and  that  they,  under  this  idea, 
had  murdered  more  than  thirty  thousand  Chinese  in 
Luzon.  The  Emperor,  complying  with  my  request, 
punished  the  accused  Yanglion,  though  he  omitted  to 
put  him  to  death;  neither  was  Tioneg  beheaded  or 
confined  in  a  cage.  The  Chinese  people  who  had 
settled  in  Luzon  were  in  no  way  to  blame.  I  and  others 
discussed  this  with  the  Emperor  in  order  to  ascertain 
what  his  pleasure  was  in  this  matter,  as  well  as  in  another, 
namely,  the  arrival  of  two  English  ships  on  the  coast 
of  Chinchew  (Fukien  or  Amoy  district) — a  very 
dangerous  circumstance  for  China;  and  to  obtain  His 
Imperial  Majesty's  decision  as  to  both  these  most  serious 
matters. 

"We  also  wrote  to  the  Emperor  that  he  should  direct 
the  punishment  of  both  these  Chinese;  and,  in  acknowl- 
edging our  communication,  he  replied  to  us,  in  respect 
to  the  English  ships  which  had  arrived  in  China,  that 
in  case  they  had  come  for  the  purpose  of  plundering, 
they  should  be  immediately  commanded  to  depart 
thence  for  Luzon;  and,  with  regard  to  the  Luzon  dif- 
ficulty, that  the  Castilians  should  be  advised  to  give 
no  credence  to  rogues  and  liars  from  China;  and  both 
the  Chinese  who  had  discovered  the  harbor  to  the  English 
should  be  executed  forthwith;  and  that  in  all  other 
matters  upon  which  we  had  written  to  him,  our  will 
should  be  his.  Upon  receipt  of  this  message  by  us — 
the  Viceroy,  the  Eunuch,  and  myself — we  hereby  send 
this  our  message  to  the  Governor  of  Luzon,  that  his 
Excellency  may  know  the  greatness  of  the  Emperor 
of  China  and  of  his  Empire,  for  he  is  so  powerful  that 
he  commands  all  upon  which  the  sun  and  moon  shine, 
and  also  that  the  Governor  of  Luzon  may  learn  with 
what  great  wisdom  this  mighty  empire  is  governed, 
and  which  power  no  one  for  many  years  has  attempted 
to  insult,  although  the  Japanese  have  sought  to  disturb 
the  tranquillity  of  Korea,  which  belongs  to  the  Govern- 
ment  of  China.     They   did   not   succeed,    but   on   the 


SAO  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

contrary  were  driven  out,  and  Korea  has  remained  in 
perfect  security  and  peace,  which  those  in  Luzon  well 
know  by  report. 

"Years  ago,  after  we  learnt  that  so  many  Chinese 
perished  in  Luzon  on  account  of  Tioneg's  lies,  many 
of  us  mandarins  met  together,  and  resolved  to  leave 
it  to  the  consideration  of  the  Emperor  to  take  vengeance 
for  so  great  a  massacre;  and  we  said  as  follows: — The 
country  of  Luzon  is  a  wretched  one,  and  of  very  little 
importance.  It  was  at  one  time  only  the  abode  of 
devils  and  serpents;  and  only  because  (within  the  last 
few  years)  so  large  a  number  of  Chinese  went  thither 
for  the  purpose  of  trading  with  the  Castilians  has  it 
improved  to  such  an  extent;  in  which  improvement 
the  accused  Sangleyes  materially  assisted  by  hard 
labor,  the  walls  being  raised  by  them,  houses  built, 
and  gardens  laid  out,  and  other  matters  accomplished 
of  the  greatest  use  to  the  Castilians ;  and  now  the  question 
is,  why  has  no  consideration  been  paid  for  these  services, 
and  these  good  offices  acknowledged  with  thanks,  with- 
out cruelly  murdering  so  many  people?  And  although 
we  wrote  to  the  King  twice  or  thrice  concerning  the 
circumstances,  he  answered  us  that  he  was  indignant 
about  the  before-mentioned  occurrences,  and  said  for 
three  reasons  it  is  not  advisable  to  execute  vengeance, 
nor  to  war  against  Luzon.  The  first  is  that  for  a  long 
time  till  now  the  Castilians  have  been  friends  of  the 
Chinese;  the  second,  that  no  one  can  predict  whether 
the  Castilians  or  the  Chinese  would  be  victorious;  and 
the  third  and  last  reason  is,  because  those  whom  the 
Castilians  have  killed  were  wicked  people,  ungrateful 
to  China,  their  native  country,  their  elders,  and  their 
parents,  as  they  have  not  returned  to  China  now  for 
very  many  years.  These  people,  said  the  Emperor, 
he  valued  but  little  for  the  foregoing  reasons;  and  he 
commanded  the  Viceroy,  the  Eunuch,  and  myself,  to 
send  this  letter  through  those  messengers,  so  that  all 
in  Luzon  may  know  that  the  Emperor  of  China  has 
a  generous  heart,  great  forbearance,  and  much  mercy, 
in  not  declaring  war  against  Luzon;  and  his  justice  is 
indeed  manifest,  as  he  has  already  punished  the  liar 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S41 

Tioneg.  Now,  as  the  Spaniards  are  wise  and  intelligent, 
how  does  it  happen  that  they  are  not  sorry  for  having 
massacred  so  many  people,  feeling  no  repentance  thereat, 
and  also  are  not  kinder  to  those  of  the  Chinese  who  are 
still  left?  Then  when  the  Castilians  show  a  feeling  of 
good-will,  and  the  Chinese  and  Sangleyes  who  left 
after  the  dispute  return,  and  the  indebted  money  is 
repaid,  and  the  property  which  was  taken  from  the 
Sangleyes  restored,  then  friendship  will  again  exist 
between  this  empire  and  that,  and  every  year  trading- 
ships  shall  come  and  go;  but  if  not,  then  the  Emperor 
will  allow  no  trading,  but  on  the  contrary  will  at  once 
command  a  thousand  ships  of  war  to  be  built,  manned 
with  soldiers  and  relations  of  the  slain,  and  will,  with 
the  assistance  of  other  peoples  and  kingdoms  who  pay 
tribute  to  China,  wage  relentless  war,  without  quarter 
to  any  one;  and  upon  its  conclusion  will  present  the 
kingdom  of  Luzon    to   those  who  do  homage  to  China. 

"This  letter  is  written  by  the  Visitor-General  on  the 
12th  of  the  second  month." 

A  contemporary  letter  of  the  Ruler  of  Japan  forms 
a  somewhat  notable  contrast: — 

Letter  of  Daifusama,  Ruler  of  Japan 

"To  the  Governor  Don  Pedro  de  Acufia,  in  the  year  1605: 

"I  have  received  two  letters  from  your  Excellency, 
as  also  all  the  donations  and  presents  described  in  the 
inventory.  Amongst  them  was  the  wine  made  from 
grapes,  which  I  enjoyed  very  much.  In  former  years 
your  Excellency  requested  that  six  ships  might  come 
here,  and  recently  four,  which  request  I  have  always 
complied  with. 

"But  my  great  displeasure  has  been  excited  by  the 
fact  that  of  the  four  ships  upon  whose  behalf  your  Ex- 
cellency interposed,  one  from  Antonio  made  the  journey 
without  my  permission.  This  was  a  circumstance  of 
great  audacity,  and  a  mark  of  disrespect  to  me.  Does 
your  Excellency  wish  to  send  that  ship  to  Japan  without 
my  permission? 


S4S 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU   FOREIGN  EYES 


"Independently  of  this,  your  Excellency  and  others 
have  many  times  discussed  with  me  concerning  the 
antecedents  and  interests  of  Japan,  and  many  other 
matters,  your  requests  respecting  which  I  cannot  comply 
with.  This  territory  is  called  Xincoco,  which  means 
'consecrated  to  Idols,'  which  have  been  honored  with 
the  highest  reverence  from  the  days  of  our  ancestor 
until  now,  and  whose  actions  I  alone  can  neither  undo 
nor  destroy.  Wherefore,  it  is  in  no  way  fitting  that 
your  laws  should  be  promulgated  and  spread  over  Japan ; 
and  if,  in  consequence  of  these  misunderstandings, 
your  Excellency's  friendship  with  the  empire  of  Japan 
should  cease,  and  with  me  likewise,  it  must  be  so,  for 
I  must  do  that  which  I  think  is  right,  and  nothing  which 
is  contrary  to  my  own  pleasure. 

"Finally,  I  have  heard  it  frequently  said,  as  a  reproach, 
that  many  Japanese — wicked,  corrupt  men — go  to  your 
kingdom,  remaining  there  many  years,  and  then  return 
to  Japan.  This  complaint  excites  my  anger,  and  there- 
fore I  must  request  your  Excellency  henceforth  not 
to  allow  such  persons  to  return  in  the  ships  which  trade 
here.  Concerning  the  remaining  matters,  I  trust  your 
Excellency  will  hereafter  employ  your  judgment  and 
circumspection  in  such  a  manner  as  to  avoid  incurring 
my  displeasure  for  the  future." 


■Spain's 

discovery 

and  occupation. 


XXVII 

The  Philippines  were  discovered  by  Magellan  on  the 
16th  of  March,  1521 — St.  Lazarus'  day.*  But  it  was 
not  until  1564,t  after  many  previous  efforts  had  mis- 
carried, that  Legaspi,  who  left  New  Spain  with  five  ships, 
took  possession  of  the  Archipelago  in  the  name  of 
Philip  II.  The  discoverer  had  christened  the  islands 
after    the    sanctified    Lazarus.     This    name,    however, 

*  Magellan  fell  on  April  27,  struck  by  a  poisoned  arrow,  on  the  small  island 
of  Mactan,  lying  opposite  the  harbor  of  Cebu.  His  lieutenant,  Sebastian  de 
Elcano,  doubled  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  and  on  September  6,  1522,  brought 
back  one  of  the  five  ships  with  which  Magellan  set  sail  from  St.  Lucar  in  1519, 
and  eighteen  men,  with  Pigafetta,  to  the  same  harbor,  and  thus  accomplished 
the  first  voyage  round  the  world  in  three  years  and  fourteen  days. 

t  1565  is  the  date  for  what  is  now  the  Philippines.— C. 


1 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines 


S4S 


never  grew  into  general  use;  the  Spaniards  persistently 
calling  them  the  Western  Islands — Islas  del  Poniente;  yumeroxu 

.  .  names. 

and  the  Portuguese,  Islas  del  Oriente.  Legaspi  gave 
them  their  present  name*  in  honor  of  Philip  II,  who, 
in  his  turn,  conferred  upon  them  the  again  extinct  name 
of  New  Castile. t  Legaspi  first  of  all  annexed  Cebu, 
and  then  Panay ;  and  six  years  later,  in  1571,  he  first  sub- 
dued Manila,  which  was  at  that  time  a  village  surrounded 
by  palisades,  and  commenced  forthwith  the  construc- 
tion of  a  fortified  town.  The  subjection  of  the  remaining 
territory  was  effected  so  quickly  that,  upon  the  death 
of  Legaspi  (in  August,  1572),  all  the  western  parts  were 
in  possession  of  the  Spaniards.  Numerous  wild  tribes 
in  the  interior,  however,  the  Mahomedan  states  of  Min- 
danao and  the  Sulu  group,  for  example,  have  to  this 
day  preserved  their  independence.  The  character  of  the 
people,  as  well  as  their  political  disposition,  favored 
the  occupancy.  There  was  no  mighty  power,  no  old 
dynasty,  no  influential  priestly  domination  to  overcome, 
no  traditions  of  national  pride  to  suppress.  The  natives 
were  either  heathens,  or  recently  proselytized  superfi- 
cially to  Islamism,  and  lived  under  numerous  petty  chiefs, 
who  ruled  them  despotically,  made  war  upon  one  another, 
and  were  easily  subdued.  Such  a  community  was 
called  Barangay;  and  it  forms  to  this  day,  though  in  a 
considerably  modified  form,  the  foundation  of  the  consti- 
tutional laws.  The  Spaniards  limited  the  power  of  the 
petty  chiefs,  upheld  slavery,  and  abolished  hereditary  Spanish 

iviprnveintt 

nobility  and  dignity,  substituting  in  its  place  an  aristo- 
cracy created  by  themselves  for  services  rendered  to  the 
State;  but  they  carried  out  all  these  changes  very  grad- 


Mindanao 
and  Sulu 
indepenrienl. 


*  Villalobos  gave  this  name  to  one  of  the  Southern  islands  and  Legaspi  extend- 
ed it  to  the  entire  archipelago. — C. 

t  "According  to  recent  authors  they  were  also  named  after  Villalobos  in  1543. 
MORGA,   p.    5. 


S44 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Unthinking 
policy  of  greed. 


High  character 
of  early 
administrators. 


ually  and  cautiously.*  The  old  usages  and  laws,  so 
long  as  they  did  not  interfere  with  the  natural  course 
of  government,  remained  untouched  and  were  operative 
by  legal  sanction;  and  even  in  criminal  matters  their 
validity  was  equal  to  those  emanating  from  the  Spanish 
courts.  To  this  day  the  chiefs  of  Barangay,  with  the 
exception  of  those  bearing  the  title  of  "Don,"  have  no 
privileges  save  exemption  from  the  poll-tax  and  socage 
service.  They  are  virtually  tax-collectors,  excepting 
that  they  are  not  paid  for  such  service,  and  their  private 
means  are  made  responsible  for  any  deficit.  The  pru- 
dence of  such  a  measure  might  well  be  doubted,  without 
regard  to  the  fact  that  it  tempts  the  chiefs  to  embezzle- 
ment and  extortion ;  and  it  must  alienate  a  class  of  natives 
who  would  otherwise  be  a  support  to  the  Government. 
Since  the  measures  adopted  in  alleviation  of  the  con- 
quest and  occupancy  succeeded  in  so  remarkable  a  man- 


♦  According  to  Morga  (p.  140)  there  was  neither  king  nor  governor,  but  in 
each  island  and  province  were  numerous  persons  of  rank,  whose  dependants  and 
subjects  were  divided  into  quarters  (harrios)  and  families.  These  petty  rulers 
had  to  render  homage  by  means  of  tributes  from  the  crops  (buiz),  also  by  socage 
or  personal  service:  but  their  relations  were  exempted  from  such  services  as  were 
rendered  by  the  plebeians  (timauas).  The  dignities  of  the  chieftains  were  here- 
ditary, their  honors  descended  also  to  their  wives.  If  a  chief  particularly  dis- 
tinguished himself,  then  the  rest  followed  him;  but  the  Government  retained 
to  themselves  the  administration  of  the  Barangays  through  their  own  particular 
officials.  Concerning  the  system  of  slavery  under  the  native  rule,  Morga  says 
(p.  41,  abbreviated), — "The  natives  of  these  islands  are  divided  into  three  classes 
■ — nobles,  timauas  or  plebeians,  and  the  slaves  of  the  former.  There  are  differ- 
ent scrts  of  slaves:  some  in  complete  slavery  {Sa:/uiguilircs),  who  wcrk  in  the 
house,  as  also  their  children.  Others  live  with  their  families  in  their  own  houses 
and  render  service  to  their  lords  at  sowing  and  harvest-time,  also  as  boatmen, 
cr  in  the  construction  of  houses,  etc.  They  must  attend  as  often  as  they  are 
required,  and  give  their  services  without  pay  or  recompense  of  any  kind.  They 
are  called  Namamahayes;  and  their  duties  and  obligations  descend  to  their  child- 
ren and  successors.  Of  these  Sajuigtiitires  and  Namamahaycs  a  few  are  full 
slaves,  some  half  slaves,  and  others  quartsr  slaves. 

When,  for  instance,  the  mother  or  father  was  free,  the  only  son  would  be 
half  free,  half  slave.  Supposing  there  were  several  sons,  the  first  one  inherits  the 
father's  position,  the  second  that  of  the  mother.  When  the  number  is  unequal 
the  last  one  is  half  free  and  half  slave;  and  the  descendants  bom  of  such  half 
slaves  and  those  who  are  free  are  quarter  slaves.  The  half  slaves,  whether  sa- 
guiguilires  cr  namamahayes,  serve  their  lords  equally  every  month  in  turns. 
Half  and  quarter  slaves  can,  by  reason  of  their  being  partially  free,  compel  their 
lord  to  give  them  their  freedom  at  a  previously  determined  and  unfluctuating 
price:  but  full  slaves  do  not  possess  this  right.  A  namamahaye  is  worth  half 
as  much  as  a  saguigitilire.     All  slaves  are  natives." 

Again,  at  p.  143,  he  writes: — "A  slave  who  has  children  by  her  lord  is  thereby 
freed  together  with  her  children.  The  latter,  however,  are  not  considered  well 
bcrn,  and  cannot  inherit  property;  nor  do  the  rights  of  nobility,  supposing  in 
such  a  case  the  father  to  possess  any,  descend  to  them." 


071  commission. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S4S 

ner,  the  governors  and  their  subordinates  of  those  days, 
at  a  time  when  Spain  was  powerful  and  chivalrous, 
naturally  appear  to  have  been  distinguished  for  wisdom 
and  high  spirit.  Legaspi  possessed  both  qualities  in  a 
marked  degree.  Hardy  adventurers  were  tempted  there, 
as  in  America,  by  privileges  and  inducements  which 
power  afforded  them;  as  well  as  by  the  hope,  which, 
fortunately  for  the  country,  was  never  realized,  of  its 
being  rich  in  auriferous  deposits.  In  Luzon,  for  instance, 
Hernando  Riquel  stated  that  there  were  many  gold- 
mines in  several  places  which  were  seen  by  the  Spaniards ; 
"the  ore  is  so  rich  that  I  will  not  write  any  more  about  it, 
as  I  might  possibly  come  under  a  suspicion  of  exaggerat- 
ing; but  I  swear  by  Christ  that  there  is  more  gold  on 
this  island  than  there  is  iron  in  all  Biscay."  They  conquerors 
received  no  pay  from  the  kingdom;  but  a  formal  right 
was  given  them  to  profit  by  any  territory  which  was 
brought  into  subjection  by  them.  Some  of  these  expe- 
ditions in  search  of  conquest  were  enterprises  under- 
taken for  private  gain,  others  for  the  benefit  of  the  gov- 
ernor ;  and  such  service  was  rewarded  by  him  with  grants 
of  lands,  carrying  an  annuity,  offices,  and  other  benefits 
{encomiendas,  oficios  y  aprovechamientos).  The  grants 
were  at  first  made  for  three  generations  (in  New  Spain 
for  four),  but  were  very  soon  limited  to  two;  when  De 
los  Rios  pointed  this  out  as  being  a  measure  very  pre- 
judicial to  the  Crown,  "since  they  were  little  prepared 
to  serve  his  Majesty,  as  their  grand-children  had  fallen 
into  the  most  extreme  poverty."  After  the  death  of  the 
feoffee  the  grant  reverted  to  the  State;  and  the  governor 
thereupon  disposed  of  it  anew. 

The    whole    country    at    the    outset    was    completely  The  feudal 
divided  into  these  livings,  the  defraying  of  which  formed 
by  far  the  largest  portion  of  the  expenses  of  the  kingdom. 
Investitures  of  a  similar  nature  existed,  more  or  less, 


"encomiendas." 


34<^ 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


HixlurUoms  of 
encomenderos. 


ScUcedo  "muat 
iUlistTious  of 
the  conquerors." 


in  a  territory  of  considerable  extent,  the  inhabitants 
of  which  had  to  pay  tribute  to  the  feoffee;  and  this 
tribute  had  to  be  raised  out  of  agricultural  produce,  the 
value  of  which  was  fixed  by  the  feudal  lord  at  a  very  low 
rate,  but  sold  by  him  to  the  Chinese  at  a  considerable 
profit.  The  feudal  lords,  moreover,  were  not  satisfied 
with  these  receipts,  but  held  the  natives  in  a  state  of 
slavery,  until  forbidden  by  a  Bull  of  Pope  Gregory  XIV, 
dated  April  18,  1591.  Kafir  and  negro  slaves,  whom  the 
Portuguese  imported  by  way  of  India,  were,  however, 
still  permitted. 

The  original  holders  of  feudal  tenures  amassed  con- 
siderable booty  therefrom.  Zuniga  relates  that  as 
early  as  the  time  of  Lavezares,  who  was  provisional 
governor  between  1572  and  1575,  he  visited  the  Bisayas 
and  checked  the  covetousness  of  the  encomenderos, 
so  that  at  least  during  his  rule  they  relaxed  their  system 
of  extortion.  Towards  the  end  of  Sande's  government 
(1575-80)  a  furious  quarrel  broke  out  between  the  priests 
and  the  encomenderos;  the  first  preached  against  the 
oppression  of  the  latter,  and  memorialized  Philip  II 
thereon.  The  king  commanded  that  the  natives  should 
be  protected,  as  the  extortionate  greed  of  the  feudal 
chiefs  had  exceeded  all  bounds;  and  the  natives  were 
then  at  liberty  to  pay  their  tribute  either  in  money 
or  in  kind.  The  result  of  this  well-intentioned  regulation 
appears  to  have  produced  a  greater  assiduity  both  in 
agriculture  and  trade,  "as  the  natives  preferred  to  work 
without  coercion,  not  on  account  of  extreme  want." 
And  here  I  may  briefly  refer  to  the  achievements  of 
Juan  de  Salcedo,  the  most  illustrious  of  all  the  conquer- 
ors. Supported  by  his  grandfather,  Legaspi,  with 
forty-five  Spanish  soldiers,  he  fitted  out  an  expedition 
at  his  own  expense,  embarked  at  Manila,  in  May,  1572, 
examined  all  parts  of  the  west  coast  of  the  island,  landed 


I 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  Si7 

in  all  the  bays  which  were  accessible  to  his  light-draught 
ships,  and  was  well  received  by  the  natives  at  most  of 
the  places.  He  generally  found  great  opposition  in  pene- 
trating into  the  interior;  yet  he  succeeded  in  subduing 
many  of  the  inland  tribes;  and  when  he  reached  Cape 
Bojeador,  the  north-west  point  of  Luzon,  the  extensive 
territory  which  at  present  forms  the  provinces  of  Zam- 
bales,  Pangasinan,  and  Ilocos  Norte  and  Sur,  acknowl- 
edged the  Spanish  rule.  The  exhaustion  of  his  soldiers 
obliged  Salcedo  to  return.  In  Vigan,  the  present  capital 
of  Ilocos  Sur,  he  constructed  a  fort,  and  left  therein 
for  its  protection  his  lieutenant  and  twenty-five  men, 
while  he  himself  returned,  accompanied  only  by  seven- 
teen soldiers,  in  three  small  vessels.  In  this  manner 
he  reached  the  Cagayan  River,  and  proceeded  up  it  until 
forced  by  the  great  number  of  hostile  natives  to  retreat 
to  the  sea.  Pursuing  the  voyage  to  the  east  coast,  he 
came  down  in  course  of  time  to  Paracale,  where  he  em- 
barked in  a  boat  for  Manila,  was  capsized,  and  rescued 
from  drowning  by  some  passing  natives. 

In  the  meantime  Legaspi  had  died,   and  Lavezares  "TheCortes 
was  provisionally  carrying  on  the  government.     Salcedo  "//.^*    .     , 

Philippines.' 

heard  of  this  with  vexation  at  being  passed  over;  but, 
when  he  recovered  from  his  jealousy,  he  was  entrusted 
with  the  subjugation  of  Camarines,  which  he  accom- 
plished in  a  short  time.  In  1574  he  returned  to  Ilocos, 
in  order  to  distribute  annuities  among  his  soldiers,  and 
to  receive  his  own  share.  While  still  employed  upon  the 
building  of  Vigan,  he  discovered  the  fleet  of  the  notorious 
Chinese  pirate,  Limahong,  who,  bent  upon  taking  pos- 
session of  the  colony,  was  then  passing  that  part  of  the 
coast  with  sixty-two  ships  and  a  large  number  of  soldiers. 
He  hastened  at  once,  with  all  the  help  which  he  could 
summon  together  in  the  neighborhood,  to  Manila,  where 
he  was  nominated  to  the  command  of  the  troops,  in  the 


Commercial 
importance  of 
early  Manila. 


Spain  and 

Portugal 

united. 


Manila  as 
capital  of  a 
vast  empire. 


348  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

place  of  the  already  deposed  master  of  the  forces;  and 
he  drove  the  Chinese  from  the  town,  which  they  had 
destroyed.  They  then  withdrew  to  Pangasinan,  and 
Salcedo  burnt  their  fleet ;  which  exploit  was  achieved  with 
very  great  difficulty.  In  1576  this  Cortes  of  the  Phil- 
ippines died.* 

Apart  from  the  priests,  the  first-comers  consisted  only 
of  officials,  soldiers,  and  sailors;  and  to  them,  naturally, 
fell  all  the  high  profits  of  the  China  trade.  Manila  was 
their  chief  market,  and  it  also  attracted  a  great  portion 
of  the  external  Indian  trade,  which  the  Portuguese  had 
frightened  away  from  Malacca  by  their  excessive  cruelty. 
The  Portuguese,  it  is  true,  still  remained  in  Macao  and  the 
Moluccas :  but  they  wanted  those  remittances  which  were 
almost  exclusively  sought  after  by  the  Chinese,  viz., 
the  silver  which  Manila  received  from  New  Spain. 

In  1580  Portugal,  together  with  all  its  colonies,  was 
handed  over  to  the  Spanish  Crown ;  and  the  period  extend- 
ing from  this  event  to  the  decay  of  Portugal  (1580-1640) 
witnessed  the  Philippines  at  the  height  of  their  power 
and  prosperity. 

The  Governor  of  Manila  ruled  over  a  part  of  Mindanao, 
Sulu,  the  Moluccas,  Formosa,  and  the  original  Portu- 
guese possessions  in  Malacca  and  India.  "All  that  lies 
between  Cape  Singapore  and  Japan  is  subject  to  Luzon; 
their  ships  cross  the  ocean  to  China  and  New  Spain, 
and  drive  so  magnificent  a  trade  that,  if  it  were  only  free, 
it  would  be  the  most  extraordinary  that  the  world  could 
show.  It  is  incredible  what  glory  these  islands  confer 
upon  Spain.  The  Governor  of  the  Philippines  treats  with 
the  Kings  of  Cambodia,  Japan,  China.  The  first  is  his 
ally,  the  last  his  friend;  and  the  same  with  Japan. 
He  declares  war  or  peace,  without  waiting  for  the  com- 

*  He  made  the  Filipinos  of  his  encomienda  of  Vigan  his  heirs,  and  has 
ever  been  held  in  grateful  memory. — C. 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S49 

mand  from  distant  Spain."*  But  the  Dutch  had  now  Dutch 
begun  the  struggle,  which  they  managed  to  carry  on  "pp""'""* 
against  Philip  II  in  every  comer  of  the  world;  and  even 
in  1610  De  Los  Rios  complained  that  he  found  the  country 
very  much  altered  through  the  progress  and  advance 
made  by  the  Dutch;  also  that  the  Moros  of  Mindanao 
and  Sulu,  feeling  that  they  were  supported  by  Holland, 
were  continually  in  a  state  of  discontent. 

The  downfall  of  Portugal  occasioned  the  loss  of  her  Decline  of 
colonies  once  more.  Spanish  policy,  the  government  of  "'''''"''■ 
the  priests,  and  the  jealousy  of  the  Spanish  merchants 
and  traders  especially,  did  everything  that  remained 
to  be  done  to  prevent  the  development  of  agriculture 
and  commerce — perhaps,  on  the  whole,  fortunately, 
for  the  natives. 

The  subsequent  history  of  the  Philippines  is,  in  all  its  pf^^ppi^^ 
particulars,   quite   as  unsatisfactory   and  uninteresting  history 
as  that  of  all  the  other  Spanish -American  possessions.  ^|^'"P'"'''"^ 
Ineffectual   expeditions   against  pirates,   and   continual  unsatisfactory. 
disputes  between  the  clerical  and  secular  authorities, 
form  the  principal  incidents,  f 

After  the  first  excitement  of  religious  belief  and  military  undesirable 
renown  had  subsided,  the  minds  of  those  who  went  J^^p^'^^ 
later  to  these  outlying  possessions,  consisting  generally 
as  they  did  of  the  very  dregs  of  the  nation,  were  seized 
with  an  intense  feeling  of  selfishness ;  and  frauds  and  pecu- 
lations were  the  natural  sequence.  The  Spanish  writers 
are  full  of  descriptions  of  the  wretched  state  of  society 
then  existing,  which  it  is  unnecessary  to  repeat  here. 

The  colony  had  scarcely  been  molested  by  external  English 
enemies,  with  the  exception  of  pirates.     In  the  earliest  """P'''''"*- 


*  Grav.  30. 

t  Chamisso  ("Observations  and  Views,"  p.  72),  thanks  to  the  translator  of 
Zuniga,  knew  that  he  was  in  duty  bound  to  dwell  at  some  length  over  this 
excellent  history;  though  Zuniga's  narrative  is  always,  comparatively  sp:aking, 
short  and  to  the  point.  The  judiciously  abbreviated  English  translation, 
however,  contains  many  miscomprehensions. 


360  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

time  the  Dutch  had  engaged  occasionally  in  attacks 
on  the  Bisayas.  But  in  1762  (during  the  war  of  the 
Bourbon  succession)  an  English  fleet  suddenly  appeared 
before  Manila,  and  took  the  surprised  town  without  any 
difficulty.  The  Chinese  allied  themselves  with  the 
English.  A  great  insurrection  broke  out  among  the 
Filipinos,  and  the  colony,  under  the  provisional  govern- 
ment of  a  feeble  archbishop,  was  for  a  time  in  great 
danger.  It  was  reserved  for  other  dignitaries  of  the 
Church  and  Anda,  an  energetic  patriot,  to  inflame  the 
natives  against  the  foreigners ;  and  the  opposition  incited 
by  the  zealousness  of  the  priests  grew  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  English,  who  were  confined  in  the  town,  were 
actually  glad  to  be  able  to  retreat.  In  the  following 
year  the  news  arrived  from  Europe  of  the  conclusion  of 
peace;  but  in  the  interval  this  insurrection,  brought  about 
by  the  invasion,  had  rapidly  and  considerably  extended; 
and  it  was  not  suppressed  until  1765,  when  the  work 
was  accomplished  by  creating  enmity  among  the  different 
tribes.*  But  this  was  not  done  without  a  loss  to  the 
province  of  Ilocos  of  two  hundred  sixty-nine  thousand 
two  hundred  and  seventy  persons — half  of  the  popula- 
tion, as  represented  by  Zuniga. 
Many  minor  Scvcrity  and  Want  of  tact  on  the  part  of  the  Govem- 

upnsin^s  from     mcut  and  their  instruments,  as  well  as  bigoted  dissensions, 

loral  grievances. 

have  caused  many  revolts  of  the  natives;  yet  none,  it  is 
true,  of  any  great  danger  to  the  Spanish  rule.  The  dis- 
content has  always  been  confined  to  a  single  district,  as 
the  natives  do  not  form  a  united  nation;  neither  the 
bond  of  a  common  speech  nor  a  general  interest  binding 
the  different  tribes  together.  The  state  communica- 
tions and  laws  among  them  scarcely  reach  beyond  the 
borders  of  the  villages  and  their  dependencies. 

*  Principally    by    hiring    the    assassination    of    the    gifted     native     leader, 
Silang. — C. 


J 


Jagor's  Travels  in  the  Philippinea  ^61 

A  consideration  of  far  more  importance  to  the  distant  /''«"</o-  from 
metropolis  than  the  condition  of  the  constantly  excited  Hl,,,^, 
natives,  who  are  politically  divided  among  themselves, 
and  really  have  no  steady  object  in  view,  is  the  attitude 
of  the  mestizos  and  Creoles,  whose  discontent  increases 
in  proportion  to  their  numbers  and  prosperity.  The 
military  revolt  which  broke  out  in  1823,  the  leaders 
of  which  were  two  Creoles,  might  easily  have  terminated 
fatally  for  Spain.  The  latest  of  all  the  risings  of  the 
mestizos  seems  to  have  been  the  most  dangerous,  not 
only  to  the  Spanish  power,  but  to  all  the  European 
population.  * 

On  the  20th  of  January,  1872,  between  eight  and  nine  Caviu  isre 
in  the  evening,  the  artillery,  marines,  and  the  garrison  ""*'*"«'• 
of  the  arsenal  revolted  in  Cavite,  the  naval  base  of  the 
Philippines,  and  murdered  their  officers;  and  a  lieuten- 
ant who  endeavored  to  carry  the  intelligence  to  Manila 
fell  into  the  hands  of  a  crowd  of  natives.  The  news 
therefore  did  not  reach  the  capital  until  the  next  morn- 
ing, when  all  the  available  troops  were  at  once  dis- 
patched, and,  after  a  heavy  preliminary  struggle,  they 
succeeded  the  following  day  in  storming  the  citadel. 
A  dreadful  slaughter  of  the  rebels  ensued.  Not  a  soul 
escaped.  Among  them  was  not  a  single  European;  but 
there  were  many  mestizos,  of  whom  several  were  priests 
and  lawyers.  Though  perhaps  the  first  accounts,  written 
under  the  influence  of  terror,  may  have  exaggerated 
many  particulars,  yet  both  official  and  private  letters 
agree  in  describing  the  conspiracy  as  being  long  con- 
templated, widely  spread,  and  well  planned.  The 
whole  fleet  and  a  large  number  of  troops  were  absent 
at  the  time,   engaged   in   the  expedition   against  Sulu. 


*  Danger  to  Europeans,  "Massacre  of  all  white  people,"  was  a  frequent 
Spanish  allegation  in  political  disturbances,  but  the  only  proof  ever  given 
(the  9tli  degree  Masonic  apron  stupidly  atti-ibuted  to  the  Katipunan  in 
1896)  was  absurd  and  irrelevant. — C. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Summing  up. 


Credit  due 
Spain. 


Friars  an 
important 
factor. 

Their  defects 
have  worked 
out  for  good. 


A  portion  of  the  garrison  of  Manila  were  to  rise  at  the 
same  time  as  the  revolt  in  Cavite,  and  thousands  of 
natives  were  to  precipitate  themselves  on  the  caras 
hlancas  (pale  faces),  and  murder  them.  The  failure  of 
the  conspiracy  was,  it  appears,  only  attributable  to  a 
fortunate  accident — to  the  circumstance,  namely,  that 
a  body  of  the  rebels  mistook  some  rocket  fired  upon 
the  occasion  of  a  Church  festival  for  the  agreed  signal, 
and  commenced  the  attack  too  soon.* 

Let  me  be  permitted,  in  conclusion,  to  bring  together 
a  few  observations  which  have  been  scattered  through 
the  text,  touching  the  relations  of  the  Philippines  with 
foreign  countries,  and  briefly  speculate  thereon. 

Credit  is  certainly  due  to  Spain  for  having  bettered 
the  condition  of  a  people  who,  though  comparatively 
speaking  highly  civilized,  yet  being  continually  dis- 
tracted by  petty  wars,  had  sunk  into  a  disordered  and 
uncultivated  state.  The  inhabitants  of  these  beautiful 
islands,  upon  the  whole,  may  well  be  considered  to  have 
lived  as  comfortably  during  the  last  hundred  years, 
protected  from  all  external  enemies  and  governed  by 
mild  laws,  as  those  of  any  other  tropical  country  under 
native  or  European  sway, — owing,  in  some  measure, 
to  the  frequently  discussed  peculiar  circumstances 
which  protect  the  interests  of  the  natives. 

The  friars,  also,  have  certainly  had  an  essential  part 
in  the  production  of  the  results. 

Sprung  from  the  lowest  orders,  inured  to  hardship 
and  want,  and  on  terms  of  the  closest  intimacy  with  the 
natives,  they  were  peculiarly  fitted  to  introduce  them 
to  a  practical  conformity  with  the  new  religion  and  code 
of  morality.     Later  on,  also,  when  they  possessed  rich 


*  Professor  Jagor  here  follows  the  report  sent  out  by  the  authorities.  There 
seems  better  ground  for  believing  the  affair  to  have  been  merely  a  military 
mutiny  over  restricting  rights  which  was  made  a  pretext  for  getting  rid  of  those 
whose  liberal  views  were  objectionable  to  the  government. — C. 


Jagor'a  Travels  in  the  Philippines  S6S 

livings,  and  their  devout  and  zealous  interest  in  the 
welfare  of  the  masses  relaxed  in  proportion  as  their 
incomes  increased,  they  materially  assisted  in  bringing 
about  the  circumstances  already  described,  with  their 
favorable  and  unfavorable  aspects.  Further,  possessing 
neither  family  nor  good  education,  they  were  disposed 
to  associate  themselves  intimately  with  the  natives 
and  their  requirements;  and  their  arrogant  opposition 
to  the  temporal  power  generally  arose  through  their 
connection  with  the  natives.  With  the  altered  con- 
dition of  things,  however,  all  this  has  disappeared.  The 
colony  can  no  longer  be  kept  secluded  from  the  world. 
Every  facility  afforded  for  commercial  intercourse  is 
a  blow  to  the  old  system,  and  a  great  step  made  in  the 
direction  of  broad  and  liberal  reforms.  The  more 
foreign  capital  and  foreign  ideas  and  customs  are  intro- 
duced, increasing  the  prosperity,  enlightenment,  and 
self-respect  of  the  population,  the  more  impatiently  will 
the  existing  evils  be  endured. 

England  can  and  does  open  her  possessions  uncon-   Contrast 
cemedly  to  the  world.     The  British  colonies  are  united  "'f  ^'^'*** 

•'  colonies. 

to  the  mother  country  by  the  bond  of  mutual  advantage, 
viz.  the  production  of  raw  material  by  means  of  English 
capital,  and  the  exchange  of  the  same  for  English  manu- 
factures. The  wealth  of  England  is  so  great,  the  organ- 
ization of  her  commerce  with  the  world  so  complete, 
that  nearly  all  the  foreigners  even  in  the  British  posses- 
sions are  for  the  most  part  agents  for  English  business 
houses,  which  would  scarcely  be  affected,  at  least  to 
any  marked  extent,  by  a  political  dismemberment.  It 
is  entirely  different  with  Spain,  which  possesses  the 
colony  as  an  inherited  property,  and  without  the  power 
of  turning  it  to  any  useful  account. 

Government      monopolies      rigorously      maintained.   Menaces  to 
insolent  disregard  and  neglect  of  the  mestizos  and  power-     "'""' 


S6J, 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Growing 

American 

infiuence. 


Potoer/ul 

neighbors. 


China  and 
America. 


ful  Creoles,  and  the  example  of  the  United  States,  were 
the  chief  reasons  of  the  downfall  of  the  American  posses- 
sions. The  same  causes  threaten  ruin  to  the  Philippines: 
but  of  the  monopolies  I  have  said  enough. 

Mestizos  and  Creoles,  it  is  true,  are  not,  as  they 
formerly  were  in  America,  excluded  from  all  official 
appointments;  but  they  feel  deeply  hurt  and  injured 
through  the  crowds  of  place-hunters  which  the  frequent 
changes  of  ministries  send  to  Manila.  The  influence, 
also,  of  the  American  element  is  at  least  visible  on  the 
horizon,  and  will  be  more  noticeable  when  the  relations 
increase  between  the  two  countries.  At  present  they 
are  very  slender.  The  trade  in  the  meantime  follows 
in  its  old  channels  to  England  and  to  the  Atlantic  ports 
of  the  United  States.  Nevertheless,  whoever  desires  to 
form  an  opinion  upon  the  future  history  of  the  Philip- 
pines, must  not  consider  simply  their  relations  to  Spain, 
but  must  have  regard  to  the  prodigious  changes  which 
a  few  decades  produce  on  either  side  of  our  planet. 

For  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world  the 
mighty  powers  on  both  sides  of  the  ocean  have  com- 
menced to  enter  upon  a  direct  intercourse  with  one 
another — Russia,  which  alone  is  larger  than  any  two 
other  parts  of  the  earth;  China,  which  contains  within 
its  own  boundaries  a  third  of  the  population  of  the 
world;  and  America,  with  ground  under  cultivation 
nearly  sufficient  to  feed  treble  the  total  population  of 
the  earth.  Russia's  future  role  in  the  Pacific  Ocean 
is  not  to  be  estimated  at  present. 

The  trade  between  the  two  other  great  powers  will 
therefore  be  presumably  all  the  heavier,  as  the  rectifica* 
tion  of  the  pressing  need  of  human  labor  on  the  one  sidej 
and  of  the  corresponding  overplus  on  the  other,  will 
fall  to  them. 


Jagor't  Travels  in  the  Philippinet  SBS 

The  world  of  the  ancients  was  confined  to  the  shores  ^«""''h^ 

preduminanr.e 

of  the   Mediterranean;    and    the   Atlantic    and    Indian  of  the  Pacific 

Oceans  sufficed  at  one  time  for  our  traffic.     When  first 

the  shores  of  the  Pacific  re-echoed  with  the  sounds  of 

active  commerce,  the  trade  of  the  world  and  the  history 

of  the  world  may  be  really  said  to  have  begun.     A  start 

in  that  direction  has  been  made;  whereas  not  so  very 

long  ago   the  immense  ocean  was  one  wide  waste  of 

waters,  traversed  from  both  points  only  once  a  year. 

From   1603  to   1769  scarcely  a  ship  had  ever  visited 

California,   that  wonderful  country  which,   twenty-five 

years  ago,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  places  on  the 

coast,  was  an  unknown  wilderness,  but  which  is  now 

covered    with    flourishing    and    prosperous    towns    and 

cities,   served   by  a   sea-to-sea  railway,   and  its  capital 

already  ranking  the  third  of  the  seaports  of  the  Union ; 

even  at  this  early  stage  of  its  existence  a  central  point 

of  the  world's  commerce,  and  apparently  destined,  by 

the    proposed  junction  of    the  great  oceans,  to  play  a 

most  important  part  in  the  future. 

In  proportion  as  the  navigation  of  the  west  coast  The  misiion 
of  America  extends  the  influence  of  the  American  element  '"^co. 
over  the  South  Sea,  the  captivating,  ma^ic  power  which 
the  great  republic  exercises  over  the  Spanish  colonies* 
will  not  fail  to  make  itself  felt  also  in  the  Philippines. 
The  Americans  are  evidently  destined  to  bring  to  a  full 
development  the  germs  originated  by  the  Spaniards. 
As  conquerors  of  modem  times,  representing  the  age 
of  free  citizens  in  contrast  to  the  age  of  knighthood, 


*  I  take  the  liberty,  here,  of  citing  an  instance  of  this.  In  1861,  when  I 
found  myself  on  the  West  Coast  of  Mexico,  a  dozen  backwoods  families  deter- 
mined upon  settling  in  Sonora  (forming  an  oasis  in  the  desert);  a  plan  which  was 
frustrated  by  the  invasion  at  that  time  of  the  European  powers. Many  native 
farmers  awaited  the  arrival  of  these  immigrants  in  order  to  settle  under  their 
protection.  The  value  of  land  in  consequence  of  the  announcement  of  the  project 
rose  very  considerably. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Buperiority 
orcr  Spanish 
tytiem. 


Need  o/ 
gradual 
Philippine 
aieakenino. 


they  follow  with  the  plow  and  the  axe  of  the  pioneer, 
where  the  former  advanced  under  the  sign  of  the  cross 
with  their  swords. 

A  considerable  portion  of  Spanish-America  already 
belongs  to  the  United  States,  and  has  since  attained  an 
importance  which  could  not  possibly  have  been  anti- 
cipated either  under  the  Spanish  Government  or  during 
the  anarchy  which  followed.  With  regard  to  perman- 
ence, the  Spanish  system  cannot  for  a  moment  be 
compared  with  that  of  America.  While  each  of  the 
colonies,  in  order  to  favor  a  privileged  class  by  imme- 
diate gains,  exhausted  still  more  the  already  enfeebled 
population  of  the  metropolis  by  the  withdrawal  of  the 
best  of  its  ability,  America,  on  the  contrary,  has  attracted 
to  itself  from  all  countries  the  most  energetic  element, 
which,  once  on  its  soil  and,  freed  from  all  fetters,  rest- 
lessly progressing,  has  extended  its  power  and  influence 
still  further  and  further.  The  Philippines  will  escape 
the  action  of  the  two  great  neighboring  powers  all  the 
less  for  the  fact  that  neither  they  nor  their  metropolis 
find  their  condition  of  a  stable  and  well-balanced  nature. 

It  seems  to  be  desirable  for  the  Filipinos  that  the 
above-mentioned  views  should  not  speedily  become 
accomplished  facts,  because  their  education  and  training 
hitherto  have  not  been  of  a  nature  to  prepare  them 
successfully  to  compete  with  either  of  the  other  two 
energetic,  creative,  and  progressive  nations.  They  have, 
in  truth,  dreamed  away  their  best  days. 


STATE  OF  THE  PHILIPPINES  IN    1810 
By  Tomas  de  Comyn 

The  enumeration  of  the  natives  for  the  assessment  of  tributes,  Population. 
in  the  manner  ordained  by  the  standing  regulations  of  the  Intend- 
ants  of  New  Spain,  is  not  observed  in  the  Philippine  Islands;  nor 
indeed  would  this  be  an  easy  task.  The  wide  extent  of  the  twenty- 
seven  provinces  of  which  they  are  composed,  scattered,  as  they  are, 
through  the  great  space  comprehended  between  the  southern  part 
of  Mindanao,  and  the  almost  desert  islands  known  by  the  name  of 
Batanes  and  Babuyanes,  to  the  north  of  that  of  Luzon,  presents 
almost  insurmountable  obstacles,  and  in  some  measure  affords  an 
excuse  for  the  omission.  Amcng  these  obstacles  may  be  mentioned 
the  necessity  of  waiting  for  the  favorable  monsoon  to  set  in,  in 
order  to  perform  the  several  voyages  from  one  island  to  the  other; 
the  encumbered  state  of  the  grounds  in  many  parts,  the  irregular 
and  scattered  situations  of  the  settlements  and  dwellings,  the  variety 
among  the  natives  and  their  dialects,  the  imperfect  knowledge  hith- 
erto obtained  of  the  respective  limits  and  extent  of  many  districts, 
the  general  want  of  guides  and  auxiliaries,  on  whom  reliance  can  be 
placed,  and,  above  all,  the  extreme  repugnance  the  natives  evince 
to  the  payment  of  tributes,  a  circumstance  which  induces  them  to 
resort  to  all  kinds  of  stratagems,  in  order  to  elude  the  vigilance  of  the 
collectors,  and  conceal  their  real  numbers. 

The  quinquennial  census,  as  regularly  enjoined,  being  thus  EsUmates. 
found  impracticable,  no  other  means  are  left  than  to  deduce  from 
the  annual  lists,  transmitted  by  the  district  magistrates  to  the  super- 
intendent's office,  and  those  formed  by  the  parish  curates,  a  prudent 
estimate  of  the  total  number  of  inhabitants  subject  to  our  laws  and 
religion;  yet  these  data,  although  the  only  ones,  and  also  the  most 
accurate  it  is  possible  to  obtain,  for  this  reason,  inspire  so  little  con- 
fidence, that  it  is  necessary  to  use  them  with  great  caution.  It  is 
evident  that  all  the  district  magistrates  and  curates  do  not  possess 
the  same  degree  of  care  and  minuteness  in  a  research  so  important, 
and  the  omission  or  connivance  of  their  respective  delegates,  more 
or  less  general,  renders  it  probable  that  the  number  of  tributes,  not 
included  in  the  annual  returns,  is  very  considerable.  If  to  this  we 
add  the  legal  exemptions  from  tribute,  justly  granted  to  various 


S68 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Ratio  to 
tributes. 


Foreigners 
and  wild  tribes. 


individuals  for  a  certain  number  of  years,  or  during  the  performance 
of  special  service,  we  shall  easily  be  convinced  of  the  imperfection 
of  results,  derived  from  such  insecure  principles.  *  *  •  j  have 
carefully  formed  my  estimates  corresponding  to  the  year  1810, 
and  by  confronting  them  with  such  data  as  I  possess  relating  to  the 
population  of  1791,  I  have  deduced  the  consoling  assurance  that, 
under  a  parity  of  circumstances,  the  population  of  these  Islands,  far 
from  having  diminished,  has,  in  the  interval,  greatly  increased. 

From  the  collective  returns  recently  made  out  by  the  district 
magistrates,  it  would  appear  that  the  total  number  of  tributes 
amounts  to  386,654,  which  multiplied  by  six  and  one-half  produces  the 
sum  of  2,515,406,  at  which  I  estimate  the  total  population,  including 
old  men,  women  and  children.  I  ought  here  to  observe,  that  I  have 
chosen  this  medium  of  six  and  one-half  between  the  five  persons' 
estimated  in  Spain  and  eight  in  the  Indies,  as  constituting  each 
family,  or  entire  tribute;  for  although  the  prodigious  fecundity  of 
the  women  in  the  latter  hemisphere,  and  the  facility  of  maintaining 
their  numerous  offspring,  both  the  effects  of  the  benignity  of  the 
climate  and  their  sober  way  of  living,  sufficiently  warrant  the  con- 
clusion, thai  a  great  ei  number  of  persons  enter  into  the  composition 
of  each  family,  I  have,  in  this  case,  been  induced  to  pay  deference  to 
the  observations  of  religious  persons,  intrusted  with  the  care  of 
souls,  who  have  assured  me  that,  whether  it  be  owing  to  the  great 
mortality  prevailing  among  children,  or  the  influence  of  other  local 
causes,  in  many  districts  each  family,  or  entire  tribute,  does  not 
exceed  four  and  one-half  persons. 

To  the  above  amount  it  is  necessary  to  add  7,000  Sangleys 
(Chinese),  who  have  been  enumerated  and  subjected  to  tribute, 
for,  although  in  the  returns  preserved  in  the  public  offices,  they  are 
not  rated  at  more  than  4,700,  there  are  ample  reasons  for  concluding, 
that  many  who  are  wandering  about,  or  hidden  in  the  provinces, 
have  eluded  the  general  census.  The  European  Spaniards,  and 
Spanish  Creoles  and  mestizos,  do  not  exceed  4,000  persons,  of  both 
sexes  and  all  ages,  and  the  distinct  castes  or  modifications  known  in 
America  under  the  name  of  mulattos,  quadroons,  etc.,  although 
found  in  the  Philippine  Islands,  are  generally  confounded  in  the 
three  classes  of  pure  natives,  Chinese  mestizos,  and  Chinese.  Besides 
the  above  distinctions,  various  infidel  and  independent  nations  or 
tribes  exist,  more  or  less  savage  and  ferocious,  who  have  their  dwel- 
lings in  the  woods  and  glens,  and  are  distinguished  by  the  respective 
names  of  Aetas,  Ingolots,  Negrillos,  Igorots,  Tinguianes,  etc.,  nor 
is  there  scarcely  a  province  in  Luzon,  that  does  not  give  shelter_to 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


SB9 


Manila's 
population. 


som6  of  those  isolated  tribes,  who  inhabit  and  possess  many  of  the 
mountainous  ranges,  which  ramificate  and  divide  the  wide  and  ex- 
tended plains  of  that  beautiful  island. 

The  original  race  by  which  the  Philippines  are  peopled,  is  beyond  Origin  of  race. 
doubt  Malayan,  and  the  same  that  is  observed  in  Sumatra,  Java, 
Borneo,  and  the  other  islands  of  this  immense  archipelago.  The 
Philippine  Islanders,  very  different  from  the  Malabars,  whose  features 
possess  great  regularity,  sweetness,  and  even  beauty,  only  resemble 
the  latter  in  color,  although  they  excel  them  in  stature,  and  the  good 
proportion  of  their  limbs.  The  local  population  of  the  capital,  in 
consequence  of  its  continual  communication  with  the  Chinese  and 
other  Asiatics,  with  the  mariners  of  various  nations,  with  the  soldiery 
and  Mexican  convicts,  who  are  generally  mulattos,  and  in  consider- 
able numbers  sent  to  the  Islands  yearly  in  the  way  of  transportation, 
has  become  a  mixture  of  all  kinds  of  nations  and  features,  or  rather 
a  degeneration  from  the  primitive  races. 

Manila,  the  capital  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  at  present  con- 
tains a  population  of  from  one  hundred  forty  to  one  hundred  fifty 
thousand  inhabitants,  of  all  classes;  but  it  ought,  however,  to  be  un- 
derstood, that  in  this  computation  are  included  the  populous  suburbs 
of  Santa  Cruz,  San  Fernando,  Binondo,  Tondo,  Quiapo,  San  Sebas- 
tian, San  Anton,  and  Sampaloc;  for  although  each  is  considered  as  a 
distinct  town,  having  a  separate  curate,  and  civil  magistrate  of  its 
own,  the  subsequent  union  that  has  taken  place  rather  makes  them 
appear  as  a  prolongation  of  the  city,  divided  into  so  many  wards  and 
parishes,  in  the  center  of  which  their  respective  churches  are  built. 
Among  the  chief  provincial  towns,  several  are  found  to  contain  a 
population  of  from  twenty  to  thirty  thousand  souls,  and  many  not 
less  than  ten  to  twelve  tftousaid.  Finally,  it  is  a  generally  received 
opinion  that,  besides  the  Moros  and  independent  tribes,  the  total 
population  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  subject  to  the  authority  of  the 
king,  is  equal  to  three  millions. 

Among  the  varied  productions  of  the  Philippines,  for  many 
reasons,  none  is  so  deserving  of  attention  as  cotton.  Its  whiteness 
and  fine  staple  give  to  it  such  a  superiority  over  that  of  the  rest  of 
Asia,  and  possibly  of  the  world,  that  the  Chinese  anxiously  seek  it, 
in  order  preferably  to  employ  it  in  their  most  perfect  textures,  and 
purchase  it  thirty  per  cent  dearer  than  the  best  from  British  India. 
Notwithstanding  this  extraordinary  allurement,  the  vicinity  of  a 
good  market,  and  the  positive  certainty  that,  however  great  the 
exportation,  the  growth  can  never  equal  the  consumption  and  im- 


Cotton. 


seo 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


mense  demand  for  this  article,  it  has,  nevertheless,  hitherto  been 
found  impossible  to  extend  and  improve  its  cultivation,  in  such  a 
way  as  to  render  it  a  staple  commodity  of  the  country.  Owing  to 
this  lamentable  neglect,  is  it,  that  the  annual  exportation  does  not 
exceed  five  thousand  "arrobas"  (125,000  lbs.)  whereas  the  British 
import  into  China  at  the  annual  rate  of  100,000  bales,  or  1,200,000 
"arrobas,"  produced  in  their  establishments  at  Bombay  and  Cal- 
cutta, and  which,  sold  at  the  medium  price  of  fifteen  "taels,"  for 
one  hundred  thirty  pounds,  yield  the  net  amount  of  $4,800,000. 

fta  advantages.  This  want  of  attention  to  so  important  a  branch  of  agriculture 

is  the  more  to  be  regretted,  as  the  Islands  abound  in  situations  pecu- 
liarly adapted  for  the  cultivation  of  cotton,  and  the  accidental  failure 
of  the  crops  in  some  provinces,  might  easily  be  made  up  by  their 
success  in  others.  The  culture  of  this  plant  is  besides  extremely 
easy,  as  it  requires  no  other  labor  than  clearing  the  grounds  from 
brush-wood,  and  lightly  turning  up  the  earth  with  a  plough,  before 
the  seeds  are  scattered,  which  being  done,  the  planter  leaves  the 
crop  to  its  own  chance,  and  in  five  months  gathers  abundant  fruit, 
if,  at  the  time  the  bud  opens,  it  is  not  burnt  by  the  north  winds, 
or  rotted  with  unseasonable  showers. 

Restricted  The  provinces  of  Ilocos  and  Batangas  are  the  only  ones  in  which 

cultivation.  ^\^q  cultivation  of  cotton  is  pursued  with  any  degree  of  zeal  and  care, 

and  it  greatly  tends  to  enrich  the  inhabitants.  This  successful 
example  has  not,  however,  hitherto  excited  emulation  in  those  of 
the  other  provinces;  and  thus  the  only  production  of  the  Philippine 
Islands,  of  which  the  excellence  and  superior  demand  in  trade  are 
as  well  known  as  its  culture  is  easy,  owing  to  strange  fatality  and 
causes  which  will  be  hereafter  noticed,  is  left  almost  in  a  neglected 
state,  or,  at  most,  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  local  consumption. 

Indigo.  Pangasinan,    Pampanga,    Bataan,    La    Laguna,    Tayabas    and 

Camarines  produce  indigo  of  various  classes,  and,  although  its  prepa- 
ration or  the  extraction  of  the  dye,  is  in  most  of  the  above  provinces 
still  performed  in  an  equally  imperfect  manner,  several  small  improve- 
ments have  recently  been  made,  which  have  bettered  the  quality, 
more  particularly  in  La  Laguna,  the  only  district  in  which  attempts 
have  been  made  to  imitate  the  process  used  in  Guatemala,  as  well 
with  regard  to  the  construction  and  number  of  vats  necessary,  as 
the  precipitation  of  the  coloring  particles — detached  from  the  plant 
by  the  agitation  of  the  water.  In  the  other  places,  the  whole  of  the 
operations  are  performed  in  a  single  vat,  and  the  indigo  obtained 
is  not  unfrequently  impregnated  with  lime  and  other  extraneous 
substances. 


d 


stale  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


Whatever  may  have  been  the  causes  of  this  evident  backward-  Increasing 
ness,  from  the  period  of  the  estabUshment  of  the  Philippine  Company  <-»"»'"«• 
in  these  Islands,  and  in  consequence  of  the  exertions  of  some  of  the 
directors  to  promote  the  cultivation  of  indigo,  at  that  time  very 
little  known,  the  natives  have  slowly,  though  gradually,  been  recon- 
ciled to  it;  and  discovering  it  to  be  one  of  the  most  advantageous 
branches  of  industry,  although  accompanied  with  some  labor  and 
exposed  to  the  influence  of  droughts  and  excessive  heats,  as  well  as 
to  the  risks  attendant  on  the  extraordinary  anticipation  of  the  rainy 
seasons,  have  of  late  years  paid  more  attention  to  it.  The  quintal 
of  indigo  of  the  f  rst  class  costs  the  planter  from  $35  to  $40  at  most; 
and  in  the  market  of  Manila  it  has  been  sold  from  $60  to  $130, 
according  to  the  quality  and  the  greater  or  lesser  demand  for  the 
article  at  the  season.  As,  however,  everything  in  this  colony  moves 
within  a  small  circle,  it  is  not  possible  to  obtain  large  quantities  for 
exportation;  not  only  because  of  the  risk  in  advancing  the  Indian 
sums  of  money  on  account  of  his  crop,  but  also  owing  to  the  annual 
surplus  seldom  exceeding  from  two  to  two  thousand  five  hundred 
distributed  in  many  hands,  and  collected  by  numerous  agents, 
equally  interested  in  making  up  their  return-cargoes. 

The  cultivation  of  the  sugar-cane  is  more  or  less  extended  to  all  Sugar. 
the  provinces  of  these  Islands,  owing  to  its  consumption  among  the 
natives  being  both  great  and  general;  but  those  of  La  Pampanga 
and  Pangasinan  are  more  particularly  devoted  to  it.  These  two 
provinces  alone  annually  produce  about  550,000  arrobas  (13,750,000 
lbs.)  of  which  one-third  is  usually  exported  in  Chinese  and  other 
foreign  vessels.  In  extraordinary  seasons,  the  amount  exported 
greatly  exceeds  the  quantity  above  stated,  as,  for  example,  happened 
in  the  monsoon  of  1796,  when  the  planters  came  down  to  the  port  of 
Manila,  and  by  contract  exported  upwards  of  nine  millions  weight, 
of  the  first  and  second  qualities.  The  price  of  this  article  has  expe- 
rienced many  variations  of  late  years;  but  the  medium  may  be  esti- 
mated at  $6  for  one  hundred  twenty-five  pounds  of  the  first  quality, 
and  $5  for  the  second. 

The  superior  quaUty  of  the  sugar  of  the  Philippines  is  acknowl-  Afethod  of 
edged,  when  compared  to  that  produced  in  the  Island  of  Java,  Manufaciun,. 
China,  or  Bengal;  notwithstanding  in  the  latter  countries  it  may 
naturally  be  concluded  that  greater  pains  and  care  are  bestowed 
on  its  manufacture.  The  pressure  of  the  cane  in  the  Philippine 
Islands  is  performed  by  means  of  two  coarse  stone  cylinders,  placed 
on  the  ground,  and  moved  in  opposite  directions  by  the  slow  and 


Ses  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

>  unequal  pace  of  a  "carabao,"  a  species  of  ox  or  buffalo,  peculiar 

to  this  and  other  Asiatic  countries.  The  juice  is  conveyed  to 
an  iron  caldron,  and  in  this  the  other  operations  of  boiling,  skimming 
and  cleansing  take  place,  till  the  crystallization  or  adhering  of  the 
sugar  is  completed.  All  these  distinct  parts  of  the  process,  in  other 
colonies,  are  performed  in  four  separate  vessels,  confided  to  different 
hands,  and  consequently  experience  a  much  greater  degree  of  care 
and  dexterity.  After  being  properly  clayed,  the  sugars  acquire 
such  a  state  of  consistency  that,  when  shipped  in  canvas  bags, 
they  become  almost  petrified  in  the  course  of  the  voyage,  without 
moistening  or  purging,  as  I  understand  is  the  case  with  those  of 
Bengal. 

^»'*-  Among  the  useful  objects  to  which  the  Patriotic  Society  of 

Manila  {Amigos  del  Pais)  directed  their  attention,  from  the  very 
moment  of  their  formation,  the  planting  of  mulberry  trees  seems 
to  have  met  with  peculiar  encouragement.  The  society  rightly 
judged  that  the  naturalization  of  so  valuable  a  commodity  as  silk 
in  these  Islands  would  materially  increase  the  resources  of  the  colony, 
and  there  was  reason  to  hope  that,  besides  local  consumption,  the 
growth  might  in  time  be  so  much  extended  as  to  supply  the  wants 
of  New  Spain,  which  are  not  less  than  80,000  lbs.,  amounting  to 
from  $350,000  to  $400,000,  conveyed  there  in  the  galleon  annually 
sent  to  the  port  of  Acapulco,  by  the  Manila  merchants,  which  article 
they  are  now  compelled  to  contract  for  in  China. 

Mulberry  trees.  The  Society  gave  the  first  impulse  to  this  laudable  project,  and 

then  the  governor  of  the  Islands,  Don  Jose  Basco,  anxious  to  realize 
it,  with  this  view  sent  Colonel  Charles  Conely  on  a  special  commis- 
sion to  the  province  of  Camarines.  This  zealous  officer  and  district 
magistrate,  in  the  years  1786-1788  caused  4,485,782  mulberry  trees 
to  be  planted  in  the  thirty  districts  under  his  jurisdiction;  and  incal- 
culable are  the  happy  results  which  would  have  attended  a  plan 
so  extensive,  and  commenced  with  so  much  vigor,  if  it  could  have 
been  continued  with  the  same  zeal  by  his  successor,  and  not  at  once 
destroyed,  through  a  mistaken  notion  of  humanity,  with  which, 
soon  after  the  departure  of  Governor  Basco,  they  proceeded  to  exone- 
rate the  Filipinos  from  all  agricultural  labor  that  was  not  free  and 
spontaneous,  in  conformity,  as  was  then  alleged,  to  the  [general  spirit 
of  our  Indian  legislation.  As  it  was  natural  to  expect,  the  total 
abandonment  of  this  valuable  branch  followed  a  measure  so  fatal, 
and  notwithstanding  the  efforts  subsequently  made  by  the  Royal 
Company,  in  order  to  obtain  its  restoration,  as  well  in  Camarines 


I 


Stale  o}  the  Philippines  in  1810 


SOS 


as  the  Province  of  Tondo,  all  their  exertions  were  in  vain,  though  it 
must  be  allowed  that  at  the  time  several  untoward  circumstances 
contributed  to  thwart  their  anxious  wishes.  Notwithstanding  this 
failure,  the  project,  far  from  being  deemed  impracticable,  would 
beyond  all  doubt  succeed,  and,  under  powerful  patronage,  completely 
answer  the  well-founded  hopes  of  its  original  conceivers  and  pro- 
moters. The  natives  themselves  would  soon  be  convinced  of  the 
advantages  to  be  derived  from  the  possession  of  an  article,  in  so  many 
ways  applicable  to  their  own  fine  textures,  and  besides  the  variety 
of  districts  in  the  Islands,  proved  to  be  suitable  to  the  cultivation 
of  this  interesting  tree,  it  is  a  known  fact  that  many  of  the  old 
mulberry  groves  are  still  in  existence. 

The  Bisayas,  Cagayan,  and  many  other  provinces,  produce  Beeswax. 
wax  in  considerable  abundance,  which  the  Indians  collect  from  the 
natural  hives  formed  in  the  cavities  of  the  trees,  and  it  is  also  brought 
down  by  the  infidel  natives  from  the  mountains  to  the  neighboring 
towns.  The  quality  certainly  is  not  the  best,  and  notwithstanding 
attempts  have  been  made  to  cleanse  it  from  the  extraneous  particles 
with  which  it  is  mixed,  it  always  leaves  a  considerable  sediment  on 
the  lower  part  of  the  cakes,  and  never  acquires  an  entire  whiteness. 
Its  consumption  is  great,  especially  in  the  capital,  and  after  supply- 
ing the  wants  of  the  country,  an  annual  surplus  of  from  six  hundred 
to  eight  hundred  quintals  is  appropriated  for  exportation. 

This  certainly  might  be  converted  into  an  article  of  extreme  Neglected 
importance,  especially  for  the  kingdom  of  Peru,  which  in  peaceable  '"arA:<;<. 
times  receives  its  supplies  from  Spain,  and  even  from  the  Island 
of  Cuba;  but  for  this  purpose  it  would  be  necessary  to  adopt  the 
plan  recommended  by  the  enlightened  zeal  of  the  Patriotic  Society 
and  previously  encourage  the  establish  ent  of  arti  icial  hives 
and  the  plantation  of  aromatic  and  flowering  shrubs,  which  so  easily 
attract  and  secure  the  permanency  of  the  roving  swarms,  always 
ready  to  undertake  fresh  labors.  This,  as  well  as  many  other  points, 
has  hitherto  been  entirely  overlooked. 

The  production  is  cultivated  in  the  Provinces  of  Tayabas,  Black  pepper. 
Batangas,  and  La  Laguna,  but  in  such  small  quantities,  that,  not- 
withstanding the  powerful  allurements  of  all  kinds  constantly  held 
out  by  the  Royal  Company  during  the  long  period  of  twenty  years, 
their  agents  have  never  been  able  to  collect  in  more  than  about 
64,000  lbs.  annually.  After  every  encouragement,  the  most  that 
has  been  attained  with  the  natives,  is  conSned  to  their  planting 
in  some  districts  fifty  to  one  hundred  pepper-vines  round  their  huts, 


S64  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

which  they  cultivate  in  the  same  way  as  they  would  plots  of  flowers, 
but  without  any  other  labor  than  supporting  the  plant  with  a  pro- 
portioned stake,  clearing  the  ground  from  weeds,  and  attending  to 
daily  irrigation. 

A  possibility.  This  article  therefore  scarcely  deserves  a  place  amongst  the 

flourishing  branches  of  agriculture,  at  least  till  it  has  been  raised 
from  its  present  depressed  state,  and  the  grounds  laid  out  in  regular 
and  productive  pepper-groves.  Till  this  is  done,  to  a  corresponding 
extent,  it  must  also  be  excluded  froni  the  number  of  productions 
furnished  by  these  Islands  to  commerce  and  exportation;  more  parti- 
cularly if  we  consider  that,  notwithstanding  the  great  fragrance  of 
the  grain,  as  well  as  its  general  superiority  over  the  rest  of  Asia, 
so  great  a  difference  exists  in  the  actual  price,  that  this  can  never 
be  ccmpensated  by  its  greater  request  in  the  markets  of  Europe, 
and  much  less  enable  it  to  compete  with  that  of  the  British  and 
Dutch,  till  its  abundance  has  considerably  lowered  its  primitive  value. 

Not  popular.  Finally,  although  an  infinity  of  grounds  are  to  be  found  adapted 

to  the  rapid  propagation  of  pepper-vines,  as  may  easily  be  inferred 
from  the  analogy  and  proximity  of  the  Philippine  Islands  to  the 
others  of  this  same  archipelago,  so  well  known  for  their  growth  of 
spices,  it  must  be  confessed  that  it  is  a  species  of  culture  by  no  means 
popular  among  the  Philippine  natives,  and  it  would  be  almost 
requiring  too  much  from  their  inconstancy  of  character,  to  wish  them 
to  dedicate  their  lands  and  time  to  the  raising  of  a  production  which, 
besides  demanding  considerable  care,  is  greatly  exposed  to  injury, 
and  even  liable  to  be  destroyed  by  the  severity  of  the  storms,  which 
frequently  mark  the  seasons.  With  difficulty  would  they  be  induced 
to  wait  five  years  before  they  were  able  to  gather  the  uncertain 
fruits  of  their  labor  anf'  patience.  If,  therefore,  it  should  ever  be 
deemed  a  measure  of  policy  to  encourage  the  growth  of  black  pepper, 
it  will  be  necessary  for  the  government  to  order  the  commons  be- 
longing to  each  town,  and  adapted  to  this  species  of  plantation, 
to  be  appropriated  to  this  use,  by  imposing  on  the  inhabitants  the 
ctligalicn  of  taking  care  of  Ihcm,  and  drawing  frcm  the  respective 
coffers  of  each  ccmmunity  the  necessary  funds  for  the  payment  of  the 
labcrers,  and  the  other  expenses  of  cultivation.  //  this  cannot 
be  done,  it  will  he  necessary  to  wail  till  the  general  condition  of  the  country 
is  improved,  when  through  the  spirit  of  emulation,  and  the  enterprises 
of  the  planters  being  duly  patronized  and  supported,  present  difficulties 
may  be  overcome,  and  the  progressive  results  of  future  attempts  ivill  be 
then  found  to  combine  the  interests  of  individuals  with  the  general  welfare 
of  the  colony. 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


So  choice  is  the  quality  of  the  coffee  produced  in  the  Island  of  Coffee. 
Luzon,  especially  in  the  districts  of  Indang  and  Silang,  in  the  prov- 
ince of  Cavite,  that  if  it  is  not  equal  to  that  of  Mocha,  I  at  least  con- 
sider it  on  parallel  with  the  coffee  of  Bourbon;  but,  as  the  consump- 
tion and  cultivation  are  extremely  limited,  it  cannot  with  any 
propriety  be  yet  numbered  among  the  articles  contributing  to  the 
export-trade. 

Cocoa  is  something  more  attended  to,  in  consequence  of  the  Cocoa. 
use  of  chocolate  being  greatly  extended  among  the  natives  of  easy 
circumstances.  That  of  the  Island  of  Cebu,  is  esteemed  superior 
to  the  cocoa  of  Guayaquil,  and  possibly  it  is  not  excelled  by  that 
of  Soconusco.  As,  however,  the  quantity  raised  does  not  suffice 
for  the  local  consumption,  Guayaquil  cocoa  meets  a  ready  sale, 
and  is  generally  brought  in  return-cargo  by  the  ships  coming  from 
Acapulco,  and  those  belonging  to  the  Philippine  company  dispatched 
from  Callao,  the  shipping  port  of  Lima. 

The  cultivation  of  these  two  articles  in  the  Philippines  is  on  the 
same  footing  as  that  of  pepper,  which,  as  above  stated,  is  rather 
an  object  of  luxury  and  recreation  than  one  of  speculation  among  the 
Filipinos.  The  observations  and  rules  pointed  out  in  the  preceding 
article,  are,  in  a  general  sense,  applicable  to  both  these  branches  of 
industry. 

Cinnamon  groves,  or  trees  of  wild  cinnamon,  are  to  be  found  Cinnamon. 
in  every  province.  In  Mindanao,  a  Dutchman,  some  years  ago, 
was  employed  by  orders  of  the  government,  in  examining  the  forests 
and  making  experiments,  with  a  view  to  discover  the  same  tree  of 
this  species  that  has  given  so  much  renown  to  Ceylon;  but,  whether 
it  was  owing  to  a  failure  in  the  discovery,  or,  when  the  plant  was 
found,  as  at  the  time  was  said  to  be  the  case,  the  same  results  were 
not  produced,  from  the  want  of  skill  in  preparing,  or  stripping  off 
the  bark;  certain  it  is,  that  the  laudable  attempt  totally  failed,  or 
rather  the  only  advantage  gained,  has  been  the  extracting  from  the 
b^k  and  more  tender  parts  of  the  branches  of  the  tree,  an  oil  or 
essence  of  cinnamon,  vigorous  and  aromatic  in  the  extreme. 

About   the   same    time,   a  land-owner   of  the    name    Salgado,    Experiment  in 
undertook  to  form  an  extensive  plantation  of  the  same  species  in    Laguna. 
the  province  of  La  Laguna,  and  succeeded  in  seeing  upwards  of  a 
million  cinnamon  trees  thrive  and  grow  to  a  considerable  size;  but 
at  last,  he  was  reluctantly  compelled  to  desist  from  his  enterprise, 
by  the  same  reasons  which  led  to  the  failure  of  Mindanao. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Need  of 

experienced 

euUivatora. 


Nutmeg. 


Rice. 


Hiyh  yield. 


These  facts  are  of  sufficient  authority  for  our  placing  the  cinna- 
mon tree  among  the  indigenous  productions  of  the  PhiUppine  Islands 
and  considering  their  general  excellence  above  those  of  the  same 
nature  in  the  rest  of  Asia,  it  may  reasonably  be  concluded  that, 
without  the  tree  being  identically  the  same,  the  cinnamon  with 
which  it  is  clothed  will  be  found  finer  than  that  yielded  by  the 
native  plant  of  the  Island  of  Ceylon,  and  this  circumstance,  conse- 
quently, holds  out  a  hope  that,  in  the  course  of  time,  it  may  become 
an  article  of  traffic,  as  estimable  as  it  would  be  new.  In  order, 
however,  that  this  flattering  prospect  may  be  realized,  it  will  be 
requisite  for  the  government  to  procure  some  families,  or  persons 
from  the  above  island,  acquainted  with  the  process  of  stripping  off 
the  bark  and  preparing  the  cinnamon,  by  dexterously  offering 
allurements,  corresponding  to  the  importance  of  the  service,  which, 
although  in  itself  it  may  probably  be  an  extremely  simple  operation, 
as  long  as  it  is  unknown,  will  be  an  insuperable  obstacle  to  the 
propagation  of  so  important  an  agricultural   pursuit. 

Two  species  of  nutmeg  are  known  here,  the  one  in  shape 
resembling  a  pigeon's  egg,  and  the  other  of  a  perfectly  spherical 
form;  but  both  are  wild  and  little  aromatic,  and  consequently  held 
in  no  great  esteem. 

Rice  is  the  bread  and  principal  aliment  of  these  natives,  for 
which  reason,  although  its  cultivation  is  among  the  most  disagree- 
able departments  of  husbandry,  they  devote  themselves  to  it  with 
astonishing  constancy  and  alacrity,  so  as  to  form  a  complete  coritrast 
with  their  characteristic  indifference  in  most  other  respects.  This 
must,  however,  be  taken  as  a  certain  indication  of  the  possibility 
of  training  them  up  to  useful  labor;  whenever  they  can  be  led  on  in 
a  proper  manner. 

The  earth  corresponds  with  surprising  fertility  to  the  labors  of 
the  Filipino,  rewarding  him,  in  the  good  seasons,  with  ninety,  and 
even  as  high  as  one  hundred  per  cent ;  a  fact  I  have  fully  ascertained 
and  of  which  I  besides  possess  undoubted  proofs,  obtained  from  the 
parish-curates  of  La  Pampanga.  As,  however,  the  provinces  are 
frequently  visited  with  dreadful  hurricanes  (called  in  the  country, 
baguios),  desolated  by  locusts,  and  exposed  to  the  effects  of  the  great 
irregularities  of  nature,  which,  in  these  climes,  often  acts  in  extreme, 
the  crops  of  this  grain  are  precarious,  or  at  least,  no  reliance  can  be 
placed  on  a  certain  surplus  allowing  an  annual  exportation  to  China. 
On  this  account,  rice  cannot  be  placed  in  the  list  of  those  articles 
which  give  support  to  the  external  trade. 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


307 


Dye  and 
cabinet  wooda. 


The  "sibucao,"  or  logwood,  and  ebony,  in  both  which  these 
islands  abound,  are  the  only  woods  in  any  tolerable  request.  The 
first  is  sold  with  advantage  in  Bengal,  and  the  other  meets  a  ready 
sale  in  the  ports  of  China,  in  the  absence  of  that  brought  from  the 
Island  of  Bourbon,  which  is  a  quality  infinitely  superior.  Both  are, 
however,  articles  of  no  great  consumption,  for,  being  bulky  and 
possessing  little  intrinsic  value,  they  will  not  bear  the  high  charges 
of  freight  and  other  expenses,  attendant  on  the  navigation  of  the 
Asiatic  seas,  and  can  only  suit  the  shipper,  as  cargo,  who  is  anxious 
not  to  return  to  the  above  countries  in  ballast.  Hence,  as  an  object 
of  export  trade,  these  articles  cannot  be  estimated  at  more  than 
$30,000  per  annum. 

I  deem  it  superfluous  to  dwell  on  a  multitude  of  other  good  and  Timber 
even  precious  woods  in  timber,  with  which  the  Philippine  Islands 
are  gifted,  because  this  is  a  subject  already  suficiently  well  under- 
stood, and  a  complete  collection  of  specimens,  as  well  as  some  large 
blocks,  were  besides  transmitted  some  years  ago  to  the  king's  dock- 
yard. It  may,  however,  be  proper  to  remark,  that  the  establishment 
near  the  capital  for  shipbuilding  and  masts,  are  much  more  expens- 
ive than  is  generally  supposed,  as  well  on  account  of  the  difficulties 
experienced  in  dragging  the  trees  from  the  interior  of  the  mountains 
to  the  water's  edge,  as  the  want  of  regularity  and  foresight  with 
which  these  operations  have  been  usually  conducted.  Besides  these 
reasons,  as  it  is  necessary  that  the  other  materials  requisite  for  the 
construction  and  complete  armament  of  vessels  of  a  certain  force, 
should  come  from  Europe,  it  is  neither  easy,  nor  indeed,  would  it 
be  economical,  as  was  erroneously  asserted,  to  carry  into  eff"ect  the 
government  project  of  annually  building,  in  the  colony,  a  ship  of  the 
line  and  a  frigate.  It  ought  further  to  be  observed,  that  no  stock 
of  timber,  cut  at  a  proper  season  and  well  cured,  has  been  lain  in, 
and  although  the  wages  of  the  native  carpenters  and  caulkers  are 
moderate,  no  comparison  whatever  can  be  made  between  the  daily 
work  they  perform,  and  that  which  is  done  in  the  same  space  of  time 
in  our  dock-yards  of  Spain. 

Notwithstanding,  however,  the  impediments  above  stated,  as  it 
is  undeniable  that  abundance  of  suitable  timber  is  to  be  obtained, 
and  as  the  conveyance  of  the  remainder  of  the  necessary  naval 
stores  to  the  Philippine  Islands  is  shorter  and  more  economical 
than  to  the  coast  of  California,  it  possibly  might  answer,  at  least, 
many  mariners  are  of  this  opinion,  in  case  it  is  deemed  expedient 
to  continue  building  at  San  Bias  the  brigs  and   corvettes   necessary 


Ship  building 
advantages. 


I 


368  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

for  the  protection  of  the  miUtary  posts  and  missions,  situated  along 
the  above  coasts,  to  order  them  preferably  to  be  built  in  Cavite 
giving  timely  advice,  and  previously  taking  care  to  make  the  neces- 
sary arrangements. 

Gold.  Gold  abounds  in  Luzon  and  in  many  of  the  other  islands;  but 

as  the  mountains  which  conceal  it  are  in  possession  of  the  pagan 
tribes,  the  mines  are  not  worked;  indeed  it  may  be  said  they  are 
scarcely  known.  These  mountaineers  collect  it  in  the  brooks  and 
streamlets,  and  in  the  form  of  dust,  offer  it  to  the  Christians  who 
inhabit  the  neighboring  plains,  in  exchange  for  coarse  goods  and 
fire-arms;  and  it  has  sometimes  happened  that  they  have  brought 
it  down  in  grains  of  one  and  two  ounces  weight.  The  natives  of  the 
province  of  Camarines  partly  devote  themselves  to  the  working 
of  the  mines  of  Mambulao  and  Paracale,  which  have  the  reputation 
of  being  very  rich;  but,  far  from  availing  themselves  in  the  smallest 
degree  of  the  advantages  of  art,  they  content  themselves  with  ex- 
tracting the  ore  by  means  of  an  extremley  imperfect  fusion,  which  is 
done  by  placing  the  mineral  in  shells  and  then  heating  them  on 
embers.  A  considerable  waste  consequently  takes  place,  and 
although  the  metal  obtained  is  good  and  high  colored,  it  generally, 
passes  into  the  hands  of  the  district-magistrate,  who  collects  it  at 
a  price  infinitely  lower  than  it  is  worth  in  trade.  It  is  a  generally 
received  opinion  that  gold  mines  are  equally  to  be  met  with  in  the 
Province  of  Caraga,  situated  on  the  coasts  of  the  great  Island  of  Min- 
danao, where,  as  well  as  in  other  points,  this  metal  is  met  with  equal 
to  twenty-two  karats.  The  quantity,  however,  hitherto  brought 
down  from  the  mountains  by  the  pagan  tribes,  and  that  obtained 
by  the  tributary  Filipinos,  has  not  been  an  object  of  very  great 
importance. 

Copper.  Well-founded  reasons  exist  for  presuming  that,  in  the  Province 

of  Ilocos,  mines  of  virgin  copper  exist,  a  singular  production  of 
nature,  or  at  least,  not  very  common,  if  the  generality  of  combina- 
tions under  which  this  metal  presents  itself  in  the  rest  of  the  globe, 
are  duly  considered.  This  is  partly  inferred  from  the  circumstance 
of  its  having  been  noticed  that  the  Igorots,  who  occasionally  come 
down  from  the  mountains  to  barter  with  the  Christians,  use  certain 
coarse  jars  or  vessels  of  copper,  evidently  made  by  themselves  with 
the  use  of  a  hammer,  without  any  art  or  regularity ;  and  as  the  igno- 
rance of  these  demi-savages  is  too  great  for  them  to  possess  the 
notions  necessary  for  the  separation  of  the  component  parts  which 
enter  into  the  combination  of  minerals,  and  much  less  for  the  con- 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  JSW  S69^ 

struction  of  furnaces  suitable  to  the  smelting  and  formation  of  the 
moulds,  it  is  concluded  they  must  have  found  some  vein  of  copper 
entirely  pure,  which,  without  the  necessity  of  any  other  preparation, 
they  have  been  able  to  flatten  with  the  hammer  and  rendered  male- 
able,  so  as  to  convert  it  into  the  rough  vessels  above  spoken  of. 

The  district-magistrate  of  Caraga,  Don  Augustin  de  loldi,  Cinnabar. 
received  a  special  commission  from  the  government  to  explore  and 
pbtain  information  respecting  a  mine  of  cinnabar,  which  was  said  to 
be  situated  under  his  jurisdiction;  and  I  have  been  informed  of 
another  of  the  same  species  in  the  Island  of  Samar,  the  working 
of  which  has  ceased  for  a  considerable  time,  not  because  the  prospect 
was  unfavorable,  but  for  the  want  of  an  intelligent  person  to  super- 
intend and  carry  on  the  operations.  The  utility  of  such  a  discovery 
is  too  obvious  not  to  deserve,  on  the  part  of  government,  the  most 
serious  attention  and  every  encouragement  to  render  it  available; 
and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that,  as  the  first  steps  have  already  been  taken 
in  this  important  disclosure,  the  enterprise  will  not  be  abandoned, 
but,  on  the  contrary,  that  exertions  will  be  made  to  obtain  aid  and 
advice  from  the  Miners'  College  of  Mexico,  as  the  best  means  of 
removing  doubt,  and  acting  with  judgment  in  the  affair. 

Iron  in  mineral  form  is  to  be  found  at  various  points  on  Luzon,  ircm. 
and  those  engaged  in  working  it,  without  the  necessity  of  digging; 
collect  the  iron-bearing  stones  that  constitute  the  upper  stratum, 
these,  when  placed  in  fusion,  generally  yield  about  forty  per  cent 
clear  metal.  This  is  the  case  in  the  mountains  of  Angat,  situated 
in  the  Province  of  Bulacan,  and  also  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Baliwag 
River.  In  Morong,  however,  belonging  to  the  Province  of  La  Laguna, 
where  the  cannon-ball  factory  is  established,  the  ore  yields  under 
twenty-two  per  cent.  Its  quality  is  in  general  better  than  the  Bis- 
cayan  iron,  according  to  formal  experiments  and  a  report,  made  in 
1798  to  Governor  Don  Rafael  Maria  de  Aguilar,  by  two  Biscayan 
master-smiths  from  the  squadron  of  Admiral  Alava.  Witnesses  to  this 
test  were  the  Count  de  Aviles  and  Don  Felix  de  la  Rosa,  proprietors 
of  the  mines  of  Morong  and  Angat,  and  the  factor  of  the  Philippine 
Company,  Don  Juan  Francisco  Urroroz.  Notwithstanding  its 
advantages,  this  interesting  branch  of  industry  h.'Hs  not  yet  passed 
beyond  the  most  rude  principles  and  imperfect  practice,  owing  to 
the  want  of  correct  information  as  to  the  best  process,  and  scarcity 
of  funds  on  the  part  of  the  proprietors  to  carry  on  their  works. 
Without  the  aid  of  rolling  or  slitting  mills,  indeed  unprovided  with 
the  most  essential  instruments,  they  have  hitherto  coniiined  them- 


i70 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Sidpkur. 


Pearls. 


Estates. 


Spanish 
ptantert. 


selves  to  converting  their  iron  into  plow  shares,  bolos,  hoes,  and 
such  other  agricultural  implements;  leaving  the  Chinese  of  Amoy 
in  quiet  possession  of  the  advantages  of  being  allowed  to  market 
annual  supplies  of  all  kinds  of  nails,  the  boilers  used  on  the  sugar 
plantations,  pots  and  pans,  as  well  as  other  articles  in  this  line, 
which  might  easily  be  manufactured  in  the  Islands. 

In  the  Island  of  Leyte,  abundance  of  sulphur  is  met  with,  and 
from  thence  the  gunpowder  works  of  Manila  are  supplied  at  very 
reasonable  prices.  Jaspers,  cornelians  and  agates,  are  also  found 
in  profusion  in  many  of  these  provinces;  everything,  indeed,  pro- 
mises varied  mineral  wealth  worthy  of  exciting  the  curiosity  and 
useful  researches  of  mineralogists,  who,  unfortunately,  have  not 
hitherto  extended  their  labors  to  these  remote  parts  of  the  globe. 

Pearl  fisheries  are,  from  time  to  time,  undertaken  off  the  coast 
of  the  Island  of  Mindanao,  and  also  near  smaller  islands  not  far 
from  Cebu,  but  with  little  success  and  less  constancy,  not  because 
there  is  a  scarcity  of  fine  pearls  of  a  bright  color  and  considerable 
size,  but  on  account  of  the  divers'  want  of  skill  and  their  just  dread 
of  the  sharks,  which,  in  great  numbers  infest  these  seas.  Amber  is 
frequently  gathered  in  considerable  lumps  in  the  vicinity  of  Samar 
and  the  other  Visayan  Islands  as  well  as  mother-of-pearl,  tortoise- 
shell,  and  red  and  black  coral,  of  the  latter  kind  of  which,  I  have 
seen  shafts  as  thick  as  my  finger  and  six  or  eight  feet  long. 

The  proprietors  of  estates  in  the  Philippines  are  of  four  classes. 
The  most  considerable  is  that  of  the  religious  orders,  Augustinians 
and  Dominicans,  who  cultivate  their  respective  lands  on  joint 
account,  or  let  them  out  at  a  moderate  ground-rent,  which  the  plan- 
ters pay  in  kind;  but  far  from  living  in  opulence,  and  accumulating 
the  immense  revenues  some  of  the  religious  communities  enjoy  in 
America,  they  stand  in  need  of  all  they  earn  and  possess  for  their 
maintenance,  and  in  order  to  be  enabled  to  discharge  the  various 
duties  and  obligations  annexed  to  the  missions  with  which  they  are 
entrusted. 

The  second  class  comprehends  the  Spanish  proprietors,  whose 
number  possibly  does  not  exceed  a  dozen  of  persons,  and  even  they 
labor  under  such  disadvantages,  and  have  to  contend  with  so  many 
obstacles,  under  the  existing  order  of  things,  that,  compelled  to 
divide  their  lands  into  rice  plantations,  in  consequence  of  this  being 
the  species  of  culture  to  which  the  natives  are  most  inclined,  and 
to  devote  a  considerable  portion  of  them  to  the  grazing  of  horned 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


cattle,  no  one  of  them  is  in  a  situation  to  give  to  agriculture  the 
variety  and  extent  desired,  or  to  attain  any  progress  in  a  pursuit 
which  in  other  colonies  rapidly  leads  to  riches. 

The  third  consists  of  the  principal  mestizos  and  natives,  and  is 
in  fact  that  which  constitutes  the  real  body  of  farming  proprietors. 
In  the  fourth  and  last  may  be  included  all  the  other  natives,  who 
generally  possess  a  small  strip  of  land  situated  round  their  dwellings, 
or  at  the  extremities  of  the  various  towns  and  settlements  formed  by 
the  conquerors;  besides  what  they  may  have  obtained  from  their 
ancestors  in  the  way  of  legal  inheritance,  which  rights  have  been 
confirmed  to  them  by  the  present  sovereign  of  the  colony. 

It  will  beyond  doubt,  in  some  measure  dissipate  the  distrust 
by  which  the  Filipino  is  actuated,  when  the  new  and  paternal  exer- 
tions of  the  superior  government,  to  ameliorate  his  present  situation, 
are  fully  known,  and  when  that  valuable  portion  of  our  distant 
population  is  assured  that  their  rights  will  henceforth  be  respected, 
and  those  exactions  and  compulsory  levies  which  formerly  so  much 
disheartened  them,  are  totally  abolished.  On  the  other  hand,  a 
new  stimulus  will  be  given  by  the  living  example  and  fresh  impulse 
communicated  to  the  provinces  by  other  families  emigrating  and 
settling  there,  nurtured  in  the  spirit  and  principles  of  those  reforms 
in  the  ideas  and  maxims  of  government  by  which  the  present  era 
is  distinguished.  A  practical  participation  in  these  advantages  will, 
most  assuredly,  awaken  a  spirit  of  enterprise  and  emulation  that 
may  be  extremely  beneficial  to  agriculture,  and  as  the  wants  of  the 
natives  increase  in  proportion  as  they  are  enabled  to  know  and  com- 
pare the  comforts  arising  out  of  the  presence  and  extension  of  con- 
veniences and  luxuries  in  their  own  towns,  they  will  naturally  be 
led  to  possess  and  adopt  them. 

So  salutary  a  change,  however,  can  only  be  the  work  of  time, 
and  as  long  as  the  government  confines  itself  to  a  system  merely 
protecting,  the  effects  must  consequently  be  slow.  As  it  is  therefore 
necessary  to  put  in  action  more  powerful  springs  than  the  ordinary 
ones,  it  will  be  found  expedient  partly  to  relax  from  some  of  those 
general  principles  which  apply  to  societies,  differently  constituted, 
or  rather  formed  of  other  perfectly  distinct  elements.  As  relating 
to  the  subject  under  discussion,  I  fortunately  discover  two  means, 
pointed  out  in  the  laws  themselves,  essentially  just,  and  at  the  same 
time  capable  of  producing  in  this  populous  colony,  more  than  in  any 
other,  the  desired  results.  The  legislator,  founding  himself  on  the 
conunon  obligation  of  the  subject  to  contribute  something  in  return 


Filipino 
farmer*. 


Aids  to 
agriculUtre. 


riana  for 
progroat. 


i72 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Confiscating 
unused  land^. 


Compulsory 
labor. 


for  the  protection  he  receives,  and  to  co-operate  in  the  increase  of 
the  power  and  opulence  of  the  State,  proscribes  idleness  as  a  crime, 
and  points  out  labor  as  a  duty;  and  although  the  regulations  touch- 
ing the  natives  breathe  the  spirit  of  humanity,  and  exhibit  the 
wisdom  with  which  they  were  originally  formed,  they  nevertheless 
concur  and  are  directed  to  this  primary  object.  In  them  the  dis- 
tribution of  vacant  lands,  as  well  as  of  the  natives  at  fair  daily 
wages  to  clear  them,  is  universally  allowed,  and  these  it  seems  to 
me,  are  the  means  from  an  equitable  and  intelligent  application  of 
which  the  most  beneficial  consequences  may  be  expected. 

The  f  rst  cannot  be  attended  with  any  great  difficulty,  because 
all  the  provinces  abound  in  waste  and  vacant  lands,  artd  scarcely 
is  there  a  district  in  which  some  are  not  to  be  found  of  private 
property  completely  uncultivated  and  neglected,  and  consequently 
susceptible,  as  above  stated,  of  being  legally  transferred,  for  this 
reason  alone,  to  the  possession  of  an  active  owner.  Let  their  nature 
however,  be  what  it  may,  in  their  adjudication,  it  is  of  the  greatest 
importance  to  proceed  with  uniformity,  by  consecrating,  in  a  most 
irrevocable  manner,  the  solemnity  of  all  similar  grants.  Public 
interest  and  reason,  in  the  Philippine  Islands,  require  that  in  all  such 
cases  deference  only  should  be  paid  to  demands  justly  interposed^ 
and  formally  established  within  a  due  and  fixed  period;  but  after 
full  and  public  notice  has  been  given  by  the  respective  judicial  author- 
ities, of  the  titles  about  to  be  granted,  the  counter  claims  the  natives 
may  seek  to  put  in  after  the  lapse  of  the  period  preSxed,  should  be 
peremptorily  disregarded.  Although  at  frst  sight  this  appears  a 
direct  infringement  on  the  imprescriptible  rights  of  property,  it 
must  be  considered  that  in  some  cases  individual  interests  ought 
to  be  sacriPced  to  the  general  good,  and  that  the  balance  used,  when 
treating  of  the  affairs  of  State,  is  never  of  that  rigid  kind  as  if  applied 
to  those  of  minor  consideration.  The  fact  is,  that  by  this  means 
many  would  be  induced  to  form  estates,  who  have  hitherto  been 
withheld  by  the  dread  of  involving  themselves,  and  spending  their 
money  in  la  v  suits;  at  the  same  time  the  natives,  gradually  accustom- 
ing themselves  to  this  new  order  of  things,  would  lay  aside  that  dis- 
position to  strife  and  contention,  which  forms  so  peculiar  a  trait 
in  their  character,  and  that  antipathy  and  odium  would  also  dis- 
appear with  which  they  have  usually  viewed  the  agricultural  under- 
takings of  Spaniards. 

Proceeding  to  the  consideration  of  the  second  means  of  acceler- 
ating the  improvement  of  agriculture,  viz.,  the  distribution   of  the 


Slate  of  the  Philippines  in  IS  10  ■•    :     ■■.•  ^73 

natives,  it  will  suffice  to  say  that  it  would  be  equally  easy  to  shovy 

that  it  is  absolutely  necessary  rigorously  to  carry  into  effect,  in  the 

Philippine  Islands,  whatever  the  laws  on  this  subject  prescribed, 

otherwise  we  must  give  up  all  those  substantial  hopes  entertained  of 

the  felicity  of  the  colony.     We  are  no  longer  in  a  situation  to  be 

restricted  to  the  removal  of  ordinary  obstacles,  and  the  season  iS 

gone  by  in  which,  as  heretofore,  it  entered  into  our  policy  to  employ 

no  other  than  indirect  stimulants — in  order  to  incline  the  Filipino 

to  labor.     It  is  evident  that  admonitions  and  offers  of  reward  no 

longer  suffice;  nor  indeed  have  the  advantageous  terms  proposed 

to  them  by  some  planters,  with  a  view  to  withdraw  the  lower  orders 

of  the  natives,  such  as  the  timaiias  and  caglianes,  or  plebeians,  from 

the  idle  indifference  in  which  they  are  sunk,  been  of  any  avail. 

Their  wants  and  wishes  being  easily  supplied,  the  whole  of  their 

happiness  seems  to  depend  on  quiet  and  repose,  and  their  highest         ,,^,-,,\  i,-, 

enjoyment  on  the  pleasure  of  sleep.     Energy,  however,  and  a  certain 

degree  of  severity  must  be  employed,  if  permanent  resources  are 

to  be  called  forth,  and  if  the  progressive  settlement  of  European 

families  and  the  formation  of  estates  proportioned  to  the  fertility 

of  the  soil  and  capabilities  of  the  country  are  to  enter  into  the  views 

of  government.     In  vain  would  grants  and  transfers  of  vacant  and 

useless  lands  be  made  to  new  and  enterprising  proprietors,  unless 

at  the  same  time  they  can  be  provided  with  laborers,  and  experience 

every  other  possible  facility,  in  order  to  clear,  enclose,  and  cultivate 

them.     Hence  follows  the  indispensable  necessity  of  appealing  to  the 

system  of  distributions,  as  above  pointed  out;  for  what  class  of 

laborers  can  be  obtained  in  a  country  where  the  whites  are  so  few, 

unless  it  be  the  natives?     Should  they  object  to  personal  service, 

should  they  refuse  to  labor  for  an  equitable  and  daily  allowance, 

by  which  means  they  would  also  cease  to  be  burdens  to  the  State  and 

to  society,  are  they  not  to  be  compelled  to  contribute  by  this  means 

to  the  prosperity  of  which  they  are  members;  in  a  word,  to  the  public 

good,  and  thus  make  some  provision  for  old  age?     If  the    soldier, 

conveyed  away  from  his  native  land,  submits  to  dangers,  and  is 

unceasingly  exposed  to  death  in  defence  of  the  State,  why  should 

not  the  Filipino  moderately  use  his  strength  and  activity  in  tilling 

the  f.elds  which  are  to  sustain  him  and  enrich  the  commonwealth  ? 

Besides,  things  in  the  Philippine  Islands  wear  a  very  different    The 
aspect  to  what  they  do  on  the  American  continent,  where,  as  author- 
ized by  the  said  laws,  a  certain  number  of  na.ives  may  be  impressed 
for  a  season,  and  sent  off  inland  to  a  considerable  distance  from  their  ...a; 


undeveloped 
Philippines. 


S74 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Na  legal 
obMaele  to 
forced  labor. 


SubatiluU 

liborera 

viantino- 


dwellings,  either  for  the  purpose  of  agriculture,  or  working  the  mines, 
provided  only  they  are  taken  care  of  during  their  journeys,  main- 
tained, and  the  price  of  their  daily  labor,  as  fixed  by  the  civil  author- 
ities, regularly  paid  to  them.  The  immense  valleys  and  mountains 
susceptible  of  cultivation,  especially  in  the  Island  of  Luzon,  being 
once  settled,  and  the  facilities  of  obtaining  hands  increased,  such 
legal  acts  of  compulsion,  far  from  being  any  longer  necessary,  will 
have  introduced  a  spirit  of  industry  that  will  render  the  labors  of 
the  field  supportable  and  even  desirable;  and  in  this  occupation  all 
the  tributary  natives  of  the  surrounding  settlements  can  be  alter- 
nately employed,  by  the  day  or  week,  and  thus  do  their  work  almost 
at  the  door  of  their  own  huts,  and  as  it  were  in  sight  of  their  wive* 
and  children. 

If,  after  what  has  been  above  stated,  the  apparent  opposition 
which  at  first  sight  strikes  the  eye,  in  Law  40,  Title  12,  Book  6, 
speaking  on  this  subject,  and  expressly  referring  to  the  Philippine 
Islands,  should  be  alleged,  no  more  will  be  necessary  than  to  study 
its  genuine  sense,  or  read  it  with  attention,  in  order  to  be  convinced 
of  its  perfect  concordance  with  the  essential  parts  of  the  other  laws 
of  the  Indies,  already  quoted  in  explanation  and  support  of  the  system 
of  distributing  the  laborers.  The  above-mentioned  law  does  indeed 
contain  a  strict  recommendation  to  employ  the  Chinese  and  Japa- 
nese, not  domiciliated,  in  preference  to  the  natives,  in  the  establish- 
ments for  cutting  timber  and  other  royal  works,  and  further  enjoins 
that  use  is  only  to  be  made  in  emergencies,  and  when  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  state  should  require  it.  It  has,  however,  happened  that, 
since  the  remote  period  at  which  the  above  was  promulgated,  not 
only  all  contracts  and  commerce  have  ceased,  but  also  every  commu- 
nication with  Japan  has  been  interrupted,  and  for  a  number  of  years 
not  a  single  individual  of  that  ferocious  race  has  existed  in  the  Phil- 
ippine Islands.  With  regard  to  the  Chinese,  who  are  supposed  to 
be  numerous  in  the  capital,  of  late  years  they  have  diminished  so 
much,  that  according  to  a  census  made  by  orders  of  the  government 
in  the  year  1807,  no  more  than  four  thousand  seven  hundred  are 
found  on  the  registers;  and,  if  in  consequence  of  their  secreting  them- 
selves, or  withdrawing  into  the  interior,  a  third  more  might  be  added 
to  the  above  amount,  their  total  nvimbers  would  still  remain  very 
inconsiderable,  and  infinitely  inferior  to  what  is  required,  not  only 
for  the  tillage  of  the  estates,  but  even  for  the  royal  works. 

As,  therefore,  the  Japanese  have  totally  disappeared,  and  the 
number  of  Chinese  is  evidently  inadequate  to  the  wants  of  agricul- 
ture, it  almost  necessarily  follows  that  the  practice  of  distributing 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


the  Filipino  laborers,  as  allowed  by  the  aforesaid  laws  of  the  Indies, 
under  all  circumstances,  is  the  only  alternate  left.  Even  if,  against 
the  adoption  of  this  measure,  it  should  be  attempted  to  urge  the 
ambiguous  sense  of  the  concluding  part  of  the  second  clause,  it 
would  be  easy  to  comprehend  its  true  intent  and  meaning,  by  refer- 
ring to  Law  1,  Title  13,  Book  5,  which  says: 

"That,  considering  the  inconveniences  which  would  arise  from 
doing  away  with  certain  distributions  of  grounds,  gardens,  estates, 
and  other  plantations,  in  which  the  Indians  are  interested,  as  a 
matter  on  which  the  preservation  of  those  distant  dominions  and 
provinces  depends,  it  is  ordained  that  compulsory  labor,  and  such 
distributions  as  are  advantageous  to  the  public  good,  shall  continue." 

After  so  pointed  an  explanation,  and  a  manifestation  so  clear 
of  the  spirit  of  our  legislation  in  this  respect,  all  further  comments 
would  be  useless,  and  no  doubt  whatever  can  be  any  longer  enter- 
tained of  the  expediency,  and  even  of  the  justice  of  putting  the  plan 
of  well-regulated  distributions  in  practice,  as  a  powerful  means  to 
promote  the  agriculture,  and  secure  to  Spain  the  possession  of  these 
valuable  dominions  of  the  Indian  Seas 

It  would  be  impossible  to  gainsay  Don  Juan  Francisco   Manufactures. 

Urror,  of  the  Philippine  Company,  in  his  detailed  and  accurate 
report  to  the  managing  committee  in  1802,  when  he  observes: 

"That  the  Philippine  Islands,  from  time  immemorial,  were 
acquainted  with,  and  still  retain,  that  species  of  industry  peculiar 
to  the  country,  adapted  to  the  customs  and  wants  of  the  natives, 
and  which  constitutes  the  chief  branch  of  their  clothing.  This, 
although  confined  to  coarse  articles,  may  in  its  class  be  called  perfect, 
as  far  as  it  answers  the  end  for  which  it  is  intended;  and  if  an  attempt 
were  made  to  enumerate  the  quantity  of  mats,  handkerchiefs, 
sheeting,  and  a  variety  of  other  cloths  manufactured  for  this  purpose 
only  in  the  Provinces  of  Tondo,  Laguna,  Batangas,  Ilocos,  Cagayan, 
Camarines,  Albay,  Visaya,  etc.,  immense  supplies  of  each  kind  would 
appear,  which  give  occupation  to  an  incalculable  number  of  looms, 
indistinctly  worked  by  Indians,  Chinese,  and  Sangleyan  mestizos, 
indeed  all  the  classes,  in  their  own  humble  dwellings,  built  of  canes 
and  thatched  with  palm  leaves,  without  any  apparatus  of  regular 
manufacture." 

With  equal  truth  am  I  enabled  to  add,  that  the  natural  abilities  Native  cloth 
of  these  natives  in  the  manufacture  of  all  kinds  of  cloths,  fine  as  well  wearing. 
as  coarse,  are  really  admirable.  They  succeed  in  reducing  the  harsh 
filaments  of  the  palm-tree,  known  by  the  name  of  abaca,  to  such  a 
degree  of  fineness,  that  they  afterwards  convert  them  into  textures 
equal  to  the  best  muslins  of  Bengal.  The  beauty  and  evenness  of 
their    embroideries    and   open  work  excite  surprise;  in  short,  the 


THE  FORMER  PHILIP'PINES  TffRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Aptitude 
fvr.  but  no 
development  of, 
tnanu/acturiny. 


Improved 
methods  and 
machinery 
needed. 


damask  table-eloths,  ornamental  weaving,  textures  of  cotton  arid 
palm-f.bres,  intermixed  with  silk,  and  manufactured  in  the  abbve- 
mentioned  provinces,  clearly  prove  how  much  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Philippine  Islands,  in  natural  abilities  and  dexterity,  resemble  the 
other  people  of  the  Asiatic  regions.  It  must  nevertheless  be  allpwed, 
that  a  want  is  noticed  of  that  finish  and  polish  which  the  perfection 
of  art  gives  to  each  commodity;  but  this  circumstance  ought  not  to 
appear  strange,  if  we  consider  that,  entirely  devoid  of  all  methodical 
instruction,  and  ignorant  also  of  the  importance  of  the  subdivision  oJF 
labor,  which  contributes  so  greatly  to  simplify,  shorten,  and  improve 
the  respective  excellence  of  all  kinds  of  works,  the  same  natives 
gin  and  clean  the  cotton,  and  then  spin  and  weave  it,  without  any 
other  instruments  than  their  hands  and  feet,  aided  only  by  the  course 
and  unsightly  looms  they  themselves  construct  in  a  corner  of  their 
huts,  with  scarcely  anything  else  than  a  few  canes  and  sticks. 

From  the  preceding  observations  it  may  easily  be  deduced 
that,  although  the  natives  succeed  in  preparing,  with  admirable 
dexterity,  the  productions  of  their  soil,  and  therewith  satisfy  the 
greatest  part  of  their  domestic  wants,  facts  which  certainly  manifest 
their  talents  and  aptitude  to  be  employed  in  works  of  more  taste 
and  delicacy,  manufacturing  industry  is  nevertheless  far  from  being 
generalized,  nor  can  it  be  said  to  be  placed  with  any  degree  of  solid- 
ity on  its  true  and  proper  basis.  Hence  arise  those  great  supplies 
of  goods  annually  imported  into  the  country,  for  the  purpose  of 
making  up  the  deficiencies  of  the  local  manufactures. 

The  regular  distribution  or  classification  of  the  assemblage 
of  operations  which  follow  each  other  in  graduation,  from  the  rough 
preparation  of  the  first  materials,  till  the  same  have  arrived  at 
their  perfect  state  of  manufacture,  instead  of  being  practiced, 
is  entirely  unknown.  The  want  of  good  machinery  to  free  the  cotton 
from  the  multitude  of  seeds  with  which  it  is  encumbered,  so  as  to 
perform  the  operation  with  ease  and  quickness,  is  the  f.rst  and 
greatest  obstacle  that  occurs;  and  its  tediousness  to  the  natives 
is  so  repugnant,  that  many  sell  their  crops  to  others,  without  separat- 
ing the  seeds,  or  decline  growing  the  article  altogether,  not  to  be 
plagued  with  the  trouble  of  cleaning  it.  As  the  want  of  method 
is  also  equal  to  the  superabundance  or  waste  of  time  employed, 
the  expenses  of  the  goods  manufactured  increased  in  *he  same  pro- 
portion, under  such  evident  and  great  disadvantages;  for  which 
reason,  far  from  being  able  to  compete  with  those  brought  from  China 
and  British  India,  they  only  acquire  estimation  in  the  interior,  when 
wanted  to  supply  the  place  of  the  latter,  or  in  cases  of  accidental 
scarcity. 


Sliile  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


In  a  word,  the  only  manufactured  articles  annually  exported  Sranlu 
from  the  Philippine  Islands  are  eight  to  twelve  thousand  pieces  "p<"''*- 
of  light  sail  cloth,  two  hundred  thousand  pounds  of  abaca  cordage 
assorted,  and  six  hundred  carabao  hides  and  deer  skins,  which  can 
scarcely  be  considered  in  a  tanned  state;  for,  although  the  Royal 
Company,  from  the  time  of  their  establishment,  long  continued  to 
export  considerable  quantities  of  dimities,  calicos,  stripes,  checks, 
and  coverlids,  as  well  as  other  cotton  and  silk  goods,  it  was  more 
with  a  view  to  stimulate  the  districts  of  Ilocos  to  continue  in  the 
habit  of  manufacturing,  and  thus  introduce  among  the  inhabitants 
of  that  province  a  taste  for  industry,  thaa  the  expectation  of  gain 
by  the  sale  of  this  kind  of  merchandise,  either  in  Spain  or  any  of  the 
sections  of  America.  At  length,  wearied  with  the  losses  experienced 
by  carrying  on  this  species  of  mercantile  operations,  without  answer- 
ing the  principal  object  in  view,  they  resol/ed,  for  the  time  being, 
to  suspend  ventures  attended  with  such  discouraging  circumstances. 

Notwithstanding  so  many  impediments,  it  would  not,  however,  ^'''ed  o/ 
be  prudent  in  the  government  entirely  to  abandon  the  enterprise,  «"'<^ourajement. 
and  lose  sight  of  the  advantages  the  country  offers,  or  indeed, 
to  neglect  turning  the  habitual  facilities  of  the  natives  to  some 
account.  Far  from  there  existing  any  positive  grounds  for  despair- 
ing of  the  progress  of  manufacturing  industry,  it  may  justly  be  pre- 
sumed that,  whenever  the  sovereign,  by  adopting  a  different  line  of 
policy,  shall  allow  the  unlimited  and  indistinct  settlement  of  all  kinds 
of  foreign  colonists,  and  grant  them  the  same  facilities  and  protec- 
tion enjoyed  by  national  ones,  they  will  be  induced  to  flock  to  the 
Philippine  Islands  in  considerable  numbers,  lured  by  the  hope  of 
accumulating  fortunes  in  a  country  that  presents  a  thousand  attrac* 
tions  of  every  kind.  Many,  no  doubt,  will  preferably  devote  them- 
selves to  commerce,  others  to  agricultural  undertakings  and  also 
to  the  pursuits  of  mining,  but  necessarily  some  will  turn  their  atten- 
tion and  employ  their  funds  in  the  formation  of  extensive  manufac- 
tures, aided  by  intelligent  instructors  and  suitable  machinery. 
The  newly-introduced  information  and  arts  being  thus  diffused,  it 
is  natural  to  expect  they  will  be  progressively  adopted  by  a  people 
already  possessing  a  taste  and  genius  for  this  species  of  labor,  by 
which  means  manufacturing  industry  will  soon  be  raised  from  the 
State  of  neglect  and  unproatableness  in  which  it  is  now  left. 

The  circulation  of  the  country  productions  and  effects  of  all    Tnlernat 
kinds   among   the   inhabitants   of  the   provinces,   which,   properly   cionmerre 
speaking,  constitutes  their  internal  commerce,   is  tolerably  active   '^audicupped. 


S78 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Inter-island 
traffic. 


Local  marketx. 


and  considerable.  Owing  to  the  great  facilities  of  conveyance 
afforded  by  the  number  of  rivers  and  lakes,  on  the  margins  of  which 
the  Filipinos  are  fond  of  fixing  their  dwellings,  this  commerce  might 
be  infinitely  greater,  if  it  was  not  obstructed  by  the  monopoly 
of  the  magistrates  in  their  respective  districts  and  the  unjust  pre- 
rogative, exercised  by  the  city,  of  imposing  rates  and  arbitrary 
prices  on  the  very  persons  who  come  to  bring  the  supplies.  Never- 
theless, as  the  iniquituous  operations  of  the  district  magistrates, 
however,  active  they  may  be,  besides  being  restricted  by  their 
financial  ability,  regularly  consist  of  arrangements  to  buy  up  only 
the  chief  articles,  and  those  which  promise  most  advantage,  with 
least  trouble;  as  that  restless  inquietude  which  impels  man  on, 
under  the  hope  of  bettering  his  condition,  acts  even  amidst  rigor 
of  oppression,  a  certain  degree  of  stimulus  and  scope  is  still  left  in 
favor  of  internal  trade. 

Hence  it  follows,  that  there  is  scarcely  an  island  or  province, 
that  does  not  carry  on  some  traffic  or  other,  by  keeping  up  relations 
with  its  neighbors,  which  sometimes  extend  as  far  as  the  capital; 
where,  in  proportion  as  the  produce  and  raw  materials  find  a  ready 
market,  returns  suitable  and  adequate  to  the  consumption  of  each 
place,  respectively,  are  obtained.  If,  however,  it  would  be  difficult 
to  form  an  idea,  even  in  the  way  of  approximation,  of  the  exchanges 
which  take  place  between  the  various  provinces,  a  task  that  would 
render  it  necessary  to  enumerate  them,  one  by  one,  it  is  equally 
so  to  make  an  estimate  of  the  total  amount  of  this  class  of  operation 
carried  on  in  Manila,  their  common  center.  Situated  in  the  bottom 
of  an  inmense  bay,  bathed  by  a  large  river,  and  the  country  round 
divided  by  an  infinite  number  of  streams  and  lakes  descending 
from  the  provinces  by  which  the  capital  is  surrounded,  the  produce 
and  effects  are  daily  brought  in  and  go  out  of  suburbs  so  extended  in 
a  diversity  of  small  vessels  and  canoes,  without  its  being  possible 
to  obtain  any  exact  account  of  the  multiplicity  of  transactions  carried 
on  at  one  and  the  same  time,  in  a  city  built  on  so  large  a  scale. 

Besides  the  traffic  founded  on  ordinary  consumption,  the  neces- 
sity of  obtaining  assortments  of  home-manufactured  as  well  as 
imported  goods,  in  order  to  supply  the  markets,  known  by  the  name 
of  tianguis,  and  which  are  held  weekly  in  almost  ever>  town,  there  is 
another  species  of  speculation,  peculiar  to  the  rich  natives  and 
Sangley  mestizos,  an  industrious  race,  and  also  possessed  of  the 
largest  portion  of  the  specie.  This  consists  in  the  anticipated 
purchase  of  the  crops  of  indigo,  sugar,  rice,  etc.,  with  a  view  to 


J 


state  of  the  Philippinee  in  1810 


Outside 
deterrents. 


fix  their  own  prices  on  the  produce  thus  contracted  for,  when  resold 
to  the  second  hand.  A  propensity  to  barter  and  traffic,  in  all  kinds 
of  ways,  is  indeed  universal  among  the  natives,  and  as  the  principal 
springs  which  urge  on  internal  circulation  are  already  in  motion, 
nothing  more  is  wanting  than  at  once  to  destroy  the  obstacles  pre- 
viously pointed  out,  and  encourage  the  extension  of  luxury  and 
comforts,  in  order  that,  by  the  number  of  the  people's  wants  being 
increased,  as  well  as  the  means  of  supplying  them,  the  force  and 
velocity  of  action  may  in  the  same  proportion  be  augmented. 

Under  "External  Commerce"  generally  are  comprised  the  rela-    ExtemaX 
tions  the  Philippine  Islands  keep  up  with  other  nations,  with    the    commerce. 
Spanish  possessions  in  America,  and  with  the  mother  country;  or, 
in  other  words,  the  sum  total  of  their  imports  and  exports. 

Many  are  the  causes  which,  within  the  last  ten  or  twelve  years, 
have  influenced  the  mercantile  relations  of  these  Islands,  and  pre- 
vented their  organization  on  permanent  and  known  principles. 
The  chief  one,  no  doubt,  has  been  the  frequent  and  unforeseen 
changes,  from  peace  to  war,  which  have  marked  that  unhappy  period, 
and  as  under  similar  circumstances  merchants,  more  than  any  other 
class  of  persons,  are  in  the  habit  of  acting  on  extremes,  there  have 
been  occasions  in  which,  misled  by  the  exaggerated  idea  of  the  galleon 
of  Acapulco,  and  anxious  to  avail  themselves  of  the  first  prices, 
generally  also  the  highest,  foreign  speculators  have  inundated  Manila 
with  goods,  by  a  competition  from  all  quarters;  and  others,  owing 
to  the  channels  being  obstructed,  when  this  market  has  experienced 
an  absolute  scarcity  of  commodities,  as  well  as  of  funds  necessary 
to'  continue  the  usual  and  almost  only  branch  of  commerce  left. 
The  frequent  failure  of  the  sugar  and  indigo  crops,  has  also  in  many 
instances  restrained  the  North  Americans  and  other  neutrals  from 
coming  to  these  Islands  with  cargoes,  and  induced  them  to  prefer 
Java,  where  they  are  at  all  times  sure  of  finding  returns.  Besides 
the  influence  of  these  extraordinary  causes  on  the  uncertainty  and 
irregularity  of  external  commerce,  no  small  share  must  also  be  attri- 
buted to  the  strangeness  of  the  peculiar  constitution  of  the  country, 
or  the  principles  on  which  its  trade  is  established. 

Scarcely  will  it  be  believed,  in  the  greater  part  of  civilized 
Europe,  that  a  Spanish  colony  exists  between  Asia  and  America,  discouragemenu. 
whose  merchants  are  forbidden  to  avail  themselves  of  their  advanta- 
geous situation,  and  that,  as  a  special  favor  only  are  they  allowed  to 
send  their  effects  to  Mexico,  once  a  year,  but  under  the  following 
restrictions.     It  is  a  necessary  condition,  that  every   shipper  shall 


Domestic 


S80  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

be  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trade  (Cotisulado),  and  therein  entitkd 
to  a  vote,  which  supposes  a  residence  of  some  years  in  the  country, 
besides  the  possession  of  property  of  his  own  to  the  amount  of  $8,,00.(k 
He  is  compelled  to  join  with  the  other  members,  in  order  to  be  enabled 
to  ship  his  goods  in  bales  of  a  determined  form  and  dimensions,  in 
one  single  vessel,  arranged,  fitted  out,  and  commanded  by  officer^ 
of  the  royal  navy,  under  the  character  of  a  war  ship.  He  has  als6 
to  contribute  his  proportion  of  $20,000,  which,  in  the  shape  of  a 
present,  are  given  to  the  commander,  at  the  end  of  every  round 
voyage.  He  cannot  in  any  way  interfere  in  the  choice  or  qualities 
of  the  vessel,  notwithstanding  his  property  is  to  be  risked  in  her; 
and  what  completes  the  extravagance  of  the  system,  is,  that  before 
anything  is  done  he  must  pay  down  twenty-five  or  forty  per  cent 
for  freight,  according  to  circumstances,  which  money  is  distributed 
among  certain  canons  of  the  church,  aldermen,  subalterns  of  the 
army,  and  widows  of  Spaniards,  to  whom  a  given  number  of  tickets 
or  certified  permits  to  ship  are  granted,  either  as  a  compensation 
for  the  smallness  of  their  pay,  or  in  the  way  of  a  privilege;  but 
on  express  conditions  that,  although  they  themselves  are  not  mem- 
bers of  the  Board  of  Trade,  they  shall  not  be  allowed  to  negotiate 
and  transfer  them  to  persons  not  having  that  quality.  In  the  custom 
house  nothing  being  admitted  unless  the  number  of  bales  shipped 
are  accompanied  by  corresponding  permits,  and  as  it  besides  fre- 
quently happens  that  there  is  a  degree  of  competition  between  the 
parties  seeking  to  try  their  fortune  in  this  way,  the  original  holders 
of  the  permits  very  often  hang  back,  in  such  a  manner  that  I  have  seen 
$500  offered  for  the  transfer  of  a  right  to  ship  three  bales,  which 
scarcely  contained  goods  to  the  amount  of  $1,000.  Such,  never- 
theless, is  the  truth,  and  such  the  exact  description  of  the  famous 
Acapulco  ship,  which  has  excited  so  much  jealousy  among  the  mer- 
chants of  Seville  and  Cadiz,  and  given  rise  to  such  an  infinite  number 
of  disputes  and  lawsuits. 
Business  So  complete  a  deviation  from  the  rules  and  maxims  usually 

xrregularilies.  received  in  trade,  could  tiot  fail  to  produce  in  the  Philippine  Islands, 
as  in  fact  it  has,  effects  equally  extraordinary  wi^h  regard  to  those 
who  follow  this  pursuit.  The  merchant  of  Manila  is,  in  fact, 
entirely  different  from  the  one  in  Cadiz  or  Amsterdam.  Without 
any  correspondents  in  the  manufacturing  countries  and  consequently 
possessed  of  no  suitable  advices  of  the  favorable  variations  in  the 
respective  markets,  without  brokers  and  even  without  regular  booka 
he  seems  to  carry  on  his  profession  on  no  one  fixed  principle,  aiid  to 


'.vrv\    '■      State  of  the' Philipvine'a  in  1810  381 

have  acquired  his  routine  of  business  from  mere  habit  and  vague  -i.yn 

custom.     His  contracts  are  made  out  on  stamped  paper,  and  his  ■  •■ 

bills  or  promissory  notes  no  other  than  long  and  diffuse  writings  or 
bonds,  of  which  the  dates  and  amounts  are  kept  more  in  the  shape 
of  bundles  than  by  any  due  entry  on  his  books;  and  what  at  once 
gives  the  most  clear  idea  of  this  irregularity  is  the  singular  fact 
that,  for  the  space  of  twenty-five  and  possibly  fifty  years,  only 
one  bankrupt  has  presented  the  state  of  his  affairs  to  the  Board  of 
Trade,  in  conformity  to  the  regulations  prescribed  by  the  general 
Statutes  of  Bankruptcy,  whereas,  numbers  of  cases  have  occurred 
in  which  these  merchants  have  wasted  or  secreted  the  property  of 
others  with  impunity.  Hence  have  arisen  those  irregularities,  sub- 
terfuges and  disputes,  in  a  word,  the  absence  of  all  mercantile 
business  carried  on  in  a  scrupulously  punctual  and  correct  manner. 
Hence,  also,  have  followed  that  distrust  and  embarras:ment  with 
which  commercial  operations  are  attended,  as  well  as  the  difficulty 
of  calculating  their  fluctuations.  On  the  other  hand,  as  in  order 
to  send  off  an  expedition  by  the  annual  ship  to  Acapulco,  the  previous 
consent  of  the  majority  of  the  incorporated  merchants  is  necessary, 
before  this  point  is  decided,  months  are  passed  in  intrigues  and  dis- 
putes, the  peremptory  period  arrives,  and  if  the  articles  wanted  are 
in  the  market,  they  are  purchased  up  with  precipitation  and  paid 
for  with  the  monies  the  shippers  have  been  able  to  obtain  at  an  interest 
from  the  administrators  of  pious  and  charitable  funds.  In  this 
manner,  compelled  to  act  almost  always  without  plan  or  concert, 
yet  accustomed  to  gain  in  the  market  of  Acapulco,  notwithstanding 
so  many  impediments  and  the  exorbitant  premiums  paid  for  the 
money  lent,  these  merchants  follow  the  strange  maxim  of  risking 
little  or  no  property  of  their  own;  and  unaware,  or  rather,  disregard- 
ing the  importance  of  economy  in  the  expenses  and  regularity  of 
their  general  method  of  living,  it  is  not  possible  they  can  ever  accu- 
mulate large  fortunes,  or  form  solid  and  well-accredited  houses. 

Thus  oppressed  by  a  system,  as  unjust  as  it  is  absurd,  and  Merchants 
conducting  their  affairs  in  the  way  above  described,  it  is  not  strange  discouraged. 
that  these  gentlemen,  at  the  same  time  yielding  to  the  indolence 
consequent  on  the  climate,  should  neglect  or  behold  with  indifference 
all  the  other  secondary  resources  which  the  supplying  the  wants  of 
the  country  and  the  extensive  scope  and  variety  of  its  produce  offer 
to  the  man  of  active  mind.  Hence  it  follows,  as  already  observed, 
that  the  whole  of  the  interior  trade  is  at  present  absorbed  by  the 
principal  natives,  the  Sangley  mestizos  of  both  sexes,  and  a  few 
Chinese  peddlers. 


S8S 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  BYES 


The  outlook 
brightening. 


Ca-pital 
tmployed 
in  eommercK. 


Notwithstanding,  however,  the  defective  manner  in  which  the 
generality  of  the  merchants  act,  some  already  are  beginning  to  dis- 
tinguish themselves  by  the  prudence  of  their  conduct,  by  forward- 
ing, in  time,  their  orders  to  the  manufacturers  of  India  and  China, 
and,  in  other  respects  guiding  themselves  by  the  principles  which 
characterize  the  intelligent  merchant.  Finally,  it  is  to  be  presumed 
that,  as  soon  as  the  government  shall  have  thrown  down  this  singular 
and  preposterous  system  that  has  been  the  cause  of  so  many  dis- 
orders, and  proclaimed  the  unlimited  freedom  of  Philippine  commerce, 
the  greater  part  of  these  people  will  rise  up  from  the  state  of  inaction 
in  which  they  now  live,  and  the  relations  of  the  colony  will  then 
assume  the  course  and  extent  corresponding  to  its  advantages  of 
position.  At  least,  if  our  national  merchants  should  not  act  up  to 
the  impulse  given  to  all  kinds  of  mercantile  enterprises  by  the  bene- 
ficial hand  of  the  sovereign,  foreigners  will  not  be  wanting,  who, 
relying  on  due  toleration,  will  be  induced  to  convey  their  fortunes 
and  families  to  the  Philippine  Islands,  and,  vigorously  encouraging 
the  exportation  of  their  valuable  productions,  amply  secure  the 
fruits  of  their  laudable  activity  and  well-combined  speculations. 

Were  a  person,  judging  from  the  numbers  constituting  the  body 
of  registered  merchants,  and  supposing  all  of  them  to  possess  the 
essential  requisites  prescribed  by  our  commercial  regulations,  to 
form  a  prudent  estimate  of  the  amount  of  capital  employed  by  them, 
his  calculations  would  turn  out  extremely  erroneous,  for  besides  the 
ease  with  which  regulations  of  this  kind  are  eluded,  many  are  merely 
nominal  traders,  and  there  are  others  whose  mercantile  existence 
is  purely  artificial  for  they  are  sustained  in  a  temporary  manner, 
by  means  of  a  forced  species  of  circulation  peculiar  to  this  country. 
This  consists  in  obtaining  the  acquiescence  of  the  administrators 
of  pious  and  charitable  funds,  let  out  at  interest,  to  renew  the  bonds 
they  hold  during  other  successive  risks,  waiting,  as  it  were,  till  some 
fatal  tempest  has  swallowed  up  the  vessel  in  which  these  merchants 
suppose  their  property  to  be  embarked,  and  at  once  cancel  all  their 
obligations.  On  the  other  hand,  neither  excessive  expenses  nor  the 
shipment  of  large  quantities  of  goods  to  Acapulco  can  in  any  way 
be  taken  as  a  just  criterion  whereby  to  judge  of  the  fortunes  of  indi- 
viduals; because,  in  the  first,  there  is  great  uniformity,  every  one, 
more  or  less,  enjoying,  exteriorly,  the  same  easy  circumstances, 
notwithstanding  the  disparity  of  real  property;  and  in  the  second, 
considerable  fiction  prevails,  many  persons  shipping  under  the  same 
mark,  and  even  when  the  shipper  stands  alone,  he  might  have  been 
provided  with  the  necessary  funds  from  the  pious  and  charitable 


I 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  1810  S8S 

establishments,  possibly  without  risking  a  dollar  of  his  own  in  the 
whole  operation.  Under  circumstances  so  dubious,  far  from  pre- 
suming to  give  a  decided  opinion  on  the  subject,  I  am  compelled  to 
judge  from  mere  conjectures,  and  guided  only  by  the  knowledge 
and  experience  I  have  been  able  to  acquire  during  my  long  residence 
there.  In  conformity  thereto,  I  am  inclined  to  believe,  that  the 
total  amount  of  capital  belonging  to  and  employed  in  the  trade  of 
the  Philippine  Islands,  does  not  at  present  exceed  two  and  a  half 
million  dollars,  with  evident  signs  of  rapid  decline,  if  the  merchants 
do  not  in  time  abandon  the  ruinous  systems  of  chiefly  carrying  on 
their  speculations  with  money  obtained  at  interest. 

The  two  and  a  half  million  dollars  thus  attributed  to  the  mer-  ^'""(/«  «*"" 
chants,  form,  however,  the  smaller  part  of  the  funds  distributed 
among  the  other  classes,  and  the  total  amount  of  the  circulating 
medium  of  the  colony  might  be  considered  an  object  sufficiently 
worthy  of  being  ascertained,  owing  to  the  great  light  it  would  throw 
on  the  present  state  of  the  inhabitants;  but  it  is  in  vain  to  attempt 
any  calculation  of  the  kind,  at  least  without  the  aid  of  data  possessing 
a  certain  degree  of  accuracy.  The  only  thing  that  can  be  affirmed 
is,  that  during  the  period  of  more'  than  two  hundred  and  fifty  years 
which  have  elapsed  since  the  conquest,  the  ingress  of  specie 
into  the  Philippine  Islands  has  been  constant.  Their  annual  ships 
have  seldom  come  from  New  Spain  without  bringing  considerable 
sums  in  return,  and  if  some  of  them  have  been  lost,  many  others, 
without  being  confined  to  the  one  million  of  dollars  constituting 
the  ordinary  amount  of  the  permit,  have  not  unfrequently  come 
back  with  triple  that  sum;  for  which  reason  there  are  ample  grounds 
of  judging  the  estimates  correct,  which  fix  the  total  importation  of 
dollars,  during  the  whole  of  that  long  period  of  years,  to  be  equal  to 
four  hundred  millions.  It  may  further  be  observed  that,  as  in  the 
Sangley  mestizos  economy  and  avarice  compete  with  intelligence 
and  activity  in  accumulating  wealth  and  as  they  are  scattered, 
among  the  principal  islands,  and  in  possession  of  the  best  lands  and 
the  most  lucrative  business  of  the  interior,  there  are  ample  motives 
for  presuming  that  these  industrious  and  sagacious  people  have 
gradually,  although  incessantly,  amassed  immense  sums  in  specie; 
but  it  would  be  impossible  to  point  out  their  amount,  distribution, 
or  the  secret  places  in  which  they  are  hoarded. 

The  assemblage  of  pious  legacies,  temporalities,  and  other  funds    Pious  ana 

and  proF>erty  placed  under  the  care  of  several  administrative  com-    '^  ""'''f 

fund*  eapitaL 
mittees,  for  purposes  as  well  religious  as  charitable,  constitute  the 


S84 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Coveted  by 

Spanish 

treasury. 


Easy  t^pital 
but  lessened 
prdfiii.. 


chief  capital  employed  in  external  trade;  and  notwithstanding  the 
failures,  which  from  time  to  time  occur,  the  subsequent  accumula- 
tion of  the  enormous  premiums  obtained  for  funds  laid  out  in  mari- 
time speculations,  both  in  time  of  peace  and  war,  not  only  suffices 
to  make  up  all  losses  of  the  above  kind,  but  also  to  secure  the  punc- 
tual payment  of  such  charitable  pensions  and  other  charges  as  are 
to  be  deducted  from  the  respective  profits  of  this  species  of  stock, 
its  total  amount,  according  to  an  official  report  made  by  order  of 
the  head  committee  of  the  sinking  fund,  including  temporalities, 
and  Queen  Maria  of  Austria's  endowment  for  the  College  of  Las 
Marianas,  together  with  other  funds  of  the  same  kind,  not  compre- 
hended in  the  decree  of  abolition,  at  the  commencement  of  the  year 
1809,  amounted  to  $2,470,390,  and  as  the  sea-risks  of  that  and  the 
following  year  were  successful,  and  the  outstanding  amounts  punc- 
tually recovered,  the  aggregate  sum,  arising  out  of  the  above 
description  of  property,  may  now  be  estimated  at  more  than  three 
millions.  Of  these  funds  three  distributions  are  generally  made, 
viz.,  one  part  is  appropriated  to  the  China  risks,  at  from  twelve  to 
eighteen  per  cent,  premium,  according  to  circumstances,  and  also 
those  to  Madras,  Calcutta  and  Batavia,  at  from  sixteen  to  twenty- 
two  per  cent.  The  second,  which  generally  is  in  the  largest  propor- 
tion, is  employed  in  risks  to  Acapulco,  at  various  premiums,  from 
27  to  45  per  cent. ;  and  the  third  is  left  in  hand,  as  a  kind  of  guarantee 
of  the  stability  of  the  original  endowments. 

In  the  great  exigencies  of  the  Royal  Treasury,  experienced 
during  the  last  years  of  the  administration  of  Sr.  Soler,  the  royal 
decree  of  ConsoUdacion  was  extended  to  the  Philippine  Islands, 
under  the  pretext  of  guarding  the  funds  belonging  to  public  charities 
and  religious  endowments  .....  sea-risks,  the  income  of  which, 
when  secured  on  good  mortgages,  does  not  generally  exceed  five  per 
cent,  many  in  Spain  not  yielding  above  four;  but  the  remarkable 
difference  between  this  plan  and  the  one  above  described,  together 
with  various  and  other  weighty  reasons  alleged  by  the  administra- 
tors, caused  the  dreaded  effect  of  this  new  regulation  to  be  suspended, 
and  whilst  the  head  committee  of  Manila  were  consulting  their 
doubts  and  requesting  fresh  instructions  from  the  court  at  home, 
orders  came  out  not  to  make  any  alteration  in  measures  relating 
to  this  description  of  property. 

Accustomed,  in  their  limited  calculations,  to  identify  the 
resources,  offered  by  the  funds  belonging  to  this  class  of  establish- 
ments, with  the  very  existence  of  the  colony,  the  needy  merchants 


I 


State  of  the  Philippines  in   ISIO  3S5 

easily  confound  their  personal  with  the  general  interest;  and  few 
stop  to  consider  that  the  identical  means  of  carrying  on  trade,  with- 
out any  capital  of  their  own,  although  they  have  accidentally 
enriched  a  small  number  of  persons,  eventually  have  absorbed  the 
principal  profits,  and  possibly  been  the  chief  cause  of  the  unflourish- 
ing  state  of  the  colony  at  large.  Without  fearing  the  charge  of  rash- 
ness, it  may,  in  fact,  be  asserted,  that  if  these  charities  and  pious 
endowments  had  never  existed,  public  prosperity  in  the  Philippine 
Islands  would,  as  in  other  parts,  have  been  the  immediate  effect 
of  the  united  efforts  of  the  individual  members  of  the  community 
and  of  the  experience  acquired  in  the  constant  prosecution  of  the 
same  object.  As,  however,  a  progress  of  this  kind,  although  cer- 
tain, must  necessarily  have  been  at  first  extremely  slow,  and  as, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  preference  given  to  mercantile  operations 
undertaken  with  the  funds  belonging  to  public  charities,  has  its 
origin  in  the  assentblage  of  vices  so  remarkable  in  the  very  organ- 
ization of  the  body  of  Philippine  merchants,  any  new  measure  on  this 
subject  might  be  deemed  inconsistent,  that  at  once  deprived  them 
of  the  use  of  resources  on  which  they  had  been  accustomed  to  rely, 
without  removing  those  other  defects  which  excuse,  if  not  encourage, 
the  continuation  of  the  present  system.  Without,  therefore,  appeal- 
ing to  violent  remedies,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that,  in  order  to  render 
plans  of  reform  effectual,  it  will  be  sufficient,  under  more  propitious 
circumstances,  to  see  property  brought  from  other  countries  to  these 
Islands,  as  well  as  persons  coming  to  settle  in  them,  capable  of  man- 
aging it  with  that  intelligence  and  economy  required  by  trade. 
The  competition  of  those  who  speculate  at  random  would  then  cease, 
or  what  is  the  same,  as  money  obtained  at  a  premium  could  not 
then  be  laid  out  with  the  same  advantages  by  the  merchants  as  if  it 
was  their  own,  it  will  be  necessary  to  renounce  the  fallacious  profits 
held  out  by  the  public  charities,  till  at  least  they  are  placed  on  a 
level  with  existing  circumstances,  and  brought  in  to  be  of  real  service 
to  the  honorable  planter  and  laborious  merchant,  in  their  accidental 
exigencies,  ceasing  to  be,  as  hitherto,  the  indirect  cause  of  idleness, 
dissipation,  and  the  ruin  of  an  infinite  number  of  families. 

The  vessels  which  the  district  magistrates  of  the  provinces  Mercaniile 
employ  in  carrying  on  their  trade  with  the  capital  and  those  belonging  shipping. 
to  some  of  the  richer  merchants,  together  with  such  as  are  owned 
by  the  natives  and  mestizos,  on  an  approximate  calculation,  amount 
to  twelve  thousand  tons,  including  ships,  brigs,  schooners,  galleys, 
barges,  etc.  For  the  want  of  better  data,  this  estimate  is  founded 
only  on  reasonable  conjecture,  aided  by  the  advice  of  experienced 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  BYES 


.Veed  of 
nautical    school. 


Royal 

Philippine 

company. 


persons,  for  although  the  greatest  part  of  these  vessels  are  built 
by  the  natives  in  the  neighborhood  of  their  own  towns,  no  register 
is  kept  of  their  number  and  dimensions,  nor  do  they  carry  with  them 
the  usual  certificates.  Those  belonging  to  the  merchants,  that  is, 
ships  and  brigs  of  a  certain  size,  have  already  begun  to  frequent 
the  ports  of  China,  Java,  the  coast  of  Coromandel,  Bengal,  and  the 
Isle  of  France,  availing  themselves  of  the  lucrative  freights  which 
formerly  enriched  and  encouraged  foreign  shipping.  The  other 
class  of  vessels,  although  perfectly  adequate  to  the  coasting  trade, 
cannot  in  general  be  applied  to  larger  enterprises,  on  account  of 
their  not  being  sufficiently  strong  and  capacious.  The  seamen  are 
not  apprenticed,  or  as  it  is  usually  called,  matriculated,  but  their 
frequent  crossing  from  island  to  island,  their  familiarity  with  regional 
tempests,  voyages  to  various  parts  of  America,  and  the  occupation 
of  fishing  followed  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  coast,  serve  to  train 
up  a  large  body  of  dexterous  and  able  mariners  who  at  all  times  can 
be  had,  without  any  compulsion,  to  complete  the  crews. 

The  want  of  a  public  school  for  the  teaching  of  navigation, 
is,  however,  sensibly  felt,  as  well  as  great  inconvenience  from  the 
scarcity  of  persons  capable  of  being  trusted  with  the  command  of 
vessels,  and  the  ignorance  that  prevails  of  the  waters  of  this 
dangerous  Archipelago.  Repeated  royal  orders  have  been  sent  over 
for  the  board  of  trade  to  proceed  to  the  institution  of  so  useful 
an  establishment,  and  in  the  meantime,  a  medium  has  been  resorted 
to  in  order  to  supply  the  deficiency,  by  allowing  the  free  admission 
of  foreign  mates,  provided  they  exhibit  proofs  of  their  acquaintance 
with  navigation,  and  profess  the  Catholic  worship.  Shipowners 
nevertheless  experience  great  difficulties,  particularly  at  times  when 
the  Acapulco  ship  is  fitting  out,  for  although  she  is  considered  as  a 
vessel  of  war,  and  commanded  by  officers  of  the  royal  navy,  the  plan 
of  her  equipment  is  so  singular,  that  in  addition,  she  requires  the 
extra  aid  of  one  chief  mate,  and  three  under  ones. 

The  various  modifications  this  corporate  body  has  successively 
experienced,  have,  in  great  measure,  changed  the  essence  of  its 
original  constitution,  and  the  remonstrances  of  its  directors,  founded 
on  the  experience  of  a  long  series  of  years,  at  length  induced  the 
government  at  home  to  sanction  alterations  dictated  by  existing 
circumstances.  The  project  of  raising  these  Islands  from  the  neglected 
state  in  which  they  were,  and  in  some  measure  to  place  them  in 
contact  with  the  mother  country,  accompanied  by  a  wish  to  give 
a  new  and  great  impulse  to  the  various  branches  of  industry  which 
constitute  the  importance  of  a  colony,  could  not  have  been  more 


State  of  the  Philippines  in   tStO 


audable;  but,  as  was  afterwards  seen,  the  instrument  employed  was 
not  adequate  to  the  object  in  view.  At  the  same  time  that  the  com- 
pany were  charged  to  promote,  and,  by  means  of  their  funds,  to 
vivify  the  agriculture  and  industry  of  these  provinces,  the  necessary 
powers  and  facilities  to  enable  them  to  reap  the  fruits  of  their  sacri- 
fices were  withheld.  The  protection  granted  to  this  establishment, 
did  not  go  beyond  a  general  recommendation  in  favor  of  its  enter- 
prises, and,  in  short,  far  from  enjoying  the  exclusive  preponderance 
obtained  at  their  commencement  by  all  the  other  Asiatic  companies, 
that  of  the  Philippine  Islands  labored  under  particular  disadvantages. 
Notwithstanding  an  organization  so  imperfect,  scarcely  had 
the  agents  of  the  new  Company  arrived  at  Manila,  when  they  dis- 
tributed through  the  country  their  numerous  dependents,  com- 
missioned to  encourage  the  natives  by  advances  of  money.  They 
established  subaltern  factories  in  the  Provinces  of  Ilocos,  Bataan, 
Cavite,  and  Camarines;  purchased  lands;  delivered  out  agricultural 
implements;  founded  manufacturies  of  cotton  cloths;  contracted  for 
the  crops  of  produce  at  very  high  prices;  offered  rewards  and,  in  short, 
they  put  in  motion  every  partial  resources  they  were  able  to  avail 
themselves  of  and  their  limited  means  allowed.  It  would  be  ex- 
tremely easy  for  me,  in  this  place,  to  enter  a  particular  enumeration 
of  the  important  services  of  this  kind  rendered  by  the  company,  and 
to  exhibit,  in  the  most  evident  point  of  view,  the  advantages  thence 
derived  to  these  Islands,  if,  besides  being  slightly  touched  upon  in 
the  preceding  articles,  this  task  had  not  been  already  ably  performed 
by  the  Factor  Don  Juan  Francisco  Urroz,  in  his  accurate  report  on  this 
subject,  addressed  to  the  governing  committee  of  the  company,  in 
1803.  In  justice  I  will  nevertheless  observe,  that  this  establishment, 
anxiously  resolved  to  attain  the  end  proposed,  in  spite  of  so  many 
obstacles,  constantly  followed  up  its  expensive  system  without  being 
disheartened ;  nor  did  the  contrarieties  with  which  the  Royal  Audien- 
cia,  or  High  Court  of  Justice,  frequently  paralyzed  its  plans,  the 
indifference  of  the  governors,  or  the  general  opposition  and  jealousy 
of  the  other  classes,  in  any  way  tend  to  relax  its  efforts,  till  at  length, 
convinced  of  the  impossibility  of  successfully  contending,  alone  and 
without  any  other  arms  than  its  own  reduced  capital;  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  well  aware  that  a  political  body  of  this  kind  in  vain  seeks 
to  unite  within  itself  the  triple  and  opposite  characters  of  agricul- 
turalist, manufaturer,  and  merchant,  a  determination  was  taken 
to  alter  the  plan,  and  withdraw  the  factories  established  in  the  prov- 
inces, and  by  adopting  a  rigid  economy  and  confining  the  operations 
in  future  to  the  purchase  of  such  produce  and  manufactured  articles 


Local  progresx 
under  adverse 
conditions. 


S88  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

as  suited  their  trade,  and  were  voluntarily  brought  by  the  natives 
to  their  stores,  the  expenses  of  the  Company  were  curtailed,  and  a 
plan  of  reform  introduced  into  all  their  speculations.  By  this 
means  also  they  always  secured  an  advantageous  vent  for  the  produc- 
tions of  the  country,  after  having  been  the  chief  spring  by  which 
agriculture  was  promoted  and  encouraged  in  a  direct  manner. 
Handicapped  The  most  beneficial  reform,  however,  introduced  by  this  estab- 

in  outside  trade  Hshment  into  its  system,  has,  in  reality,  been  derived  from  the  varia- 
tion or  rather  correction  of  its  plans  and  enterprises,  purely  maritime. 
The  government  being  desirous  to  increase  the  relations  of  this  colony 
by  every  possible  means,  and  to  convert  it  into  a  common  center  of 
all  the  operations  of  the  new  company,  at  first  required  of  the  agents 
that  the  purchases  and  collection  of  goods  from  the  coast  of  Coro- 
mandel,  Bengal,  and  China,  destined  for  Spain,  should  take  place  at 
Manila,  either  by  purchasing  the  articles  in  that  market,  or  through 
the  medium  of  previous  contracts  to  deliver  them  there.  From  this 
it  is  easy  to  infer,  that  the  company  was  infallibly  exposed  to  the 
harsh  terms  the  respective  contractors  sought  to  impose  upon  them, 
as  well  with  regard  to  prices  as  qualities,  unless,  in  many  cases,  they 
preferred  being  left  without  the  necessary  assortments.  Hence 
may  it,  without  the  smallest  exaggeration,  be  affirmed,  that,  sum- 
ming up  all  the  surcharges  under  which  the  shipments  left  the  port 
of  Manila,  and  comparing  them  with  those  which  might  have  been 
sent  direct  from  the  above-mentioned  points,  and  without  so  extra- 
ordinary a  detour  as  the  one  prescribed  by  law,  the  difference  that 
followed  in  the  prime  cost  of  the  cargos  was  not  less  than  80  per  cent. 
The  urgent  manner,  however,  in  which  the  directors  of  the  company 
did  not  cease  to  deplore  and  complain  of  so  evident  a  hardship, 
at  length  had  the  desired  effect,  and  after  existing  ten  or  twelve 
years,  so  preposterous  a  system  was  successfully  overthrown,  and 
permission  obtained  from  the  king  for  the  establishment  of  Spanish 
factories  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  China  and  India  manufactures, 
as  well  as  the  power  of  addressing  shipments  direct  to  those  foreign 
dominions.  The  enlightened  policy  of  their  respective  governments 
did  not  allow  them  to  hesitate  in  giving  a  favorable  reception  to 
our  factors  and  vessels,  and  the  purchases  and  shipments  of  Asiatic 
goods  being  thus  realized  without  the  old  obstructions,  the  Company 
was  reasonably  led  to  hope  being  able  soon  to  increase  its  operations, 
and  progressively  present  more  satisfactory  results  to  the  share- 
holders, when  those  political  convulsions  succeeding  soon  after, 
which  have  unhinged  or  destroyed  all  the  ordinary  relations  of  trade, 
compelled  them  to  abandon  their  hopes,  till  the  wished-for  calm 
should  be  again  restored. 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


S89 


In  consequence  of  the  new  character  and  route  given  to  the 
commercial  enterprises  of  the  Company,  as  authorized  by  a  royal 
decree  of  July  12,  1803,  the  functions  of  the  Manila  factors  were 
reduced  to  the  annual  shipment  of  a  cargo  of  Asiatic  goods  to  Peru, 
valued  at  $500,000,  but  only  as  long  as  the  war  lasted,  and  till  the 
expiration  of  the  extraordinary  permits  granted  through  the  good- 
ness of  the  king,  and  also  to  the  transmitting  to  China  and  Bengal 
of  the  specie  brought  from  America,  and  the  collecting  of  certain 
quantities  of  indigo,  sugar,  or  other  produce  of  the  Islands,  with  a 
view  to  gain  by  reselling  it  in  the  same  market.  Consequently, 
the  moment  things  return  to  their  pacific  and  ordinary  course,  will 
be  the  period  when  the  necessity  of  the  future  existence  of  this 
establishment  will  cease,  or  at  least,  when  the  propriety  will  be 
evident  of  its  reform  or  assimilation  to  the  other  commission  houses, 
carrying  on  trade  in  Vera  Cruz,  Mexico,  etc.,  which,  not  being  hired 
establishments,  do  not  create  expenses  when  they  cease  to  transact 
business. 

Against  a  measure  of  this  kind  it  would  be  useless  to  allege, 
that,  "by  the  exclusive  privilege  to  introduce  spirits  and  European 
effects  into  the  colony,  the  Company  has  contracted  the  obligation 
of  always  keeping  it  properly  supplied;  that  their  very  institution 
had  for  the  basis  the  general  improvement  of  the  Islands,  and 
in  order  duly  to  comply  with  these  duties,  it  becomes  indispensably 
necessary  to  keep  up  the  present  expensive  establishment;"  for, 
in  the  first  place,  in  order,  to  render  it  incumbent  on  the  company 
to  introduce  an  indefinite  quantity  of  European  articles,  it  previously 
would  be  necessary  to  provide  a  vent  for  them,  and  this  can  never 
be  the  case,  unless  the  exclusion  of  all  competitors  in  the  market 
is  rigorously  carried  into  effect.  As  things  now  are,  the  North 
Americans,  English,  French,  and  every  other  nation  that  wishes, 
openly  usurped  this  privilege,  by  constantly  inundating  the  Islands 
with  spirits  and  all  kinds  of  effects,  and  it  is  very  evident  that  this 
same  abuse  which  authorizes  the  infraction  of  the  above  privilege, 
if  in  that  light  it  could  in  any  way  be  considered,  totally  exonerates 
the  company  from  all  obligations  by  them  contracted  under  a 
different  understanding.  Besides,  the  circumstances  which  have 
taken  place  since  the  publication  of  the  royal  decree,  creating  the 
above  establishment  into  a  corporate  body,  in  the  year  1785,  have 
entirely  changed  the  order  established  in  this  respect.  In  the  first 
place,  the  port  of  Manila  has  been  opened  to  foreign  nations,  in 
consequence  of  the  distinterested  representations  of  the  company 
itself,  and  for  the  direct  advantage  of  general  trade;  nor  was  it  neces- 


Temporary 
expedient 
of  1803. 


Conpetition  of 

foreign 

merchants. 


S90  THE  FORMER   PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

sary  to  prevent  our  new  guests  from  abusing  the  facilities  thus 
granted  to  them,  and  much  less  to  confine  them  to  the  mere  intro- 
duction of  Asiatic  goods,  the  original  plea  made  use  of.  In  the 
second,  as  soon  as  the  inhabitants  of  the  Philippine  Islands  became 
familiar  with  the  more  useful  and  elegant  objects  of  convenience 
and  luxury,  which  they  were  enabled  to  purchase  from  foreigners, 
at  reasonable  prices,  it  was  natural  for  them  to  pay  little  regard 
to  the  superfluous  aid  of  the  company,  more  particularly  when  the 
latter  were  no  longer  able  to  sustain  the  competition,  either  in  the 
sale  or  supply  of  a  multitude  of  articles,  which,  thanks  to  our  own 
national  simplicity,  are  scarcely  known  in  Spain,  whence  their 
outward-bound  cargoes  are  divided.  Hence  it  follows  that,  far 
from  the  iinportation  and  supplies  of  the  company  being  missed, 
'  it  may  with  great  reason  be  presumed,  that  this  formal  renunciation 

of  this  ideal  privilege  of  theirs,  must  rather  have  contributed  to 
secure,  in  a  permanent  manner,  adequate  supplies  for  all  the  wants 
and  whims  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  colony ;  and  that  the  publicity 
of  such  a  determination  would  act  as  a  fresh  allurement  successively 
to  bring  to  the  port  of  Manila  a  host  of  foreign  speculators,  anxious 
to  avail  themselves  of  a  fresh  opening  for  commercial  pursuits. 
Company  not  The  Other  objection,  founded  on  the  mistaken  notion  of  its 

a  ph%lanthropy.  j^gj^g  inherent  in,  and  belonging  to,  the  very  essence  of  the  company, 
to  promote  the  general  improvement  of  the  Philippine  Islands, 
if  well  considered,  will  appear  equally  unjust.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  ridi- 
culous, although  too  generally  received,  a  prejudice  to  suppose, 
that  the  founders  of  this  establishment  proposed  to  themselves  the 
plan  of  sinking  the  money  of  the  shareholders  in  clearing  the  lands, 
and  perfecting  the  rude  manufactures  of  these  distant  Islands. 
To  imagine  this  to  have  been  one  of  the  principal  objects  of  the 
institution,  or  to  suppose  that,  on  this  hard  condition,  their  various 
privileges  and  exemptions  were  granted  to  them,  is  so  far  from  the 
reality  of  the  fact,  that  it  would  only  be  necessary  to  read  with  atten- 
tion the  26th  article  of  the  quoted  royal  decree  of  creation,  in  order 
more  correctly  to  comprehend  the  origin  and  constitutive  system  of 
this   political   body. 

"The  latter,"  says  the  Duke  de  Almodovar,  "is  reduced  to  two 
principal  points:  the  first  of  which  is  the  carrying  of  the  trade  of 
Asia  with  that  of  America  and  Europe;  and  the  second,  the  encourage- 
ment and  improvement  of  the  productions  and  manufacturing 
industry  of  the  Islands.  The  one  is  the  essential  attribute  of  the 
company,  constituting  its  real  character  of  a  mercantile  society; 
and,  in  the  other  respect,  it  becomes  an  auxiliary  of  the  govern- 


Slate  of  the  Philippines  in   1810  M)t 

ment,  to  whom  the  duties  alluded  to  more  immediately  belong." 
If  to  the  above  we  add  the  preamble  of  the  43rd  article  of  the 
new  decree  of  1803,  the  recommendation,  made  to  the  company, 
to  contribute  to  the  prosperity  of  the  agriculture  and  manufactur- 
ing industry  of  the  Islands,  will  appear  as  a  limited  and  secondary 
consideration;  for  even  if  the  question  were  carried  to  extremes, 
it  could  never  extend  to  any  more  than  the  application  of  four 
per  cent  of  the  annual  profits  of  the  company  indistinctly  to 
both  branches.  If,  however,  any  doubts  still  remained,  the 
explanation  or  solution  recently  given  to  this  question  would 
certainly  remove  them;  because,  by  the  simple  fact  of  its  being  ex- 
pressed in  the  latter  part  of  the  aforesaid  43rd  article,  "That  the 
above-mentioned  four  per  cent  was  to  be  laid  out,  with  the  king's  profit  percent. 
approbation,  in  behalf  of  the  agriculture  and  manufacturing  to  go  to  Spain. 
industry  of  Spain  and  the  Philippine  Islands,"  it  is  clear  that 
the  king  reserves  and  appropriates  to  himself  the  investment  of  the 
amount  to  be  deducted  from  the  general  dividends,  in  order  to  apply 
it  where  and  how  may  be  deemed  most  advisable.  Consequently, 
far  from  considering  the  company  in  that  respect  under  an  obliga- 
tion to  contribute  to  the  improvement  of  the  Philippines  exclusively, 
the  only  thing  that  can  be  required  of  them,  when  their  charter  is 
withdrawn,  is,  the  repayment  to  the  royal  treasury  of  the  four  per 
cent  on  their  profits,  for  a  purpose  so  vaguely  defined.  In  following 
up  this  same  train  of  argument,  it  would  seem  that,  in  order  to  render 
the  amount  to  be  deducted  from  the  eventual  profits  of  the  company, 
in  the  course  of  time,  a  productive  capital  in  the  hands  of  the  sover- 
eign, the  funds  of  the  society  not  only  ought  not  to  be  diverted  to  the 
continuation  of  projects  which  consume  them,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
it  is  necessary  to  place  at  their  disposal  the  direct  means  by  which 
these  funds  can  be  increased,  in  order  to  make  up  to  the  company 
in  some  measure  the  enormous  losses  experienced  of  late  years,  and  at 
once  free  their  commerce  from  the  shackles  with  which  it  has 
hitherto  been  obstructed. 

Finally,   after   twenty-four  years  of  impotent   and   gratuitous    .\eed  of 
efforts  in  the  Philippines,  and  of  the  most  obstinate  opposition  on    wedal 
the  part  of  their  rivals,  it  is  now  time  for  the  company,  by  giving    '"""""!?«•"'- 
up  the  ungrateful  struggle,  to  reform  in  every  respect  their  expensive 
establishment  in  Manila,  and  to  direct  their  principal  endeavors 
to  carry  into  effect  the  project  so  imperfectly  traced  out  in  the  new 
decree  of  1803.     The  opinion  of  the  most  vehement  enemies  of  the 
privileged   bodies    tacitly    approves    this  exception  in   their  favor. 
Adam  Smith,  avowedly  hostile  to  all  monopolies,  feels  himself  com- 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Spanish 
commerce  in 
its  infancy. 


Philippines 
a  burden  to 
Spain. 


Profit  from 
tobacco 

monopoly  and 
foreign  trade. 


pelled  to  confess  that,  "without  the  incentives  which  exclusive  com- 
panies offer  to  the  individuals  of  a  nation  carrying  on  little  trade, 
possibly  their  confined  capitals  would  cease  to  be  destined  to  the 
remote  and  uncertain  enterprises  which  constitute  a  commerce  with 
the  East  Indies." 

Our  commerce,  compared  with  that  of  other  nations,  notwith- 
standing what  may  be  said  on  this  subject,  is  most  assuredly  yet 
in  a  state  of  infancy.  That  with  Asia,  more  especially,  with  the 
exception  of  the  Royal  Company,  is  .'?lmost  unknown  to  all  other 
classes.  If  it  is,  therefore,  wished  to  exclude  our  many  rivals  from 
so  lucrative  a  branch  of  trade  as  that  which  constitutes  supplies 
for  the  consumption  of  the  Peninsula  and  its  dependencies,  the  means 
are  obvious.  The  most  material  fact  is  in  fact  already  done.  The 
navigation  to  the  various  ports  of  Asia  is  familiar  to  the  company's 
navy;  their  factors  and  clerks  have  acquired  a  practical  knowledge 
of  that  species  of  trade,  essential  to  the  undertaking,  as  well  as  such 
information  as  was  at  first  unknown;  but,  after  the  great  misfortune 
this  body  has  experienced,  it  will  be  indispensably  necessary  to  aid 
and  invigorate  them  with  large  supplies  of  money,  following  the 
example  of  other  governments  in  similar  cases;  in  order  that  the 
successful  issue  of  their  future  operations  may  compensate  their 
past  losses,  and  worthily  correspond  with  the  magnitude  of  the  object. 

This  Asiatic  colony,  although  considered  as  conferring  great 
lustre  on  the  crown  and  name  of  our  monarch,  by  exhibiting  the  vast 
extent  of  the  limits  of  his  dominions,  has  in  reality  been,  during  a 
long  series  of  years,  a  true  burden  to  the  government,  or  at  least, 
a  possession  whose  chief  advantages  have  redounded  in  favor  of 
other  powers,  rivals  of  our  maritime  importance.  Notwithstanding 
all  that  has  been  said  on  the  score  of  real  utility,  certain  it  is,  that  the 
Philippine  establishment  has  cost  the  treasury  large  sums  of  money; 
although,  within  the  last  twenty-five  or  thirty  years,  it  must  be 
confessed  that  the  public  revenues  has  experienced  a  considerable 
increase,  and,  of  itself,  has  become  an  object  of  some  consequence 
to  the  state. 

Among  the  various  causes  which  have  contributed  to  produce 
so  favorable  an  alteration,  the  chief  one  have  been  the  establish- 
ment of  the  tobacco  monopoly,  on  behalf  of  the  crown,  and  the 
opening  of  the  port  of  Manila  to  the  flag  of  other  nations,  at  peace 
with  Spain.  The  first  has  considerably  increased  the  entries  into 
the  public  treasury,  and  the  second  has  tended  to  multiply  the  general 
mass  of  mercantile  operations,  independent  of  the  other  beneficial 


stale  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


effects  this  last  measure  must  have  produced  in  a  country,  whose 
resources,  trade  and  consumption  had,  from  the  time  of  the  conquest, 
experienced  the  fatal  shackles  imposed  by  jealousy  and  ignorance. 

The  improved  aspect  the  colony  soon  assumed,  by  the  introduc-  Improvement 
tion  of  this  new  system,  as  was  natural,  awakened  the  attention  of  "»  public 
ministers,  and  induced  them  more  easily  to  consent  to  the  measures  ■^'"*"'^"- 
subsequently  proposed  to  them,  principally  intended  to  place  those 
distant  dominions  on  a  footing  of  permanent  security,  so  as  to 
enable  them  to  repel  any  fresh  attempts  on  the  part  of  an  enemy. 
As,  however,  the  productions  of  the  country  increased,  the  public 
expenses  also  became  greater,  although  always  in  a  much  smaller 
proportion,  with  the  exception  of  the  interval  between  the  years 
1797  and  1802,  when  the  government,  fearful  of  a  second  invasion, 
was  compelled,  at  its  own  expense,  to  provide  against  the  danger 
with  which  these  Islands  were  then  threatened.  If,  therefore,  as 
appears  from  the  official  reports  of  the  treasurer-general,  Larzabal, 
in  my  possession,  the  receipts  at  the  treasury,  in  1780,  amounted 
only  to  $700,000  including  the  situado,  or  annual  allowance  for  the 
expenses  of  government  sent  from  New  Spain,  and  after  the  ordinary 
charges  of  administration  had  been  paid,  a  surplus  of  $170,000 
remained  in  the  hands  of  the  treasurer;  at  present  we  have  the  satis- 
faction to  find  that  the  revenue  is  equal  to  $2,625,176.50  and  the 
expenses  do  not  exceed  $2,179,731.87  by  which  means  an  annual 
surplus  of  $445,444.62  is  left,  applicable  to  the  payment  of  the 
debt  contracted  during  the  extraordinary  period  above  mentioned, 
now  reduced  to  about  $900,000  and  afterwards  transferable  to  the 
general  funds  belonging  to  the  crovs^n. 

With  regard  to  the  administrative  system,  it  is  in  every  respect  Economy  over 
similar  to  the  one  observed  in  our  governments  of  America,  with  this  Spanish- 
difference  only,  that,  in  the  Philippine  Islands,  greater  economy 
prevails  in  salaries,  as  well  as  in  the  number  of  persons  employed. 
In  former  times,  the  establishment  of  intendencies,  or  boards  of 
administration,  was  deemed  expedient  in  Manila,  Ilocos,  Camarines, 
Iloilo,  and  Cebu;  but  they  were  soon  afterwards  reformed,  or  rather 
laid  aside,  on  account  of  their  being  deemed  superfluous.  I  would 
venture  to  state  the  grounds  on  which  this  opinion  was  then  formed; 
but,  as  the  sphere  in  which  the  king's  revenue  acts  in  these  Islands 
increases  and  extends,  which  naturally  will  be  the  case  if  the  plans 
and  improvements  dictated  by  the  present  favorable  circumstances 
are  carried  into  effect,  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  it  will  be  neces- 
sary again  to  appeal  to  the  establishment  of  a  greater  number  of 
boards  for  the  management  and  collection  of  the  various  branches 


Americari 

colonial 

administration. 


S94  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

of  the  revenue,  whether  they  are  called  intendencies,  or  by  any  other 
name;  as  it  will  be  extremely  difficult  for  the  administration  to  do 
its  duty,  on  the  confined  and  inadequate  plan  under  which  it  is  at 
present  organized. 

F^gcal  suf:Um.  Under  its  existing  form,  it  is  constituted  in  the  following  manner: 

The  governor  of  the  Islands,  in  his  quality  of  superintendent  or 
administrator  general,  and  as  uniting  in  himself  the  powers  of 
intendent  of  the  army,  presides  at  the  board  of  administration 
of  the  king's  revenue,  which  is  placed  in  the  immediate  charge  of  a 
treasurer  and  two  clerks.  The  principal  branches  have  their  respec- 
tive general  directors,  on  whom  the  provincial  administrators 
depend,  and  the  civil  magistrates,  in  the  quality  of  sub-delegates, 
collect  within  their  respective  districts,  the  tributes  paid  by  the 
natives  in  money  and  produce,  and  manage  everything  else  relating 
to  the  king's  revenue.  In  ordinary  cases,  the  general  laws  of  the 
Indies  govern,  and  especially  are  the  ordinances  or  regulations  of  the 
Intendents  of  New  Spain  (Mexico)  ordered  to  be  observed  in  the 
Philippines.  It  ought  further  to  be  observed,  that,  in  these  Islands, 
the  same  as  in  all  the  vice-royalties  and  governments  of  America, 
there  is  a  distinct  body  of  royal  decrees  in  force,  which,  in  themselves, 
constitute  a  code  of  considerable  size. 


■monopoly. 


Opposition  to  The  process  of  converting  the  consumption  of  tobacco  into  a 

tobacco  monopoly  met  with  a  most  obstinate  resistance  on  the  part  of  the 

inhabitants,  and  the  greatest  circumspection  and  constancy  were 
necessary  for  the  governor,  Don  Jose  Basco,  to  carry  this  arduous 
enterprise  into  effect.  Accustomed  to  the  cultivation  of  this  plant 
without  any  restriction  whatever,  and  habituated  to  its  use  from 
their  infancy,  it  appeared  to  the  people  the  extreme  of  rashness  to 
seek  simultaneously  to  extirpate  it  from  the  face  of  the  greatest 
part  of  the  Island  of  Luzon,  in  order  to  confine  its  culture  within 
the  narrow  limits  of  a  particular  district.  They  were  equally  revolted 
at  the  idea  of  giving  to  a  common  article  a  high  and  arbitrary 
value,  when,  besides,  it  had  become  one  of  the  first  necessity.  Every 
circumstance,  however,  being  dispassionately  considered,  and  the 
principle  once  admitted  that  it  was  expedient  for  the  colony  to  main- 
tain itself  by  means  the  least  burdensome  to  the  inhabitants,  it 
certainly  must  be  acknowledged  that,  although  odious  on  account 
of  its  novelty  and  defective  in  the  mode  of  its  execution,  a  resource 
more  productive  and  at  the  same  time  less  injurious,  could  not  have 
been  devised.  Hence  was  it  that  the  partisans  of  the  opposite 
system  were  strangely  misled,  by  founding  their  calculation  on  false 


Stiite  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


Doublinij  of 
insular    menue 
thru    tnharro. 


data,  when  they  alleged  that  a  substitute,  equivalent  to  the  in- 
creased revenue  supposed  to  arise  out  of  the  monopoly  of  tobacco, 
might  have  been  resorted  to  by  ordering  a  proportionate  rise  in 
the  branch  of  tributes.  In  fact,  no  one  who  had  the  least  experience 
in  matters  of  this  kind,  can  be  ignorant  of  the  open  repugnance  the 
natives  have  always  evinced  to  the  payment  of  the  ordinary  head- 
tax  (cedula),  and  the  broils  to  which  its  collection  has  given  rise. 
Besides,  if  well  examined,  no  theory  is  more  defective  and  more 
oppressive  on  account  of  the  disparity  with  which  it  operates,  than 
this  same  wrongly-boasted  impost ;  for,  however  desirous  it  may  be  to 
simplify  the  method  of  collecting  the  general  revenue  of  a  state, 
if  the  best  plan  is  to  be  adopted,  that  is,  if  public  burdens  are  to  be 
rendered  the  least  obnoxious,  it  is  necessary  preferably  to  embrace 
the  system  of  indirect  contribution,  in  which  class,  to  a  certain 
degree,  the  monopoly  of  all  those  articles  may  be  considered  as 
included  which  are  not  rigorously  of  the  first  necessity,  and  only 
compel  the  individual  to  contribute  when  his  own  will  induce  him 
to  become  a  consumer. 

Let  this  be  as  it  may,  certain  it  is,  that  to  Governor  Basco 
we  are  indebted  for  having  doubled  the  annual  amount  of  the  revenue 
of  these  Islands,  by  merely  rendering  the  consumption  of  tobacco 
subservient  to  the  wants  of  the  crown.  It  was  he  who  placed  these 
Islands  in  the  comfortable  situation  of  being  able  to  subsist  with- 
out being  dependent  on  external  supplies  of  money  to  meet  the  exi- 
gencies of  government.  It  ought,  however,  to  be  remarked  that, 
although  they  have  been  in  the  habit  of  receiving  the  annual  allow- 
ance of  $250,000  for  which  a  standing  credit  was  opened  by  the 
government  at  home  on  the  general  treasury  of  New  Spain,  con- 
siderable sujns  have,  nevertheless,  on  various  occasions,  been  remitted 
from  the  Philippines  to  Spain,  through  the  channel  of  the  Captain- 
General.  *  *  *  If  these  remittances  have  been  suspended  for 
some  years  past,  it  has  evidently  been  owing  to  the  imperious  neces- 
sity of  applying  the  ordinary  proceeds  of  the  revenue,  as  well  as  other 
extraordinary  means,  to  unforeseen  contingencies  arising  out  of 
peculiar  circumstances. 

The  planting  and  cultivation  of  tobacco  are  now  confined  to  Tobacco  belt 
the  district  of  Gapan,  in  Pampanga  Province,  to  that  of  Cagayan, 
and  to  the  small  Island  of  Marinduque.  The  amount  of  the  crops 
raised  in  the  above  three  points  and  sold  to  the  king,  may,  on  an 
average,  be  estimated  at  fifty  thousand  bales,  grown  in  the  following 
proportion:  Gapan,  forty-seven  thousand  bales;  Cagayan,  two 
thousand,  and  Marinduque,  one  thousand.     This  stock,  resold  at 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Defective 
sales  system. 


Loss  from 
preventable 
causes. 


the  monopoly  prices,  yields  a  sum  equal  to  about  one  million  of 
dollars,  and  deducting  therefrom  the  prime  cost  and  all  other  ex- 
penses, legally  chargeable  on  this  branch,  the  net  proceeds  in  favor 
of  the  revenue  amount  to  $550,000  or  upwards  of  one  hundred  twenty- 
two  per  cent.  This  profit  is  so  much  more  secure,  as  it  rests  on  the 
positive  fact  that,  however  great  the  quantity  of  the  article  sold 
furtively  and  by  evading  the  vigilance  of  the  guards,  as  the  demand 
and  consumption  are  excessive  and  always  exceed  the  stock  on  hand, 
a  ready  sale  cannot  fail  to  be  had  for  all  the  stock  placed  in  the  hands 
of  the  agents  of  the  monopoly.  From  this  it  may  also  be  inferred 
how  much  the  net  proceeds  of  this  branch  would  be  increased,  if 
without  venturing  too  far  in  extending  the  plantations  and  conse- 
quent purchases,  care  was  taken  to  render  the  supplies  more  pro- 
portionate to  the  consumption;  for,  by  a  clear  profit  of  one  hundred 
twenty-two  per  cent,  falling  on  a  larger  capital,  it  follows  that  a 
corresponding  result  would  be  obtained.  In  a  word,  the  sales,  far 
from  declining  or  being  in  any  way  deemed  precarious,  are  suscep- 
tible of  a  great  increase,  consequently  this  branch  of  revenue  merits 
the  serious  attention  of  government  beyond  all  others. 

It  is,  however,  to  be  lamented  that,  instead  of  every  facility 
being  given  to  the  sale  of  tobacco  and  the  consumption  thus  en- 
couraged, the  public  meet  with  great  difficulties  and  experience 
such  frequent  obstacles  and  deficiencies  in  the  supplies,  that  with 
truth  it  may  also  be  said,  the  sales  are  affected  in  spite  of  the  admi- 
nistrators themselves.  In  the  capital  alone  it  is  a  generally  received 
opinion  that  a  third  part  more  would  there  be  consumed,  if,  instead 
of  compelling  the  purchaser  to  receive  the  tobacco  already  manu- 
factured or  folded,  he  was  allowed  to  take  it  from  the  stores  in  its 
primitive  state;  and  if  the  minor  establishments  in  the  provinces 
were  constantly  supplied  with  good  qualities,  an  infinitely  larger 
quantity  might  be  sold,  and  by  this  means  a  great  deal  of  smuggling 
also  prevented.  Such,  however,  is  the  neglect  and  irregularity  in 
this  department,  that  it  frequently  happens  in  towns  somewhat 
distant  from  Manila,  no  other  tobacco  is  to  be  met  with  than  what 
the  smugglers  sell,  and  if,  perchance,  any  is  to  be  found  in  the  mon- 
opoly stores,  it  is  usually  of  the  worst  quality  that  can  be  imagined. 

I  .pass  over,  in  silence,  the  other  defects  gradually  introduced, 
as  evils,  in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree,  inseparable  from  this  part  of 
public  administration  in  every  country  in  which  it  has  been  deemed 
necessary  to  establish  monopolies;  but  I  cannot  refrain  from  again 
insisting  on  the  urgency  with  which  those  in  power  ought  to  devote 
themselves,  firmly  and  diligently,  to  the  destruction  of  abuses  which 


I 


State  of  the  Philippine.--  in  ISW 


397 


have  hitherto  paralyzed  the  progress  of  the  branch  in  question, 
because  I  am  well  persuaded,  that,  whenever  corresponding  means 
are  adopted,  it  will  be  possible  in  a  short  time  to  double  the  proceeds. 
What  these  means  are,  it  is  not  easy,  nor  indeed  essential,  to  parti- 
cularize in  a  rapid  sketch,  like  this,  of  the  leading  features  and 
present  state  of  the  Philippine  Islands.  I  shall,  therefore,  merely 
remark,  that  it  will  be  in  vain  to  wish  the  persons  engaged  in  the 
management  of  this  department  to  exert  their  real  zeal  and  sincerely 
co-operate  in  the  views  of  government,  as  long  as  they  are  not  placed 
beyond  the  necessity  of  following  other  pursuits  and  gaining  a  liveli- 
hood in  another  way;  in  a  word,  unless  they  have  a  salary  assigned 
them,  corresponding  to  the  confidence  and  value  of  the  important 
object  entrusted  to  their  charge,  no  plan  of  reform  can  be  rendered 
efficient. 

At  the  same  time  steps  are  taken  to  augment  the  revenue 
arising  out  of  tobacco,  it  would  be  desirable,  as  much  as  possible,  to 
improve  the  methods  used  with  regard  to  those  who  gather  in  the  crops, 
by  endeavoring  to  relieve  them  from  the  heavy  conditions  imposed 
upon  them;  conditions  which,  besides  exposing  them  to  the  odious 
effects  of  revenue-laws,  by  their  very  nature  bring  upon  them  many 
unpleasant  consequences,  and  often  total  ruin.  In  order  that  a  cor- 
rect opinion  may  be  formed  of  these  defects,  it  will  suffice  to  observe 
that,  under  pretext  of  preventing  smuggling,  the  guards  and  their 
agents  watch,  visit,  and,  if  I  may  use  the  expression,  live  among  the 
plantations  from  the  moment  the  tobacco-seedlings  appear  above 
ground,  till  the  crops  are  gathered  in.  After  compelling  the  Fili. 
pino  planter  to  cut  off  the  head  of  the  stem,  in  order  that  the  plant 
may  not  become  too  luxurious,  the  surveyors  then  proceed  to  set 
down,  not  only  the  number  of  plants  cultivated  on  each  estate,  but 
even  the  very  leaves  of  each,  distinguishing  their  six  qualities,  in 
order  to  call  the  farmers  to  account,  respectively,  when  they  make 
a  defective  delivery  into  the  general  stores.  In  the  latter  case,  they 
are  compelled  to  prove  the  death  of  the  plants  and  even  to  account 
for  the  leaves  missing  when  counted  over  again,  under  the  penalty 
of  being  exposed  to  the  rigor  of  the  revenue  laws. 

It  cannot  indeed  be  denied  that  by  this  means  two  important 
objects  are  attained,  at  one  and  the  same  time;  the  one,  the  gradual 
improvement  of  the  tobacco,  and  the  other,  the  greater  difficulty 
of  secreting  the  article;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  how  great  are  the 
inconveniences  incurred?  Independent  of  the  singularity  and  con- 
sequent oppression  of  a  regulation  of  this  kind,  as  well  as  its  too 
great  minuteness  and  complication,  it  is  attended  with  very  consider- 


Abuses  by 
revenue    officers. 


Burdensome 
and 

unprofitable 
inspection. 


S98  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

able  expenses,  and  renders  it  necessai  y  to  keep  on  foot  a  whole  army 
of  guards  and  clerks,  who  tyrannize  over  and  harass  the  people 
without  any  real  motive  for  such  great  scrupulosity  and  profusion. 
I  make  this  observation  because  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  the 
same  results  might  nearly  be  obtained,  by  adopting  a  more  simple 
and  better  regulated  system.  I  am  not  exactly  aware  of  the  one 
followed  in  the  Island  of  Cuba,  but  as  far  as  I  understand  the  matter, 
it  is  simply  reduced  to  this:  the  growers  there  merely  present  their 
bales  to  the  inspectors,  and  if  pronounced  to  be  sound  and  good, 
the  stipulated  amount  is  paid  over  to  them;  but  if  the  quality  is  bad, 
the  whole  is  invariably  burnt.  Thus  all  sales  detrimental  to  the 
public  revenue  are  prevented,  and  I  do  not  see  why  the  same  steps 
could  not  be  taken  in  the  Philippine  Islands.  It  must  not,  however, 
be  understood,  that  I  presume  to  speak  in  a  decisive  tone  on  a  sub- 
ject so  extremely  delicate,  and  that  requires  great  practical  informa- 
tion, which,  I  readily  acknowledge,  I  do  not  possess.  I  merely 
wish  by  means  of  these  slight  hints,  to  contribute  to  the  commence- 
ment of  a  reform  in  abuses,  and  to  promote  the  adoption  of  a  plan 
that  may  have  for  basis  the  relief  of  the  growers,  and  at  the  same 
time  advance  the  prosperity  of  this  part  of  the  royal  revenue. 
Coco  and  nipa  The  monopoly  of  coco  and  nipa,  or  palm-wine,  is  a  branch  of 

wine  monopoly,  public  revenue  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  merit  the  second  place 
among  the  resources  rendered  available  to  the  expenditure  of  these 
Islands,  converted  into  a  monopoly  some  years  ago.  In  like  manner  as 
the  consumption  of  tobacco,  it  has  experienced  several  changes  in  its 
plan  of  administration,  this  being  at  one  time  carried  on,  for  account 
of  the  king,  at  others,  by  the  privilege  being  let  out  at  auction;  till 
at  length  the  Board  of  Control,  convinced  of  the  great  profit  gained 
by  the  contractors,  resolved  at  once  to  take  the  direction  of  this 
departure  under  their  own  charge,  and  make  arrangement  for  its 
better  administration.  Having  with  this  view  established  general 
deposits  and  licensed  houses  for  the  sale  of  native  wine,  with  proper 
superintending  clerks  they  soon  began  to  reap  the  fruits  of  so 
judicious  a  determination.  In  1780,  the  privilege  of  selling  the 
cocoandnipa  wine  was  farmed  out,  to  the  highest  bidder,  for  no  more 
than  $45,200  and  subsequently  the  increase  has  been  so  great, 
owing  to  the  improvements  adopted,  that  at  present  net  proceeds 
equal  to  $200,000  on  an  average  may  be  relied  upon.  In  proof  of 
this,  the  proceeds  of  this  branch,  in  the  year  1809,  may  be  quoted, 
when  the  total  balances  received  at  the  Treasury,  after  all  expenses 
had  been  paid,  amounted  to  $221,426,  in  the  following  manner: 

Administration  of  Manila  and  district $201,250 

Administration  of  La  Pampanga  and  district 12,294 

Administration  of  Pangasinan  and  district 7,882 

$:521,426 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  tSt  .99,9 

The  prime  cost  and  other  expenses  that  year  amounted  to  no 
more  than  $168,557  by  which  means,  on  the  whole  operation, 
a  net  profit  of  thirteen  and  one-half  per  cent,  resulted  in  favor  of 
the  treasury. 

The  monopoly  of  native  wine  comprehends  the  whole  of  the  W'-ne  monopoly 
Island  of  Luzon,  excepting  the  Provinces  of  Cagayan,  Zambales,  *'"'"^^-  •  -•  ' 
Nueva  Ecija,  Camarines  and  Albay,  and  is  under  the  direction  of 
three  administrators,  who  act  independently  of  each  other  in  their 
respective  districts,  and  have  at  their  disposal  a  competent  number 
of  guards.  These  administrators  receive  in  the  licensed  establishments 
the  coco  and  nipa  wines,  at  prices  stipulated  by  the  growers.  That 
of  the  coco  is  paid  for  at  the  rate  of  two  dollars  per  jar,  containing 
twenty  ganias,  equal  to  twelve  arrohas,  seven  azurnbres  and  half  a 
cuartiUo,  Castillan  measure,  and  at  fourteen  reals  in  the  places 
nearest  the  depots.  The  nipa  wine  is  laid  at  six  and  one-half  reals  ' 
the  jar,  indistinctly;  prices  which,  although  extremely  low,  are  still 
considered  advantageous  by  the  Filipinos  themselves,  more  parti- 
cularly when  it  is  besides  understood,  that,  from  the  circumstance 
of  their  being  growers  of  this  article,  they  are  exempted  from  mili- 
tary service,  as  well  as  several  other  taxes  and  public  charges. 

The  coco-wine  is  a  weak  spirit,  obtained  in  the  following  manner:  Coco-wine. 
The  tree  that  produces  this  fruit  is  crowned  by  an  assemblage 
of  large  flowers  or  corollas,  from  the  center  or  calix  of  which  issues 
a  fleshy  stem,  filled  with  juice.  The  Indian  cuts  the  extremity  of 
this  stem,  and  inclining  the  remainder  in  a  lateral  manner,  introduces 
it  into  a  large  hollow  tube  which  remains  suspended,  and  is  found  full 
of  sweet  and  sticky  liquor,  which  the  tree  in  this  manner  yields 
twice  in  every  twenty-four  hours.  This  liquid,  called  tuba,  in  the  "Tuha" 
language  of  the  country,  is  allowed  to  ferment  for  eight  days  in  a 
large  vessel,  and  afterwards  distilled  by  the  Indians  in  their  uncouth 
stills,  which  are  no  other  than  large  boilers,  with  a  head  made  of 
lead  or  tin,  rendered  tight  by  means  of  clay,  and  with  a  pipe  frequently 
made  out  of  a  simple  cane,  which  conveys  the  spirit  to  the  receiving 
vessels,  without  passing,  like  the  serpentine  tube  used  in  ordinary 
stills,  through  the  cooling  vats,  which  so  greatly  tends  to  correct  the 
vices  of  a  too  quick  evaporation.  The  tuba,  obtained  in  level  and 
hot  situations,  is  much  more  spirituous  than  that  produced  in  cold 
and  shady  places.  In  the  first,  six  jars  of  juice  are  sufficient  to  yield 
one  of  spirit,  and  in  the  latter,  as  many  as  eight  are  requisite;  a  much 
greater  number,  however,  would  be  wanted  to  rectify  this  spirit 
so  as  to  render  it  equal  to  what  is  usually  known  by  Hollands  proof. 
I  am  not  positively  certain  what  degree  of  strength  the  coco-brandy. 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Niva  brandy. 


Little 
drunke7tneiis. 


Extension  of 

monopoly 

urged. 


or  as  it  is  usually  called  coco-wine,  possesses,  but  it  is  evidently  inferior 
to  the  weakest  made  in  Spain  from  the  juice  of  the  grape.  The  only 
circumstance  required  for  it  to  be  appr  )ved  of,  and  received  into 
the  monopoly-stores,  is  its  being  easily  ignited  by  the  application 
of  a  lighted  candle. 

The  nipa  is  a  small  tree  of  the  class  of  palms,  which  grows  in  a 
very  bushy  form,  and  multiplies  and  prospers  greatly  on  the  margins 
of  rivers  and  watery  tracts  of  land.  The  tuba,  or  juice,  is  extracted 
from  the  tree  whilst  in  its  flowering  state,  in  the  same  way  as  that 
of  the  coco,  and  afterwards  distilled  by  a  similar  process;  butitismore 
spirituous,  from  six  to  six  and  a  half  jars  being  sufficient  to  yield 
one  of  wine.  The  great  difference  remarked  in  the  prices  of  these 
two  species  of  liquor,  arises  out  of  the  great  number  of  uses  to  which 
the  fruit  of  the  cocal  or  coco  tree  is  applicable,  and  the  increase  of 
expense  and  labor  requisite  to  obtain  the  juice,  owing  to  the  great 
height  of  the  plant,  and  the  frequent  dangers  to  which  the  cari- 
lones,  or  gatherers,  are  exposed  in  passing  from  one  tree  to  another, 
which  they  do  by  sliding  along  a  simpl;  cane  (bamboo). 

The  impost  on,  or  rather  monopoly  of,  native  wine,  is  in  itself 
little  burdensome  to  the  community,  as  it  only  falls  on  the  lower 
and  most  dissipated  orders  in  society,  and  for  this  reason  it  is  not 
susceptible  of  the  same  increase  as  that  of  tobacco,  of  which  the  use 
is  more  general,  and  now  become  an  object  of  the  first  necessity. 
The  native  of  the  Philippine  Islands  is,  by  nature,  so  sober,  that  the 
spectacle  of  a  drunken  man  is  seldom  noticed  in  the  streets;  in 
the  capital,  where  the  most  corrupt  classes  of  them  reside,  it  is  admi- 
rable to  see  the  general  abstinence  from  a  vice  that  degrades  the 
human  species.  The  consumption  of  the  coco  and  nipa  wine  is, 
nevertheless,  considerable,  for  it  is  used  in  all  their  festivities,  cock- 
fights, games,  marriages,  etc.  Accordingly  if  it  is  desired  to  aug- 
ment the  annual  sale  of  these  liquors,  no  way  could  be  more  efficient 
than  to  increase  the  number  of  their  festive  meetings,  and  seek  pre- 
texts to  encourage  public  diversions,  so  long  as  these  do  not  go  con- 
trary to  the  well-regulated  order  of  society,  and  conflict  with  the 
duties  of  those  who  are  intrusted  with  its  superintendence. 

I  am  still  of  opinion,  however,  that,  without  resting  the  pros- 
perity of  this  branch  of  the  public  revenue  on  principles  possessed 
of  so  immoral  a  tendency,  it  might  be  rendered  more  productive 
to  the  treasury,  if  the  monopoly  could  be  introduced  into  the  other 
districts  adapted  to  its  establishment.  By  this  I  mean  to  say  that, 
as  hitherto  the  monopoly  has  been  partial,  and  enforced  more  in  the 
way  of  a  trial  than  in  a  general  and  permanent    manner,    much 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  IHIO 


401 


remains  to  be  done,  and  consequently  great  scope  is  left  for  improve- 
ment in  this  department  of  the  public  revenue.  This  most  assuredly 
may  be  attained,  if  all  the  local  circumstances  and  impediments, 
more  or  less  superable,  which  the  matter  itself  presents,  are  only 
taken  into  due  account,  and  proper  exertions  made  to  study  and 
discover  the  various  indirect  means  of  increasing  the  total  mass  of 
contributions,  by  applying  a  system  more  productive  and  analogous 
to  the  nature  of  the  Philippine  Islands.  With  regard  to  the  revenue 
of  the  two  particular  articles  above  treated  on,  I  merely  wish  to 
make  it  understood  that,  far  from  introducing  by  means  of  the  mono- 
poly, a  new  vice  into  the  provinces  in  which  I  recommend  its  estab- 
lishment, it  would  rather  act,  in  a  certain  degree  at  least,  as  a  correc- 
tive to  pre-existing  evils,  and  the  government  would  derive  advan- 
tages from  an  article  of  luxury,  by  subjecting  its  consumption  to  the 
same  shackles  under  which  it  stands  in  the  northern  provinces, 
where  its  administration  is  established  and  carried  on  for  account 
of  the  royal  treasury. 

In  former  times,  when  only  vessels  belonging  to  the  Asiatic 
nations  visited  the  port  of  Manila,  with  effects  from  the  coast  of 
Coromandel,  or  the  China  junks,  and  now  and  then  a  Spanish  vessel 
coming  from  or  going  to  the  Island  of  Java,  with  spices  for  account 
of  Philippine  merchants,  the  receipt  of  duties  was  left  in  charge  of  a 
single  royal  officer,  and  the  valuations  of  merchandise  made  by  him, 
in  concert  with  two  merchants  named  by  the  government;  but  with 
the  knowledge  and  assistance  of  the  king's  attorney-general.  The 
modifications  and  changes  which  have  subsequently  taken  place  in 
this  department  have,  however,  been  frequent,  as  is  evidently 
shown  by  the  historical  extract  from  the  proceedings  instituted 
before  the  Council  of  the  Indies,  by  the  merchants  of  Seville  and 
Cadiz,  in  opposition  to  those  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  printed  in 
Madrid,  1736,  in  folio,  by  order  of  the  said  council;  but  as  it  does  not 
enter  into  my  views  to  speak  of  times  so  remote,  I  shall  confine  my 
remarks  to  this  branch  considered  under  its  present  form. 

In  conformity  to  royal  orders  of  March  15  and  May  5,  1786, 
the  Royal  Custom  House  of  Manila  was  definitively  organized  on  its 
new  plan;  and  from  1788,  was  placed  under  the  immediate  charge 
of  an  administrator-general,  a  controller,  a  treasurer,  aided  by  a 
competent  number  of  guards,  inspectors,  etc.,  and  in  every  respect 
regulated  on  the  plan  established  in  the  other  custom  houses.  The 
freedom  of  the  port  being  granted  to  foreign  nations,  a  privilege 
before  enjoyed  only  by  those  purely  Asiatic,   and  a  new  line  of 


Former 

/■iislotns 


(\ixtiiiii   htius*. 


402  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

trade  commenced  by  the  company,  the  competition  in  merchandise 
soon  began  to  increase,  as  well  as  the  revenue  arising  therefrom,  in 
such  manner  that,  although  the  exportation  of  goods  was  limited 
to  the  cargo  of  the  Acapulco  ship,  of  which  the  duties  are  not  pay- 
able till  her  arrival  there;  notwithstanding  also  the  property  imported 
by  the  company  from  China  and  India,  and  destined  for  their  own 
shipments,  was  exempt  from  duties,  and  above  all,  the  continual 
interruptions  experienced  by  the  maritime  commerce  of  the  Islands 
within  the  last  fifteen  or  twenty  years,  the  net  proceeds  of  the  cus- 
tom house,  from  the  period  above  mentioned  of  its  establishment, 
till  the  close  of  1809,  have  not  been  less  than  from  $138,000  to 
$140,000,  on  an  average,  independent  of  the  amount  of  the  king's  fifth 
on  the  gold  of  the  country,  which  is  collected  by  the  same  adminis- 
trator, in  consequence  of  its  being  trivial;  as  well  as  the  two  per 
cent,  belonging  to  the  Board  of  Trade,  and  by  them  collected  under 
that  title,  and  afterwards  separately  applied  to  the  average-fund 
and  which  usually  may  be  estimated  from  $20,000  to  $25,000. 

The  general  duties  now  levied  in  the  custom   house,    are    the 
following : 
Port  charijes  Six  per  cent.  «/Hto;'am/aj70  is  on  all  kinds  of  merchandise  imported 

and  duties.  jj^  foreign  bottoms,  under  a  valuation  made  by  the  surveyors,  in 

conformity  to  the  respective  prices  of  the  market  at  the  time  on 
importation;  it  usually  is  regulated  by  an  increase  of  50%  on  the 
prime  cost  of  India  goods,  and  of  33  ^3  %  on  those  from  China.  This 
duty  may  be  considered  as,  in  fact,  equal  to  nine  per  cent  on  the 
former,  and  eight  on  the  latter. 

Six  per  cent,  or  the  same  duty,  on  all  foreign  goods,  although 
imported  in  national  bottoms. 

Three  per  cent  on  Spanish  goods,  imported  under  the  national 
flag,  equal,  according  to  the  above  estimate  to  4  and  4H%. 

Two  per  cent  Board  of  Trade  duty,  indistinctly  on  all  foreign 
property,  equivalent  to  2)2  or  3%. 

Twenty-five  per  cent  anchorage  dues,  levied  on  the  total 
amount  of  the  almojarisfago  duty. 

An  additional  of  two  and  one-half  per  cent,  a  new  and  temporary 
duty,  called  suhvencion,  appropiated  to  the  payment  of  the  loan  made 
to  the  king  by  the  Cadiz  Board  of  Trade,  and  leviable  on  all  kinds 
of  imported  goods,  and,  of  course,  equal,  according  to  the  usual  mode 
of  valuation,  to  about  three  per  cent. 

Three  per  cent  on  the  exportation  of  coined  silver  and  gold  of 
the  country,  in  dust  and,  ingots. 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  18 to 


40S 


An  additional  or  duty  of  subvencion,  or  temporary  duty  on  the 
above,  equal  to  one-half  per  cent. 

One  and  a  half  per  cent  under  the  same  rate,  on  all  kinds  of 
goods,  and  equal  to  two  or  two  and  one  half  per  cent. 

One  and  one-half  per  cent  on  the  amount  of  the  cargo  of  the 
Acapulco  ship,  on  leaving  the  port  of  Manila,  equal  to  %  %  on  the 
real  prime  cost. 

The  company  are  considered  in  the  same  light  as  the  rest  of 
the  merchants,  in  the  graduation  and  payment  of  duties,  on  such 
goods  as  they  sell  out  of  their  own  stores  for  local  consumption, 
with  the  exemption  only  of  the  Board  of  Trade  rate  of  2%  and  3%, 
on  the  exportation  of  silver,  according  to  a  special  privilege,  and  in 
conformity  to  the  61st  Article  of  the  new  royal  decree  of  1803. 

Besides  the  duties  above  enumerated,  there  is  another  trifling 
one  established  for  local  purposes  of  -peso  merchante,  being  a  rate 
for  the  use  of  the  king's  scales,  levied  according  to  an  extremely 
equitable  tariff,  on  certain  articles  only  of  solid  weight,  such  as  iron, 
copper,  etc.  The  raw  materials  as  well  as  all  kinds  of  manufactured 
articles,  belonging  to  the  Islands,  are  exempt  from  duties  on  their 
entry  in  the  port  and  river  of  Manila ;  but  seme  of  the  first  are  subject 
to  the  most  unjust  of  all  exactions,  that  is,  to  an  arbitrary  tax  and 
to  the  obligation  of  being  retailed  out  on  board  the  vessels  in  which 
they  have  been  brought  down,  and  deliverable  only  to  persons 
bearing  a  written  order,  signed  by  the  sitting  members  of  the  muni- 
cipal corporation.  Among  this  class  of  articles  may  be  mentioned 
the  coco  of  Cebu  and  the  wax  and  oil  of  the  Bisayas,  which  are  rated 
as  objects  of  the  first  necessity. 

With  regard  to  the  respective  duties  on  the  cargo  annually 
dispatched  by  the  merchants  of  Manila  to  New  Spain,  the  practice 
is  tolerably  well  regulated.  An  extreme  latitude  is  given  to  the 
moderate  rates  at  which  it  is  ordered  to  value  the  goods  contained  in 
the  manifest,  by  which  means  these  are  frequently  put  down  at  only 
one-half  of  their  original  prime  cost;  the  commission  to  frame  the 
scale  of  valuations  which  is  to  be  in  force  for  five  years,  after  which 
time  it  is  renewed,  being  left  to  three  merchants,  and  made  subject 
to  the  revision  of  the  king's  attorney-general  (fiscal)  and  the  appro- 
bation of  the  governor;  consequently,  such  being  the  nature  of  the 
tariff  on  which  these  operations  are  founded,  the  33  Vg  %  to  which 
the  royal  duties  amount  on  the  $500,000  stipulated  in  the  permit, 
does  not,  in  fact,  affect  the  shipper  beyond  the  rate  of  15  per  cent, 
in  consequence  of  the  great  difference  between  the  prime  cost  and 


Slight 

concession 

In  the  Company 


C  ndervalualion 
of  fjalleon 
goods. 


I 


404  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

valuation  of  the  articles  corresponding  to  the  permit;  or,  what  is 
the  same  thing,  between  the  $500,000  nominal  value,  and  $1,100,000 
or  $1,200,000,  the  real  amount  of  the  cargo  in  question.  The  most 
remarkable  circumstance,  however,  is,  that  the  officers  of  the  revenue 
in  Acapulco  collect  the  above-mentioned  33^3  %  in  absolute  conform- 
ity to  the  Manila  valuation,  and  not  according  to  the  value  of  the 
goods  in  America,  and  without  any  other  formality  than  a  compari- 
son of  the  cargo  with  the  ship's  papers.  In  honor  of  truth,  it  ought 
to  be  further  observed  that,  although  the  Manila  merchant  by  this 
means  seeks  to  exempt  himself  from  the  part  of  the  enormous  duties 
with  which  it  has  been  attempted  to  paralyze  the  only  commercial 
intercourse  he  carries  on  with  New  Spain,  in  every  other  respect 
connected  with  this  operation,  he  acts  in  a  sufficiently  legal  manner, 
and  if  at  their  return  those  vessels  have  been  in  the  habit  of  bringing 
back  near  a  million  of  dollars  in  a  smuggled  way,  it  must  be  acknowl- 
edged that  it  is  the  harshness  of  the  law  which  compels  the  merchant 
to  become  a  smuggler;  for  according  to  the  strange  regulation  by 
which  he  is  thwarted  in  the  returns  representing  the  proceeds  of 
his  outward  operation,  he  must,  either  bring  the  money  to  the  Phil- 
ippine Islands  without  having  it  declared  on  the  ship's  papers,  or  be 
obliged  to  leave  the  greatest  part  of  it  in  the  hands  of  others,  subject 
to  such  contingencies  as  happen  in  trade.  As  long,  therefore,  as  the 
present  limitations  subsist,  which  only  authorize  returns  equal  to 
double  the  value  of  the  outward-bound  cargo,  this  species  of  con- 
traband will  inevitably  continue.  The  governors  also,  actuated  by 
the  principles  of  reason  and  natural  justice,  will,  as  they  have  hither- 
to done,  wink  at  the  infraction  of  the  fiscal  laws;  a  forbearance,  in 
fact,  indirectly  beneficial  to  them,  inasmuch  as  it  eventually  con- 
tributes to  the  general  improvement  of  the  colony.  Indeed,  with- 
out this  species  of  judicious  condescension,  trade  would  soon  stand 
still  for  the  want  of  the  necessary  funds  to  carry  it  on. 
Unbusinesslike  ....  It  will  readily  be  acknowledged  that,  in  like  manner  as  the 

cuntoms  wntjs.  good  organization  of  custom  houses  is  favorable  to  the  progress  of 
general  commerce,  so  nothing  is  more  injurious  to  its  growth  and  the 
enterprise  of  merchants,  than  any  uncertainty  or  arbitrary  conduct 
in  the  levying  of  duties  to  be  paid  by  them.  This  arises  out  of  the 
circumstance  of  every  merchant,  entering  on  a  new  speculation,  being 
anxious  to  have,  as  the  principal  ground  work  of  his  combinations, 
a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  exact  amount  of  his  disbursements,  in 
order  to  be  enabled  to  calculate  the  final  result  with  some  degree 
of  certainty.  Considered  in  this  point  of  view,  the  system  adopted 
in  the  Islands  is  certainly  deplorable,  since  it  must  be  acknowledged 


•State  0/  the  Philippines  in  1810  U06 

that  the  principles  and  common  rules  of  all  other  commercial  coun- 
tries, are  there  unknown.  For  example;  this  year  a  cargo  arrives 
from  China  or  Bengal,  and  the  captain  turns  in  his  manifest.  The 
custom-house  surveyors  then  commence  the  valuation  of  the  goods 
of  which  his  cargo  is  composed:  I  say  they  commence,  because  it  is 
a  common  thing  for  them  not  to  have  finished  the  estimate  of  the 
scale  and  amount  of  corresponding  duties,  till  the  expiration  of  two, 
four,  and  not  unfrequently  six  months.  The  rule  they  affect  to 
follow,  in  this  valuation,  is  that  of  the  prices  current  in  the  market, 
and  in  order  to  ascertain  what  these  are,  they  are  seen  going  round 
inquiring  in  the  shops  of  the  Sangleys  (Chinese),  till  at  length, 
finding  it  useless  to  go  in  search  of  correct  and  concurrent  data, 
in  a  place  where  there  are  neither  brokers  nor  public  auctions,  they 
are  forced  to  determine  in  an  arbitrary  manner,  and  as  the  adage 
goes,  always  take  good  care  to  see  their  employers  on  the  right 
side  of  the  hedge.  The  grand  work  being  ended,  with  all  this  form 
and  prolixity,  the  sentence  of  the  surveyors  is  irrevocable.  The 
bondsman  of  the  captain,  who,  in  the  meanwhile,  has  usually  sold 
his  cargo  and  departed  with  a  fresh  one  for  another  destination, 
pays  in  the  amount  of  the  duties,  thus  regulated  by  law. 

The  practical  defects  and  injurious  consequences  of  such  a  Vanatiuna 
system  as  this,  it  would  be  unnecessary  to  particularize.  It  would,  *"  i^aluatwns. 
however,  be  less  intolerable,  if,  once  put  in  force,  it  could  serve  the 
merchant  as  a  guide  in  the  valuations  of  his  property  for  a  determined 
number  of  successive  years.  What,  however,  renders  this  assess- 
ment more  prejudicial,  is  its  instability  and  uncertainty,  and  the 
repetition  of  the  same  operation  I  have  just  described  every  year, 
and  with  every  cargo  that  arrives;  but  under  distinct  valuations, 
according  to  the  reports  or  humor  of  the  day.  Besides  these  great 
defects  and  irregularity,  the  Philippine  custom  house  observes  the 
singular  practice  of  not  allowing  the  temporary  landing  of  goods 
entered  in  transitu  and  for  re-exportation,  as  is  done  on  the  bonding 
system  in  all  countries  where  exertions  are  made  by  those  in  author- 
ity for  the  extension  and  improvement  of  commerce  in  every  possible 
way.  Of  course,  much  less  will  they  consent  to  the  drawback  or 
return  of  any  part  of  the  duties  on  goods  entered  outwards,  even 
though  they  are  still  on  board  the  very  vessels  in  which  they  origin- 
ally came  shipped.  Beyond  all  doubt,  the  wrongly  understood 
severity  of  such  a  system,  has,  and  will,  continue  to  prevent  many 
vessels  from  frequenting  the  port  of  Manila,  and  trying  the  market, 
unable  to  rely  on  the  same  liberal  treatment  they  can  meet  with  in 
other  places. 


-406- 


THE  FORME  a  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


The  areca-nul 


Buyo   monopoly 
unsaiisfacory 


llurdships  on 

areca-nut 

planters. 


The  bonga,  or  areca-nut,  is  the  fruit  of  a  very  high  palm-tree, 
not  unlike  the  one  that  bears  the  date,  and  the  nuts,  similar  to  the 
latter,  hang  in  great  clusters  from  below  the  protuberance  of  the 
leaves  or  branches.  Its  figure  and  size  resemble  a  common  nut, 
but  solid,  like  the  nutmeg.  Divided  into  small  pieces,  it  is  placed 
in  the  center  of  a  small  ball  made  of  the  tender  leaves  of  the  buyo 
or  belel  pepper,  lightly  covered  with  slacked  lime,  and  this  composi- 
tion constitutes  the  celebrated  betel  of  Asia,  or,  as  it  is  here  called, 
the  buyo,  the  latter  differing  from  that  used  in  India,  inasmuch 
only  as  it  contains  cardamomoni . 

The  government,  anxious  to  derive  advantage  in  aid  and  sup- 
port of  the  colony,  from  the  great  use  the  inhabitants  make  of  the 
buyo,  many  years  ago  determined  to  establish  the  sale  of  the  bonga, 
its  principal  ingredient,  into  a  monopoly,  either  by  hiring  the  privil- 
ege out,  or  placing  it  under  a  plan  of  administration,  in  the  form  in 
which  it  now  stands.  Both  schemes  have  been  tried,  but  neither 
way  has  this  branch  been  made  to  yield  more  than  $30,000;  indeed 
the  annual  proceeds  usually  have  not  exceeded  $25,000.  In  1809, 
the  total  amount  of  sales  was  $48,610,  and  deducting  from  this  sum 
the  prime  cost  and  expenses  of  administration,  the  net  profit  in 
favor  of  the  treasury  was  equal  to  no  more  than  $27,078  or  upwards 
of  1253^2%-  In  1780,  the  privilege  of  selling  the  bonga  was  let  out 
at  public  auction  for  the  sum  of  $15,765  and  this,  compared  with  the 
present  proceeds, clearly  shows  that,  although  the  increase  has  not 
advanced  equally  with  the  other  branches  of  the  revenue,  it  is  far 
from  having  declined.  It  must  nevertheless  be  confessed,  that 
on  the  present  footing  on  which  it  stands,  the  smallness  of  the  pro- 
ceeds is  not  worth  the  trouble  required  in  the  collection,  and  even 
if  the  amount  were  still  greater,  it  could  never  serve  as  an  excuse 
for  the  oppression  and  violence  to  which  this  monopoly  frequently 
gives  rise. 

As  the  trees  producing  the  bonga  are  not  confined  to  any  par- 
ticular grounds,  and  indiscriminately  grow  in  all,  the  plan  has  been 
adopted  of  compelling  the  Filipinos  to  gather  and  bring  in  the  fruit, 
raised  on  their  lands,  to  the  depot  nearest  the  district  in  which  they 
reside.  There  they  are  paid  from  two,  two  and  one-half,  three 
and  three  and  one-half  reals  per  thousand,  according  to  the  distance 
from  which  they  come:  and,  in  order  to  prevent  frauds,  the  sur- 
veyors belonging  to  the  revenue  go  out,  at  certain  times  of  the  year, 
to  examine  the  bonga  plantations,  and  the  trees  being  counted,  they 
estimate  the  fruit,  that  is,  oblige  the  proprietor  to  undertake  to 
deliver  in  two  hundred  nuts  for  each  bearing  tree,  whether  or  not, 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810  407 

hurricanes  deteriorate  or  destroy  the  produce,  or  thieves  plunder  the 
plantations,  as  very  frequently  happens.  In  case  deficiencies  are 
proved  against  him,  he  is  compelled  to  pay  for  them  in  money, 
at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  reals  per  thousand,  the  price  at  which 
the  king  sells  them  in  the  monopoly-stores.  Besides,  the  precise 
condition  of  delivering  in  two  hundred  bonga  nuts,  according  to  the 
stipulations  imposed  upon  him,  presupposes  the  previous  exclusion 
of  all  the  injured  or  green  ones;  and  although  the  ordinary  trees 
usually  yield  as  many  as  three  hundred  nuts  each,  great  numbers 
are  nevertheless  spoiled.  If,  to  the  adverse  accidents  arising  out 
of  the  storms  and  robberies,  we  add  the  effects  of  the  whims  or 
ill-humor  of  the  receivers,  it  is  not  easy  to  imagine  to  what  a 
length  the  injuries  extend  which  befall  the  man  who  has  the 
folly  or  misfortune  to   become  a  planter  of  this  article. 

On  the  other  hand,  as  in  the  conveyances  from  the  minor  to  Folly  of 
the  larger  depots,  frauds  are  frequently  committed,  and  the  heaping  ^^^onopoly  plan. 
together  of  many  millions  of  nuts  inevitably  produces  the  fermenta- 
tion and  rapid  putrefaction  of  a  great  number  of  them,  it  consequently 
follows  that  the  waste  must  be  immense;  or  if  it  is  determined  to  sell 
all  the  stock  laid  in,  without  any  distinction  in  quality  and  price, 
the  public  must  be  very  badly  served  and  displeased,  as  in  fact  too 
often  happens.  Since,  therefore,  the  habit  of  using  the  huyo  is  still 
more  prevailing  than  that  of  tobacco,  when  suitable  supplies  cannot 
be  had  in  the  monopoly  stores,  the  consumer  naturally  resorts  to 
the  contraband  channels,  although  he  encounters  some  risk,  and 
expends  more  money.  It  is  also  very  natural  that  the  desire  of 
gain  should  thus  lead  on  and  daily  expose  a  number  of  needy  per- 
sons, anxious  by  this  means  to  support  and  relieve  the  wants  of 
their  families.  Returning,  however,  to  what  more  immediately 
concerns  the  grower,  I  do  not  know  that  the  oppressive  genius  of 
fiscal  laws  has,  in  any  country  of  the  globe,  invented  one  more 
refinedly  tyrannic,  than  to  condemn  a  man,  to  a  certain  degree  at 
least,  as  has  hitherto  been  the  case,  to  the  punishment  of  Tantalus; 
for  the  law  forbids  the  Filipino  to  touch  the  fruit  of  the  tree  planted 
with  his  own  hands,  and  which  hangs  in  tempting  and  luxuriant 
abundance  round  his  humble  dwelling. 

It  would  be  easy  for  me  to  enumerate  many  other  inconveniences    Its  modification 
attending  this  branch  of  public  revenue,  on  the  footing  on  which  it    'desirable. 
now  stands,  if  what  has  already  been  said  did  not  suffice  to  point 
out  the  necessity  of  changing  the  system,  as  those  in  authority  are 
anxious  that  the  treasury  should  gain  more,  and  the  king's  subjects 
suffer  less.     The  strong  prejudice  entertained  against  this  source 


408  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

of  revenue,  the  inconsiderable  sum  it  produces,  and  the  complicated 
form  of  its  organization,  have  in  reality  been  sufficient  motives  to 
induce  many  to  become  strenous  advocates  for  the  total  abolition 
of  the  monopoly.  I  do  not,  however,  on  this  account  see  any  reasons 
for  altogether  depriving  the  government  of  a  productive  resource,  as 
this  might  soon  be  rendered,  if  it  was  placed  under  regulations  less 
odious  and  more  simple  in  themselves.  I  nevertheless  agree,  that 
the  perfect  monopoly  of  the  areca  fruit,  or  bonga,  is  impracticable, 
till  the  trees,  indiscriminately  planted,  are  cut  down,  and,  in  the  same 
way  as  the  tobacco  plantations,  fresh  and  definite  grounds  are  laid 
out  for  its  cultivation,  on  account  of  the  revenue.  I  am  further 
aware  that  this  measure  is  less  practicable  than  the  first;  for,  inde- 
pendent of  all  the  other  obstacles,  it  would  be  necessary  to  wait 
till  the  new  plantation  yielded  fruit,  and  also  that  the  public  should 
consent  to  refrain  from  masticating  buyo  in  the  meanwhile,  a  preten- 
sion as  mad  as  it  would  be  to  require  that  the  eating  of  salt  should 
be  dispensed  with  for  a  given  number  of  years.  But  what  difficulty 
would  there  be,  for  example,  in  the  proprietors  paying  so  much  a  year 
Tree-tux  for  each  bonga  tree  to  the  district  magistrate,  the  governor  of  the 

preferable.  nearest  town,  or  the  cabeza  de  Barangay,  or  chiefs  of  the  clans  into 

which  the  natives  are  divided,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Filipino 
pays  his  tribute?  The  only  one  I  anticipate  is  that  of  fixing  the 
amount  in  such  way  that,  at  the  same  time  this  resource  is  made  to 
produce  an  increased  income  of  some  moment,  it  may  act  as  a 
moderate  tax  on  an  indefinite  property,  the  amount  of  which, 
augmented  in  the  same  price,  may  be  reimbursed  to  the  proprietor 
by  the  great  body  of  consumers.  It  is  not  in  fact  easy  to  foresee 
or  estimate,  by  any  means  of  approximation,  the  alteration  in  the 
current  price  of  the  bonga,  that  would  result  from  the  indefinite 
freedom  of  its  cultivation  and  sale,  especially  during  the  first  years. 
Although,  for  this  reason,  it  would  be  impossible  to  ascertain  what 
proportion  the  impost  on  the  tree  would  then  bear  with  regard  to 
the  value  of  the  fruit,  the  error  that  might  accrue  would  be  of  little 
moment,  as  long  as  precautions  were  taken  to  adopt  a  very  low  rate 
of  comparison,  and  a  proportionably  equitable  one  as  the  basis  of 
taxation.  Supposing  then  that  the  price  of  the  bonga  should  decline 
from  twenty-five  reals,  at  which  it  is  now  sold  in  the  monopoly 
stores,  to  fifteen  reals  per  thousand,  in  the  general  market,  and  a 
tax  of  one-fourth  real  should  be  laid  on  each  tree  valued  at  two 
hundred  bonga  nuts,  it  is  clear  that  this  would  be  equal  to  no  more 
than  83^%;  or,  what  is  the  same,  the  tax  would  be  in  the  propor- 
tion one  to  twelve  with  the  proceeds  of  each  tree,   and  the  more  the 


■State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


400 


value  of  the  fruit  was  raised,  the  more  would  the  rate  of  contribu- 
tion diminish.  It  ought  at  the  same  time  to  be  observed  that,  under 
the  above  estimate,  that  is,  supposing  the  price  of  the  article  to 
remain  at  fifteen  reals,  the  ^]4,%  at  which  rate  the  tax  is  regulated, 
would  not  perhaps  exceed  five  or  six  per  cent  on  a  more  minute  cal- 
culation; in  the  first  place,  because  at  the  time  of  making  out  the 
returns  of  the  trees,  those  only  ought  to  be  set  down  which  are  in 
their  full  vigor,  excluding  such  as  through  the  want  or  excess  of  age 
only  yield  a  small  proportion  of  fruit;  and  in  the  second,  because  in 
the  numbers  registered,  the  trees  would  only  be  rated  at  two  hundred 
although  it  is  well  known  they  usually  yield  three  hundred,  in  order 
by  this  means  the  better  to  avoid  all  motives  of  complaint.  In  this 
point  of  view,  and  by  adopting  similar  rules  of  probability,  it  seems 
to  me  that  the  government  would  not  risk  much  by  an  attempt 
to  change  the  present  system  into  a  tax  levied  on  the  tree  itself, 
on  a  plane  similar  to  the  one  above  proposed;  more  particularly 
by  doing  it  in  a  temporary  manner,  and  rendering  it  completely 
subservient  to  the  corrections  subsequent  experience  might  suggest 
in  this  particular. 

The  difficulty  being,  in  this  manner,  overcome,  with  regard 
to  the  prudent  determination  of  the  rate  at  which  the  proprietor 
of  the  bonga  plantations  ought  to  contribute,  let  us  now  proceed 
to  estimate,  by  approximation,  the  annual  sum  that  would  thus  be 
obtained.  As,  however,  this  operation  is  unfortunately  compli- 
cated, and  in  great  measure  depends  on  the  previous  knowledge  of  the 
total  number  of  trees  liable  to  the  tax  proposed,  details  with  which 
we  are  at  not  present  prepared,  it  is  impossible  to  come  at  any  very 
accurate  results.  All  that  can  be  done  is  to  endeavor  to  demon- 
strate, in  general  terms,  the  great  increase  the  revenue  would 
experience  by  the  adoption  of  the  new  plan,  and  the  real  advantage 
resulting  from  it  to  the  contributors  themselves,  all  which  may  be 
easily  deduced  from  the  following  calculation. 

Let  us,  in  the  first  instance,  suppose  that  the  consumers  of 
buyo,  in  the  whole  of  the  Islands,  do  not  exceed  one  million  of  persons, 
and  that  each  one  makes  use  of  three  bongas  per  day,  this  consump- 
tion, at  the  end  of  the  year,  would  then  amount  to  1,095,000,000 
nuts.  We  will  next  divide  this  sum  by  two  hundred,  at  which  the 
product  of  each  tree,  one  with  another,  is  rated,  and  the  result 
will  be  5,475,000  trees.  This  number  being  taxed  at  the  rate  of  one- 
fourth  real,  would  leave  the  sum  of  $171,093.75  and  deducting 
therefrom  the  $25,000  yielded  by  this  branch  under  its  present 
establishment,  together  with  $5,132    equal  to  three  per  cent  paid 


Exemption 
of  immature 
an<t  aged  trees. 


Difficulty  of 
estimating 
probable 
revenue. 


Greater, 
however,  than 
at  present. 


4/0 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES    THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Tax  only  u 
surcharge 
ultimately  paid 
bu  consumer 


Estimate 
canservatice- 


A  dvuntayeK. 


to  the  district  magistrates  for  the  charges  of  collection,  we  should 
still  have  an  annual  increase  in  favor  of  the  ,  treasury  equal  to 
$140,961.75. 

It  might  perhaps  be  objected  that,  in  this  case,  the  proprietor, 
instead  of  receiving,  as  before  tv/o  and  one-half  reals  for  every 
thousand  bongas,  would  have  to  disburse  one  and  one-fourth  reals 
in  the  mere  act  of  paying  one  fourth  real  for  each  tree;  a  circum- 
stance which,  at  first  sight,  seems  to  produce  a  difference  not  of  one 
and  one-fourth,  but  of  three  and  one-fourth  reals  per  thousand 
against  him;  though  in  reality  far  from  this  being  the  case,  if  we 
take  into  consideration  the  deficiencies  the  sworn  receiver  usually 
lays  to  his  charge,  the  fruit  he  rejects,  owing  to  its  being  green  or 
rotten,  and  the  many  and  expensive  grievances  he  is  exposed  to  in 
his  capacity  of  grower;  it  will  be  seen  that  his  disbursements  under 
these  heads  frequently  exceed  the  amount  he  in  fact  has  to  receive. 
If,  in  addition  to  this,  we  bear  in  mind  that,  on  condition  of  seeing 
himself  free  from  guards  and  a  variety  of  insupportable  restrictions, 
constituting  the  very  essence  of  a  monopoly,  he  would  in  all  proba- 
bility gladly  pay  much  more  than  the  tax  in  question,  all  the  doubts 
arising  on  this  point  will  entirely  disappear.  Finally,  considered 
in  its  true  light,  we  shall  not  find  in  the  measure  above  described 
anything  more  than  a  very  trifling  discount  required  of  the  prop- 
rietor from  the  price  at  which  he  sells  his  honga,  and  which,  as 
already  noticed,  ultimately  falls  on  the  consumer  alone. 

The  moderate  estimate  I  have  just  formed  ought  to  inspire 
the  more  confidence  from  its  being  well  known  that  the  use  of  the 
biiyo  is  general  among  the  inhabitants  of  these  Islands.  The  calcu- 
lation, as  it  now  stands,  rests  only  on  one  million  consumers,  for 
each  of  whom  I  have  only  put  down  three  bongas  per  day,  whereas 
it  is  customary  to  use  much  more;  nor  have  I  taken  into  account 
the  infinite  number  of  nuts  wasted  after  being  converted  into  the 
buyo,  a  fact  equally  well  known.  Indeed,  as  the  object  proposed 
was  no  other  than  to  prove  the  main  part  of  my  assertions,  and  I 
trust  this  is  satisfactorily  done,  I  have  not  deemed  it  necessary 
to  include  in  the  above  calculation  a  greater  number  of  minute 
circumstances,  nor  attempt  to  deduce  more  favorable  results,  which, 
with  the  scope  before  me,  I  was  most  assuredly  ^warranted  in 
doing. 

In  a  word,  from  the  concurrence  of  the  facts  and  reasons  above 
adduced,  the  following  propositions  may,  without  any  difficulty, 
be  laid  down.  First,  that  the  increase  of  revenue  produced  by  the 
reform  in  question,  would  in  all  probability  exceed  $150,000  per 
annum;  secondly,  that  the  Filipinos  would  soon  comprehend,  and 
gladly  consent  to  a  change  of  this  kind  in  the  mode  of  contributing 
of  which  the  advantages  would  be  apparent;  thirdly,  that  the  per- 
sons employed  in  the  old  establishment,  might,  with  greater  public 


i 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  IS  10 


411 


utility,  be  applied  to  other  purposes;  and  lastly,  that  the  civil  magis- 
trates would  not  be  harassed  with  so  many  strifes  and  lawsuits, 
and  so  many  melancholy  victims  of  the  monopoly,  and  its  officers 
would  cease  to  drag  a  wretched  existence  in  the  prisons  and  places 
of  hard  labor  in  these  Islands. 

The  cock-pit  branch  of  the  revenue  is  hired  out  by  the  govern- 
ment, and  the  license  is  separately  set  up  at  auction  for  the  respec- 
tive provinces.  Its  nature  and  regulations  are  so  well  known  that 
they  do  not  require  a  particular  description,  the  general  obligations 
of  the  contractors  being  the  same  as  those  in  New  Spain.  Perhaps 
the  only  difference  observed  in  this  public  exhibition  in  the  Philip- 
pine Islands  consists  in  its  greater  simplicity,  owing  to  its  being 
frequented  only  by  the  natives,  the  whites  who  are  present  at  this 
kind  of  diversion  being  very  few,  or  indeed  none. 

The  cock-pits  are  open  two  days  in  the  week,  and  the  lessees 
of  them  receive  half  a  real  from  every  person  who  enters,  besides 
the  extra  price  they  charge  those  who  occupy  the  best  seats,  the 
owners  of  the  fighting  cocks,  for  the  spurs,  stalls  for  the  sale  of  buyo, 
refreshments,  etc.  Notwithstanding  all  this,  and  although  cock- 
fighting  is  so  general  and  favorite  an  amusement  among  these  people 
(the  rooster  may  justly  be  considered  as  the  distinctive  emblem 
of  the  Filipino)  the  annual  proceeds  of  this  branch  are  inconsiderable; 
although  it  must  be  acknowledged  that  it  has  greatly  increased 
since  the  year  1780,  when  it  appears  the  license  was  let  at  auction 
for  only  about  $14,000  owing,  no  doubt,  to  the  exclusive  privilege  of 
the  contractors  not  having  been  extended  to  the  provinces,  as  was 
afterwards  gradually  done. 

The  total  sum  paid  to  the  government  by  the  renters  of  this 
branch,  according  to  the  auction  returns  in  1810,  amounted  to  $40,141 
in  the  following  order  for  the  provinces: 

Tondo $18,501 

Cavite  2,225 

La  Laguna  2,005 

Pampanga 3,000 

Bulacan 6,900 

Batangas 2,000 

Pangasinan 1,200 

Bataan 1,050 

Iloilo 1,600 

Ilocos. 600 

Tayabas  .  400 

Cebu 360 

Albay 300 

Total $40,141 


Cockpit  licenses. 


Inconsiderable 
income. 


Provincial 
cockpit   revenue 


412 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Possibilities 
of  increase. 


Indian  tributes. 


The  causes,  to  which  the  increase  that  has  taken  place  within 
the  last  twenty-five  or  thirty  years  is  chiefly  to  be  attributed, 
have  already  been  pointed  out,  and  for  this  reason  it  would  appear 
that,  by  adopting  the  same  plan  with  regard  to  the  fourteen  remain- 
ing provinces,  of  which  this  captaincy-general  is  composed,  hitherto 
free  from  the  imposition  of  this  tax,  an  augmentation  might  be  ex- 
pected, proportionate  to  the  population,  their  circumstances,  and 
the  greater  or  lesser  taste  for  cock-fights  prevailing  among  their 
respective  inhabitants.  At  the  commencement,  no  doubt,  the 
rentals  would  be  low,  and,  of  course,  the  prices  at  which  the  licenses 
were  let  out,  would  be  equally  so;  but  the  experience  and  profits 
derivable  from  this  kind  of  enterprises  would  not  fail  soon  to  excite 
the  competition  of  contractors,  and  in  this  way  add  to  the  revenue 
of  the  government.  This  is  so  obvious  that  I  cannot  help  suspecting 
attempts  have,  at  some  period  or  other,  been  made  to  introduce  the 
establishment  of  this  privilege,  in  some  of  the  provinces  alluded  to; 
at  the  same  time  I  am  persuaded  that,  owing  to  the  affair  not  having 
been  viewed  in  its  proper  light,  seeking  on  the  contrary  to  obtain 
an  immediate  and  disproportionate  result,  the  authorities  have  been 
too  soon  disheartened  and  given  up  the  project  without  a  fair  trial. 
All  towns  and  districts  murmur,  and,  at  first  object,  to  taxes,  however 
light  they  may  be;  but,  at  length,  if  they  be  not  excessive,  the  people 
become  reconciled  to  them.  The  one  here  proposed  is  neither  of 
this  character,  nor  can  it  be  deemed  odious  on  account  of  its  novelty. 
The  natives  are  well  aware  that  their  brethren  in  the  other  provinces 
are  subject  to  it,  and  that  in  this  nothing  more  is  done  than  rendering 
the  system  uniform.  I,  therefore,  see  no  reason  why  the  establish- 
ment of  this  branch  of  revenue  should  not  be  extended  to  all  the 
pointsof  the  Islands.  At  the  commencement,  let  it  produce  what  it 
may,  since  constancy  and  time  will  bring  things  to  the  same  general 
level. 

The  too  great  condescension  and  mistaken  humanity  of  the 
government  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  fraud  and  selfishness  of  the 
provincial  sub-delegates  or  collectors,  on  the  other,  have  concurred 
to  change  a  contribution,  the  most  simple,  into  one  of  the  most 
complicated  branches  of  public  administration.  The  first  cause 
has  been  owing  to  a  too  general  acquiescence  to  receive  the  amount 
of  tributes  in  the  produce  peculiar  to  each  province,  instead  of  money; 
and  the  second,  because  as  the  above  officers  are  the  persons  intrusted 
with  the  collection,  whenever  the  sale  has  held  out  to  them  any 
advantage,  they  have  been  in  the  habit  of  appropriating  the  severa* 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810  ilS 

articles  to  themselves,  without  allowing  any  benefit  to  the  treasury. 
If  the  prospective  sales  of  the  produce  appear  unfavorable,  it  is  then 
forwarded  on  to  the  king's  store  in  Manila,  surcharged  with  freights, 
exposed  to  many  risks,  and  the  value  greatly  diminished  by  waste 
and  many  other  causes.  No  order  or  regularity  being  thus  observed 
in  this  respect,  and  the  sale  of  the  produce  transmitted  to  the  king's 
stores  being  regulated  by  the  greater  or  lesser  abundance  in  the 
general  market,  and  a  considerable  stock  besides  left  remaining, 
from  one  year  to  another,  and  eventually  spoiled,  it  is  impossible 
to  form  any  exact  estimate  of  this  branch.  If  to  these  complicated 
matters  we  add  the  radical  vices  arising  out  of  the  infidelity  of  the 
heads  of  clans  (cabezas  de  harangay),  the  difficulty  of  ascertaining 
the  defects  of  the  returns  made  out  by  them,  the  variations  annually 
occurring  in  the  number  of  those  exempted  either  through  age  or 
other  legal  motives,  and  above  all,  the  frequently  inevitable  tardi- 
ness with  which  the  district  magistrates  send  in  their  respective  ac- 
counts, it  will  be  readily  acknowledged,  that  no  department  requires 
more  zeal  in  its  administration,  and  no  one  is  more  susceptible  of 
all  kinds  of  frauds,  or  attended  with  more  difficulties. 

In  this  state  of  uncertainty,  with  regard  to  this  particular  branch,  A  consermtive 
I  have  guided  myself  by  the  last  general  return  of  tributes,  made  out  ''"timnte. 
in  the  accountant-general's  office,  on  the  best  and  most  recent  data, 
and  calculating  indistinctly  the  whole  value  in  money,  I  have  deemed 
it  proper  afterwards  to  make  a  moderate  deduction,  on  account  of 
the  differences  above  stated,  and  arising  out  of  the  collection  of  the 
tributes  in  kind,  the  expenses  of  conveyance,  shipwrecks,  averages, 
and  other  causes  already  enumerated. 

In  conformity  to  this  calculation,  the  total  proceeds  of  this  Fixi<l  rhan/ea. 
branch  of  revenue  amount  to  $506,215  from  which  sum  are  deducted, 
in  the  primitive  stages  of  the  accounts,  the  amount  of  ecclesiastical 
stipends,  the  pay  of  the  troops  under  the  immediate  orders  of  the 
chief  district  magistrates  in  their  quality  of  war-captains,  together 
with  all  other  extraordinary  expenses  incurred  in  the  provinces  by 
orders  of  the  government,  the  remainder  being  afterwards  forwarded 
to  the  king's  treasury.  It  ought,  however,  to  be  observed,  that  the 
above  aggregated  sum  is  more  or  less  liable  to  deficiencies,  according 
to  the  greater  or  lesser  degree  of  punctuality  on  the  part  of  the  sub- 
collectors  in  making  up  accounts,  and  the  solidity  of  their  respective 
sureties;  the  failure  of  this  kind  experienced  by  the  revenue  being 
so  frequent,  that,  according  to  the  returns  of  the  accountant-general, 
those  which  occurred  between  the  years  1762  and  1809,  were  no  less 
than  $215,765  notwithstanding  the  great  precautions  at  all  times 


4/4 


THE  FORMER   PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Preferabilily 
of  trihule 
in  money. 


taken  to  prevent  such  considerable  injuries,  by  every  means  com- 
patible with  the  precarious  tenure  of  property  possessed  by  both 
principals  and  sureties  in  this  country.  All  the  above  circumstances 
being  therefore  taken  into  due  consideration,  and  the  ordinary  and 
extraordinary  discounts  made  from  the  total  amount  of  tributes, 
the  real  sum  remaining,  or  the  net  annual  proceeds  of  the  above 
branch,  have  usually  not  been  rated  at  more  than  $190,000  and 
$200,000;  a  sum  respectively  extremely  small,  and  which  possibly 
might  be  doubled,  without  the  necessity  of  recurring  to  any  other 
measure  than  a  standing  order  for  the  collecting  of  the  tributes  in 
money,  as  by  this  means  the  variety  of  expenses  and  complications 
above  enumerated,  would  be  avoided,  and  the  king's  revenue  no 
longer  exposed  to  any  other  deficiencies  than  those  arising  out  of 
the  insolvency  of  the  sub-collectors  and  their  sureties,  or  casual  risks, 
and  the  trifling  charges  paid  for  the  conveyance  of  the  money. 
If  in  opposition  to  this  it  should  be  alleged  that  it  would  be  advisable 
to  except  some  of  the  provinces  from  this  general  rule,  owing  to  the 
advantages  the  government  might  derive  from  certain  tributes  being 
paid  in  kind,  I  do  not  hesitate  to  answer  that  I  see  no  reason  whatever 
why  this  should  be  done,  because,  if,  for  example,  any  quality  of 
rigging  or  sail  cloth  is  annually  required,  it  would  be  easy  to  obtain 
it  either  by  early  contracts,  or  by  laying  in  the  articles  at  the  current 
market  price.  Indeed,  all  supplies  which  do  not  rest  on  this  foot- 
ing, would  be  to  defraud  the  natives  of  the  fruits  of  his  industry, 
and  in  the  final  result  this  would  be  the  same  as  requiring  of  him 
double  or  triple  tribute,  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  the  law,  which 
unfortunately  is  too  frequently  the  case  under  the  existing  system. 
Considering  this  affair  in  another  point  of  view,  it  would  be 
easy  for  me  to  demonstrate,  if  it  were  necessary,  the  mistaken  idea 
that  the  native  is  benefited  by  receiving  in  kind  the  amount  of  the 
tribute  he  has  to  pay,  at  the  low  prices  marked  in  the  tariff  used 
as  a  standard,  by  showing  the  extortions  and  brokerage,  if  I  may 
so  term  it,  to  which  the  practice  gives  rise  on  the  part  of  the  district 
collectors.  It  will,  however,  suffice  to  call  the  attention  of  my 
readers  to  the  smallness  of  the  sum  constituting  the  ordinary  trib- 
ute, when  reduced  to  money,  in  order  for  them  to  be  convinced  that 
it  would  be  superfluous,  as  well  as  hazardous,  to  attempt  to  point 
out  how  this  branch  might  be  rendered  more  productive  to  the  state 
and  at  the  same  time  less  burdensome  to  the  contributors,  more 
particularly  when  the  rate  assessed  does  not  exceed  ten  reals  per 
year,  a  sum  so  small,  that  generally  speaking,  no  family  can  be  found 
unable  to  hoard  it  up,  if  they  have  any  inclination  so  to  do. 


Staie  of  the  Philippines  in    tSIO  ilS 

The  prevailing  error,  however,  in  this  respect,  I  am  confident 
arises  out  of  a  principle  very  different  from  the  one  to  which  it  is 
usually  attributed.  The  tributary  native  is,  in  fact,  disposed  to 
pay  the  quota  assigned  to  him  into  the  hands  of  the  chief  of  his  clan, 
in  money,  in  preference  to  kind;  because,  independent  of  the  small 
value  at  which  the  articles  in  kind  are  rated  in  the  tariff,  he  is  then 
exposed  to  no  expenses,  as  he  now  is  for  the  conveyance  of  his  prod- 
uce and  effects;  nor  is  he  liable  to  so  many  accidents.  But  as  the 
chief  of  each  clan  has  to  deliver  in  his  forty  or  fifty  tributes  to  the 
head  magistrate,  who  is  answerable  for  those  of  the  whole  province, 
it  is  natural  for  him  to  endeavor  to  make  his  corresponding  payments 
in  some  equivalent  affording  him  a  profit;  at  the  same  time  the  pro- 
vincial magistrate,  speculating  on  a  larger  scale,  on  the  produce 
arising  out  of  his  jurisdiction,  seeks  to  obtain  from  the  government  a 
profitable  commutation  in  kind  for  that  which  the  original  contribu- 
tor would  have  preferred  paying  in  money.  In  order  the  better  to 
attain  his  purpose,  he  asserts,  as  a  pretext,  the  impossibility  of  col- 
lecting in  the  tribute  under  another  form,  alleging,  moreover,  the 
relief  the  native  derives  from  this  mode,  whereas,  if  only  duly  exam- 
ined, such  a  pretence  is  founded  on  the  avarice,  rather  than  the 
humanity  of  the  magistrate. 

Leaving  to  one  side  the  defects  attributable  to  the  present 
mode  of  collection,  and  considering  the  tribute  as  it  is  in  itself, 
the  attentive  observer  must  confess,  that  in  no  part  of  our  Indies 
is  this  more  moderate;  and,  indeed,  it  is  evident  that  the  laws  gen- 
erally relating  to  the  natives  of  these  Islands  seem  to  distinguish 
them  with  a  decided  predilection  above  those  of  the  various  sections 
of  America. 

The  tribute  in  its  origin  was  only  eight  reals  per  family;  Hems  in 
but  the  necessity  of  providing  for  the  increased  expenses  of  the  gov-  tribute. 
eminent  gave  rise  to  this  rate  being  afterwards  raised  to  ten.  The 
Sangley  mestizos  pay  double  tribute,  and  the  Sangleys  contri- 
bute at  the  rate  of  $6  per  head.  Besides  this,  all  pay  a  yearly 
sum,  applicable  to  the  funds  belonging  to  the  community,  and  the 
above  two  casts  pay  three  reals  more,  as  a  church  rate,  and  under 
the  name  of  the  Sanctuary,  the  whole  being  in  the  following  form: 

r,  ,■      .r  .■     ,T,   ■,    .  Tribute  of 

Entire  Native  Tribute  Mestizos  Sangleys 

8  Reals,  original  tribute 16  Reals.       $6  each. 

1'^  Reals  for  expenses  of  troops 3 

\^  Real  to  tithes 1 

10  Reals,  amount  of  tribute 20  Reals.       $6.75 

1  Real,  community  funds 1 

3  Reals,  sanctuary  rate 3 

14  Reals,  total  annual  disbursement 24  Reals.       $6.75 


416 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Chinese  tax. 


Commumti/ 
funds. 


The  males  commence  paying  tribute  at  twenty  years  of  age  and 
the  females  at  twenty-five,  if  before  they  have  not  entered  the 
matrimonial  state,  and  in  both  the  obligation  ceases  at  the  age 
of  sixty.  The  chiefs  of  clans,  or  cabezas  de  barangay  and  their  eldest 
sons,  or  in  default  of  children,  the  person  adopted  in  their  stead, 
that  is,  an  entire  tribute  and  a  half,  are  exempt  from  this  tax,  as  a 
remuneration  for  the  trouble  and  responsibility  they  may  have  in 
collecting  in  the  forty  or  fifty  tributes,  of  which  their  respective 
clans  are  composed.  Besides  these  there  are  various  other  classes 
of  exempted  persons,  such  as  the  soldiers  who  have  served  a  certain 
number  of  years,  those  who  have  distinguished  themselves  in  any 
particular  manner  in  the  improvement  of  industry  or  agriculture, 
and  others  who  have  received  special  certificates,  on  just  and  equit- 
able grounds.  In  summing  up  the  total  number  of  exempted 
persons,  on  an  average  in  the  whole  of  the  provinces,  they  will  be 
found  in  the  proportion  of  fifty  to  every  thousand  entire  tributes. 

The  head-tax  of  the  Sangleys  has  usually  been  attended  with 
so  many  difficulties  in  its  collection,  owing  to  the  facilities  with 
which  they  absent  or  secrete  themselves,  and  the  many  stratagems 
this  cunning  and  artful  race  employ  to  elude  the  vigilance  of  the  com- 
missioners, that  the  government  has  at  length  found  itself  compelled 
to  let  out  this  branch,  as  was  done  in  1809,  when  it  was  disposed  of 
in  the  name  of  one  of  them  for  the  moderate  sum  of  $30,000;  notwith- 
standing it  is  a  generally  received  opinion,  that  the  number  of  this 
description  of  Chinese,  constantly  residing  in  the  Islands,  is  above 
7,000,  which,  at  the  rate  of  $6  per  head,  would  raise  this  proportion 
of  the  tax  as  high  as  $42,000. 

The  Community  funds  belonging  to  each  town,  have,  in  conform- 
ity to  the  regulations  under  which  they  are  administered,  a  special, 
or  I  might  say,  local  application;  but  collected  together  into  one 
stock,  as  is  now  the  case,  and  directly  administered  by  the  govern- 
ment, they  produce  a  more  general  utility.  The  head  town  of  the 
province  A,  for  example,  requires  to  rebuild  the  public  prison  or 
town-hall,  and  its  own  private  funds  are  not  sufficient  to  defray  the 
expenses  of  the  work  in  question.  In  this  case,  therefore,  the  gov- 
ernment gives  orders  for  the  other  dependent  towns  to  make  up 
the  deficiency  by  taking  their  proportions  from  their  respective 
coffers,  as  all  have  an  equal  interest  in  the  proposed  object  being 
carried  into  effect.  The  king's  officers,  in  consequence  thereof, 
draw  the  corresponding  sums  from  these  funds,  the  whole  of  which 
is  under  their  immediate  superintendence.  And  in  order  that  the 
surplus  of  this  stock  may  not  stand  still,  but  obtain  every  possible 


I 


State  of  the  Philippines  in   1810  417 

increase  in  a  country  where  the  premium  for  money  is  excessive, 
when  let  out  at  a  maritime  risk,  it  is  ordered  that  some  part  shall  be 
appropriated  in  this  way,  and  on  the  same  terms  as"  those  observed 
by  the  administrators  of  the  charity  funds  belonging  to  the  Miseri- 
cordia  (Charity)  establishment,  and  the  third  order  of  St.  Francis, 
which  is  another  of  the  great  advantages  of  assembling  this  class 
of  property. 

In  consequence  of  this  judicious  regulation,  and  the  success  with 
which  this  measure  has  hitherto  been  attended,  the  Community 
fund  has  gone  on  increasing  in  such  a  way  that,  notwithstanding 
the  sums  drawn  from  it  for  the  purpose  of  constructing  causeways, 
bridges,  and  other  municipal  objects,  at  the  commencement  of  1810, 
the  stock  in  hand  amounted  to  no  less  than  $200,000;  and  it  is  natural 
to  suppose  when  the  outstanding  premiums  due  shall  have  been  paid 
in,  a  considerable  augmentation  will  take  place.  This  branch, 
although  not  exactly  comprehended  in  those  which  constitute  the 
revenue  of  the  government,  has  so  obvious  an  analogy  with  that  of 
tributes,  that  I  have  not  deemed  it  any  essential  deviation  from  the 
order  and  method  I  have  hitherto  observed  in  this  work,  to  introduce 
it  in  this  place,  as  in  itself  it  did  not  deserve  to  be  classed  under  a 
distinct  head. 

Notwithstanding  the  truth  of  what  has  been  said  with  regard  to  Tribute 
the  moderate  rate  of  the  tribute  imposed  on  the  native  of  the  Phil- 
ippine Islands,  it  would  be  extremely  desirable  if  he  could  be  al- 
together exonerated  from  a  charge  which  he  bears  with  great  repug- 
nance, by  some  other  substitute  being  adopted,  indirectly  producing 
an  equivalent  compensation.  In  the  first  place,  because  the  just 
motives  of  complaint  would  cease,  caused  not  only  by  the  tribute, 
but  also  the  manner  of  its  collection;  and  an  end  would  then  be  put 
to  those  intrigues  and  extortions  the  district  magistrates  commit, 
under  the  title  of  zealous  collectors  of  the  king's  revenue,  and  the 
power  of  a  multitude  of  subaltern  tyrants,  comprehended  under  the 
denomination  of  chiefs  of  native  clans  {ccibezas  de  barnngny)  would 
then  also  fall  to  the  ground;  a  power  which,  if  now  employed  for 
the  purpose  of  oppressing  and  trampling  on  the  liberties  of  inferiors, 
might  some  day  or  other  be  converted  into  an  instrument  dangerous 
and  subversive  of  our  preponderance  in  the  country.  In  the  second 
place,  if,  among  all  the  civilized  nations  a  head-tax  (poll-tax)  is  in 
itself  odious,  it  must  incontestably  be  much  more  so  among  those 
whose  unlettered  state,  far  from  allowing  them  to  know  that  the 
social  order  requires  a  certain  class  of  sacrifices  for  its  better  preserva- 
tion, makes  them  attribute  exactions  of  this  kind  to  an  abuse  of 


41 S 


THE  FORMER   PHILIPPIXES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Possible 
Revenue 
substitutes. 


superiority.  Hence  are  they  led  to  consider  these  restraints  as  the 
symbols  of  their  own  slavery  and  degradation,  as  in  fact  the  natives 
in  these  Islands  have  ample  reasons  for  doing,  when  the  legal 
exemption  of  the  whites  is  considered,  without  any  other  apparent 
reason  than  the  difference  in  color.  Independent  of  this,  the  sub- 
stitute above  alluded  to  would  be  extremely  expedient,  inasmuch  as 
it  would  greatly  simplify  the  plan  of  administration,  the  accountant's 
department  would  be  freed  from  the  most  painful  part  of  its  labors, 
and  the  district  magistrates  and  sub-collectors  would  not  so  frequently 
be  entangled  in  their  accounts,  and  exposed  to  expensive  and  inter- 
minable lawsuits,  as  now  so  often  happens. 

The  difficulty,  however,  of  finding  out  this  compensation  or  sub- 
stitute is  a  matter  of  some  consideration.  On  the  one  hand,  if  it 
was  attempted  to  distribute  the  proceeds  arising  out  of  the  tributes 
on  other  branches,  such  as  tobacco,  native  wine,  bongn,  and  custom 
house,  it  would,  at  first  sight,  appear  possible,  through  the  medium 
of  an  almost  invisible  augmentation  in  the  respective  sale  prices 
and  in  the  king's  duties,  that  this  important  object  might  easily 
be  attained;  but,  on  the  other,  it  might  be  apprehended  that  the 
additional  value  put  on  the  articles  above-mentioned,  would  pro- 
duce in  their  consumption  a  diminution  equal  to  the  difference  in 
prices,  in  which  cases  no  advantage  would  be  gained.  The  prac- 
ticability of  the  operation,  in  my  opinion,  depends  on  the  proportion 
in  which  the  means  of  obtaining  the  articles  in  question  respectively 
stand  with  the  probability  of  their  being  consumed.  I  will  explain 
myself.  If,  for  example,  the  annual  stock  of  tobacco  laid  in  should 
be  insufficient  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  consumers,  as  constantly 
occurs,  it  is  clear  that  this  article,  when  monopolized,  will  bear  a  small 
augmentation  of  price,  not  only  without  any  inconvenience  or  risk, 
but  with  the  moral  certainty  of  obtaining  a  positive  increase  of 
revenue,  the  necessary  effect  of  the  total  consumption  of  the  tobacco 
laid  in  and  sold.  But  as  this  does  not  happen  with  the  branch  of 
native  wines,  of  which  the  stock  usually  exceeds  the  demand,  and 
as  the  bouga  also  is  not  susceptible  of  this  improvement,  owing  to  the 
small  place  it  occupies  among  the  other  resources  of  the  revenue,  no 
other  means  are  left  than  to  add  to  the  duties  of  export  on  silver, 
and  of  import  on  foreign  merchandise,  a  percentage  equivalent  to 
the  deficiency  not  laid  on  tobacco,  unless  it  should  be  deemed  more 
advisable  to  levy  a  sumptuary  contribution  on  coaches,  horses  and 
servants,  and  especially  on  all  kinds  of  edifices  and  houses  built 
of  stone  and  mortar,  situated  both  within  and  without  the  capital. 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  ISIO  A19 

However  this  may  be,  whatever  the  king  loses  in  revenue  by  Objection  to 
the  abolition  of  the  native  tributes,  no  doubt,  could  be  made  up  tribute-paying. 
by  an  appeal  to  other  ways  and  means.  It  is  well-known  that  many 
of  the  Indian  tribes  refuse  to  become  subjects  of  the  crown  and  object 
to  enter  into  general  society  on  account  of  the  odious  idea  they  have 
formed  of  paying  tribute;  or,  as  they  understand  it,  the  obligation 
of  giving  something  for  nothing,  notwithstanding  those  who  volun- 
tarily submit  themselves  to  our  laws,  are  exempt  from  tribute,  and 
this  charge  falls  only  on  their  descendants.  But  of  this  they  must 
either  be  ignorant,  or  they  regret  depriving  their  posterity  of  that 
independence  in  which  they  themselves  have  been  brought  up,  and 
thus  transmit  to  them  slavery  as  an  inheritance.  As  soon,  therefore, 
as  a  general  exemption  of  this  kind,  without  distinction  of  casts, 
should  be  made  public,  the  natives  would  quit  their  fastnesses  and 
secluded  places,  and  satisfied  with  the  security  offered  to  them, 
would  be  seen  coming  down  to  the  plains  in  search  of  conveniences 
of  civilized  Hfe,  and  all  gradually  would  be  reduced  to  Christianity. 
Hence  the  increase  of  productions  and  their  consumption,  as  well 
as  the  extension  of  agriculture,  industry  and  internal  commerce. 
The  diminution  of  smuggling  tobacco  would  soon  follow,  progress 
would  be  made  in  the  knowledge  of  the  mines  and  natural  riches 
of  the  country,  and  financially,  greater  facilities  would  present  them- 
selves in  gradually  carrying  into  effect  its  entire  conquest  and  civil- 
ization. 

Advantages  of  such  great  and  extraordinary  importance  deserve 
to  be  seriously  weighed,  and  to  this  valuable  department  of  public 
administration  the  early  attention  of  those  in  authority  ought  to 
be  called.  Let  due  inquiries  be  made,  and  soon  shall  we  discover 
the  substantial  benefits  which  would  be  derived  to  the  treasury 
from  the  adoption  of  this  measure,  as  popular  as  it  is  just,  and  also 
conformable  to  the  liberal  spirit  of  the  times.  In  support  of  the 
preceding  arguments,  it  ought  further  to  be  observed,  that  when  all 
the  branches  constituting  the  king's  revenue  are  well  organized, 
brought  to  their  most  productive  state,  and  the  public  debt  con- 
tracted under  unforeseen  exigencies  paid  off,  as  long  as  present  cir- 
ciunstances  do  not  vary,  an  annual  surplus  of  revenue,  equal  to 
more  than  $500,000,  will  be  left;  and  as  the  proceeds  of  the  parti- 
cular branch  of  tributes  do  not  amount  to  this  sum,  it  is  evident 
their  abolition  may  take  place,  not  only  without  any  derangement  or 
onerous  consequences  to  the  administration,  but  even  without  any 
deficiency  being  experienced,  or  any  necessity  to  recur  to  the  treasury 
of  New  Spain  for  extraordinary  aid.     These  reasons  acquire  still 


Svixiltern 
branches. 


420  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

greater  force  when  it  is  remembered  that,  as  things  now  are,  all  the 
branches  of  public  revenue  are  in  a  progressively  improving  condi- 
tion, and  as  the  whole  are  still  susceptible  of  a  much  more  productive 
organization,  the  annual  surplus  of  receipts  will  rapidly  become 
greater,  and  consequently  also  the  necessity  will  diminish  of  con- 
tinuing to  burden  this  portion  of  His  Majesty's  dominions  with 
contributions  in  order  to  meet  the  expenses  of  their  defence  and 
preservation. 

Finally,  well  convinced  of  the  advantageous  results  which,  in 
every  sense,  would  emanate  from  the  revision  and  reforms  proposed, 
I  abstain  from  offering,  in  support  of  my  arguments,  a  variety  of 
other  reflections  which  occur  to  me,  not  to  be  too  diffuse  on  this 
subject;  trusting  that  the  hints  I  have  already  thrown  out  will  be 
more  than  sufficient  to  excite  an  interest  and  promote  a  thorough 
and  impartial  investigation  of  concerns,  highly  important  to  the 
future  welfare  and  security  of  this  colony. 

Besides  the  six  preceding  branches  which  constitute  the  chief 
mass  of  the  public  revenue  in  these  islands,  there  are  several  smaller 
ones  of  less  consideration  and  amount;  some  having  a  direct  appli- 
cation to  the  general  expenses  of  the  local  government,  and  the 
others,  intended  as  remittances  to  Spain;  a  distinction  of  little  import 
and  scarcely  deserving  of  notice,  since  the  object  of  the  present 
sketch  is  to  convey  information  on  a  large  scale  respecting  the  King's 
revenue  in  these  Islands.  As  some  of  them,  however,  yield  proceeds 
more  regular  than  the  others,  I  have  classed  together  the  receipts 
of  the  Pope's  Bulls,  or  "Bulas  de  Cruzada,"  playing-cards,  tithes, 
stamps  and  gunpowder,  under  the  head  of  Subaltern  Branches, 
with  regard  to  the  rest,  to  the  general  statement  already  quoted. 

In  conformity  to  the  returns  with  which  I  have  been  favored 
from  the  public  offices,  these  five  branches  produced,  in  the  year 
1809,  $45,090.75  in  the  following  proportions: 

Sales.              Expenses.  Net  Proceeds. 

Pope's  bulls $15,360.75     $4,422.25  $10,938.50 

Playing  cards 11,539.125        932.625  10,606.50 

Tithes 12,493.00           12,493.00 

Stamps 4,467.50          321.50  4,146.00 

Gunpowder 7.307.625        401.125  6,906.375 

$51,168,125     $6,077.75     $45,090,375 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  ISIO  4$1 

The  scanty  proceeds  of  the  tithes  will  naturally  appear  remark-  Tithes. 
able;  but  it  ought  to  be  remembered  that,  besides  the  ordinary 
tribute,  the  natives  pay  half  a  real  under  this  denomination,  without 
any  distinction  of  person,  or  any  reference  whatever  to  their  respec- 
tive means,  the  total  amount  of  which  is  already  added  to  the  tri- 
butes, and  for  this  reason  not  repeated  in  this  place.  In  addition 
also  no  tithes  are  levied,  except  on  lands  belonging  to  Spaniards, 
churches,  regular  clergy,  ecclesiastical  corporations,  etc.,  and  even 
then  the  articles  of  rice,  wheat,  pulse  indigo  and  sugar,  are  alone 
liable.  The  above  branches  are  all  in  charge  of  administrators, 
and  from  this  plan  it  certainly  would  be  advisable  to  separate  the 
tithes  and  farm  them  out  at  public  auction,  as  was  proposed  by 
the  king's  officers  of  the  treasury,  in  their  report  on  this,  as  well  as 
other  points,  concerning  the  revenue,  and  dated  October  24,  1792. 
From  the  net  proceeds  of  the  gunpowder  the  expenses  of  its  manu- 
facture, confided  to  the  commandant  of  artillery,  ought  seemingly 
to  be  deducted;  but,  as  they  cannot  be  ascertained  with  any  degree 
of  certainty,  and  as  besides  they  are  comprehended  in  the  general 
expenses  of  that  department,  a  separate  deduction  may  be  dispensed 
with. 

In  order  to  form  a  correct  idea  of  the  annual  amount  of  the  expen-  Disbursementa 
diture  incurred  by  the  administration  and  defence  of  the  Philip-  ''"'^  general 
pine  Islands,  it  is  not  necessary  in  this  place  to  distinguish  each 
item,  separately;  or  to  enumerate  them  with  their  respective  sums 
or  particular  denominations.  Some  general  observations  on  this 
subject  ought,  nevertheless,  to  be  made,  with  a  view  to  point  out 
the  reforms  of  which  this  important  department  of  the  public  revenue 
is  susceptible. 

In  the  part  relating  to  the  interior  administration  or  government, 
ample  room  is  certainly  left  for  that  kind  of  economy  arising  out  of 
the  adoption  of  a  general  system,  little  complicated;  but  it  is  besides 
indispensably  necessary  that,  at  the  same  time  the  work  is  simplified 
and  useless  hands  dismissed,  the  salaries  of  those  who  remain  should 
be  proportionally  increased,  in  order  to  stimulate  them  in  the  due 
performance  of  their  duties.  It  might  also  be  found  advisable  to 
create  a  small  number  of  officers  of  a  superior  order,  who  v/ould 
be  enabled  to  co-operate  in  the  collection  of  the  king's  revenue, 
and  the  encouragement  of  agriculture,  commerce  and  navigation, 
in  their  respective  departments.  The  additional  charges  in  this 
respect  cannot  be  of  any  great  consequence;  although,  in  reality, 


expenses. 


J,22  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

by  the  receipts  increasing  through  the  impulse  of  an  administrative 
order  more  perfect,  and  the  expenses  being  always  the  same,  the 
main  object,  so  anxiously  sought  for  in  another  way,  would  be  thus 
attained. 
Defenct  The  reverse,  however,  happens  with  regard  to  the  expenses  of 

expenses  defence,  as  I  have  called  them,  the  better  to  distinguish  them  from 

those  purely  relating  to  the  interior  police  or  administration.  Every 
sacrifice,  most  assuredly,  ought  to  appear  small,  when  the  object 
is  to  preserve  a  country  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  an  enemy,  and 
it  ought  not  to  excite  surprise,  if,  during  the  course  of  the  last  fifteen 
years,  several  millions  of  dollars  have  been  expended  in  the  Phil- 
ippines, in  order  to  shield  them  from  so  dreadful  a  misfortune.  But 
the  late  memorable  revolution  in  the  Peninsula  has  given  rise  to  so 
great  a  change  in  our  political  relations,  and  it  is  extremely  improb- 
able that  these  Islands  will  be  again  exposed  to  the  same  danger 
and  alarm,  that  the  government  may  now,  without  any  apparent 
risk,  dispense  with  a  considerable  part  of  the  preparations  of  de- 
fence, at  one  time  deemed  indispensably  necessary.  A  colony  that 
has  no  other  strong  place  to  garrison  than  its  capital,  and  on  the 
loyalty  of  whose  inhabitants  there  are  sufficient  motives  to  rely, 
ought,  in  my  opinion,  to  be  considered  as  adequately  provided  against 
all  ordinary  occurrences  in  time  of  peace,  with  the  4,000  regulars, 
more  or  less,  of  all  arms,  the  usual  military  establishment.  In  case 
any  suspicions  should  arise  of  an  early  rupture  with  the  only  power 
whose  forces  can  inspire  the  governors  of  these  Islands  with  any  kind 
of  apprehensions,  means  will  not  be  wanting  to  an  active  and  provi- 
dent minister,  of  giving  proper  advice,  so  as  to  allow  sufficient  time 
for  the  assembling  of  the  battalions  of  provincial  militia  and  all  the 
other  necessary  preparations  of  defence,  before  the  enemy  is  in  an 
attitude  to  effect  an  invasion  of  a  country  so  far  distant  from  his  own 
possessions  on  the  coasts  of  Malabar  and  Coromandel.  Consequently , 
by  disbanding  the  corps  of  provincial  infantry,  cavalry  and  artillery, 
which  continue  uselessly  to  be  kept  on  foot,  an  annual  saving  of 
from  $220,000  to  $250,000  would  take  place,  an  amount  too  great 
to  be  expended  unless  imperiously  called  for  by  the  evident  dread 
of  a  premeditated  attack  from  an  hostile  quarter. 
Shipping  The  navy  is  another  of  the  departments  in  which  reforms  may 

reform.  be  introduced,  of  no  small  moment  to  the  treasury.     Of  course  by 

the  government  merely  dispensing  with  the  policy  of  keeping  in 
readiness  two  large  ships  to  convey  to  Acapulco  the  cargos,  for  which 
the  Manila  merchants  enjoy  an  annual  licence,  and  leaving  to  the 
latter  the  full  liberty  of  following  up  their  speculations  on  their  own 


State  of  the   Philippines  in  ISIO  433 

account  and  risk,  in  vessels  of  their  own,  individually  or  with  joint 
stock,  a  saving  would  result  in  favor  of  the  crown  equal  to  $140,000 
to  $150,000  per  annum,  and  without  preventing  the  receipt  in  Aca- 
pulco  of  the  customary  duties  of  $160,000  or  $166,000  corresponding 
to  the  said  licenses.  This  will  evidently  be  the  case,  because  as  long 
as  the  large  disposal  of  funds  of  the  charitable  institutions  are  em- 
ployed in  maritime  risks,  and  the  private  property  of  others  is  besides 
added  to  them,  the  amount  of  the  operations  undertaken  by  the 
merchants  of  the  Philippines  to  New  Spain,  when  divested  of  all 
restraint,  will  always  exceed  $500,000  per  annum.  Nor  is  there  now 
any  further  occasion  for  the  government  to  continue  granting  this 
species  of  gratuitous  tutelage  to  a  body  of  men  possessed  of  ample 
means  to  manage  their  own  affairs,  and  who  demand  the  same  degree 
of  freedom,  and  only  seek  a  protection  similar  to  that  enjoyed  by 
their  fellow-countrymen  in  other  parts  of  the  king's  dominions. 

In  case  the  above  reform  should  be  adopted,  it  might  be  deemed  Galleon  r/rafi. 
requisite  for  the  government  to  undertake  the  payment  of  some  of 
the  charges  under  the  existing  order  of  things,  defrayed  out  of  the 
freights  to  which  the  merchandise  shipped  in  the  Acapulco  traders 
is  liable;  because,  calculating  the  freight  at  the  usual  rate  of  $200 
for  each  three  bales,  or  the  amount  of  one  ticket,  out  of  the  one  thou- 
sand constituting  the  entire  cargo,  and  of  which  one-half,  or  $100,000 
more  or  less,  is  appropriated  to  the  ecclesiastical  chapter,  munici- 
pality, officers  of  the  regular  army  (excluding  captains  and  the  other 
higher  ranks)  and  the  widows  of  Spaniards,  who  in  this  case  would  be 
losers,  independent  of  the  remaining  $100,000  or  500  tickets  distrib- 
uted among  the  200  persons  having  a  right  to  ship  to  Acapulco, 
it  would,  at  first  sight,  appear  reasonable  for  the  treasury  to  indem- 
nify the  above  description  of  persons  by  a  compensation  equivalent 
to  the  privation  they  experience  through  the  new  arrangement  of 
the  government.  But  as  the  practice  of  abuses  constitutes  no  law, 
and  what  is  given  through  favor  is  different  to  that  which  is  required 
by  justice,  there  are  no  reasons  whatever  why  the  treasury  should 
be  bound  to  support  the  widows  of  private  persons,  from  the  mere 
circumstance  of  their  deceased  husbands  having  been  Spaniards; 
more  particularly  if  it  is  considered  that,  far  from  having  acquired 
any  special  merit  during  their  lifetime,  most  of  them  voluntarily 
left  their  native  country  for  the  purpose  of  increasing  their  fortunes, 
and  others  were  banished  from  it,  owing  to  their  bad  conduct. 
Neither  can  it  be  said  that  the  municipality  have  a  legal  right,  in  the 
case  before  stated,  to  receive  any  equivalent  for  the  value  of  their 
respective  ainnual  tickets,  which,  when  disposed  of,  usually  amount 


AU 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Indemnifying 
the  aldermen. 


The  navy. 


to  about  $20,000  in  the  first  place,  because  it  is  well-known  that  the 
eleven  aldermen's  seats,  of  which  that  body  is  composed,  seats  which 
can  either  be  sold  or  resigned,  originally  did  not  cost  as  much  as 
$50,000  and  clearly  the  principal  invested  is  out  of  all  kind  of  pro- 
portion with  the  enormous  premium  or  income  claimed.  In  the 
second  place,  although  the  above  municipal  situations  were  originally 
purchased  with  a  view  to  obtain  some  advantages,  these  formerly 
were  very  different  to  what  they  are  at  present,  when  the  great 
increase  of  shippers  to  Acapulco,  or  in  more  plain  terms,  of  purchase 
of  tickets  competing  to  obtain  them,  has  given  to  these  permits 
a  value  more  than  triple  to  that  they  possessed  thirty  years  ago. 

In  order,  therefore,  to  do  away  with  all  motives  of  doubt 
and  dispute,  as  well  ns  for  many  other  reasons  of  public  utility, 
the  best  plan,  in  my  opinion,  would  he,  to  return  to  each  alderman 
his  money,  and  the  present  municipal  constitution  being  dissolved, 
the  number  of  members  might  be  reduced  to  four,  with  their 
corresponding  registrar,  and  like  the  two  ordinary  "alcaldes," 
elected  every  year  without  any  other  reward  than  the  honor  of 
presiding  over  and  representing  their  fellow-citizens.  Under  this 
supposition,  the  only  classes  entitled  to  compensation,  strictly 
speaking,  would  be  the  ecclesiastical  chapter  and  the  subaltern 
officers,  whose  respective  pay  and  appointment  are  not  in  fact  suffi- 
cient for  the  decency  and  expenses  of  their  rank  in  society.  Of  course 
it  would  then  be  necessary  to  grant  them  more  adequate  allowances, 
but,  according  to  reasonable  calculations,  the  sum  total  annually 
required  would  not  exceed  $30,000;  consequently,  the  reform  pro- 
jected with  regard  to  the  Acapulco  ships  would  still  eventually 
produce  to  the  treasury  a  saving  of  from  $60,000  to  $70,000  in  the 
first  year  of  its  adoption,  and  of  $110,000  to  $120,000  in  every 
succeeding  one. 

It  is,  on  the  other  hand,  undeniable  that,  if  the  royal  navy  and 
cruising  vessels,  or  those  belonging  to  the  Islands  and  under  the 
immediate  orders  of  the  captain-general,  were  united  into  one 
department,  and  placed  under  one  head,  considerable  economy  would 
ensue,  and  all  motives  of  discord  and  emulation  be  moreover  removed. 
Such  would  be  the  case  if  the  change  was  attended  with  no  other 
cirumstances  than  the  consequent  diminution  of  commanders, 
subaltern  officers,  and  clerks;  but  it  would  be  also  proper  to  unite 
the  arsenals,  and  adopt  a  more  general  uniformity  in  the  operations 
and  dependences  of  this  part  of  the  public  services.  It  is  equally 
certain  that,  during  peaceful  times,  the  two  schooners  and  sixty 
gunboats,  constituting  the  number  of  the  above-mentioned  cruising 


State  of  the  Philippines  in   IS  10  4S5 

vessels,  would  be  in  great  measure  useless;  whilst  in  case  of  a  rup- 
ture, they  are  not  sufficient  to  protect  the  trade  of  these  Islands  from 
the  attacks  of  an  enemy,  notwithstanding  they  now  cost  the  govern- 
ment considerable  sums  in  repairs,  etc.,  in  order  to  keep  them  fit 
for  service.  The  government  ought  therefore  to  guard  against  this 
waste  of  public  money,  without,  however,  negl2Cting  the  defence 
of  the  Islands,  objects  which,  in  my  opinion,  might  easily  be  recon- 
ciled. Intelligent  persons  have  judged  that  by  reducing  the  naval 
forces  to  two  frigates,  two  schooners,  and  about  a  dozen  gunboats, 
the  essential  wants  of  the  colony  would  be  duly  answered,  in  ordinary 
times;  and  some  of  the  vessels  might  then  be  destined  to  pursue 
hydrographical  labors  in  the  Archipelago,  which,  unfortunately, 
are  in  a  most  backward  state,  whilst  others  could  be  sent  on  their 
periodical  cruises  against  the  Moros.  By  this  means,  at  least, 
the  navy  department  would  be  greatly  simplified,  and  cease  to  be 
eternally  burdensome  to  the  government.  With  regard  to  the  super- 
fluous gunboats,  it  would  be  expedient  to  distribute  them  gratui- 
tously among  the  marine  provinces  and  Bisayan  Islands,  on  the  only 
condition  of  their  being  always  kept  fit  for  service;  as,  in  one  sense, 
the  great  expenses  of  maintaining  them  would  be  thus  saved  by  the 
treasury,  and,  another,  the  inhabitants  of  those  portions  of  the  coast 
would  be  in  possession  of  means  sufficiently  powerful  to  repel  the 
aggressions  of  the  Moros,  who  commit  great  ravages  on  their  settle- 
ments. Finally,  if  besides  the  reforms  of  which  the  army  and  navy 
are  susceptible,  it  is  considered  that  the  public  works,  such  as  prisons, 
schools,  bridges,  and  causeways,  so  expensive  in  other  countries, 
in  the  Philippines  are  constructed  by  the  natives  on  the  most  reason- 
able terms,  out  of  the  community  funds;  that  there  is  no  necessity 
to  build  fortincations,  and  maintain  numerous  garrisons;  that  the 
clergy,  to  whose  zeal  and  powerful  influence  the  preservation  of 
these  Islands  is  chiefly  due,  do  not  cost  the  treasury  annually  above 
$200,000  and  that  the  geographical  situation  of  the  colony  in  great 
measure  shields  it  from  the  attacks  of  external  enemies,  it  will 
readily  be  confessed,  that  a  wise  and  firm  government  might  under- 
take, without  the  dread  of  having  to  encounter  any  great  obstacles, 
an  administrative  system,  in  a  general  point  of  view,  infinitely  more 
economical  than  the  one  hitherto  followed;  might  be  able  to  extirpate 
numerous  abuses,  and  by  calling  forth  the  resources  of  the  country 
gradually  raise  it  to  a  flourishing  condition,  and  cause  it  hereafter 
to  contribute  largely  to  the  other  wants  of  the  crown.  Hence  was 
it  that  the  distinguished  voyager,  La  Perouse  (Chap.  15),  contem- 
plating these  Islands  with  a  political  eye,  did  not  hesitate  to  affirm 


office-holder  X. 


426  THE  FORMER   PHILIPPINES   THRU   FOREIGN  EYES 

"that  a  powerful  nation,  possessed  of  no  other  colonies  than  the 
Philippines,  that  should  succeed  in  establishing  there  a  form  of  gov- 
ernment best  adapted  to  their  advantageous  circumstances,  would 
justly  disregard  all  the  other  European  establishments  in  Africa 
and  America." 
Objeciionalil,  jj^  q^j-    colonies,  appointments  and  command,  far  from  being 

sought  as  a  means  to  obtain  a  good  reputation,  or  as  affording  op- 
portunities of  contributing  to  public  prosperity,  are,  it  is  too  well 
known,  only  solicited  with  a  view  to  amass  wealth,  and  then  retire 
for  the  purpose  of  enjoying  it.  Commercial  pursuits  being  besides 
attended  with  so  many  advantages  that  those  only  decline  following 
them  who  are  divested  of  money  and  friends;  whilst  the  situation  in 
the  revenue  are  so  few  in  number,  compared  with  the  many  candidates 
who  solicit  them,  that  they  are  consequently  well  appointed,  it  follows 
that  the  excess  left  without  occupation,  besides  being  considerable, 
is  generally  composed  of  needy  persons,  and  not  the  most  suitable  to 
exercise  the  delicate  functions  of  collectors  and  magistrates  in  the 
provinces.  From  this  class  nevertheless  the  host  of  officers  are 
usually  taken  who,  under  the  name  of  collectors,  surveyors  and 
assessors  of  tributes,  intervene  in,  or  influence  the  public  adminis- 
tration. Owing  to  the  variety  and  great  number  of  persons  emi- 
grating to  America,  ample  field,  no  doubt,  is  there  left  for  selection, 
by  which  means  the  viceroys  may  frequently  meet  with  persons 
suitable  and  adequate  to  the  above  trusts,  if  prudent  steps  are  only 
taken;  but  in  this  respect  the  case  is  very  different  in  the  Philippines, 
where  chance  alone  occasionally  brings  over  a  European  Spaniard, 
unemployed  or  friendless.  In  these  remote  Islands,  also,  more 
than  in  any  other  quarter,  people  seek  lo  live  in  idleness,  and,  as 
much  as  possible,  without  working,  or  much  trouble.  As  long  as 
hopes  are  entertained  of  doing  something  in  the  Acapulco  specula- 
tions, every  other  pursuit  is  viewed  with  indifference,  and  the  office 
of  district  or  provincial  magistrate  is  only  solicited  when  all  other 
resources  have  failed,  or  as  a  remedy  against  want.  As  the  appli- 
cants for  these  situations  are  therefore  not  among  the  most  select 
classes,  it  very  frequently  happens  that  they  fall  into  extremely 
improper  and  unworthy  hands. 

It  is  in  fact  common  enough  to  see  a  hairdresser  or  a  lackey 
converted  into  a  governor;  a  sailor  or  a  deserter  trrnsformed  into 
a  district  magistrate,  collector,  or  military  commander  of  a  popu- 
lous province,  without  any  other  counsellor  than  his  own  crude 
understanding,  or  any  other  guide  than  his  passion.  Such  a  meta- 
morphosis would  excite  laughter  in  a  comedy  or  farce;  but,  realized 


J 


State  nf  the  Philippines  in    ISIO  4S7 

in  the  theatre  of  human  life,  it  must  give  rise  to  sensations  of  a  very 
different  nature.  Who  is  there  that  does  not  feel  horror-struck, 
and  tremble  for  the  innocent,  when  he  sees  a  being  of  this  kind  trans- 
ferred from  the  yard-arm  to  the  seat  of  justice,  deciding,  in  the  first 
instance,  on  the  honor,  lives,  and  property  of  a  hundred  thousand 
persons,  and  haughtily  exacting  the  homage  and  incense  of  the  spirit- 
ual ministers  of  the  towns  under  his  jurisdiction,  as  well  as  of  the 
parish  curates,  respectable  for  their  acquirements  and  benevolence, 
and  who,  in  their  own  native  places,  would  possibly  have  rejected 
as  a  servant  the  very  man  whom  in  the  Philippines  they  are  com- 
pelled to  court  and  obey  as  a  sovereign. 

In  vain  do  the  laws  ordain  that  such  offices  shall  not  be  given 
away  to  attendants  on  governors  and  members  of  the  high  court  of 
justice,  for  under  pretext  of  the  scarcity  of  Europeans  experienced 
in  the  colony,  means  are  found  to  elude  the  statute,  by  converting 
this  plea  into  an  exception  in  favor  of  this  description  of  persons. 
By  such  important  offices  being  filled  in  this  manner,  it  is  easy  to 
conceive  the  various  hardships  to  which  many  of  the  provinces  and 
districts  are  exposed ;  nor  can  any  amelioration  be  expected  as  long 
as  this  plan  is  persisted  in  and  the  excesses  of  the  parties  go  without 
punishment. 

Independent,  however,  of  the  serious  injuries  and  great  errors  Eciis  from 
persons  of  the  class  above  described  cannot  fail  to  commit  in  the  officials  in 
exercise  of  their  functions,  purely  judicial,  the  consequences  of  their 
inordinate  avarice  are  still  more  lamentable,  and  the  tacit  permission 
to  satisfy  it,  granted  to  them  by  the  government  under  the  specious 
title  of  a  licence  to  trade.  Hence  may  it  be  affirmed,  that  the  first 
of  the  evils,  and  the  one  the  native  inmmediately  feels,  is  occasioned 
by  the  very  person  the  law  has  destined  for  his  relief  and  protection. 
In  a  word,  he  experiences  injuries  from  the  civil  magistrates  presid- 
ing over  the  provinces,  who,  at  the  same  time,  are  the  natural  ene- 
mies of  the  inhabitants,  and  the  real  oppressors  of  their  industry. 

It  is  a  known  and  melancholy  fact  that,  far  from  promoting  the 
felicity  of  the  provinces  intrusted  to  their  care,  the  magistrates  attend 
to  nothing  else  but  their  own  fortunes  and  personal  interests;  nor 
do  they  hesitate  as  to  the  means  by  which  their  object  is  to  be  attain- 
ed. Scarcely  are  they  seated  in  the  place  of  authority,  when  they 
become  the  chief  consumers,  purchasers,  and  exporters  of  every 
thing  produced  and  manufactured  within  the  districts  under  their 
command,  thus  converting  their  licence  to  trade  into  a  positive 
monopoly.  In  all  lucrative  speculations  the  magistrate  seeks 
to  have  the  largest  share;  in  all  his  enterprises  he  calls  in  the  forced 


trade. 


1,^8  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

aid  of  his  subjects,  and  if  he  deigns  to  remunerate  their  labor,  at 
most  it  is  only  on  the  same  terms  as  if  they  had  been  wo.'^ing  on 
account  of  the  king.  These  unhappy  people  bring  in  their  produce 
and  crude  manufactures  to  the  very  person  who,  directly  or  indirectly, 
is  to  fix  upon  them  an  arbitrary  value.  To  offer  such  and  such  a 
price  for  the  articles  is  the  same  as  to  say,  another  bidding  shall  not 
be  made.  To  insinuate  is  to  command — the  native  is  not  allowed 
to  hesitate,  he  must  either  please  the  magistrate,  or  submit  to  his 
persecutions.  Being  besides  free  from  all  competition  in  the  prose- 
cution of  his  traffic,  since  he  is  frequently  the  only  Spaniard  resi- 
dent in  the  province,  the  magistrate  therein  acts  with  unbounded 
sway,  without  dread,  and  almost  without  risk  of  his  tyranny  ever 
being  denounced  to  the  superior  tribunals. 
Speculating  in  In  order,  however,  that  a  more  correct  idea  may  be  formed  of 

tributes.  the  iniquitous  conduct  of  many  of  these  public  functionaries,  it 

is  necessary  to  lay  open  some  part  of  their  irregular  dealings  in  the 
collection  of  the  Indian  tributes.  It  is  well  known  that  the  govern- 
ment, anxious  to  conciliate  the  interests  of  the  tributary  classes  with 
those  of  the  revenue,  frequently  commutes  the  pecuniary  capitation 
tax  into  an  obligation  to  pay  the  amount  in  produce  or  manufac- 
tures. A  season  comes  when,  owing  to  the  failure  of  the  crops, 
the  productions  have  risen  to  an  excessive  price,  and  consequently 
infinitely  above  the  ordinary  rates  affixed  by  law,  which  are 
generally  the  lowest,  and  the  natives,  unable  to  keep  their  bargains 
without  considerable  injury  or  endangering  the  subsistence  of  their 
numerous  families,  implore  the  favor  of  the  magistrate,  petitioning 
him  to  lay  their  calamitous  situation  before  the  superior  government, 
in  order  to  have  the  payment  of  their  tribute  in  kind  remitted,  and 
offering  to  pay  it  in  money.  This  is  the  precise  moment  when,  as 
his  own  profits  depend  on  the  misery  of  the  province  under  his 
command,  he  endeavors  to  misuse  the  accidental  power  with  which 
he  is  invested.  Hence  it  happens  that,  instead  of  acting  as  a  bene- 
ficent mediator,  and  supporting  the  just  solicitations  of  the  natives, 
he  at  first  disregards  their  petition,  and  then  all  at  once  transforming 
himself  into  a  zealous  collector,  issues  his  notifications,  sends  his 
satellites  into  the  very  fields  to  seize  on  the  produce,  and  in  a  most 
inexorable  manner  insists  on  collecting  till  necessity  compels  him 
to  suspend  the  measure.  The  principal  object  being  attained,  that 
is,  having  now  become  master  of  the  gleanings  and  scanty  crops  of 
his  bereft  subjects,  on  a  sudden  his  disposition  changes,  he  is  moved 
to  pity,  and  in  the  most  pathetic  language  describes  to  the  govern- 
ment the  ravages  done  to  the  plantations  by  the  hurricanes,  and  the 


state  of  the  Philippines  in   ISIO  J,^9 

Utter  impossibility  of  collecting  in  the  tributes  that  year  in  kind. 
On  such  a  remonstrance  he  easily  obtains  permission  to  change  the 
standing  order,  and  proceeding  on  to  collect  in  some  of  the  remaining 
tributes  in  money,  merely  to  save  appearance,  with  perfect  impunity 
he  puts  the  finishing  stroke  to  the  wicked  act  he  had  commenced,  by 
applying  to  himself  all  the  produce  his  collectors  had  gathered  in, 
and  places  to  the  credit  of  the  treasury  the  total  amount  of  the 
tributes,  corresponding  to  his  jurisdiction,  in  money. 

Supposing,  for  example,  that  this  has  happened  in  the  province 
of  Antique,  where  the  payment  of  the  capitation-tax  generally  takes 
place  in  the  unhusked  rice,  rated  at  two  reals  per  cavan,  and,  through 
the  effects  of  a  bad  season,  this  article  should  rise  as  high  as  ten  or 
twelve  reals.  It  is  clear  that  the  magistrate,  by  accounting  for  the 
tributes  with  the  revenue  office  in  money,  and  collecting  them  in 
kind  at  the  rate  fixed  by  law,  would  by  the  sales  gain  a  profit  of 
400  or  500  per  cent;  at  the  same  time  the  native,  by  the  mere  cir- 
cumstance of  then  paying  in  kind,  would  have  paid  the  tribute  cor- 
responding to  five  or  six  years  in  a  single  one,  without,  on  that 
account,  having  freed  himself  from  the  same  charge  in  the  following 
seasons. 

When  the  extortionate  acts  as  these  are  practised,  to  what  lengths  No  check 
may  it  not  be  expected  the  other  excesses  and  abuses  of  authority 
are  carried?  To  the  above  it  ought  moreover  to  be  added,  that  the 
provincial  magistrates  have  no  lieutenants,  and  are  unprovided  with 
any  other  auxiliaries  in  the  administration  of  justice,  except  an 
accompanying  witness  and  a  native  director;  that  the  scrutinies  of 
their  accounts,  to  which  they  formerly  were  subject,  are  now  abol- 
ished, and,  in  short,  that  they  have  no  check  upon  them,  or  indeed 
any  other  persons  to  bear  testimony  to  their  irregularities,  except 
the  friendless  and  miserable  victims  of  their  despotism  and  avarice. 

Notwithstanding,  however,  what  is  above  stated,  it  sometimes 
happens  that  a  magistrate  is  to  be  met  with,  distinguished  from  the 
rest  by  his  prudence  and  good  conduct;  but  this  is  a  miracle,  for 
by  the  very  circumstance  of  his  being  allowed  to  trade,  he  is  placed 
in  a  situation  to  abuse  the  wide  powers  confided  to  him,  and  prefer- 
ably to  attend  to  his  personal  interests;  in  fact,  if  the  principle  is  in 
itself  defective,  it  must  naturally  be  expected  the  consequences  will 
be  equally  baneful.  The  lamentable  abuses  here  noticed  are  but 
too  true,  as  well  as  many  others  passed  over  in  silence;  and  the  worst 
of  all  is,  that  there  is  no  hope  of  remedying  them  thoroughly,  unless 
the  present  system  of  interior  administration  is  altogether  changed. 
In  vain  would  it  be  to  allege  the  possibility  of  removing  the  evil 


on  extortion. 


430  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

by  the  timely  and  energetic  interposition  of  the  protector  of  the 
natives;  for  although  this  office  is  in  itself  highly  respectable,  it 
cannot  in  any  way  reach  the  multitude  of  excesses  committed,  and 
much  less  prevent  them;  not  only  because  the  minister  who  exercises 
it  resides  in  the  city,  where  complaints  are  seldom  brought  in, 
unless  they  come  through  the  channel  of  the  parish  curates;  but  also 
on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  fully  establishing  the  charges  against 
the  magistrates,  in  the  way  the  natives  are  at  present  depressed 
by  fear  and  threats,  as  well  as  restrained  by  the  sub-governors  and 
other  inferior  officers  of  justice,  who,  being  dependent  upon,  and 
holding  their  situations  from  the  magistrates,  are  interested  in  their 
monopolies  and  extortionate  acts  being  kept  from  public  view. 
Less  If,  therefore,  it  is  not  possible  entirely  to  eradicate  the  vices 

complaisant  under  which  the  interior  administration  of  these  Islands  labors,  owing 

laws  needed.  ^^  ^j^^  difficulty  of  finding  persons  possessed  of  the  necessary  virtues 
and  talents  to  govern,  in  an  upright  and  judicious  manner,  let  us  at 
least  prevent  the  evils  out  of  the  too  great  condescension  of  our 
own  laws.  In  the  infancy  of  colonies,  it  has  been  the  maxim  of  all 
governments  to  encourage  the  emigration  and  settlement  of  inhab- 
itants from  the  mother-country,  without  paying  much  attention 
to  the  means  by  which  this  was  to  be  done.  It  was  not  to  be  won- 
dered at  that,  for  reasons  of  state,  defects  were  overlooked, — at  such 
periods  were  even  deemed  necessary.  Hence  the  relaxation  in  the 
laws  in  favor  of  those  who,  quitting  their  native  land,  carried  over 
with  them  to  strange  countries  their  property  and  acquirements. 
Hence,  no  doubt,  also  are  derived  the  full  powers  granted  to  those 
who  took  in  charge  the  subjection  and  administration  of  the  new 
provinces,  in  order  that  they  might  govern,  and  at  the  same  time 
carry  on  their  traffic  with  the  natives,  notwithstanding  the  manifest 
incompatibility  of  the  two  occupations;  or  rather,  the  certainty  that 
ought  to  have  been  foreseen  that  public  duties  would  generally  be 
postponed,  when  placed  in  competition  with  private  interests  and 
the  anxious  desire  of  acquiring  wealth. 

Subsequently  that  happened  which  was,  in  fact,  to  be  dreaded, 
viz.,  what  at  first  was  tolerated  as  a  necessary  evil,  sanctioned  by  the 
lapse  of  time  has  at  length  become  a  legitimate  right,  or  rather  a 
compensation  for  the  supposed  trouble  attached  to  the  fulfillment 
of  the  duties  of  civil  magistrates;  whilst  they,  as  already  observed, 
think  of  nothing  but  themselves,  and  undergo  no  other  trouble  or 
inconvenience  than  usually  fall  on  the  lot  of  any  other  private  mer- 
chant. In  the  Philippines,  at  least,  many  years  having  elapsed  since 
the  natives  peaceably  submitted  to  the  dominion  of  the  king,  every 


State  of  the   Philippines  in   tStO  .',il 

motive  has  ceased  that  could  formerly,  and  in  a  certain  degree,  justify 
the  indulgence  so  much  abused,  at  the  same  time  that  no  plausible 
pretext  whatever  exists  for  its  further  continuation. 

Although  hitherto  the  number  of  whites,  compared  to  that  of 
the  people  of  color,  has  not  been  great,  as  the  whole  of  the  provin- 
cial magistracies,  coUectorships,  and  subaltern  governments,  do  not 
exceed  twenty-seven,  the  scarcity  of  Spaniards  ought  not  to  be  alleged 
as  a  sufficient  reason;  nor  can  it  be  doubted  these  situations  might 
at  any  time  be  properly  filled,  if  the  person  on  whom  the  choice 
should  fall  were  only  certain  of  living  with  decency  and  in  a  suitable 
manner,  without  being  carried  away  with  the  flattering  hopes  of 
withdrawing  from  office,  with  ten,  twenty,  and  even  as  high  as 
fifty  thousand  dollars  of  property,  as  has  heretofore  been  the  case, 
but  satisfied  with  a  due  and  equivalent  salary  they  might  receive 
as  a  reward  for  the  public  services  they  perform. 

I  do  not  therefore  see  why  the  government  should  hesitate  in 
resolving  to  put  a  stop  to  evils  which  the  people  of  the  Philippines 
have  not  ceased  to  deplore  from  the  time  of  the  conquest,  by  pro- 
scribing, under  the  most  severe  penalties,  the  power  of  trading,  as 
now  exercised  by  the  provincial  magistrates.  The  time  is  come 
when  this  struggle  between  duty  and  sordid  interest  ought  to  end, 
and  reason,  as  well  as  enlightened  policy,  demand  that  in  this 
respect  our  legislation  should  be  reformed,  in  order  that  the  mace  of 
justice,  instead  of  being  prostituted  in  search  of  lucre,  may  hence- 
forwards  be  wholly  employed  in  the  support  of  equity  and  the  pro- 
tection of  society. 

The  only  objection  which,  at  first  sight,  might  be  started  against  Uryence  nf 
the  suggestions  here  thrown  out  is  the  increased  expense  which  would  '"*•''"■"*• 
fall  on  the  treasury,  owing  to  the  necessity  of  appropriating  compe- 
tent salaries  for  the  interior  magistrates  under  the  new  order  of 
things.  Independent,  however,  of  the  fact  that  the  rapid  improve- 
ments the  provinces  must  assume,  in  every  point  of  view,  would 
superabundantly  make  up  this  trifling  difference;  yet  supposing 
the  sacrifice  were  gratuitous,  and  even  of  some  moment,  it  ought  not, 
on  that  account,  to  be  omitted,  since  there  is  no  public  object  more 
important  to  the  sovereign  himself,  than  to  make  the  necessary 
provision  for  the  decorum  of  the  magistracy,  the  due  administra- 
tion of  justice,  and  the  maintenance  of  good  order  among  his  sub- 
jects. 

The  position  being  established,  that  a  number  of  whites  more 
than  sufficient  might  be  obtained,  eligible  and  fit  to  perform  the 
duties  of  civil  magistrates,  which  they  would  be  induced  to  under- 


433  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

take,  if  adequate  terms  were  only  proposed,  it  would  seem  that  no 
ill  consequences  might  be  expected  from  at  once  assimilating  the 
regulations  of  these  provincial  judicatures  to  those  of  the  corregi- 
niienlos,  or  mayoralties  of  towns  in  Spain,  or  in  making  out  an  express 
statute,  on  a  triple  scale,  for  three  classes  of  magistrates,  granting 
to  them  emoluments  equivalent  to  the  greater  or  lesser  extent  of  the 
respective  jurisdictions.  As  far  as  regards  the  pay,  it  ought  to  be  so 
arranged  as  to  act  as  a  sufficient  stimulus  to  induce  European  colo- 
nists to  embrace  this  career,  in  a  fixed  and  permanent  way,  which 
hitherto  they  have  only  resorted  to  as  a  five  years'  speculation.  Con- 
formably to  this  suggestion,  and  owing  to  the  lesser  value  attached 
to  money  in  India,  compared  with  Europe,  on  account  of  the  greater 
abundance  of  the  necessaries  of  life,  I  am  of  opinion  that  it  would 
be  expedient  to  affix  an  annual  allowance  of  $2,000  to  each  of  the 
appointments  of  the  six  principal  and  most  populous  provinces, 
$1,500  for  the  next  in  importance,  and  for  the  twelve  or  thirteen 
remaining,  at  the  rate  of  $1,000  each;  leaving  to  the  candidates  the 
option  of  rising  according  to  their  length  of  services  and  good  conduct, 
from  the  lowest  to  the  highest,  as  is  the  case  in  Spain. 

Objects  to  be  The  first  part  of  the  plan  above  pointed  out  embraces  two  objects. 

gained.  The  one  is  to  prevent  the  provincial  magistrates  from  carrying  on 

traffic,  thus  depriving  them  of  every  pretext  to  defraud  the  natives 
of  what  is  their  own;  and  the  other,  to  form,  in  the  course  of  a  few 
years  a  class  of  men  hitherto  unknown  in  the  Philippine  Islands, 
who,  taught  by  practice,  may  be  enabled  to  govern  the  provinces 
in  a  more  correct  and  regular  manner,  and  acquire  more  extended 
knowledge,  especially  in  the  judicial  proceedings  of  the  first  instance, 
which,  owing  to  this  defect,  frequently  compel  the  litigants  to 
incur  useless  expenses,  and  greatly  embarrass  the  ordinary  course 
of  justice.  Although  the  second  part  at  first  seems  to  involve  an 
increased  expense  of  $36,000  or  $37,000  annually,  when  well  consi- 
dered, this  sum  will  be  found  not  to  exceed  $20,000,  because  it  will 
be  necessary  to  deduct  from  the  above  estimate  the  amount  of  three 
per  cent,  under  the  existing  regulations  allowed  to  the  magistrates 
for  the  collection  of  the  native  tributes,  in  their  character  of  sub- 
delegates,  generally  amounting  to  $16,000  or  $17,000;  besides  only 
taking  into  account  such  real  and  effective  disbursements  or  extra- 
ordinary expenses  as  in  fact  they  may  legally  have  incurred  in  the 
performance  of  their  duties. 

Should  it,  however,  be  deemed  expedient,  from  causes  just  in 
their  nature,  hereafter  to  exonerate  the  natives  from  the  obligations 
of  paying  tributes,  by  which  means  the  amount  deducted  for  the  three 


service. 


Stale  of  the  PhilippineK  in   tSlO  ^SS 

per  cent,    commission  could  not  then  be  brought  into   account,  let 

me  be  allowed  to  ask  what  enlightened  government  would  hesitate 

submitting  to  an  additional  expense  of  so  trifling   an  import,   in 

exchange  for  beholding  more  than  two  millions  of  men  forever  freed 

from  the  extortionate  acts  of  their  old  magistrates;  and,  through 

the  effects  of  the  new  regulations,  the  latter  converted  into  real 

fathers  of  the  people  over  whom  they  are  placed?     How  different 

would  then  be  the  aspect  these  fine  provinces  would  present  to  the 

eyes  of  the  philosophical  observer  who  would,  in  that  case,  be  able 

to   calculate  to   what  an    extent  the    progress    of   agriculture    and 

industry  in  these  islands  might  be  carried. 

Nevertheless,  I  do  not  wish  to  insinuate  that  by  the  better  or-    Demoralization 
...  ,  .  ...         of  over-seas 

ganization  of  the  provmcial  governments,  the  present  irregularities 

and  abuses  of  authority  would  entirely  cease ;  because  I  am  aware, 
more  especially  in  the  Indies,  that  the  persons  who  hold  public 
situations  usually  have  too  exaggerated  ideas  of  their  own  personal 
importance,  and  easily  mistake  the  gratification  of  their  own  whims 
for  firmness  of  character,  in  the  necessity  of  causing  themselves  to  be 
respected.  Still  it  is  an  incontestable  fact  that,  by  removing  the 
chief  temptation,  and  rescinding  altogether  the  license  to  trade, 
the  just  complaints  preferred  by  the  native  against  the  Spaniard 
would  cease;  the  motives  of  those  continual  disputes  which  arise 
between  the  magistrates  and  the  ministers  of  the  gospel  exercising 
their  functions  in  the  same  provinces,  and  the  zealous  defenders  of 
the  rights  of  their  parishioners,  would  be  removed,  and  the  inhabit- 
ants of  Manila,  extending  their  mercantile  operations  to  the  interior, 
without  the  dread  of  seeing  them  obstructed  through  the  powerful 
competition  of  the  magistrates  in  authority  there,  would  be  induced 
to  settle  in  or  connect  themselves  with  the  provinces,  and  thus  diffuse 
their  knowledge,  activity  and  money  among  the  inhabitants,  the 
true  means  of  encouraging  the  whole. 

What  has  already  been  said  will  suffice  to  convince  the  lover 
of  truth  and  the  friend  of  general  prosperity,  how  urgent  it  is  to 
introduce  as  early  as  possible,  the  reform  proposed  into  the  interior 
administration  of  this  important,  although  neglected  colony;  and  it 
is  to  be  hoped  that  the  government,  guided  by  these  same  senti- 
ments, will  not  be  led  away  by  those  narrow-minded  people,  who 
predict  danger  from  every  thing  that  is  new;  but,  after  due  and  ma- 
ture deliberation,  resolve  to  adopt  a  measure  dictated  by  reason, 
and  at  the  same  time  conformable  to  the  best  interests  of  the  state. 


THR  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Pioneer 
I'hilippine 
novernment 
«  theocracy. 


Standirig 
of  parish 
priests. 


Of  little  avail  would  have  been  the  valor  and  constancy  with 
which  Legaspi  and  his  worthy  companions  overcame  the  natives 
of  these  islands,  if  the  apostolic  zeal  of  the  missionaries  had  not  sec- 
onded their  exertions,  and  aided  to  consolidate  the  enterprise.  The 
latter  were  the  real  conquerors;  they  who,  without  any  other  arms 
than  their  virtues,  won  over  the  good  will  of  the  islanders,  caused 
the  Spanish  name  to  be  beloved,  and  gave  to  the  king,  as  it  were 
by  a  miracle,  two  millions  more  of  submissive  and  Christian  sub- 
jects. These  were  the  legislators  of  the  barbarous  hordes  who  in- 
habited the  islands  of  this  immense  Archipelago,  realizing,  by  their 
mild  persuasion,  the  allegorical  prodigies  of  Amphion  and  Orpheus. 

As  the  means  the  missionaries  called  in  to  their  aid,  in  order 
to  reduce  and  civilize  the  Indians,  were  preaching  and  other  spiri- 
tual labors,  and,  although  scattered  about  and  acting  separately, 
they  were  still  subject  to  the  authority  of  their  prelates,  who,  like 
so  many  chiefs,  directed  the  grand  work  of  conversion,  the  govern- 
ment primitively  established  in  these  colonies  must  necessarily  have 
partaken  greatly  of  the  theocratical  order,  and  beyond  doubt  it 
continued  to  be  so,  till,  by  the  lapse  of  time,  the  number  of  colonists 
increased,  as  well  as  the  effective  strength  of  the  royal  authority, 
so  as  to  render  the  governing  system  uniform  with  that  established 
in  the  other  ultramarine  dominions  of  Spain. 

This  is  also  deduced  from  the  fragments  still  remaining  of  the 
first  constitution,  or  mode  of  government  introduced  in  the  Bata- 
nes  Islands  and  missions  of  Cagayan,  administered  by  the  Dominican 
friars  in  a  spiritual  and  temporal  manner;  as  well  as  from  what  may 
frequently  be  observed  in  the  other  provinces,  by  any  one  who  bestows 
the  smallest  attention.  Although  the  civil  magistracies  have  since 
been  regulated,  and  their  respective  attributes  determined  with  due 
precision,  it  has  not  hitherto  been  possible,  notwithstanding  the 
pains  taken  to  make  the  contrary  appear,  to  do  without  the  perso- 
nal authority  and  influence  the  parish  curates  possess  over  their 
flocks.  The  government  has,  in  fact,  constantly  been  obliged  to 
avail  themselves  of  this  aid,  as  the  most  powerful  instrument  to 
insure  respect  and  a  due  subordination,  in  such  manner  that,  al- 
though the  parish  curates  are  not  at  present  equally  authorized  to 
interfere  in  the  civil  administration,  in  point  of  fact,  they  are  them- 
selves the  real  administrators. 

It  happens  that,  as  the  parish  curate  is  the  consoler  of  the  af- 
flicted, the  peacemaker  of  families,  the  promoter  of  useful  ideas, 
the  preacher  and  example  of  every  thing  good;  as  in  him  liberality 
is  seen  to  shine,  and  the  Indians  behold  him  alone  in  the  midst  of 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  tSlO  436 

them,  without  relatives,  without  traffic,  and  always  busied  in  their 
care  and  improvement,  they  become  accustomed  to  live  satisSed 
and  contented  under  his  paternal  direction,  and  deliver  up  to  him 
the  whole  of  their  confidence.  In  this  way  rendered  the  master  of 
their  wishes,  nothing  is  done  without  the  advice,  or  rather  consent, 
of  the  curate.  The  subaltern  governor,  on  receiving  an  order  from 
the  superior  magistrate,  before  he  takes  any  step,  goes  to  the  min- 
ister to  obtain  his  sanction,  and  it  is  he  in  fact  who  tacitly  gives  the 
mandate  for  execution,  or  prevents  its  being  carried  into  effect.  As 
the  father  of  his  flock,  he  arranges,  or  directs,  the  lawsuits  of  his 
parishioners;  it  is  he  who  draws  out  their  writings;  goes  to  the  capi- 
tal to  plead  for  the  Indians;  opposes  his  prayers,  and  sometimes 
his  threats,  to  the  violent  acts  of  the  provincial  magistrates,  and 
arranges  every  thing  in  the  most  fit  and  quiet  manner.  In  a  word, 
it  is  not  possible  for  any  human  institution  to  be  more  simple,  and 
at  the  same  time  more  firmly  established,  or  from  which  so  many 
advantages  might  be  derived  in  favor  of  the  state,  as  the  one  so  justly 
admired  in  the  spiritual  ministry  of  these  islands.  It  may  there- 
fore be  considered  a  strange  fatality,  when  the  secret  and  true  art 
of  governing  a  colony,  so  different  from  any  other  as  is  that  of  the 
Philippines,  consists  in  the  wise  use  of  so  powerful  an  instrument 
as  the  one  just  described,  that  the  superior  government,  within  the 
last  few  years,  should  have  been  so  much  deluded  as  to  seek  the  de- 
struction of  a  work  which,  on  the  contrary,  it  is,  above  all  others, 
advisable  to  sustain. 

In  this,  as  well  as  many  other  cases,  we  see  how  difficult,  or 
rather  how  absurd  it  is,  to  expect  to  organize  a  system  of  government, 
indistinctly  adapted  to  the  genius  and  disposition  of  all  nations, 
however  great  the  discordance  prevailing  in  their  physical  and  moral 
constitutions.  Hence  it  follows  that,  by  wishing  to  assimilate  the 
administrative  plan  of  these  provinces  to  the  one  adopted  in  the 
sections  of  America,  inconveniences  are  unceasingly  met  with,  evi- 
dently arising  out  of  this  erroneous  principle.  Whatever  may  be 
asserted  to  the  contrary,  there  is  no  medium.  It  is  necessary  to 
insure  obedience  either  through  dread  and  force,  or  respect  must 
be  excited  by  means  of  love  and  confidence.  In  order  to  be  con- 
vinced that  the  first  is  not  practicable,  it  will  only  be  necessary  to 
weigh  well  the  following  circumstances  and  reflections. 

The  number  of  the  whites  compared  to  that  of  the  natives  is 
so  small,  that  it  can  scarcely  be  estimated  in  the  proportion  of  15 
to  25,000.  These  provinces,  infinitely  more  populous  than  those 
of  America,  are  entirely  delivered  up  to  the  charge  of  provincial 


4,?6 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Friars  only 
check  on 
officials. 


Missionaries' 
achievements. 


magistrates,  who  carry  with  them  to  the  seats  of  their  respective 
governments,  no  other  troops  than  the  title  of  miUtary  command- 
ants, and  their  royal  commission  on  parchment.  Besides  the  friars, 
it  sometimes  happens  that  no  other  white  person  is  to  be  found  in  an 
entire  province,  but  the  presiding  magistrate.  It  is  the  duty  of  the 
latter  to  collect  in  the  king's  revenue;  to  pursue  robbers;  appease 
tumults;  raise  men  for  the  regiments  in  garrison  at  Manila  and  Cavite; 
regulate  and  head  his  people  in  case  of  an  external  invasion,  and, 
in  short,  it  is  he  who  is  to  do  everything  in  the  character  of  magis- 
trate and  in  the  name  of  the  king.  Considering,  therefore,  the  ef- 
fective power  required  for  the  due  performance  of  so  great  a  variety 
of  duties,  and  the  want  of  that  species  of  support  experienced  by 
him  who  is  charged  with  them,  can  it  be  denied  that  it  would  be  risk- 
ing the  security  of  these  dominions  too  much,  to  attempt  forcibly 
to  control  them  with  means  so  insufficient?  If  the  inhabitants  be- 
come tumultuous  and  rise  up,  on  whom  will  the  magistrate  call  for 
aid  to  repress  and  punish  them?  In  such  a  predicament,  is  any 
other  alternative  left  him  than  to  Ry  or  die  in  the  struggle?  If  among 
civilized  nations,  it  is  deemed  indispensable  that  authority  should 
always  appear  accompanied  with  force,  how  can  it  be  expected, 
among  Indians,  that  the  laws  will  otherwise  be  respected,  when  left 
naked  and   unsupported? 

Evidently,  it  is  necessary  to  appeal  to  aid  of  another  kind,  and 
to  employ  means,  which,  although  indirect  ones,  are,  beyond  all 
dispute,  the  best  adapted  to  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  the  coun- 
try,— means  which,  by  influencing  the  mind,  excite  veneration,  sub- 
due the  rude  understanding  of  the  inhabitants,  and  incline  them 
to  bear  our  dominion  without  repugnance.  It  is  well  understood 
what  these  means  are,  how  much  they  are  at  hand,  and  how  greatly 
also  they  have  always  been  envied  by  other  European  nations,  who 
have  sought  to  extend  and  consolidate  their  conquests  in  both  the 
Indies.  Let  us  listen  to  La  Perouse,  if  we  wish  to  know  and  admire 
the  army  with  which  our  missionaries  subdued  the  natives  of  both 
Californias;  let  us  read,  dispassionately,  the  wonderful  deeds  of  the 
Jesuits  in  other  parts  of  America,  and,  above  all,  let  us  visit  the  Phil- 
ippine Islands  and,  with  astonishment,  shall  we  there  behold  ex- 
tended ranges,  studded  with  temples  and  spacious  convents;  the 
Divine  worship  celebrated  with  pomp  and  splendor;  regularity 
in  the  streets,  and  even  luxury  in  the  houses  and  dress;  schools  of 
the  first  rudiments  in  all  the  towns,  and  the  inhabitants  well  versed 
in  the  art  of  writing.  We  shall  there  see  causeways  raised,  bridges 
of  a  good  architecture  built,  and,  in  short,  all  the  measure  of  good 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  IStO  437 

government  and  police,  in  the  greatest  part  of  the  country,  carried 
into  effect,  yet  the  whole  is  due  to  the  exertions,  apostolic  labors 
and  pure  patriotism  of  the  ministers  of  religion.  Let  us  travel  over 
the  provinces,  and  we  shall  there  see  towns  of  5000,  10,000,  and 
20,000  Indians,  peacefully  governed  by  one  weak  old  man,  who, 
with  his  doors  open  at  all  hours,  sleeps  quiet  and  secure  in  his  dwell- 
ing, without  any  other  magic,  or  any  other  guards,  than  the  love  and 
respect  with  which  he  has  known  to  inspire  his  flock.  And,  when 
this  is  contemplated,  can  it  be  deemed  possible,  through  foolish  jeal- 
ousy and  vain  wish  for  those  persons  only  pointed  out  by  the  gen- 
eral laws  in  ordinary  cases,  to  intervene  in  the  government  of  the 
natives,  that  the  fruit  of  so  much  time  constancy  are  not  to  be  lost, 
but  also  by  hereafter  disregarding  and  rejecting  a  co-operation,  as 
efficient  as  it  is  economical,  that  attempts  should  purposely  be  made 
to  destroy  the  mainspring  of   the  whole  of  this  political  machine? 

Such,  nevertheless,  are  the  mistaken  ideas  which,  within  the    Curtailimj 

last  few  years,  have  unhappily  led  to  the  adoption  of  measures,  dia-    P'"'_^«"« 

•'  -  .,       authority. 

metrically  opposed  to  the  public  interest,  under  the  pretext  of  curtail- 
ing the  excessive  authority  of  the  parish-curates.  The  superior 
government,  not  satisfied  with  having  deprived  the  ministers  of  the 
faculty  of  personally  prescribing  certain  correctional  punishments, 
which  although  of  little  moment,  when  appHed  with  discretion,  great- 
ly contributed  to  fortify  their  ascendency,  and  consequently,  that 
of  the  sovereign;  but,  in  order  to  exclude  and  divest  them  of  all  in- 
tervention in  the  civil  administration,  a  direct  attempt  has  also  been 
made  to  lower  the  esteem  in  which  they  are  held,  by  awakening  the 
distrust  of  the  Indian,  and,  as  much  as  possible,  removing  him  to 
a  greater  distance  from  them.  In  proof  of  this,  and  in  order  that 
what  has  been  said  may  not  be  deemed  an  exaggeration,  it  will  suf- 
fice to  quote  the  substance  of  two  regulations,  remarkable  for  their 
obvious  tendency  to  weaken  the  influence  and  credit  of  the  spirit- 
ual administrators. 

By  one  of  these,  it  is  enacted  that  in  order  to  prevent  the 
abuses  and  notorious  malversation  of  the  funds  of  the  sanctuary^ 
specially  applicable  to  the  expenses  of  the  festivities  and  worship 
of  each  parish,  and  arising  out  of  the  real  and  half  for  this  purpose 
contributed  by  each  tributary  person,  and  collected  and  privately 
administered  by  the  curate,  the  same  shall  hereafter  be  kept  in  a 
chest  with  three  keys,  and  lodged  in  the  head-town  of  each  province. 
The  keys  are  to  be  left,  one  in  possession  of  the  chief  magistrate, 
another  in  the  hands  of  the  governor  of  the  respective  town,  and 
the  remaining  one  with  the  parish-curate.     By  the  other  measure 


438  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

it  is  declared,  as  a  standing  rule,  that  no  Indian,  who  may  lately 
have  been  employed  in  the  domestic  service  of  the  curate,  shall  in 
his  own  town  be  considered  eligible  to  any  office  belonging  to  the 
judicial  department. 

On  measures  of  this  kind,  comments  are  unnecessary;  their 
meaning  and  effect  cannot  be  mistaken.  I  shall,  therefore,  merely 
observe,  that  no  untimely  means  could  have  been  devised  more  in- 
jurious to  the  state,  to  the  propagation  of  religion,  and  even  to  the 
natives  themselves.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  most  strange  affair,  that  such 
endeavors  should  have  been  made  to  impeach  the  purity,  by  at 
the  same  time  degrading  the  respectable  character  of  the  parish- 
curates,  more  particularly  at  a  period  when,  owing  to  partality  and 
the  scarcity  of  religious  men,  it  would  have  seemed  more  natural 
to  uphold,  and  by  new  inducements  encourage  the  zeal  and  author- 
ity of  the  remaining  few.  This  step  appears  the  more  singular,  I 
repeat,  at  a  moment  when,  neither  by  suspending  the  sending  out 
of  missionaries  to  China,  and  the  almost  entire  abandonment  of  the 
spiritual  conquest  of  the  Igorots  and  other  infidel  tribes,  inhabit- 
ing the  interior  of  these  islands,  have  the  above  Spanish  laborers 
been  able  to  carry  on  the  ordinary  administration,  nor  prevent  entire 
provinces  from  being  transferred,  as  is  now  the  case,  into  the  hands 
of  Indians  and  mestizo  clergymen  of  the  Sangley  race,  who,  through 
their  great  ignorance,  corrupt  morals,  and  total  want  of  decorum, 
universally  incur  the  contempt  of  the  flocks  committed  to  their  care, 
and,  in  consequence  of  their  tyrannical  conduct,  cause  the  people 
to  sigh  for  the  mild  yoke  of  their  ancient  pastors. 
Friars  bulwark  If>  therefore,  it  is  the  wish  of  the  government  to  retain  the  sub- 

of  Spanish  rule,  jection  of  this  colony,  and  raise  it  to  the  high  degree  of  prosperity 
of  which  it  is  susceptible,  the  first  thing,  in  my  opinion,  that  ought 
to  be  attended  to  is  the  good  organization  of  its  spiritual  adminis- 
tration. On  this  subject  we  must  not  deceive  ourselves.  I  again 
repeat,  that  as  long  as  the  local  government,  in  consequence  of  the 
want  of  military  forces,  and  owing  to  the  scarcity  of  Europeans, 
does  not  in  itself  possess  the  means  of  insuring  obedience,  no  other 
alternative  remains.  It  is  necessary  to  call  in  to  its  aid  the  power- 
ful influence  of  religion,  and  to  obtain  from  the  Peninsula  fresh  sup- 
plies of  missionaries.  As  in  their  nature  the  latter  are  essentially 
different  from  the  other  public  functionaries,  it  is  well  known  they 
neither  seek  nor  aspire  to  any  remuneration  for  their  labors,  their 
only  hope  being  to  obtain,  in  the  opinion  of  the  community  at  large, 
that  degree  of  respect  to  which  they  justly  consider  themselves 
entitled.     Let,  therefore,  their  pre-eminences  be  retained  to  them; 


I 


Slate  of  the  Philippines  in  ISlO 


43  f- 


let  them  be  treated  with  decorum;  the  care  and  direction  of  the 
Indians  confided  to  their  charge,  and  they  always  be  found  united 
in  support  of  justice  and  the  legitimate  authority. 

Nothing  is  more  unjust,  and  of  nothing  have  the  spiritual 
directors  of  the  provinces  so  much  reason  to  complain,  than  the 
little  discernment  with  which  they  have  sometimes  been  judged  and 
condemned,  by  causing  the  misconduct  of  some  of  their  individual 
members  to  affect  the  whole  body.  Hence  is  it  that  no  one  can 
read  without  shame  and  indignation,  the  insidious  suggestions  and 
allusions,  derogatory  to  their  character,  contained  in  the  Regula- 
tions of  Government  framed  at  Manila  in  the  year  1768,  and  which 
although  modified  by  orders  of  the  king,  are  at  the  present  moment 
still  in  force,  owing  to  the  want  of  others,  and  found  in  a  printed 
form  in  the  hands  of  every  one.  Granting  that  in  some  particular 
instances,  real  causes  of  complaint  might  have  existed,  yet  in  the 
end,  what  does  it  matter  if  here  and  there  a  religious  character  has 
abused  the  confidence  reposed  in  him,  as  long  as  the  spirit  by  which 
the  generality  of  them  are  actuated,  corresponds  to  the  sanctity  of 
their  state,  and  is  besides  conformable  to  the  views  of  government? 
Why  should  we  be  eternally  running  after  an  ideal  of  per- 
fection which  can  never  be  met  with?  Nor,  indeed,  is  this  necessary 
in  the  present  construction  of  society. 

If,  however,  any  weight  is  to  be  attached  to  imposture  with 
which,  from  personal  motives,  attempts  have  been  made  to  obscure 
the  truth,  and  prejudice  the  public  mind  against  the  regular  clergy; 
or,  if  the  just  defenss  on  which  I  have  entered,  should  be  attributed 
to  partiality  or  visionary  impressions,  let  the  Archives  of  the  Colo- 
nial Department  be  opened,  and  we  shall  there  find  the  report 
drawn  up  by  order  of  the  king  on  November  26,  1804,  by  the  gov- 
ernor of  the  Philippine  Islands,  Don  Rafael  Maria  de  Aguilar, 
with  a  view  to  convey  information  regarding  the  enquiries  at  that 
time  instituted  respecting  the  reduction  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Island  of  Mindoro;  a  report  extremely  honorable  to  the  regular 
clergy,  and  dictated  by  the  experience  that  general  had  acquired 
during  a  period  of  more  than  twelve  years  he  had  governed.  Therein 
also  will  be  seen  the  answer  to  the  consultatian  addressed  to  his 
successor  in  the  command,  Don  Mariano  Fernandez  de  Folgueras, 
under  date  of  April  25,  1809,  in  which  he  most  earnestly  beseeches 
the  king  to  endeavor,  by  every  possible  means,  to  send  out  religious 
missionaries;  deploring  the  decline  and  want  of  order  he  had  observed 
with  his  own  eyes  in  the  towns  administered  by  native  clergymen, 
and  pointing  out  the  urgent  necessity  of  intrusting  the  spiritual 


Unwise  tn 

discredit 

priests. 


Testimony 
in  their  behalf 


440  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

government  of  these  provinces  to  the  dexterous  management  of  the 
former.  Testimonies  of  such  weight  are  more  than  sufficient  at 
once  to  refute  the  calumnies  and  contrary  opinions  put  forth  on  this 
subject,  and  at  the  same  time  serve  as  irrefragable  proofs  of  the 
scrupulous  impartiality  with  which  I  have  endeavored  to  discuss 
so  delicate   a  matter. 

In  a  general  point  of  view,  I  have  alluded  to  the  erroneous  system, 
which  during  the  last  few  years  has  been  pursued  by  the  govern- 
ment with  regard  to  the  parish-curates  employed  in  the  interior, 
and  also  sufficiently  pointed  out  the  advantages  reasonably  to  be 
expected  if  the  government,  acting  on  a  different  policy,  or  rather 
guided  by  other  motives  of  state,  instead  of  following  the  literal  text 
of  our  Indian  legislation,  should  come  to  the  firm  determination  of 
indirectly  divesting  themselves  of  a  small  portion  of  their  authority 
in  favor  of  the  religious  laborers  who  are  acting  on  the  spot.  Having 
said  thus  much,  I  shall  proceed  to  such  further  details  as  are  more 
immediately  connected  with  the  present  chapter. 
Ecclesiastical  The  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  is  exercised  by  the  metropolitan 

organization.        archbishop   of  Manila,    aided   by   the   three   suffragans   of  Nueva 
Segovia,  Nueva  Caceres  and  Cebu. 

The  archbishopric  of  Manila  comprehends  the  provinces  of 
Tondo,  Bulacan,  Pampanga,  Bataan,  Cavite,  Laguna  de  Bay, 
Zambales,  Batangas,  and  the  Island  of  Mindoro. 

The  bishopric  of  Nueva  Segovia  comprehends  the  province  of 
Pangasinan,  the  missions  of  Ituy  and  Paniqui,  the  provinces  of 
Ilocos,  Cagayan,  and  the  missions  of  the  Batanes  Islands. 

That  of  Nueva  Caceres  comprehends  the  provinces  of  Tayabas, 
Nueva  Ecija,  Camarines  and  Albay. 

That  of  Cebu  comprehends  the  Islands  of  Cebu  and  Bohol, 
Iloilo,  Capiz  and  Antique,  in  the  Island  of  Panay,  the  Islands 
of  La  Paragua,  Negros  and  Samar,  Misamis,  Caraga  and  Zamboanga 
in  that  of  Mindanao,  and  the  Mariana  Islands. 

The  archbishop  has  a  salary  of  $5,000  and  the  bishops  $4,000 
each.  The  curacies  exceed  500,  and  although  all  of  them  originally 
were  in  charge  of  persons  belonging  to  the  religious  orders,  owing 
to  the  expulsion  of  the  Jesuits  and  the  excessive  scarcity  of  regular 
clergy,  so  many  native  priests  have  gradually  been  introduced 
among  them,  that,  at  present,  nearly  half  the  towns  are  under  their 
direction.  The  rest  are  administered  by  the  religious  orders  of  St. 
Augustine,  St.  Dominic  and  St.  Francis,  in  the  following  manner: 

Towns. 

The  Augustinians 88 

The  barefooted  Augustinians  (Recoletos) .  52 

The  Dominicans 57 

The  Franciscans 96 

-  Total 293 


State  of  t)ie.   Philippines  in   1810 


W 


Dual 

supervision 
over  friars 


It  ought,  however,  to  be  observed,  that  since  the  detailed 
statement  was  made  out,  from  which  the  above  extract  has  been 
taken,  so  many  members  of  the  reUgious  orders  have  died,  that  it 
has  been  necessary  to  replace  them  in  many  towns  with  native 
clergymen,  as  a  temporary  expedient,  and  till  new  missionaries 
shall  arrive  from  Spain. 

The  monastic  curates  are  immediately  subject  to  their  provin- 
cial superior,  in  the  character  of  friars  but  depend  on  the  diocesan 
bishop  in  their  quality  of  parish  priests;  and  in  like  manner  obey 
their  own  provincial  vicars,  as  well  as  those  of  the  bishop.  They 
are  alternately  eligible  to  the  dignities  of  their  own  order,  and  gen- 
erally promoted,  or  relieved  from  their  ministry,  at  the  discretion 
of  the  provincial  chapter,  or  according  to  the  final  determination 
of  the  vice-patron  or  bishop,  affixed  to  the  triple  list  presented  to 
him.  Besides  the  ordinary  obligations  attached  to  the  care  of  souls, 
they  are  enjoined  to  assist  at  the  elections  of  governors  and  other 
officers  of  justice,  in  their  respective  towns,  in  order  to  inform  the 
chief  magistrate  respecting  the  aptitude  of  the  persons  proposed  for 
election  on  the  triple  lists,  and  to  point  out  the  legal  defects  attribut- 
able to  any  of  them.  On  this  account,  they  are  not,  however, 
allowed  to  interfere  in  the  smallest  degree  with  any  of  these  proceed- 
ings, and  much  less  make  a  formal  proposal,  as  most  assuredly  would 
be  advisable  if  permitted  so  to  do,  in  favor  of  any  particular  person 
or  persons  in  their  opinion  fit  for  the  discharge  of  the  above  mentioned 
duties.  It  is  their  obligation  to  ascertain  the  correctness  of  the 
tribute  lists  presented  to  them  for  their  examination  and  signature 
by  the  chief  of  the  clans,  by  carefully  comparing  them  with  the 
registers  kept  in  their  own  department;  and  also  to  certify  the  gen- 
eral returns,  without  which  requisite  the  statements  transmitted 
by  the  chief  magistrates  to  the  accountant-general's  office  are  not 
admitted.  Above  all  they  are  bound  to  affix  their  signatures  to  the 
effective  payments  made  by  the  magistrate  to  their  parishioners  on 
account  of  daily  labor,  and  to  certify  similarly  the  value  of  materials 
employed  in  public  works.  Besides  the  above,  they  are  continually 
called  upon  to  draw  up  circumstantial  reports,  or  declarations, 
required  by  the  superior  tribunals;  they  receive  frequent  injunctions 
to  co-operate  in  the  increase  of  the  king's  revenue  and  the  encourage- 
ment of  agriculture  and  industry;  in  a  word,  there  is  scarcely  a  thing 
to  which  their  attention  is  not  called,  and  to  which  it  is  not  expected 
they  should  contribute  by  their  influence,  directly  or  indirectly. 

The  royal  treasury  pays  them  an  annual  allowance  equal  to    Allowances 
$180,  in  kind  and  money,  for  each  five  hundred  tributes  under  their   from  treasury. 


Uii  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

care,  and  this,  added  to  the  emoluments  of  the  church,  renders 
the  total  proceeds  of  a  curacy  generally  equivalent  to  about  from 
six  to  eight  reals  for  each  entire  tribute;  but  from  this  allowance 
are  to  be  deducted  the  expenses  of  coadjutors,  subsistence,  servants, 
horses,  and  all  the  other  charges  arising  out  of  the  administration 
of  such  wearisome  duties;  nor  are  the  parishioners  under  any  other 
obligation  than  to  provide  the  churches  with  assistants,  or  sacristans 
and  singers,  and  the  curates  with  provisions  at  tariff  prices. 
jVeed  oj  more  Finally,  as  from  what  has  been  above  stated  it  would  appear,  that 

European  as  many  as  five  hundred  religious  persons  are  necessary  for  the  spiritual 

dergy  administration  of  the  interior  towns  and  districts,  besides  the  number 

requisite  to  do  the  duty  and  fill  the  dignities  of  the  respective  orders 
and  convents  in  the  capital,  independent  of  which  there  ought  to  be 
a  proportionate  surplus,  applicable  to  the  progressive  reduction 
of  the  infidel  tribes  inhabiting  the  uplands,  as  well  as  the  preaching 
of  the  Gospel  in  China  and  Cochinchina,  most  assuredly,  it  would 
be  expedient  to  assemble  and  keep  together  a  body  of  no  less  than 
seven  hundred  persons,  if  it  is  the  wish  of  the  government,  on  a 
tolerable  scale,  to  provide  for  the  wants  of  these  remote  missions. 
At  the  present  moment  the  number  does  not  exceed  three  hundred, 
including  superannuated,  exempt  from  service,  and  lay-brothers, 
whilst  the  native  clergymen  in  effective  possession  of  curacies,  and 
including  substitutes,  coadjutors  and  weekly  preachers,  exceed 
one  thousand.  And  as  the  latter,  in  general  unworthy  of  the 
priesthood,  are  rather  injurious  than  really  serviceable  to  the  state, 
it  should  not  be  deemed  unjust  if  they  were  altogether  deprived 
of  the  dignity  of  parish  curates,  and  only  allowed  to  exercise  their 
functions  in  necessary  cases,  or  by  attaching  them  to  the  curacies 
in  the  quality  of  coadjutors.  By  this  plan,  at  the  same  time  that 
the  towns  would  be  provided  with  suitable  and  adequate  ministers, 
the  native  clergymen  would  be  distributed  in  a  proper  manner  and 
placed  near  the  religious  persons  charged  to  officiate,  would  acquire 
the  necessary  knowledge  and  decorum,  and  in  the  course  of  time 
might  obtain  character  and  respect  among  their  countrymen. 

To  many,  a  measure  of  this  kind  may,  in  some  respects,  appear 
harsh  and  arbitrary;  but  persons,  practically  acquainted  with  the 
subject  and  country,  will  deem  it  indispensable,  and  che  only  means 
that  can  be  resorted  to,  in  order  to  stop  the  rapid  decline  remarkable 
in  this  interesting  department  of  public  administration.  Fortu- 
nately, no  grounded  objections  can  be  alleged  against  it;  nor  is  there 
any  danger  of  serious  consequences  resulting  from  the  plan  being 


State  of  the  Philippines  in  1810 


US 


carried  into  effect.  In  vain  would  it  be  to  argue  that,  if  the  reform 
is  to  take  place,  a  large  number  of  priests  would  be  reduced  to 
beggary,  owing  to  the  want  of  occupation;  because,  as  things  now 
stand,  many  of  the  religious  curates  employ  three  or  four  coadjutors, 
and,  no  doubt,  they  would  then  gladly  undertake  to  make  provision 
for  the  remainder  of  those  who  may  be  thrown  out  of  employment. 
On  the  other  hand,  with  equal  truth  it  may  be  observed  that  the 
inhabitants  of  the  interior,  far  from  regretting,  or  taking  part  on 
behalf  of  the  native  clergy,  would  celebrate,  as  a  day  of  gladness  and 
rejoicing,  the  removal  of  the  latter,  in  return  for  their  beloved 
Castilian  Fathers. 

In  case  the  ideas  above  suggested  should  be  adopted  in  all 
their  parts,  it  may  be  proper  to  add  that  an  injunction  ought  to  be 
laid  on  the  reverend  bishops  in  future  to  confer  holy  orders  with 
more  scrupulosity  and  economy,  than,  unfortunately,  heretofore 
has  been  the  case;  by  representing  to  them  that,  if,  at  certain  periods 
the  Popes  have  been  influenced  by  powerful  reasons  not  to  insist 
on  ordinations  taking  place  in  Europe,  as  was  formerly  the  case, 
very  weighty  motives  now  equally  urge  the  government  to  decline, 
in  the  Philippine  Islands,  paying  so  much  to  religious  vocation,  and 
to  relax  in  the  policy  of  raising  the  natives  to  the  dignity  of  the 
priesthood. 

Long  have  the  inhabitants  of  the  Philippines  deplored,  and 
in  vain  remonstrated,  against  the  ravages  committed  on  their  coasts 
and  settlements  by  the  barbarous  natives  of  the  Islands  of  Mindanao, 
Basilan  and  Jolo,  as  well  as  by  the  Malanos,  llanos  and  Tirone 
Moros  and  others;  and  there  is  nothing  that  so  much  deserves  the 
attention,  and  interests  the  honor  of  the  Captain-General  command- 
ing in  this  quarter,  as  an  early  and  efficient  attempt  to  check  and 
punish  these  cruel  enemies.  It  is  indeed  true  that,  in  the  years 
1636  and  1638,  General  Don  Sebastian  Hurtado  de  Corcuera,  under- 
took in  person  and  happily  carried  into  effect  the  reduction  of  the 
S  •  Itan  of  Mindanao  and  the  conquest  of  the  Island  of  Jolo,  placing 
in  the  latter  a  governor  and  establishing  three  military  posts  there; 
under  the  protection  of  the  garrisons  of  which,  Christianity  was  con- 
siderably extended.  It  is  equally  true,  that  on  the  subsequent 
abandonment  of  this  important  acquisition,  owing  to  the  govern- 
ment being  compelled  to  attend  to  other  urgent  matters,  the  enemy 
acquired  a  greater  degree  of  audacity,  and  the  captain-general  in 
command  afterwards  sent  armaments  to  check  his  inroads.  On  one 
of  these  occasions,  our  troops  obliged  an  army  of  more  than  5,000 
Moros,  who  had  closely  beset  the  fortress  of  Zamboanga,  to  raise 


Rtstnctiun  •>! 
native 
ordinations 
recommendeti 


Moru 
depredatiuiin. 


444  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

the  siege;  and  also  in  the  years  1731  and  1734,  fresh  detachments 
of  our  men  were  landed  on  the  Islands  of  Jolo,  Capul  and  Basilan, 
and  their  success  was  followed  by  the  destruction  and  ruin  of  the 
fortified  posts,  vessels,  and  settlements  of  those  perfidious  Mahomet- 
ans. It  is  not,  however,  less  certain  that  at  the  periods  above 
mentioned,  the  war  was  carried  on  rather  from  motives  of  punish- 
ment and  revenge,  and  suggested  by  a  sudden  and  passing  zeal, 
than  in  conformity  to  any  progressive  and  well-combined  system. 
Since  then  these  laudable  military  enterprises  have  been  entirely 
neglected,  as  well  on  account  of  the  indolence  of  some  of  the  governors, 
as  the  too  great  confidence  placed  in  the  protestations  of  friendship 
and  treaties  of  peace  with  which,  from  time  to  time,  the  Sultans  of 
Jolo  and  Mindanao  have  sought  to  lull  them  to  sleep.  Their  want 
of  sincerity  is  proved  by  the  circumstance  of  the  piracies  of  their 
respective  subjects  not  ceasing,  the  chiefs  sometimes  feigning  they 
were  carried  on  without  their  license  or  knowledge;  and,  at  others, 
excusing  themselves  on  the  plea  of  their  inability  to  restrain  the 
insolence  of  the  Tirones  and  other  independent  tribes.  Neverthe- 
less, it  is  notorious  that  the  above-mentioned  sultans  indirectly 
encouraged  the  practice  of  privateering,  by  affording  every  aid  in 
their  power  to  those  who  fitted  out  vessels,  and  purchasing  from  the 
pirates  all  the  Christians  they  captured  and  brought  to  them. 

A  missionary'^  Father  Juan  Angeles,   superior  of  the  mission  established  in 

ajypeal.  Jolo,  at  the  request  of  Sultan  Alimudin  himself  (or  Ferdinand  I 

as  he  was  afterwards  unworthily  called  on  being  made  a  Christian 
with  no  other  view  than  the  better  to  gain  the  confidence  of  the 
Spaniards)  in  a  report  he  sent  to  the  government  from  the  above 
Island,  under  date  of  September  24,  1748,  describing  the  Sultan's 
singular  artifices  to  amuse  him  and  frustrate  the  object  of  his  mission, 
fully  confirms  all  that  has  just  been  said,  and,  on  closing  his  report, 
makes  use  of  the  following  remarkable  words : 

"When  is  it  we  shall  have  had  enough  of  treaties  with  these 
Moros,  for  have  we  not  before  us  the  experience  of  more  than  one 
hundred  years,  during  which  period  of  time,  they  have  not  kept  a 
single  article  in  any  way  burdensome  to,  or  binding  on,  themselves? 
They  will  never  observe  the  conditions  of  peace,  because  their  prop- 
erty consists  in  the  possession  of  slaves,  and  with  them  they  traffic, 
the  same  as  other  nations  do  with  money.  Sooner  will  the  hawk 
release  his  prey  from  his  talons  than  they  will  put  an  end  to  their 
piracies.  The  cause  of  their  being  still  unfaithful  to  Spain  arises 
out  of  this  matter  having  been  taken  up  by  fits  and  starts,  and  not 
in  the  serious  manner  it  ought  to  have  been  done.  To  make  war 
on  them,  in  an  effectual  manner,  fleets  must  not  be  employed,  but 


Slair  of  the  Philippines  in    I  Sill 


4/,6 


they  must  be  attacked  on  land,  and  in  their  posts  in  the  interior; 
for  it  is  much  more  advisable  at  once  to  spend  ten  with  advantage 
and  in  a  strenuous  manner  to  attain  an  important  object  than  to  lay 
out  twenty  by  degrees  and  without  fruit." 

It  is  an  undeniable  fact  that  the  government,  lulled  and  deceived 
by  the  frequent  embassies  and  submissive  and  crouching  letters  which 
those  fawning  sultans  have  been  in  the  habit  of  transmitting  to  them, 
instead  of  adopting  the  energetic  measures  urged  by  the  above- 
mentioned  missionary,  have  constantly  endeavored  to  renew  and 
secure  the  friendship  of  those  chiefs,  by  means  of  treaties  and  com- 
mercial relations;  granting,  with  this  view,  ample  licenses  to  every 
one  who  ventured  to  ship  merchandise  to  Jolo,  and  winking  at  the 
traffic  carried  on  by  the  governors  of  the  fortress  of  Zamboanga  with 
the  people  of  Mindanao;  whilst  the  latter,  on  their  part,  sporting 
with  our  foolish  credulity,  have  never  ceased  waging  a  most  destruc- 
tive war  against  us,  by  attacking  our  towns  situated  on  the  coast, 
not  even  excepting  those  of  the  Island  of  Luzon.  They  have  some- 
times carried  their  audacity  so  far  as  to  show  themselves  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  capital  itself,  and  at  others  taken  up  their  temporary 
residence  in  the  district  of  Mindoro  and  in  places  of  the  jurisdictions 
of  Samar  and  Leyte;  and  in  short,  even  dared  to  form  an  establish- 
ment or  general  deposit  for  their  plunder  in  the  Island  of  Buras, 
where  they  quietly  remained  during  the  years  1797,  1798  and  1799 
to  the  great  injury  of  our  commerce  and  settlements. 

This  want  of  exertion  to  remedy  evils  of  so  grievous  a  nature 
is  the  more  to  be  deplored  as  the  Philippine  governors  have  at  all 
times  been  fully  authorized  to  carry  on  war,  and  promote  the  de- 
struction of  the  Moros,  under  every  sacrifice,  and  especially  by  the 
royal  orders  and  decrees  of  October  26,  and  November  1,  1758, 
and  July  31,  1766,  in  all  of  which  his  majesty  recommends,  in  the 
most  earnest  manner,  "the  importance  of  punishing  the  audacity 
of  the  barbarous  infidels,  his  majesty  being  desirous  that,  in  order 
to  maintain  his  subjects  of  the  Philippines  free  from  the  piracies  and 
captivity  they  so  frequently  experience,  no  expenses  or  pains  should 
be  spared;  it  being  further  declared,  that  as  this  is  an  object  deeply 
affecting  the  conscience  of  his  majesty,  he  especially  enjoins  the  afore- 
said government  to  observe  his  order;  and  finally,  with  a  view  to 
provide  for  the  exigencies  arising  out  of  similar  enterprises,  the 
viceroy  of  New  Spain  is  instructed  to  attend  to  the  punctual  remit- 
tance, not  only  of  the  usual  "situado,"  or  annual  allowance,  but  also 
of  the  additional  sum  of  $70,000  in  the  first  and  succeeding  years, 
etc."     In  a  word,  our  monarchs,  Ferdinand  VI  and  Carlos  III,  omit- 


Oovernmcntiil 
lenience. 


Authority  for 
war  not 
tnrkinn. 


4^ 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Native  efforts 
for  self-defevce . 


MoTo  piratical 


ted  nothing  that  could  in  any  way  promote  so  important  an  object; 
whether  it  is  that  the  governors  have  disregarded  such  repeated 
orders  from  the  sovereigns,  or  mistaken  the  means  by  which 
they  were  to  be  carried  into  effect,  certain  it  is  that  the  unhappy 
inhabitants  of  the  Philippines  have  continued  to  be  witnesses,  and 
at  the  same  time  the  victims  of  the  culpable  apathy  of  those  who 
have  successively  held  the  command  of  these  Islands  within  the  last 
fifty  or  sixty  years. 

Abandoned  therefore  to  their  own  resouces.  and  from  time  to 
time  relieved  by  the  presence  of  a  few  gunboats  which,  after  scouring 
the  coasts,  have  never  been  able  to  come  up  with  the  light  and  fast 
sailing  vessels  of  the  enemy,  the  inhabitants  of  our  towns  and  settle- 
ments have  been  under  the  necessity  of  intrenching  and  fortifying 
themselves  in  the  best  way  they  were  able,  by  opening  ditches  and 
planting  a  breastwork  of  stakes  and  palisades,  crowned  with  watch 
towers,  or  a  wooden  or  stone  castle;  precautions  which  sometimes  are 
not  sufficient  against  the  nocturnal  irruptions  and  robberies  of  the 
Moros,  more  especially  when  they  come  with  any  strength  and  fire- 
arms, in  general  scarce  among  the  natives. 

The  pancos,  or  prows,  used  by  the  Moros,  are  light  and  simple 
vessels,  built  with  numerous  thin  planks  and  ribs,  with  a  small  draft 
of  water;  and  being  manned  by  dexterous  rowers,  they  appear  and 
disappear  from  the  horizon  with  equal  celerity,  flying  or  attacking, 
whenever  they  can  do  it  with  evident  advantage.  Some  of  those 
vessels  are  large,  and  fitted  out  with  fifty,  a  hundred,  and  sometimes 
two  hundred  men.  The  shots  of  their  scanty  and  defective  artillery 
are  very  uncertain,  because  they  generally  carry  their  guns  suspended 
in  slings;  but  they  are  to  be  dreaded,  and  are  extremely  dexterous 
in  the  management  of  the  campilan,  or  sword,  of  which  they  wear 
the  blades  long  and  well  tempered.  When  they  have  any  attack 
of  importance  in  view,  they  generally  assemble  to  the  number  of  two 
hundred  galleys,  or  more,  and  even  in  their  ordinary  cruises,  a  con- 
siderable number  navigate  together.  As  dread  and  the  scarcity 
of  inhabitants  in  the  Bisayan  Islands  cause  great  ranges  of  the  coast 
to  be  left  unsettled,  it  is  very  easy  for  the  Moros  to  find  numerous 
lurking-places  and  strongholds  whenever  they  are  pressed,  and  their 
constant  practice,  in  these  cases,  is  to  enter  the  rivers,  ground  their 
vessels,  and  hide  them  among  the  mangroves  and  thick  foliage, 
and  fly  with  their  arms  to  the  mountains,  thus  almost  always  laugh- 
ing at  the  efforts  of  their  opponents,  who  seldom  venture  to  follow 
them  into  the  thickets  and  morasses,  where  the  musket  is  of  no  use 
and  a  single  step  cannot  be  taken  with  any  security. 


state  of  the  Philippines   in    ISW  447 

«  The  fatal  consequences  and  ravages  of  this  system  of  cruising  Outrages 
and  warfare  round  the  Islands  are  incalculable.  Besides  plundering  *"-^'^'' 
and  burning  the  towns  and  settlements,  these  bloody  pirates  put  the 
old  and  helpless  to  the  sword,  destroy  the  cattle  and  plantations, 
and  annually  carry  off  to  their  own  homes  as  many  as  a  thousand 
captives  of  both  sexes,  who,  if  they  are  poor  and  without  hopes  of 
being  redeemed,  are  destined  to  drag  out  a  miserable  existence  amidst 
the  most  fatiguing  and  painful  labor,  sometimes  accompanied  with 
torments.  Such  is  the  dread  and  apprehension  of  these  seas  that  only 
those  navigate  and  carry  on  trade  in  them  who  are  able  to  arm 
and  man  their  vessels  in  a  way  corresponding  to  the  great  risks  they 
have  to  run,  or  others  whom  want  compels  to  disregard  the  immi- 
nent dangers  which  await  them.  Among  the  latter  class,  the 
Bisayans,  or  "painted  (tattooed)  natives,"  are  distinguished,  an 
extremely  warlike  people  of  whom  great  use  might  be  made.  Reared 
from  their  infancy  amidst  danger  and  battle,  and  greatly  resembling 
the  Moros  in  their  features  and  darkness  of  skin,  they  are  equally 
alike  in  the  agility  with  which  they  manage  the  long  sword  and  lance, 
and  such  is  the  courage  and  implacable  odium  with  which  they  treat 
their  enemies  that,  if  not  taken  by  surprise,  they  sell  their  lives  very 
dear,  sacrificing  themselves  in  a  most  heroic  manner,  rather  than  to 
be  led  away  as  captives. 

In  order,  however,  that  a  more  correct  idea  may  be  formed  of 
the  wicked  policy  and  atrocious  disposition  of  these  Moros,  and 
with  a  view  to  do  away  with  the  misconceptions  of  those  who  are 
of  opinion  that  incentives  to  trade,  and  other  slow  and  indirect 
means  ought  to  be  employed  for  the  purpose  of  overcoming  them, 
it  will  suffice  to  quote  the  following  examples  among  a  number  of 
others,  even  more  recent  ones,  which  might  equally  be  brought 
forward. 

In  1796,  the  governor  of  Zamboanga  dispatched,  with  regular  Jytstances 
passports  and  under  a  safe  conduct  obtained  from  the  Sultan  of  of  treachery. 
Mindanao,  Lieutenant  Don  Pantaleon  Arcillas,  with  a  sergeant, 
eight  men,  and  a  guide,  in  order  to  bring  into  the  fortress  the  cattle 
belonging  to  the  king's  farm,  which  had  strayed  away  and  got  up 
in  the  lands  of  the  above-mentioned  Mahometan  prince.  Five 
days  after  their  departure,  whilst  the  lieutenant  was  taking  his 
meals  at  the  house  of  a  "Datu,"  or  chief,  named  Oroncaya,  he  was 
suddenly  surrounded  by  seventy  Moros,  who,  seizing  upon  him, 
bound  him  to  a  tree  and  then  flayed  him  alive,  from  the  forehead  to 
the  ankle.     In  this  miserable  and  defenceless  situation,  the  barbarous 


44«  THE   FORMER   PHIUPPI.XES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

"Datu"  wreaked  his  vengeance  on  his  body  by  piercing  it  all  over 
with  his  "kris,"  or  dagger,  and  then  ordered  his  skin  to  be  hung  up 
on  the  pole  of  one  of  his  ferocious  banners. 

In  the  year  1798,  whilst  the  schooner  Snn  Jose  lay  at  anchor 
at  Tabitabi,  near  Jolo,  the  sons-in-law  and  nephews  of  the  sultan 
went  out  to  meet  her  in  two  large  prows,  exhibiting  at  the  same  time 
every  demonstration  of  peace,  and,  sending  forward  a  small  vessel 
with  refreshments,  they  invited  the  captain  to  come  on  board  of 
them.  The  latter,  deceived  by  the  apparent  frankness  and  high 
rank  of  the  Moros,  with  the  greatest  good  faith  accepted  the  invita- 
tion, and  proceeded  on  board,  accompanied  by  two  sailors,  with  a 
view  to  make  arrangements  for  barter.  Scarcely  had  they  got  on 
board  of  the  large  prow,  when  they  were  surrounded  and  seized, 
and  the  captain,  who  was  a  Spaniard,  compelled  to  sign  an  order 
to  his  mate  to  deliver  up  the  schooner,  which  he  reluctantly  did, 
under  the  hope  of  saving  his  own  and  his  companions'  lives.  The 
Moros  proceeded  on  board  the  Spanish  vessel,  and,  in  the  meantime, 
the  two  sailors  were  taken  back  to  the  boat,  and  there  killed  with 
daggers  in  the  presence  of  all.  The  schooner's  sails  were  next  hoisted, 
and  she  was  brought  into  Jolo,  where  the  cargo  and  crew  were  sold 
in  sight  of,  and  with  the  knowledge  and  consent  of  the  sultan;  an 
atrocity  for  which  he  has  always  refused  to  give  any  satisfaction 
to  a  nation,  thus  openly  and  barbarously  outraged  by  his  own  rela- 
tives, and  in  defiance  of  the  existing  treaties  of  peace.  Such  is  the 
cruel  character,  and  such  the  execrable  policy  of  the  Moros  generally 
inhabiting  the  Islands  situated  in  the  Philippine  seas. 
Growth  of  The  most  lamentable  circumstance  is,  that  these  infidel  races, 

oro  poucr.  ^^  ^jj  ^.jj^gg  ^.q  ^jg  dreaded,  owing  to  their  numbers  and  savage 
ferocity,  after  the  lapse  of  a  century  of  almost  uninterrupted  pro- 
sperity, and  encouraged  also  by  our  inattention,  have  at  length  grad- 
ually attained  so  formidable  a  degree  of  power,  that  their  reduction 
now  must  be  considered  an  extremely  arduous  and  expensive  enter- 
prise, although  an  object  urgently  requisite,  and  worthy  of  the 
greatness  of  a  nation  like  ours.  In  order,  however,  that  the  diffi- 
culties of  so  important  an  undertaking  may  be  justly  appreciated, 
it  may  be  proper  to  observe  that  the  Island  of  Mindanao  alone,  at 
the  present  moment,  contains  a  population  equal,  if  not  larger,  than 
that  of  Luzon,  and  the  margins  of  the  immense  lake,  situated  in 
its  center,  are  covered  with  well-built  towns,  filled  with  conveniences, 
the  fruits  of  their  annual  privateering,  and  of  the  traffic  they  carry 
on  with  the  inhabitants  of  the  Island  of  Jolo.  True  it  is,  and  it 
may  be  said,  equally  fortunate,  that  they  are  gready  divided  into 


I 


state  of  the  Phitippines  in  1810  H9 

parties,  subject  to  a  variety  of  "datus,"  or  independent  chiefs, 
in  name  only  inferior  to  the  one  who  styles  himself  the  sultan  of  the 
whole  Island.  As,  however,  the  fortresses  and  districts  of  Caraga, 
Misamis,  and  Zamboanga  occupy  nearly  three  parts  of  the  circum- 
ference of  the  Island,  these  Moros  freely  possess  no  more  than  the 
southern  part,  commencing  at  about  twenty-five  leagues  from  Cape 
San  Augustin,  and  ending  in  the  vicinity  of  Zamboanga;  so  that  the 
largest  number  of  their  naval  armaments  are  fitted  out  and  issued  to 
sea,  either  by  the  great  river  of  Mindanao,  or  from  some  of  the  many 
bays  and  inlets  situated  on  the  above  extent  of  coast. 

The  Island  of  Jolo,  although  small  compared  with  that  of 
Mindanao,  is,  nevertheless,  in  itself  the  most  important,  as  well 
as  the  real  hotbed  of  all  the  piracies  committed.  Its  inhabitants, 
according  to  the  unanimous  reports  of  captives  and  various  mer- 
chants, in  skill  and  valor  greatly  exceed  the  other  Mahometans  who 
infest  these  seas.  The  sultan  is  absolute,  and  his  subjects  carry 
on  trade  with  Borneo,  Celebes,  and  the  other  Malayan  tribes  scat- 
tered about  this  great  Archipelago.  In  the  port  of  Jolo,  as  already 
noticed,  sales  are  made  of  Christians  captured  by  the  other  Moros. 
The  Chinese  of  Amoy,  as  well  as  the  Dutch  and  British,  carry  them 
manufactured  goods,  opium  and  arms,  receiving,  in  return,  black 
pepper,  bees'  wax,  balato,  edible  nests,  tortoise-shell,  mother-of-pearl, 
gold  dust,  pearls,  etc.,  and  from  Manila  also  a  vessel  usually  goes 
once  a  year  with  goods;  but  all  act  with  the  greatest  precaution  in 
this  dangerous  traffic,  guarding,  as  much  as  possible,  against  the 
insidious  acts  of  that  perfidious  government.  The  great  number 
of  renegades,  of  all  casts,  who  have  successively  naturalized  them- 
selves there;  the  abundance  of  arms,  and  the  prevailing  opulence, 
have,  in  every  respect,  contributed  to  render  this  Island  a  formidable 
and  powerful  state.  The  capital  is  surrounded  with  forts  and  thick 
walls,  and  the  famous  heights,  standing  near  it,  in  case  of  emergency, 
afford  a  secure  asylum  where  the  women  can  take  refuge  and  the 
treasures  of  the  sultan  and  public  be  deposited,  whilst  in  the  plains 
below  the  contest  may  be  maintained  by  more  than  50,000  combat- 
ants, already  very  dexterous  in  the  use  of  the  musket  and  of  a  bold 
and  courageous  character.  The  navy  of  these  Islanders  is  also  very 
respectable,  for,  besides  a  great  number  of  smaller  prows  and  war- 
boats,  they  have  some  of  a  large  size,  capable  of  carrying  heavy 
artillery  on  their  decks,  mounted  on  corresponding  carriages,  and 
not  suspended  in  slings  as  is  the  custom  of  the  people  of  Mindanao. 
In  a  word,  Jolo  is  an  Island  governed  by  a  system  of  administra- 
tion extremely  vigorous  and  decisive;  dread  and  superstition  sustain 


J.50  THE  FORMER   I'HILIPFISES   THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 

the  throne  of  the  tyrant,  and  the  fame  of  his  greatness  frequently 
brings  to  his  feet  the  uleinas,  or  missionaries  of  the  Koran,  even  as 
far  as  from  the  furthest  margin  of  the  Red  Sea.  The  prince  and 
people,  unanimous  in  the  implacable  odium  with  which  they  view 
all  Christians,  cannot  be  divided  or  kept  on  terms  of  peace;  and  if 
it  is  really  wished  to  free  these  seas  from  the  evils  and  great  dangers 
with  which  they  are  at  all  times  threatened,  it  is  necessary  at  once 
to  strike  at  the  root,  by  landing  and  attacking  the  Jolonese  in  their 
strongholds,  and  break  the  charm  by  which  they  are  held  together. 
This,  at  least,  is  the  constant  and  unshaken  opinion  of  all 
experienced  persons  and  those  versed  in  Philippine  affairs;  and  if, 
by  the  substantial  reasons  and  existing  circumstances,  I  convince 
myself  sufficiently  to  openly  recommend  war  to  be  undertaken 
against  the  Moros  and  pushed  with  the  utmost  vigor,  and  more  parti- 
cularly commencing  the  work  by  a  formal  invasion  of  Jolo;  still, 
as  I  feel  myself  incompetent  to  trace  a  precise  plan,  or  to  discuss 
the  minute  details  more  immediately  connected  with  the  object,  I 
feel  it  necessary  to  confine  myself  to  the  pointing  out,  in  general 
terms,  of  the  means  I  judge  most  conducive  to  the  happy  issue 
of  so  arduous  but  important  an  enterprise,  leaving  the  rest  to  more 
able  and  experienced  hands. 
Council ')/  wfir  ^s  g  previous  step,  I  conceive  that  a  council  of  war  ought  to  be 

formed  in  Manila,  composed  of  the  captain-general,  the  commanders 
of  the  navy,  artillery,  and  engineer  department,  as  well  as  of  the 
regular  corps,  who,  in  conformity  to  all  the  antecedent  information 
lodged  in  the  secretary's  office  for  the  captain-generalship,  and  the 
previous  report  of  some  one  of  the  ex-governors  of  Zamboanga  and 
the  best  informed  missionaries,  may  be  enabled  to  deliberate  and 
proceed  on  to  a  mature  examination  of  the  whole  affair,  taking  into 
their  special  consideration  everything  regarding  Jolo,  its  early  reduc- 
tion, the  number  of  vessels  and  men  required  for  this  purpose,  the 
most  advantageous  points  of  attack,  and  the  best  season  in  which 
this  can  be  carried  into  execution.  After  all  these  matters  have  been 
determined  upon,  the  operation  in  question  ought  to  be  connected 
with  the  other  partial  and  general  arrangements  of  the  government, 
in  order  that  a  plan  the  best  adapted  to  localities  and  existing  cir- 
cumstances may  be  chosen,  and  without  its  being  necessary  to  wait 
for  the  king's  approbation  of  the  means  resolved  upon,  owing  to  the 
distance  of  the  court  and  the  necessity  of  acting  with  celerity.  If, 
however,  on  account  of  the  deference  in  every  respect  due  to  the 
sovereign,  it  should  be  thought  proper  to  reconcile  his  previous 
sanction  with  the  necessity  of  acting  without  loss  of  time,  the  best 


recommended. 


I 


Stale  of  the  Philippines  in   l&JO 


in  Philippine} 


mode  would  be  to  send  from  Spain  an  officer  of  high  rank,  fully 
authorized,  who,  as  practised  on  other  occasions,  might  give  his 
sanction,  in  the  name  of  the  king,  to  the  resolutions  adopted  by  the 
council  of  war,  and  take  under  his  oa^ti  immediate  charge,  if  it  should 
be  so  deemed  expedient,  the  command  of  the  expedition  against 
Jolo,  receiving  the  appointment  of  governor  of  the  Island,  as  soon 
as  the  conquest  should  be  carried  into  effect,  as  a  just  reward  for 
his  zeal  and  valor. 

Supposing  an  uniformity  of  opinions  to  prevail  with  regard  to  War^popular 
the  expediency  of  attempting  the  subjugation  of  Jolo,  and  supposing 
also  the  existence  of  the  necessary  funds  to  meet  the  expenses  of  a 
corresponding  armament,  it  may  be  positively  relied  upon  that  the 
project  would  be  extremely  popular,  and  meet  with  the  entire  con- 
currence and  support  of  the  Philippine  Islands.  The  military  men, 
aware  of  the  great  riches  known  to  exist  in  the  proposed  theatre  of 
operations,  would  emulously  come  forward  to  offer  their  services, 
under  a  hope  of  sharing  the  booty,  and  the  warlike  natives  of  the 
Bisayas  would  be  impelled  on  by  their  hatred  to  the  Moros,  and  their 
ardent  wishes  to  avenge  the  blood  of  their  fathers  and  children. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  abundance  of  regular  and  well  disciplined 
cfficers  and  troops,  at  present  in  the  colony  and  the  number  of  gun- 
boats found  in  the  ports,  a  want  of  which,  on  other  occasions,  has 
always  been  experienced,  will  afford  ample  scope  for  the  equipment 
of  a  force  competent  to  the  important  enterprise  in  view.  In  fact, 
if  the  operation  is  arranged  in  a  systematic  manner,  and  all  the  pre- 
cautions and  rules  observed  as  are  usual  in  cases  of  attacks  preme- 
ditated against  European  and  civilized  establishments,  there  is  no 
reason  to  expect  any  other  than  a  flattering  and  decisive  result, 
since,  in  reality,  the  whole  would  be  directed  against  an  enemy 
contemptible  on  account  of  his  barbarism  and  his  comparative 
ignorance  of  the  art  of  war. 

The  preparations  deemed  necessary  being  made  in  Manila, 
and  the  Bisayan  auxiliaries  assembled  beforehand  in  Zamboanga, 
with  their  arms  and  respective  chiefs,  the  whole  of  the  operation  in 
question,  it  may  be  safely  said,  might  be  terminated  within  the 
period  of  three  or  four  months.  Supposing  even  2,000  regular 
troops  are  destined  for  this  expedition,  with  a  corresponding  train 
of  field  pieces,  and  at  the  moment  there  should  not  be  found  in  the 
Islands  a  sufficient  number  of  larger  vessels  to  embargo  or  freight 
for  their  conveyance,  a  competent  quantity  of  coasters,  galleys 
and  small  craft  might  be  met  with  at  any  time  sufficiently  capacious 
and  secure  to  carry  the  men.     This  substitute  will  be  found  the  less 


\ative 
assistance. 


46Z  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

inconvenient,  because,  as  the  navigation  is  to  be  performed  among  the 
Islands  during  the  prevalence  of  the  north  winds,  usually  a  favorable 
and  steady  season  of  the  year,  the  voyage  will  consequently  be  safe 
and  easy.  It  will  also  be  possible  to  arrive  at  the  point  agreed  upon, 
as  a  general  rendezvous,  in  twenty,  or  five-and-twenty  days,  which 
place,  for  many  reasons,  ought  to  be  the  fortress  of  Zamboanga, 
situated  in  front  of  Jolo  and  at  moderate  distance  from  that  Island; 
it  being  from  this  port  that,  in  former  times,  the  Philippine  governors 
usually  sent  out  their  armaments,  destined  to  make  war  against 
the  Basilanese  and  Jolonese. 
Mindanao  also  As  soon  as  this  important  and  memorable  enterprise  has  been 

needs  attention,  carried  into  effect,  and  the  punishment  and  total  subjugation  of  these 
faithless  Mahometans  completed  and  the  new  conquest  placed 
under  a  military  authority,  in  the  mean  time  that  the  lands  are 
distributing  and  arrangements  making  to  establish  the  civil  adminis- 
tration, on  the  same  plan  followed  in  the  other  provinces  of  the  Phil- 
ippine government,  the  armament  ought  to  return  to  Zamboanga 
with  all  possible  speed;  but,  after  stopping  by  the  way  to  reduce 
the  small  island  of  Basilan  and  leaving  a  fortress  and  garrison  there. 
Immediately  afterwards,  and  before  the  various  tribes  of  Moros 
inhabiting  the  Island  of  Mindanao  have  been  able  to  concert  among 
themselves  and  prepare  for  their  defence,  it  would  be  advisable 
to  direct  partial  expeditions  towards  both  flanks  of  Zamboanga,  for 
the  purpose  of  burning  the  settlements  of  the  natives  and  driving 
them  from  the  shores  into  the  interior.  Forts  ought  then  to  be 
raised  at  the  mouths  of  the  inlets  and  rivers,  and  a  fourth  district 
government  formed  in  the  southern  part  of  the  island;  in  such  manner 
that,  by  possession  being  taken  of  the  coasts,  the  government  and 
district  of  Zamboanga  may  be  placed  in  contact  with  the  new  one 
established  on  the  one  side,  and  on  the  other  with  the  district  of 
Misamis,  also  the  new  district  with  that  of  Caraga,  the  western  part 
of  which  territory  is  already  united  to  that  of  Misamis.  Such,  at 
least,  was  the  opinion  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Don  Mariano  Tobias, 
an  officer  deservedly  celebrated  for  his  prudence  and  consummate  skill 
in  these  matters,  and  this  he  substantially  expressed  in  a  council 
of  war,  held  on  August  28,  1778,  for  the  purpose  of  deliberating 
on  the  most  advisable  means  to  check  the  Moros,  as  appears  by  a  long 
and  intelligent  report  drawn  upon  this  subject  on  April  26,  1800, 
by  the  adjutant-general  of  this  colony,  Don  Rufino  Suarez. 

In  case  it  should  be  determined  to  adopt  the  means  proposed 
by  Colonel  Tobias,  for  the  purpose  of  holding  the  Moros  of  Mindanao 
in  check,  and  to  which,  unfortunately,  due  regard  has  not  hitherto 


state  of  the  Philippines  in  1810  A5S 

been  paid,  notwithstanding  the  enterprise  presents  very  few  diffi- 
culties, owing  to  the  little  opposition  to  be  expected  from  the  infidel 
natives,  the  latter  would  then  be  left  completely  surrounded  and  shut 
up  in  the  heart  of  the  island,  and  their  active  system  of  privateering, 
with  which  they  have  so  many  years  infested  these  seas,  entirely 
destroyed.  If,  through  the  want  of  garrisons  and  population,  it 
should  not,  however,  be  possible  to  deprive  them  of  all  their  outlets, 
by  which  means  they  would  still  be  able  occasionally  to  send  some 
of  their  cruising  vessels,  nevertheless  there  would  be  facilities  with 
which  it  would  be  possible  to  pursue  and  counteract  the  ravages 
of  the  few  pirates  who  might  furtively  escape  out  of  some  river, 
while  now  they  are  fitted  out,  and  well  manned  and  armed  to  the 
number  of  one  and  two  hundred  war-boats,  openly  in  their  ports. 

After  the  emporiums  of  slavery  have  been  destroyed  by  the  A  plan  for 
conquest  of  Jolo,  and  the  other  general  measures  adopted,  as  above  /'*'"'"«  pohcing. 
pointed  out,  the  government  would  then  be  in  a  situation  to  turn 
its  attention,  with  much  greater  ease,  to  the  arrangement  of  all 
the  other  minor  schemes  of  precaution  and  protection  suited  to 
the  difference  of  circumstances  and  locality,  without  the  concurrence 
of  which  the  work  would  be  left  imperfect,  and  in  some  degree  the 
existence  of  those  settled  in  the  new  establishments  rendered  pre- 
carious. As,  however,  I  am  unprepared  minutely  to  point  out  the 
nature  of  these  measures,  or  distinctly  to  lay  down  a  ground-work 
for  future  civilization  and  improvement,  I  shall  merely  observe, 
that  what  would  then  remain  to  be  done  would  neither  require  any 
great  capital,  or  present  obstacles  which  might  not  easily  be  over- 
come. The  Moros  being  then  concentrated  in  the  Island  of  Min- 
danao, and  this  completely  surrounded  on  all  sides  by  our  forts  and 
settlements,  in  the  manner  above  described,  the  only  enemies  let 
loose  on  these  seas  would  be  either  the  few  who  might,  from  time 
to  time,  elude  the  vigilance  of  our  troops  and  district-commanders, 
or  those  who  might  have  escaped  from  Jolo  previous  to  its  conquest, 
and  taken  up  their  abode  in  one  or  other  of  the  Bisayas  Islands;  or, 
in  short,  such  as  are  out  cruising  at  the  time  our  armament  returns 
to  Zamboanga  and  takes  possession  of  the  southern  coast  of  Minda- 
nao; in  which  case  they  would  be  compelled  to  resort  to  a  roving  life, 
establishing,  like  the  Jolo  fugitives,  temporary  dwellings  among  the 
mangroves  and  thickets  bordering  on  the  shore. 

The  principal  objects  then  remaining  for  the  attention  of  gov- 
ernment would  be  to  guard  and  protect  the  towns  and  settlements 
established  on  the  coasts  from  the  insults  and  inroads  of  banditti, 
impelled  by  necessity  or  despair,  and  at  the  same  time  to  promote 


V>i  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGS  EYES 

the  gradual  overthrow  or  civiHzation  of  the  dispersed  remnant  of 
Moorish  population  left  in  the  Island.  The  cruising  of  the  pirates 
being  thus  reduced  to  a  space  comprehended  in  an  oblong  circle 
formed  by  an  imaginary  line  drawn  from  the  southern  extreme  of  the 
Island  of  Leyte,  to  the  south-west  point  of  Samar,  which  next  run- 
ning along  the  north-west  coast  of  Mindoro,  on  the  outside  of  Tacao 
and  Burias,  and  coming  down  to  the  west  of  Panay,  Negros  and  Bohol, 
closes  the  oval  at  the  little  island  formed  by  the  Strait  of  Panaon, 
about  forty  gunboats  might  be  advantageously  stationed  in  the  nar- 
rowest passages  from  land  to  land;  as,  for  example,  in  the  Strait 
of  San  Juanico  and  other  passes  of  a  similar  kind,  well  known  to  the 
local  pilots.  By  this  means,  the  limits  would  be  gradually  con- 
tracted. Various  small  naval  armaments  ought,  at  the  same  time, 
to  keep  cruising  in  the  center  of  this  circle,  pursuing  the  Moros 
by  sea  and  land,  dislodging  them  from  their  strongholds  and  lurking 
places,  and  sending  on  those  who  might  be  captured  to  the  depot 
pointed  out  by  government. 
Feasibility  The  first  part  of  the  plan  would  be  the  more  easily  realized, 

of  plans.  gg  -^  jg  well-known  that  most  of  the  districts  corresponding  to  the 

Bisayan  tribes,  including  those  of  Camarines  and  Albay,  situated 
at  the  extremity  of  the  island  of  Luzon,  have  several  gunboats  of 
their  own,  which  might  be  used  with  great  advantage.  By  merely 
advancing  and  stationing  them  in  such  channels  as  the  Moros  must 
necessarily  pass,  either  in  going  out  or  returning,  according  to  the 
different  monsoons,  they  would  easily  be  checked,  without  removing 
the  gunboats  to  any  great  distance  from  their  own  coasts.  As 
besides  the  great  advantages  resulting  from  this  plan  and  every  one 
doing  his  duty  are  apparent,  no  doubt  numbers  of  natives  would 
volunteer  their  services,  more  particularly  if  they  were  liberally 
rewarded,  and  their  maintenance  provided  from  the  funds  of  the 
respective  communities.  Moreover,  the  points  which  at  first  should 
not  be  considered  as  sufficiently  guarded  might  be  strengthened 
by  the  king's  gunboats,  and,  indeed,  in  all  of  them  it  would  be  advis- 
able to  station  some  of  the  latter,  commanded  by  a  select  officer, 
to  whose  orders  the  captains  of  the  provincial  gunboats  ought  to 
be   made   subservient. 

With  regard  to  the  second  part,  it  will  suffice  to  observe  that 
the  captain-generalship  of  the  Philippine  Islands  already  possesses 
as  many  as  seventy  gunboats,  besides  a  considerable  number  of 
gallies  and  launches,  which  altogether  constitute  a  formidable 
squadron  of  light  vessels;  and,  after  deducting  those  deemed  neces- 
sary for  the  protection  of  Jolo  and  the  new  province  to  be  established 


Stall-  of  the   f'hitippintx   ii)    IStO  J,5r> 

in  Mindanao,  a  sufficient  number  would  still  be  left  to  carry  into 
execution  all  the  objects  proposed.  At  present,  although  the  Moros 
navigate  in  numerous  divions,  and  with  a  confidence  inspired  by 
their  undisturbed  prosperity,  a  24-pounder  shot  from  one  of  our 
launches  is  nevertheless  sufficient  to  put  them  to  flight;  what  there- 
fore may  not  be  expected  when  their  forces  shall  be  so  greatly  dimi- 
nished and  their  apprehensions  increased,  of  being  defeated  and  cap- 
tured? Nevertheless,  as  it  is  not  easy  for  our  gunboats  to  come  up 
with  them,  when  giving  chase,  it  would  be  advisable  to  add  to  our 
cruisers  a  temporary  establishment  of  prows  and  light  vessels, 
manned  by  Bisayan  Indians,  which,  by  advancing  on  with  the  gallies, 
might  attack  the  enemy  and  give  time  for  the  gunboats  to  come  up 
and  decide  the  action.  Besides  as  the  Bisayan  Indians  are  perfectly 
acquainted  with  the  mode  of  making  war  on  the  Moros,  the  meaning 
of  their  signals  and  manoeuvers  and  the  kind  of  places  on  shore 
in  which  they  take  shelter  when  pursued  at  sea,  the  employment 
of  such  auxiliaries  would  be  extremely  useful. 

The  whole  of  these  defensive  and  offensive  arrangements  would,  AVfd  of 
however,  be  ineffectual  or  incomplete  in  their  results,  if  the  most  undivided 
perfect  union  and  concert  is  not  established  in  every  part,  so  that  '<'«''<''"«'" 7^- 
all  should  conspire  to  the  same  object,  although  by  distinct  means. 
In  order  therefore  that  the  necessary  harmony  may  be  secured, 
it  would  be  expedient  to  remove  the  chief  authority  nearer  to  the 
theater  of  war,  by  confiding  all  the  necessary  instructions  and  powers 
to  the  person  who  might  be  selected  for  the  direction  and  command 
of  the  enterprise,  after  the  general  plan  of  operations  had  been  regu- 
larly approved.  Under  this  impression,  and  with  a  view  to  the 
better  execution  of  all  the  details,  it  would  be  advisable  for  the  com- 
manding officer,  named  by  the  government,  to  take  up  his  head- 
quarters in  the  Island  of  Panay,  which,  owing  to  its  geographical 
situation,  the  great  number  of  towns  and  inhabitants  contained 
in  the  three  provinces  into  which  it  is  divided,  as  well  as  other  poli- 
tical reasons,  is  generally  esteemed  preferable  for  the  object  in  ques- 
tion, to  the  Island  of  Zebu,  where,  in  former  times,  the  commanders 
of  the  province  of  the  painted  natives  resided,  as  mentioned  in  the 
laws  of  the  Indies.  The  center  of  action  being  placed  in  Iloilo,  a 
communication  with  the  other  points  would  thus  more  easily  be 
kept  open,  aid  and  relief  might  be  sent  more  rapidly  to  the  quarter 
where  required,  and,  in  a  word,  all  the  movements,  of  whatsoever 
kind  they  might  be,  would  be  executed  with  greater  precision  and 
certainty  of  success.  It  would  be  unnecessary  to  add  that  the  pro- 
vincial magistrates  of  Camarines  and   Albay   ought   to   co-operate. 


456  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

■  with  their  fourteen  gunboats  and  other  smaller  vessels,  in  the  meas- 
ures adopted  by   the   commander    of  the   Bisayan   establishment, 
distributing  their  forces  according  to  the  orders  given  by  him,  and 
by  undertaking  to  guard  the  straits  of  San  Bernardino. 
Paraau.1  The  Island  of  Paragua,  at  the  head  of  which  the  provincial 

jurisdiction  of  Calamianes  is  placed,  is  not  included  in  the  great 
circle,  or  chain  of  stations,  above  traced  out,  as  well  in  consequence 
of  its  great  distance  from  the  other  islands,  for  which  reason  it  is  not 
so  much  infested  by  the  Moros,  as  because  of  its  being  at  present 
nearly  depopulated  and  uncultivated,  and  for  these  reasons  the 
attention  of  government  ought  not  to  be  withdrawn  from  other  more 
important  points.  With  regard  to  that  of  Mindanao,  the  necessity 
of  keeping  up  along  the  whole  of  its  immense  coast,  a  line  of  castles 
and  watch  towers,  has  already  been  fully  pointed  out,  more  espe- 
cially in  the  vicinity  of  the  bay  of  Panguil,  to  the  north,  and  the 
mouths  of  the  great  river  towards  the  south ;  the  two  points  in  which 
the  enemies'  most  formidable  armaments  are  usually  fitted  out. 
Consequently,  it  would  not  be  possible  to  expect  the  provincial 
commanders  stationed  there  would  be  able  to  disengage  any  part 
of  their  naval  force,  in  order  to  place  it  at  the  disposal  of  the  officer 
commanding  the  Bisayan  vessels.  Indeed,  it  is  obvious  that  it  would 
be  extremely  important  to  afford  the  people  of  Mindanao  every 
possible  additional  aid,  in  vessels,  troops  and  money,  in  order  the 
better  to  check  the  sailing  of  partial  divisions  of  the  enemy,  and  thus 
prevent  the  immense  number  of  pirates,  inhabiting  the  interior  of  the 
island,  from  breaking  the  fortified  line,  and  again  covering  these 
seas,  and  with  redoubled  fury  carrying  death  and  desolation  along 
all  the  coasts. 

It  would,  in  fact,  be  extremely  desirable  if,  through  the  concerted 
measures  and  constant  vigilance  of  the  four  chief  magistrates  in- 
trusted with  the  command  of  the  island,  the  future  attempts  of  the 
Ivlindanayans  could  be  entirely  counteracted,  and  their  cruisers 
altogether  kept  within  the  line  for  a  certain  period  of  years;  as  by 
thus  depriving  them  of  the  facilities  to  continue  their  old  habits  of 
life,  these  barbarous  tribes  would  be  eventually  compelled  to  adopt 
other  pursuits,  either  by  ascending  the  mountainous  parts  of  the 
island,  and  shutting  themselves  up  in  the  thick  and  impenetrable 
forests,  with  a  view  to  preserve  their  independence;  or,  throwing 
down  their  arms  and  devoting  themselves  to  the  peaceful  cultivation 
of  their  lands.  In  the  latter  case,  they  would  gradually  lose  their 
present  ferocious  character;  their  regard  for  the  conveniences  and 
repose  of  social  life  would  increase;  the  contrast  would  be  attended 


Slate  of  the  Philippines  in  ISIO 


1,67 


with  most  favorable  consequences,  and  in  the  course  of  time,  the 
whole  of  the  aboriginal  natives  of  these  islands  would  come  into  our 
laws  and  customs,  and  become  confounded  in  the  general  mass  of 
Philippine  subjects,  owing  allegiance  to  the  king. 

Finally,  it  must  be  equally  acknowledged  that  the  Islands  of 
Jolo,  Basilan,  Capul,  and  some  of  the  other  inferior  ones,  of  which, 
as  above  pointed  out,  an  union  ought  to  be  formed  in  the  way  of  an 
additional  government,  subordinate  to  the  captain-general,  would 
be  able  to  co-operate  in  the  war  on  no  other  plan  than  the  one 
traced  out  for  the  provinces  held  in  Mindanao;  that  is,  by  their 
gunboats  being  confided  to  the  protection  of  their  own  coasts; 
though  with  this  difference,  that  if,  in  one  instance,  the  main  object 
would  be  to  prevent  the  evasion  of  the  enemy,  in  the  other  every 
effort  must  be  employed  to  guard  against  and  repel  their  incursions 
when  they  do  appear.  However,  complete  the  success  of  the  arma- 
ment, destined  for  the  reduction  of  Jolo,  it  may  nevertheless  be 
presumed,  that  the  mountains  would  still  continue  to  give  shelter 
to  hordes  of  fugitives,  who  would  take  refuge  in  the  fastnesses, 
and  avail  themselves  of  every  opportunity  to  concert  plans,  or  fly  off 
to  join  their  comrades  in  Mindanao,  in  order  to  return,  and  through 
their  aid,  satisfy  their  thirst  for  vengeance,  by  surprising  some  for- 
tress or  settlement,  or  establishing  themselves  on  some  neglected 
and  not  well  known  point.  In  consequence  of  this,  the  governor, 
commanding  there,  would  at  first  require  the  active  co-operation 
of  all  his  forces,  for  the  purpose  of  consolidating  the  new  conquest, 
and  causing  his  authority  to  be  respected  throughout  the  island. 

These,  in  my  opinion,  are  the  true  and  secure  means  by  which 
the  enemies  of  the  peace  and  prosperity  of  the  Philippines  may  be 
humbled,  their  piracies  prevented,  and  a  basis  laid  for  the  future 
civilization  of  the  remaining  islands  in  this  important  Archipelago. 
To  this  sketch,  a  number  of  other  details  and  essential  illustrations, 
no  doubt,  are  wanting;  and  possibly,  I  may  be  accused  of  some  in- 
accuracies, in  discussing  a  topic,  with  which  I  candidly  avow  I 
cannot  be  considered  altogether  familiar.  The  plan  and  success 
of  the  enterprise  must,  however,  greatly  depend  on  military  skill  and 
talent;  but  as  I  have  attempted  no  more  than  fairly  to  trace  the 
general  outline  of  the  plan,  and  insist  on  the  necessity  of  its  adoption, 
my  remarks,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  will  serve  to  awaken  a  serious  disposi- 
tion to  review  and  investigate  the  whole  subject,  a  task  that  most 
assuredly  ought  to  be  confided  to  a  competent  and  special  council. 
Whatever  defects  I  may  involuntarily  have  fallen  into,  will  then  be 
corrected;  at   the  same  time  it  ought  not  to  appear  strange  that 


Importance  of 
peace  for 
Philippine 
progress. 


458  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

inexperienced  persons  should  presume  tc  speak  on  matters  connected 
with  the  public  good,  when  we  see  them  so  much  neglected  by  those 
whose  more  immediate  duty  it  is  to  look  after  and  promote  them. 
At  all  events,  dispassionate  zeal  has  seldom  done  harm;  and  I  again 
repeat,  that  my  wish  is  not  so  much  to  see  my  own  ideas  adopted, 
as  to  urge  the  necessity  of  their  being  examined  and  digested.  I 
am  desirous  that  other  sources  of  information  on  this  subject  should 
be  explored,  that  practical  men  should  be  called  in,  and  that  those 
in  power  should  be  induced  to  apply  themselves  and  devote  their 
exertions  to  an  object  so  highly  deser'/ing  of  their  attention.  In 
short,  I  am  anxious  that  the  pious  injunctions  of  our  monarchs  should 
be  fulfilled,  and  that  the  tears  and  blood  of  the  inhabitants  of  these 
neglected  islands  should  cease  to  flow. 

Should  the  happy  day  ever  arrive,  when  the  inhabitants  of 
these  provinces  shall  behold  themselves  free  from  the  cruel  scourge 
with  which  they  have  been  desolated  for  so  many  years,  they  will 
bless  the  nation  that  has  redeemed  them  from  all  their  cares,  they 
will  tighten  their  relations  with  it,  and  deliver  themselves  up  to 
its  direction  without  reserve.  The  natives  will  then  come  down 
from  the  strong  fastnesses  they  at  present  inhabit;  they  will  clear 
fresh  lands,  and  earnestly  devote  themselves  to  tillage  and  industry, 
Under  the  shadow  of  peace,  population  and  commerce  will  increase; 
the  Bisayan  vessels  will  then  plough  the  ocean  without  the  dread 
of  other  enemies  than  the  elements;  and  the  Moros  themselves  of 
Mindanao  (I  say  it  with  confidence),  straightened  on  all  sides,  and 
incessantly  harassed  by  the  Christians,  but  on  the  other  hand  wit- 
nessing the  advantages  and  mildness  of  our  laws,  will  at  length 
submit  to  the  dominion  of  the  monarchs  of  Spain,  who  will  thus 
secure  the  quiet  possession  of  one  of  the  most  interesting  portions 
of  the  habitable  globe,  and  be  justly  entitled  to  the  gratitude  of  all 
nations  connected  with  China  and  India,  for  having  put  an  end  to 
a  series  of  the  most  terrific  plunder  and  captivity  that  ever  dis- 
graced the  annals  of  any  age. 


MANILA  IN  1842 

By  COM.   CHARLES    WILKES,   U.   S.   N. 
(Narrative  of  U.   S.   Exploring  Expedition,   Vol.   V,    Chaps.   8  and   9.) 

At  daylight,  on  January  13,  we  were  again  under  way,  with  a  Port  ruUs. 
light  air,  and  at  nine  o'clock  reached  the  roadstead,  where  we 
anchored  in  six  fathoms  water,  with  good  holding-ground.  Being 
anxious  to  obtain  our  letters,  which,  we  were  informed  at  Oahu,  had 
been  sent  to  Manila,  I  immediately  dispatched  two  boats  to  procure 
them.  On  their  way  to  the  mole,  they  were  stopped  by  the  captain  of 
the  port,  Don  Juan  Salomon,  who  requested  them,  in  a  polite  manner, 
to  return,  and  informed  the  officers  that,  agreeably  to  the  rules  of  the 
port,  no  boat  was  permitted  to  land  until  the  visit  of  the  health- 
officer  had  been  made,  etc. 

The  captain  of  the  port,  in  a  large  barge,  was  soon  seen  pulling  off  Official 
in  company  with  the  boats.  He  boarded  us  with  much  ceremony,  courtesies. 
and  a  few  moments  sufficed  to  satisfy  him  of  the  good  health  of  the 
crew,  when  he  readily  gave  his  assent  to  our  visiting  the  shore. 
Every  kind  of  assistance  was  offered  me,  on  the  part  of  the  govern- 
ment, and  he,  in  the  most  obliging  manner,  gave  us  permission  to  go 
and  come  when  we  pleased,  with  the  simple  request  that  the  boats 
should  wear  our  national  flag,  that  they  might  at  all  times  be  known, 
and  thus  be  free  from  any  interruption  by  the  guards.  The  boats 
were  again  dispatched  for  the  consul  and  letters,  and  after  being 
anxiously  watched  for,  returned;  every  one  on  board  ship  expecting 
his  wishes  to  be  gratified  with  news  from  home;  but,  as  is  usual  on 
such  occasions,  the  number  of  the  happy  few  bore  no  comparison 
to  that  of  the  many  who  were  disappointed. 

Our  vice-consul,  Josiah  Moore,  Esq.,  soon  paid  us  a  visit,  and  gave 
us  a  pressing  invitation  to  take  up  our  quarters  on  shore  while  we 
remained.  To  this  gentleman  and  Mr.  Sturges  I  am  greatly  indebted 
for  much  of  the  information  that  will  be  detailed  in  the  following 
chapter. 

A  number  of  vessels  were  lying  in  the  roads,  among  which  were    American  hemn 
several   Americans   loading   with   hemp.     There   was   also   a   large    ships. 
English  East  Indiaman,  manned  by  Lascars,  whose  noise    rendered 
her  more  like  a  floating  Bedlam  than  any  thing  else  to  which  I  can 
liken  it. 

The  view  of  the  city  and  country  around  Manila  partakes  both  of  .1  Spani.^h 
a  Spanish  and  an  Oriental  character.  The  sombre  and  heavy-  oriental  city . 
looking  churches,  with  their  awkward  towers;  the  long  lines  of  bat- 
teries mounted  with  heavy  cannon;  the  massive  houses,  with  ranges 
of  balconies;  and  the  light  and  airy  cottage,  elevated  on  posts, 
situated  in  the  luxuriant  groves  of  tropical  trees — all  excite  a  desire 
to  become  better  acquainted  with  the  country. 

Manila  is  situated  on  an  extensive  plain,  gradually  swelling  into    Surroun^tivs^- 
distant  hills,  beyond  which,  again,  mountains  rise  in  the  back  ground 
to  the  height  of  several  thousand  feet.     The  latter  are  apparently 


460 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


Canalu 


Typhoons. 


Twin  piers 


Suburbs. 


Walled  city. 


clothed  with  vegetation  to  their  summits.  The  city  is  in  strong 
contrast  to  this  luxuriant  scenery,  bearing  evident  marks  of  decay, 
particularly  in  the  churches,  whose  steeples  and  tile  roofs  have  a 
dilapidated  look.  The  site  of  the  city  does  not  appear  to  have  been 
well  chosen,  it  having  apparently  been  selected  entirely  for  the  con- 
venience of  commerce,  and  the  communication  that  the  outlet  of 
the  lake  affords  for  the  batteaux  that  transport  the  produce  from  the 
shores  of  the  Laguna  de  Bay  to  the  city. 

There  are  many  arms  or  branches  to  this  stream,  which  have  been 
converted  into  canals ;  and  almost  any  part  of  Manila  may  now  be 
reached  in  a  banca. 

In  the  afternoon,  in  company  with  Captain  Hudson,  I  paid  my 
first  visit  to  Manila.  The  anchorage  considered  safest  for  large 
ships  is  nearly  three  miles  from  the  shore,  but  smaller  vessels  may 
lie  much  nearer,  and  even  enter  the  canal;  a  facility  of  which  a 
number  of  these  take  advantage,  to  accomplish  any  repairs  they  may 
have  occasion  to  make. 

The  canal,  however,  is  generally  filled  with  coasting  vessels, 
batteaux  from  the  lake,  and  lighters  for  the  discharge  of  the  vessels 
lying  in  the  roads.  The  bay  of  Manila  is  safe,  excepting  during 
the  change  of  the  monsoons,  when  it  is  subject  to  the  typhoons  of 
the  China  Seas,  within  whose  range  it  lies.  These  blow  at  times 
with  much  force,  and  cause  great  damage.  Foreign  vessels  have, 
however,  kept  this  anchorage,  and  rode  out  these  storms  in  safety; 
but  native  as  well  as  Spanish  vessels,  seek  at  these  times  the  port 
of  Cavite,  about  three  leagues  to  the  southwest,  at  the  entrance 
of  the  bay,  which  is  perfectly  secure.  Here  the  government  dock- 
yard is  situated,  and  this  harbor  is  consequently  the  resort  of  the 
few  gunboats  and  galleys  that  are  stationed  here. 

The  entrance  to  the  canal  or  river  Pasig  is  three  hundred  feet  wide, 
and  is  enclosed  between  two  well-constructed  piers,  which  extend 
for  some  distance  into  the  bay.  On  the  end  of  one  of  these  is  the 
light-house,  and  on  the  other  a  guard-house.  The  walls  of  these 
piers  are  about  four  feet  above  ordinary  high  water,  and  include  the 
natural  channel  of  the  river,  whose  current  sets  out  with  some  force, 
particularly  when  the  ebb  is  making  in  the  bay. 

The  suburbs,  or  Binondo  quarter,  contain  more  inhabitants  than 
the  city  itself,  and  is  the  commercial  town.  They  have  all  the  stir 
and  life  incident  to  a  large  population  actively  engaged  in  trade,  and 
in  this  respect  the  contrast  with  the  city  proper  is  great. 

The  city  of  Manila  is  built  in  the  form  of  a  large  segment  of  a 
circle,  having  the  chord  of  the  segment  on  the  river:  the  whole  is 
strongly  fortified,  with  walls  and  ditches.  The  houses  are  substan- 
tially built  after  the  fashion  of  the  mother  country.  Within  the 
walls  are  the  governor's  palace,  custom-house,  treasury,  admiralty, 
several  churches,  convents,  and  charitable  institutions,  a  university, 
and  the  barracks  for  the  troops;  it  also  contains  some  public  squares, 
on  one  of  which  is  a  bronze  statue  of  Charles  IV. 

The  city  is  properly  deemed  the  court  residence  of  these  islands; 
and  all  those  attached  to  the  government,  or  who  wish  to  be  con- 
sidered as  of  the  higher  circle,  reside  here;  but  foreigners  are  not 
permitted  to  do  so.     The  houses  in  the  city  are  generally  of  stone, 


Manila  in  I842 


461 


plastered,  and  white  or  yellow  washed  on  the  outside.     They  are  only  ', 

two  stories  high,  and  in  consequence  cover  a  large  space,  being  built 
around  a  patio  or  courtyard. 

The  ground-floors  are  occupied  as  storehouses,  stables,  and  for  DwelUnaa. 
porters'  lodges.  The  second  story  is  devoted  to  the  dining-halls  and 
sleeping  apartments,  kitchens,  bath-rooms,  etc.  The  bed-rooms 
have  the  windows  down  to  the  floor,  opening  on  wide  balconies, 
with  blinds  or  shutters.  These  blinds  are  constructed  with  sliding 
frames,  having  small  squares  of  two  inches  filled  in  with  a  thin  semi- 
transparent  shell,  a  species  of  Placuna;  the  fronts  ofsome  of  the  houses 
have  a  large  number  of  these  small  lights,  where  the  females  of  the 
family  may  enjoy  themselves  unperceived. 

After  entering  the  canal,  we  very  soon  found  ourselves  among  a  Business. 
motley  and  strange  population.  On  landing,  the  attention  is  drawn 
to  the  vast  number  of  small  stalls  and  shops  with  which  the  streets 
are  lined  on  each  side,  and  to  the  crowds  of  people  passing  to  and  fro, 
all  intent  upon  their  several  occupations.  The  artisans  in  Manila 
are  almost  wholly  Chinese;  and  all  trades  are  local,  so  that  in  each 
quarter  of  the  Binondo  suburb  the  privilege  of  exclusive  occupancy 
is  claimed  by  some  particular  kinds  of  shops.  In  passing  up  the 
Escolta  (which  is  the  longest  and  main  street  in  this  district),  the 
cabinet-makers,  seen  busily  at  work  in  their  shops,  are  first  met 
with;  next  to  these  come  the  tinkers  and  blacksmiths;  then  the  shoe- 
makers, clothiers,  fishmongers,  haberdashers,  etc.  These  are 
flanked  by  outdoor  occupations;  and  in  each  quarter  are  numerous 
cooks,  frying  cakes,  stewing,  etc.,  in  movable  kitchens;  while  here 
and  there  are  to  be  seen  betel-nut  sellers,  either  moving  about  to 
obtain  customers,  or  taking  a  stand  in  some  great  thoroughfare. 
The  moving  throng,  composed  of  carriers,  waiters,  messengers,  etc., 
pass  quietly  and  without  any  noise:  they  are  generally  seen  with  the 
Chinese  umbrella,  painted  in  many  colors,  screening  themselves 
from  the  sun.  The  whole  population  wear  slippers,  and  move  along 
with  a  slipshod  gait. 

The  Chinese  are  apparently  far  more  numerous  than  the  Malays, 
and  the  two  races  differ  as  much  in  character  as  in  appearance:  one 
is  all  activity,  while  the  other  is  disposed  to  avoid  all  exertion.  They 
preserve  their  distinctive  character  throughout,  mixing  but  very 
little  with  each  other,  and  are  removed  as  far  as  possible  in  their 
civilities;  the  former,  from  their  industry  and  perseverance,  have 
almost  monopolized  all  the  lucrative  employments  among  the  lower 
orders,  excepting  the  selling  of  fish  and  betel-nut,  and  articles  manu> 
factured  in  the  provinces. 

On  shore,  we  were  kindly  received  by  Mr.  Moore,  who  at  once 
made  us  feel  at  home.  The  change  of  feeling  that  takes  place  in  a 
transfer  from  shipboard  in  a  hot  climate,  after  a  long  cruise,  to 
spacious  and  airy  apartments,  surrounded  by  every  luxury  that  kind 
attentions  can  give,  can  be  scarcely  imagined  by  those  who  have 
not  experienced  it. 

As  we  needed  some  repairs  and  supplies,  to  attend  to  these  was  my 
first  occupation.     Among  the  former,  we  required  a  heavy   piece 


^62  THE  FORMER  PIIILirPINES  THRU   FOREIGN  EYES 

'.  of  blacksmith-work,  to  prepare  which,  we  were  obHged  to  send  our 

armourers  on  shore.  The  only  thing  they  could  procure  was  a  place 
for  a  forge;  but  coal,  and  every  thing  else,  we  had  to  supply  from 
the  ship.  I  mention  these  things  to  show  that  those  in  want  of 
repairs  must  not  calculate  upon  their  being  done  at  Manila  with  dis- 
patch, if  they  can  be  accomplished  at  all. 

ci.t!i  of  Mni\ihi.  The  city  government  of  Manila  was  established  June  24,  1571, 
and  the  title  under  which  it  is  designated  is,  "The  celebrated  and 
forever  loyal  city  of  Manila."  In  1595,  the  charter  was  confirmed 
by  royal  authority;  and  all  the  prerogatives  possessed  by  other  cities 
in  the  kingdom  were  conferred  upon  it  in  1638.  The  members  of 
the  city  council,  by  authority  of  the  king,  were  constituted  a  council 
of  advisement  with  the  governor  and  captain-general.  The  city 
magistrates  were  also  placed  in  rank  next  the  judges;  and  in  1686 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  city  was  extended  over  a  radius  of  five  leagues. 
In  1818,  the  members  of  the  council  were  increased  and  ordered 
to  assume  the  title  of  "Excellency."  Manila  has  been  one  of  the 
most  constantly  loyal  cities  of  the  Spanish  kingdom,  and  is,  in 
consequence,  considered  to  merit  these  additional  royal  favors  to 
its  inhabitants. 

Commerv:.  In   1834,  the  Royal  Tribunal  of  Commerce  was  instituted,   to. 

supersede  the  old  consulate,  which  had  been  established  since  1772, 
The  Royal  Tribunal  of  Commerce  acts  under  the  new  commercial 
code,  and  possesses  the  same  privileges  of  arbitration  as  the  old  con- 
sulate. It  consists  of  a  prior,  two  consuls,  and  four  deputies,  elected 
by  the  profession.  The  three  first  exercise  consular  jurisdiction, 
the  other  four  superintend  the  encouragement  of  commerce.  The 
"Junta  de  Comercio"  (chamber  of  commerce)  was  formed  in 
1835.  This  junta  consits  of  the  Tribunal  of  Commerce,  with 
four  merchants,  who  are  selected  by  the  government,  two  of  whom 
are  removed  annually.  The  prior  of  the  Tribunal  presides  at  the 
Junta,  whose  meetings  are  required  to  be  held  twice  a  month,  or 
oftener  if  necessary,  and  upon  days  in  which  the  Tribunal  is  not  in 
session.  The  two  courts  being  under  the  same  influences,  and 
having  the  same  officers,  little  benefit  is  to  be  derived  from  their 
double  action,  and  great  complaints  are  made  of  the  manner  in 
which  business  is  conducted  in  them. 

MaiiMiiii.  Of  all  her  foreign  possessions,  the  Philippines  have  cost  Spain 

the  least  blood  and  labor.  The  honor  of  their  discovery  belongs 
to  Magellan  whose  name  is  associated  with  the  straits  at  the  southern 
extremity  of  the  American  continent,  but  which  has  no  memorial 
in  these  islands.  Now  that  the  glory  which  he  gained  by  being  the 
first  to  penetrate  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  has  been  in  some 
measure  obliterated  by  the  disuse  of  those  straits  by  navigators, 
it  would  seem  due  to  his  memory  that  some  spot  among  these  islands 
should  be  set  apart  to  commemorate  the  name  of  him  who  made 
them  known  to  Europe.  This  would  be  but  common  justice  to  the 
discoverer  of  a  region  which  has  been  a  source  of  so  much  honor 
and  profit  to  the  Spanish  nation,  who  opened  the  vast  expanse  of 
the  Pacific  to  the  fleets  of  Europe,  and  who  died  fighting  to  secure 
the  benefits  of  his  enterprise  to  his  king  and  country. 


ii 


Manila  in   lSi2  463 

Magellan  was  killed  at  the  island  of  Mactan,  on  April  26,  1521; 
and  Duarte,  the  second  in  command,  who  succeeded  him,  impru- 
dently accepting  an  invitation  from  the  chief  of  Cebu  to  a  feast, 
was,  with  twenty  companions,  massacred.  Of  all  the  Spaniards 
present,  only  one  escaped.  After  these  and  various  other  misfor- 
tunes, only  one  vessel  of  the  squadron,  the  Victoria,  returned  to 
Spain.  Don  Juan  Sebastian  del  Cano,  her  commander,  was  com- 
plimented by  his  sovereign  by  a  grant  for  his  arms  of  a  globe,  with  the 
proud  inscription,  commemorative  of  his  being  the  first  circum- 
navigator,   "PRIMUS   ME   CIRCUMCEDIT." 

Two  years  afterwards,  a  second  expedition  was  fitted  out,  under  Other 
the  command  of  Loaisa,  who  died  after  they  had  passed  through  the  expeditions. 
Straits  of  Magellan,  when  they  had  been  a  year  on  their  voyage. 
The  com.mand  then  fell  upon  Sebastian,  who  died  in  four  days  after 
his  predecessor.  Salazar  succeeded  to  the  command,  and  reached 
the  Ladrone  Islands,  but  shortly  after  leaving  there  he  died  also. 
They  came  in  sight  of  Mindanao,  but  contrary  winds  obliged  them 
to  go  to  the  Moluccas.  When  arrived  at  the  Portuguese  settle- 
ments, contentions  and  jealousies  arose,  and  finally  all  the  expedition 
was  dispersed,  and  the  fate  of  all  but  one  of  the  vessels  has  become 
doubtful.  None  but  the  small  tender  returned,  which,  after  en- 
countering great  difficulties,  reached  New  Spain. 

The  third  expedition  was  fitted  out  by  Cortes,  then  viceroy  of 
Mexico,  and  the  command  of  it  given  to  Saavedra.  This  sailed  from 
the  port  of  Silguattanjo,  on  the  31st  of  October,  1528,  and  stopped  at 
the  Ladrone  Islands,  of  which  it  took  possession  for  the  crown  of 
Spain.  It  afterwards  went  to  Mindanao,  and  then  pursued  its 
voyage  to  Timor,  where  part  of  the  expedition  of  Loaisa  was  found 
remaining.  From  Timor  they  made  two  attempts  to  return  to  New 
Spain,  both  of  which  failed.  The  climate  soon  brought  on  disease, 
which  carried  off  a  great  number,  and  among  them  Saavedra. 
Thus  the  whole  expedition  was  broken  up,  and  the  survivors  found 
their  way  to  the  Portuguese  settlements. 

The  fourth  expedition  was  sent  from  New  Spain,  when  under  the 
government  of  Don  Antonio  de  Mendoza,  for  the  purpose  of  estab- 
lishing a  trade  with  the  new  islands,  and  it  received  orders  not  to 
visit  the  Moluccas.  This  expedition  sailed  in  1542,  under  the  com- 
mand of  Villalobos.  It  reached  the  Philippine  Islands  without 
accident,  and  Villalobos  gave  them  that  name  after  Philip  II,  then 
prince  of  Asturias.  Notwithstanding  his  positive  instructions  to 
the  contrary,  he  was  obliged  to  visit  the  Moluccas,  and  met  the  same 
treatment  from  the  Portuguese  that  had  been  given  to  all  whom  they 
believed  had  any  intention  to  interfere  in  their  spice  trade.  The 
squadron  touched  at  Amboina,  where  Villalobos  died,  an  event 
which  caused  the  breaking  up  of  the  expedition;  and  the  few  Span- 
iards that  remained  embarked  in  the  Portuguese  vessels  to  return 
home. 

The  fifth  and  last  expedition  was  ordered  by  Philip  II  to  be  sent 
from  Mexico,  when  under  the  government  of  Don  Luis  de  Velasco, 
for  the  final  conquest  and  settlement  of  the  Philippines.  With  this 
expedition  was  sent  Andres  Urdaneta,  a  friar,  whose  reputation  stood 


464  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

very  high  as  a  cosmographer :  he  had  belonged  to  the  ill-fated  expedi- 
tion of  Loaisa.     This  was  the  largest  that  had  yet  been  fitted  out  for 
this  purpose,  numbering  five  vessels  and  about  four  hundred  men. 
Legaspi.  The  command  of  it  was  intrusted  to  Legaspi,  under  whom  it  sailed 

from  the  port  of  Natividad,  on  November  21,  1564,  and  upon  whom 
was  conferred  the  title  of  governor  and  adelantado  of  the  conquered 
lands,  with  the  fullest  powers.  On  the  13th  of  February,  1565, 
he  arrived  at  the  island  of  Tandaya,  one  of  the  Philippines:  from 
thence  he  went  to  Leyte;  there  he  obtained  the  son  of  a  powerful 
chief  as  a  guide,  through  whom  he  established  peace  with  several 
of  the  native  rulers,  who  thereafter  aided  the  expedition  with  all 
the  means  in  their  power.  At  Bohol  they  built  the  first  church. 
There  he  met  and  made  peace  with  a  chief  of  Luzon,  with  whom  he 
went  to  that  island.     (Facts  here  are  confused. — C.) 

He  now  (April,  1565)  took  possession  of  all  the  island  in  the  name 
of  the  crown  of  Spain,  and  became  their  first  governor.  In  this 
conquest,  motives  different  from  those  which  governed  them  on  the 
American  continent,  seemed  to  have  influenced  the  Spaniards.  In- 
stead of  carrying  on  a  cruel  war  against  the  natives,  they  here 
pursued  the  policy  of  encouraging  and  fostering  their  industry. 
Whether  they  felt  that  this  policy  was  necessary  for  the  success  of 
their  undertaking,  or  were  influenced  by  the  religious  fathers  who 
were  with  them,  is  uncertain;  but  their  measures  seem  to  have  been 
dictated  by  a  desire  to  promote  peace  and  secure  the  welfare  of  the 
inhabitants.  There  may  be  another  cause  for  this  course  of  action, 
namely,  the  absence  of  the  precious  metals,  which  held  out  no  induce- 
ment to  those  thirsting  for  inordinate  gain.  This  may  have  had 
its  weight  in  exempting  the  expedition  in  its  outset  from  the  presence 
of  those  avaricious  spirits  which  had  accompanied  other  Spanish 
expeditions,  and  been  the  means  of  marking  their  progress  with  ex- 
cessive tyranny,  bloodshed,  and  violence.  It  is  evident  to  one 
who  visits  the  Philippines  that  some  other  power  besides  the  sword 
has  been  at  work  in  them;  the  natives  are  amalgamated  with  the 
Spaniards,  and  all  seem  disposed  to  cultivate  the  land  and  foster 
civilization.  None  of  the  feeling  that  grows  out  of  conquest  is  to 
be  observed  in  these  islands;  the  two  races  are  identified  now  in  habits, 
manners,  and  religion,  and  their  interests  are  so  closely  allied  that 
they  feel  their  mutual  dependence  upon  each  other. 

The  establishment  of  the  new  constitution  in  Spain  in  the  year  1825 
has  had  a  wonderful  effect  upon  these  colonies,  whose  resources 
have  within  the  last  ten  years  been  developed,  and  improvements 
pushed  forward  with  a  rapid  step.  Greater  knowledge  and  more 
liberal  views  in  the  rulers  are  alone  wanting  to  cause  a  still  more 
rapid  advance  in  the  career  of  prosperity. 

As  our  visit  was  to  Luzon,  we  naturally  obtained  more  personal 
information  respecting  it  than  the  other  islands.  We  learned  that 
the  northern  peninsula*  was  composed  of  granite  and  recent  volcanic 
rocks,  together  with  secondary  and  tertiary  deposits,  while  the  south- 
em  peninsula  is  almost  wholly  volcanic. 


*  It  is  called  so  in  consequence  of  the  island  being  nearly  divided  in  the 
parallel  of  14°  N.,  by  two  bays. 


M  (I  III  la   ill    IS.'f3  ^6') 

The  northern  contains  many  valuable  mines  of  gold,  lead,  copper, 
and  iron,  besides  coal.  A  number  of  specimens  of  these,  and  the 
rocks  which  contain  them,  were  presented  to  the  Expedition  by  Sefio- 
res  Araria  and  Roxas  of  Manila. 

So  far  as  our  information  and  observations  went,  the  whole  of  the 
Philippine  Islands  are  of  similar  geological  formation.  In  some  of 
the  islands  the  volcanic  rock  prevails,  while  in  others  coal  and  the 
metalliferous  deposits  predominate.  On  some  of  them  the  coal- 
beds  form  part  of  the  cliffs  along  the  shore;  on  others,  copper  is  found 
in  a  chlorite  and  talcose  slate.  The  latter  is  more  particularly  the 
case  with  Luzon,  and  the  same  formation  extends  to  Mindoro. 
Much  iron  occurs  on  the  mountains.  Thus  among  the  (Upland) 
natives,  who  are  yet  unsubdued  by  the  Spaniards,  and  who  inhabit 
these  mountains,  it  is  found  by  them  of  so  pure  a  quality  that  it  is 
manufactured  into  swords  and  cleavers.  These  are,  occasionally, 
obtained  by  the  Spaniards  in  their  excursions  into  the  interior  against 
these  bands. 

The  country  around  Manila  is  composed  of  tufa  of  a  light  gray  Tufn. 
color,  which  being  soft  and  easily  worked,  is  employed  as  the  common 
building  material  in  the  city.  It  contains,  sometimes,  scoria  and 
pumice,  in  pieces  of  various  sizes,  besides,  occasionally,  impressions 
of  plants,  with  petrified  woods.  These  are  confined  to  recent  species, 
and  include  palms,  etc. 

This  tufa  forms  one  of  the  remarkable  features  of  the  volcanoes  of 
the  Philippine  Islands,  showing  a  strong  contrast  between  them  and 
those  of  the  Pacific  isles,  which  have  ejected  little  else  than  lava  and 
scoria. 

Few  portions  of  the  globe  seem  to  be  so  much  the  seat  of  internal 
fires,  or  to  exhibit  the  effects  of  volcanic  action  so  strongly  as  the 
Philippines.  During  our  visit,  it  was  not  known  that  any  of  the 
volcanoes  were  in  action;  but  many  of  them  were  smoking,  particu- 
larly that  in  the  district  of  Albay,  called  Isaroc.  Its  latest  eruption 
was  in  the  year  1839;  but  this  did  little  damage  compared  with  that 
of  1814,  which  covered  several  villages,  and  the  country  for  a  great 
distance  around,  with  ashes.  This  mountain  is  situated  to  the  south- 
east of  Manila  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  and  is  said  to  be  a  perfect 
cone,  with  a  crater  at  its  apex. 

It  does  not  appear  that  the  islands  are  much  affected  by  earth-    Resourcn 
quakes,  although  some  have  occasionally  occurred  that  have  done 
damage  to  the  churches  at  Manila. 

The  coal  which  we  have  spoken  of  is  deemed  of  value;  it  has  a 
strong  resemblance  to  the  bituminous  coal  of  our  own  country, 
possesses  a  bright  lustre,  and  appears  very  free  from  all  woody 
texture  when  fractured.  It  is  found  associated  with  sandstone, 
which  contains  many  fossils.  Lead  and  copper  are  reported  as  being 
very  abundant:  gypsum  and  limestone  occur  in  some  districts. 
From  this,  it  will  he  seen  that  these  islands  have  everything  in  the 
mineral  way  to  constitute  them  desirable  possessions. 

With  such  mineral  resources,  and  a  soil  capable  of  producing  the 
most  varied  vegetation  of  the  tropics,  a  liberal  policy  is  all  that  the 
country  lacks.  The  products  of  the  Philippine  Islands  consist  of 
sugar,  coffee,  hemp,  indigo,  rice,  tortoise-shell,  hides,  ebony,  saffron- 


466  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

wood,  sulphur,  cotton,  cordage,  silk,  pepper,  cocoa,  wax,  and  many 
other  articles.  In  their  agricultural  operations  the  people  are  indus- 
trious, although  much  labor  is  lost  by  the  use  of  defective  imple- 
ments. The  plough,  of  very  simple  construction,  has  been  adopted 
from  the  Chinese;  it  has  no  coulter,  the  share  is  flat,  and  being  turned 
partly  to  one  side,  answers,  in  a  certain  degree,  the  purpose  of  a 
mould-board.  This  rude  implement  is  sufficient  for  the  rich  soils, 
where  the  tillage  depends  chiefly  upon  the  harrow,  in  constructing 
which  a  thorny  species  of  bamboo  is  used.  The  harrow  is  formed 
of  five  or  six  pieces  of  this  material,  on  which  the  thorns  are  left, 
firmly  fastened  together.  It  answers  its  purpose  well,  and  is  seldom 
out  of  order.  A  wrought-iron  harrow,  that  was  introduced  by  the 
Jesuits,  is  used  for  clearing  the  ground  more  effectually,  and  more 
particularly  for  the  purpose  of  extirpating  a  troublesome  grass,  that 
is  known  by  the  name  of  cogon  (a  species  of  Andropogon),  of  which 
it  is  very  difficult  to  rid  the  fields.  The  bolo  or  long-knife,  a  basket, 
and  hoe,  complete  the  list  of  implements,  and  answer  all  the  purposes 
of  our  spades,  etc. 
Draft  aniwjjh  The  buffalo  was  used  until  within  a  few  years  exclusively  in  their 

agricultural  operations,  and  they  have  lately  taken  to  the  use  of  the 
ox;  but  horses  are  never  used.  The  buffalo,  from  the  slowness  of 
his  motions,  and  his  exceeding  restlessness  under  the  heat  of  the 
climate,  is  ill  adapted  to  agricultural  labor;  but  the  natives  are  very 
partial  to  them,  notwithstanding  they  occasion  them  much  labor 
and  trouble  in  bathing  them  during  the  great  heat.  This  is  abso- 
lutely necessary,  or  the  animal  becomes  so  fretful  as  to  be  unfit  for  use. 
If  it  were  not  for  this,  the  buffalo  would,  notwithstanding  his  slow 
pace,  be  most  effective  in  agricultural  operations;  he  requires  little 
food,  and  that  of  the  coarsest  kind;  his  strength  surpasses  that  of 
the  stoutest  ox,  and  he  is  admirably  adapted  for  the  rice  or  paddy 
fields.  They  are  very  docile  when  used  by  the  natives,  and  even 
children  can  manage  them;  but  it  is  said  they  have  a  great  anti- 
pathy to  the  whites,  and  all  strangers.  The  usual  mode  of  guiding 
them  is  by  a  small  cord  attached  to  the  cartilage  of  the  nose.  The 
yoke  rests  on  the  neck  before  the  shoulders,  and  is  of  simple  con- 
struction. To  this  is  attached  whatever  it  may  be  necessary  to 
draw,  either  by  traces,  shafts,  or  other  fastenings.  Frequently  this 
animal  may  be  seen  with  large  bundles  of  bamboo  lashed  to  them  on 
each  side.  Buffaloes  are  to  be  met  with  on  the  lake  with  no  more 
than  their  noses  and  eyes  out  of  the  water,  and  are  not  visible  until 
they  are  approached  within  a  few  feet,  when  they  cause  alarm  to  the 
passengers  by  raising  their  large  forms  close  to  the  boat.  It  is  said 
that  they  resort  to  the  lake  to  feed  on  a  favorite  grass  that  grows 
on  its  bottom  in  shallow  water,  and  which  they  dive  for.  Their 
flesh  is  not  eaten,  except  that  of  the  young  ones,  for  it  is  tough 
and  tasteless.  The  milk  is  nutritious,  and  of  a  character  between 
that  of  the  goat  and  cow. 

The  general  appearance  of  the  buffalo  is  that  of  a  hybrid  of  the 
bull  and  rhinoceros.  Its  horns  do  not  rise  upwards,  are  very  close 
at  the  root,  bent  backwards,  and  of  a  triangular  form,  with  a  flat 
side  above.  One  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  buffalo  is  its  voice,  which 
is  quite  low,  and  in  the  minor  key,  resembling  that  of  a  young  colt. 


Manila  in  tSJiS  iBT 

It  is  as  fond  of  mire  as  swine,  and  shows  the  consequence  of  recent 
wallowing,  in  being  crusted  over  with  mud.  The  skin  is  visible, 
being  but  thinly  covered  with  hair;  its  color  is  usually  that  of  a  mouse; 
in  some  individuals  darker. 

Rice  is,  perhaps,  of  their  agricultural  products,  the  article  upon  fi»c« 
which  the  inhabitants  of  the  Philippine  Islands  most  depend  for  food 
and  profit;  of  this  they  have  several  different  varieties;  which  the 
natives  distinguish  by  their  size  and  the  shape  of  the  grain:  the 
birnambang,  lamuyo,  malagequit,  bontot-cabayo,  dumali,  quinanda, 
bolohan,  and  tangi.  The  three  first  are  aquatic;  the  five  latter 
upland  varieties.  They  each  have  their  peculiar  uses.  The  dumali 
is  the  early  variety;  it  ripens  in  three  months  from  planting,  from 
which  circumstance  it  derives  its  name:  it  is  raised  exclusively  on  the 
uplands.  Although  much  esteemed,  it  is  not  extensively  cultivated, 
as  the  birds  and  insects  destroy  a  large  part  of  the  crop. 

The  malagequit  is  very  much  prized,  and  used  for  making  sweet 
and  fancy  dishes;  it  becomes  exceedingly  glutinous,  for  which  reason 
it  is  used  in  making  whitewash,  which  it  is  said  to  cause  to  become 
of  a  brilliant  white,  and  to  withstand  the  weather.  This  variety 
is  not,  however,  believed  to  be  wholesome.  There  is  also  a  variety 
of  this  last  species  which  is  used  as  food  for  horses,  and  supposed 
to  be  a  remedy  and  preventive  against  worms 

The  rice  grounds  or  fields  are  laid  out  in  squares,  and  surrounded 
by  embankments,  to  retain  the  water  of  the  rains  or  streams.  After 
the  rains  have  fallen  in  sufficient  quantities  to  saturate  the  ground, 
a  seed-bed  is  generally  planted  in  one  corner  of  the  field,  in  which  the 
rice  is  sown  broadcast,  about  the  month  of  June.  The  heavy  rains 
take  place  in  August,  when  the  fields  are  ploughed,  and  are  soon  filled 
with  water.  The  young  plants  are  about  this  time  taken  from  the 
seed-bed,  their  tops  and  roots  trimmed,  and  then  planted  in  the 
field  by  making  holes  in  the  ground  with  the  fingers  and  placing  four 
or  five  sprouts  in  each  of  them ;  in  this  tedious  labor  the  poor  women 
are  employed,  whilst  the  males  are  lounging  in  their  houses  or  in  the 
shade  of  the  trees. 

The  harvest  for  the  aquatic  rice  begins  in  December.  It  is  reaped 
with  small  sickles,  peculiar  to  the  country,  called  yatap;  to  the  back 
of  these  a  small  stick  is  fastened,  by  which  they  are  held,  and  the 
stalk  is  forced  upon  it  and  cut.  The  spikes  of  rice  are  cut  with  this 
implement,  one  by  one.  In  this  operation,  men,  women,  and 
children  all  take  part. 

The  upland  rice  requires  much  more  care  and  labor  in  its  culti- 
vation. The  land  must  be  ploughed  three  or  four  times,  and  all  the 
turf  and  lumps   well   broken  up   by   the  harrow. 

During  its  growth  it  requires  to  be  weeded  two  or  three  times, 
to  keep  the  weeds  from  choking  the  crop.  The  seed  is  sown  broad- 
cast in  May.  This  kind  of  rice  is  harvested  in  November,  and  to 
collect  the  crop  is  still  more  tedious  than  in  the  other  case,  for  it 
is  always  gathered  earlier,  and  never  reaped,  in  consequence  of  the 
grain  not  adhering  to  the  ear.  If  it  were  gathered  in  any  other 
way,  the  loss  by  transportation  on  the  backs  of  buffaloes  and  horses, 
without  any  covering  to  the  sheaf,  would  be  so  great  as  to  dissipate 
a  great  portion  of  the  crop. 


J,68  THE  FORMER  PHILIP  RISES   THRU   fOREICX  EYES 

It  appears  almost  incredible  that  any  people  can  remain  in 
ignorance  of  a  way  of  preventing  so  extravagant  and  wasteful  a 
mode  of  harvesting.  The  government  has  been  requested  to  prohibit 
it  on  account  of  the  great  expense  it  gives  rise  to;  but  whether  any 
steps  have  ever  been  taken  in  the  matter,  I  did  not  learn.  It  is 
said  that  not  unfrequently  a  third  part  of  the  crop  is  lost,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  scarcity  of  laborers;  while  those  who  are  disengaged 
will  refuse  to  work,  unless  they  receive  one-third,  and  even  one- 
half  of  the  crop,  to  be  delivered  free  of  expense  at  their  houses. 
This  the  planters  are  often  obliged  to  give,  or  lose  the  whole  crop. 
Nay,  unless  the  harvest  is  a  good  one,  reapers  are  very  unwilling 
to  engage  to  take  it  even  on  these  terms,  and  the  entire  crop  is  lost. 
The  laborers,  during  the  time  of  harvest,  are  supported  by  the 
planter,  who  is  during  that  time  exposed  to  great  vexation,  if  not 
losses.  The  reapers  are  for  the  most  part  composed  of  the  idle 
and  vicious  part  of  the  population,  who  go  abroad  over  the  country 
to  engage  themselves  in  this  employment,  which  affords  a  liveli- 
hood to  the  poorer  classes;  for  the  different  periods  at  which  the 
varieties  of  rice  are  planted  and  harvested,  gives  them  work  during 
a  large  portion  of  the  year. 

After  the  rice  is  harvested,  there  are  different  modes  of  treating  it. 
Some  of  the  proprietors  take  it  home,  where  it  is  thrown  into  heaps, 
and  left  until  it  is  desirable  to  separate  it  from  the  straw,  when  it 
is  trodden  out  by  men  and  women  with  their  bare  feet.  For  this 
operation,  they  usually  receive  another  fifth  of  the  rice. 

Others  stack  it  in  a  wet  and  green  state,  which  subjects  it  to  heat, 
from  which  cause  the  grain  contracts  a  dark  color,  and  an  unpleasant 
taste  and  smell.  The  natives,  however,  impute  these  defects  to 
the  wetness  of  the  season. 

The  crop  of  both  the  low  and  upland  rice,  is  usually  from  thirty 
to  fifty  for  one:  this  is  on  old  land;  but  on  that  which  is  newly  cleared 
or  which  has  never  been  cultivated,  the  yield  is  far  beyond  this.  In 
some  soils  of  the  latter  description,  it  is  said  that  for  a  chupa  (seven 
cubic  inches)  planted,  the  yield  has  been  a  caban.  The  former  is 
the  two-hundred-and-eighth  part  of  the  latter.  This  is  not  the  only 
advantage  gained  in  planthing  rich  lands,  but  the  saving  of  labor  is 
equally  great;  for  all  that  is  required  is  to  make  a  hole  with  the 
fingers,  and  place  three  or  four  grains  in  it.  The  upland  rice  requires 
but  little  water,  and  is  never  irrigated. 

The  cultivator  in  the  Philippine  Islands  is  always  enabled  to  secure 
plenty  of  manure;  for  vegetation  is  so  luxuriant  that  by  pulling  the 
weeds  and  laying  them  with  earth,  a  good  stock  is  quickly  obtained 
with  which  to  cover  his  fields.  Thus,  although  the  growth  is  so 
rank  as  to  cause  him  labor,  yet  in  this  hot  climate  its  decay  is  equally 
rapid,  which  tends  to  make  his  labors  more  successful. 

The  rice-stacks  form  a  picturesque  object  on  the  field;  they  are 
generally  placed  around  or  near  a  growth  of  bamboo,  whose  tall, 
graceful,  and  feathery  outline  is  of  itself  a  beautiful  object,  but  con- 
nected as  it  is  often  seen  with  the  returns  of  the  harvest,  it  furnishes 
an  additional  source  of  gratification. 

The  different  kinds  of  rice,  and  especially  the  upland,  would  no 
doubt  be  an  acquisition  to  our  country.     At  the  time  we  were  at 


^ranllil   in    IS-',.i  4ft9 

Manila,  it  was  not  thought  feasible  to  pack  it,  for  it  had  just  been 
reaped,  and  was  so  green  that  it  would  not  have  kept.*  Although 
rice  is  a  very  prolific  crop,  yet  it  is  subject  to  many  casualties,  from 
the  locusts  and  other  insects  that  devour  it;  the  drought  at  other 
times  affects  it,  particularly  the  aquatic  varieties.  There  is  a  use 
to  which  the  rice  is  applied  here,  which  was  new  to  us,  namely,  as  a 
substitute  for  razors;  by  using  two  grains  of  it  between  the  fingers, 
they  nip  the  beard,  or  extract  it  from  the  chin  and  face. 

Among  the  important  productions  of  these  islands,  I  have  men-  Manihi  hemp. 
tioned  hemp,  although  the  article  called  Manila  hemp  must  not  be 
understood  to  be  derived  from  the  plant  which  produces  the  common 
hemp  (Cannabis),  being  obtained  from  a  species  of  plantain  (Musa 
textilis),  called  in  the  Philippines  "abaca."  This  is  a  native  of 
these  islands,  and  was  formerly  believed  to  be  found  only  on  Minda- 
nao; but  this  is  not  the  case,  for  it  is  cultivated  on  the  south  part  of 
Luzon,  and  all  the  islands  south  of  it.  It  grows  on  high  ground, 
in  rich  soil,  and  is  propagated  by  seeds.  It  resembles  the  other 
plants  of  the  tribe  of  plantains,  but  its  fruit  is  much  smaller,  although 
edible.  The  fibre  is  derived  from  the  stem,  and  the  plant  attains 
the  height  of  fifteen  or  twenty  feet.  The  usual  mode  of  preparing 
the  hemp  is  to  cut  off  the  stem  near  the  ground,  before  the  time  or 
just  when  the  fruit  is  ripe.  The  stem  is  then  eight  or  ten  feet  long 
below  the  leaves,  where  it  is  again  cut.  The  outer  coating  of  the 
herbaceous  stem  is  then  stripped  off,  until  the  fibers  or  cellular  parts 
are  seen,  when  it  undergoes  the  process  of  rotting,  and  after  being 
well  dried  in  houses  and  sheds,  is  prepared  for  market  by  assorting 
it,  a  task  which  is  performed  by  the  women  and  children.  That 
which  is  intended  for  cloth  is  soaked  for  an  hour  or  two  in  weak  lime- 
water  prepared  from  sea-shells,  again  dried,  and  put  up  in  bundles. 
From  all  the  districts  in  which  it  grows,  it  is  sent  to  Manila,  which  is 
the  only  port  whence  it  can  legally  be  exported.  It  arrives  in  large 
bundles,  and  is  packed  there,  by  meansof  a  screw-press,  in  compact 
bales,  for  shipping,  secured  by  rattan,  each  weighing  two  piculs. 

The  best  Manila  hemp  ought  to  be  white,  dry,  and  of  a  long  and 
fine  fiber.  This  is  known  at  Manila  by  the  name  of  lupis;  the  second 
quality  they  call  bandala. 

The  exportation  has  much  increased  within  the  last  few  years,  in 
consequence  of  the  demand  for  it  in  the  United  States ;  and  the  whole 
crop  is  now  monopolized  by  the  two  American  houses  of  Sturges 
8c  Co.,  and  T.  N.  Peale  8e  Co.,  of  Manila,  who  buy  all  of  good  quality 
that  comes  to  market.  This  is  divided  between  the  two  houses, 
and  the  price  they  pay  is  from  four  to  five  dollars  the  picul.  The 
entire  quantity  raised  in  1840  was  eighty-three  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  ninety  piculs;  in  1841,  eighty-seven  thousand. 

The  quantity  exported  to  the  United  States  in  1840,  was  sixty- 
eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  eighty  piculs,  and  in  1841,  only 
sixty-two  thousand  seven  hundred  piculs;  its  value  in  Manila  is 
about  three  hundred  thousand  dollars.  Twenty  thousand  piculs 
go  to  Europe.     There  are  no  duties  on  its  exportation. 

*  Since  my  return  home,  at  the  desire  of  that  distinguished  agriculturist. 
Colonel  Austin,  of  South  Carolina,  I  have  sent  for  some  samples  of  the  differ- 
ent kinds,  and  under  his  care  it  will  no  doubt  be  well  treated. 


470  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

That  which  is  brought  to  the  United  States  is  principally  manufac- 
tured in  or  near  Boston,  and  is  the  cordage  known  as  "white  rope." 
The  cordage  manufactured  at  Manila  is,  however,  very  superior  to 
the  rope  made  with  us,  although  the  hemp  is  of  the  inferior  kind. 
A  large  quantity  is  also  manufactured  into  mats. 

In  the  opinion  of  our  botanist,  it  is  not  probable  that  the  plant 
could  be  introduced  with  success  into  our  country,  for  in  the  Phil- 
ippines it  is  not  found  north  of  latitude  14°  N. 

Coffe«.  The  coffee-plant  is  well  adapted  to  these  islands.     A  few  plants 

were  introduced  into  the  gardens  of  Manila,  about  fifty  years  ago, 
since  which  time  it  has  been  spread  all  over  the  island,  as  is  supposed 
by  the  civet-cats,  which,  after  swallowing  the  seeds,  cary  them  to  a 
distance  before  they  are  voided. 

The  coffee  of  commerce  is  obtained  here  from  the  wild  plant,  and 
is  of  an  excellent  quality.  Upwards  of  three  thousand  five  hundred 
piculs  are  now  exported,  of  which  one-sixth  goes  to  the  United  States. 

Sugar.  The  sugar-cane  thrives  well  here.     It  is  planted  after  the  French 

fashion,  by  sticking  the  piece  diagonally  into  the  ground.  Some, 
finding  the  cane  has  suffered  in  times  of  drought,  have  adopted 
other  modes.  It  comes  to  perfection  in  a  year,  and  they  seldom 
have  two  crops  from  the  same  piece  of  land,  unless  the  season  is 
very  favorable. 

There  are  many  kinds  of  cane  cultivated,  but  that  grown  in  the 
valley  of  Pampanga  is  thought  to  be  the  best.  It  is  a  small  red  variety, 
from  four  to  five  feet  high,  and  not  thicker  than  the  thumb.  The 
manufacture  of  the  sugar  is  rudely  conducted;  and  the  whole  busi- 
ness, I  was  told,  was  in  the  hands  of  a  few  capitalists,  who,  by  making 
advances,  secure  the  whole  crop  from  those  who  are  employed  to 
bring  it  to  market.  It  is  generally  brought  in  moulds,  of  the  usual 
conical  shape,  called  pilones,  which  are  delivered  to  the  purchaser 
from  November  to  June,  and  contain  each  about  one  hundred  and 
fifty  pounds.  On  their  receipt,  they  are  placed  in  large  storehouses, 
where  the  familiar  operation  of  claying  is  performed.  The  estimate 
for  the  quantity  of  sugar  from  these  pilones  after  this  process  is 
about  one  hundred  pounds;  it  depends  upon  the  care  taken  in  the 
process. 

Cotton.  Of  cotton  they  raise  a  considerable  quantity,  which  is  of  a  fine 

quality,  and  principally  of  the  yellow  nankeen.  In  the  province  of 
Ilocos  it  is  cultivated  most  extensively.  The  mode  of  cleaning  it 
of  its  seed  is  very  rude,  by  means  of  a  hand-mill,  and  the  expense  of 
cleaning  a  picul  (one  hundred  and  forty  pounds)  is  from  five 
to  seven  dollars.  There  have,  as  far  as  I  have  understood,  been 
no  endeavors  to  introduce  any  cotton-gins  from  our  country. 

'*'"***•  It  will  be  merely  necessary  to  give  the  prices  at  which  laborers 

are  paid,  to  show  how  low  the  compensation  is,  in  comparison  with 
those  in  our  own  country.  In  the  vicinity  of  Manila,  twelve  and  a 
half  cents  per  day  is  the  usual  wages;  this  in  the  provinces  falls  to 
six  and  nine  cents.  A  man  with  two  buffaloes  is  paid  about  thirty 
cents.  The  amount  of  labor  performed  by  the  latter  in  a  day  would 
be  the  ploughing  of  a  soane,  about  two-tenths  of  an  acre.  The  most 
profitable  way  of  employing  laborers  is  by  the  task,  when,  it  is 
said,  the  natives  work  well,  and  are  industrious. 


1 


Manila  in  1842  471 

The  manner  in  which  the  sugar  and  other  produce  is  brought  to 
market  at  Manila  is  pecuHar,  and  deserves  to  be  mentioned.  In  some 
of  the  villages,  the  chief  men  unite  to  build  a  vessel,  generally  a 
pirogue,  in  which  they  embark  their  produce,  under  the  conduct 
of  a  few  persons,  who  go  to  navigate  it,  and  dispose  of  the  cargo. 
In  due  time  they  make  their  voyage,  and  when  the  accounts  are 
settled,  the  returns  are  distributed  to  each  according  to  his  share. 
Festivities  are  then  held,  the  saints  thanked  for  their  kindness,  and 
blessings  invoked  for  another  year.  After  this  is  over,  the  vessel 
is  taken  carefully  to  pieces,  and  distributed,  among  the  owners, 
to  be  preserved  for  the  next  season. 

The  profits  in  the  crops,  according  to  estimates,  vary  from  sixty  to 
one  hundred  per  cent. ;  but  it  was  thought,  as  a  general  average,  that 
this  was,  notwithstanding  the  great  productiveness  of  the  soil, 
far  beyond  the  usual  profits  accruing  from  agricultural  operations. 
In  some  provinces  this  estimate  would  hold  good,  and  probably 
be  exceeded. 

Indigo  would  probably  be  a  lucrative  crop,  for  that  raised  here  is  Indigo. 
said  to  be  of  quality  equal  to  the  best,  and  the  crop  is  not  subject  to 
so  many  uncertainties  as  in  India:  the  capital  and  attention  required 
in  vats,  etc.,  prevent  it  from  being  raised  in  any  quantities.  Among 
the  productions,  the  bamboo  and  rattan  ought  to  claim  a  particular 
notice  from  their  great  utility;  they  enter  into  almost  every  thing. 
Of  the  former  their  houses  are  built,  including  frames,  floors,  sides, 
and  roof;  fences  are  made  of  the  same  material,  as  well  as  every 
article  of  general  household  use,  including  baskets  for  oil  and  water. 
The  rattan  is  a  general  substitute  for  ropes  of  all  descriptions,  and  the 
two  combined  are  used  in  constructing  rafts  for  crossing  ferries. 

I  have  thus  given  a  general  outline  of  the  capabilities  of  this 
country  for  agricultural  operations,  in  some  of  the  most  important 
articles  of  commerce;  by  which  it  will  be  seen  that  the  Philippine 
Islands  are  one  of  the  most  favored  parts  of  the  globe. 

The  crops  frequently  suffer  from  the  ravages  of  the  locusts,  which  Locusts. 
sweep  all  before  them.  Fortunately  for  the  poorer  classes,  their 
attacks  take  place  after  the  rice  has  been  harvested;  but  the  cane  is 
sometimes  entirely  cut  off.  The  authorities  of  Manila,  in  the  vain 
hope  of  stopping  their  devastations,  employ  persons  to  gather  them 
and  throw  them  into  the  sea.  I  understood  on  one  occasion  they 
had  spent  eighty  thousand  dollars  in  this  way,  but  all  to  little  purpose. 
It  is  said  that  the  crops  rarely  suffer  from  droughts,  but  on  the  con- 
trary the  rains  are  thought  to  fall  too  often,  and  to  flood  the  rice 
fields;  these,  however,  yield  a  novel  crop,  and  are  very  advantageous 
to  the  poor,  viz.:  a  great  quantity  of  fish,  which  are  called  dalag, 
and  are  a  species  of  Blunnius;  they  are  so  plentiful,  that  they  are 
caught  with  baskets:  these  fish  weigh  from  a  half  to  two  pounds, 
and  some  are  said  to  be  eighteen  inches  long;  but  this  is  not  all; 
they  are  said,  after  a  deep  inundation,  to  be  found  even  in  the  vaults 
of  churches. 

The  Philippines  are  divided  into  thirty-one  provinces,  sixteen  of 
which  are  on  the  island  of  Luzon,  and  the  remainder  comprise  the 
other  islands  of  the  group  and  the  Ladrones. 


1^72  THE  FORMEH  PIIILIPl'IXES   THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 

I'lipxihitioii.  The  population  of  the  whole  group  is  above  three  millions,  in- 

cluding all  tribes  of  natives,  mestizos,  and  whites.  The  latter- 
named  class  are  but  few  in  number,  not  exceeding  three  thousand. 
The  mestizos  were  supposed  to  be  about  fifteen  or  twenty  thousand; 
they  are  distinguished  as  Spanish  and  Indian  mestizos.  The  Chinese 
have  of  late  years  increased  to  a  large  number,  and  it  is  said  that 
there  are  forty  thousand  of  them  in  and  around  Manila  alone.  One- 
half  of  the  whole  population  belongs  to  Luzon.  The  island  next  to 
it  in  the  number  of  inhabitants  is  Panay,  which  contains  about  three 
hundred  and  thirty  thousand.  Then  come  Cebu,  Mindanao,  Leyte, 
Samar,  and  Negros,  varying  from  the  above  numbers  down  to  fifty 
thousand.  The  population  is  increasing,  and  it  is  thought  that  it 
doubles  itself  in  seventy  years.  This  rate  of  increase  appears  prob- 
able, from  a  comparison  of  the  present  population  with  the  estimate 
made  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  which  shows  a  growth 
in  the  forty  years  of  about  one  million  four  hundred  thousand. 

The  native  population  is  composed  of  a  number  of  distinct  tribes, 
the  principal  of  which  in  Luzon  are  Pangasinan,  Ilocos,  Cagayan, 
Tagalog,  and  Pampangan. 

The  Igorots,  who  dwell  in  the  mountains,  are  the  only  natives 
who  have  not  been  subjected  by  the  Spaniards.  The  other  tribes 
have  become  identified  with  their  rulers  in  religion,  and  it  is  thought 
that  by  this  circumstance  alone  has  Spain  been  able  to  maintain  the 
ascendency  with  so  small  a  number,  over  such  a  numerous,  intelli- 
gent, and  energetic  race  as  they  are  represented  to  be.  This  is,  how- 
ever, more  easily  accounted  for,  from  the  Spaniards  fostering  and 
keeping  alive  the  jealousy  and  hatred  that  existed  at  the  time  of  the 
discovery  between  the  different  tribes. 

It  seems  almost  incredible  that  Spain  should  have  so  long  persisted 
in  the  policy  of  allowing  no  more  than  one  galleon  to  pass  annually 
between  her  colonies,  and  equally  so  that  the  nations  of  Europe 
should  have  been  so  long  deceived  in  regard  to  the  riches  and  wealth 
that  Spain  was  monopolizing  in  the  Philippines.  The  capture  of 
Manila,  in  1762,  by  the  English,  first  gave  a  clear  idea  of  the  value 
of  this  remote  and  little-known  appendage  of  the  empire. 

The  Philippines,  considered  in  their  capacity  for  commerce,  arc 
certainly  among  the  most  favored  portions  of  the  globe,  and  there  is 
but  one  circumstance  that  tends  in  the  least  degree  to  lessen  their 
apparent  advantage;  this  is  the  prevalence  of  typhoons  in  the  China 
seas,  which  are  occasionally  felt  with  force  to  the  north  of  latitude 
10°  N.  South  of  that  parallel,  they  have  never  been  known  to 
prevail ,  and  seldom  so  far ;  but  from  their  unfailing  occurrence  yearly 
in  some  part  of  the  China  seas,  they  are  looked  for  with  more  or  less 
dread,  and  cause  each  season  a  temporary  interruption  in  all  the 
trade  that  passes  along  the  coast  of  these  islands. 

The  army  is  now  composed  entirely  of  native  troops,  who  number 
about  six  thousand  men,  and  the  regiments  are  never  suffered  to 
serve  in  the  provinces  in  which  they  are  recruited,  but  those  from  the 
north  are  sent  to  the  south,  and  vice  versa.  There  they  are  employed 
to  keep  up  a  continual  watch  on  each  other;  and,  speaking  different 
dialects,  they  never  become  identified. 


1 


Mniiild   in    IS.>,2  .>,7S 

They  are,  indeed,  never  allowed  to  remain  long  enough  in  one 
region,  to  imbibe  any  feelings  in  unison  with  those  of  its  inhabitants. 
The  hostility  is  so  great  among  the  regiments,  that  mutinies  have 
occurred,  and  contests  arisen  which  have  produced  even  bloodshed, 
which  it  was  entirely  out  of  the  power  of  the  officers  to  prevent.  In 
cases  of  this  kind,  summary  punishment  is  resorted  to. 

Although  the  Spaniards,  as  far  as  is  known  abroad,  live  in  peace  Conditions  not, 
and  quiet,  this  is  far  from  being  the  case;  for  rebellion  and  revolts  pi-aceful. 
among  the  troops  and  tribes  are  not  unfrequent  in  the  provinces. 
During  the  time  of  our  visit  one  of  these  took  place,  but  it  was  im- 
possible to  learn  anything  concerning  it  that  could  be  relied  upon, 
for  all  conversation  respecting  such  occurrences  is  interdicted  by  the 
government.  The  difficulty  to  which  I  refer  was  said  to  have  origi- 
nated from  the  preaching  of  a  fanatic  priest,  who  inflamed  them  to 
such  a  degree  that  they  overthrew  the  troops  and  became  temporarily 
masters  of  the  country.  Prompt  measures  were  immediately  taken, 
and  orders  issued  to  give  the  rebels  no  quarter;  the  regiments  most 
hostile  to  those  engaged  in  the  revolt  were  ordered  to  the  spot;  they 
spared  no  one;  the  priest  and  his  companions  were  taken,  put  to 
death,  and  according  to  report,  in  a  manner  so  cruel  as  to  be  a  dis- 
grace to  the  records  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Although  I  should 
hope  the  accounts  I  heard  of  these  transactions  were  incorrect,  yet 
the  detestation  these  acts  were  held  in,  would  give  some  color  to 
the  statements. 

The  few  gazettes  that  are  published  at  Manila  are  entirely  under 
the  control  of  the  government;  and  a  resident  of  that  city  must  make 
up  his  mind  to  remain  in  ignorance  of  the  things  that  are  passing 
around  him,  or  believe  just  what  the  authorities  will  allow  to  be  told, 
whether  truth  or  falsehood.  The  government  of  the  Philippines  is 
emphatically  an  iron  rule:  how  long  it  can  continue  so,  is  doubtful. 

One  of  my  first  duties  was  to  make  an  official  call  upon  His  Excel-  'i'"'  novemnr- 
lency  Don  Marcelino  Oroa,  who  is  the  sixty-first  governor  of  the  general. 
Philippine  Islands.  According  to  the  established  etiquette,  Mr. 
Moore,  the  vice-consul,  announced  our  desire  to  do  so,  and  requested 
to  be  informed  of  the  time  when  we  would  be  received.  This  was 
accordingly  named,  and  at  the  appointed  hour  we  proceeded  to  the 
palace  in  the  city  proper.  On  our  arrival,  we  were  announced  and 
led  up  a  flight  of  steps,  ample  and  spacious,  but  by  no  means  of  such 
splendor  as  would  indicate  the  residence  of  vice-royalty.  The  suite 
of  rooms  into  which  we  were  ushered  were  so  dark  that  it  was  difficult 
to  see.  I  made  out,  however,  that  they  were  panelled,  and  by  no 
means  richly  furnished.  His  excellency  entered  from  a  side-door, 
and  led  us  through  two  or  three  apartments  into  his  private  audience - 
room,  an  apartment  not  quite  so  dark  as  those  we  had  come  from: 
our  being  conducted  to  this,  I  was  told  afterwards,  was  to  be  con- 
sidered an  especial  mark  of  respect  to  my  country.  His  recep- 
tion of  us  was  friendly.  The  governor  has  much  more  the  appearance 
of  an  Irishman  than  of  a  Spaniard,  being  tall,  portly,  of  a  florid  com- 
plexion. He  is  apparently  more  than  sixty  years  of  age.  He  was 
dressed  in  a  full  suit  of  black,  with  a  star  on  his  breast. 

Mr.  Moore  acted  as  interpreter,  and  the  governor  readily  acceded 
to  my  request  to  be  allowed  to  send  a  party  into  the  interior  for  a  few 


474 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


days;  a  permission  which  I  almost  despaired  of  receiving,  for  I  knew 
that  he  had  refused  a  Uke  application  some  few  months  before.  The 
refusal,  however,  I  think  was  in  part  owing  to  the  character  of  the 
applicants,  and  the  doubtful  object  they  had  in  view.  I  impute  the 
permission  we  received  to  the  influence  of  our  consul,  together  with 
Mr.  Sturges,  whose  agreeable  manners,  conciliatory  tone,  and  high 
standing  with  the  authorities,  will,  I  am  satisfied,  insure  us  at  all 
times  every  reasonable  advantage  or  facility. 

The  term  of  the  governor  in  office  is  three  years,  and  the  present 
incumbent  was  installed  in  1841.  This  length  of  time  is  thought  to 
be  sufficient  for  any  one  of  them  to  make  a  fortune.  The  office  is  held 
by  the  appointment  of  the  ministry  in  Spain,  and  with  it  are  con- 
nected perquisites  that  are  shared,  it  is  said,  by  those  who  confer 
them. 

After  having  paid  our  respects  to  his  excellency,  we  drove  to  visit 
several  other  officers  of  the  government,  who  received  us  without  cere- 
mony. We  generally  found  them  in  loose  morning-gowns,  smoking, 
and  cigars  were  invariably  offered  us;  for  this  habit  appears  in  Manila 
to  extend  to  all  ranks.  Even  in  the  public  offices  of  the  custom- 
house it  was  the  fashion,  and  cigars,  with  a  machero  for  striking  a 
light,  or  a  joss-stick  kept  burning,  were  usually  seen  in  every  apart- 
ment. 
Courteous  To  the  captain  of  the  port,  Don  Juan  Salomon,  I  feel  under  many 

Spanish  obligations  for  his  attentions.     I  was  desirous  of  obtaining  informa- 

officials.  tion  relative  to  the  Sulu  Seas,  and  to  learn  how  far  the  Spanish 

surveys  had  been  carried.  He  gave  me  little  hopes  of  obtaining  any; 
but  referred  me  to  Captain  Halcon,  of  the  Spanish  Navy,  who  had 
been  employed  surveying  some  part  of  the  coast  of  the  islands  to  the 
north.  The  latter  whom  I  visited,  on  my  making  the  inquiry  of 
him,  and  stating  the  course  I  intended  to  pursue,  frankly  told  me 
that  all  the  existing  charts  were  erroneous.  He  only  knew  enough 
of  the  ground  to  be  certain  that  they  were  so,  and  consequently 
useless.  He  advised  my  taking  one  of  the  native  pilots,  who  were 
generally  well  acquainted  with  the  seas  that  lay  more  immediately 
in  my  route.  The  captain  of  the  port  was  afterwards  kind  enough 
to  offer  to  procure  me  one. 

The  intercourse  I  had  with  these  gentlemen  was  a  source  of  miuch 
gratification,  and  it  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  make  this  public 
expression  of  it.  To  both,  my  sincere  acknowledgments  are  due  for 
information  in  relation  to  the  various  reefs  and  shoals  that  have  been 
recently  discovered,  and  which  will  be  found  placed  in  their  true 
position  on  our  charts. 

During  our  stay  at  Manila,  our  time  was  occupied  in  seeing  sights, 
shopping,  riding,  and  amusing  ourselves  with  gazing  on  the  throng 
incessantly  passing  through  the  Escolta  of  the  Binondo  suburb,  or 
more  properly,  the  commercial  town  of  Manila. 
Cigar  factories.  Among  the  lions  of  the  place,  the  great  royal  cigar  manufactories 
claim  especial  notice  from  their  extent  and  the  many  persons  em- 
ployed. There  are  two  of  these  establishments,  one  situated  in  the 
Binondo  quarter,  and  the  other  on  the  great  square  or  Prado;  in 
the  former,  which  was  visited  by  us,  there  are  two  buildings  of  two 
stories  high,  besides  several  storehouses,  enclosed  by  a  wall,  with  two 


Manila  in  184S  476 

large  gateways,  at  which  sentinels  are  always  posted.  The  principal 
workshop  is  in  the  second  story,  which  is  divided  into  six  apartments, 
in  which  eight  thousand  females  are  employed.  Throughout  the 
whole  extent,  tables  are  arranged,  about  sixteen  inches  high,  ten 
feet  long,  and  three  feet  wide,  at  each  of  which  fifteen  women  are 
seated,  having  small  piles  of  tobacco  before  them.  The  tables  are 
set  crosswise  from  the  wall,  leaving  a  space  in  the  middle  of  the  room 
free.  The  labor  of  a  female  produces  about  two  hundred  cigars  a 
day;  and  the  working  hours  are  from  6  a.  m.,  till  6  p.  m.,  with  a  recess 
of  two  hours,  from  eleven  till  one  o'clock.  The  whole  establish- 
ment is  kept  very  neat  and  clean,  and  every  thing  appears  to  be 
carried  on  in  the  most  systematic  and  workmanlike  manner.  Among 
such  numbers,  it  has  been  found  necessary  to  institute  a  search  on 
their  leaving  the  establishment  to  prevent  embezzlement,  and  this 
is  regularly  made  twice  a  day,  without  distinction  of  sex.  It  is  a 
strange  sight  to  witness  the  ingress  and  egress  of  these  hordes  of 
females;  and  probably  the  world  cannot  elsewhere  exhibit  so  large 
a  number  of  ugly  women.  Their  ages  vary  from  fifteen  to  forty- 
five.  The  sum  paid  them  for  wages  is  very  trifling.  The  whole 
number  of  persons  employed  in  the  manufactories  is  about  fifteen 
thousand;  this  includes  the  officers,  clerks,  overseers,  etc. 

As  nearly  as  I  could  ascertain,  the  revenue  derived  from  these 
establishments  is  half  a  million  of  dollars. 

The  natives  of  the  Philippines  are  industrious.  They  manufac-  Pinn. 
ture  an  amount  of  goods  sufficient  to  supply  their  own  wants,  parti- 
cularly from  Panay  and  Ilocos.  These  for  the  most  part  consist 
of  cotton  and  silks,  and  a  peculiar  article  called  piiia.  The  latter  is 
manufactured  from  a  species  of  Bromelia  (pineapple),  and  comes 
principally  from  the  island  of  Panay.  The  finest  kinds  of  piiia 
are  exceedingly  beautiful,  and  surpass  any  other  material  in  its 
evenness  and  beauty  of  texture.  Its  color  is  yellowish,  and  the 
embroidery  is  fully  equal  to  the  material.  It  is  much  sought  after 
by  all  strangers,  and  considered  as  one  of  the  curiosities  of  this  group. 
Various  reports  have  been  stated  of  the  mode  of  its  manufacture, 
and  among  others  that  it  was  woven  under  water,  which  I  found, 
upon  inquiry,  to  be  quite  erroneous.  The  web  of  the  pifla  is  so  fine, 
that  they  are  obliged  to  prevent  all  currents  of  air  from  passing 
through  the  rooms  where  it  is  manufactured,  for  which  purpose 
there  are  gauze  screens  in  the  windows.  After  the  article  is  brought 
to  Manila,  it  is  then  embroidered  by  girls;  this  last  operation  adds 
greatly  to  its  value.  We  visited  one  of  the  houses  where  this  was  in 
progress,  and  where  the  most  skilful  workwomen  are  employed. 

On  mounting  the  stairs  of  bamboos,  every  step  we  took  produced 
its  creak;  but,  although  the  whole  seemed  but  a  crazy  affair,  yet  it 
did  not  want  for  strength,  being  well  and  firmly  bound  together. 
There  were  two  apartments,  each  about  thirteen  by  twenty-five 
feet,  which  could  be  divided  by  screens,  if  required.  At  the  end  of 
it  were  seen  about  forty  females,  all  busily  plying  their  needles,  and 
so  closely  seated  as  apparently  to  incommode  each  other.  The  mis- 
tress of  the  manufactory,  who  was  quite  young,  gave  us  a  friendly 
reception,  and  showed  us  the  whole  process  of  drawing  the  threads 
and   working  the   patterns,   which,   in   many   cases,   were   elegant. 


J,7ti  THE  FORMER  PHILIPRISES.    THRU   FUREIGX  EYES 

A  great  variety  of  dresses,  scarfs,  caps,  collars,  cuffs,  and  pocket- 
handkerchiefs,  were  shown  us.  These  were  mostly  in  the  rough 
state,  and  did  not  strike  us  with  that  degree  of  admiration  which  was 
expected.  They,  however,  had  been  in  hand  for  six  months,  and 
were  soiled  by  much  handling;  but  when  others  were  shown  us  in 
the  finished  state,  washed  and  put  up,  they  were  such  as  to  claim  our 
admiration. 

I  was  soon  attracted  by  a  very  different  sight  at  the  other  end  of 
the  apartment.  This  was  a  dancing-master  and  his  scholar,  of  six 
years  old,  the  daughter  of  the  woman  of  the  house.  It  was  exceed- 
ingly amusing  to  see  the  airs  and  graces  of  this  child. 

For  music  they  had  a  guitar;  and  1  never  witnessed  a  ballet  that 
gave  me  more  amusement,  or  saw  a  dancer  that  evinced  more  grace, 
ease,  confidence,  and  decided  talent,  than  did  this  little  girl.  She 
was  prettily  formed,  and  was  exceedingly  admired  and  applauded  by 
us  all.  Her  mother  considered  her  education  as  finished,  and  looked 
on  with  all  the  admiration  and  fondness  of  parental  affection. 

On  inquiry,  I  found  that  the  idea  of  teaching  her  to  read  and  write 
had  not  yet  been  entertained.  Yet  every  expense  is  incurred  to 
teach  them  to  use  their  feet  and  arms,  and  to  assume  the  expression 
of  countenance  that  will  enable  them  to  play  a  part  in  the  after- 
scenes  of  life. 

This  manufactory  had  work  engaged  for  nine  months  or  a  year 
in  advance.  The  fabric  is  extremely  expensive,  and  none  but  the 
wealthy  can  afford  it.  It  is  also  much  sought  after  by  foreigners. 
Even  orders  for  Queen  Victoria  and  many  of  the  English  nobility 
were  then  in  hand;  at  least  I  so  heard  at  Manila.  Those  who  are 
actually  present  have,  notwithstanding,  the  privilege  of  selecting 
what  they  wish  to  purchase;  for,  with  the  inhabitants  here,  as  else- 
where, ready  money  has  too  much  attraction  for  them  to  forego 
the  temptation. 

Time  in  Manila  seems  to  hang  heavily  on  the  hands  of  some  of  its 
inhabitants;  their  amusements  are  few,  and  the  climate  ill  adapted 
to  exertion.  The  gentlemen  of  the  higher  classes  pass  their  morning 
in  the  transaction  of  a  little  public  business,  lounging  about,  smoking, 
etc.  In  the  afternoon,  they  sleep,  and  ride  on  the  Prado;  and  in  the 
evening,  visit  their  friends,  or  attend  a  tertulia.  The  ladies  are  to  be 
pitied;  for  they  pass  three- fourths  of  their  time  in  deshabille,  with 
their  maids  around  them,  sleeping,  dressing,  lolling,  and  combing 
their  hair.  In  this  way  the  whole  morning  is  lounged  away:  they 
neither  read,  write,  nor  work.  In  dress  they  generally  imitate  the 
Europeans,  except  that  they  seldom  wear  stockings,  and  go  with 
their  arms  bare.  In  the  afternoon  they  ride  on  the  Prado  in  state, 
and  in  the  evening  accompany  their  husbands.  Chocolate  is  taken 
early  in  the  morning,  breakfast  at  eleven,  and  dinner  and  supper  are 
included  in  one  meal. 

Mothers  provide  for  the  marriage  of  their  daughters;  and  I  was 
told  that  such  a  thing  as  a  gentleman  proposing  to  any  one  but  the 
mother,  or  a  young  lady  engaging  herself,  is  unknown  and  unheard 
of.  The  negotiation  is  all  carried  forward  by  the  mother,  and  the 
daughter  is  given  to  any  suitor  she  may  deem  a  desirable  match. 
The  young  ladies  are  said  to  be  equally  disinclined  to  a  choice  them- 


Manila   in   1S43  4^7 

selves,  and  if  proposals  v/ere  made  to  them,  the  suitor  would  be  at 
once  referred  to  the  mother.  Among  the  lower  orders  it  is  no  un- 
common thing  for  the  parties  to  be  living  without  the  ceremony  of 
marriage,  until  they  have  a  family  and  no  odium  whatever  is  attached 
to  such  a  connexion.  They  are  looked  upon  as  man  and  wife, 
though  they  do  not  live  together;  and  they  rarely  fail  to  solemnize 
their  union  when  they  have  accumulated  sufficient  property  to  pro- 
cure the  requisite  articles  for  housekeeping. 

Three  nights  in  each  week  they  have  music  in  the  plaza,  in  front  The  Luncta. 
of  the  governor's  palace,  by  the  bands  of  four  different  regiments, 
who  collect  there  after  the  evening  parade.  Most  of  the  better 
class  resort  here,  for  the  pleasure  of  enjoying  it.  We  went  thither 
to  see  the  people  as  well  as  to  hear  the  music.  This  is  the  great 
resort  of  the  hnut  ton,  who  usually  have  their  carriages  in  waiting, 
and  promenade  in  groups  backwards  and  forwards  during  the  time 
the  music  is  playing.  This  is  by  far  the  best  opportunity  that  one 
can  have  for  viewing  the  society  of  Manila,  which  seems  as  easy  and 
unrestrained  as  the  peculiar  gravity  and  ceremonious  mode  of  inter- 
course among  the  old  Spaniards  can  admit.  Before  the  present 
governor  took  office,  it  had  been  the  custom  to  allow  the  bands  to 
play  on  the  Prado  every  fine  evening,  when  all  the  inhabitants  could 
enjoy  it  until  a  late  hour;  but  he  has  interdicted  this  practice,  and  of 
course  given  much  dissatisfaction;  he  is  said  to  have  done  this  in  a  fit 
of  ill  temper,  and  although  importuned  to  restore  this  amusement 
to  the  common  people,  he  pertinaciously  refuses. 

The  bands  of  the  regiments  are  under  the  direction  of  Frenchmen 
and  Spaniards:  the  musicians  are  all  natives,  and  play  with  a  correct 
ear. 

Our  afternoons  were  spent  in  drives  on  the  Prado,  where  all  the 
fashion  and  rank  of  Manila  are  to  be  met,  and  where  it  is  exceedingly 
agreeable  to  partake  of  the  fresh  and  pure  air  after  a  heated  day  in 
the  city.  The  extreme  end  of  the  Prado  lies  along  the  shore  of  the 
bay  of  Manila,  having  the  roadstead  and  ships  on  one  side,  and  the 
city  proper  with  its  fortifications  and  moats  on  the  other.  This 
drive  usually  lasts  for  an  hour,  and  all  sorts  of  vehicles  are  shown  off, 
from  the  governor's  coach  and  six,  surrounded  by  his  lancers,  to  the 
sorry  chaise  and  limping  nag.  The  carriage  most  used  is  a  four- 
wheeled  biloche,  with  a  gig  top,  quite  low,  and  drawn  by  two  horses, 
on  one  of  which  is  a  postilion;  these  vehicles  are  exceedingly  com- 
fortable for  two  persons.  The  horses  are  small,  but  spirited,  and 
are  said  to  be  able  to  undergo  great  fatigue,  although  their  appearance 
does  not  promise  it.  This  drive  is  enlivened  by  the  music  of  the 
different  regiments,  who  are  at  this  time  to  be  seen  manoeuvering 
on  the  Prado.  The  soldiers  have  a  very  neat  and  clean  appearance; 
great  attention  is  paid  to  them,  and  the  whole  are  well  appointed. 
The  force  stationed  in  Manila  is  six  thousand,  and  the  army  in  the 
Philippines  amounts  to  twenty  thousand  men.  The  officers  are  all 
Spaniards,  generally  the  relations  and  friends  of  those  in  the  admi- 
nistration of  the  government.  The  pay  of  the  soldiers  is  four  dollars 
a  month,  atid  a  ration,  which  is  equal  to  six  cents  a  day.  As  troops 
I  was  told,  tfiey  acquitted  themselves  well.     The  Prado  is  laid  out 


475 


THE  FORMER  PHIUPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


in  many  avenues,  leading  in  various  directions  to  the  suburbs,  and 
these  are  planted  with  wild  almond  trees,  which  afford  a  pleasant 
shade.     It  is  well  kept,  and  creditable  to  the  city. 

In  passing  the  crowds  of  carriages  very  little  display  of  female 
beauty  is  observed,  and  although  well-dressed  above,  one  cannot  but 
revert  to  their  wearing  no  stockings  beneath. 

On  the  Prado  is  a  small  theatre,  but  so  inferior  that  the  building 
scarce  deserves  the  name:  the  acting  was  equally  bad.     This  amuse- 
ment meets  with  little  encouragement  in  Manila  and,  I  was  told,  was 
discountenanced  by  the  Governor. 
A  tertulia.  I  had  the  pleasure  during  our  stay  of  attending  a  tertulia  in  the 

city.  The  company  was  not  a  large  one,  comprising  some  thirty 
or  forty  ladies  and  about  sixty  gentlemen.  It  resembled  those  of  the 
mother  country.  Dancing  was  introduced  at  an  early  hour,  and 
continued  till  a  few  minutes  before  eleven  o'clock,  at  which  time  the 
gates  of  the  city  are  always  shut.  It  was  amusing  to  see  the  sudden 
breaking  up  of  the  party,  most  of  the  guests  residing  out  of  the  city. 
The  calling  for  carriages,  shawls,  hats,  etc.,  produced  for  a  few  minutes 
great  confusion,  every  one  being  desirous  of  getting  off  at  the  earliest 
moment  possible,  for  fear  of  being  too  late.  This  regulation,  by 
which  the  gates  are  closed  at  so  early  an  hour,  does  not  appear 
necessary,  and  only  serves  to  interrupt  the  communication  between 
the  foreign  and  Spanish  society  as  the  former  is  obliged,  as  before 
observed,  to  live  outside  of  the  city  proper.  This  want  of  free  inter- 
course is  to  be  regretted,  as  it  prevents  that  kind  of  friendship  by 
which  many  of  their  jealousies  and  prejudices  might  be  removed. 

The  society  at  this  tertulia  was  easy,  and  so  far  as  the  enjoyment 
of  dancing  went,  pleasant;  but  there  was  no  conversation.  The 
refreshments  consisted  of  a  few  dulces,  lemonade,  and  strong  drinks 
in  an  anteroom.  The  house  appeared  very  spacious  and  well  adapted 
for  entertainments,  but  only  one  of  the  rooms  was  well  lighted. 
From  the  novelty  of  the  scene,  and  the  attentions  of  the  gentleman 
of  the  house,  we  passed  a  pleasant  evening. 

The  natives  and  mestizos  attracted  much  of  my  attention  at 
Manila.  Their  dress  is  peculiar:  over  a  pair  of  striped  trousers  of 
various  colors,  the  men  usually  wear  a  fine  grass-cloth  shirt,  a  large 
straw  hat,  and  around  the  head  or  neck  a  many  colored  silk  hand- 
kerchief. They  often  wear  slippers  as  well  as  shoes.  The  Chinese 
dress,  as  they  have  done  for  centuries,  in  loose  white  shirts  and 
trousers.  One  peculiarity  of  the  common  men  is  their  passion  for 
cock-fighting;  and  they  carry  these  fowls  wherever  they  go,  after  a 
peculiar  fashion  under  their  arm. 
Cock-fighting.  Cock-fighting  is  licensed  by  the  government,  and  great  care  is 

taken  in  the  breeding  of  game  fowls,  which  are  very  large  and  heavy 
birds.  They  are  armed  with  a  curved  double-edged  gaff.  The 
exhibitions  are  usually  crowded  with  half-breeds  or  mestizos,  who 
are  generally  more  addicted  to  gambling  than  either  the  higher  or 
lower  classes  of  Spaniards.  It  would  not  be  an  unapt  designation 
to  call  the  middling  class  cock-fighters,  for  their  whole  lives  seem  to 
be  taken  up  with  the  breeding  and  fighting  of  these  birds.  On  the 
exit  from  a  cockpit,  I  was  much  amused  with  the  mode  of  giving  the 
return  check,  which  was  done  by  a  stamp  on  the  naked  arm,  and 


Manila  in  184S  ^79 

precludes  the  possibility  of  its  transfer  to  another  person.  The 
dress  of  the  lower  order  of  females  is  somewhat  civilized,  yet  it  bore 
so  strong  a  resemblance  to  that  of  the  Polynesians  as  to  recall  the 
latter  to  our  recollection.  A  long  piece  of  colored  cotton  is  wound 
round  the  body,  like  the  pareu,  and  tucked  in  at  the  side:  this  covers 
the  nether  limbs;  and  a  jacket  fitting  close  to  the  body  is  worn, 
without  a  shirt.  In  some,  this  jacket  is  ornamented  with  work 
around  the  neck;  it  has  no  collar,  and  in  many  cases  no  sleeves, 
and  over  this  a  richly  embroidered  cape.  The  feet  are  covered  with 
slippers,  with  wooden  soles,  which  are  kept  on  by  the  little  toe,  only 
four  toes  entering  the  slipper,  and  the  little  one  being  on  the  outside. 
The  effect  of  both  costumes  is  picturesque. 

The  market  is  a  never  failing  place  of  amusement  to  a  foreigner.  Duck*. 
for  there  a  crowd  of  the  common  people  is  always  to  be  seen,  and 
their  mode  of  conducting  business  may  be  observed.  The  canals 
here  afford  great  facilities  for  bringing  vegetables  and  produce  to 
market  in  a  fresh  state.  The  vegetables  are  chiefly  brought  from 
the  shores  of  the  Laguna  de  Bay,  through  the  river  Pasig.  The  meat 
appeared  inferior,  and  as  in  all  Spanish  places  the  art  of  butchering 
is  not  understood.  The  poultry,  however,  surpasses  that  of  any 
other  place  I  have  seen,  particularly  in  ducks,  the  breeding  of  which 
is  pursued  to  a  great  extent.  Establishments  for  breeding  these  birds 
are  here  carried  on  in  a  systematic  manner,  and  are  a  great  curiosity. 
They  consist  of  many  small  enclosures,  each  about  twenty  feet  by 
forty  or  fifty,  made  of  bamboo,  which  are  placed  on  the  bank  of  the 
river,  and  partly  covered  with  water.  In  one  corner  of  the  enclosure 
is  a  small  house,  where  the  eggs  are  hatched  by  artificial  heat,  pro- 
duced by  rice-chaff  in  a  stateff  of  fermentation.  It  is  not  uncommon 
to  see  six  or  eight  hundred  ducklings  all  of  the  same  age.  There  are 
several  hundreds  of  these  enclosures,  and  the  number  of  ducks  of 
all  ages  may  be  computed  at  millions.  The  manner  in  which  they 
are  schooled  to  take  exercise,  and  to  go  in  and  out  of  the  water, 
and  to  return  to  their  house,  almost  exceeds  belief.  The  keepers 
or  tenders  are  of  the  Tagalog  tribe,  who  live  near  the  enclosures, 
and  have  them  at  all  times  under  their  eye.  The  old  birds  are  not 
suffered  to  approach  the  young,  and  all  of  one  age  are  kept  together. 
They  are  fed  upon  rice  and  a  small  species  of  shell-fish  that  is  found 
in  the  river  and  is  peculiar  to  it.  From  the  extent  of  these  establish- 
ments we  inferred  that  ducks  were  the  favorite  article  of  food  at 
Manila,  and  the  consumption  of  them  must  be  immense.  The 
markets  are  well  supplied  with  chickens,  pigeons,  young  partridges, 
which  are  brought  in  alive,  and  turkeys.  Among  strange  articles 
that  we  saw  for  sale,  were  cakes  of  coagulated  blood.  The  markets 
are  well  stocked  with  a  variety  of  fish,  taken  both  in  the  Laguna 
and  bay  of  Manila,  affording  a  supply  of  both  the  fresh  and  salt 
water  species,  and  many  smaller  kinds  that  are  dried  and  smoked. 
Vegetables  are  in  great  plenty,  and  consist  of  pumpkins,  lettuce, 
onions,  radishes,  very  long  squashes,  etc.;  of  fruits,  they  have  melons, 
chicos,  durians,  marbolas,  and  oranges. 

Fish  are  caught  in  weirs,  by  the  hook,  or  in  seines.     The  former    Fixh. 
are  constructed  of  bamboo  stakes,  in  the  shallow  water  of  the  lake, 
at  the  point  where  it  flows  through  the  Pasig  river.     In  the  bay. 


480  THE  FORMER  PIIILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EVES 

and  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  the  fish  are  taken  in  nets,  suspended 
by  the  four  corners  from  hoops  attached  to  a  crane,  by  which  they 
are  lowered  into  the  water.  The  fishing-boats  are  Uttle  better  than 
rafts,  and  are  called  sarabaos. 

The  usual  passa!|e-boat  is  termed  banca,  and  is  made  of  a  single 
trunk.  These  are  very  much  used  by  the  inhabitants.  They  have 
a  sort  of  awning  to  protect  the  passenger  from  the  rays  of  the  sun; 
and  being  light  are  easily  rowed  about,  although  they  are  exceed- 
ingly uncomfortable  to  sit  in,  from  the  lowness  of  the  seats,  and 
liable  to  overset,  if  the  weight  is  not  placed  near  the  bottom.  The 
outrigger  was  very  often  dispensed  with,  owing  to  the  impediment 
it  offered  to  the  navigation  of  their  canals;  these  canals  offer  great 
facilities  for  the  transportation  of  burdens;  the  banks  of  almost 
all  of  them  are  faced  with  granite.  Where  the  streets  cross  them, 
there  are  substantial  stone  bridges,  which  are  generally  of  no  more 
than  one  arch,  so  as  not  to  impede  the  navigation.  The  barges 
used  for  the  transportation  of  produce  resemble  our  canal-boats, 
and  have  sliding  roofs  to  protect  them  from  the  rain. 

Water,  for  the  supply  of  vessels,  is  brought  off  in  large  earthen 
jars.  It  is  obtained  from  the  river,  and  if  care  is  not  taken,  the 
water  will  be  impure;  it  ought  to  be  filled  beyond  the  city.  Our 
supply  was  obtained  five  or  six  miles  up  the  river,  by  a  lighter,  in 
which  were  placed  a  number  of  water-casks.     It  proved  excellent. 

The  trade  of  Manila  extends  to  all  parts  of  the  world. 

There  are  many  facilities  for  the  transaction  of  business,  as  far 
as  the  shipment  of  articles  is  concerned;  but  great  difficulties  attend 
the  settling  of  disputed  accounts,  collecting  debts,  etc.,  in  the  way 
of  which  the  laws  passed  in  1834  have  thrown  many  obstacles. 
All  commercial  business  of  this  kind  goes  before,  first,  the  Junta 
de  Comercio,  and  then  an  appeal  to  the  Tribunal  de  Comercio. 
This  appeal,  however,  is  merely  nominal;  for  the  same  judges  preside 
in  each,  and  they  are  said  to  be  susceptible  of  influences  that  render 
an  appeal  to  them  by  honest  men  at  all  times  hazardous.  The 
opinion  of  those  who  have  had  the  misfortune  to  be  obliged  to 
recur  to  these  tribunals  is,  that  it  is  better  to  suffer  wrong  than 
encounter  both  the  expense  and  vexation  of  a  resort  to  them  for 
justice.  In  the  first  of  these  courts  the  decision  is  long  delayed, 
fees  exacted,  and  other  expenses  incurred;  and  when  judgment  is 
at  length  given,  it  excites  one  party  or  the  other  to  appeal:  other 
expenses  accrue  in  consequence,  and  the  advocates  and  judges 
grow  rich  while  both  the  litigants  suffer.  I  understood  that  these 
tribunals  were  intended  to  simplify  business,  lessen  the  time  of 
suits,  and  promote  justice;  but  these  results  have  not  been  obtained, 
and  many  believe  that  they  have  had  the  contrary  effect,  and  have 
opened  the  road  to  further  abuses. 

The  country  around  Manila,  though  no  more  than  an  extended 
plain  for  some  miles,  is  one  of  great  interest  and  beauty,  and  affords 
many  agreeable  rides  on  the  roads  to  Santa  Ana  and  Mariquina. 
Most  of  the  country-seats  are  situated  on  the  Pasig  river;  they  may 
indeed  be  called  palaces,  from  their  extent  and  appearance.  They 
are  built  upon  a  grand  scale,  and  after  the  Italian  style,  with  ter- 
races, supported  by  strong  abutments,  decked  with  vases  of  plants. 


M.niihi    in    IS4£  4SI 

The  grounds  are  ornamented  with  the  luxuriant,  lofty,  and  graceful 
trees  of  the  tropics;  these  are  tolerably  well  kept.  Here  and  there 
fine  large  stone  churches,  with  their  towers  and  steeples,  are  to  be 
seen,  the  whole  giving  the  impression  of  a  wealthy  nobility,  and 
a  happy  and  flourishing  peasantry. 

In  one  of  our  rides  we  made  a  visit  to  the  Campo  Santo  or  ceme- 
tery, about  four  miles  from  Manila.  It  is  small,  but  has  many 
handsome  trees  about  it;  among  them  was  an  Agati,  full  of  large 
white  flowers,  showing  most  conspicuously.  The  whole  place  is 
as  unlike  a  depository  of  the  dead  as  it  well  can  be.  Its  form  is 
circular,  having  a  small  chapel,  in  the  form  of  a  rotunda,  directly 
opposite  the  gate,  or  entrance.  The  walls  are  about  twenty  feet 
high,  with  three  tiers  of  niches,  in  which  the  bodies  are  enclosed 
with  quicklime.  Here  they  are  allowed  to  remain  for  three  years, 
or  until  such  time  as  the  niches  may  be  required  for  further  use. 
Niches  may  be  purchased,  however,  and  permanently  closed  up; 
but  in  the  whole  cemetery  there  were  but  five  thus  secured.  This 
would  seem  to  indicate  an  indifference  on  the  part  of  the  living, 
for  their  departed  relatives  or  friends;  at  least  such  was  my  impres- 
sion at  the  time.  The  center  of  the  enclosure  is  laid  out  as  a  flower- 
garden  and  shrubbery,  and  all  the  buildings  are  washed  a  deep 
buff-color,  with  white  cornices;  these  colors,  when  contrasted  with 
the  green  foliage,  give  an  effect  that  is  not  unpleasing.  In  the 
chapel  are  two  tombs,  the  one  for  the  bishop,  and  the  other  for  the 
governor.  The  former,  I  believe,  is  occupied,  and  will  continue 
to  be  so,  until  another  shall  follow  him;  but  the  latter  is  empty, 
for,  since  the  erection  of  the  cemetery,  none  of  the  governors  have 
died.  In  the  rear  of  the  chapel  is  another  small  cemetery,  called 
Los  Angeles;  and,  further  behind,  the  Osero.  The  former  is  similar 
to  the  one  in  front,  but  smaller,  and  appropriated  exclusively  to 
children;  the  latter  is  an  open  space,  where  the  bones  of  all  those 
who  have  been  removed  from  the  niches,  after  three  years,  are 
cast  out,  and  now  lie  in  a  confused  heap,  with  portions  of  flesh  and 
hair  adhering  to  them.  No  person  is  allowed  to  be  received  here 
for  interment,  until  the  fees  are  first  paid  to  the  priest,  however 
respectable  the  parties  may  be;  and  all  those  who  pay  the  fees, 
and  are  of  the  true  faith,  can  be  interred.  I  was  told  of  a  corpse 
of  a  very  respectable  person  being  refused  admittance,  for  the  want 
of  the  priest's  pass,  to  show  that  the  claim  had  been  satisfied,  and 
the  coffin  stopped  in  the  road  until  it  was  obtained.  We  ourselves 
witnessed  a  similar  refusal.  A  servant  entered  with  a  dead  child; 
borne  on  a  tray,  which  he  presented  to  the  sacristan  to  have  interred, 
the  latter  asked  him  for  the  pass,  which  not  being  produced,  he 
was  dismissed,  nor  was  he  suffered  to  leave  his  burden  until  this  re- 
quisite could  be  procured  from  the  priest,  who  lived  opposite.  The 
price  of  interment  was  three  dollars,  but  whether  this  included  the 
purchase  of  the  niche,  or  its  rent  for  the  three  years  only,  I  did  not 
learn. 

The  churches  of  Manila  can  boast  of  several  fine-toned  bells, 
which  are  placed  in  large  belfries  or  towers.  There  was  one  of 
these  towers  near  the  Messrs.  Sturges',  where  we  stayed;  and  the 
manner  in  which  the  bell  was  used,  when  swung  around  by  the  force 


483  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

of  two  or  three  men,  attracted  our  attention;  for  the  ringers  occa- 
sionally practised  feats  of  agility  by  passing  over  with  the  bell,  and 
landing  on  the  coping  on  the  opposite  side.  The  tower  being  open, 
we  could  see  the  manauver  from  the  windows,  and,  as  strangers, 
went  there  to  look  on.  One  day,  whilst  at  dinner,  they  began  to 
ring,  and  as  many  of  the  officers  had  not  witnessed  the  fact,  they 
sought  the  windows.  This  excited  the  vanity  of  those  in  the  belfry, 
who  redoubled  their  exertions,  and  performed  the  feat  successfully 
many  times,  although  in  some  instances  they  narrowly  escaped 
accident,  by  landing  just  within  the  outside  coping.  This  brought 
us  all  to  the  window,  and  the  next  turn,  more  force  having  been 
given  to  the  bell,  the  individual  who  attempted  the  feat  was  thrown 
headlong  beyond  the  tower,  and  dashed  to  pieces  on  the  pavement 
beneath.  Although  shocked  at  the  accident,  I  felt  still  more  so 
when,  after  a  few  minutes,  the  bell  was  again  heard  making  its 
usual  sound,  as  if  nothing  had  occurred  to  interrupt  the  course  of 
its  hourly  peals. 

Monasteries.  jn  company  with  Dr.  Tolben,  I  visited  one  of  the  convents  where 

he  attended  on  some  of  the  monks  who  were  sick;  he  seemed 
well  acquainted  with  them  all.  I  was  much  struck  with  the  extent 
of  the  building,  which  was  four  stories  high,  with  spacious  corridors 
and  galleries,  the  walls  of  which  were  furnished  with  pictures  re- 
presenting the  martyrdom  of  the  Dominican  friars  in  Japan.  These 
were  about  seventy  in  number,  in  the  Chinese  style  of  art,  and 
evidently  painted  by  some  one  of  that  nation,  calling  himself  an 
artist.  From  appearances,  however,  I  should  think  they  were 
composed  by  the  priests,  who  have  not  a  little  taxed  their  invention 
to  find  out  the  different  modes  in  which  a  man  can  be  put  to  death. 
Many  evidently,  if  not  all,  had  been  invented  for  the  pictures. 
So  perplexed  had  they  apparently  been,  that  in  one  of  the  last  it 
was  observed  that  the  executioner  held  his  victim  at  arms'  length 
by  the  heels,  and  was  about  to  let  him  drop  headforemost  into  a 
well.  From  the  galleries  we  passed  into  the  library,  and  thence 
into  many  of  the  rooms,  and  finally  we  mounted  to  the  top  of  the 
monastery,  which  affords  a  beautiful  view  of  the  bay,  city,  and 
suburbs.  There  I  was  presented  to  three  of  the  friars,  who  were 
pleasant  and  jolly-looking  men.  Upon  the  roof  was  a  kind  of 
observatory,  or  look-out,  simply  furnished  with  billiard-tables  and 
shuffleboards,  while  the  implements  for  various  other  games  lay 
about  on  small  tables,  with  telescopes  on  stands,  and  comfortable 
arm-chairs.  It  was  a  place  where  the  friars  put  aside  their  religious 
and  austere  character  or  appearance,  and  sought  amusement.  It 
was  a  delightful  spot,  so  far  as  coolness  and  the  freshness  of  the 
sea  air  were  concerned,  and  its  aspect  gave  me  an  insight  behind 
the  curtain  of  these  establishments  that  very  soon  disclosed  many 
things  I  was  ignorant  of  before.  All  the  friar-;  were  of  a  rotund 
form,  and  many  of  them  bore  the  marks  of  good  living  in  their 
full,  red,  and  bloated  faces.  It  seems  to  be  generally  understood 
at  Manila,  that  they  live  upon  the  fat  of  the  land.  We  visited 
several  of  the  rooms,  and  were  warmly  greeted  by  the  padres,  one 
of  whom  presented  me  with  a  meteorological  table  for  the  previous 
year. 


Manila  in  18^3 


483 


The  revenues  of  all  these  religious  establishments  are  consider- 
able; the  one  I  visited  belonged  to  the  Dominicans,  and  was  very 
rich.  Their  revenues  are  principally  derived  from  lands  owned 
by  them,  and  the  tithes  from  the  different  districts  which  they  have 
under  their  charge,  to  which  are  added  many  alms  and  gifts.  On 
inquiry,  I  found  their  general  character  was  by  no  means  thought 
well  of,  and  they  had  of  late  years  lost  much  of  the  influence  that 
they  possessed  before  the  revolution  in  the  mother  country. 

Among  the  inhabitants  we  saw  here,  was  a  native  boy  of  the 
Igorots,  or  mountain  tribe.  He  is  said  to  be  a  true  Negrito. 
(Another  confusion  of  facts. — C.) 

The  Spaniards,  as  has  been  stated,  have  never  been  able  to  sub-  Mountaineen. 
due  this  tribe,  who  are  said  to  be  still  as  wild  as  on  their  first  landing; 
they  are  confined  almost  altogether  to  the  plains  within  or  near 
the  mountains,  and  from  time  to  time  make  inroads  in  great  force 
on  the  outer  settlements,  carrying  off  as  much  plunder  as  possible. 
The  burden  of  this  often  causes  them  to  be  overtaken  by  the  troops. 
When  overtaken,  they  fight  desperately,  and  were  it  not  for  the 
fire-arms  of  their  adversaries,  would  give  them  much  trouble.  Few 
are  captured  on  such  occasions,  and  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  take 
them  alive,  unless  when  very  young.  These  mountains  furnish 
them  with  an  iron  ore  almost  pure,  in  manufacturing  which  they 
show  much  ingenuity.  Some  of  their  weapons  were  presented  to 
the  Expedition  by  Josiah  Moore,  Esq.  These  are  probably  imita- 
tions of  the  early  Spanish  weapons  used  against  them.  From  all 
accounts,  the  natives  are  of  Malay  origin,  and  allied  to  those  of  the 
other  islands  of  the  extensive  archipelago  of  the  Eastern  Seas;  but 
the  population  of  the  towns  and  cities  of  the  island  are  so  mixed, 
from  the  constant  intercourse  with  Chinese,  Europeans,  and  others, 
that  there  is  no  pure  blood  among  them.  When  at  Manila,  we 
obtained  a  grammar  of  the  Tagalog  language,  which  is  said  to  be 
now  rarely  heard,  and  to  have  become  nearly  obsolete.  This 
grammar  is  believed  to  be  the  only  one  extant,  and  was  procured 
from  a  padre,  who  presented  it  to  the  Expedition.  (Tagalog  is 
here  mistaken  for  a  mountaineer's  dialect. — C.) 

The  Pampangans  are  considered  the  finest  tribe  of  natives;  they 
are  excessively  fond  of  horse-racing,  and  bet  very  considerable 
sums  upon  it;  they  have  the  reputation  of  being  an  industrious  and 
energetic  set  of  men. 

The  mode  of  raising  revenue  by  a  poll-tax  causes  great  discontent  Revenue. 
among  all  classes,  for  although  light,  it  is,  as  it  always  has  been 
elsewhere,  unpopular.  All  the  Chinese  pay  a  capitation  tax  of 
four  dollars.  The  revenue  from  various  sources  is  said  to  amount 
to  one  million  six  hundred  thousand  dollars,  of  which  the  poll-tax 
amounts  to  more  than  one-half,  the  rest  being  derived  from  the 
customs,  tobacco,  etc.  There  is  no  tax  upon  land.  It  was  thought 
at  Manila  that  a  revenue  might  be  derived  by  indirect  taxation, 
far  exceeding  this  sum,  without  being  sensibly  felt  by  the  inhabitants. 
This  mode  is  employed  in  the  eastern  islands  under  the  English 
and  Dutch  rule,  and  it  is  surprising  that  the  Spaniards  also  do  not 
adopt  it,  or  some  other  method  to  increase  resources  that  are  so 
much  needed.     Whenever  the  ministry  in  Spain  had  to  meet  a  claim, 


USlf  THE  VOHMER   I'lll lA lU'lX ES   TllRC   EOREIGS   EYES 

they  were  a  few  years  ago  in  the  habit  of  issuing  drafts  on  this  colonial 
government  in  payment.  These  came  at  last  in  such  numbers, 
that  latterly  they  have  been  compelled  to  suspend  the  payment 
of  them. 

The  revenue  of  the  colonial  government  is  very  little  more  than 
will  meet  the  expenses;   and  it  is  believed  that,  notwithstanding 
these  unaccepted  claims,  it  received  orders  to  remit  the  surplus,  if 
any,  to  Spain,  regardless  of  honor  or  good  faith. 
Governmeni.  The  government  of  the  Philippines  is  in  the  hands  of  a  governor- 

general,  who  has  the  titles  of  viceroy,  commander-in-chief,  sub- 
delegate,  judge  of  the  revenue  from  the  post-office,  commander 
of  the  troops,  captain-general,  and  commander  of  the  naval  forces. 
His  duties  embrace  every  thing  that  relates  to  the  security  and 
defence  of  the  country.  As  advisers,  he  has  a  council  called  the 
Audiencia. 

The  islands  are  divided  into  provinces,  each  of  which  has  a  military 
officer  with  the  title  of  governor,  appointed  by  the  governor -general. 
They  act  as  chief  magistrates,  have  jurisdiction  over  all  disputes 
of  minor  importance,  have  the  command  of  the  troops  in  time  of 
war,  and  are  collectors  of  the  royal  revenues,  for  the  security  of  which 
they  give  bonds,  which  must  be  approved  of  by  the  comptroller- 
general  of  the  treasury.  The  province  of  Cavite  is  alone  exempt 
from  this  rule,  and  the  collection  of  tribute  is  there  confided  to 
a  police  magistrate. 

Each  province  is  again  sub-divided  into  pueblos,  containing  a 
greater  or  less  number  of  inhabitants,  each  of  which  has  again  its 
ruler,  called  a  gobernadorcillo,  who  has  in  like  manner  other  officers 
under  him  to  act  as  police  magistrates.  The  number  of  the  latter 
are  very  great,  each  of  them  having  his  appropriate  duties.  These 
consist  in  the  supervision  of  the  grain  fields,  coconut  groves,  betel- 
nut  plantations,  and  in  the  preservation  of  the  general  order  and 
peace  of  the  town.  So  numerous  are  these  petty  officers,  that  there 
is  scarcely  a  family  of  any  consequence,  that  has  not  a  member  who 
holds  some  kind  of  office  under  government.  This  policy,  in  case 
of  disturbances,  at  once  unites  a  large  and  influential  body  on  the 
side  of  the  government,  that  is  maintained  at  little  expense.  The 
gobernadorcillo  exercises  the  municipal  authority,  and  is  especially 
charged  to  aid  the  parish  priest  in  every  thing  appertaining  to  re- 
ligious observances,  etc. 

In  the  towns  where  the  descendants  of  the  Chinese  are  sufficiently 
numerous,  they  can,  by  permission  of  the  governor,  elect  their  own 
petty  governors  and  officers  from  among  themselves. 

In  each  town  there  is  also  a  headman  (cabeza  de  barangay), 
who  has  the  charge  of  fifty  tributaries,  in  each  of  which  is  included 
as  many  families.  This  division  is  called  a  barangay.  This  office 
forms  by  far  the  most  important  part  of  the  machinery  of  govern- 
ment in  the  Philippine  Islands,  for  these  headmen  are  the  attorneys 
of  these  small  districts,  and  become  the  electors  of  the  gobernador- 
cillos,  and  other  civil  officers.  Only  twelve,  however,  of  them  or 
their  substitutes,  are  allowed  to  vote  in  each  town. 

The  office  of  head-man  existed  before  the  conquest  of  the  island, 
and  the  Spaniards  showed  their  wisdom  in  continuing  and  adapting 


Manila    in    lf!.',i  JfS.'i 

it  to  their  system  of  police.  The  office  among  the  natives  was 
hereditary,  but  their  conquerors  made  it  also  elective,  and  when 
a  vacancy  now  occurs  through  want  of  heirs,  or  resignation,  it  is 
filled  up  by  the  superintendent  of  the  province,  on  the  recommenda- 
tion of  the  gobernadorcillo  and  the  headman.  This  is  also  the 
case  when  any  new  office  is  created.  The  privileges  of  the  headmen 
are  great;  themselves,  their  wives,  and  their  first-born  children, 
are  exempted  from  paying  tribute  to  the  crown,  an  exoneration 
which  is  owing  to  their  being  collectors  of  the  royal  revenues.  Their 
duties  consist  in  maintaining  good  order  and  harmony,  in  dividing 
the  labor  required  for  the  public  benefit  equally,  adjusting  differences, 
and  receiving  the  taxes. 

The  gobernadorcillo  takes  cognizance  of  all  civil  cases  not  exceed- 
ing two  taels  of  gold,  or  forty-four  dollars  in  silver;  all  criminal 
cases  must  be  sent  to  the  chief  of  the  province.  The  headmen 
formerly  served  for  no  more  than  three  years,  and  if  this  was  done 
faithfully,  they  became  and  were  designated  as  principals,  in  virtue 
of  which  rank  they  received  the  title  of  Don. 

The  election  takes  place  at  the  court-house  of  the  town;  the  electors 
are  the  gobernadorcillo  whose  office  is  about  to  expire,  and  twelve 
of  the  oldest  headmen,  ai^Hzax  ilc  hdrnngnu,  collectors  of  tribute 
for  the  gobernadorcillo  they  must  select,  by  a  plurality  of  votes, 
three  individuals,  who  must  be  able  to  speak,  read,  and  write  the 
Spanish  language.  The  voting  is  done  by  ballot,  in  the  presence 
of  the  notary  (escribano),  and  the  chief  of  the  province,  who  presides. 
The  curate  may  be  present,  to  look  after  the  interest  of  the  church 
but  for  no  other  purpose.  After  the  votes  are  taken,  they  are  sealed 
and  transmitted  to  the  governor-general,  who  selects  one  of  the 
three  candidates,  and  issues  a  commission.  In  the  more  distant 
provinces,  the  chief  of  the  district  has  the  authority  to  select  the 
gobernadorcillo,  and  fill  up  the  commission,  a  blank  form  of  which, 
signed  by  the  governor-general,  is  left  with  him  for  that  purpose. 

The  headmen  may  be  elected  petty  governors,  and  still  retain 
their  office,  and  collect  the  tribute  or  taxes;  for  it  is  not  considered 
just,  that  the  important  office  of  chief  of  Barangay  should  deprive 
the  holder  of  the  honor  of  being  elected  gobernadorcillo. 

The  greater  part  of  the  Chinese  reside  in  the  province  of  Tondo, 
but  the  tribute  is  there  collected  by  the  alcalde  mayor,  with  an 
assistant  taken  from  among  the  officers  of  the  royal  treasury. 

The  poll-tax  on  the  Chinese  amounts  to  four  dollars  a  head; 
it  was  formerly  one-half  more.  Tax-lists  of  the  Chinese  are  kept, 
in  which  they  are  registered  and  classified;  and  opposite  the  name 
is  the  amount  at  which  the  individual  is  assessed. 

The  Spanish  government  seems  particularly  desirous  of  giving 
consequence  even  to  its  lowest  offices;  and  in  order  to  secure  it 
to  them,  it  is  directed  that  the  chiefs  of  provinces,  shall  treat  the 
gobemadorcillos  with  respect,  offering  them  seats  when  they  enter 
their  houses  or  other  places,  and  not  allowing  them  to  remain 
standing;  furthermore,  the  parish  curates  are  required  to  treat 
them  with  equal  respect.  So  far  as  concerns  the  provinces,  the 
government   may   be   called,   notwithstanding   the   officers,   courts. 


486 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


etc.,  monastic.     The  priests  rule,  and  frequently  administer  punish- 
ment, with  their  own  hands,  to  either  sex,  of  which  an  instance  will 
be  cited  hereafter. 
A  country  As  soon  as  we  could  procure  the  necessary  passports,  which  were 

excursion.  obligingly   furnished  by  the  governor  to   "Don  Russel  Sturges  y ' 

quatro  Anglo  Americanos,"  our  party  left  Manila  for  a  short  jaunt 
to  the  mountains.  It  was  considered  as  a  mark  of  great  favor  on 
the  part  of  his  excellency  to  grant  this  indulgence,  particularly 
as  he  had  a  few  months  prior  denied  it  to  a  party  of  French  officers. 
I  was  told  that  he  preferred  to  make  it  a  domestic  concern,  by 
issuing  the  passport  in  the  name  of  a  resident,  in  order  that  com- 
pliance in  this  case  might  not  give  umbrage  to  the  French.  It  was 
generally  believed  that  the  cause  of  the  refusal  in  the  former  instance 
was  the  imprudent  manner  in  which  the  French  officers  went  about 
taking  plans  and  sketches,  at  the  corners  of  streets,  etc.,  which 
in  the  minds  of  an  unenlightened  and  ignorant  colonial  government, 
of  course  excited  suspicion.  Nothing  can  be  so  ridiculous  as  this 
system  of  passports;  for  if  one  was  so  disposed,  a  plan,  and  the  most 
minute  information  of  every  thing  that  concerns  the  defences  of 
places,  can  always  be  obtained  at  little  cost  now-a-days;  for  such 
is  the  skill  of  engineers,  that  a  plan  is  easily  made  of  places,  merely 
by  a  sight  of  them.  We  were  not,  however,  disposed  to  question 
the  propriety  of  the  governor's  conduct  in  the  former  case,  and 
I  left  abundantly  obliged  to  him  for  a  permission  that  would  add 
to  our  stock  of  information. 

It  was  deemed  at  first  impossible  for  the  party  to  divide,  as  they 
had  but  one  passport,  and  some  difficulties  were  anticipated  from 
the  number  being  double  that  stated  in  the  passport.  The  party 
consisted  of  Messrs.  Sturges,  Pickering,  Eld,  Rich,  Dana,  and 
Brackenridge.  Mr.  Sturges,  however,  saw  no  difficulty  in  dividing 
the  party  after  they  had  passed  beyond  the  precincts  of  the  city, 
taking  the  precaution,  at  the  same  time,  not  to  appear  together 
beyond  the  number  designated  on  the  paper. 

On  the   14th,   they  left  Manila,   and  proceeded  in  carriages  to 
Santa  Ana,  on  the  Pasig,  in  order  to  avoid  the  delay  that  would 
ensue  if  they  followed  the  windings  of  the  river  in  a  banca,  and 
I  against  the  current. 

At  Santa  Ana  they  found  their  bancas  waiting  for  them,  and 
embarked.  Here  the  scene  was  rendered  animated  by  numerous 
boats  of  all  descriptions,  from  the  parao  to  the  small  canoe  of  a 
single  log. 

There  is  a  large  population  that  live  wholly  on  the  water:  for 
the  padrones  of  the  parao  have  usually  their  families  with  them, 
which,  from  the  great  variety  of  ages  and  sexes,  give  a  very  different 
and  much  more  bustling  appearance  to  the  crowd  of  boats,  than 
would  be  the  case  if  they  only  contained  those  who  are  employed 
to  navigate  them.  At  times  the  paraos  and  bancas,  of  all  sizes, 
together  with  the  saraboas  and  pativas  (duck  establishments), 
become  jumbled  together,  and  create  a  confusion  and  noise  such  as 
is  seldom  met  with  in  any  other  country. 
Duch  farms.  The  pativas  are  under  the  care  of  the  original  inhabitants,  to  whom 

exclusively  the  superintendence  of  the  ducklings  seems  to  be  com- 


Manila  in  1842  ^87 

mitted.  The  pens  are  made  of  bamboo,  and  are  not  over  a  foot 
high.  The  birds  were  all  in  admirable  order,  and  made  no  attempt 
to  escape  over  the  low  barrier,  although  so  light  that  it  was  thought 
by  some  of  our  gentlemen  it  would  not  have  sufficed  to  confine 
American  ducks,  although  their  wings  might  have  been  cut.  The 
mode  of  giving  them  exercise  was  by  causing  them  to  run  round 
in  a  ring.  The  good  understanding  existing  between  the  keepers 
and  their  charge  was  striking,  particularly  when  the  former  were 
engaged  in  cleansing  the  pens,  and  assisting  the  current  to  carry 
off  the  impurities.  In  the  course  of  their  sail,  it  was  estimated 
that  hundreds  of  thousands  of  ducks  of  all  ages  were  seen. 

The  women  who  were  seen  were  usually  engaged  in  fishing  with 
a  hook  and  line,  and  were  generally  standing  in  the  water,  or  in 
canoes.  The  saraboas  were  here  also  in  use.  The  run  of  the  fish 
is  generally  concentrated  by  a  chevaux-de-frise  to  guide  them  towards 
the  nets  and  localities  where  the  fishermen  place  themselves. 

At  five  o'clock  they  reached  the  Laguna  de  Bay,  where  they 
took  in  a  new  crew,  with  mast  and  sail.  This  is  called  twenty-five 
miles  from  Manila  by  the  river;  the  distance  in  a  bird's  flight  is 
not  over  twelve.  The  whole  distance  is  densely  peopled,  and  well 
cultivated.  The  crops  consist  of  indigo,  rice,  etc.,  with  groves  of 
the  betel,  palm,  coconut,  and  quantities  of  fruit  trees. 

The  shores  of  the  lake  are  shelving,  and  afford  good  situations 
for  placing  fish-weirs,  which  are  here  established  on  an  extensive 
scale.  These  weirs  are  formed  of  slips  of  bamboo,  and  are  to  be 
seen  running  in  every  direction  to  the  distance  of  two  or  three  miles. 
They  may  be  said  to  invest  entirely  the  shores  of  the  lake  for  several 
miles  from  its  outlet,  and  without  a  pilot  it  would  be  difficult  to  find 
the  way  through  them.  At  night,  when  heron  and  tern  were  seen 
roosting  on  the  top  of  each  slat,  these  weirs  presented  rather  a 
curious  spectacle. 

The  Laguna  de  Bay  is  said  to  be  about  ten  leagues  in  length  by 
three  in  width,  and  trends  in  a  north-northwest  and  south-south- 
east direction. 

After  dark,  the  bancas  separated.  Mr.  Sturges,  with  Dr.  Pickering 
and  Mr.  Eld,  proceeded  to  visit  the  mountain  of  Maijaijai,  while 
Messrs.  Rich,  Dana,  and  Brackenridge,  went  towards  the  Taal 
Volcano.  The  latter  party  took  the  passport,  while  the  former 
relied  upon  certain  letters  of  introduction  for  protection,  in  case 
of  difficulty. 

Mr.  Sturges,  with  his  party,  directed  his  course  to  the  east  side 
of  the  lake,  towards  a  point  called  Jalajala,  which  they  reached 
about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  stopped  for  the  crew  to 
cook  some  rice,  etc.  At  8  o'clock  a.  m.,  they  reached  Santa  Cruz, 
situated  about  half  a  mile  up  a  small  streamlet,  called  Paxanau. 
At  this  place  they  found  Don  Escudero  to  whom  they  had  a  letter 
of  introduction,  and  who  holds  a  civil  appointment.  They  were 
kindly  received  by  this  gentleman  and  his  brown  lady,  with  their 
interesting  family.  He  at  once  ordered  horses  for  them  to  proceed 
to  the  mission  of  Maijaijai,  and  entertained  them  with  a  sumptuous 
breakfast. 


4SS  THE  FORMER  PHILIPI'ISES  THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 

They  were  not  prepared  to  set  out  before  noon,  until  which 
time  they  strolled  about  the  town  of  Santa  Cruz,  the  inhabitants 
of  which  are  Tagalogs.  There  are  only  two  old  Spaniards  in  the 
place.  The  province  in  which  Santa  Cruz  is  situated  contains 
about  five  thousand  inhabitants,  of  whom  eighteen  hundred  pay 
tribute. 

The  people  have  the  character  of  being  orderly,  and  govern 
themselves  without  the  aid  of  the  military.  The  principal  article 
of  culture  is  the  coconut  tree,  which  is  seen  in  large  groves.  The 
trunks  of  these  were  notched,  as  was  supposed,  for  the  purpose  of 
climbing  them.  From  the  spathe  a  kind  of  spirit  is  manufactured, 
which  is  fully  as  strong  as  our  whiskey/. 

About  noon  they  left  Don  Escudero's,  and  took  a  road  leading 
to  the  southward  and  eastward,  through  a  luxuriant  and  beautiful 
country,  well  cultivated,  and  ornamented  with  lofty  coconut  trees, 
betel  palms,  and  banana  groves.  Several  beautiful  valleys  were 
passed,  with  streamlets  rushing  through  them. 

Maijaijai  is  situated  about  one  thousand  feet  above  the  Laguna 
de  Bay,  but  the  rise  is  so  gradual  that  it  was  almost  imperceptible. 
The  country  has  everywhere  the  appearance  of  being  densely 
peopled;  but  no  more  than  one  village  was  passed  between  Santa 
Cruz  and  the  mission.  They  had  letters  to  F.  Antonio  Romana 
y  Aranda,  padre  of  the  mission,  who  received  them  kindly,  and 
entertained  them  most  hospitably.  When  he  was  told  of  their 
intention  to  visit  the  mountain,  he  said  it  was  impossible  with  such 
Ciimbinu  weather,  pointing  to  the  black  clouds  that  then  enveloped  its  summit; 

Banajao.  ^^^  j^g  endeavoured  to  persuade  the  gentlemen  to  desist  from  what 

appeared  to  him  a  mad  attempt;  but  finding  them  resolved  to  make 
the  trial,  he  aided  in  making  all  the  necessary  preparations,  though 
he  had  no  belief  in  their  success. 

On  the  morning  of  the  27th,  after  mass,  Mr.  Eld  and  Dr.  Pickering 
set  out,  but  Mr.  Sturges  preferred  to  keep  the  good  padre  company 
until  their  return.  The  padre  had  provided  them  with  guides, 
horses,  twenty  natives,  and  provisions  for  three  days.  He  had 
been  himself  on  the  same  laborious  journey,  some  six  months  before, 
and  knew  its  fatigues,  although  it  turned  out  afterwards  that  his 
expedition  was  performed  in  fine  weather,  and  that  he  had  been 
borne  on  a  litter  by  natives  the  whole  way. 

The  first  part  of  the  road  was  wet  and  miry,  and  discouraging 
enough.  The  soil  was  exceedingly  rich,  producing  tropical  plants 
in  great  profusion,  in  the  midst  of  which  were  seen  the  neat  bamboo 
cottages,  with  their  industrious  and  cleanly-looking  inhabitants. 
When  they  reached  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  they  found  it  was 
impossible  to  ride  farther,  and  were  obliged  to  take  to  walking, 
which  was,  however,  less  of  a  hardship  than  riding  the  little  rats 
of  horses,  covered  with  mud  and  dirt,  which  were  at  first  deemed 
useless;  but  the  manner  in  which  they  ascended  and  maintained 
themselves  on  the  slippery  banks,  surpassed  anything  they  had 
before  witnessed  in  horseflesh.  The  first  part  of  the  ascent  of  the 
mountain  was  gradual,  but  over  a  miry  path,  which  was  extremely 
slippery;  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  sticks  stuck  down  by    the 


Maiohi  ill  />,;.'  .',s:t 

party  of  the  padre  in  their  former  ascent,  they  would  have  found 
it  extremely  difficult  to  overcome;  to  make  it  more  disagreeable, 
it  rained  all  the  time. 

It  took  about  two  hours  to  reach  the  steep  ascent.  The  last 
portion  of  their  route  had  been  through  an  uninhabited  region,  with 
some  openings  in  the  woods,  affording  pasture-grounds  to  a  few 
small  herds  of  buffalo.  In  three  hours  they  reached  the  half-way 
house,  by  a  very  steep  and  regular  ascent.  Here  the  natives 
insisted  upon  stopping  to  cook  their  breakfast,  as  they  had  not  yet 
partaken  of  anything  through  the  day.  The  natives  now  endeav- 
ored to  persuade  them  it  was  impracticable  to  go  any  farther,  or 
at  least  to  reach  the  top  of  the  mountain  and  return  before  night. 
Our  gentlemen  lost  their  patience  at  the  delay,  and  after  an  hour's 
endurance  of  it,  resolved  to  set  out  alone.  Six  of  the  natives 
followed  them,  and  by  half-past  three  they  reached  the  summit, 
where  they  found  it  cold  and  uncomfortable.  The  ascent  had  been 
difficult,  and  was  principally  accomplished  by  catching  hold  of 
shrubs  and  the  roots  of  trees.  The  summit  is  comparatively  bare, 
and  not  more  than  fifty  feet  in  width.  The  side  opposite  to  that 
by  which  they  mounted  was  perpendicular,  but  owing  to  the  thick 
fog  they  could  not  see  the  depth  to  which  the  precipice  descended. 

The  observations  with  the  barometers  were  speedily  taken, 
which  gave  the  height  of  Banajao  as  six  thousand  five  hundred 
feet.  The  trees  on  the  summit  were  twenty  or  thirty  feet  high,  and 
a  species  of  fir  was  very  common.  Gaultheria,  attached  to  the 
trunks  of  trees,  Rhododendrons,  and  Polygonums,  also  abounded. 
The  rocks  were  so  covered  with  soil  that  it  was  difficult  to  ascertain 
their  character;  Dr.  Pickering  is  of  opinion,  however,  that  they 
are  not  volcanic.  The  house  on  the  summit  afforded  them  little 
or  no  shelter;  being  a  mere  shed,  open  on  all  sides,  they  found  it 
untenantable,  and  determined  to  return  as  soon  as  their  observa- 
tions were  finished,  to  the  half-way  house,  which  they  reached  before 
dark. 

The  night  was  passed  uncomfortably,  and  in  the  morning  they 
made  an  early  start  down  the  mountain  to  reach  the  native  village 
at  its  foot,  where  they  were  refreshed  with  a  cup  of  chocolate, 
cakes,  and  some  dulces,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  country. 
At  ten  o'clock  they  reached  the  mission,  where  they  were  received 
by  the  padre  and  Mr.  Sturges.  The  former  was  greatly  astonished 
to  hear  that  they  had  really  been  to  the  summit,  and  had  accom- 
plished in  twenty-four  hours  what  he  had  deemed  a  labor  of  three 
days.  He  quickly  attended  to  their  wants,  the  first  among  which 
was  dry  clothing;  and  as  their  baggage  had  unfortunately  been 
left  at  Santa  Cruz,  the  wardrobe  of  the  rotund  padre  was  placed 
at  their  disposal.  Although  the  fit  was  rather  uncouth  on  the 
spare  forms  of  our  gentlemen,  yet  his  clothes  served  the  purpose 
tolerably  well,  and  were  thankfully  made  use  of.  During  their 
absence,  Mr.  Sturges  had  been  much  amused  with  the  discipline 
he  had  witnessed  at  the  hands  of  the  church,  which  here  seem  to 
be  the  only  visible  ruling  power.  Two  young  natives  had  made 
complaint  to  the  padre  that  a  certain  damsel  had  entered  into 
vows  or  engagements  to  marry  both;  she  was  accordingly  brought 


490  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

up  before  the  padre,  Mr.  Sturges  being  present.  The  padre  first 
lectured  her  most  seriously  upon  the  enormity  of  her  crime,  then 
inflicted  several  blows  on  the  palm  of  her  outstretched  hand,  again 
renewing  the  lecture,  and  finally  concluding  with  another  whipping. 
The  girl  was  pretty,  and  excited  the  interest  of  our  friend,  who 
looked  on  with  much  desire  to  interfere,  and  save  the  damsel  from 
the  corporal  punishment,  rendered  more  aggravated  by  the  dis- 
passionate and  cool  manner  in  which  it  and  the  lecture  were  ad- 
ministered. In  the  conversation  which  ensued,  the  padre  said  he 
had  more  cases  of  the  violation  of  the  marriage  vow,  and  of  infidelity, 
than  any  other  class  of  crimes. 

After  a  hearty  breakfast,  or  rather  dinner,  and  expressing  their 
thanks  to  the  padre,  they  rode  back  to  Santa  Cruz,  where  they 
arrived  at  an  early  hour,  and  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening  they 
embarked  in  their  bancas  for  Manila. 

/x)«  Batuta  In  the  morning  they  found  themselves,  after  a  comfortable  night, 

at  Los  Bafios.  Here  they  took  chocolate  with  the  padre,  to  whom 
Mr.  Sturges  had  a  letter,  who  informed  them  that  the  other  party 
had  left  the  place  the  evening  before  for  Manila. 

This  party  had  proceeded  to  the  town  of  Baia,  where  they  arrived 
at  daylight  on  the  15th.  Baia  is  quite  a  pretty  place,  and  well 
situated;  the  houses  are  clean  and  comfortable,  and  it  possessed 
a  venerable  stone  church,  with  towers  and  bells.  On  inquiring  for 
the  padre,  they  found  that  he  was  absent,  and  it  was  in  consequence 
impossible  for  them  to  procure  horses  to  proced  to  the  Volcano  of 
Taal.  They  therefore  concluded  to  walk  to  the  hot  springs  at 
Los  Banos,  about  five  miles  distant.  Along  the  road  they  collected 
a  number  of  curious  plants.  Rice  is  much  cultivated,  and  fields 
of  it  extend  to  some  distance  on  each  side  of  the  road.  Buffaloes 
were  seen  feeding  and  wallowing  in  the  ditches. 

At  Los  Banos  the  hot  springs  are  numerous,  the  water  issuing  from 
the  rock  over  a  considerable  surface.  The  quantity  of  water  dis- 
charged by  them  is  large,  and  the  whole  is  collected  and  conducted 
to  the  bathing-houses.  The  temperature  of  the  water  at  the  mouth 
of  the  culvert  was  180°. 

The  old  bath-house  is  a  singular-looking  place,  being  built  on  the 
hill-side,  in  the  old  Spanish  style,  with  large  balconies,  that  are 
enclosed  in  the  manner  already  described,  in  speaking  of  the  houses 
in  Manila.  It  is  beautifully  situated,  and  overlooks  the  baths 
and  lake.  The  baths  are  of  stone,  and  consist  of  two  large 
rooms,  in  each  of  which  is  a  niche,  through  which  the  hot  water 
passes.  This  building  is  now  in  ruins,  the  roof  and  floors  having 
fallen  in. 

Los  Banos  is  a  small  village,  but  contains  a  respectable-looking 
stone  church,  and  two  or  three  houses  of  the  same  material.  Here 
the  party  found  a  difficulty  in  getting  on,  for  the  alcalde  could  not 
speak  Spanish,  and  they  were  obliged  to  use  an  interpreter,  in  order 
to  communicate  with  him.  Notwithstanding  this,  he  is  a  magistrate, 
whose  duty  it  is  to  administer  laws  written  in  that  language.  Find- 
ing they  could  not  succeed  even  here  in  procuring  guides  or    horses. 


I 
I 


Manila  in  1843  491 

they  determined  to  remain  and  explore  Mount  Maquiling,  the 
height  of  which  is  three  thousand  four  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  and 
in  the  meantime  to  send  for  their  bancas. 

The  next  day  they  set  out  on  their  journey  to  that  mountain, 
and  the  first  part  of  their  path  lay  over  a  gentle  ascent,  through 
cultivated  grounds.  Next  succeeded  an  almost  perpendicular  hill, 
bare  of  trees,  and  overgrown  with  a  tall  grass,  which  it  was  difficult 
to  pass  through. 

Such  had  been  the  time  taken  up,  that  the  party  found  it  im- 
possible to  reach  the  summit  and  return  before  dark.  They  there- 
fore began  to  collect  specimens;  and  after  having  obtained  a  full 
load,  they  returned  late  in  the  afternoon  to  Los  Banos. 

The  mountain  is  composed  of  trachytic  rocks  and  tufa,  which 
are  occasionally  seen  to  break  through  the  rich  and  deep  soil,  show- 
ing themselves  here  and  there,  in  the  deep  valleys  which  former 
volcanic  action  has  created,  and  which  have  destroyed  the  regular 
outline  of  the  cone-shaped  mountain.  The  tufa  is  generally  found 
to  form  the  gently-sloping  plains  that  surround  these  mountains, 
and  has  in  all  probability  been  ejected  from  them.  Small  craters, 
of  some  two  hundred  feet  in  height,  are  scattered  over  the  plains. 
The  tufa  is  likewise  exposed  to  view  on  the  shores  of  the  lake; 
but  elsewhere,  except  on  a  few  bare  hills,  it  is  entirely  covered  with 
the  dense  and  luxuriant  foliage.  The  tufa  is  generally  of  a  soft 
character,  crumbling  in  the  fingers,  and  in  it  are  found  coarse  and 
fine  fragments  of  scoria,  pumice,  etc.  The  layers  are  from  a  few 
inches  to  five  feet  in  thickness. 

In  the  country  around  Los  Banos,  there  are  several  volcanic 
hills,  and  on  the  sides  of  Mount  Maquiling  are  appearances  of 
parasitic  cones,  similar  to  those  observed  at  the  Hawaiian  Islands; 
but  time  and  the  foliage  have  so  disguised  them,  that  it  is  difficult 
to  determine  exactly  their  true  character. 

I  regretted  exceedingly  that  the  party  that  set  out  for  the  Lake 
of  Taal  was  not  able  to  reach  it,  as,  from  the  accounts  I  had,  it 
must  be  one  of  the  most  interesting  portions  of  the  country. 
It  lies  nearly  south-west  from  Manila,  and  occupies  an  area  of 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty  square  miles.  The  Volcano  of  Taal 
is  situated  on  an  island  near  the  center  of  it,  and  is  now  in  action. 
The  cone  which  rises  from  its  center  is  remarkably  regular,  and 
consists  for  the  most  part  of  cinders  and  scoria.  It  has  been  found 
to  be  nine  hundred  feet  in  elevation  above  the  lake.  The  crater 
has  a  diameter  of  two  miles,  and  its  depth  is  equal  to  the  elevation; 
the  walls  of  the  crater  are  nearly  perpendicular,  so  much  so  that 
the  descent  cannot  be  made  without  the  assistance  of  ropes.  At 
the  bottom  there  are  two  small  cones.  Much  steam  issues  from 
the  many  fissures,  accompanied  by  sulphurous  acid  gas.  The 
waters  of  the  lake  are  impregnated  with  sulphur,  and  there  are  said 
to  be  also  large  beds  of  sulphur.  In  the  opinion  of  those  who  have 
visited  this  spot,  the  whole  lake  once  formed  an  immense  crater; 
and  this  does  not  appear  very  improbable,  if  we  are  to  credit  the 
accounts  we  received  of  the  many  craters  on  this  island  that  are 
now  filled  with  water;  for  instance,  in  the  neighborhood  of  San 
Pablo  there  are  said  to  be  eight  or  nine. 


49^  THE  FORMER  PIIILIPPI.VES   THRU   FOHEIGX  EYES 

The  hot  sprini/s.  The  hot  springs  of  Los  Banos  are  numerous,  and  in  their  vicinity 
large  quantities  of  steam  are  seen  to  issue  from  the  shore  of  the  lake. 
There  are  about  a  dozen  which  give  out  a  copious  supply  of  water. 
The  principal  one  has  been  enclosed,  and  made  to  flow  through  a 
stone  aqueduct,  which  discharges  a  considerable  stream.  The 
temperature  of  the  water  as  it  leaves  the  aqueduct  is  178^.  The 
villagers  use  it  for  cooking  and  washing;  the  signs  of  the  former 
employment  are  evident  enough  from  the  quantities  of  feathers 
from  the  poultry  that  have  been  scalded  and  plucked  preparatory 
to  cooking.  The  baths  are  formed  by  a  small  circular  building 
six  feet  in  diameter,  erected  over  the  point  of  discharge  for  the 
purpose  of  securing  a  steam-bath;  the  temperature  of  these  is  160° 
and  140°.  A  change  of  temperature  is  said  to  have  occurred  in 
the  latter. 

The  rocks  in  the  vicinity  are  all  tufa,  and  some  of  the  springs 
break  out  close  to  the  cold  water  of  the  lake.  Near  the  aqueduct, 
a  stone  wall  surrounds  one  of  the  principal  outlets.  Two-thirds 
of  the  area  thus  enclosed  is  occupied  by  a  pond  of  warm  water, 
and  the  other  third  is  divided  into  two  stone  reservoirs,  built  for 
baths.  These  baths  had  at  one  time  a  high  reputation,  and  were 
a  very  fashionable  resort  for  the  society  of  Manila:  but  their  cele- 
brity gradually  diminished,  and  the  whole  premises  have  gone 
out  of  repair,  and  are  fast  falling  to  ruin. 

The  water  of  the  springs  has  no  perceptible  taste,  and  only  a 
very  faint  smell  of  sulphur  is  perceived.  No  gas  escapes  from  it, 
but  a  white  incrustation  covers  the  stones  over  which  the  water 
flows. 

Some  of  these  waters  were  obtained,  and  since  our  return  were 
put  into  the  hands  of  Dr.  C.  T.  Jackson,  of  Boston,  who  gives  the 
following  analysis: 

Specific  gravity,    1.0043;  thermometer  60°;  barometer  30.05   in. 

A  quantity  of  the  water,  equal  in  bulk  to  three  thousand  grains 
of  distilled  water,  on  evaporation  gave — 

Dry  salts,  5.95  grains. 

A  quantity  of  the  water,  equal  in  bulk  to  one  thousand  grains 
of  distilled  water,  was  operated  on  for  each  of  the  following  ingre- 
dients: 

Chlorine 0  66 

Carbonic  acid 0.16 

Sulphuric  acid 0 .  03 

Soda  and  sodium 0.97 

Magnesia 0 .  09 

Lime 0 .  07 

Potash traces 

Organic  matter .        " 

Manganese " 

1  98 

Ml.  Maquilinij.  On  Mount  Maquiling,  wild  buffaloes,  hogs,  a  small  species  of 
deer,  and  monkeys  are  found.  Birds  are  also  very  numerous,  and 
among  them  is  the  horn-bill;  the  noise  made  by  this  bird  resembles 


I 


Manila   in  1S4~  4^-'^ 

a  loud  barking;  report  speaks  of  them  as  an  excellent  bird  for  the 
table.  Our  gentlemen  reached  their  lodging-place  as  the  night 
closed  in,  and  the  next  day  again  embarked  for  Manila,  regretting 
that  time  would  not  permit  them  to  make  another  visit  to  so  interest- 
ing a  field  of  research.  They  found  the  lake  so  rough  that  they 
were  compelled  to  return,  and  remain  until  eight  o'clock.  This, 
however,  gave  our  botanists  another  opportunity  of  making  collec- 
tions, among  which  were  beautiful  specimens  of  Volkameria 
splendens,  with  elegant  scarlet  flowers,  and  a  Brugmansia,  which 
expanded  its  beautiful  silvery  flowers  after  sunset.  On  the  shores 
a  number  of  birds  were  feeding,  including  pelicans,  with  their  huge 
bills,  the  diver,  with  its  long  arched  neck,  herons,  gulls,  eagles,  and 
snow-white  cranes,  with  ducks  and  other  small  aquatic  flocks. 
Towards  night  these  were  joined  by  large  bats,  that  were  sene 
winging  their  way  towards  the  plantations  of  fruit.  These,  with 
quantities  of  insects,  gave  a  vivid  idea  of  the  wonderful  myriads 
of  animated  things  that  are  constantly  brought  into  being  in  these 
tropical  and  luxuriant  climates. 

Sailing  all  night  in  a  rough  sea,  they  were  much  incommoded 
by  the  water,  which  was  shipped  into  the  banca  and  kept  them 
constantly  baling  out:  they  reached  the  Pasig  river  at  daylight, 
and  again  passed  the  duck  establishments,  and  the  numerous  boats 
and  bancas  on  their  way  to  the  markets  of  Manila. 

Both  the  parties  reached  the  consul's  the  same  day,  highly  pleased 
with  their  respective  jaunts.  To  the  kindness  of  Messrs.  Sturges 
and  Moore,  we  are  mainly  indebted  for  the  advantages  and  pleasures 
derived  from  the  excursions. 

The  instruments  were  now  embarked,  and  preparations  made 
for  going  to  sea.  Our  stay  at  Manila  had  added  much  to  our 
collections;  we  obtained  many  new  specimens,  and  the  officers  and 
naturalists  had  been  constantly  and  profitably  occupied  in  their 
various  duties. 

We  went  on  board  on  January  20,  and  were  accompanied  to  the 
vessel  by  Messrs.  Sturges  and  Moore,  with  several  other  residents 
of  Manila. 

We  had,  through  the  kindness  of  Captain  Salomon,  procured  a 
native  pilot  for  the  Sulu  Sea,  who  was  to  act  as  interpreter. 

On  the  morning  of  the  21st,  we  took  leave  of  our  friends,  and  got 
under  way.  The  same  day,  and  before  we  had  cleared  the  bay, 
we  spoke  the  American  ship  Angler,  which  had  performed  the 
voyage  from  the  United  States  in  one  hundred  and  twenty-four 
days,  and  furnished  us  with  late  and  interesting  news.  We  then, 
with  a  strong  northerly  wind,  made  all  sail  to  the  south  for  the 
Straits  of  Mindoro. 


SULU  IN  1842 

On  the  evening  of  January  21,  the  Vincennes,   with    the    tender 

in  company,  left  Manila  bay.     I   then    sent   for  Mr.   Knox,  who 

commanded  the  latter,  and  gave  him  directions  to  keep  closely  in 

company  with  the  Vincennes,   and   at  the  same  time  pointed  out 


494  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EY  ES 

to  him  places  of  rendezvous  where  the  vessels  might  again  meet 
in  case  any  unavoidable  circumstance  caused  their  separation.  I 
was  more  particular  in  giving  him  instructions  to  avoid  losing 
sight  of  the  Vincennes,  as  I  was  aware  that  my  proposed  surveys 
might  be  impeded  or  frustrated  altogether,  were  I  deprived  of  the 
assistance  of  the  vessel  under  his  command. 
Miridoro.  On  the  22nd,  we  passed  the  entrance  of  the  Straits  of  San  Ber- 

nardino. It  would  have  been  my  most  direct  route  to  follow  these 
straits  until  I  had  passed  Mindoro,  and  it  is  I  am  satisfied  the 
safest  course,  unless  the  winds  are  fair,  for  the  direct  passage.  My 
object,  however,  was  to  examine  the  ground  for  the  benefit  of  others, 
and  the  Apo  Shoal,  which  lies  about  mid-channel  between  Palawan 
and  Mindoro,  claimed  my  first  attention.  The  tender  was  des- 
patched to  survey  it,  while  I  proceeded  in  the  Vincennes  to  examine 
the  more  immediate  entrance  to  the  Sulu  Sea,  off  the  southwest 
end  of  Mindoro. 

Calavite  Peak  is  the  north  point  of  Mindoro,  and  our  observa- 
tions made  it  two  thousand  feet  high.  This  peak  is  of  the  shape 
of  a  dome,  and  appears  remarkably  regular  when  seen  from  its 
western  side.  On  approaching  Mindoro,  we,  as  is  usual,  under  high 
islands,  lost  the  steady  breeze,  and  the  wind  became  light  for  the 
rest  of  the  day.  Mindoro  is  a  beautiful  island,  and  is  evidently 
volcanic;  it  appears  as  if  thrown  up  in  confused  masses;  it  is  not 
much  settled,  as  the  more  southern  islands  are  preferred  to  it  as  a 
residence. 

On  the  23rd,  we  ascertained  the  elevation  of  the  highest  peak 
of  the  island  by  triangulation  to  be  three  thousand  one  hundred 
and  twenty-six  fet.  The  easternmost  island  of  the  Palawan  group, 
Busuanga,  was  at  the  time  just  in  sight  from  the  deck,  to  the  south- 
west. 

It  had  been  my  intention  to  anchor  at  Ambolou  Island;  but  the 
wind  died  away  before  we  reached  it,  and  I  determined  to  stand 
off  and  on  all  night. 

On  the  24th,  I  began  to  experience  the  truth  of  what  Captain 
Halcon  had  asserted,  namely,  that  the  existing  charts  were  entirely 
worthless,  and  I  also  found  that  my  native  pilot  was  of  no  more 
value  than  they  were,  he  had  evidently  passed  the  place  before; 
but  whether  the  size  of  the  vessel,  so  much  greater  than  any  he  had 
sailed  in,  confused  him,  or  whether  it  was  from  his  inability  to  under- 
stand and  to  make  himself  understood  by  us,  he  was  of  no  use  what- 
ever, and  we  had  the  misfortune  of  running  into  shoal  water,  barely 
escaping  the  bottom.  These  dangers  were  usually  quickly  passed, 
and  we  soon  found  ourselves  again  floating  in  thirty  or  forty  fathoms 
water. 

We  continued  beating  to  windward,  in  hopes  of  being  joined  by 
the  Flying-fish,  and  I  resolved  to  finish  the  survey  towards  the 
island  of  Semarara.  We  found  every  thing  in  a  different  position 
from  that  assigned  it  by  any  of  the  charts  with  which  we  were 
furnished.  On  this  subject,  however,  I  shall  not  dwell,  but  refer 
those  who  desire  particular  information  to  the  charts  and  Hydro- 
graphical  Memoir. 


Subt  in  I843  496 

Towards  evening,  I  again  ran  down  to  the  southwest  point  of 
the  island  of  Mindoro,  and  sent  a  letter  on  shore  to  the  pueblo, 
with  directions  to  have  it  put  on  board  the  tender,  when  she  should 
arrive.  We  then  began  to  beat  round  Semarara,  in  order  to  pass 
over  towards  Panay. 

The  southern  part  of  Mindoro  is  much  higher  than  the  northern 
but  appears  to  be  equally  rough.  It  is,  however,  susceptible  of 
cultivation,  and  there  are  many  villages  along  its  shores. 

Semarara  is  moderately  high,  and  about  fifteen  miles  in  circum- 
ference; it  is  inhabited,  and  like  Mindoro  much  wooded.  According 
to  the  native  pilot,  its  shores  are  free  from  shoals.  It  was  not  until 
the  next  day  that  we  succeeded  in  reaching  Panay.  I  determined 
to  pass  the  night  off  Point  Potol,  the  north  end  of  Panay,  as  I  believed 
the  sea  in  its  neighborhood  to  be  free  of  shoals,  and  wished  to 
resume  our  running  survey  early  in  the  morning. 

At  daylight  on  the  27th  we  continued  the  survey  down  the  coast  Panay. 
of  Panay,  and  succeeded  in  correcting  many  errors  in  the  existing 
charts  (both  English  and  Spanish).  The  channel  along  this  side 
is  from  twelve  to  twenty  miles  wide,  and  suitable  for  beating  in; 
little  current  is  believed  to  exist; .  and  the  tides,  as  far  as  our  observa- 
tions went,  seem  to  be  regular  and  of  little  strength. 

The  island  of  Panay  is  high  and  broken,  particularly  on  the 
south  end;  its  shores  are  thickly  settled  and  well  cultivated.  Indigo 
and  sugar-cane  claim  much  of  the  attention  of  the  inhabitants. 
The  natives  are  the  principal  cultivators.  They  pay  to  govern- 
ment a  capitation  tax  of  seven  reals.  Its  population  is  estimated 
at  three  hundred  thousand,  which  I  think  is  rather  short  of  the 
actual  number. 

On  all  the  hills  there  are  telegraphs  of  rude  construction,  to  give 
information  of  the  approach  of  piratical  prahus  from  Sulu,  which 
formerly  were  in  the  habit  of  making  attacks  upon  the  defenceless 
inhabitants  and  carrying  them  off  into  slavery.  Of  late  years  they 
have  ceased  these  depredations,  for  the  Spaniards  have  resorted  to  a 
new  mode  of  warfare.  Instead  of  pursuing  and  punishing  the 
offenders,  they  now  intercept  all  their  supplies,  both  of  necessaries 
and  luxuries;  and  the  fear  of  this  has  had  the  effect  to  deter  pirates 
from  their  usual  attacks. 

We  remained  off  San  Pedro  for  the  night,  in  hopes  of  falling  in 
with  the  Flying-fish  in  the  morning. 

On  the  morning  of  the  28th,  the  Flying-fish  was  discovered  plainly 
in  sight.  I  immediately  stood  for  her,  fired  a  gun  and  made  signal. 
At  seven  o'clock,  another  gun  was  fired,  but  the  vessel  still  stood 
off,  and  was  seen  to  make  sail  to  the  westward  without  paying 
any  regard  whatever  to  either,  and  being  favored  by  a  breeze  while 
the  Vincennes  was  becalmed,  she  stole  off  and  was  soon  out  of  sight.* 

After  breakfast  we  opened  the  bay  of  Antique,  on  which  is  situated 
the  town  of  San  Jose.     As  this  bay  apparently  offered  anchorage 

*  On  my  arrival  at  Singapore,  this  circumstance  was  investigated  by  a 
court  of  inquiry.  The  result  showed  that  Mr.  Knox  had  no  knowledge  of  the 
Vincennes  having  been  seen;  for  the  officer  of  the  watch  had  not  reported  to 
him  the  fact. 


400  THE  FORMER   PIIIUI'PIXES   THRU   FOREIGX  EVES 

for  vessels  bound  up  this  coast,  I  determined  to  survey  it;  and  for 
this  purpose  the  boats  were  hoisted  out  and  prepared  for  surveying. 
Lieutenant  Budd  was  despatched  to  visit  the  pueblo  called  San 
Jose. 

On  reaching  the  bay,  the  boats  were  sent  to  different  points  of 
it,  and  when  they  were  in  station,  the  ship  fired  guns  to  furnish 
bases  by  the  sound,  and  angles  were  simultaneously  measured. 
The  boats  made  soundings  on  their  return  to  the  ship,  and  thus 
completed  this  duty,  so  that  in  an  hour  or  two  afterwards  the 
bay  was  correctly  represented  on  paper.  It  offers  no  more  than  a 
temporary  anchorage  for  vessels,  and  unless  the  shore  is  closely 
approached,  the  water  is  almost  too  deep  for  the  purpose. 

At  San  Jose  a  Spanish  governor  resides,  who  presides  over  the 
two  pueblos  of  San  Pedro  and  San  Jose,  and  does  the  duty  also  of 
alcalde.  Lieutenant  Budd  did  not  see  him,  as  he  was  absent,  but 
his  lady  did  the  honors.  Lieutenant  Budd  represented  the  pueblo 
as  cleanly  and  orderly.  About  fifteen  soldiers  were  seen,  who 
compose  the  governor's  guard,  and  more  were  said  to  be  stationed 
at  San  Pedro.  A  small  fort  of  eight  guns  commands  the  roadstead. 
The  beach  was  found  to  be  of  fine  volcanic  sand,  composed  chiefly 
of  oxide  of  iron,  and  comminuted  shells;  there  is  here  also  a  narrow 
shore  reef  of  coral.  The  plain  bordering  the  sea  is  covered  with 
a  dense  growth  of  coconut  trees.  In  the  fine  season  the  bay  is 
secure,  but  we  were  informed  that  in  westerly  and  southwesterly 
gales  heavy  seas  set  in,  and  vessels  are  not  able  to  lie  at  anchor. 
Several  small  vessels  were  lying  in  a  small  river  about  one  and  a 
half  miles  to  the  southward  of  the  point  on  which  the  fort  is  situated. 
The  entrance  to  this  river  is  very  narrow  and  tortuous. 

Panay  is  one  of  the  largest  islands  of  the  group.  We  had  an 
opportunity  of  measuring  the  height  of  some  of  its  western  peaks 
or  highlands,  none  of  which  exceed  three  thousand  feet.  The 
interior  and  eastern  side  have  many  lofty  summits,  which  are  said 
to  reach  an  altitude  of  seven  thousand  five  hundred  feet;  but  these, 
as  we  passed,  were  enveloped  in  clouds,  or  shut  out  from  view  by 
the  nearer  highlands.  The  general  features  of  the  island  are  like 
those  of  Luzon  and  Mindoro.  The  few  specimens  we  obtained  of 
its  rocks  consisted  of  the  different  varieties  of  talcose  formation, 
with  quartz  and  jasper.  The  specimens  were  of  no  great  value, 
as  they  were  much  worn  by  lying  on  the  beach. 

The  higher  land  was  bare  of  trees,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the 
numerous  fertile  valleys  lying  between  the  sharp  and  rugged  spurs, 
it  would  have  had  a  sterile  appearance. 

The  bay  of  Antique  is  in  latitude  10°  40'  N.,  longitude  121°  59' 
30"  E. 

It  was  my  intention  to  remain  for  two  or  three  days  at  a  con- 
venient anchorage  to  enable  us  to  make  short  excursions  into  the 
interior;  but  the  vexatious  mismanagement  of  the  tender  now  made 
it  incumbent  that  I  should  make  every  possible  use  of  the  time  to 
complete  the  operations  connected  with  the  hydrography  of  this 
sea;  for  I  perceived  that  the  duties  which  I  intended  should  be 
performed  by  her,  would  now  devolve  upon  the  boats,  and  neces- 
sarily expose  both  cfificers  and  men  to  the  hazard  of  contracting 


Sulu  in   1S4J  j^97 

disease.  I  regretted  giving  up  this  design,  not  only  on  my  own 
account  and  that  of  the  Expedition,  but  because  of  the  gratification 
it  would  have  afforded  personally  to  the  naturalists. 

The  town  of  San  Jose  has  about  thirty  bamboo  houses,  some 
of  which  are  filled  in  with  clay  or  mortar,  and  plastered  over,  both 
inside  and  out.  Few  of  them  are  more  than  a  single  story  in  height. 
That  of  the  governor  is  of  the  same  material,  and  overtops  the  rest; 
it  is  whitewashed,  and  has  a  neat  and  cleanly  appearance.  In  the 
vicinity  of  the  town  are  several  beautiful  valleys,  which  run  into 
the  mountains  from  the  plain  that  borders  the  bay.  The  landing 
is  on  a  bamboo  bridge,  which  has  been  erected  over  an  extensive 
mud-flat,  that  is  exposed  at  low  water,  and  prevents  any  nearer 
approach  of  boats.  This  bridge  is  about  seven  hundred  feet  in 
length;  and  a  novel  plan  has  been  adopted  to  preserve  it  from  being 
carried  away.  The  stems  of  bamboo  not  being  sufficiently  large 
and  heavy  to  maintain  the  superstructure  in  the  soft  mud,  a  scaffold 
is  constructed  just  under  the  top,  which  is  loaded  with  blocks  of 
large  stone,  and  the  outer  piles  are  secured  to  anchors  or  rocks, 
with  grass  rope.  The  roadway  or  top  is  ten  feet  wide,  covered 
with  split  bamboo,  woven  together,  and  has  rails  on  each  side,  to 
assist  the  passenger.  This  is  absolutely  necessary  for  safety;  and 
even  with  this  aid,  one  unaccustomed  to  it  must  be  possessed  of 
no  little  bodily  strength  to  pass  over  this  smooth,  slippery,  and 
springy  bridge,  without  accident. 

Two  pirogues  were  at  anchor  in  the  bay,  and  on  the  shore  was 
the  frame  of  a  vessel  which  had  evidently  been  a  long  while  on  the 
stocks,  for  the  weeds  and  bushes  near  the  keel  were  six  or  eight  feet  high, 
and  a  portion  of  the  timbers  were  decayed.  Carts  and  sleds  drawn 
by  buffaloes  were  in  use,  and  everything  gave  it  the  appearance 
of  a  thriving  village.  Although  I  have  mentioned  the  presence 
of  soldiers,  it  was  observed  on  landing  that  no  guard  was  stationed 
about  or  even  at  the  fort;  but  shortly  afterwards  a  soldier  was  seen 
hurrying  towards  the  latter,  in  the  act  of  dressing  himself  in  his 
regimentals,  and  another  running  by  his  side,  with  his  cartridge- 
box  and  musket.  In  a  little  while  one  was  passing  up  and  down 
on  his  post,  as  though  he  was  as  permanent  there  as  the  fort  itself. 

After  completing  these  duties,  the  light  airs  detained  us  the 
remainder  of  the  day  under  Panay,  in  sight  of  the  bay.  On  the 
29th,  at  noon,  we  had  been  wafted  by  it  far  enough  in  the  offing  to 
obtain  the  easterly  breeze,  which  soon  became  strong,  with  an  over- 
cast sky,  and  carried  us  rapidly  on  our  course;  my  time  would  not 
permit  my  heaving-to.  We  kept  on  our  course  for  Mindanao  during 
the  whole  night,  and  were  constantly  engaged  in  sounding,  with 
our  patent  lead,  with  from  thirty  to  forty  fathoms  cast,  to  prevent 
our  passing  over  this  part  of  the  sea  entirely  unexamined. 

At  daylight  on  the  31st,  we  had  the  island  of  Mindanao  before  Mindanao. 
us,  but  did  not  reach  its  western  cape  until  5  p.  m.  This  island 
is  high  and  broken,  like  those  to  the  north  of  it,  but,  unlike  them, 
its  mountains  are  covered  with  forests  to  their  very  tops,  and  there 
were  no  distinct  cones  of  minor  dimensions,  as  we  had  observed 
on  the  others.  If  they  do  exist,  they  were  hidden  by  the  dense 
forest. 


4.9S  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU   FOREIGN  EYES 

I  had  determined  to  anchor  at  Caldera,  a  small  port  on  the 
south-west  side  of  Mindanao,  about  ten  miles  distant  from  Zam- 
boanga,  where  the  governor  resides.  The  latter  is  a  consider- 
able place,  but  the  anchorage  in  its  roadstead  is  said  to  be  bad, 
and  the  currents  that  run  through  the  Straits  of  Basilan  are  repre- 
sented to  be  strong.  Caldera,  on  the  other  hand,  has  a  good, 
though  small  anchorage,  which  is  free  from  the  currents  of  the 
straits.  It  is  therefore  an  excellent  stopping-place,  in  case  of  the 
tide  proving  unfavorable.  On  one  of  its  points  stands  a  small 
fort,  which,  on  our  arrival,  hoisted  Spanish  colors. 

At  six  o'clock  we  came  to  anchor  at  Caldera,  in  seven  fathoms 
water.  There  were  few  indications  of  inhabitants,  except  at  and 
near  the  fort.  An  officer  was  despatched  to  the  fort,  to  report 
the  ship.  It  was  found  to  be  occupied  by  a  few  soldiers  under  the 
command  of  a  lieutenant. 
Caldera  fori.  The  fort  is  about  seventy  feet  square,  and  is  built  of  large  blocks 

of  red  coral,  which  evidently  have  not  been  taken  from  the  vicinity 
of  the  place,  as  was  stated  by  the  officers  of  the  fort;  for  although 
our  parties  wandered  along  the  alluvial  beach  for  two  or  three  miles 
in  each  direction,  no  signs  of  coral  were  observed.  Many  frag- 
ments of  red,  gray,  and  purple  basalt  and  porphyry  were  met  with 
along  the  beach;  talcose  rock  and  slate,  syenite,  hornblend,  quartz, 
both  compact  and  slaty,  with  chalcedony,  were  found  in  pieces 
and  large  pebbles.  Those  who  were  engaged  in  dredging  reported 
the  bottom  as  being  of  coral,  in  from  four  to  six  or  eight  fathoms; 
but  this  was  of  a  different  kind  from  that  of  which  the  fort  was 
constructed. 

The  fort  was  built  in  the  year  1784,  principally  for  protection 
against  the  Sulu  pirates,  who  were  in  the  habit  of  visiting  the 
settlements,  and  carrying  off  the  inhabitants  as  slaves,  to  obtain 
ransom  for  them.  This,  and  others  of  the  same  description,  were 
therefore  constructed  as  places  of  refuge  for  the  inhabitants,  as 
well  as  to  afford  protection  to  vessels. 

Depredations  are  still  committed,  which  render  it  necessary  to 
keep  up  a  small  force.  One  or  two  huts  which  were  seen  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  bay,  are  built  on  posts  twenty  feet  from  the 
ground,  and  into  them  they  ascend  by  ladders,  which  are  hauled 
up  after  the  occupants  have  entered. 

These,  it  is  said,  are  the  sleeping-huts,  and  are  so  built  for  the 
purpose  of  preventing  surprise  at  night.  Before  our  arriva  !we 
had  heard  that  the  villages  were  all  so  constructed,  but  a  visit  to 
one  soon  showed  that  this  was  untrue.  The  natives  seen  at  the 
village  were  thought  to  be  of  a  decidedly  lighter  color  and  a  some- 
what different  expression  from  the  Malays.  They  were  found  to 
be  very  civil,  and  more  polished  in  manners  than  our  gentlemen 
expected.  On  asking  for  a  drink  of  water,  it  was  brought  in  a  glass 
tumbler  on  a  china  plate.  An  old  woman,  to  whom  they  had  pre- 
sented some  trifles,  took  the  trouble  to  meet  them  in  another  path 
on  their  return,  and  insisted  on  their  accepting  a  basket  of  potatoes. 
Some  of  the  houses  contained  several  families,  and  many  of  them 
had  no  other  means  of  entrance  than  a  notched  post  stuck  up  to 
the  door. 


Sulu  in  1843  499 

The  forests  of  Mindanao  contain  a  great  variety  of  trees,  some 
of  which  are  of  large  size,  rising  to  the  height  of  one  hundred  and 
and  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet.  Some  of  their  trunks  are  shaped 
like  buttresses,  similar  to  those  before  spoken  of  at  Manila,  from 
which  they  obtain  broad  slabs  for  the  tops  of  tables.  The 
trunks  were  observed  to  shoot  up  remarkably  straight.  Our  botani- 
cal gentlemen,  though  pleased  with  the  excursion,  were  disappointed 
at  not  being  able  to  procure  specimens  from  the  lofty  trees;  and 
the  day  was  less  productive  in  this  respect  than  they  had  anticipated. 
Large  woody  vines  were  common,  which  enveloped  the  trunks  of 
trees  in  their  folds,  and  ascending  to  their  tops,  prevented  the 
collection  of  the  most  desirable  specimens. 

The  paths  leading  to  the  interior  were  narrow  and  much  ob- 
structed; one  fine  stream  was  crossed.  Many  buffaloes  were  observed 
wallowing  in  the  mire,  and  the  woods  swarmed  with  monkeys  and 
numbers  of  birds,  among  them  the  horn-bills;  these  kept  up  a  con- 
tinued chatter,  and  made  a  variety  of  loud  noises.  The  forests 
here  are  entirely  different  from  any  we  had  seen  elsewhere;  and 
the  stories  of  their  being  the  abode  of  large  boas  and  poisonous 
snakes,  make  the  effect  still  greater  on  those  who  visit  them  for  the 
first  time.  Our  parties,  however,  saw  nothing  of  these  reptiles, 
nor  anything  to  warrant  a  belief  that  such  exist.  Yet  the  officer 
at  the  fort  related  to  me  many  snake  stories  that  seemed  to  have 
some  foundation;  and  by  inquiries  made  elsewhere,  I  learned  that 
they  were  at  least  warranted  by  some  facts,  though  probably  not 
to  the  extent  that  he  represented. 

Traces  of  deer  and  wild  hogs  were  seen,  and  many  birds  were 
obtained,  as  well  as  land  and  sea  shells.  Among  the  latter  was 
the  Malleus  vulgaris,  which  is  used  as  food  by  the  natives.  The 
soil  on  this  part  of  the  island  is  a  stiff  clay,  and  the  plants  it  produces 
are  mostly  woody;  those  of  an  herbaceous  character  were  scarce, 
and  only  a  few  orchideous  epiphytes  and  ferns  were  seen.  Around 
the  dwellings  in  the  villages  were  a  variety  of  vegetables  and  fruits, 
consisting  of  sugar-cane,  sweet-potato,  gourds,  pumpkins,  peppers, 
rice,  water  and  musk  melons,  all  fine  and  of  large  size. 

The  officer  at  the  fort  was  a  lieutenant  of  infantry;  one  of  that 
rank  is  stationed  here  for  a  month,  after  which  he,  with  the  garrison, 
consisting  of  three  soldiers,  are  relieved,  from  Zamboanga,  where 
the  Spaniards  have  three  companies. 

Zamboanga  is  a  convict  settlement,  to  which  the  native  rogues,    Zamboanga 
principally   thieves,   are   sent.     The   Spanish   criminals,   as   I   have 
before  stated  in  speaking  of  Manila,  are  sent  to  Spain. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  island  of  Mindanao,  who  are  under  the 
subjection  of  Spain,  are  about  ten  thousand  in  number,  of  whom 
five  or  six  thousand  are  at  or  in  the  neighborhood  of  Zamboanga. 
The  original  inhabitants,  who  dwell  in  the  mountains  and  on  the 
east  coast,  are  said  to  be  quite  black,  and  are  represented  to  be 
a  very  cruel  and  bad  set;  they  have  hitherto  bid  defiance  to  all 
attempts  to  subjugate  them.  When  the  Spaniards  make  excursions 
into  the  interior,  which  is  seldom,  they  always  go  in  large  parties 
on  account  of  the  wild  beasts,  serpents,  and  hostile  natives;  never- 
theless, the  latter  frequently  attack  and  drive  them  back. 


MO  THE  FORMER  PIIILIPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

The  little  fort  is  considered  as  a  sufficient  protection  for  the 
fishermen  and  small  vessels  against  the  pirates,  who  inhabit  the 
island  of  Basilan,  which  is  in  sight  from  Mindanao,  and  forms  the 
southern  side  of  the  straits  of  the  same  name.  It  is  said  that 
about  seven  hundred  inhabit  it.  The  name  of  Moro  is  given  by 
the  Spaniards  to  all  those  who  profess  the  Mohammedan  religion, 
and  by  such  all  the  islands  to  the  west  of  Mindanao,  and  known 
under  the  name  of  the  Sulu  archipelago,  are  inhabited. 

The  day  we  spent  at  Caldera  was  employed  in  surveying  the  bay, 
and  in  obtaining  observations  for  its  geographical  position,  and  for 
magnetism.  The  flood  tide  sets  to  the  northward  and  westward, 
through  the  straits,  and  the  ebb  to  the  eastward.  In  the  bay  we 
found  it  to  run  two  miles  an  hour  by  the  log,  but  it  must  be  much 
more  rapid  in  the  straits. 

At  daylight  on  February  1st,  we  got  under  way  to  stand  over 
for  the  Sangboys,  a  small  island  with  two  sharp  hills  on  it.  One 
and  a  half  miles  from  the  bay  we  passed  over  a  bank,  the  least 
water  on  which  was  ten  fathoms  on  a  sandy  bottom,  and  on  which 
a  vessel  might  anchor.  The  wind  shortly  after  failed  us,  and  we 
drifted  with  the  tide  for  some  hours,  in  full  view  of  the  island  of 
Mindanao,  which  is  bold  and  picturesque.  We  had  thus  a  good 
opportunity  of  measuring  some  of  its  mountain  ranges,  which  we 
made  about  three  thousand  feet  high. 

In  the  afternoon,  a  light  breeze  came  from  the  southwest,  and 
before  sunset  I  found  that  we  were  again  on  soundings.  As  soon 
as  we  had  a  cast  of  twenty  fathoms,  I  anchored  for  the  night,  judging 
it  much  better  than  to  be  drifting  about  without  any  knowledge 
of  the  locality  and  currents  to  which  we  were  subjected. 

On  the  morning  of  the  2nd,  we  got  under  way  to  proceed  to  the 
westward.  As  the  bottom  was  unequal,  I  determined  to  pass 
through  the  broadest  channel,  although  it  had  the  appearance 
of  being  the  shoalest,  and  sent  two  boats  ahead  to  sound.  In  this 
way  we  passed  through,  continuing  our  surveying  operations,  and 
at  the  same  time  made  an  attempt  to  dredge;  but  the  ground  was 
too  uneven  for  the  latter  purpose,  and  little  of  value  was  obtained. 
Sulu.  Shortly  after  passing  the  Sangboys,  we  had  the  island    of  Sulu 

in  sight,  for  which  I  now  steered  direct.  At  sunset  we  found 
ourselves  within  five  or  six  miles  of  Soung  Harbor;  but  there  was 
not  sufficient  light  to  risk  the  dangers  that  might  be  in  our  course, 
nor  wind  enough  to  command  the  ship;  and  having  no  bottom  where 
we  were,  I  determined  again  to  run  out  to  sea,  and  anchor  on  the 
first  bank  I  should  meet.  At  half-past  eight  o'clock,  we  struck 
sounding  in  twenty-six  fathoms,  and  anchored. 

At  daylight  we  determined  our  position  by  angles,  and  found  it 
to  correspond  with  part  of  the  route  we  had  passed  over  the  day 
before,  and  that  we  were  about  fifteen  miles  from  the  large  island 
of  Sulu.  Weighing  anchor,  we  were  shortly  wafted  by  the  westerly 
tide  and  a  light  air  towards  that  beautiful  island,  which  lay  in  the 
midst  of  its  little  archipelago;  and  as  we  were  brought  nearer  and 
nearer,  we  came  to  the  conclusion  that  in  our  many  wanderings 
we  had  seen  nothing  to  be  compared  to  this  enchanting  spot.  It 
appeared  to  be  well    cultivated,  with   gentle  slopes  rising  here  and 


Sulu  in  1842  601 

there  into  eminences  from  one  to  two  thousand  feet  high.  One 
or  two  of  these  might  be  dignified  with  the  name  of  mountains, 
and  were  sufficiently  high  to  arrest  the  passing  clouds;  on  the 
afternoon  of  our  arrival  we  had  a  singular  example  in  the  dissipa- 
tion of  a  thunderstorm. 

Although  much  of  the  island  was  under  cultivation,  yet  it  had 
all  the  freshness  of  a  forest  region.  The  many  smokes  on  the  hills, 
buildings  of  large  size,  cottages,  and  cultivated  spots,  together 
with  the  moving  crowds  on  the  land,  the  prahus,  canoes,  and  fishing- 
boats  on  the  water  gave  the  whole  a  civilized  appearance.  Our 
own  vessel  lay,  almost  without  a  ripple  at  her  side,  on  the  glassy 
surface  of  the  sea,  carried  onwards  to  our  destined  anchorage  by 
the  flowing  tide,  and  scarce  a  sound  was  heard  except  the  splashing 
of  the  lead  as  it  sought  the  bottom.  The  effect  of  this  was  de- 
stroyed in  part  by  the  knowledge  that  this  beautiful  archipelago  was 
the  abode  of  a  cruel  and  barbarous  race  of  pirates.  Towards  sunset 
we  had  nearly  reached  the  bay  of  Soung,  when  we  were  met  by  the 
opposing  tide,  which  frustrated  all  our  endeavors  to  reach  it,  and 
I  was  compelled  to  anchor,  lest  we  should  again  be  swept  to  sea. 

As  soon  as  the  night  set  in,  fishermen's  lights  were  seen  moving 
along  the  beach  in  all  directions,  and  gliding  about  in  canoes,  while 
the  sea  was  filled  with  myriads  of  phosphorescent  animalcula. 
After  watching  this  scene  for  two  or  three  hours  in  the  calm  and 
still  night,  a  storm  that  had  been  gathering  reached  us;  but  it  lasted 
only  for  a  short  time,  and  cleared  off  after  a  shower,  which  gave 
the  air  a  freshness  that  was  delightful  after  the  sultry  heat  we  had 
experienced  during  the  day. 

The  canoes  of  this  archipelago  were  found  to  be  different  from 
any  that  we  had  heretofore  seen,  not  only  in  shape,  but  in  making 
use  of  a  double  outrigger,  which  consequently  must  give  them 
additional  security.  The  paddle  also  is  of  a  different  shape,  and 
has  a  blade  at  each  end,  which  are  used  alternately,  thus  enabling 
a  single  person  to  manage  them  with  ease.  These  canoes  are  made 
of  a  single  log,  though  some  are  built  upon.  They  seldom  carry 
more  than  two  persons.  The  figure  on  the  opposite  page  will  give 
a  correct  idea  of  one  of  them. 

We  saw  the  fishermen  engaged  in  trolling  and  using  the  line; 
but  the  manner  of  taking  fish  which  has  been  heretofore  described 
is  chiefly  practised.  In  fishing,  as  well  as  in  all  their  other  employ- 
ments, the  kris  and  spear  were  invariably  by  their  side. 

The  next  morning  at  eight  o'clock  we  got  under  way,  and  were  sulu  harbo' 
towed  by  our  boats  into  the  bay  of  Soung,  where  we  anchored  off 
the  town  in  nine  fathoms  water.  While  in  the  act  of  doing  so, 
and  after  our  intentions  had  become  too  evident  to  admit  of  a  doubt, 
the  Sultan  graciously  sent  off  a  message  giving  us  permission  to 
enter  his  port. 

Lieutenant  Budd  was  immediately  despatched  with  the  inter- 
preter to  call  upon  the  Datu  Mulu  or  governor,  and  to  learn  at 
what  hour  we  could  see  the  Sultan.  When  the  officer  reached  the 
town,  all  were  found  asleep;  and  after  remaining  four  hours  waiting, 
the  only  answer  he  could  get  out  of  the  Datu  Mulu  was,  that  he 
supposed  that  the  Sultan  would  be  awake  at  three  o'clock,  when 
he  thought  I  could  see  him. 


502  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

During  this  time  the  boats  had  been  prepared  for  surveying;  and 
after  landing  the  naturalists,  they  began  the  work. 

At  the  appointed  time,  Captain  Hudson  and  myself  went  on 
shore  to  wait  upon  the  Sultan.  On  our  approach  to  the  town,  we 
found  that  a  great  proportion  of  it  was  built  over  the  water  on  piles, 
and  only  connected  with  the  shore  by  narrow  bridges  of  bamboo. 
The  style  of  building  in  Sulu  does  not  differ  materially  from  that 
of  the  Malays.  The  houses  are  rather  larger,  and  they  surpass 
the  others  in  filth. 
Pirate  craft.  We  passed  for  some  distance  between  the  bridges  to  the  landing, 

and  on  our  way  saw  several  piratical  prahus  apparently  laid  up. 
Twenty  of  these  were  counted,  of  about  thirty  tons  burden,  evidently 
built  for  sea-vessels,  and  capable  of  mounting  one  or  two  long 
guns.  We  landed  at  a  small  streamlet,  and  walked  a  short  distance 
to  the  Datu's  house,  which  is  of  large  dimensions  and  rudely  built 
on  piles,  which  raise  it  about  six  feet  above  the  ground,  and  into 
which  we  were  invited.  The  house  of  the  Datu  contains  one  room, 
part  of  which  is  screened  off  to  form  the  apartment  of  his  wife. 
Nearly  in  the  center  is  a  raised  dais,  eight  or  ten  feet  square,  under 
which  are  stowed  all  his  valuables,  packed  in  chests  and  Chinese 
trunks.  Upon  this  dais  are  placed  mats  for  sleeping,  with  cushions, 
pillows,  etc.;  and  over  it  is  a  sort  of  canopy,  hung  around  with 
fine  chintz  or  muslin. 

The  dais  was  occupied  by  the  Datu,  who  is,  next  to  the  Sultan, 
the  greatest  man  of  this  island.  He  at  once  came  from  it  to  receive 
us,  and  had  chairs  provided  for  us  near  his  sanctum.  After  we 
were  seated,  he  again  retired  to  his  lounge.  The  Datu  is  small  in 
person,  and  emaciated  in  form,  but  has  a  quick  eye  and  an  intelligent 
countenance.  He  lives,  as  he  told  me,  with  all  his  goods  around 
him,  and  they  formed  a  collection  such  as  I  could  scarcely  imagine 
it  possible  to  bring  together  in  such  a  place.  The  interior  put  me 
in  mind  of  a  barn  inhabited  by  a  company  of  strolling  players. 
On  one  side  were  hung  up  a  collection  of  various  kinds  of  gay  dresses, 
here  drums  and  gongs,  there  swords,  lanterns,  spears,  muskets, 
and  small  cannon;  on  another  side  were  shields,  buckler,  masks, 
saws,  and  wheels,  with  belts,  bands,  and  long  robes.  The  whole 
was  a  strange  mixture  of  tragedy  and  farce;  and  the  group  of  natives 
were  not  far  removed  in  appearance  from  the  supernumeraries  that 
a  Turkish  tragedy  might  have  brought  together  in  the  green-room 
of  a  theatre.  A  set  of  more  cowardly-looking  miscreants  I  never 
saw.  They  appeared  ready  either  to  trade  with  us,  pick  our  pockets, 
or  cut  our  throats,  as  an  opportunity  might  offer. 

The  wife's  apartment  was  not  remarkable  for  its  comforts,  although 
the  Datu  spoke  of  it  with  much  consideration,  and  evidently  held 
his  better  half  in  high  estimation.  He  was  also  proud  of  his  six 
children,  the  youngest  of  whom  he  brought  out  in  its  nurse's  arms, 
and  exhibited  with  much  pride  and  satisfaction.  He  particularly 
drew  my  attention  to  its  little  highly-wrought  and  splendidly- 
mounted  kris,  which  was  stuck  through  its  girdle,  as  an  emblem  of 
his  rank.  He  was  in  reality  a  fine-looking  child.  The  kitchen  was 
behind  the  house,  and  occupied  but  a  small  space,  for  they  have 
little  in  the  way  of  food  that  requires  much  preparation.  The 
house  of  the  Datu  might  justly  be  termed  nasty. 


Sulu  in   1S42  503 

We  now  learned  the  reason  why  the  Sultan  could  not  be  seen; 
it  was  Friday,  the  Mahomedan  Sabbath,  and  he  had  been  at  the 
mosque  from  an  early  hour.  Lieutenant  Budd  had  been  detained, 
because  it  was  not  known  when  he  would  finish  his  prayers;  and 
the  ceremonies  of  the  day  were  more  important  than  usual,  on 
account  of  its  peculiar  sanctity  in  their  calendar. 

Word  had  been  sent  off  to  the  ship  that  the  Sultan  was  ready  Visiting  the 
to  receive  me,  but  the  messenger  passed  us  while  on  our  way  to  the  Sultan. 
shore.  After  we  had  been  seated  for  a  while,  the  Datu  asked  if 
we  were  ready  to  accompany  him  to  see  the  Sultan;  but  intimated 
that  no  one  but  Captain  Hudson  and  myself  could  be  permitted  to 
lay  eyes  on  him.  Being  informed  that  we  were,  he  at  once,  and 
in  our  presence,  slipped  on  his  silken  trousers,  and  a  new  jacket, 
covered  with  bell-buttons;  put  on  his  slippers,  strapped  himself 
round  with  a  long  silken  net  sash,  into  which  he  stuck  his  kris,  and, 
with  umbrella  in  hand,  said  he  was  ready.  He  now  led  the  way 
out  of  his  house,  leaving  the  motley  group  behind,  and  we  took 
the  path  to  the  interior  of  the  town,  towards  the  Sultan's.  The 
Datu  and  I  walked  hand  in  hand,  on  a  roadway  about  ten  feet 
wide,  with  a  small  stream  running  on  each  side.  Captain  Hudson 
and  the  interpreter  came  next,  and  a  guard  of  six  trusty  slaves 
brought  up  the  rear. 

When  we  reached  the  outskirts  of  the  town,  about  half  a  mile  from 
the  Datu's,  we  came  to  the  Sultan's  residence,  where  he  was  pre- 
pared to  receive  us  in  state.  His  house  is  constructed  in  the  same 
manner  as  that  of  the  Datu,  but  is  of  larger  dimensions,  and  the 
piles  are  rather  higher.  Instead  of  steps,  we  found  a  ladder,  rudely 
constructed  of  bamboo,  and  very  crazy.  This  was  so  steep  that 
it  was  necessary  to  use  the  hands  in  mounting  it.  I  understood  that 
the  ladder  was  always  removed  in  the  night,  for  the  sake  of  security. 
We  entered  at  once  into  the  presence-chamber,  where  the  whole 
divan,  if  such  it  may  be  called,  sat  in  arm-chairs,  occupying  the  half 
of  a  large  round  table,  covered  with  a  white  cotton  cloth.  On  the 
opposite  side  of  the  table,  seats  were  placed  for  us.  On  our  ap- 
proach, the  Sultan  and  all  his  council  rose,  and  motioned  us  to  our 
seats.  When  we  had  taken  them,  the  part  of  the  room  behind  us 
was  literally  crammed  with  well-armed  men.  A  few  minutes  were 
passed  in  silence,  during  which  time  we  had  an  opportunity  of  look- 
ing at  each  other,  and  around  the  hall  in  which  we  were  seated.  The 
latter  was  of  very  common  workmanship,  and  exhibited  no  signs 
of  oriental  magnificence.  Overhead  hung  a  printed  cotton  cloth, 
forming  a  kind  of  tester,  which  covered  about  half  of  the  apartment. 
In  other  places  the  roof  and  rafters  were  visible.  A  part  of  the  house 
was  roughly  partitioned  off,  to  the  height  of  nine  or  ten  feet,  enclos- 
ing, as  I  was  afterwards  told,  the  Sultan's  sleeping  apartment,  and 
that  appropriated  to  his  wife  and  her  attendants. 

The  Sultan  is  of  middle  height,  spare  and  thin;  he  was  dressed 
in  a  white  cotton  shirt,  loose  trousers  of  the  same  material,  and 
slippers;  he  had  no  stockings;  the  bottom  of  his  trousers  was  worked 
in  scollops  with  blue  silk,  and  this  was  the  only  ornament  I  saw 
about  him.  On  his  head  he  wore  a  small  colored  cotton  hand- 
kerchief, wound  into  a  turban,  that  just  covered  the  top  of  his  head. 


oOU  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

His  eyes  were  bloodshot,  and  had  an  uneasy  wild  look,  showing 
that  he  was  under  the  effects  of  opium,  of  which  they  all  smoke 
large  quantities.  His  teeth  were  as  black  as  ebony,  which,  with 
his  bright  cherry-colored  lips,*  contrasted  with  his  swarthy  skin, 
gave  him  anything  but  a  pleasant  look. 

On  the  left  hand  of  the  Sultan  sat  his  two  sons,  while  his  right 
was  occupied  by  his  councillors;  just  behind  him,  sat  the  carrier  of 
his  betel-nut  casket.  The  casket  was  of  filigree  silver,  about  the 
size  of  a  small  tea-caddy,  of  oblong  shape,  and  rounded  at  the 
top.  It  had  three  divisions,  one  for  the  leaf,  another  for  the  nut, 
and  a  third  for  the  lime.  Next  to  this  official  was  the  pipe-bearer, 
who  did  not  appear  to  be  held  in  such  estimation  as  the  former. 
Treaty  with  j   opened   the   conversation   by    desiring   that   the    Datu   would 

United  States.  explain  the  nature  of  our  visit,  and  tell  the  Sultan  that  I  had  come 
to  make  the  treaty  which  he  had  some  time  before  desired  to  form 
with  the  United  States,  f 

The  Sultan  replied  that  such  was  still  his  desire;  upon  which  I 
told  him  I  would  draw  one  up  for  him  that  same  day.  While 
I  was  explaining  to  him  the  terms,  a  brass  candlestick  was  brought 
in  with  a  lighted  tallow  candle,  of  a  very  dark  color,  and  rude 
shape,  that  showed  but  little  art  in  the  manufacture.  This  was 
placed  in  the  center  of  the  table,  with  a  plate  of  Manila  cigars.  None 
of  them,  however,  were  offered  to  us,  nor  any  kind  of  refreshment. 

Our  visit  lasted  nearly  an  hour.  When  we  arose  to  take  our 
leave,  the  Sultan  and  his  divan  did  the  same,  and  we  made  our 
exit  with  low  bows  on  each  side. 

I  looked  upon  it  as  a  matter  of  daily  occurrence  for  all  those  who 
came  to  the  island  to  visit  the  Sultan;  but  the  Datu  Mulu  took 
great  pains  to  make  me  believe  that  a  great  favor  had  been  granted 
in  allowing  us  a  sight  of  his  ruler.  On  the  other  hand,  I  dwelt  upon 
the  condescension  it  was  on  my  part  to  visit  him,  and  I  refused  to 
admit  that  I  was  under  any  gratitude  or  obligation  for  the  sight 
of  His  Majesty  the  Sultan  Mohammed  Damaliel  Kisand,  but  said 
that  he  might  feel  grateful  to  me  if  he  signed  the  treaty  I  would 
prepare  for  him. 

On  our  return  from  the  Sultan's  to  the  Datu  Mulu's  house,  we 
found  even  a  greater  crowd  than  before.  The  Datu,  however, 
contrived  to  get  us  seats.  The  attraction  which  drew  it  together 
was  to  look  at  Mr.  Agate,  who  was  taking  a  sketch  of  Mohammed 
Polalu,  the  Sultan's  son,  and  next  heir  to  the  throne.  I  had  hoped 
to  procure  one  of  the  Sultan,  but  this  was  declared  to  be  impossible. 
The  son,  however,  has  all  the  characteristics  of  the  Sulu,  and  the 
likeness  was  thought  an  excellent  one.  Mohammed  Polalu  is  about 
twenty-three  years  of  age,  of  a  tall  slender  figure,  with  a  long 
face,  heavy  and  dull  eyes,  as  though  he  was  constantly  under  the 
influence  of  opium.  So  much,  indeed,  was  he  addicted  to  the  use 
of  this  drug,  even   according  to  the  Datu  Mulu's  accounts,  that 

_  *  Chewing  the  betelnut  and  pepper-leaf  also  produces  this  effect,  and  is  car- 
ried to  a  great  extent  among  these  islanders. 

t  The  Sultan,  on  the  visit  of  one  of  our  merchant-vessels,  had  informed  the 
supercargo  that  he  wished  to  encourage  our  trade,  and  to  see  the  vessels  of  the 
United  States  coming  to  his  port. 


Sulu  in  IS43  605 

his  Strength  and  constitution  were  very  much  impaired.  As  he 
is  kept  particularly  under  the  guardianship  of  the  Datu,  the  latter 
has  a  strong  interest  in  preserving  this  influence  over  him,  and 
seems  on  this  account  to  afford  him  every  opportunity  of  indulging 
in  this  deplorable  habit. 

During  our  visit,  the  effects  of  a  pipe  of  this  drug  were  seen  upon 
him;  for  but  a  short  time  after  he  had  reclined  himself  on  the  Datu's 
couch  and  cushion,  and  taken  a  few  whiffs,  he  was  entirely  over- 
come, stupid,  and  listless.  I  had  never  seen  any  one  so  young, 
bearing  such  evident  marks  of  the  effects  of  this  deleterious  drug. 
When  but  partially  recovered  from  its  effects  he  called  for  his  betel- 
nut,  to  revive  him  by  its  exciting  effects.  This  was  carefully  chewed 
by  his  attendant  to  a  proper  consistency,  moulded  in  a  ball  about 
the  size  of  a  walnut,  and  then  slipped  into  the  mouth  of  the  heir 
apparent. 

One  of  the  requests  I  had  made  of  the  Sultan  was,  that  the  officers  interior  travel 
might  have  guides  to  pass  over  the  island.  This  was  at  once  said  prohibited. 
to  be  too  dangerous  to  be  attempted,  as  the  datus  of  the  interior 
and  southern  towns  would  in  all  probability  attack  the  parties. 
I  understood  what  this  meant,  and  replied  that  I  was  quite  willing 
to  take  the  responsibility,  and  that  the  party  should  be  well  armed. 
To  this  the  Sultan  replied  that  he  would  not  risk  his  own  men. 
This  I  saw  was  a  mere  evasion,  but  it  was  difficult  and  would  be 
dangerous  for  our  gentlemen  to  proceed  alone,  and  I  therefore 
said  no  more.  On  our  return  to  the  Datu's,  I  gave  them  permis- 
sion to  get  as  far  from  the  beach  as  they  could,  but  I  was  afterwards 
informed  by  them  that  in  endeavoring  to  penetrate  into  the  woods, 
they  were  always  stopped  by  armed  men.  This  was  also  the  case 
when  they  approached  particular  parts  of  the  town,  but  they  were 
not  molested  as  long  as  their  rambles  were  confined  to  the  beach. 
At  the  Datu's  we  were  treated  to  chocolate  and  negus  in  gilt-edged 
tumblers,  with  small  stale  cakes,  which  had  been  brought  from 
Manila. 

After  we  had  sat  some  time  I  was  informed  that  Mr.  Dana  missed 
his  bowie-knife  pistol,  which  he  had  for  a  moment  laid  down  on 
a  chest.  I  at  once  came  to  the  conclusion  that  it  had  been  stolen, 
and  as  the  theft  had  occurred  in  the  Datu's  house,  I  determined  to 
hold  him  responsible  for  it,  and  gave  him  at  once  to  understand 
that  I  should  do  so,  informing  him  that  the  pistol  must  be  returned 
before  the  next  morning,  or  he  must  take  the  consequences.  This 
threw  him  into  some  consternation,  and  by  my  manner  he  felt 
that  I  was  serious. 

Captain  Hudson  and  myself,  previous  to  our  return  on  board, 
visited  the  principal  parts  of  the  town.  The  Chinese  quarter  is 
separated  by  a  body  of  water,  and  has  a  gateway  that  leads  to  a 
bridge.  The  bridge  is  covered  by  a  roof,  and  on  each  side  of  it 
are  small  shops,  which  are  open  in  front,  and  thus  expose  the  goods 
they  contain.  In  the  rear  of  the  shops  were  the  dwellings  of  the 
dealers.  This  sort  of  bazaar  contained  but  a  very  scanty  assortment, 
and  the  goods  were  of  inferior  quality. 

We  visited  some  blacksmith-shops,  where  they  were  manufactur- 
ing krises  and  spears.     These  shops  were  open  sheds;  the  fire  was 


S06  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

made  upon  the  ground,  and  two  wooden  cylinders,  whose  valves 
were  in  the  bottom,  served  for  bellows;  when  used,  they  had  mov- 
able pistons,  which  were  worked  by  a  man  on  an  elevated  seat,  and 
answered  the  purpose  better  than  could  have  been  expected. 

The  kris  is  a  weapon  in  which  this  people  take  great  pride;  it 
is  of  various  shapes  and  sizes,  and  is  invariably  worn  from  infancy 
to  old  age;  they  are  generally  wavy  in  their  blades,  and  are  worn 
in  wooden  scabbards,  which  are  neatly  made  and  highly  polished. 

The  market  was  well  stocked  with  fruit  and  fish.  Among  the 
former  the  durian  seemed  to  predominate;  this  was  the  first  time 
we  had  seen  it.  It  has  a  very  disagreeable  odour,  as  if  decayed, 
and  appears  to  emit  a  sulphuretted  hydrogen  gas,  which  I  observed 
blackened  silver.  Some  have  described  this  fruit  as  delicious,  but 
if  the  smell  is  not  enough,  the  taste  in  my  opinion  will  convince  any 
one  of  the  contrary. 

Mr.  Brackenridge  made  the  following  list  of  their  fruits:  Durian, 
Artocarpus  integrifolia.  Melons,  water  and  musk.  Oranges,  mandarin 
and  bitter.  Pineapples,  Carica  papaya,  Mangosteen,  Bread-fruit, 
Coco  and  Betelnut.  The  vegetables  were  capsicums,  cucumbers, 
yams,  sweet-potatoes,  garlic,  onions,  edible  fern-roots,  and  radishes 
of  the  salmon  variety,  but  thicker  and  more  acrid  in  flavor. 
A  stolen  granite  In  walking  about  the  parts  of  the  town  we  were  permitted  to 
monument.  enter,  large  slabs  of  cut  granite  were  seen,  which  were  presumed 

to  be  from  China,  where  the  walls  of  canals  or  streamlets  are  lined 
with  it.  But  Dr.  Pickering  in  his  rambles  discovered  pieces  that 
had  been  cut  as  if  to  form  a  monument,  and  remarked  a  difference 
between  it  and  the  Chinese  kind.  On  one  or  two  pieces  he  saw  the 
mark  No.  1,  in  black  paint;  the  material  resembled  the  Chelmsford 
granite,  and  it  occurred  to  him  that  the  stone  had  been  cut  in  Boston. 
I  did  not  hear  of  this  circumstance  until  after  we  had  left  Sulu, 
and  have  little  doubt  now  that  the  interdiction  against  our  gentle- 
men visiting  some  parts  of  the  town  was  owing  to  the  fear  they 
had  of  the  discovery  of  this  plunder.  This  may  have  been  the 
reason  why  they  so  readily  complied  with  my  demands,  in  order 
to  get  rid  of  us  as  soon  as  possible,  feeling  themselves  guilty,  and 
being  unprepared  for  defence;  for,  of  the  numerous  guns  mounted, 
few  if  any  were  serviceable. 

The  theft  of  the  pistol  was  so  barefaced  an  affair,  that  I  made  up 
my  mind  to  insist  on  its  restoration.  At  the  setting  of  the  watch 
in  the  evening,  it  had  been  our  practice  on  board  the  Vincennes 
to  fire  a  small  brass  howitzer.  This  frequently,  in  the  calm  evenings, 
produced  a  great  reverberation,  and  rolled  along  the  water  to  the 
surrounding  islands  with  considerable  noise.  Instead  of  it,  on  this 
evening,  I  ordered  one  of  the  long  guns  to  be  fired,  believing  that 
the  sound  and  reverberation  alone  would  suffice  to  intimidate  such 
robbers.  One  was  accordingly  fired  in  the  direction  of  the  town, 
which  fairly  shook  the  island,  as  they  said,  and  it  was  not  long  before 
we  saw  that  the  rogues  were  fully  aroused,  for  the  clatter  of  gongs 
and  voices  that  came  over  the  water,  and  the  motion  of  lights, 
convinced  me  that  the  pistol  would  be  forthcoming  in  the  morning. 
In  this  I  was  not  mistaken,  for  at  early  daylight  I  was  awakened 
by  a  special  messenger  from  the  Datu  to  tell  me  that  the  pistol  was 


Sulu  in  18 AS  607 

found,  and  would  be  brought  off  without  delay;  that  he  had 
been  searching  for  it  all  night,  and  had  at  last  succeeded  in  finding 
it,  as  well  as  the  thief,  on  whom  he  intended  to  inflict  the  bastinado. 
Accordingly,  in  a  short  time  the  pistol  was  delivered  on  board,  and 
every  expression  of  friendship  and  good-will  given,  with  the  strong- 
est assurances  that  nothing  of  the  kind  should  happen  again. 

As  our  naturalists  could  have  no  opportunity  of  rambling  over 
the  island  of  Sooloo,  it  was  thought  that  one  of  the  neighbouring 
islands  (although  not  so  good  a  field)  would  afford  them  many  of 
the  same  results,  and  that  they  could  examine  it  unmolested. 
Accordingly,  at  an  early  hour,  they  were  despatched  in  boats  for 
that  purpose,  with  a  sufficient  guard  to  attend  them  in  case  of 
necessity.  The  island  on  which  they  landed,  Marongas,  has  two  Marongas 
hills  of  volcanic  conglomerate  and  vesicular  lava,  containing  angular  island. 
fragments  embedded.  The  bottom  was  covered  with  living  coral, 
of  every  variety,  and  of  different  colors;  but  there  was  nothing  like 
a  regular  coral  shelf,  and  the  beach  was  composed  of  bits  of  coral 
intermixed  with  dead  shells,  both  entire  and  comminuted.  The 
center  of  the  island  was  covered  with  mangrove-bushes;  the  hills 
were  cones,  but  had  no  craters  on  them.  The  mangroves  had 
grown  in  clusters,  giving  the  appearance  of  a  number  of  small  islets. 
This,  with  the  neighboring  islands,  were  thought  to  be  composed 
in  a  great  part  of  coral,  but  it  was  impossible  for  our  gentlemen 
to  determine  the  fact. 

The  day  was  exceedingly  hot,  and  the  island  was  suff'ering  to 
such  a  degree  from  drought  that  the  leaves  in  many  cases  were 
curled  and  appeared  dry.  On  the  face  of  the  rocky  cliff  they  saw 
many  swallows  (hirundo  esculenta)  flying  in  and  out  of  the  caverns 
facing  the  sea;  but  they  were  not  fortunate  enough  to  find  any  of 
the  edible  nests,  so  much  esteemed  by  Chinese  epicures. 

At  another  part  of  the  island  they  heard  the  crowing  of  a  cock, 
and  discovered  a  small  village,  almost  hidden  by  the  mangroves, 
and  built  over  the  water.  In  the  neighborhood  were  several  fish- 
baskets  set  out  to  dry,as  well  as  a  quantity  of  fencing  for  weirs, 
all  made  of  rattan.  Their  shape  was  somewhat  peculiar.  After 
a  little  while  the  native  fishermen  were  seen  approaching,  who 
evidently  had  a  knowledge  of  their  visit  from  the  first.  They  came 
near  with  great  caution  in  their  canoes;  but  after  the  first  had 
spoken  and  reconnoitered,  several  others  landed,  exhibiting  no  signs 
of  embarrassment,  and  soon  motioned  our  party  off.  To  indicate 
that  force  would  be  resorted  to,  in  case  of  refusal,  at  the  same  time 
they  pointed  to  their  arms,  and  drew  their  krises.  Our  gentlemen 
took  this  all  in  good  part,  and,  after  dispensing  a  few  trifling  presents 
among  them,  began  their  retreat  with  a  convenient  speed,  without, 
however,  compromising  their  dignity. 

The  excursion  had  been  profitable  in  the  way  of  collections,  having 
yielded  a  number  of  specimens  of  shr*ibs  and  trees,  both  in  flower 
and  fruit;  but  owing  to  the  drought,  the  herbaceous  plants  were, 
for  the  most  part,  dried  up.  Among  the  latter,  however,  they  saw 
a  large  and  fine  terrestrial  species  of  Epidendrum,  whose  stem  grew 
to  the  height  of  several  feet,  and  when  surmounted  by  its  flowers 


508  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

reached  twelve  or  fifteen  feet  high.  Many  of  the  salt-marsh  plants 
seen  in  the  Fijis,  were  also  observed  here.  Besides  the  plants, 
some  shells  and  a  beautiful  cream-colored  pigeon  were  obtained. 

During  the  day  we  were  busily  engaged  in  the  survey  of  the 
harbor,  and  in  making  astronomical  and  magnetical  observations 
on  the  beach,  while  some  of  the  officers  were  employed  purchasing 
curiosities,  on  shore,  at  the  town,  and  alongside  the  ship.  These 
consisted  of  krises,  spears,  shields,  and  shells;  and  the  Sulus  were 
not  slow  in  comprehending  the  kind  of  articles  we  were  in  search  of. 

Few  if  any  of  the  Sulus  can  write  or  read,  though  many  talk 
Spanish.  Their  accounts  are  all  kept  by  the  slaves.  Those  who 
can  read  and  write  are,  in  consequence,  highly  prized.  All  the 
accounts  of  the  Datu  of  Soung  are  kept  in  Dutch,  by  a  young  Malay 
from  Tarnate,  who  writes  a  good  hand,  and  speaks  English,  and 
whom  we  found  exceedingly  useful  to  us.  He  is  the  slave  of  the 
Datu,  who  employs  him  for  this  purpose  only.  He  told  us  he  was 
captured  in  a  brig  by  the  pirates  of  Basilan,  and  sold  here  as  a 
slave,  where  he  is  likely  to  remain  for  life,  although  he  says  the 
Datu  has  promised  to  give  him  his  freedom  after  ten  years. 

Horses,  cows,  and  buffaloes  are  the  beasts  of  burden,  and  a  Sulu 
may  usually  be  seen  riding  either  one  or  the  other,  armed  cap-a-pie, 
with  kris,  spear,  and  target,  or  shield. 

They  use  saddles  cut  out  of  solid  wood,  and  many  ride  with  their 
stirrups  so  short  that  they  bring  the  knees  very  high,  and  the  riders 
look  more  like  well-grown  monkeys  than  mounted  men.  The 
cows  and  buffaloes  are  guided  by  a  piece  of  thong,  through  the 
cartilage  of  the  nose.  By  law,  no  swine  are  allowed  to  be  kept  on 
the  island,  and  if  they  are  bought,  they  are  immediately  killed. 
The  Chinese  are  obliged  to  raise  and  kill  their  pigs  very  secretly, 
when  they  desire  that  species  of  food;  for,  notwithstanding  the  law 
and  the  prejudices  of  the  inhabitants,  the  former  continue  to  keep 
swine. 
Natires.  The  inhabitants  of  Sulu  are  a   tall,  thin,  and  effeminate-looking 

race:  I  do  not  recollect  to  have  seen  one  corpulent  person  among 
them.  Their  faces  are  peculiar  for  length,  particularly  in  the  lower 
jaw  and  chin,  with  high  cheek-bones,  sunken,  lack-lustre  eyes,  and 
narrow  foreheads.  Their  heads  are  thinly  covered  with  hair,  which 
appears  to  be  kept  closely  cropped.  I  was  told  that  they  pluck 
out  their  beards,  and  dye  their  teeth  black  with  antimony,  and 
some  file  them. 

Their  eyebrows  appear  to  be  shaven,  forming  a  very  regular  and 
high  arch,  which  they  esteem  a  great  beauty. 

The  dress  of  the  common  people  is  very  like  that  of  the  Chinese, 
with  loose  and  full  sleeves,  without  buttons.  The  materials  of  which 
it  is  made  are  grass-cloths,  silks,  satins,  or  white  cotton,  from 
China.  I  should  judge  from  the  appearance  of  their  persons,  that 
they  ought  to  be  termed,  so  far  as  ablutions  go,  a  cleanly  people. 
There  is  no  outward  respect  or  obeisance  shown  by  the  slave  to  his 
master,  nor  is  the  presence  of  the  Datu,  or  even  of  the  Sultan  him- 
self, held  in  any  awe.  All  appear  upon  an  equality,  and  there  does 
not  seem  to  be  any  controlling  power;  yet  it  may  be  at  once 
perceived  that  they  are  suspicious  and  jealous  of  strangers. 


d 


Sulu  in   1842  509 

The  Sulus,  although  they  are  ready  to  do  any  thing  for  the 
sake  of  plunder,  even  to  the  taking  of  life,  yet  are  not  disposed  to 
hoard  their  ill-gotten  wealth,  and,  with  all  their  faults,  cannot  be 
termed  avaricious. 

They  have  but  few  qualities  to  redeem  their  treachery,  cruelty, 
and  revengeful  dispositions;  and  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  their 
being  so  predominant,  or  even  of  their  existence,  is  their  inordinate 
lust  for  power.  When  they  possess  this,  it  is  accompanied  by  a 
haughty,  consequential,  and  ostentatious  bravery.  No  greater 
affront  can  be  offered  to  a  Sulu,  than  to  underrate  his  dignity  and 
official  consequence.  Such  an  insult  is  seldom  forgiven,  and  never 
forgotten.  From  one  who  has  made  numerous  voyages  to  these 
islands,  I  have  obtained  many  of  the  above  facts,  and  my  own 
observation  assures  me  that  this  view  of  their  character  is  a  correct 
one.  I  would,  however,  add  another  trait,  which  is  common  among 
them,  and  that  is  cowardice,  which  is  obvious,  in  spite  of  their 
boasted  prowess  and  daring.  This  trait  of  character  is  universally 
ascribed  to  them  among  the  Spaniards  in  the  Philippines,  who  ought 
to  be  well  acquainted  with  them. 

The  dress  of  the  women  is  not  unlike  that  of  the  men  in 
appearance.  They  wear  close  jackets  of  various  colors  when  they 
go  abroad,  and  the  same  loose  breeches  as  the  men,  but  over  them 
they  usually  have  a  large  wrapper  (sarong),  not  unlike  the  pareu 
of  the  Polynesian  islanders,  which  is  put  round  them  like  a  petti- 
coat, or  thrown  over  the  shoulders.  Their  hair  is  drawn  to  the  back 
of  the  head,  and  around  the  forehead  it  is  shaven  in  the  form  of 
a  regular  arch,  to  correspond  with  the  eyebrows.  Those  that  I 
saw  at  the  Sultan's  were  like  the  Malays,  and  had  light  complexions, 
with  very  black  teeth.  The  Datu  thought  them  very  handsome, 
and  on  our  return  he  asked  me  if  I  had  seen  the  Sultan's  beauties. 
The  females  of  Sulu  have  the  reputation  of  ruling  their  lords, 
and  possess  much  weight  in  the  government  by  the  influence  they 
exert  over  their  husbands. 

It  may  be  owing  to  this  that  there  is  little  jealousy  of  their  wives.  Superiuritv 
who  are  said  to  hold  their  virtues  in  no  very  great  estimation-  "^  women. 
In  their  houses  they  are  but  scantily  clothed,  though  women  of 
rank  have  always  a  large  number  of  rings  on  their  fingers,  some  of 
which  are  of  great  value,  as  well  as  earrings  of  fine  gold.  They  wear 
no  stockings,  but  have  on  Chinese  slippers,  or  Spanish  shoes.  They 
are  as  capable  of  governing  as  their  husbands,  and  in  many  cases 
more  so,  as  they  associate  with  the  slaves,  from  whom  they  obtain 
some  knowledge  of  Christendom,  and  of  the  habits  and  customs 
of  other  nations,  which  they  study  to  imitate  in  every  way. 

The  mode  in  which  the  Sulus  employ  their  time  may  be  exem- 
plified by  giving  that  of  the  Datu;  for  all,  whether  free  or  slave, 
endeavor  to  imitate  the  higher  rank  as  far  as  is  in  their  power. 
The  datus  seldom  rise  before  eleven  o'clock,  unless  they  have  some 
particular  business;  and  the  Datu  Mulu  complained  of  being  sleepy 
in  consequence  of  the  early  hour  at  which   we  had   disturbed  him. 

On  rising,  they  have  chocolate  served  in  gilt  glassware,  with  some 
light  biscuit,  and  sweetmeats  imported  from  China  or  Manila,  of 
which  they  informed  me  they  laid  in  large  supplies.     They  then 


610  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

lounge  about  their  houses,  transacting  a  little  business,  and  playing 
at  various  games,  or,  in  the  trading  season,  go  to  the  meeting 
of  the  Ruma  Bechara. 

At  sunset  they  take  their  principal  meal,  consisting  of  stews  of 
fish,  poultry,  beef,  eggs,  and  rice,  prepared  somewhat  after  the 
Chinese  and  Spanish  modes,  mixed  up  with  that  of  the  Malay. 
Although  Moslems,  they  do  not  forego  the  use  of  wine,  and  some 
are  said  to  indulge  in  it  to  a  great  extent.  After  sunset,  when  the 
air  has  become  somewhat  cooled  by  the  refreshing  breezes,  they  sally 
forth  attended  by  their  retainers  to  take  a  walk,  or  proceed  to  the 
bazaars  to  purchase  goods,  or  to  sell  or  to  barter  away  their  articles 
of  produce.  They  then  pay  visits  to  their  friends,  when  they  are 
in  the  habit  of  having  frequent  convivial  parties,  talking  over 
their  bargains,  smoking  cigars,  drinking  wine  and  liquors,  tea,  coffee, 
and  chocolate,  and  indulging  in  their  favorite  pipe  of  opium.  At 
times  they  are  entertained  with  music,  both  vocal  and  instrumental, 
by  their  dependants.  Of  this  art  they  appear  to  be  very  fond,  and 
there  are  many  musical  instruments  among  them.  A  datu,  indeed, 
would  be  looked  upon  as  uneducated  if  he  could  not  play  on  some 
instrument. 

It  is  considered  polite  that  when  refreshments  are  handed  they 
should  be  partaken  of.  Those  offered  us  by  the  Datu  were  such 
as  are  usual,  but  every  thing  was  stale.  Of  fruit  they  are  said  to 
be  very  fond,  and  can  afford  to  indulge  themselves  in  any  kinds. 
With  all  these  articles  to  cloy  the  appetite,  only  one  set  meal  a  day 
is  taken;  though  the  poorer  classes,  fishermen  and  laborers,  partake 
of  two. 
Government.  The  government  of  the  Sulu   Archipelago  is  a  kind  of  oligarchy, 

and  the  supreme  authority  is  vested  in  the  Sultan  and  the  Ruma 
Bechara  or  trading  council.  This  consists  of  about  twenty  chiefs, 
either  datus,  or  their  next  in  rank,  called  orangs,  who  are  governors 
of  towns  or  detached  provinces.  The  influence  of  the  individual 
chiefs  depends  chiefly  upon  the  number  of  their  retainers  or  slaves, 
and  the  force  they  can  bring  into  their  service  when  they  require 
it.  These  are  purchased  from  the  pirates,  who  bring  them  to  Sulu 
and  its  dependencies  for  sale.  The  slaves  are  employed  in  a  variety 
of  ways,  as  in  trading  prahus,  in  the  pearl  and  beche  de  mer  fisheries, 
and  in  the  search  after  the  edible  birds'  nests. 

A  few  are  engaged  in  agriculture,  and  those  who  are  at  all  educated 
are  employed  as  clerks.  These  slaves  are  not  denied  the  right  of 
holding  property,  which  they  enjoy  during  their  lives,  but  at  their 
death  it  reverts  to  the  master.  Some  of  them  are  quite  rich,  and 
what  may  appear  strange,  the  slaves  of  Sulu  are  invariably  better 
off  than  the  untitled  freemen,  who  are  at  all  times  the  prey  of  the 
hereditary  datus,  even  of  those  who  hold  no  official  stations.  By 
all  accounts  these  constitute  a  large  proportion  of  the  population, 
and  it  being  treason  for  any  low-born  freeman  to  injure  or  maltreat 
a  datu,  the  latter,  who  are  of  a  haughty,  overbearing,  and  tyrannical 
disposition,  seldom  keep  themselves  within  bounds  in  their  treat- 
ment of  their  inferiors.  The  consequence  is,  the  lower  class  of  free- 
men are  obliged  to  put  themselves  under  the  protection  of  some 
particular  datu,  which  guards  them  from  the  encroachment  of  others. 


Sulu  in  1843  611 

The  chief  to  whom  they  thus  attach  themselves,  is  induced  to  treat 
them  well,  in  order  to  retain  their  services,  and  attach  them  to  his 
person,  that  he  may,  in  case  of  need,  be  enabled  to  defend  himself 
from  depredations,  and  the  violence  of  his  neighbors. 

Such  is  the  absence  of  legal  restraint,  that  all  find  it  necessary 
to  go  abroad  armed,  and  accompanied- by  a  trusty  set  of  followers, 
who  are  also  armed.  This  is  the  case  both  by  day  and  night,  and, 
according  to  the  Datu's  account,  frequent  affrays  take  place  in  the 
open  streets,  which  not  unfrequently  end  in  bloodshed. 

Caution  is  never  laid  aside,  the  only  law  that  exists  being  that 
of  force;  but  the  weak  contrive  to  balance  the  power  of  the  strong 
by  uniting.  They  have  not  only  contentions  and  strife  among 
themselves,  but  it  was  stated  at  Manila  that  the  mountaineers  of 
Sulu,  who  are  said  to  be  Christians,  occasionally  make  inroads 
upon  them.  At  Sulu,  however,  it  did  not  appear  that  they  were 
under  much  apprehension  of  these  attacks.  The  only  fear  I  heard 
expressed  was  by  the  Sultan,  in  my  interview  with  him;  and  the 
cause  of  this,  as  I  have  already  stated,  was  probably  a  desire  to  find 
an  excuse  for  not  affording  us  facilities  to  go  into  the  interior.  Within 
twenty  years,  however,  the  reigning  sultan  has  been  obliged  to 
retire  within  his  forts,  in  the  town  of  Sulu,  which  I  have  before 
adverted  to. 

These  people  are  hostile  to  the  Sulus  of  the  coast  and  towns,  who 
take  every  opportunity  to  rob  them  of  their  cattle  and  property,  for 
which  the  mountaineers  seek  retaliation  when  they  have  an  oppor- 
tunity. From  the  manner  in  which  the  Datu  spoke  of  them,  they 
are  not  much  regarded.  Through  another  source  I  learned  that 
the  mountaineers  were  Papuans,  and  the  original  inhabitants  of 
the  islands,  who  pay  tribute  to  the  Sultan,  and  have  acknowledged 
his  authority,  ever  since  they  were  converted  to  Islamism.  Before 
that  time  they  were  considered  extremely  ferocious,  and  whenever 
it  was  practicable  they  were  destroyed.  Others  speak  of  an  original 
race  of  Dyacks  in  the  interior,  but  there  is  one  circumstance  to 
satisfy  me  that  there  is  no  confidence  to  be  placed  in  this  account, 
namely,  that  the  island  is  not  of  sufficient  extent  to  accommodate  so 
numerous  a  population  as  some  ascribe  to  it. 

The  forts  consist  of  a  double  row  of  piles,  filled  in  with  coral 
blocks.  That  situated  on  the  east  side  of  the  small  stream  may  be 
said  to  mount  a  few  guns,  but  these  are  altogether  inefficient;  and 
in  another,  on  the  west  side,,  which  is  rather  a  rude  embankment 
than  a  fort,  there  are  some  twelve  or  fifteen  pieces  of  large  calibre; 
but  I  doubt  very  much  if  they  had  been  fired  off  for  years,  and  many 
of  the  houses  built  upon  the  water  would  require  to  be  pulled  down 
before  these  guns  could  be  brought  to  bear  upon  any  thing  on  the 
side  of  the  bay,  supposing  them  to  be  in  a  good  condition;  a  little 
farther  to  the  east  of  the  town,  I  was  informed  they  had  a  kind  of 
stockade,  but  none  of  us  were  permitted  to  see  it. 

According  to  our  estimates,  and  the  information  we  received  while    Population. 
at  Sulu,  the  island  itself  does  not  contain  more  than  thirty  thousand 
inhabitants,  of  which  the  town  of  Soung  may  have  six  or  seven 
thousand.     The  whole  group  may    number  about  one  hundred  and 
thirty  thousand.     I  am  aware,  however,  that  it  is  difficult  to  estimate 


612  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

the  population  of  a  half-civilized  people,  who  invariably  exaggerate 
their  own  strength;  and  visitors  are  likewise  prone  to  do  the  same" 
thing.  The  Chinese  comprise  about  an  eighth  of  the  population 
of  the  town,  and  are  generally  of  the  lower  class.  They  are  con- 
stantly busy  at  their  trades,  and  intent  upon  making  money. 

At  Soung,  business  seems  active,  and  all,  slaves  as  well  as  masters, 
seem  to  engage  in  it.  The  absence  of  a  strong  government  leaves 
all  at  liberty  to  act  for  themselves,  and  the  Ruma  Bechara  gives 
unlimited  freedom  to  trade.  These  circumstances  promote  the 
industry  of  the  community,  and  even  that  of  the  slave,  for  he  too, 
as  before  observed,  has  a  life  interest  in  what  he  earns. 

Soung  being  the  residence  of  the  Sultan,  as  well  as  the  grand 
depot  for  all  piratical  goods,  is  probably  more  of  a  mart  than  any 
of  the  surrounding  towns.  In  the  months  of  March  and  April  it  is 
visited  by  several  Chinese  junks,  who  remain  trading  until  the  begin- 
ning of  the  month  of  August.  If  delayed  after  that  time,  they  can 
scarcely  return  in  safety,  being  unable  to  contend  with  the  boisterous 
weather  and  head  winds  that  then  prevail  in  the  Chinese  seas. 
These  junks  are  said  to  come  chiefly  from  Amoy,  where  the  cottons, 
etc.,  best  suited  for  the  Sulus  are  made.  Their  cargoes  consist 
of  a  variety  of  articles  of  Chinese  manufacture  and  produce,  such 
as  silk,  satin  goods,  cottons,  red  and  checked,  grass-cloth  clothing, 
handkerchiefs,  cutlery,  guns,  ammunition,  opium,  lumber,  china 
and  glass-ware,  rice,  sugar,  oil,  lard,  and  butter.  In  return  for  this 
merchandise  they  obtain  camphor,  birds'  nests,  rattans,  beche  de 
mer,  pearls,  and  pearl-shells,  coco,  tortoise-shell,  and  wax;  but 
there  is  no  great  quantity  of  these  articles  to  be  obtained,  perhaps 
not  more  than  two  or  three  cargoes  during  the  season.  The  trade 
requires  great  knowledge  of  the  articles  purchased,  for  the  Chinese 
and  Sulus  are  both  such  adepts  in  fraud,  that  great  caution  and 
circumspection  are  necessary. 
Customs  dues.  The  duties  on  importation  are  not  fixed,  but  are  changed   and 

altered  from  time  to  time  by  the  Ruma  Bechara.  The  following 
was  stated  to  me  as  the  necessary  payments  before  trade  could  be 
carried  on: 

A  large  ship,  with  Chinese  on  board,  pays $2,000 

A  large  ship,  without  Chinese  on  board,  pays 1,800 

Small  ships 1,500 

Large  brig 1,000 

Small  brig. 500 

Schooners from  150  to  400 

This  supposes  them  all  to  have  full  cargoes.  That  a  difference 
should  be  made  in  a  vessel  with  or  without  Chinamen,  seems  singular; 
but  this,  I  was  told,  arose  from  the  circumstance  that  English  vessels 
take  them  on  board,  in  order  to  detect  and  prevent  the  impositions 
of  the  Sulus. 

Vessels  intending  to  trade  at  Soung  should  arrive  before  the  Chinese 
junks,  and  remain  as  long  as  they  stay,  or  even  a  few  days  later. 
In  trading  with  the  natives,  all  operations  ought  to  be  carried  on 
for  cash,  or  if  by  barter,  no  delivery  should  be  made  until  the  articles 
to  be  taken  in  exchange  are  received.      In  short,  it  is  necessary  to 


f 


Siihi    ill    IS4J  oti 

deal  with  them  as  though  they  were  undoubted  rogues,  and  this 
pleases  them  much  more  than  to  appear  unsuspicious.  Vessels 
that  trade  engage  a  bazaar,  which  they  hire  of  the  Ruma  Bechara, 
and  it  is  advisable  to  secure  the  good-will  of  the  leading  datus  in 
that  council  by  presents,  and  paying  them  more  for  their  goods  than 
others. 

There  are  various  other  precautions  necessary  in  dealing  with  this 
people;  for  they  will,  if  possible,  so  act  as  to  give  rise  to  disputes, 
in  which  case  an  appeal  is  made  to  their  fellows,  who  are  sure  to 
decide  against  the  strangers.  Those  who  have  been  engaged  in 
this  trade,  advise  that  the  prices  of  the  goods  should  be  fixed  upon 
before  the  Sultan,  and  the  scales  of  the  Datu  of  Soung  employed; 
for  although  these  are  quite  faulty,  the  error  is  compensated  by  the 
articles  received  being  weighed  in  the  same.  This  also  secures  the 
Datu's  good-will,  by  the  fee  (some  fifty  dollars)  which  he  receives 
for  the  use  of  them.  Thus  it  will  be  perceived  that  those  who  desire 
to  trade  with  Sulu,  must  make  up  their  minds  to  encounter  many 
impositions,  and  to  be  continually  watchful  of  their  own  interests. 

Every  possible  precaution  ought  to  be  taken;  and  it  will  be  found, 
the  treatment  will  depend  upon,  or  be  according  to  the  force  or 
resolution  that  is  displayed.  In  justice  to  this  people  it  must  be 
stated,  there  have  been  times  when  traders  received  every  kindness 
and  attention  at  the  island  of  Sulu,  and  I  heard  it  even  said,  that 
many  vessels  had  gone  there  to  refit;  but  during  the  last  thirty  or 
forty  years,  the  reigning  sultans  and  their  subjects  have  become 
hostile  to  Europeans,  of  whom  they  plunder  and  destroy  as  many 
as  they  can,  and  this  they  have  hitherto  been  allowed  to  do  with 
impunity. 

Although  I  have  described  the  trade  with  Sulu  as  limited,  yet 
it  is  capable  of  greater  extension;  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  piratical 
habits  of  the  people,  the  evil  report  of  which  has  been  so  widely 
spread,  Sulu  would  now  have  been  one  of  the  principal  marts  of  the 
East.  The  most  fertile  parts  of  Borneo  are  subject  to  its  authority. 
There  all  the  richest  productions  of  these  Eastern  seas  grow  in 
immense  quantities,  but  are  now  left  ungarnered  in  consequence  of 
there  being  no  buyers.  The  cost  of  their  cultivation  would  be 
exceedingly  low,  and  I  am  disposed  to  believe  that  these  articles 
could  be  produced  here  at  a  lower  cost  than  anywhere  else. 

Besides  the  trade  with  China,  there  is  a  very  considerable  one 
with  Manila  in  small  articles,  and  I  found  one  of  our  countrymen 
engaged  in  this  traffic,  under  the  Spanish  flag.  To  him  I  am  indebted 
for  much  information  that  his  opportunities  of  observation  had 
given  him. 

The  materials  for  the  history  of  Sulu  are  meagre,  and  great  doubt 
seems  to  exist  in  some  periods  of  it.  That  which  I  have  been  able 
to  gather  is  as  follows: 

The  island  of  Sulu  is  generally  believed  to  have  been  originally 
inhabited  by  Papuans,  some  of  whom,  as  I  have  already  stated,  are 
still  supposed  to  inhabit  the  mountainous  part.  The  first  inter- 
course had  with  them  was  by  the  Chinese,  who  went  there  in  search 
of  pearls.  The  Orang  Dampuwans  were  the  first  of  the  Malays 
to  form  settlements  on  the  islands;  but  after    building  towns,    and 


614  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

making  other  improvements,  they  abandoned  the  islands,  in  con- 
sequence, it  is  said,  of  the  inhabitants  being  a  perfidious  race,  having 
previously  to  their  departure  destroyed  as  many  of  the  natives  as 
they  could. 

The  fame  of  the  submarine  riches  of  this  archipelago  reached 
Banjar  or  Borneo,  the  people  of  which  were  induced  to  resort  there, 
and  finding  it  to  equal  their  expectation,  they  sent  a  large  colony, 
and  made  endeavors  to  win  over  the  inhabitants,  and  obtain 
thereby  the  possession  of  their  rich  isle.  In  order  to  confirm  the 
alliance,  a  female  of  Banjarmassing.  of  great  beauty,  was  sent,  and 
married  to  the  principal  chief;  and  from  this  alliance  the  sovereigns 
of  Sulu  claim  their  descent.  The  treaty  of  marriage  made  Sulu 
tributary  to  the  Banjarmassing  empire. 

After  the  Banjars  had  thus  obtained  possession  of  the  archipelago, 
the  trade  in  its  products  attracted  settlers  from  the  surrounding 
islands,  who  soon  contrived  to  displace  the  aborigines,  and  drive 
them  to  the  inaccessible  mountains  for  protection. 

When  the  Chinese  took  possession  of  the  northern  parts  of 
Borneo,  under  the  Emperor  Songtiping,  about  the  year  1375,  the 
daughter  of  that  prince  was  married  to  a  celebrated  Arabian  chief 
named  Sheriff  Alii,  who  visited  the  shores  of  Borneo  in  quest  of 
commerce.  The  descendants  of  this  marriage  extended  their  con- 
quests not  only  over  the  Sulu  Archipelago,  but  over  the  whole 
of  the  Philippines,  and  rendered  the  former  tributary  to  Borneo. 
In  three  reigns  after  this  event,  the  sultan  of  Borneo  proper  married 
the  daughter  of  a  Sulu  chief,  and  from  this  union  came  Mirhome 
Bongsu,  who  succeeding  to  the  throne  while  yet  a  minor,  his  uncle 
acted  as  regent.  Sulu  now  wished  to  throw  off  the  yoke  of  Borneo, 
and  through  the  intrigues  of  the  regent  succeeded  in  doing  so,  as 
well  as  in  retaining  possession  of  the  eastern  side  of  Borneo,  from 
Maludu  Bay  on  the  north,  to  Tulusyan  on  the  south,  which  has 
ever  since  been  a  part  of  the  Sulu  territory. 

This  event  took  place  before  Islamism  became  the  prevailing  reli- 
gion; but  which  form  of  idolatry,  the  Sulus  pretend,  is  not  now 
known.  It  is,  however,  believed  the  people  on  the  coasts  were 
Buddhists,  while  those  of  the  interior  were  Pagans. 

The  first  sultan  of  Sulu  was  Kamaludin,  and  during  his  reign 
one  Sayed  Alii,  a  merchant,  arrived  at  Sulu  from  Mecca.  He  was 
a  sherif,  and  soon  converted  one-half  of  the  islanders  to  his  own 
faith.  He  was  elected  sultan  on  the  death  of  Kamaludin,  and  reigned 
seven  years,  in  the  course  of  which  he  became  celebrated  throughout 
the  archipelago.  Dying  at  Sulu,  a  tomb  was  erected  to  him  there, 
and  the  island  came  to  be  looked  upon  by  the  faithful  as  the  Mecca 
of  the  East,  and  continued  to  be  resorted  to  as  a  pilgrimage  until 
the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards. 
Taui  Tau-i.  Sayed  Alii  left  a  son  called  Batua,  who  succeeded  him.     The  latter 

had  two  sons,  named  Sabudin  and  Nasarudin,  who,  on  the  death 
of  their  father,  made  war  upon  each  other.  Nasarudin,  the  youngest, 
being  defeated,  sought  refuge  on  Tawi  Tawi,  where  he  established 
himself,  and  built  a  fort  for  his  protection.  The  difficulties  were 
finally  compromised,  and  they  agreed  to  reign  together  over  Sulu. 
Nasarudin  had  two  sons,  called  Amir  and  Bantilan,  of  whom  the 


Sulu  in  184^  516 

former  was  named  as  successor  to  the  two  brothers,  and  on  their 
deaths  ascended  the  throne.  During  his  reign  another  sherif  arrived 
from  Mecca,  who  succeeded  in  converting  the  remainder  of  the  popu- 
lation to  Islamism.  Bantilan  and  his  brother  Amir  finally  quarrelled, 
and  the  latter  was  driven  from  Sulu  to  seek  refuge  in  the  island  of 
Basilan,  where  he  became  sultan. 

On  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards  in  1566,  a  kind  of  desultory  war 
was  waged  by  them  upon  the  various  islands,  in  the  hope  of  con- 
quering them  and  extending  their  religion.  In  these  wars  they 
succeeded  in  gaining  temporary  possession  of  a  part  of  Sulu,  and 
destroyed  the  tomb  of  Sayed  Alii.  The  Spaniards  always  looked 
upon  the  conversion  of  the  Moslems  to  the  true  Catholic  faith  with 
great  interest;  but  in  the  year  1646,  the  sultan  of  Magindanao  suc- 
ceeded in  making  peace,  by  the  terms  of  which  the  Spaniards  with- 
drew from  Sulu,  and  were  to  receive  from  the  sultan  three  cargoes 
of  rice  annually  as  a  tribute. 

In  1608,  the  small-pox  made  fearful  ravages,  and  most  of  the 
inhabitants  fled  from  the  scourge.  Among  these  was  the  heir 
apparent,  during  whose  absence  the  throne  became  vacant,  and 
another  was  elected  in  his  stead.  This  produced  contention  for  a 
short  time,  which  ended  in  the  elected  maintaining  his  place. 

This  tribute  continued  to  be  paid  until  the  flight  of  Amir  to 
Basilan,  about  the  year  1752,  where  he  entered  into  a  secret  corre- 
spondence with  the  authorities  at  Zamboanga,  and  after  two  years 
a  vessel  was  sent  from  Manila,  which  carried  him  to  that  capital, 
where  he  was  treated  as  a  prisoner  of  state. 

In  June,  1759,  an  English  ship,  on  board  of  which  was  Dalrymple,  The  EntjUxh 
then  in  the  service  of  the  East  India  Company,  arrived  at  Sulu  on  trcntij. 
a  trading  voyage.  Dalrymple  remained  at  Sulu  for  three  months, 
engaged  in  making  sales  and  purchases.  The  Sultan  Bantilan 
treated  him  with  great  kindness,  and  sought  the  interest  of  Dalrymple 
to  obtain  the  liberation  of  his  brother,  who  was  now  held  prisoner 
by  the  Spaniards  at  Manila,  by  telling  him  of  the  distress  of  his 
brother's  wife,  who  had  been  left  behind  when  Amir  quitted  the 
island,  and  had  been  delivered  of  twins,  after  he  had  been  kidnapped 
by  the  Spaniards.  Dalrymple  entered  into  a  pledge  to  restore 
Amir,  and  at  the  same  time  effected  a  commercial  treaty  between 
the  East  India  Company  and  the  Sulu  chiefs.  By  this  it  was  stipu- 
lated that  an  annual  cargo  should  be  sent  to  Sulu,  and  sold  at  one 
hundred  per  cent,  profit,  for  which  a  return  cargo  should  be  provided 
for  the  China  market,  which  should  realize  an  equal  profit  there, 
after  deducting  all  expenses.  The  overplus,  if  any,  was  to  be 
carried  to  the  credit  of  the  Sulus.  This  appears  to  have  been  the 
first  attempt  made  by  the  English  to  secure  a  regular  commercial 
intercourse  with  this  archipelago. 

In  the  year  1760,  a  large  fleet  of  Spanish  vessels  sailed  from  Manila, 
with  about  two  thousand  men,  having  the  Sultan  Amir  on  board, 
to  carry  on  a  war  against  Sulu. 

On  their  arrival,  they  began  active  operations.  They  were 
repelled  on  all  sides,  and  after  seven  days'  ineffectual  attempts, 
they  gave  up  their  design.  They  returned  to  Manila,  it  is  said,  with 
a  loss  of  half  their  nvimber,  and  without  having  done  any  injury 


5U!  THE  FORMER  I'llILIPPIXES   THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 

to  the  Sulus.  Not  discouraged  with  this  failure,  the  Spaniards, 
about  two  years  after,  organized  a  still  larger  force,  which  is  estimated 
by  some  accounts  as  high  as  ten  thousand  men.  Although  this 
failed  in  its  attempts  on  the  fort  at  Soung,  the  Spaniards  obtained 
possession  of  Tanjong  Matonda,  one  of  the  small  ports  on  the  island, 
where  they  erected  a  church  and  fort.  Here  they  established  a 
colony,  and  appointed  a  governor.  The  inhabitants  upon  this 
deserted  their  habitations  in  the  neighborhood,  and  fled  to  the 
mountains,  which,  it  is  said,  excited  the  mountaineers,  ahost  of  whom, 
with  their  chief,  whose  name  was  Sri  Kala,  determined  to  rush  upon 
the  Spaniards,  and*  annihilate  them.  Having  to  contend  against 
disciplined  troops,  it  was  not  an  easy  task  to  succeed.  But  Sri 
Kala  had  a  follower,  named  Sigalo,  who  offered  to  lead  the  host 
to  battle  against  the  Spaniards,  and  to  exterminate  them,  or  die  in 
the  attempt.  The  chief  accepted  his  offer,  and  Sigalo,  with  a  chosen 
few,  marched  towards  the  fort,  leaving  the  rest  of  the  mountaineers 
in  readiness  to  join  them  at  an  appointed  signal,  and  rush  into  the 
fort  en  masse. 
V niori/  ori-r  Sri   Kala   and   Sigalo,   in  order  to  lull    the  watchfulness  of   the 

Siianianls.  Spaniards,  took  with  them  a  young  woman,  of  exquisite  beauty, 

named  Purmassuri.  The  lustful  Spaniards  were  thus  thrown  off  their 
guard,  the  signal  was  given,  and  the  host,  rushing  forward,  entered 
the  fort,  every  Spaniard  within  which  was  slain.  A  few  only,  who 
were  on  the  outside,  escaped  to  the  vessels,  which  set  sail,  and  after 
encountering  various  mishaps,  returned  to  Manila. 

Some  time  after  this  the  Sultan  Bantilan  died,  and  his  son  Alim- 
ud-deen  was  proclaimed  sultan.  Dalrymple  did  not  return  until 
1762,  with  a  part  of  the  appointed  cargo;  but  the  vessel  in  which 
the  larger  part  had  been  shipped,  failed  to  arrive,  from  not  being 
able  to  find  Sulu,  and  went  to  China.  Thence  she  proceeded  to 
Manila,  and  afterwards  to  Sulu.  The  captain  of  the  latter  vessel 
gave  a  new  credit  to  the  Sulus,  before  they  had  paid  for  their  first 
cargo;  and  on  the  arrival  of  Dalrymple  the  next  time,  he  found 
that  the  small-pox  had  carried  off  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants, 
from  which  circumstance  all  his  hopes  of  profit  were  frustrated. 
He  then  obtained  for  the  use  of  the  East  India  Company,  a  grant 
of  the  island  of  Balambangan,  which  lies  off  the  north  end  of  Borneo, 
forming  one  side  of  the  Straits  of  Balabac,  the  western  entrance  to 
the  Sulu  Sea.  Here  he  proposed  to  establish  a  trading  post, 
and  after  having  visited  Madras,  he  took  possession  of  this  island 
in  1763. 

In  October,  1762,  the  English  took  Manila,  where  the  Sultan 
Amir  was  found  by  Dalrymple,  who  engaged  to  reinstate  him  on 
his  throne,  if  he  would  cede  to  the  English  the  north  end  of  Borneo, 
as  well  as  the  south  end  of  Palawan.  This  he  readily  promised, 
and  he  was,  in  consequence,  carried  back  to  Sulu  and  reinstated; 
his  nephew,  Alim-ud-deen,  readily  giving  place  to  him,  and  confirm- 
ing the  grant  to  the  East  India  Company,  in  which  the  Ruma  Bechara 
joined. 

After  various  arrangements,  the  East  India  Company  took  pos- 
session of  Balambangan,  in  the  year  1773,  and  formed  a  settlement 
there  with  a  view  of  making  it  an  emporium  of  trade  for  Eastern 


Salu  in  1842  ol7 

commodities.  Troops  and  stores  were  sent  from  India,  and  the 
population  began  to  increase  by  settlers,  both  Chinese  and  Malays, 
who  arrived  in  numbers.  In  the  year  1775,  the  fort,  notwithstanding 
all  the  treaties  and  engagements  between  Dalrymple  and  the  Sultan, 
was  surprised  by  the  Sulus,  and  many  of  the  garrison  put  to  death. 
This  virtually  put  an  end  to  the  plans  of  the  English,  although  Virinru  ov 
another  attempt  was  made  to  re-establish  the  settlement  by  Colonel  I'^'iulish. 
Farquhar,  in  1803;  but  it  was  thought  to  be  too  expensive  a  post,  . 
and  was  accordingly  abandoned  in  the  next  year.  This  act  of  the 
Sulus  fairly  established  their  character  for  perfidy,  and  ever  since 
that  transaction  they  have  been  looked  upon  as  treacherous  in  the 
highest  degree,  and,  what  is  singular,  have  been  allowed  to  carry 
on  their  piracies  quite  unmolested.  The  taking  of  Balambangan 
has  been  generally  imputed  to  the  treacherous  disposition  and 
innate  love  of  plunder  among  the  Sulus,  as  well  as  to  their  fear  that 
it  would  destroy  the  trade  of  Sulu  by  injuring  all  that  of  the  archi- 
pelago. But  there  are  strong  reasons  for  believing  that  this  dark 
deed  owed  its  origin  in  part  to  the  influence  of  the  Spaniards  and 
Dutch,  who  looked  with  much  distrust  upon  the  growth  of  the 
rival  establishment.  Such  was  the  jealousy  of  the  Spaniards,  that 
the  governor  of  the  Philippines  peremptorily  required  that  Balam- 
bangan should  be  evacuated.  The  Sulus  boast  of  the  deed,  and  admit 
that  they  received  assistance  from  both  Zamboanga  and  Ternate, 
the  two  nearest  Spanish  and  Dutch  ports.  These  nations  had  great 
reasons  to  fear  the  establishment  of  a  power  like  that  of  the  East 
India  Company,  in  a  spot  so  favorably  situated  to  secure  the  trade 
of  the  surrounding  islands,  possessing  fine  harbors,  and  in  every 
way  adapted  to  become  a  great  commercial  depot.  Had  it  been 
held  by  the  East  India  Company  but  for  a  few  years,  it  must  have 
become  what  Singapore  is  now. 

The  original  planner  of  this  settlement  is  said  to  have  been  Lord 
Pigot;  but  the  merit  of  carrying  it  forward  was  undoubtedly  due 
to  Dalrymple,  whose  enterprising  mind  saw  the  advantage  of  the 
situation,  and  whose  energy  was  capable  of  carrying  the  project 
successfully  forward. 

Since  the  capture  of  Balambangan,  there  has  been  no  event  in 
the  history  of  Sulu  that  has  made  any  of  the  reigns  of  the  Sultans 
memorable,  although  fifteen  have  since  ascended  the  throne. 

Sulu  has  from  all  the  accounts  very  much  changed  in  its  character 
as  well  as  population  since  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards,  and  the 
establishment  of  their  authority  in  the  Philippines.  Before  that 
event,  some  accounts  state  that  the  trade  with  the  Chinese  was  of 
great  extent,  and  that  from  four  to  five  hundred  junks  arrived 
annually  from  Cambojia,  with  which  Sulu  principally  traded.  At 
that  time  the  population  is  said  to  have  equalled  in  density  that  of 
the  thickly-settled  parts  of  China. 

The  government  has  also  undergone  a  change;  for  the  Sultan, 
who  among  other  Malay  races  is  usually  despotic,  is  here  a  mere 
cipher,  and  the  government  has  become  an  oligarchy.  This  change 
has  probably  been  brought  about  by  the  increase  of  the  privileged 
class  of  Datus,  all  of  whom  were  entitled  to  a  seat  in  the  Ruma 
Bechara  until  about  the  year   1810,  when  the  great  inconvenience 


618  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

of  so  large  a  council  was  felt,  and  it  became  impossible  to  control 
it  without  great  difficulty  and  trouble  on  the  part  of  the  Sultan. 
The  Ruma  Bechara  was  then  reduced  until  it  contained  but  six  of 
the  principal  Datus,  who  assumed  the  power  of  controlling  the  state. 
The  Ruma  Bechara,  however,  in  consequence  of  the  complaints 
of  many  powerful  Datus,  was  enlarged;  but  the  more  powerful, 
and  those  who  have  the  largest  numerical  force  of  slaves,  still  rule 
over  its  deliberations.  The  whole  power,  within  the  last  thirty 
years,  has  been  usurped  by  one  or  two  Datus,  who  now  have  mono- 
polized the  little  foreign  trade  that  comes  to  these  islands.  The 
Sultan  has  the  right  to  appoint  his  successor,  and  generally  names 
him  while  living.  In  default  of  this,  the  choice  devolves  upon  the 
Ruma  Bechara,  who  elect  by  a  majority. 

From  a  more  frequent  intercourse  with  Europeans  and  the  dis- 
covery of  new  routes  through  these  seas,  the  opportunities  of  com- 
mitting depredations  have  become  less  frequent,  and  the  fear  of 
detection  greater.  By  this  latter  motive  they  are  more  swayed  than 
by  any  thing  else,  and  if  the  Sulus  have  ever  been  bold  and  daring 
robbers  on  the  high  seas,  they  have  very  much  changed. 

Many  statements  have  been  made  and  published  relative  to 
the  piracies  committed  in  these  seas,  which  in  some  cases  exceed,  and 
in  others  fall  short,  of  the  reality.  Most  of  the  piratical  establish- 
ments are  under  the  rule,  or  sail  under  the  auspices  of  the  Sultan 
and  Ruma  Bechara  of  Sulu,  who  are  more  or  less  intimately  con- 
nected with  them.  The  share  of  the  booty  that  belongs  to  the  Sultan 
and  Ruma  Bechara  is  twenty-five  per  cent,  on  all  captures,  whilst 
the  Datus  receive  a  high  price  for  the  advance  they  make  of  guns 
and  powder,  and  for  the  services  of  their  slaves. 

The  following  are  the  piratical  establishments  of  Sulu,  obtained 
from  the  most  authentic  sources,  published  as  well  as  verbal.  The 
first  among  these  is  the  port  of  Soung,  at  which  we  anchored,  in 
the  island  of  Sulu;  not  so  much  from  the  number  of  men  available 
here  for  this  pursuit,  as  the  facility  of  disposing  of  the  goods.  By 
the  Spaniards  they  are  denominated  Illanun  or  Lanuns  pirates.* 
There  are  other  rendezvous  on  Pulo  Toolyan,  at  Bohol,  Tonho, 
Pilas,  Tawi  Tawi,  Sumlout,  Pantutaran,  Parodasan,  Palawan,  and 
Basilan,  and  Tantoli  on  Celebes.  These  are  the  most  noted,  but 
there  are  many  minor  places,  where  half  a  dozen  prahus  are  fitted  out. 
Those  of  Sulu,  and  those  who  go  under  the  name  of  the  Lanuns, 
have  prahus  of  larger  size,  and  better  fitted.  They  are  from  twenty 
to  thirty  tons  burden,  and  are  propelled  by  both  sails  and  oars. 
They  draw  but  little  water,  are  fast  sailers,  and  well  adapted  for 
navigating  through  these  dangerous  seas.  These  pirates  are  sup- 
posed to  possess  in  the  whole  about  two  hundred  prahus,  which 
usually  are  manned  with  from  forty  to  fifty  pirates;  the  number 
therefore  engaged  in  this  business,  may  be  estimated  at  ten  thousand. 
They  are  armed  with  muskets,  blunderbusses,  krises,  hatchets,  and 
spears,  and  at  times  the  vessels  have  one  or  two  large  guns  mounted. 
They  infest  the  Macassar  Strait,  the  Celebes  Sea,  and  the  Sulu  Sea. 
Soung  is  the  only  place  where  they  can  dispose  of  their  plunder 

*  This  name  is  derived  from  the  large  bay  that  makes  in  on  the  south  side 
of  the  island  of  Mindanao,  and  on  which  a  set  of  freebooters  reside. 


Sulu  in  18J,2  519 

to  advantage,  and  obtain  the  necessary  outfits.  It  may  be  called 
the  principal  resort  of  these  pirates,  where  well-directed  measures 
would  result  in  effectually   suppressing  the  crime. 

Besides  the  pirates  of  Sulu,  the  commerce  of  the  eastern  islands 
is  vexed  with  other  piratical  establishments.  In  the  neighboring 
seas,  there  are  the  Malay  pirates,  who  have  of  late  years  become 
exceedingly  troublesome.  Their  prahus  are  of  much  smaller  size 
than  those  of  Sulu,  being  from  ten  to  twelve  tons  burden,  but  in 
proportion  they  are  much  better  manned,  and  thus  are  enabled  to 
ply  with  more  efficiency  their  oars  or  paddles.  These  prahus 
frequent  the  shores  of  Malacca  Straits,  Cape  Roumania,  the  Carimon 
Isles,  and  the  neighboring  straits,  and  at  times  they  visit  the  Rhio 
Straits.  Some  of  the  most  noted,  I  was  informed,  were  fitted  out 
from  Johore,  in  the  very  neighborhood  of  the  English  authorities 
at  Singapore;  they  generally  have  their  haunts  on  the  small  islands 
on  the  coast,  from  which  they  make  short  cruises. 

They  are  noted  for  their  arrangements  for  preventing  them- 
selves from  receiving  injury,  in  the  desperate  defences  that  are  some- 
times made  against  them.  These  small  prahus  have  usually  swivels 
mounted,  which,  although  not  of  great  calibre,  are  capable  of 
throwing  a  shot  beyond  the  range  of  small-arms.  It  is  said  that 
they  seldom  attempt  an  attack  unless  the  sea  is  calm,  which  enables 
them  to  approach  their  victims  with  more  assurance  of  success,  on 
account  of  the  facility  with  which  they  are  enabled  to  manage 
their  boats.  The  frequent  calms  which  occur  in  these  seas  between 
the  land  and  sea  breezes,  afford  them  many  opportunities  of  putting 
their  villanous  plans  in  operation;  and  the  many  inlets  and  islets, 
with  which  they  are  well  acquainted,  afford  placesof  refuge  andambush, 
and  for  concealing  their  booty.  They  are  generally  found  in  small 
flotillas  of  from  six  to  twenty  prahus,  and  when  they  have  succeeded 
in  disabling  a  vessel  at  long  shot,  the  sound  of  the  gong  is  the  signal 
for  boarding,  which,  if  successful,  results  in  a  massacre  more  or  less 
bloody,  according  to  the  obstinacy  of  the  resistance  they  have  met 
with. 

In  the  winter  months,  the  Malacca  Straits  are  most  infested  with 
them;  and  during  the  summer,  the  neighborhood  of  Singapore, 
Point  Rumania,  and  the  channels  in  the  vicinity.  In  the  spring, 
from  February  to  May,  they  are  engaged  in  procuring  their  supplies, 
in  fishing,  and  refitting  their  prahus  for  the  coming  year. 

I  have  frequently  heard  plans  proposed  for  the  suppression  of  ^"Suppression 
these  pirates,  particularly  of  those  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  »/  pirates. 
settlements  under  British  rule.  The  European  authorities  are  much 
to  blame  for  the  quiescent  manner  in  which  they  have  so  long 
borne  these  depredations,  and  many  complaints  are  made  that 
Englishmen,  on  being  transplanted  to  India,  lose  that  feeling  of 
horror  for  deeds  of  blood,  such  as  are  constantly  occurring  at  their 
very  doors,  which  they  would  experience  in  England.  There  are, 
however,  many  difficulties  to  overcome  before  operations  against 
the  pirates  can  be  effective.  The  greatest  of  these  is  the  desire  of 
the  English  to  secure  the  good-will  of  the  chiefs  of  the  tribes  by  whom 
they  are  surrounded.  They  thus  wink  at  their  piracies  on  the 
vessels  of  other  nations,  or  take  no  steps  to  alleviate  the  evils  of 


520  THE    FORMER   PHILIPPINES   TIIRV   FOREIOS  EYES 

slavery.  Indeed  the  language  that  one  hears  from  many  intelligent 
men  who  have  long  resided  in  that  part  of  the  world  is,  that  in  no 
country  where  civilization  exists  does  slavery  exhibit  so  debasing 
a  form  as  in  her  Indian  possessions.  Another  difficulty  consists  in 
the  want  of  minute  knowledge  of  the  coasts,  inlets,  and  hiding- 
places  of  the  pirates,  and  this  must  continue  to  exist  until  proper 
surveys  are  made.  This  done,  it  would  be  necessary  to  employ 
vessels  that  could  pursue  the  pirates  everywhere,  for  which  purpose 
steamers  naturally  suggest  themselves. 

What  will  appear  most  extraordinary  is,  that  the  very  princes 
who  are  enjoying  the  stipend  for  the  purchase  of  the  site  whereon 
the  English  authority  is  established,  are  believed  to  be  the  most 
active  in  equipping  the  prahus  for  these  piratical  expeditions;  yet 
no  notice  is  taken  of  them,  although  it  would  be  so  easy  to  control 
them  by  withholding  payment  until  they  had  cleared  themselves 
from  suspicion,  or  by  establishing  residents  in  their  chief  towns. 

Another,  and  a  very  different  race  of  natives  who  frequent  the 
Sulu  Archipelago,  must  not  be  passed  by  without  notice.  These 
are  the  Bajow  divers  or  fishermen,  to  whom  Sulu  is  indebted  for 
procuring  the  submarine  treasures  with  which  her  seas  are  stored. 
They  are  also  very  frequently  employed  in  the  beche  de  mer  or  trepang 
fisheries  among  the  islands  to  the  south.  The  Bajows  generally 
look  upon  Macassar  as  their  principal  place  of  resort.  They  were 
at  one  time  believed  to  be  derived  from  Johore,  on  the  Malayan 
peninsula;  at  another,  to  be  Buguese;  but  they  speak  the  Sulu  dialect, 
and  are  certainly  derived  from  some  of  the  neighboring  islands. 
The  name  of  Bajows,  in  their  tongue,  means  fishermen.  From  all 
accounts,  they  are  allowed  to  pursue  their  avocations  in  peace,  and 
are  not  unfrequently  employed  by  the  piratical  datus,  and  made 
to  labor  for  them.  They  resort  to  their  fishing-grounds  in  fleets 
of  between  one  and  two  hundred  sail,  having  their  wives  and 
children  with  them,  and  in  consequence  of  the  tyranny  of  the  Sulus, 
endeavor  to  place  themselves  under  the  protection  of  the  flag  of 
Holland,  by  which  nation  this  useful  class  of  people  is  encouraged. 
The  Sulu  Seas  are  comparatively  little  frequented  by  them,  as  they 
are  unable  to  dispose  of  the  prodvice  of  their  fisheries  for  want  of 
a  market,  and  fear  the  exactions  of  the  Datus.  Their  prahus  are 
about  five  tons  each.  The  Bajows  at  some  islands  are  stationary, 
but  are  for  the  most  part  constantly  changing  their  ground.  The 
Spanish  authorities  in  the  Philippines  encourage  them,  it  is  said, 
to  frequent  their  islands,  as  without  them  they  would  derive  little 
benefit  from  the  banks  in  the  neighboring  seas,  where  quantities 
of  pearl-oysters  are  known  to  exist,  which  produce  pearls  of  the 
finest  kind.  The  Bajows  are  inoffensive  and  very  industrious,  and 
in  faith  Mahomedans. 

The  climate  of  Sulu  during  our  short  stay,  though  warm,  was 
agreeable.  The  time  of  our  visit  was  in  the  dry  season,  which  lasts 
from  October  till  April,  and  alternates  with  the  wet  one,  from  May 
till  September.  June  and  July  are  the  windy  months,  when  strong 
breezes  blow  from  the  westward.  In  the  latter  part  of  August  and 
September,  strong  gales  are  felt  from  the  south,  while  in  December 
and  January  the  winds   are  found   to   come   from   the   northward; 


Siihi    in   1S42  6iil 

but  light  winds  usually  prevail  from  the  southwest  during  the  wet 
season,  and  from  the  opposite  quarter,  the  dry,  following  closely 
the  order  of  the  monsoons  in  the  China  seas.  As  to  the  temperature, 
the  climate  is  very  equable,  the  thermometer  seldom  rising  above 
90°  or  falling  below  70°. 

Diseases  are  few,  and  those  that  prevail  arise  from  the  manner 
in  which  the  natives  live.  They  are  from  that  cause  an  unhealthy- 
looking  race.  The  small-pox  has  at  various  times  raged  with 
great  violence  throughout  the  group,  and  they  speak  of  it  with 
great  dread.  Few  of  the  natives  appeared  to  be  marked  with  it, 
which  may  have  been  owing,  perhaps,  to  their  escaping  this  disorder 
for  some  years.  Vaccination  has  not  yet  been  introduced  among 
them,  nor  have  they  practiced  inoculation. 

Notwithstanding  Soung  was  once  the  Mecca  of  the  East,  its  people 
have  but  little  zeal  for  the  Mahomedan  faith.  It  was  thought 
at  once  time  that  they  had  almost  forgotten  its  tenets,  in  consequence 
of  the  neglect  of  all  their  religious  abservances.  The  precepts  which 
they  seem  to  regard  most  are  that  of  abstaining  from  swine's  fiesh, 
and  that  of  being  circumcised.  Although  polygamy  is  not  inter- 
dicted, few  even  of  the  datus  have  more  than  one  wife. 

Soung  Road  offers  good  anchorage;  and  supplies  of  all  kinds  may 
be  had  in  abundance.  Beef  is  cheap,  and  vegetables  and  fruits  at 
all  seasons  plenty. 

Our  observations  placed  the  town  in  latitude  6°  01'  N.,  longitude 
120°  55'  51  "E. 

Having  concluded  the  treaty  and  other  business  that  had  taken 
me  to  Sulu,  we  took  our  departure  for  the  Straits  of  Balabac,  the 
western  entrance  into  this  sea,  with  a  fine  breeze  to  the  eastward. 
By  noon  we  had  reached  the  group  of  Pangootaaraang,  consisting 
of  five  small  islands.  All  of  these  are  low,  covered  with  trees,  and 
without  lagoons.  They  presented  a  great  contrast  to  Sulu,  which 
was  seen  behind  us  in  the  distance.  The  absence  of  the  swell  of 
the  ocean  in  sailing  through  this  sea  is  striking,  and  gives  the  idea 
of  navigating  an  extensive  bay,  on  whose  luxuriant  islands  no  surf 
breaks.  There  are,  however,  sources  of  danger  that  incite  the 
navigator  to  watchfulness  and  constant  anxiety;  the  hidden  shoals 
and  reefs,  and  the  sweep  of  the  tide,  which  leave  him  no  control  over 
his  vessel. 

Through  the  night,  which  was  exceedingly  dark,  we  sounded  every  Canni/an  StUu. 
twenty  minutes,  but  found  no  bottom;  and  at  daylight  on  the  7th, 
we  made  the  islands  of  Cagayan  Sulu,  in  latitude  7°  03'  30"  N., 
longitude  118°  37'  E.  The  tide  or  current  was  passing  the  isalnds 
to  the  west-southwest,  three  quarters  of  a  mile  per  hour;  we  had 
soundings  of  seventy-five  fathoms.  Cagayan  Sulu  has  a  pleasant 
appearance  from  the  sea,  and  may  be  termed  a  high  island.  It  is 
less  covered  with  undergrowth  and  mangrove-bushes  than  the 
neighboring  islands,  and  the  reefs  are  comparatively  small.  It 
has  fallen  off  in  importance;  and  by  comparing  former  accounts 
with  those  I  received,  and  from  its  present  aspect,  it  would  seem  that 
it  has  decreased  both  in  population  and  products.  Its  caves  formerly 
supplied  a  large  quantity  of  edible   birds'  nests;  large  numbers  of 


522  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

cattle  were  to  be  found  upon  it ;  and  its  cultivation  was  carried  on  to 
some  extent.  These  articles  of  commerce  are  not  so  much  attended 
to  at  the  present  time,  and  the  beche  de  mer  and  tortoise-shell, 
formerly  brought  hither,  are  now  carried  to  other  places.  There 
is  a  small  anchorage  on  the  west  side,  but  we  did  not  visit  it.  There 
are  no  dangers  near  these  small  islands  that  may  not  be  guarded 
against.  Our  survey  extended  only  to  their  size  and  situation,  as 
I  deemed  it  my  duty  to  devote  all  the  remainder  of  the  time  I  had 
to  spare  to  the  Balabac  Straits. 
Halabac  straits.  After  the  night  set  in,  we  continued  sounding  every  ten  minutes, 
and  occasionally  got  bottom  in  from  thirty  to  seventy  fathoms. 
At  midnight,  the  water  shoaled  to  twenty  fathoms,  when  I  dropped 
the  anchor  until  daylight.  We  shortly  afterwards  had  a  change  of 
wind,  and  a  heavy  squall  passed  over  us. 

In  the  morning  we  had  no  shoal  ground  near  us,  and  the  bank 
on  which  we  had  anchored  was  found  to  be  of  small  size;  it  is  probable 
that  we  had  dropped  the  anchor  on  the  shoalest  place.  Vessels 
have  nothing  to  fear  in  this  respect. 

At  9:00  a.  m.  of  the  8th,  we  made  the  Mangsee  Islands  ahead  of 
us,  and  likewise  Balabac  to  the  north,  and  Balambagan  to  the  south. 
Several  sand-banks  and  extensive  reefs  were  also  seen  between  them. 
On  seeing  the  ground  on  which  we  had  to  operate,  of  which  the 
published  charts  give  no  idea  whatever,  I  determined  to  proceed, 
and  take  a  central  position  with  the  ship  under  the  Mangsee  Islands; 
but  in  order  not  to  lose  time,  I  hoisted  out  and  dropped  two  boats, 
under  Lieutenant  Perry,  to  survey  the  first  sand-bank  we  came  to, 
which  lies  a  few  miles  to  the  eastward  of  these  islands,  with  orders 
to  effect  this  duty  and  join  me  at  the  anchorage,  or  find  a  shelter 
under  the  lee  of  the  islands. 

At  half-past  two  p.  m.  we  anchored  near  the  reef,  in  thirty-six 
fathoms  water.  I  thought  myself  fortunate  in  getting  bottom,  as 
the  reefs  on  closing  with  them  seemed  to  indicate  but  little  appearance 
of  it. 

The  rest  of  the  day  was  spent  in  preparing  the  boats  for  our 
operations.  I  now  felt  the  want  of  the  tender.  Although  in  the 
absence  of  this  vessel,  great  exposure  was  necessary  to  effect  this 
survey,  I  found  both  officers  and.  men  cheerful  and  willing.  The 
parties  were  organized, —  the  first  to  proceed  to  the  north,  towards 
Balabac  Island,  to  survey  the  intermediate  shoals  and  reefs,  under 
Lieutenant  Emmons  and  Mr.  Totten;  the  second  to  the  south,  under 
Lieutenants  Perry  and  Budd;  and  Mr.  Hammersly  for  the  survey 
of  the  shoals  of  Balambangan  and  Banguey,  and  their  reefs.  The 
examination  of  the  Mangsee  Islands,  and  the  reefs  adjacent,  with 
the  astronomical  and  magnetic  observations,  etc.,  devolved  on  my- 
self and  those  who  remained  on  board  the  ship. 

The  weather  was  watched  with  anxiety,  and  turned  out  disagree- 
able, heavy  showers  and  strong  winds  prevailing;  notwithstanding, 
the  boats  were  despatched,  after  being  as  well  protected  against 
it  as  possible.  We  flattered  ourselves  that  these  extensive  reefs 
would  produce  a  fine  harvest  of  shells;  but,  although  every  exertion 
was  made  in  the  search,  we  did  not  add  as  many  to  our  collections 
as   we   anticipated.     Some   land-shells,   however,   were   found   that 


Sulu  in  18A2  6SS 

we  little  expected  to  meet  with,  for  many  of  the  trees  were  covered 
with  them,  and  on  cutting  them  down,  large  quantities  were  easily 
obtained.  Mr.  Peale  shot  several  birds,  among  which  was  a  Nicobar 
pigeon;  some  interesting  plants  and  corals  were  also  added.  On 
the  island  a  large  quantity  of  drift-wood  was  found,  which  with 
that  which  is  growing  affords  ample  supplies  of  fuel  for  ships.  No 
fresh  water  is  to  be  had,  except  by  digging,  the  island  being  but  a 
few  feet  above  high-water  mark. 

Although  the  time  was  somewhat  unfavorable.  Lieutenant  Em- 
mons and  party  executed  their  orders  within  the  time  designated, 
and  met  with  no  other  obstructions  than  the  inclemency  of  the 
weather.  This  was  not,  however,  the  case  with  Lieutenant  Perry, 
who,  near  a  small  beach  on  the  island  of  Balambangan,  encountered 
some  Sulus,  who  were  disposed  to  attack  him.  The  natives,  no 
doubt,  were  under  the  impression  that  the  boats  were  from  some 
shipwrecked  vessel.  They  were  all  well  armed,  and  apparently 
prepared  to  take  advantage  of  the  party  if  possible;  but,  by  the 
prudence  and  forbearance  of  this  officer,  collision  was  avoided,  and 
his  party  saved  from  an  attack. 

The  island  of  Balambangan  was  through  the  instrumentality  Balambangan 
of  Mr.  Dalrymple,  as  heretofore  stated,  obtained  from  the  Sulus  for 
a  settlement  and  place  of  deposit,  by  the  East  India  Company,  who 
took  possession  of  it  in  1773.  Its  situation  off  the  northern  end  of 
Borneo,  near  the  fertile  district  of  that  island,  its  central  position, 
and  its  two  fine  ports,  offered  great  advantages  for  commerce,  and 
for  its  becoming  a  great  entrepot  for  the  riches  of  this  archipelago. 
Troops,  and  stores  of  all  kinds,  were  sent  from  India;  numbers  of 
Chinese  and  Malays  were  induced  to  settle;  and  Mr.  Herbert,  one 
of  the  council  of  Bencoolen,  was  appointed  governor.  It  had  been 
supposed  to  be  a  healthy  place,  as  the  island  was  elevated,  and 
therefore  probably  free  from  malaria;  but  in  1775  the  native  troops 
from  India  became  much  reduced  from  sickness,  and  the  post  con- 
sequently much  weakened.  This,  with  the  absence  of  the  cruisers 
from  the  harbor,  afforded  a  favorable  opportunity  for  its  capture; 
and  the  wealth  that  it  was  supposed  to  contain  created  an  induce- 
ment that  proved  too  great  for  the  hordes  of  marauding  pirates 
to  resist.  Choosing  their  time,  they  rushed  upon  the  sentries,  put 
them  to  death,  took  possession  of  the  guns,  and  turned  them  against 
the  garrison,  only  a  few  of  whom  made  their  escape  on  board  of  a 
small  vessel.  The  booty  in  goods  and  valuables  was  said  to  have 
been  very  large,  amounting  to  nearly  four  hundred  thousand  pounds 
sterling. 

Although  Borneo  offers  many  inducements  to  commercial  enter- 
prise, the  policy  of  the  Dutch  Company  has  shut  themselves  out, 
as  well  as  others,  by  interdicting  communication.  In  consequence, 
except  through  indirect  channels,  there  has  been  no  information 
obtained  of  the  singular  and  unknown  inhabitants  of  its  interior. 
This,  however,  is  not  long  destined  to  be  the  case. 

Mr.  Brooke,  an  English  gentleman  of  fortune,  has,  since  our 
passage  through  these  seas,  from  philanthropic  motives,  made  an 
agreement  with  the  rajah  of  Sarawack,  on  the  northern  and  western 
side  of  Borneo,  to  cede  to  him  the  administration  of  that   portion 


r,.>if  THE  FORMER    PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

of  the  island.  This  arrangement  it  is  believed  the  British  govern- 
ment will  confirm,  in  which  event  Sarawack  will  at  once  obtain 
an  importance  among  the  foreign  colonies,  in  the  Eastern  seas, 
second  only  to  that  of  Singapore. 

The  principal  inducement  that  has  influenced  Mr.  Brooke  in  this 
undertaking  is  the  interest  he  feels  in  the  benighted  people  of  the 
interior,  who  are  known  under  the  name  of  Dyack,  and  of  whom 
some  extraordinary  accounts  have  been  given. 

A  few  of  these,  which  I  have  procured  from  reputable  sources, 
I  will  now  relate,  in  order  that  it  may  be  seen  among  what  kind  of 
people   this  gentleman  has   undertaken  to    introduce  the    arts    of 
civilization. 
The  Dijiiks.  The  Dyacks  are,  by  all  accounts,  a  fine  race,  and  much  the  most 

numerous  of  any  inhabiting  Borneo.  They  are  almost  exclusively 
confined  to  the  interior,  where  they  enjoy  a  fine  climate,  and  all 
the  spontaneous  productions  of  the  tropics.  They  are  believed  to 
be  the  aborigines  of  the  island.  The  name  of  Dyack  seems  to  be 
more  particularly  applied  to  those  who  live  in  the  southern  section 
of  Borneo.  To  the  north  they  are  called  Idaan  or  Tirun,  and 
those  so  term.ed  are  best  known  to  the  Sulus,  or  the  inhabitants 
of  that  part  of  the  coast  of  Borneo  over  which  the  Sulus  rule.  In 
personal  appearance,  the  Dyacks  are  slender,  have  higher  foreheads 
than  the  Malays,  and  are  a  finer  and  much  better-looking  people. 
Their  hair  is  long,  straight,  and  coarse,  though  it  is  generally  crop- 
ped short  round  the  head.  The  females  are  spoken  of  as  being 
fair  and  handsome,  and  many  of  those  who  have  been  made  slaves 
are  to  be  seen  among  the  Malays. 

In  manners  the  Dyacks  are  described  as  simple  and  mild,  yet 
they  are  characterized  by  some  of  the  most  uncommon  and  revolting 
customs  of  barbarians.  Their  government  is  very  simple;  the  elders 
in  each  village  for  the  most  part  rule:  but  they  are  said  to  have 
chiefs  that  do  not  differ  from  the  Malay  rajahs.  They  wear  no 
clothing  except  the  marc,  and  many  of  them  are  tattooed,  with 
a  variety  of  figures,  over  their  body.  They  live  in  houses  built  of 
wood,  that  are  generally  of  large  size,  and  frequently  contain  as 
many  as  one  hundred  persons.  •  These  houses  are  usually  built 
on  piles,  divided  into  compartments,  and  have  a  kind  of  veranda 
in  front,  which  serves  as  a  communication  between  the  several 
families.  The  patriarch,  or  elder,  resides  in  the  middle.  The 
houses  are  entered  by  ladders,  and  have  doors,  but  no  windows. 
The  villages  are  protected  by  a  sort  of  breastwork. 

Although  this  people  are  to  be  found  throughout  all  Borneo, 
and  even  within  a  few  miles  of  the  coast,  yet  they  do  not  occupy 
any  part  of  its  shores,  which  are  held  by  Malays,  or  Chinese  settlers. 
There  is  no  country  more  likely  to  interest  the  world  than  Borneo. 
All  accounts  speak  of  vast  ruins  of  temples  and  palaces,  through- 
out the  whole  extent  of  its  interior,  which  the  ancestors  of  the 
present  inhabitants  could  not  have  constructed.  The  great  re- 
semblance these  bear  to  those  of  China  and  Cambojia  has  led  to 
the  belief  that  Borneo  was  formerly  peopled  by  those  nations;  but 
all  traditions  of  the  origin  of  these  edifices  have  been  lost;  and  so 
little  is  now  known  of  the  northern  side  of  Borneo,  that  it  would  be 


Siiiii   ill.  IS4J  .j2o 

presumption  to  indulge  in  any  surmises  of  what  may  have  been  its 
state  during  these  dark  ages.  Even  the  Bugis  priests,  who  are  the 
best-informed  persons  in  the  country,  have  no  writings  or  tradi- 
tions that  bear  upon  the  subject;  and  the  few  scattered  legends  of 
Eastern  origin,  can  afford  no  proof  of  the  occurrence  of  the  events 
they  commemorate  in  any  particular  locality. 

The  accounts  of  the  habits  of  the  Dyacks  are  discrepant.  Some 
give  them  credit  for  being  very  industrious,  while  others  again  speak 
of  them  as  indolent.  They  are  certainly  cultivators  of  the  soil, 
and  in  order  to  obtain  the  articles  they  need,  will  work  assiduously. 
Many  of  them  are  employed  in  collecting  gold-dust,  and  some  in 
the  diamond  mines;  and  they  will  at  times  be  found  procuring 
gums,  rattans,  etc.,  from  their  native  forests  for  barter.  They  are 
a  people  of  great  energy  of  character,  and  perseverance  in  the 
attainment  of  their  object,  particularly  when  on  war-parties,  or 
engaged  in  hunting. 

Their  food  consists  of  rice,  hogs,  rats,  snakes,  monkeys,  and  many 
kinds  of  vermin,  with  which  this  country  abounds. 

Their  chief  weapon  is  the  parang  or  heavy  knife,  somewhat  like 
the  kris.  It  is  manufactured  of  native  iron  and  steel,  with  which 
the  coast  of  the  country  is  said  to  abound.  They  have  a  method 
of  working  it  which  renders  it  unnecessary  for  them  to  look  to  a 
foreign  supply;  the  only  articles  of  foreign  hardware  that  they  are 
said  to  desire,  are  razors,  out  of  which  to  make  their  cockspurs. 
One  thing  seems  strange:  although  asserted  upon  good  authority, 
that  the  iron  and  steel  of  the  coast  are  thought  to  be  superior  by 
foreigners,  they  are  not  to  be  compared  with  that  which  is  found 
in  the  interior,  and  manufactured  by  the  Dyacks.  All  the  best 
krises  used  by  the  Malay  rajahs  and  chiefs,  are  obtained  from  the 
interior.  Some  of  these  are  exquisitely  manufactured,  and  so  hard 
that,  without  turning  the  edge,  they  cut  ordinary  wrought  iron  and 
steel. 

Among  their  other  weapons  is  the  sumpit,  a  hollow  tube,  through 
which  they  blow  poisoned  arrows.  The  latter  are  of  various  kinds, 
and  those  used  in  war  are  dipped  in  the  sap  of  what  the  natives 
term  the  "upo."'  The  effect  of  this  poison  is  almost  instantaneous, 
and  destroys  life  in  four  or  five  minutes.  Those  who  have  seen  a 
wound  given  accidentally,  describe  the  changes  that  the  poison 
occasions  as  plainly  perceptible  in  its  progress.  Before  using  the 
arrow,  its  poisoned  point  is  dipped  in  lime-juice  to  quicken  it.  The 
range  of  the  sumpit  is  from  fifty  to  sixty  yards.  Although  the 
arrows  are  poisoned,  yet  it  is  said  they  sometimes  eat  the  games 
they  kill  with  them,  parboiling  it  before  it  is  roasted,  which  is  thought 
to  extract  the  poison.  Firearms,  respecting  which  thej'  have  much 
fear,  have  not  yet  been  introduced  among  them;  indeed,  it  is  said 
that  so  easily  are  they  intimidated  by  such  weapons,  that  on  hearing 
a  report  of  a  gun  they  invariably  run  away.  Each  individual  in 
a  host  would  be  impressed  with  the  belief  that  he  was  the  one 
that  was  to  be  shot. 

They  address  their  prayers  to  the  maker  of  the  world,  whom 
they  call  Dewatta,  and  this  is  all  the  religion  they  have.  There 
are  many  animals  and  birds  held  by  them  in    high  veneration,  and 


526  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

they  are  close  observers  of  the  flight  of  birds,  from  which  they  draw 
prognostics.  There  is  in  particular  a  white-headed  eagle  or  kite, 
upon  whose  flight  and  cries  they  put  great  reliance,  and  consult 
them  in  war  or  on  any  particular  expedition.  For  this  purpose  they 
draw  numbers  of  them  together,  and  feed  them  by  scattering  rice 
about.  It  is  said  their  priests  consult  their  entrails  also  on  parti- 
cular occasions,  to  endeavor  to  look  into  future  events. 

In  the  performance  of  their  engagements  and  oaths,  they  are  most 
scrupulous.  They  seem  to  have  some  idea  of  a  future  life,  and  that 
on  the  road  to  their  elysium  they  have  to  pass  over  a  long  tree,  which 
requires  the  assistance  of  all  those  they  have  slain  in  this  world. 
The  abode  of  happy  spirits  is  supposed  to  be  on  the  top  of  Kini 
Balu,  one  of  their  loftiest  mountains,  and  the  portals  are  guarded 
by  a  fiery  serpent,  who  does  not  suffer  any  virgin  to  pass  into  the 
celestial  paradise. 

Polygamy  does  not  exist  among  them,  but  they  have  as  concubines 
slaves,  who  are  captured  in  their  wars  or  rather  predatory  expedi- 
tions. If  a  wife  proves  unfaithful  to  her  husband,  he  kills  several 
of  his  slaves,  or  inflicts  upon  her  many  blows,  and  a  divorce  may 
be  effected  by  the  husband  paying  her  a  certain  price,  and  giving 
up  her  clothes  and  ornaments,  after  which  he  is  at  liberty  to  marry 
another.  The  women,  however,  exercise  an  extraordinary  influence 
over  the  men. 
Headhunting.  But  of  all  their  peculiar  traits,  there  is  none  more  strange  than 

the  passion  they  seem  to  indulge  for  collecting  human  heads.  These 
are  necessary  accompaniments  in  many  transactions  of  their  lives, 
particularly  in  their  marriages,  and  no  one  can  marry  unless  he  has 
a  certain  number  of  heads;  indeed,  those  who  cannot  obtain  these 
are  looked  upon  with  disdain  by  the  females.  A  young  man  wishing 
to  wed,  and  making  application  to  marry  her  for  whom  he  has  formed 
an  attachment,  repairs  with  the  girl's  father  to  the  rajah  or  chief, 
who  immediately  inquires  respecting  the  number  of  heads  he  has 
procured,  and  generally  decides  that  he  ought  to  obtain  one  or  two 
more,  according  to  his  age,  and  the  number  the  girl's  father  may 
have  procured,  before  he  can  be  accepted.  He  at  once  takes  his 
canoe  and  some  trusty  followers,  and  departs  on  his  bloody  errand, 
waylaying  the  unsuspecting  or  surprising  the  defenceless,  whose 
head  he  immediately  cuts  off,  and  then  makes  a  hurried  retreat. 
With  this  he  repairs  to  the  dwelling  of  his  mistress,  or  sends  intel- 
ligence of  his  success  before  him.  On  his  arrival,  he  is  met  by  a 
joyous  group  of  females,  who  receive  him  with  every  demonstra- 
tion of  joy,  and  gladly  accept  his  ghastly  offering. 

Various  barbarous  ceremonies  now  take  place,  among  which  the 
heads  undergo  inspection  to  ascertain  if  they  are  fresh;  and,  in 
order  to  prove  this,  none  of  the  brain  must  be  removed,  nor  must 
they  have  been  submitted  to  smoke  to  destroy  the  smell.  After 
these  preliminaries,  the  family  honor  of  the  bride  is  supposed  to 
be  satisfied,  and  she  is  not  allowed  to  refuse  to  marry.  A  feast 
is  now  made,  and  the  couple  are  seated  in  the  midst  naked,  holding 
the  bloody  heads,  when  handfuls  of  rice  are  thrown  over  them, 
with  prayers  that  they  may  be  happy  and  fruitful.  After  this, 
the  bridegroom  repairs  in  state  to  the  house  of  the  bride,  where  he 


Sulu    ni    IS4.?  6S7 

is  received  at  the  door  by  one  of  her  friends,  who  sprinkles  him 
with  the  blood  of  a  cock,  and  her  with  that  of  a  hen.  This  com- 
pletes the  affair,  and  they  are  man  and  wife. 

Funerals  are  likewise  consecrated  by  similar  offerings,  the  corpse  Cremation. 
remaining  in  the  house  until  a  slave  can  be  procured,  by  purchase 
or  otherwise,  whom  they  design  to  behead  at  the  time  the  body  is 
burnt.  This  is  done  in  order  that  the  defunct  may  be  attended  by 
a  slave  on  his  way  to  the  other  world  or  realms  of  bliss.  After 
being  burnt,  the  ashes  of  the  deceased  are  gathered  in  an  urn,  and 
the  head  of  the  slave  preserved  and    placed  near  it. 

In  some  parts,  a  rajah  or  chief  is  buried  with  great  pomp  in  his 
war  habiliments,  and  food  and  his  arms  are  placed  at  his  side. 
A  mound  is  erected  over  him,  which  is  encircled  with  a  bamboo 
fence,  upon  which  a  number  of  fresh  heads  are  stuck,  all  the  warriors 
who  have  been  attached  to  him  bringing  them  as  the  most  acceptable 
offering;  and  subsequently  these  horrid  offerings  are  renewed. 

The  Dyacks  are  found  also  in  the  Celebes  island,  but  there,  as  in 
Borneo,  they  are  confined  to  the  interior.  I  have  already  mentioned 
that  they  were  supposed  to  have  been  the  original  inhabitants 
of  the  Sulu  Archipelago.  The  Sulus  speak  of  the  country  of  the 
Dyacks  as  being  exceedingly  fertile  and  capable  of  producing  every 
thing.  The  north  end  of  Borneo  is  particularly  valuable,  as  its 
produce  is  easily  transported  from  the  interior,  where  much  of  the 
land  is  cultivated.  I  have  obtained  much  more  information  in 
relation  to  this  people,  in  a  variety  of  ways,  from  individuals  as  well 
as  from  the  published  accounts,  which  are  to  be  found  at  times 
in  the  Eastern  prints;  but  as  this  digression  has  already  extended 
to  a  great  length,  I  trust  that  enough  has  been  said  to  enable  the 
reader  to  contrast  it  with  the  natives  who  inhabit  the  islands  that 
dot  the  vast  Pacific  Ocean,  and  to  make  him  look  forward  with 
interest  to  the  developments  that  the  philanthropic  exertions  of 
Mr.  Brooke  may  bring  to  light. 

Having  completed  our  duties  here,  the  boats  were  hoisted  in,  after 
despatching  one  to  leave  orders  for  Mr.  Knox  of  the  Flying-Fish, 
in  a  bottle  tied  to  a  flagstaff. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  12th,  we  got  under  way  to  proceed  direct 
to  Singapore,  and  passed  through  the  channel  between  the  reef  off 
the  Mangsee  Islands,  and  those  of  Balambangan  and  Banguey. 
We  found  this  channel  clear,  and  all  the  dangers  well  defined. 

As  the  principal  objects  of  my  visit  were  to  ascertain  the  disposi- 
tion and  resources  of  the  Sulus  for  trade,  and  to  examine  the  straits 
leading  into  the  Sulu  seas,  in  order  to  facilitate  the  communication 
with  China,  by  avoiding  on  the  one  hand  the  eastern  route,  and  on  the 
other  the  dangers  of  the  Palawan  Passage,  it  may  be  as  well  to  give 
the  result  of  the  latter  inquiry,  referring  those  who  may  be  more 
particularly  interested  to  the  Hydrographical  Atlas  and  Memoir. 

The  difficulties  in  the  Palawan  Passage  arising  from  heavy  seas 
and  fresh  gales  do  not  exist  in  the  Sulu  Sea,  nor  are  the  shoals  so 
numerous  or  so  dangerous.  In  the  place  of  storms  and  rough  water, 
smooth  seas  are  found,  and  for  most  of  the  time  moderate  breezes, 
which  do  not  subject  a  vessel  to  the  wear  and  tear  experienced  in 
beating  up  against  a  monsoon. 


.,-.«  riiE  hCRMER  rimniTXES  thru  foreics  eyes 

The  Balabac  Straits  may  be  easily  reached,  either  from  Singa- 
pore, or  by  beating  up  along  the  western  shore  of  Borneo.  When 
the  straits  are  reached,  a  vessel  by  choosing  her  time  may  easily 
pass  through  them  by  daylight,  even  by  beating  when  the  wind  is 
ahead.  Once  through,  the  way  is  clear,  with  the  exception  of  a 
few  coral  lumps;  the  occasional  occurrence  of  the  north  wind  will 
enable  a  vessel  to  pass  directly  to  the  shores  of  the  island  of  Panay. 
A  fair  wind  will  ordinarily  prevail  along  the  island,  and,  as  I  have 
already  mentioned,  it  may  be  approached  closely.  The  passage 
through  to  the  eastward  of  Mindoro  Island  may  be  taken  in  prefer- 
ence to  that  on  the  west  side  through  the  Mindoro  Strait,  and  thus 
all  the  reefs  and  shoals  will  be  avoided.  Thence,  the  western  coast 
of  Luzon  will  be  followed  to  the  north,  as  in  the  old  route. 

I  do  not  think  it  necessary  to  point  out  any  particular  route 
through  the  Sulu  Sea,  as  vessels  must  be  guided  chiefly  as  the  winds 
blow,  but  I  would  generally  avoid  approaching  the  Sulu  Islands, 
as  the  currents  are  more  rapid,  and  set  rather  to  the  southward. 
Wherever  there  is  anchorage,  it  would  be  advisable  to  anchor  at 
night,  as  much  time  might  thus  be  saved,  and  a  knowledge  of  the 
currents  or  sets  of  the  tides  obtained.  Perhaps  it  would  be  as  well 
to  caution  those  who  are  venturesome,  that  it  is  necessary  to  keep 
a  good  look-out,  and  those  who  are  timid,  that  there  does  not  appear 
to  be  much  danger  from  the  piratical  prahus,  unless  a  vessel  gets 
on  shore;  in  that  case  it  will  not  be  long  before  they  will  be  seen 
collecting  in  the  horizon  in  large  numbers. 
Advaniaut:)-  The  treaty  that  I  made  with  the  Sultan,  if  strictly  enforced  on 

of  Sulu  Ireai/i.  the  first  infraction,  will  soon  put  an  end  to  all  the  dangers  to  be 
apprehended  from  them.  To  conclude,  I  am  satisfied  that  under 
ordinary  circumstances,  to  pass  through  the  Sulu  Sea  will  shorten 
by  several  days  the  passage  to  Manila  or  Canton,  and  be  a  great 
saving  of  expense  in  the  wear  and  tear  of  a*  ship  and  her  canvass. 

On  the  13th,  we  passed  near  the  location  of  the  Viper  Shoal,  but 
saw  nothing  of  it.  It  is,  therefore,  marked  doubtful  on  the  chart. 
As  I  had  but  little  time  to  spare,  the  look-outs  were  doubled, 
and  we  pursued  our  course  throughout  the  night,  sounding  as  we 
went  every  fifteen  minutes;  but  nothing  met  our  view. 

On  the  14th,  although  we  had  the  northeast  monsoon  blowing 
fresh,  we  experienced  a  current  of  twenty-two  miles  setting  to  the 
north.  This  was  an  unexpected  result,  as  the  currents  are  usually 
supposed  to  prevail  in  the  direction  of  the  monsoon.  On  the  15th, 
we  still  experienced  it,  though  not  over  fifteen  miles.  On  the  16th, 
we  found  it  setting  west,  and  as  we  approached  the  Malayan 
Peninsula  it  was  found  to  be  running  southwest. 

On  the  18th,  we  made  Pulo  Aor  and  Pulo  Pedang,  and  arriving  off 
the  Singapore  Straits,  I  hove-to,  to  await  daylight.  In  the  morning 
at  dawn,  we  found  ourselves  in  close  company  with  a  Chinese  junk. 
The  19th,  until  late  in  the  afternoon,  we  were  in  the  Singapore 
Straits,  making  but  slow  progress  towards  this  emporium  of  the 
East.  The  number  of  native  as  well  as  foreign  vessels  which  we 
passed,  proved  that  we  were  approaching  some  great  mart,  and 
at  5:00  p.  m.  we  dropped  our  anchor  in  Singapore  Roads.  Here 
we  found  the  Porpoise,  Oregon,  and  Flying-Fish,  all  well:  the  two 


Suhi  in  1843  529 

former  had  arrived  on  January  22nd,  nearly  a  month  before,  and  the 
latter  three  days  previously.  Before  concluding  this  chapter,  I  shall 
revert  to  their  proceedings  since  our  separation  off  the  Sandwich 
Islands. 

The  instructions  to  the  brigs  have  been  heretofore  given;  but 
it  may  not  be  amiss  to  repeat  here  that  the  object  in  detaching 
them  was,  that  they  might  explore  the  line  of  reefs  and  islands  known 
to  exist  to  the  northward  and  westward  of  the  Hawaiian  Group, 
and  thence  continue  their  course  towards  the  coast  of  Japan. 
Had  they  effected  the  latter  object,  it  would  have  given  important 
results  in  relation  to  the  force  of  the  currents,  and  the  temperature 
of  the  water.  It  was  desirable,  if  possible,  to  ascertain  with  certainty 
the  existence  on  the  coast  of  Japan  of  a  current  similar  to  the  Gulf 
Stream,  to  which  my  attention  had  been  particularly  drawn. 

The  first  land  they  made  was  on  December  1,  1841,  and  was 
Necker  Island.  Birds,  especially  the  white  tern,  had  been  seen 
in  numbers  prior  to  its  announcement.  Necker  Island  is  apparently 
a  mass  of  volcanic  rocks,  about  three  hundred  feet  high,  and  is 
destitute  of  any  kind  of  vegetation,  but  covered  with  guano.  It 
is  surrounded  by  a  reef,  three  miles  from  which  soundings  were 
obtained,  in  twenty  fathoms  water.  The  furious  surf  that  was 
beating  on  all  sides  of  the  island,  precluded  all  possibility  of  a  landing 
being  made.  By  the  connected  observations  of  the  vessels  it  lies 
in  longitude  164°  37'  W.,  and  latitude  23°  44'  N. 

The  French-Frigate  Shoal  was  seen  on  the  3rd;  the  weather  proved 
bad,  and  they  were  unable  to  execute  the  work  of  examining  this 
reef.     The  sea  was  breaking  furiously  upon  it. 

On  the  7th,  the  Maro  Reef  was  made  in  latitude  25°  24'  29"  N.. 
longitude  170°  43'  24"  W.  Bottom  was  found  at  a  distance  of  four 
miles  from  the  reef,  with  forty-five  fathoms  of  line.  On  the  8th, 
they  passed  over  the  site  of  Neva  Isle,  as  laid  down  by  Arrow- 
smith,  but  no  indications  of  land  were  seen. 

On  the  11th,  Lieutenant-Commandant  Ringgold  determined,  Arrival  at 
on  account  of  the  condition  of  the  brigs,  and  the  continuance  of  bad  Singapore. 
weather,  it  was  impossible  to  keep  their  course  to  the  northward 
and  westward  towards  the  coast  of  Japan;  he,  therefore,  hauled  to 
the  southward,  which  was  much  to  be  regretted,  and  followed  so 
very  nearly  in  the  same  track  as  that  pursued  by  the  Vincennes, 
towards  the  China  seas,  that  nothing  new  was  elicited  by  them. 

After  a  passage  of  fifty-six  days  from  the  Sandwich  Islands,  they 
dropped  their  anchors  in  Singapore  on  January  19,  1842,  all  well. 
Here  they  found  the  United  States  ship  Constellation,  Commodore 
Kearney,  and  the  sloop  of  war  Boston,  Captain  Long,  forming  the 
East  India  squadron. 


MANILA  IN  1819* 

By  An  American  Naval  Officer. 

'^'""''-  "  *     *  The  fine  bay  of  Manila,  thirty  leagues  in  circum- 

ference, is  situated  near  the  middle  of  the  west  side  of  the  island, 
and  has  good  and  clear  anchorage  in  all  parts  of  it,  excepting  on  a 
coral  ledge,  called  the  Shoal  of  St.  Nicholas,  which  is  the  only 
visible  danger  in  the  bay.  The  dangerous  part  of  it  is,  however, 
of  small  extent,  and  with  proper  attention  easily  avoided;  the 
least  of  water  found  on  it  at  present  is  eleven  feet,  but  its  summit 
is  constantly  approaching  the  surface  of  the  sea,  as  has  been  ascer- 
tained by  surveys  made  at  different  periods  by  orders  of  govern- 
ment, which  circumstance  seems  to  indicate  the  presence  of  Zoo- 
phytes, that  compound  of  animal  and  vegetable  life,  whose  inces- 
sant and  rapid  labors,  and,  as  we  are  told  by  naturalists,  whose 
polypus-like  powers  of  receiving  perfect  form  and  vitality  into 
numberless  dismembered  portions  of  their  bodies,  have  long  excited 
much  curiosity  and  admiration.  These  small,  compound  animals, 
commence  their  operations  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  and  proceed 
upwards,  towards  the  surface,  spreading  themselves  in  various 
ramifications;  the  older  members  of  the  mass  become  concrete, 
petrify,  and  form  dangerous  shoals;  the  superior  portion  of  these 
little  colonists  always  being  the  last  produced,  in  its  turn  generates 
myriads  of  others,  and  so  on,  ad  infinitum,  till  they  reach  the  surface 
of  the  ocean.  These  coral  reefs  and  shoals  are  found  in  most  parts 
of  the  world,  within  the  tropics;  but  the  waters  of  the  eastern 
hemisphere  seem  to  be  peculiarly  congenial  to  their  production,  and, 
indeed,  there  appear  to  be  certain  spaces  or  regions  in  these  seas, 
which  are  their  favorite  haunts.  Among  many  others  may  be 
mentioned  the  Mozambique  channel,  and  that  tract  of  ocean,  from 
the  eastern  coast  of  Africa,  quite  across  to  the  coast  of  Malabar, 
including  the  Mahe,  Chagas,  Maldive  and  Laccadive  archipelagos; 
the  southeastern  part  of  the  China  sea;  the  Red  sea;  the  eastern 
part  of  Java;  the  coasts  of  all  the  Sunda  islands;  and  various  places 
in  the  Pacific  ocean.  These  shoals,  when  they  begin  to  emerge 
from  the  sea,  are  frequented  by  aquatic  fowls,  whose  feathers,  and 
other  deposits,  combined  with  the  fortuitous  landing  of  drifts  of 
wood,  weeds,  and  various  other  substances  from  the  adjacent  lands, 
in  the  course  of  time  form  superaqueous  banks,  of  considerable  eleva- 
tion; and  the  broken  fragments  of  coral  thrown  up  by  the  waves, 
slowly,  but  constantly  increase  their  horizontal  diameter.  Coconuts 
are  frequently  seen  floating  upon  the  sea  in  these  regions,  some  of  which 
are  no  doubt  thrown  upon  the  shores  of  the  new  created  lands; 
from  which  accidental  circumstance  this  fruit  is  there  propagated. 
Vagrant  birds  unconsciously  deposit  the  germs  of  various  other 
productions  of  the  vegetable  kingdom,  which  in  due  season  spring 


From  the  Ilis-,ir,i  ,,/  ,i   \',,,/,„ie  of  flu  fhi<,<i  S-n.  by  John  White. 


Manila    in    tSUf  fi-il 

Tjp  and  clothe  their  surfaces  with  verdure;  and  the  natural  accumula- 
tion of  dead  and  putrid  vegetation  serves  to  assist  in  the  formation 
of  a  rich  and  productive  soil,  and  to  increase  the  altitudes  of  these 
new  creations.  As  I  have  been  always  much  amused  and  interested 
"by  this  subject,  and  had  frequent  opportunities,  during  many 
years'  experience,  to  observe  and  examine  these  shoals  in  their 
various  stages  of  subaqueous  progress,  and  subsequent  emersion 
I  am  convinced  that  not  only  many  considerable  islands,  but 
extensive  insular  groups,  owe  their  existence  to  the  above  origin." 

*  "  *  *  *  The  natives  of  these  islands  are  generally  well  '''''"'  f-oplt. 
made,  and  bear  strong  marks  of  activity  and  muscular  vigor; 
they  are  in  general  somewhat  larger  than  the  Javanese,  and  bear 
some  affinity  in  the  features  of  their  faces  to  the  Malays;  their 
noses  are  however  more  prominent,  and  their  cheek  bones  not 
so  high,  nor  are  their  skins  so  dark.  Their  hair  is  of  a  jet  black, 
made  glossy  by  the  constant  application  of  coconut  oil,  as  is  the 
custom  in  all  India,  and  drawn  together  and  knotted  on  top,  in 
the  manner  of  the  Malays.  The  women  display  great  taste  in  the 
arrangement  and  decorations  of  their  hair,  which  they  secure  with 
silver  or  gold  bodkins,  the  heads  of  which  are  frequently  composed 
of  precious  stones." 

t  "  *  *  *  A  very  considerable  proportion  of  the  population  .Uix.'i  blood. 
of  Manila  is  composed  of  the  mestizos;  they  are  the  offspring  of  the 
intermarriages  of  the  Spaniards  with  the  native  women,  and  these 
again  forming  connexions  with  the  whites,  or  with  the  native  Indians 
(the  latter,  however,  less  frequent),  combine  in  stamping  upon  their 
descendants  a  great  variety  of  features  arid  shades  of  color;  a  general 
resemblance  is,  however,  to  be  traced,  and  waiving  color  and  man- 
ners, a  mestizo  could  not  easily  be  mistaken  for  a  native.  This 
class  of  the  inhabitants  is  held  in  nearly  the  same  estimation  as 
the  whites.  They  are  very  cleanly  in  their  persons,  and  neat  in 
their  dress,  which,  among  the  males,  consists  generally  of  a  pair 
of  cotton  trousers  of  various  colors,  as  fancy  dictates,  and  shoes 
in  the  European  manner,  a  frock,  or  tunic,  of  striped  grass  manu- 
facture, worn  outside  the  trousers,  in  the  manner  of  the  Asiatic 
Armenians  (but  without  the  sash,  or  girdle),  the  collars  of  which 
are  tastefully  embroidered,  and  thrown  back  on  their  shoulders; 
a  European  hat  completes  their  costume,  which  is  light,  cool  and 
airy,  and  after  a  stranger  has  been  a  short  time  accustomed  to  see 
what  he  at  first  would  call  a  perversion  of  dress,  his  prejudices 
subside,  and  he  has  no  hesitation  in  pronouncing  it  very  proper 
and  graceful.  They  are  remarkably  fine  limbed,  and  well  built, 
the  females  especially,  who  are  really  models  of  the  most  complete 
symmetry;  their  hair  and  eyes,  which  unlike  their  skins,  seldom 
vary  from  the  original  jet  black  of  their  native  parents,  bestow  upon 
them  the  primary  characteristics  of  the  brunette.  This  people, 
unlike  the  generality  of  mixed  colors  in  the  human  race,  have 
been  improved  by  their  intermixture,  thty  arc  more  indnstrioufi  and 
cleanly  than  the  S/'fl'i/an/.^,  possess  more  intelligence  and  polish  than 


*  P.  115. 

t  Pp.  116-119 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 


A  Filipino 
foundry. 


Lanffuaffe. 


the  Indians  and  are  less  malicious  and  revengeful  than  either.  The 
men  are  employed  mostly  as  writers,  brokers,  agents  and  over- 
seers; many  of  them  hold  lucrative  offices  under  government,  and 
they  not  unfrequently  arrive  at  wealth  and  consideration.  The 
women  are  also  industrious,  and  capable  of  great  intellectual  improve- 
ment; they  have  a  natural  grace  and  ease  in  their  manner,  and  make 
excellent  wives  and  mothers.  This  character  must  not,  however, 
be  taken  in  an  unlimited  sense,  for  we  cannot  expect  this  rule  to 
be  without  its  exceptions,  and  it  is  true  that  some  of  these  females 
do  degenerate,  and  copy  after  the  manners  of  the  Creoles,  or  white 
natives;  but  this  is  only  the  case  when,  by  their  intercourse  with 
the  whites,  their  Indian  blood  is  merged  and  lost  in  the  European. 
That  part  of  the  population  in  which  is  blended  the  blood  of  the 
Chinese  and  Tagalogs  is  named  the  Chinese  mestizos. 

The  natives  are  not  unapt  in  acquiring  knowledge,  neither 
do  they  want  industry,  when  efforts  are  made,  and  inducements 
displayed  to  call  their  powers  into  action.  They  are  excellent 
mechanics  and  artisans,  and,  as  horticulturists,  their  superiority 
over  many  of  the  Asiatics  is  acknowledged.  They  are  polite  and  affable 
to  strangers,  but  irascible,  and  when  excited  are  very  sanguinary; 
their  natural  bias  to  this  revengeful  and  cruel  character,  is  strength- 
ened and  rendered  more  intense  by  the doctrines  of  the 

Roman  catholic  religion  as  dictated  .to  them  by  the  designing  and 
interested  priests  who  reside  among  them.  The  culprit  always 
finds  a  sanctuary  in  the  nearest  church,  till  by  the  payment  of 
some  pecuniary  mulct,  he  satisfies  the  demands  of  the  priests, 
obtains  absolution,  appeases  the  resentment  of  the  relations  of  the 
deceased,  and  eludes  the  arm  of  justice;  he  grows  hardened  by 
impunity,  repeats  his  offences,  and  again  escapes  as  before." 

"*  *  *  All  the  necessary  works  for  a  garrisoned  city  are 
within  its  walls;  extensive  magazines  were  erected  in  1686,  besides 
which  are  a  hall  of  arms,  or  armory,  a  repository  for  powder,  with 
bomb-proof  vaults,  and  commodious  quarters  and  barracks  for  the 
garrison.  There  is  also  a  furnace  and  foundry  here,  which,  although 
their  operations  were  suppressed  in  1805,  is  the  most  ancient  in 
the  Spanish  monarchy;  this  establishment  was  founded  in  1584, 
in  the  village  of  St.  Anna,  near  Manila;  to  the  latter  of  which  places 
it  was  transferred  in  1590.  The  first  founder  was  a  Pampango  Indian, 
named  Pandapira.  When  the  Spaniards  first  arrived  at  Manila, 
in  1571,  they  found  there  a  large  foundry,  which  was  accidentally 
burnt,  in  consequence  of  the  combustibility  of  the  building  and 
effects,  which  character  applies  to  all  the  houses  of  that  period." 

*  "*  *  *  Their  colloquial  language,  like  that  of  the  natives 
of  Java,  Borneo,  Sumatra,  and  many  other  islands  in  these  seas, 
is  a  dialect  of  the  peninsular  Malay  from  whence  it  is  thought  they 
originated;  and  so  striking  is  its  similarity  among  all  these  islands, 
that  the  natives  of  each  can,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  understand 
that  of  all  the  others.  The  characters  of  their  written  language 
differ  widely,  and  great  varieties  of  arrangement  exist  among  them. 


*   P.   121. 


Matiila   in   ISln  6^8 

The  Tagalogs  write  from  top  to  bottom  on  palm  leaves  and  strips 
of  bamboo;  and  many  of  the  Moros  or  Mahomedans  use  the  Arabic 
characters." 

*  "*  *  *  From  the  circumstance  of  the  Spaniards  arriving  Difference 
in  these  seas  by  Cape  Horn,  and  the  general  route  being  by  the  "/  days. 
Cape  of  Good  Hope,  a  consequent  difference  in  time  of  one  day 
is  produced  in  the  different  reckoning;  the  Spaniards  losing,  and 
those  who  steer  eastward  gaining,  each  in  the  proportion  of  half 
a  day  in  completing  the  semi-circumference  of  the  globe.  Con- 
sequently, the  time  at  Manila,  being  regulated  by  their  own  reckon- 
ings, is  one  day  later  than  that  of  those  who  arrive  there  by  steering 
eastward  from  America  or  Europe;  as  for  instance,  when  by  the 
accounts  of  the  latter  it  is  Sunday,  by  theirs  it  is  only  Saturday. 

In  the  year  1762,  the  city  of  Manila  was  taken  by  the  English,  English  m 
where,  and  at  Cavite,  immense  quantities  of  naval  and  military  Manila. 
stores,  brass  and  iron  ordnance,  and  several  fine  ships,  fell  into 
their  hands.  It  was,  however,  soon  delivered  up  to  the  Spaniards, 
on  a  promise  of  the  payment  to  the  English  of  four  millions  of  dollars 
as  a  ransom,  which,  however,  never  has  been  paid.  This  breach 
of  faith  and  promise  has  been  loudly  complained  of  by  the  latter, 
and  as  pertinaciously  excused  by  the  Spaniards,  who  complain 
that  the  British  plundered  the  city,  and  committed  many  other 
excesses,  contrary  to  the  express  conditions  of  their  engagements, 
by  which  they  were  virtually  rendered  nugatory. 

The  inhabitants  of  Manila  have  long  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  Oallcon  iroiie. 
sending  two  annual  ships  to  Acapulco  called  Galleons,  Narios,  or 
Register-Ships,  with  the  produce  of  the  Philippines,  of  China,  and 
other  parts  of  Asia;  in  return  for  which,  they  receive  various  articles 
of  the  production  of  South  America;  the  principal  of  which  are  cochi- 
neal, merchandise  of  different  descriptions  of  European  origin, 
and  silver  in  Spanish  dollars  and  ingots,  which  compose  the  prin- 
cipal part  of  the  value  of  their  return  cargoes,  amounting  annually 
to  about  three  million  five  hundred  thousand  Spanish  dollars.  A 
large  proportion  of  this  property  belongs  to  the  convents  in  Manila, 
whose  great  revenues  not  only  enable  them  to  engage  in  extensive 
mercantile  operations,  but  to  lend  considerable  sums  to  the  mer- 
chants on  bottomry.  For  the  indulgence  in  this  trade,  the  pro- 
prietors pay  a  large  sum  of  money  to  the  crown. 

These  ships  were  of  the  burden  of  from  twelve  to  fifteen  hundred 
tons,  and  were  numerously  manned  and  well  appointed  for  defense; 
but  of  late  years,  since  the  revolt  of  the  Spanish  colonies,  which 
has  rendered  the  navigation  of  the  intermediate  seas  dangerous 
to  these  enterprises,  the  trade  has  been  greatly  interrupted,  and 
instead  of  risking  it  in  large  bodies,  private  ships  of  smaller  burden 
have  been  hired  for  the  purpose  of  dividing  the  risk;  some  of  these 
have  been  put  under  foreign  colors,  though  formerly  the  galleons 
wore,  by  instruction,  the  royal  flag,  their  officers  were  commis- 
sioned and  uniformed  like  the  officers  of  the  navy,  and  the  ships 
were  under  the  same  regulations  and    discipline.     The  object,  how- 

*  Pp.  125-128. 


r,.i/,  THE  FORMER   PIULII'PI.XES   THRU   FOREIGX  EYES 

ever,  of  the  trade  in  smaller  ships  has  not  been  obtained;  for  so  great 
are  the  fears  of  the  owners  and  agents  of  their  being  captured,  and 
so  many  restrictions  laid  upon  the  commanders  that  they  lie  in 
port  the  principal  part  of  the  time;  so  that  in  September,  1819,  the 
ships  of  the  preceding  year  had  not  arrived  at  Manila;  neither 
had  any  been  dispatched  from  the  latter  place  for  Acapulco  during 
that  time.  These  interruptions,  and  in  fact,  the  virtual  suspension 
of  this  commerce,  will  undoubtedly,  if  a  liberal  and  enlightened 
policy  is  pursued,  result  greatly  to  the  advantage  of  these  islands 
and  the  mother  country.  Already  since  the  establishment  of  the 
cortes,  permitting  foreigners  to  settle  permanently  at  Manila, 
great  improvements  have  been  made  in  the  productions  of  the 
island,  and  important  additions  to  the  revenue.  The  failure  of 
the  annual  remittance  of  dollars  from  South  America  to  defray  the 
expenses  of  the  colonial  government,  of  which  their  revenues  from 
the  islands  were  not  adequate  to  meet  one  half,  has  been  severely 
felt,  and  has  stimulated  them  to  make  some  very  unusual  exertions. 
Foreign  commerce  has  been  more  countenanced  in  consequence 
of  this  state  of  things,  and  greater  encouragement  has  been  given 
to  the  growers  and  manufacturers  of  their  staple  exports;  and  if 
the  affairs  of  these  islands  should  in  future  be  properly  conducted, 
the  revenue  arising  from  the  impost  on  the  single  article  of  coffee, 
will  in  a  few  years  be  amply  sufficient  to  support  the  government, 
and  leave  a  net  income  of  the  revenue  arising  from  the  imposts 
on  all  other  articles,  besides  what  would  accrue  from  the  taxes  and 
numerous  other  resources.  A  free  commerce  with  other  nations 
would  create  a  competition,  and  a  consequent  reduction  in  the 
price  of  imports,  and  their  articles  of  export  would  increase,  in 
proportion  to  the  demand  for  them.  In  short,  nothing  is  wanting 
in  these  beautiful  islands,  but  ability  to  direct,  and  energy  to  execute 
the  most  extensive  plans  of  agriculture  and  commerce,  which  the 
bounties  of  the  soil,  and  its  excellent  climate  and  situation,  would 
most  certainly  render  completely  successful;  and,  instead  of  being, 
as  at  present  it  is,  a  burden  to  Spain,  it  would  become  a  source 
of  great  wealth  to  her." 
Sv'"t  of  *  I.*     *     *    j|.  jg  ^Q  ]3g  hoped  that  the  narrow  and  illiberal  policy 

independence.  which  has  heretofore  retarded  the  prosperity  of  these  fine  islands, 
will  necessarily  be  superseded  by  more  expanded  views,  and  enable 
them  to  maintain  the  rank  and  importance  to  which  their  intrinsic 
worth  entitles  them.  The  spirit  of  independence  which  has  recently 
diffused  its  influence  through  the  Spanish  colonies  on  the  American 
continent,  has  also  darted  its  rays  across  the  Pacific,  and  beamed 
with  enlivening  lustre  upon  those  remote  regions  and  the  sacred 
flames  of  liberty  which  have  been  kindled  have  in  the  bosom  of  that 
country,  thoughfor  a  period  concealed  from  the  view  of  regal  parasites 
and  dependents,  burned  clear  and  intense;  and  the  time  is  perhaps  not 
very  remote,  when  it  shall  burst  forth,  and  shed  itj  joyous  light 
upon  the  remotest  and  most  inconsiderable  islet  of  this  archi- 
pelago. 

*  Pp.  137-138. 


Mil  HI  In    in    ISl:i  r,.-!,; 

Perhaps  no  part  of  the  world  offers  a  more  ehgible  site  for  an 
independent  republic  than  these  islands;  their  insular  posture  and 
distance  from  any  rival  power,  combined  with  the  intrinsic  strength 
of  a  free  representative  government,  would  guarantee  their  safety 
and  glory;  their  intermediate  situation,  between  Asia  and  the  Amer- 
ican continent,  their  proximity  to  China,  Japan,  Borneo,  the  Molucca 
and  Sunda  Islands,  the  Malay  peninsula,  Cochin  China,  Tonquin, 
Siam,  and  the  European  possessions  in  the  East,  would  insure 
them  an  unbounded  commerce,  consequently  great  wealth  and 
power;  and  their  happiness  would  be  secured  by  religious  tolera- 
tion and  liberal  views  of  civil  liberty  in  the  government.  It  must 
be  confessed,  however,  that  the  national  character  of  the  Spaniards 
is  not  suitable  to  produce  and  enjoy  in  perfection  this  most  desirable 
state  of  affairs;  it  is  to  be  feared  that  their  bigotry  would  preclude 
religious  toleration,  their  indolence  continue  the  present  system  of 
slavery,  so  degrading  in  a  particular  manner  to  a  republic,  their 
want  of  energy  paralyze  the  operations  of  enterprising  foreigners 
among  them.  No  change,  however,  can  be  for  the  worse,  and  if 
all  the  advantage,  cannot  be  reaped  by  them,  which  the  citizens 
of  our  republic  would  secure,  it  will  be  better  for  them  to  seize  and 
enjoy  such  as  their  genius  and  talents  will  enable  them  to." 

*  <<  *  *  *  -pj^g  health  of  the  city  and  suburbs  is  proverbial,  and 
the  profession  of  a  physician  is,  perhaps,  of  all  others  the  least 
lucrative.  A  worthy  and  intelligent  Scotch  doctor,  who  had  come 
to  Manila,  while  I  was  there,  to  exercise  his  profession,  and  who 
lodged  in  the  same  house  with  me,  was  greatly  annnoyed  at  the 
want  of  practice  which  he  experienced  there,  although  he  had  his 
full  share  of  patronage,  and  often  jocosely  declared  that  the  "dom 
climate"  would  starve  him;  in  fact  he  did  not  long  remain  there;  I 
afterwards  met  him  in  the  Isle  of  France,  where  he  was  still  in 
pursuit  of  practice." 

t  "  *  *  *  Impelled  by  a  very  common  and,  perhaps,  excusable 
curiosity,  I  rode  out  with  some  friends  one  day  to  witness  the  execu- 
tion of  a  mestizo  soldier  for  murder.  The  parade  ground  of  Bagum- 
bayan  was  the  theater  of  this  tragic  comedy,  for  such  it  may 
be  truUy  called,  and  never  did  I  experience  such  a  revulsion  of 
feeling  as  upon  this  occasion.  The  place  was  crowded  with  people 
of  all  descriptions,  and  a  strong  guard  of  soldiers,  three  deep,  sur- 
rounded the  gallows,  forming  a  circle,  the  area  of  which  was  about 
two  hundred  feet  in  diameter.  The  hangman  was  habited  in  a 
red  jacket  and  trousers,  with  a  cap  of  the  same  color  upon  his  head. 
This  fellow  had  been  formerly  condemned  to  death  for  parricide, 
but  was  pardoned  on  condition  of  turning  executioner,  and  be- 
coming close  prisoner  for  life,  except  when  the  duties  of  his  pro- 
fession occasionally  called  him  from  his  dungeon  for  an  hour. 
Whether  his  long  confinement,  and  the  ignominious  estimation 
in  which  he  was  held,  combined  with  despair  of  pardon  for  his 
heinous  offense,  and  a  natural  ferocity  of  character,  had  rendered 
him  reckless  of  "weal  or  woe,"  or  other  impulse  directed  his  move- 


OiiiMiLunUy 
fill-  n  rfipuhlir 


A  barbarous 
execution. 


*  Pp.  143-144. 
t  Pp.  144146. 


o36  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPISES   THRU    FOREIGN  EYES 

ments,  I  know  not,  but  never  did  I  see  such  a  demoniacal  visage 
as  was  presented  by  this  miscreant;  and  when  the  trembhng  culprit 
was  delivered  over  to  his  hand,  he  pounced  eagerly  upon  his  victim, 
while  his  countenance  was  suffused  with  a  grim  and  ghastly  smile, 
which  reminded  us  of  Dante's  devils.  He  immediately  ascended 
the  ladder,  dragging  his  prey  after  him  till  they  had  nearly  reached 
the  top;  he  then  placed  the  rope  around  the  neck  of  the  malefactor 
with  many  antic  gestures  and  grimaces  highly  gratifying  and  amusing 
to  the  mob.  To  signify  to  the  poor  fellow  under  his  fangs  that 
he  wished  to  whisper  in  his  ear,  to  push  him  off  the  ladder,  and  to 
jump  astride  his  neck  with  his  heels  drumming  with  violence  upon 
his  stomach,  was  but  the  work  of  an  instant.  We  could  then  per- 
ceive a  rope  fast  to  each  leg  of  the  sufferer,  which  was  pulled  with 
violence  by  people  under  the  gallows,  and  an  additional  rope,  to  use 
a  sea  term,  a  preventer,  was  round  his  neck,  and  secured  to  the 
gallows,  to  act  in  case  of  accident  to  the  one  by  which  the  body 
was  suspended.  I  had  witnessed  many  executions  in  different  parts 
of  the  world,  but  never  had  such  a  diabolical  scene  as  this  passed 
before  my  eyes." 


THE  PEOPLING  OF  THE  PHILIPPINES 

By  Dr.  Rudolf  Virchow 

{Trans! aled  by  O.  T.  MASON;   in   Smithsonian  Institution 

1899  Report.) 

Since  the  days  when  the  first  European  navigators  entered  the 
South  Sea,  the  dispute  over  the  source  and  ethnic  affiliations  of  the 
inhabitants  of  that  extended  and  scattered  island  world  has  been 
unsettled.  The  most  superficial  glance  points  out  a  contrariety 
in  external  appearances,  which  leaves  little  doubt  that  here  peoples 
of  entirely  different  blood  live  near  and  among  one  another. 
"Negritos  and  And  this  is  so  apparent  that  the  pathfinder  in  this  region,  Magellan, 

Indios."  gave  expression  to  the  contrariety  in  his  names  for  tribes  and  islands. 

Since  dark  complexion  was  observed  on  individuals  in  certain  tribes 
and  in  defined  areas,  and  light  complexion  on  others,  here  abundant- 
ly, there  quite  exceptional,  writers  applied  Old  World  names  to  the 
new  phenomena  without  further  thought.  The  Philippines  set 
the  decisive  example  in  this.  Fernando  Magellan  first  discovered  the 
islands  of  this  great  archipelago  in  1521,  March  16.  After  his  death 
the  Spaniards  completed  the  circle  of  his  discoveries.  At  this  time 
the  name  of  Negros  was  fixed,  which  even  now  is  called  Islas  de  los 
Pintados.  For  years  the  Spaniards  called  the  entire  archipelago 
Islas  de  Poniente;  gradually,  after  the  expedition  of  Don  Fray  Garcia 
Jofre  de  Loaisa  (1526),  the  new  title  of  the  Philippines  prevailed, 
through  Salazar. 

The  people  were  divided  into  two  groups,  the  Little  Negros  or 
Negritos  and  the  Indios.  It  is  quite  conceivable  that  involuntarily 
the  opinion  prevailed  that  the  Negritos  had  close  relationship  with 
the  African  blacks,  and  the  Indios  with  the  lighter-complexioned 
inhabitants  of  India,  or  at  least  of  Indonesia. 


The  Peoi>Unij  of  the  Philippines  637 

However,  it  must  be  said  here  that  the  theory  of  a  truly  African 
origin  of  the  Negritos  has  been  advanced  but  seldom,  and  then  in  a 
very  hesitating  manner.  The  idea  that  with  the  present  configura- 
tion of  the  eastern  island  world,  especially  with  their  great  distances 
apart,  a  variety  of  mankind  that  had  never  manifested  any  aptitude 
for  maritime  enterprises  should  have  spread  themselves  over  this  vast 
ocean  area,  in  order  to  settle  down  on  this  island  and  on  that,  is  so 
unreasonable  that  it  has  found  scarcely  a  defender  worth  naming. 
More  and  more  the  blacks  are  coming  to  be  considered  the  original 
peoples,  the  "Indios"  to  be  the  intruders.  For  this  there  is  a  quite 
reasonable  ground,  in  that  on  many  islands  the  blacks  dwell  in  the 
interior,  difficult  of  access,  especially  in  the  dense  and  unwholesome 
mountain  forests,  while  the  lighter  complexioned  tribes  have  settled 
the  coasts.  To  this  are  added  linguistic  proofs,  which  place  the 
lighter  races,  of  homogeneous  speech,  in  linguistic  relations  with  the 
higher  races,  especially  the  Malays.  Dogmatically  it  has  been  said 
that  originally  these  islands  had  been  occupied  entirely  by  the  primi- 
tive black  population,  but  afterwards,  through  intrusions  from  the 
sea,  these  blacks  were  gradually  pressed  away  from  the  coast  and 
shoved  back  into  the  interior. 

The  problem,  though  it  appears  simple  enough,  has  become  com-  Complicated 
plicated  more  and  more  through  the  progress  of  discovery,  especially  Paciiic  problem. 
since  Cook  enlarged  our  knowledge  of  the  oriental  island  world.  A 
new  and  still  more  pregnant  contrast  then  thrust  itself  to  the  front  in 
the  fact  that  the  blacks  and  the  lighter-colored  peoples  are  each  sep- 
arated into  widely  differing  groups.  While  the  former  hold  especially 
the  immense,  almost  continental,  regions  of  Australia  (New  Holland) 
and  New  Guinea,  and  also  the  larger  archipelagos,  such  as  New 
Hebrides,  Solomon  Islands,  Fiji  (Viti)  Archipelago — that  is,  the 
western  areas — the  north  and  east,  Micronesia  and  Polynesia,  \yere 
occupied  by  lighter-colored  peoples.  So  the  first  division  into 
Melanesia  and  Polynesia  has  in  latest  times  come  to  be  of  value, 
and  the  dogma  once  fixed  has  remained.  For  the  Polynesians  are 
by  many  allied  to  the  Malays,  while  the  blacks  are  put  together  as 
a  special  ethnological  race. 

For  practical  ethnology  this  division  may  suffice.  But  the  scien- 
tific man  will  seek  also  for  the  blacks  a  genetic  explanation.  The 
answer  has  been  furnished  by  one  of  the  greatest  ethnologists, 
Theodor  Waitz,  who,  after  he  had  exposed  the  insufficiency  of  the 
accepted  formulas,  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  differentiation 
of  the  blacks  from  the  lighter  peoples  might  be  an  error.  He  denied 
that  there  had  been  a  primitive  black  race  in  Micronesia  and  Poly- 
nesia; in  his  opinion  we  have  here  to  do  with  a  single  race.  The  color 
of  the  Polynesians  may  be  out  and  out  from  natural  causes  different, 
"their  entire  physical  appearance  indicates  the  greatest  variability." 
Herein  the  whole  question  of  the  domain  of  variation  is  sprung  with 
imperfect  satisfaction  on  the  part  of  those  travelers  who  give  their 
attention  more  to  transitions  than  to  types.  Among  these  are  not 
a  few  who  have  returned  from  the  South  Sea  with  the  conviction 
that  all  criteria  for  the  diagnosis  of  men  and  of  races  are  valueless. 

Analytical  anthropology  has  led  to  other  and  often  unexpected 
results.     It  has  proved  that  just  that  portion  of  South  Sea  population 


Hail   (IS 
inilejc . 


33S  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPISES   THRU   FOREIGS  EYES 

which  can  apparently  lay  the  strongest  claim  to  be  considered  a 
homogeneous  race  must  be  separated  into  a  collection  of  subvarie- 
ties.  Nothing  appears  more  likely  than  that  the  Negritos  of  the 
Philippines  are  the  nearest  relatives  to  the  Melanesians,  the  Austra- 
lians, the  Papuans;  and  yet  it  has  been  proved  that  all  these  are 
separated  one  from  another  by  well-marked  characters.  Whether 
these  characters  place  the  peoples  under  the  head  of  varieties,  or 
whether,  indeed,  the  black  tribes  of  the  South  Sea,  spite  of  all  differ- 
ences, are  to  be  traced  back  to  one  single  primitive  stock,  that  is 
a  question  of  prehistory  for  whose  answer  the  material  is  lacking. 
Were  it  possible  to  furnish  the  proof  that  the  black  populations  of 
the  South  Sea  were  already  settled  in  their  present  homes  when  land 
bridges  existed  between  their  territory  and  Africa,  or  when  the  much- 
sought  Lemuria  still  existed,  it  would  not  be  worth  the  trouble  to 
hunt  for  the  missing  material.  In  our  present  knowledge  we  can 
not  fill  the  gaps,  so  we  must  yet  hold  the  blacks  of  the  Orient  to  be 
separate  races. 

The  hair  furnished  the  strongest  character  for  diagnosis,  in  which, 
not  alone  that  of  the  head  is  under  consideration;  the  hair,  therefore, 
occupies  the  foreground  of  interest.  Its  color  is  of  the  least  impor- 
tance, since  all  peoples  of  the  South  Sea  have  black  hair.  It  is 
more  the  structure  and  appearance  which  furnish  the  observer 
convenient  starting  points  for  the  primary  classification.  Generally 
a  two-fold  division  satisfies.  The  blacks,  it  is  said,  have  crisped  hair, 
the  Polynesians  and  light-colored  peoples  have  smooth  hair.  But 
this  declaration  is  erroneous  in  its  generality.  It  is  in  no  way  easy 
to  declare  absolutely  what  hair  is  to  be  called  crisp,  and  it  is  still 
more  difficult  to  define  in  what  respects  the  so-called  crisp  varieties 
differ  one  from  another.  For  a  long  time  the  Australian  hair 
was  denominated  crisp,  until  it  was  evident  that  it  could  be  classed 
neither  with  that  of  the  Africans  nor  with  that  of  the  Philippine 
blacks.  Semper,  one  of  the  first  travelers  to  furnish  a  somewhat 
complete  description  of  the  physical  characters  of  the  Negritos, 
describes  it  as  an  "extremely  thick,  brown-black,  lack-luster,  and 
crisp-woolly  crown  of  hair."  Among  these  peculiarities  the  lack- 
luster is  unimportant,  since  it  is  due  to  want  of  care  and  unclean- 
liness.  On  the  contrary,  the  other  data  furnish  true  characters 
of  the  hair  and  among  them  the  crisp- woolly  peculiarity  is  most 
valuable. 

On  the  terms  "wool"  and  "woolly"  severe  controversies,  which 
have  not  yet  closed,  have  taken  place  among  ethnologists  during 
the  last  ten  years.  Also  the  lack  of  care,  especially  the  absence  of  the 
comb,  has  here  acted  as  a  disturbing  cause  in  the  decision.  But  there 
is  yet  a  set  of  peoples,  which  were  formerly  included,  that  are  now 
being  gradually  disassociated,  especially  the  Australians  and  the 
Veddahs,  whose  hair,  by  means  of  special  care,  appears  quite  wavy 
if  not  entirely  sleek  and  smooth.  Generally  it  is  frowzy  and  matted, 
so  that  its  natural  form  is  difficult  to  recognize.  To  it  is  wanting 
the  chief  peculiarity,  which  obtrudes  itself  in  the  African  blacks 
so  characteristically  that  the  compact  spiral  form  which  it  assumes 
from  its  root,  the  so-called  "pepper -corn,"  is  selected  as  the  prefer- 
able mark  of  the  race.     The  peculiar  nappy  head  has  it  origin  in  the 


The  Peopling  of  the  Philippines 


spiral  "rollclicn."  As  to  the  Asiatic  blacks  this  has  been  for  a  long 
time  known  among  the  Andamanese;  it  has  lately  been  noticed  upon 
the  Sakai  of  Malacca,  and  it  is  to  be  found  also  among  the  Negritos 
of  the  Philippines,  as  I  can  show  by  specimens.  Therefore,  if  we 
seek  ethnic  relationships  for  the  Negritos  of  the  Philippines,  or  as 
they  are  named,  the  Aetas  (Etas,  Itas),  such  connections  obtrude 
themselves  with  the  stocks  named,  and  the  more  strongly  since  they 
all  have  brachycephalic,  relatively  small  (nannocephalic)  heads 
and  through  their  small  size  attach  themselves  to  the  peculiar 
dwarf  tribes. 

I  might  here  comment  on  the  singular  fact  that  the  Andaman 
Islands  are  situated  near  the  Nicobars  in  the  Indian  Ocean,  but  that 
the  populations  on  both  sides  of  them  are  entirely  different.  In  my 
own  detailed  descriptions  which  treat  of  the  skulls  and  the  hair 
specially,  it  is  affirmed  that  the  typical  skull  shape  of  the  Nicobarese 
is  dolichocephalic  and  that  "their  hair  stands  between  the  straight 
hair  of  the  Mongoloid  and  the  sleek,  though  slightly  curved  or  wavy, 
hair  of  the  Malayan  and  Indian  peoples;"  their  skin  color  is  relatively 
dark,  but  only  so  much  so  as  is  peculiar  to  the  tribes  of  India.  With 
the  little  blacks  of  the  Andamans  there  is  not  the  slightest  agree- 
ment. In  this  we  have  one  of  the  best  evidences  against  the  theory 
of  Waitz-Gerland  that  the  differences  in  physical  appearance  are  to 
be  attributed  to  variation  merely.  I  will,  however,  so  as  not  to  be 
misunderstood,  expressly  emphasize  that  I  am  not  willing  to  declare 
that  the  two  peoples  have  been  at  all  times  so  constituted;  I  am  now 
speaking   of  actual   conditions. 

In  the  same  sense  I  wish  also  my  remarks  concerning  the  Negritos 
to  be  taken.  Not  one  fact  is  in  evidence  from  which  we  may  con- 
clude that  a  single  neighboring  people  known  to  us  has  been  Negri - 
tized.  We  are  therefore  justified  when  we  see  in  the  Negritos  a  truly 
primitive  people.  As  they  are  now,  they  were  more  than  three 
hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  when  the  first  European  navigators 
visited  these  islands.  About  older  relationships  nothing  is  known. 
All  the  graves  from  which  the  bones  of  Negritos  now  in  possession 
were  taken  belong  to  recent  times,  and  also  the  oldest  descriptions 
which  have  been  received,  so  far  as  phylogeny  is  concerned,  must  be 
characterized    as    modern. 

The  little  change  in  the  mode  of  life  made  known  through  these 
descriptions  in  connection  with  the  low  grade  of  culture  on  which 
these  impoverished  tribes  live  amply  testify  that  we  have  before  us 
here- a  primitive  race.     *     *     * 

(The  question  whether  we  have  to  do  with  older,  independent 
races  in  the  Malay  Archipelago  or  with  mixtures  is  everywhere  an 
open  one. — Translator.) 

Whoever  would  picture  the  present  ethnic  affiliations  of  the 
light-colored  peoples  of  the  Philippines  will  soon  land  in  confusion 
on  account  of  the  great  number  of  tribes.  One  of  the  ablest  obser- 
vers, Ferd.  Blumentritt,  mentions,  besides  the  Negritos,  the  Chinese 
and  the  whites,  not  less  than  51  such  tribes.  He  classifies  them  in 
one  group  as  Malays,  according  to  the  plan  now  customary.  The 
division  rests  primarily  on  a  linguistic  foundation.  But  when  it  is 
noted  that  the  identity  of  language  among  all  the  tribes  is  not 


iS'egritu!'  a 

primitive 

people. 


oJ,0  THE  FORMER  I'lIIUPPISES   THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

established  and  among  many  not  at  all  proved,  it  is  sufficiently- 
shown  that  speech  is  a  character  of  little  constancy,  and  that  a 
language  may  be  imposed  upon  a  people  to  the  annihilation  of  their 
own  by  those  who  belong  to  a  different  linguistic  stock.  The  Malay 
Sea  is  filled  with  islands  on  which  tarry  the  remnants  of  peoples  not 
Malay. 

For  a  long  time,  especially  since  the  Dutch  occupation,  these  old 
populations  have  received  the  special  name  of  Alfuros.  But  this 
ambiguous  term  has  been  used  in  such  an  arbitrary  and  promiscuous 
fashion  that  latterly  it  has  been  well-nigh  banished  from  ethnolo- 
gical literature.  It  is  not  long  ago  that  the  Negritos  were  so  called. 
But  if  the  black  peoples  are  eliminated,  there  remains  on  many 
islands  at  least  an  element  to  be  differentiated  from  the  Malay, 
chiefly  through  the  darker  skin  color,  greater  orthocephaly,  and 
more  wavy,  quite  crimped  hair.  I  have,  for  the  different  islands, 
furnished  proof,  and  will  here  only  refer  to  the  assertion  that  "a 
broad  belt  of  wavy  and  curly  hair  has  pressed  itself  in  between  the 
Papuan  and  the  Malay,  a  belt  which  in  the  north  seems  to  terminate 
with  the  Veddah,  in  the  south  with  the  Australian."  One  can  not 
read  the  accounts  of  travelers  without  the  increasing  conviction  of  the 
existence  of  several  different,  if  not  perhaps  related,  varieties  of 
peoples  thrust  on  the  same  island. 
Theory  of  From  this  results  the  natural  and  entirely  unprejudiced  conclusion, 

Xegriio  and  which  has  repeatedly  been  stated,  that  either  a  primitive  people  by 

three  Malay  later  intrusions  has  been  pressed  back  into  the  interior  or  that  in 

invasions.  course  of  time  several  immigrations  have  followed  one  another.     At 

the  same  time  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  think  that  both  processes 
went  on  at  the  same  time,  and  indeed  this  conception  is  strongly 
brought  forward.  So  Blumentritt  assumes  that  there  is  there  a 
primitive  black  people  and  that  three  separate  Malay  invasions  have 
taken  place.  The  oldest,  whose  branches  have  many  traits  in  accord 
with  the  Dayaks  of  Borneo,  especially  the  practice  of  head-hunting; 
a  second,  which  also  took  place  before  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards, 
to  which  the  Tagals,  Bisayas,  Bicols,  Ilocanos,  and  other  tribes 
belong;  the  third,  Islamitic,  which  emigrated  from  Borneo  and  might 
have  been  interrupted  by  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards,  and  with 
which  a  contemporaneous  immigration  from  the  Moluccas  went  on. 
It  must  be  said,  however,  that  Blumentritt  admits  two  periods  for 
the  first  invasion.  In  the  earliest  he  places  the  immigration  of  the 
Igorots,  Apayos,  Zambales — in  short,  all  the  tribes  that  dwelt  in 
the  interior  of  the  country  later  and  were  pressed  away  from  the 
coast,  therefore,  actually,  the  mountain  tribes.  To  the  second 
half  he  assigns  the  Tinguianes,  Catalanganes,  and  Irayas,  who  are 
not  head-hunters,  but  Semper  says  they  appear  to  have  a  mixture 
of  Chinese  and  Japanese  blood. 

Against  this  scheme  many  things  may  be  said  in  detail,  especially 
that,  according  to  the  apparently  well-grounded  assertions  of  Mueller- 
Beeck,  the  going  of  the  Chinese  to  the  Philippines  was  developed 
about  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century,  and  chiefly  after  the  Span- 
iards had  gotten  a  foothold  and  were  using  the  Mexican  silver 
in  trade.  At  any  rate,  the  apprehension  of  Semper,  which  rests 
on  somewhat  superficial  physiognomic  ground,  is  not  confirmed  by 


I 


The  Peopling  of  the  Philippines  641 

searching  investigations.  So  the  head-hunting  of  the  mountain 
tribes,  so  far  as  it  hints  at  relations  with  Borneo,  gives  no  sure 
chronological  result,  since  it  might  have  been  contemporaneous 
in  them  and  could  have  come  here  through  invasion  from  other 
islands. 

The  chief  inquiry  is  this:  Whether  there  took  place  other  and  older 
invasions.  For  this  we  are  not  only  to  draw  upon  the  present  tribes, 
but  if  possible  upon  the  remains  of  earlier  and  perhaps  now  extirict 
tribes.  This  possibility  has  been  brought  nearer  for  the  Philip- 
pines through  certain  cave  deposits.  We  have  to  thank,  for  the 
first  information,  the  traveler  Jagor,  whose  exceptional  talent  as 
collector  has  placed  us  in  the  possession  of  rich  material,  especially 
crania.  To  his  excellent  report  of  his  journey  I  have  already  dedi- 
cated a  special  chapter,  in  which  I  have  presented  and  partially 
illustrated  not  only  the  cave  crania,  but  also  a  series  of  other  skulls. 
An  extended  conference  upon  them  has  been  held  in  the  Anthro- 
pological Society. 

The  old  Spanish  chroniclers  describe  accurately  the  mortuary 
customs  which  were  in  vogue  in  their  time.  The  dead  were  laid 
in  cofhns  made  from  excavated  tree  trunks  and  covered  with  a  well- 
fitting  lid.  They  were  then  deposited  on  some  elevated  place, 
or  mountain,  or  river  bank,  or  seashore.  Caves  in  the  mountains 
were  also  utilized  for  this  purpose.  Jagor  describes  such  caves 
on  the  island  of  Samar,  west  of  Luzon,  whose  contents  have  recently 
been  annihilated. 

The  few  crania  from  there  which  have  been  intrusted  to  me  bear 
the  marks  of  recent  pedigree,  as  also  do  the  additional  objects. 
Unfortunately,  Dr.  Jagor  did  not  himself  visit  these  interesting 
caves,  but  he  has  brought  crania  thence  which  are  of  the  highest 
interest,  and  which  I  must  now  mention.  e,    ,      f 

The  cave  in  question  lies  near  Lanang,  on  the  east  coast  of  Samar,  -^("dJ/  "j  a 
on  the  bank  of  a  river,  it  is  said.  It  is,  as  the  traveler  reports,  cele-  a^ant  skuu. 
brated  in  the  locality  "on  account  of  its  depressed  gigantic  crania, 
without  sutures."  The  singular  statement  is  made  clear  by  means 
of  a  well-preserved  example,  which  I  lay  before  you.  The  entire 
cranium,  including  the  face,  is  covered  with  a  thick  layer  of  sinter, 
which  gives  it  the  appearance  of  belonging  to  the  class  of  skulls 
with  Leontiasis  ossea.  It  is,  in  fact,  of  good  size,  but  through  the 
incrustation  it  is  increased  to  gigantic  proportions.  It  is  true, 
likewise,  that  it  has  a  much  flattened,  broad  and  compressed  form. 
The  cleaning  of  another  skull  has  shown  that  artificial  deformation 
has  taken  place,  which  obviously  was  completed  before  the  incrusta- 
tion was  laid  on  by  the  mineral  water  of  the  cave.  I  will  here  add 
that  on  the  testimony  of  travelers  no  Negritos  were  on  Samar. 
The  island  lies  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Bisayas.  Although  no 
description  of  the  position  of  the  skull  is  at  hand  and  of  the  skeleton 
to  which  it  apparently  belonged,  it  must  be  assumed  that  the  dead 
man  was  not  laid  away  in  a  coffin,  but  placed  on  the  ground;  that, 
in  fact,  he  belonged  to  an  earlier  "period."  How  long  ago  ^^at 
was  can  not  be  known,  unfortunately,  since  no  data  are  at  hand; 
however,  the  bones  are  in  a  nearly  fossilized  condition,  which  allows 
the  conclusion  that  they  were  deposited  long  ago. 


-:;4^  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES   THRU   FOREIGX  EYES 

The  deformation  itself  furnishes  no  clue  to  a  chronological  con- 
clusion. In  Thevenot  is  found  the  statement  that,  according  to  the 
account  of  a  priest,  probably  in  the  16th  century,  the  custom  prevails 
in  some  of  the  islands  to  press  the  heads  of  new-born  babes  between 
two  boards,  also  to  flatten  the  forehead,  "since  they  believed  that  this 
form  was  a  special  mark  of  beauty."  A  similar  deformation,  with 
more  pronounced  flattening  and  backward  pressure  of  the  forehead, 
is  shown  on  the  crania  which  Jagor  produced  from  a  cave  at  Cara- 
muan  in  Luzon.  There  are  modes  of  flattening  which  remind  one 
of  Peru.  When  they  came  into  our  hands  it  was  indeed  an  immense 
surprise,  since  no  knowledge  of  such  deformation  in  the  South  Sea 
was  at  hand.  First  our  information  led  to  more  thorough  investi- 
gations; so  we  are  aware  of  several  examples  of  it  from  Indonesia 
and,  indeed,  from  the  South  Sea  (Mallicolo).  However,  this  defor- 
mation furnishes  no  clue  to  the  antiquity  of  the  graves. 

(Chinese  and  Korean  pottery  are  said  to  have  been  found  with  the 
deformed  crania.  Similar  deformations  exist  in  the  Celebes,  New 
Britain,  etc.  Head-shaping  has  been  universal,  cf.  A.  B.  Meyer, 
Ueber  Kunstliche  deformirte  Schaedel  von  Borneo  und  Mindanao 
and  ueber  die  Verbreitung  der  Sitte  der  Kunstlichen  Schaedeldefor- 
mirung,   1881,  36  pp.,  4.° — Translator.) 

I  have  sawed  one  of  these  skulls  in  two  along  the  sagittal  suture. 
The  illustration  gives  a  good  idea  of  the  amount  of  compression  and 
of  the  violence  which  this  skull  endured  when  quite  young.  The 
cranial  cavity  is  inclined  backward  and  lengthened,  and  curves  out 
above,  while  the  occiput  is  pressed  downward  and  the  region  of  the 
front  fontanelle  is  correspondingly  lacking.  Likewise,  a  consider- 
able thickness  of  the  bone  is  to  be  noted,  especially  of  the  vertex. 
The  upper  jaw  is  slightly  prognathous  and  the  roof  of  the  mouth 
unusually  arched. 

For  the  purpose  of  the  present  study,  it  is  unnecessary  to  go  fur- 
ther into  particulars.  It  might  be  mentioned  that  all  Lanang  skulls 
are  characterized  by  their  size  and  the  firmness  of  bone,  so  that  they 
depart  widely  from  the  characteristics  of  the  other  Philippine 
examples  known  to  me.  Similar  skulls  have  been  received  only  from 
caves,  which  exist  in  one  of  the  little  rocky  islands  east  from  Luzon. 
They  suggest  most  Kanaka  crania  from  Hawaii,  and  Moriori  crania 
from  Chatham  islands,  and  they  raise  the  question  whether  they  do 
not  belong  to  a  migration  period  long  before  the  time  of  the  Malays. 
I  have,  on  various  occasions,  mentioned  this  probable  pre-Malayan, 
or  at  least  proto-Malayan,  population  which  stands  in  nearest  rela- 
tion to  the  settling  of  Polynesia.  Here  I  will  merely  mention  that 
the  Polynesian  sagas  bring  the  progenitor  from  the  west,  and  that 
the  passage  between  Halmahera  (Gilolo)  and  the  Philippines  is 
pointed  out  as  the  course  of  invasion. 

At  any  rate,  it  is  quite  probable  that  the  skulls  from  Lanang, 
Cragaray,  and  other  Philippine  Islands  are  the  remains  of  a  very  old, 
if  not  autochthonous,  prehistoric  layer  of  population.  The  present 
mountain  tribes  have  furnished  no  close  analogies.  As  to  the  Igo- 
rots,  which  Blumentritt  attributes  to  the  first  invasion,  I  refer  to 
my  description  given  on  the  ground  of  chronological  investigations; 
according  to  the  account  given  by  Hans  Meyer  the  disposal  of  the 


The   I'eoplino   of  the   Philippines  .5^.:? 

dead  in  log  coffins  and  in  caves  still  goes  on.     Of  the  skulls  them- 
selves, none  were  brachycephalous;  on  the  contrary,  they   exhibit 
platyrrhine  and  in  part  decidedly  pithecoid  noses.     On  the  whole, 
I  came  to  the  conclusion,  as  did  earlier    Quatrefages   and    Hamy,    Induaiion.i  .>j 
that  "they  stand  next  in  comparison  with  the  Dayaks  of  Borneo,"    pre-Malaji 
but  I  hold  yet  the  impression  that  they  belong  to  a  very  old,  prob-    inrnmoti. 
ably  pre-Malay,  immigration. 

When,  on  the  18th  of  March,  1897,  I  made  a  communication  on  the 
population  of  the  Philippines,  a  bloody  uprising  had  broken  out 
everywhere  against  the  existing  Spanish  rule.  In  this  uprising  a 
certain  portion  of  the  population,  and  indeed  that  which  had  the 
most  valid  claim  to  aboriginal ity,  the  so-called  Negritos,  were  not 
involved.  Their  isolation,  their  lack  of  every  sort  of  political,  often 
indeed  of  village  organization,  also  their  meager  numbers,  render 
it  conceivable  that  the  greatest  changes  might  go  on  among  their 
neighbors  without  their  taking  such  a  practical  view  of  them  as  to 
lead  to  their  engaging  in  them.  Thus  it  can  be  understood  how  they 
would  take  no  interest  in  the  further  development  of  the  affair. 

Since  then  the  result  of  the  war  between  Spain  and  the  Americans 
has  been  the  destruction  of  Spanish  power,  and  the  treaty  of  Paris 
brought  the  entire  Philippine  Archipelago  into  the  possession  of  the 
United  States  of  America.  Henceforth  the  principal  interest  is 
centered  upon  the  deportment  of  the  insurgents,  who  have  not  only 
outlived  the  great  war  between  the  powers,  but  are  now  determined 
to  assert,  or  win,  their  independence  from  the  conquerors.  These 
insurgents,  who  for  brevity  are  called  Filipinos,  belong,  as  I  have 
remarked,  to  the  light-colored  race  of  so-called  Indios,  who  are 
sharply  differentiated  from  the  Negritos.  Their  ethnological  posi- 
tion is  difficult  to  fix,  since  numerous  mixtures  have  taken  place 
with  immigrant  whites,  especially  with  Spaniards,  but  also  with 
people  of  yellow  and  of  brown  races — that  is,  with  Mongols  and 
Chinese.  Perhaps  here  and  there  the  importance  of  this  mixture 
on  the  composite  type  of  the  Indios  has  been  overestimated:  at  least 
in  most  places  positive  proof  is  not  forthcoming  that  foreign  blood 
has  imposed  itself  upon  the  bright-colored  population.  Both  history 
and  tradition  teach,  on  the  contrary,  as  also  the  study  of  the  physi- 
cal peculiarities  of  the  people  that  among  the  various  tribes  differ- 
ences exist  which  suggest  family  traits.  To  this  effect  is  the  testimony 
of  several  travelers  who  have  followed  one  another  during  a  long 
period  of  time,  as  has  been  developed  especially  by  Blumentritt. 

In  this  connection  it  must  not  be  overlooked  that  all  these  immi-    mi 
grations,  howsoever  many  they  be^'supposed  to  have  been,  must  have    imnmjraiionx 
come  this  way  from  the  west.     Indeed,  a  noteworthy  migration  from    /mm  the  »>.<«. 
the  east  is  entirely  barred  out,  if  we  look  no  farther  back  than  the 
Chinese   and   Japanese.     On   the  contrary,   all   signs   point   to  the 
assumption  that  from  of  old,  long  before  the  coming  of  Portuguese 
and  Spaniards,  a  strong  movement  had  gone  on  from  this  region  to 
the  east,  and  that  the  great  sea  way  which  exists  between  Mindanao 
and  the  Sulu  islands  on  the  north  and  Halmahera  and  the  Moluccas 
in  the  south  was  the  entrance  road  along  which  those  tribes,  or  at 
least  those  navigators  whose  arrival  peopled  the  Polynesian  Islands, 
found  their  way  into  the  Pacific  Ocean.    But  also  the  movement  ofthe 


6U  THE  FORMER  PHILTPPIXES  THRU  FOREIGX  EYES 

Polynesians  points  to  the  west,  and  if  their  ancestors  may  have  come 
froni  Indonesia  there  is  no  doubt  that  in  their  long  journeys  east- 
ward they  must  have  touched  at  the  coasts  of  other  islands  on  their 
way,  especially  the  Philippines.  Polynesian  invasions  of  the  Philip- 
pines are  not  supposed  to  have  closed  when  a  migration  of  peoples  or 
of  men  passing  out  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  laid  the  foundation  of  a  large 
fraction  of  the  population  of  the  archipelago.  It  is  known  that  now 
and  then  single  canoes  from  the  Pelew  or  the  Ladrone  Islands  were 
driven  upon  the  east  coast  of  Luzon,  but  their  importance  ought 
not  to  be  overestimated.  The  migration  this  way  from  the  west 
must  henceforth  remain  as  the  point  of  departure  for  all  explanations 
of  this  eastern  ethnology.  (These  statements  are  well  enough  for 
working  hypotheses,  but  actual  proofs  are  not  at  hand.  Ratzel, 
Berl.  Verhandl.,  etc.,  Phil.  Hist.  Class,  1898,  I.,  p.  33. —  Translator.) 

Now,  how  are  the  local  differences  of  various  tribes  to  be  explained, 
when  on  the  whole  the  place  of  origin  was  the  same?  Is  there  here  a 
secondary  variation  of  the  type,  something  brought  about  through 
climate,  food,  circumstances?  It  is  a  large  theme,  which,  unfortu- 
nately, is  too  often  dominated  by  previously-formed  theories.  The 
importance  of  "environment"  and  mode  of  life  upon  the  corporeal 
development  of  man  can  not  be  contested,  but  the  measure  of  this 
importance  is  very  much  in  doubt.  Nowhere  is  this  measure,  at 
least  in  the  present  consideration,  less  known  than  in  the  Philippines. 
In  spite  of  wide  geological  and  biological  differences  on  these  islands, 
there  exists  a  close  anthropological  agreement  of  the  Indies  in  the 
chief  characteristics,  and  the  effort  to  trace  back  the  tribal  differ- 
ences that  have  been  marked  to  climatic  and  alimentary  causes  has 
not  succeeded.  The  influence  of  inherited  peculiarities  is  also 
more  mighty  here,  as  in  most  parts  of  the  earth,  than  that  of 
"milieu." 

If  we  assume,  first,  that  the  immigrants  brought  their  peculiari- 
ties with  them,  which  were  fixed  already  when  they  came,  we  must 
also  accept  as  self-evident  that  the  Negritos  of  the  Philippines  do 
not  belong  to  the  same  stock  as  the  more  powerful,  bright-colored 
Indios.  As  long  as  these  islands  have  been  known,  more  than  three 
centuries,  the  skin  of  the  Negritos  has  been  dark  brown,  almost 
black,  their  hair  short  and  spirally  twisted,  and  just  as  long  has  the 
skin  of  the  Indios  been  brownish,  in  various  shades,  relatively  clear, 
and  the  hair  has  been  long  and  arranged  in  wavy  locks.  At  no  time, 
so  far  as  known,  has  it  been  discovered  that  among  a  single  family 
a  pronounced  variation  from  these  peculiarities  had  taken  place. 
On  this  point  there  is  entire  unanimity.  In  case  of  the  Negritos 
there  is  not  the  least  doubt;  of  the  Indios  a  doubt  may  arise,  for, 
in  fact,  the  shades  of  skin  color  appear  greatly  varied,  since  the  brown 
is  at  times  quite  blackish,  at  times  yellowish,  almost  as  varied  as  is 
the  color  of  the  sunburnt  hair.  But  even  then  the  practiced  eye 
easily  detects  the  descent,  and  if  the  skin  alone  is  not  sufficient  the 
first  glance  at  the  hair  completes  the  diagnosis.  The  correct  explana- 
tion of  individual  or  tribal  variations  is  difficult  only  with  the  Indios, 
while  no  such  necessity  exists  in  the  case  of  the  Negritos.  But  among 
the  Indios  these  individual  and  tribal  variations  are  so  frequent  and 
so  outspoken  that  one  is  justified  in  making  the  inquiry  whether 


The   Peopling   of  the   Philippines 


there  has  not  developed  here  a  new  type  of  inherited  peculiarities. 
If  this  were  the  case,  it  must  still  be  held  that  already  the  immigrant 
tribes  had  possessed  them. 

Now,  history  records  that  different  immigrations  have  actually 
taken  place.  Laying  aside  the  latest  before  the  arrival  of  the  Span- 
iards, that  of  the  Islamites,  in  the  fourteenth  and  the  fifteenth 
centuries,  there  remains  the  older  one.  If  ethnologists  and  travelers 
in  general  come  to  the  conclusion  concerning  Borneo — and  it  is 
to  be  taken  as  certain — that  the  differences  now  existing  among  the 
wild  tribes  of  this  island  are  very  old,  it  ought  not  be  thought  so 
wonderful  if,  according  to  the  conditions  of  the  tribes  which  have 
immigrated  thence,  there  should  exist  on  the  Philippines  near  one 
another  dissimilar  though  related  peoples.  This  difference  is  not 
difficult  to  recognize  in  manners  and  customs — a  side  of  the  discus- 
sion which  is  further  on  to  be  treated  more  fully.  We  begin  with 
physical  characteristics. 

Among  these  the  hair  occupies  the  chief  place.  To  be  sure,  among 
all  the  Indies  it  is  black,  but  it  shows  not  the  slightest  approach 
to  the  frizzled  condition  which  is  such  a  prominent  feature  in  the 
external  appearance  of  the  Negritos  and  of  all  the  Papuan  tribes  of 
the  East.  This  frizzled  condition  may  be  called  woolly,  or  in  some- 
what exaggerated  refinement  in  the  name  may  be  attributed  to  the 
term  "wool,"  all  sorts  of  meanings  akin  to  wool;  in  every  case  there 
is  wanting  to  all  the  Indios  the  crinkling  of  the  hair  from  its  exit  out 
of  the  follicle,  whereby  would  result  wide  or  narrow  spiral  tubes  and 
the  coarse  appearance  of  the  so-called  "peppercorn."  The  hair  of 
all  Indios  is  smooth  and  straightened  out,  and  when  it  forms  curves 
they  are  only  feeble,  and  they  make  the  whole  outward  appearance 
wavy  or,  at  most,  curled. 

But  within  this  wavy  or  curled  condition  of  the  hair  there  are  again 
differences.  In  my  former  communication  I  have  attended  to  exami- 
nations which  I  made  upon  a  large  number  of  islands  in  the  Malay 
Sea,  and  in  which  it  was  shown  that  a  certain  area  exists  which  begins 
with  the  Moluccas  and  extends  to  the  Sunda  group,  in  which  the 
hair  shows  a  strong  inclination  to  form  wavy  locks,  indeed  passes 
gradually  into  crinkled,  if  not  into  spiral,  rolls.  Such  hair  is  found 
specially  in  the  interior  of  the  islands,  where  the  so-called  aboriginal 
population  is  purer  and  where  for  a  long  time  the  name  of  Alfuros 
has  been  conferred  on  them.  On  most  points  affinity  with  Negritos 
or  Papuans  is  not  to  be  recognized.  Should  such  at  any  time  have 
existed,  we  are  a  long  way  from  the  period  when  the  direct  causes 
therefor  are  to  be  looked  for.  In  this  connection  the  study  of  the 
Philippines  is  rich  with  instruction.  In  the  limits  of  the  almost  insu- 
lar, isolated  Negrito  enclave,  mixtures  between  Negritos  and  Indios 
very  seldom  surprise  one,  and  never  the  transitions  that  can  have 
arisen  in  the  post-generative  time  of  development.  (The  island  of 
Negros,  on  the  contrary,  is  peopled  by  such  crossbreeds. —  Trans- 
lator.) 

If  there  are  among  the  bright-colored  islanders  of  the  Indian  Ocean 
Alfuros  and  Malays  close  together  there  is  nothing  against  coming 
upon  this  contrast  in  the  Philippine  population  also.  Among  the 
more  central  peoples  the  tribal  differences  are  so  great  that  almost 


Assistance  from 
history. 


Hair 

differences. 


due 


THE  FORMER  PHILIPPIXES   THRU   FOREIGX  EYES 


every  explorer  stumbles  on  the  question  of  mixture.  There  not  only 
the  Dayaks  and  the  other  Malays  obtrude  themselves,  but  also  the 
Chinese  and  the  Mongolian  peoples  of  Farther  India.  Indeed,  many 
facts  are  known,  chiefly  in  the  language,  the  religion,  the  domestic 
arts,  the  agriculture,  the  pastoral  life  which  remind  one  of  known 
conditions  peculiarly  Indian.  The  results  of  the  ethnologists  are  so 
tangled  here  that  one  has  to  be  cautious  when  one  or  another  of  them 
draws  conclusions  concerning  immigrations,  because  of  certain  local 
or  territorial  specializations.  Of  course,  when  a  Brahmanic  custom 
occurs  anywhere  it  is  right  to  conclude  that  it  came  here  from  India. 
But  before  assuming  that  the  tribe  in  which  such  a  custom  prevails 
itself  comes  from  Hither  or  Farther  India,  the  time  has  to  be  ascer- 
tained to  which  the  custom  is  to  be  traced  back.  The  chronological 
evidence  leads  to  the  confident  belief  that  the  custom  and  the  tribe 
immigrated  together. 
Ancestor  Over  the  whole  Philippine  Archipelago  religious  customs   have 

worship.  changed  with  the  progress  of  external  relations.     Christianity  has  in 

many  places  spread  its  peculiar  customs,  observances,  and  opinions, 
and  changed  entirely  the  direction  of  thought.  On  closer  view  are 
to  be  detected  in  the  midst  of  Christian  activities  older  survivals, 
as  ingredients  of  belief  which,  in  spite  of  that  religion,  have  not 
vanished.  Before  Christianity,  in  many  places,  Islam  flourished, 
and  it  is  not  surprising  to  witness,  as  on  Mindanao,  Christian  and 
Mohammedan  beliefs  side  by  side.  But,  before  Islam,  ancestor 
worship,  as  has  long  been  known,  was  widely  prevalent.  In  almost 
every  locality,  every  hut  has  its  Anito  with  its  special  place,  its  own 
dwelling;  there  are  Anito  pictures  and  images,  certain  trees  and, 
indeed,  certain  animals  in  which  some  Anito  resides.  The  ancestor 
worship  is  as  old  as  history,  for  the  discoverers  of  the  Philippines 
found  it  in  full  bloom,  and  rightly  has  Blumentritt  characterized 
Anito  worship  as  the  ground  form  of  Philippine  religion.  He  has  also 
furnished  numerous  examples  of  Anito  cult  surviving  in  Christian 
communities. 

Chronology  has  a  good  groundwork  and  it  will  have  to  observe 
every  footprint  of  vanishing  creeds.  Only,  it  must  not  be  over- 
looked that  the  beginning  of  the  chronology  of  religion  has  not  been 
reached,  and  that  the  origin  of  the  generally  diffused  ancestor  wor- 
ship, at  least  on  the  Philippines,  is  not  known.  If  it  is  borne  in 
mind  that  belief  in  Anitos  is  widely  diffused  in  Polynesia  and  in 
purely  Malay  areas,  the  drawing  of  certain  conclusions  therefrom 
concerning  the  prehistory  of  the  Philippines  is  to  be  despaired  of. 
Tattooing.  Next  to  religious  customs,  among  wild  tribes  fashions  are  most 

enduring.  Little  of  costume  is  to  be  seen,  indeed,  among  them. 
Therefore,  here  tattooing  asserts  its  sway.  The  more  it  has  been 
studied  in  late  years  the  more  valuable  has  been  the  information 
in  deciding  the  kinship  relations  of  tribes.  Unfortunately,  in  the 
Philippines  the  greater  part  of  the  early  tattoo  designs  have  been 
lost  and  the  art  itself  is  also  nearly  eliminated.  But  since  the  journey 
of  Carl  Semper  it  has  been  known  that  not  only  Malays  but  also 
Negritos  tattoo;  indeed,  this  admirable  explorer  has  decided  that  the 
"Negroes  of  the  East  Coast"  practice  a  different  method  of  tattooing 
from  that  of  the  Mariveles  in  the  west,  and  on  that  account  they 


The  Peopling  of  the  Philippines  3^7 

attain  different  results.  In  the  one  case  a  needle  is  employed  to 
make  fine  holes  in  the  skin  in  which  to  introduce  the  color;  in  the 
other  long  gashes  are  made.  In  the  latter  case  prominent  scars 
result;  in  the  former  a  smooth  pattern.  But  these  combined  patterns 
are  on  the  whole  the  same,  instead  of  rectilinear  figures.  Schaden- 
burg  has  the  operations  commence  with  a  sharpened  bamboo  on 
children  10  years  of  age.  Among  the  wild  tribes  of  the  light-colored 
population  tattooing  is  not  less  diffused,  but  the  patterns  are  not 
alike  in  the  different  tribes.  Isabelo  de  los  Reyes  reports  that 
the  Tinguianes,  who  inhabit  the  mountain  forests  of  the  northern 
Cordilleras  of  Luzon,  produce  figures  of  stars,  snakes,  birds,  etc., 
on  children  7  to  9  years  old.  Hans  Meyer  describes  the  pattern 
of  the  Igorots.  There  appears  to  exist  a  great  variety  of  symbols; 
for  example,  on  the  arms,  straight  and  crooked  lines  crossing  one 
another;  on  the  breast,  feather-like  patterns.  Least  frequently 
he  saw  the  so-called  Burik  designs,  which  extended  in  parallel  bands 
across  the  breast,  the  back,  and  calves,  and  give  to  the  body  the 
appearance  of  a  sailor's  striped  jacket.  It  is  very  remarkable  that 
the  human  form  never  occurs. 

What  is  true  concerning  tattooing  on  so  many  Polynesian  islands 
holds  also  completely  here.  But  reliable  descriptions  are  so  few, 
and  especially  there  is  such  a  meager  number  of  useful  drawings, 
that  it  would  not  repay  the  trouble  to  assemble  the  scattered  data. 
At  least  it  will  suffice  to  discover  whether  among  them  there  are 
genuine  tribal  marks  or  to  investigate  concerning  the  distribution 
of  separate  patterns.  Those  known  show  conclusively  that  in  the 
matter  of  tattooing  the  Filipinos  are  not  differentiated  from  the  island- 
ers of  the  Pacific;  they  form,  moreover,  an  important  link  in  the 
chain  of  knowledge  which  demonstrates  the  genetic  homogeneity  of 
the  inhabitants.  The  tattooings  of  the  eastern  islanders  are  com- 
parable only  to  those  of  African  aborigines,  with  which  last  they 
furnish  many  family  marks,  made  out  and  recognized.  It  is  desir- 
able that  a  trustworthy  collection  of  all  patterns  be  collected  before 
the  method  becomes  more  altered  or  destroyed. 

Next  to  the  skin,  among  the  wild  tribes  the  teeth  are  modified  in  Teeth 
the  most  numerous  artificial  alterations.  The  preferable  custom,  alterati 
common  in  Africa,  of  breaking  out  the  front  teeth  in  greater  or  less 
number  has  not,  so  far  as  I  remember,  been  described  among  the 
Filipinos;  I  only  mention  that  while  I  was  making  a  revision  of  our 
Philippine  crania,  two  of  them  turned  up  in  which  the  middle  upper 
incisors  had  evidently  been  broken  out  for  a  long  time,  for  the  alveolar 
border  had  shrunk  into  a  small  quite  smooth  ridge,  without  a  trace 
of  an  aveolus.  It  is  otherwise  with  the  pointing  of  the  incisors, 
especially  the  upper  ones,  which,  also  is  not  common.  I  must  leave 
it  undecided  whether  the  sharpening  is  done  by  filing  or  by  breaking 
off  pieces  from  the  sides.  The  latter  should  be  in  general  far  more 
frequent.  In  every  case  the  otherwise  broad  and  flat  teeth  are 
brought  to  such  sharp  points  as  to  project  like  those  of  the  carni- 
vorous animals.  I  have  met  with  this  condition  several  times  on 
Negrito  skulls  and  furnished  illustrations  of  them.  On  a  Zambal 
skull,  excavated  by  Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer  and  which  I  lay  before  you,  the 
deformation  is  easy  to  be  seen.     I  called  attention  at  the  time  to 


BUS  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES  THRU  FOREIGN  EYES 

the  fact  that  among  the  Malays  an  entirely  different  method  of 
modifying  the  teeth  is  in  vogue,  in  which  a  horizontal  filing  on  the 
front  surface  is  practiced  and  the  sharp  lower  edge  is  straightened 
and  widened.  Already  the  elder  Thevenot  has  accented  this  con- 
trast when  he  says: 

"These  cause  the  teeth  to  be  equal,  those  file  them  to  points, 
giving  them  the  shape  of  a  saw." 

This  difference  appears  to  have  held  on  till  the  present;  at  least 
no  skull  of  an  Indio  is  known  to  me  with  similar  deformation  of  the 
teeth.  This  custom  of  the  Negritos  is  so  much  more  remarkable 
since  the  chipping  of  the  corners  of  the  teeth  is  widely  spread  among 
the  African  blacks. 
Skvll  flaitening.  The  Other  part  of  the  body  used  most  for  deformation — the  skull — 
is  in  strong  contrast  to  the  last-named  custom.  Deformed  crania; 
especially  from  older  times,  are  quite  numerous  in  the  Philippines; 
probably  they  belong  exclusively  to  the  Indios.  If  they  exist  among 
the  Negritos,  I  do  not  know  it;  the  only  exception  comes  from  the 
Tinguianes,  of  whom  I.  de  los  Reyes  reports  their  skulls  are  flattened 
behind  (por  detras  oprimido).  Such  flattening  is  found,  however, 
not  seldom  among  tribes  who  have  the  practice  of  binding  children 
on  hard  cradle  boards — chiefly  among  those  families  who  keep  their 
infants  a  long  time  on  such  contrivances.  A  sure  mark  by  which 
to  discriminate  accidental  pressure  of  this  sort  from  one  intentionally 
produced  is  not  at  hand;  it  may  be  that  in  accidental  deformation 
oblique  position  of  the  deformed  spot  is  more  frequent;  at  any  rate, 
the  difference  in  the  Philippines  is  a  very  striking  one,  since  there  not 
so  much  the  occiput  as  the  front  and  middle  portions  suffer  from  the 
disfigurements,  and  thereby  deformations  are  produced  that  have 
had  their  most  perfect  expression  among  the  ancient  Peruvians  and 
other  American  tribes. 

I  have  discussed  cranial  deformation  of  the  Americans  in  greater 
detail,  where  I  exhibit  the  accidental  and  the  artificial  (intentional) 
deformation  in  their  principal  forms.  The  result  is  that  in  large 
sections  of  America  scarcely  any  ancient  skulls  are  found  having 
their  natural  forms,  but  that  the  practice  of  deformation  has  not 
been  general;  moreover,  a  number  of  deformation  centers  may  be 
differentiated  which  stand  in  no  direct  association  with  one  another. 
The  Peruvian  center  is  far  removed  from  that  of  the  northwest 
coast,  and  this  again  from  that  of  the  Gulf  States.  From  this  it 
must  not  be  said  that  each  center  may  have  had  its  own,  as  it  were, 
autochthonous  origin.  But  the  method  has  not  so  spread  that  its 
■course  can  be  followed  immediately.  Rather  is  the  supposition 
confirmed  that  the  method  is  to  be  traced  to  some  other  time,  there- 
fore that  somewhere  there  must  have  been  a  place  of  origin  for  it. 
On  the  Eastern  Hemisphere,  and  especially  in  the  region  here  under 
consideration,  the  relations  are  apparently  otherwise.  Here  exist, 
so  far  as  known,  great  areas  entirely  free  from  deformation;  small 
ones,  on  the  other  hand,  full  of  it.  There  are  here,  also,  deformation 
centers,  but  only  a  few.  Among  these,  with  our  present  knowledge, 
the  Philippines  occupy  the  first  place. 

The  knowledge  of  this,  indeed,  is  not  of  long  duration.  Public 
.attention  was  first  aroused  about  thirty  years  ago  concerning  skulls 


The   Peoptum  <>/  the   Philippines  5^0 

from  Samar  and  Luzon,  gathered  by  F.  Jagor  from  ancient  caves, 
to  furnish  the  proof  of  their  deformation.  Up  to  that  time  next 
to  nothing  was  known  of  deformed  crania  in  the  oriental  island  world. 
First  through  my  publication  the  attention  of  J.  G.  Riedel,  a  most 
observant  Dutch  resident,  was  called  to  the  fact  that  cranial  defor- 
mation is  still  practiced  in  the  Celebes,  and  he  was  so  good  as  to  send 
us  a  specimen  of  the  compressing  apparatus  for  delicate  infants 
(1874).  Compressed  crania  were  also  found.  But  the  number 
was  small  and  the  compression  of  the  separate  specimens  was  only 
slight.  In  both  respects  what  was  observed  in  the  Sunda  islands 
did  not  differ  from  the  state  of  the  case  in  the  Philippines.  Through 
Jagor's  collections  different  places  had  become  known  where  de- 
formed crania  were  buried.  Since  then  the  number  of  localities 
has  multipHed.  I  shall  mention  only  two,  on  account  of  their 
peculiar  locality.  One  is  Cagraray,  a  small  island  east  of  Luzon, 
in  the  Pacific  Ocean,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Bay  of  Albay ;  the  other, 
the  island  of  Marinduque,  in  the  west,  between  Luzon  and  Mindoro. 
From  the  last-named  island  I  saw,  ten  years  ago,  the  first  picture 
of  one  in  a  photograph  album  accidentally  placed  in  my  hands. 
Since  then  I  had  opportunity  to  examine  the  Schadenberg  collec- 
tion of  crania,  lately  come  into  the  possession  of  the  Reichsmuseum, 
in  Leyden,  and  to  my  great  delight  discovered  in  it  a  series  of  skulls 
which  are  compressed  in  exactly  the  same  fashion  as  those  of  Lanang. 
It  is  said  that  these  will  soon  be  described  in  a  publication. 

It  is  of  especial  interest  that  this  method  has  been  noted  in  the 
Philippines  for  more  than  three  hundred  years.  In  my  first  pub- 
lication I  cited  a  passage  in  Thevenot  where  he  says,  on  the  testi- 
mony of  a  priest,  that  the  natives  on  some  islands  had  the  custom 
of  compressing  the  head  of  a  newborn  child  between  two  boards, 
so  that  it  would  be  no  longer  round,  but  lengthened  out;  also  they 
flattened  the  forehead,  which  they  looked  upon  as  a  special  mark 
of  beauty.  This  is,  therefore,  an  ancient  example.  It  is  confirmed 
by  the  circumstance  that  these  crania  are  found  especially  in  caves, 
from  the  roofs  of  which  mineral  waters  have  dripped,  which  have 
overlaid  the  bones  partly  with  a  thick  layer  of  calcareous  matter. 
The  bones  themselves  have  an  uncommonly  thick,  almost  ivory, 
fossil-like  appearance.  Only  the  outer  surface  is  in  places  corroded, 
and  on  these  places  saturated  with  a  greenish  infiltration.  It  is 
to  be  assumed,  therefore,  that  they  are  very  old.  I  have  the  im- 
pression that  they  must  have  been  placed  here  before  the  discovery 
of  the  islands  and  the  introduction  of  Christianity.  Their  peculiar 
appearance,  especially  their  angular  form  and  the  thickness  of  the 
bone,  reminds  one  of  crania  from  other  parts  of  the  South  Sea,  espe- 
cially those  from  Chatham  and  Sandwich  Islands.  I  shall  not  here 
go  further  into  this  question,  but  merely  mention  that  I  came 
to  the  conclusion  that  these  people  must  be  looked  upon  as  proto- 
Malayan. 

The  changes  which  will  take  place  in  the  political  condition  of  the    Hope  of 
PhiUppines  may  be  of  little  service  to  scientific  explorations  at  first;    Filipino  and 
but  the  study  of  the  population  will  be  surely  taken  up  with  renewed    American  stwiy. 
energy.     Already  in  America  scholars  have  begun  to  occupy  them- 
selves therewith.     A  brief  article  by  Dr.  Brinton  is  to  be  mentioned 


odO  THE  FORMER  PHILIPPINES   THRU   FOREIGN  EYES 

as  the  first  sign  of  this.  But  should  the  ardent  desire  of  the  FiU- 
pinos  be  realized,  that  their  islands  hould  have  political  autonomy, 
it  is  to  be  hoped  that,  out  of  the  patriotic  enthusiasm  of  the  popula- 
tion and  the  scientific  spirit  of  many  of  their  best  men,  new  sources 
of  information  will  be  opened  for  the  history  and  the  development  of 
oriental  peoples.  To  this  end  it  may  be  here  mentioned,  by  the  way, 
that  the  connecting  links  of  ancient  Philippine  history  and  the  cus- 
toms of  these  islands,  as  well  with  the  Melanesians  as  with  the  Poly- 
nesians of  the  south,  are  yet  to  be  discovered. 

As  representatives  of  these  two  groups,  I  present,  in  closing,  two 
especially  well-formed  crania  from  the  Philippines.     One  of  them, 
which  shows  the  marks  of  antiquity  that  I  have  set  forth,  belongs  to 
Comparison  of      an  "Indio."     It  has  the  high  cranial  capacity  of  1,540  cubic  centi- 
Indio  and  meters,  a  horizontal  circumference  of  525  millimeters,  and  a  sagitta- 

Negrito  skulls  circumference  of  386  millimeters;  its  form  is  hypsidolicho,  quite  on  the 
border  of  mesocephaly :  Index  of  width,  75.3;  index  of  height,  76.3. 
Besides,  it  has  the  appearance  of  a  race  capable  of  development ;  only, 
the  nose  is  platyrrhine  (index,  52.3),  as  among  so  many  Malay  tribes, 
and  in  the  left  temple  it  bears  a  Processus  frontalis  squamae  temporalis 
developed  partly  from  an  enlarged  fontanelle.  The  other  skull 
was  one  taken  from  a  Negrito  grave  of  Zambales  by  Dr.  A.  B. 
Meyer.  It  makes,  at  first  glance,  just  as  favorable  an  impression, 
but  its  capacity  is  only  1,182  cubic  centimeters;  therefore  358  cubic 
centimeters  less  than  the  other.  Its  form  is  orthobrachycephalic; 
breadth  index,  80.2 ;  height  index,  70.6.  As  in  single  traits  of  develop- 
ment, so  in  the  measurements,  the  difference  and  the  debased  charac- 
ter of  this  race  obtrude  themselves.  Only,  the  nasal  index  is  some- 
what smaller;  on  the  whole,  the  nose  has  in  its  separate  parts  a  deci- 
dedly pithecoid  form. 


PEOPLE  AND  PROSPECTS  OF  THE  PHILIPPINES 

Blackwood's  magazine  for  August,  1818,  has  an  account  of  con- 
ditions in  Manila  and  the  Philippines  from  data  given  by  an  English 
merchant  who  left  the  Islands  in  1798  after  twenty  years'  residence 
in  which  he  accumulated  a  fortune. 

"Your  first  question,  with  respect  to  the  Spanish  population, 
must  refer  to  native  Spaniards  only;  as  their  numerous  descendants, 
through  all  the  variety  of  half-castes,  would  include  one  third  at 
least  of  the  whole  population  of  Luconia  (i.  e.,  Luzon — A.  C.) 

"Of  native  Spaniards,  accordingly,  settled  in  the  Philippine 
Islands,  the  total  number  may  be  stated  at  2,000  not  military.  The 
military,  including  all  descriptions,  men  and  officers,  are  about 
2,500,   out   of  which   number   the   native   regiments   are   office. ed. 


i 


People    and    Profipecta  of  the  Philippines  ool 

These  last,  in  1796-7.  were  almost  entirely  composed  of  South  Amer- 
icans and  were  reckoned  at  5,000  men,  making  a  military  force  of 
about  7,500. 

"The  castes  bearing  a  mixture  of  the  Spanish  blood  are  in  Luconia 
alone  at  least  200,000.  The  Sangleys,  or  Chinese  descendants,  are 
upwards  of  20,000,  and  Indians,  who  call  themselves  the  original 
Tagalas,  about  340,000,  making  a  total  population  in  that  island  of 
about  600,000  souls.  What  may  be  the  respective  numbers  in  the 
other  Philippine  Islands  I  never  had  any  opportunity  of  learning." 

(This  opinion,  of  a  day  when  it  was  not  desired  to  disparage  the 
people,  gives  an  idea  of  the  mixed  blood  of  the  Filipinos  which,  in 
the  opinion  of  the  ethnologists,  like  Ratzel,  is  a  source  of  strength. 
It  classes  them  with  the  English  and  Americans.  One  danger  of 
the  present  appears  in  over-emphasizing  the  Malay  blood,  just  as 
in  Spanish  times  a  real  loss  seems  to  have  come  from  the  contempt 
toward  the  Chinese  which  led  to  minimizing  and  concealing  a  most 
creditable  ancestry. 

Prejudice  in  the  past  called  all  trouble  makers  mestizos,  but 
today's  study  is  showing  that  trouble  maker  meant  man  who  would 
stand  up  for  his  rights;  one  must  not  forget  that  mestizo  was  used 
as  a  reproach,  that  the  leaders  of  the  people  were  really  typical  of 
the  people.  By  the  old  injustice  those  who  were  mediocre  were 
called  natives  and  whoever  rose  above  his  fellows  was  claimed  as  a 
Spaniard,  but  a  fairer  way  would  seem  to  be  to  consider  Filipinos 
all  born  in  the  Philippines. — C). 

The  Cornhill  magazine  in  the  late  '70s  had  a  contribution  by  the 
then  British  Consul,  Mr.  Palgreave,  on  "Malay  Life  in  the  Philip- 
pines," that  makes  more  understandable  the  reputation  of  the  islands, 
which  before  the  opening  of  the  Suez  were  a  health  resort  for  Japan, 
the  China  coast  and  India.  It  also  shows  a  fairness  to  the  people 
uncommon  in  the  Spanish-inspired  writings  of  his  day. 

"Dull  indeed  must  be  his  soul,  unsympathetic  his  nature  who  can  see 
the  forests  and  mountains  of  Luzon,  Queen  of  the  Eastern  Isles,  fade 
away  into  dim  violet  outlines  on  the  fast  receding  horizon  without 
some  pang  of  longing  regret.  Not  the  Aegean,  not  the  West  Indian, 
not  the  Samoan,  not  any  rival  in  manifold  beauties  of  earth,  sea  and 
sky  the  Philippine  Archipelago.  Pity  that  for  the  Philippines  no 
word  limner  of  note  exists.  The  chiefest,  the  almost  exceptional  spell 
of  the  Philippines,  is  situated,  not  in  the  lake  or  volcano,  forest  or 
plain,  but  in  the  races  that  form  the  bulk  of  the  island  population. 

"I  said  'almost  exceptional'  because  rarely  is  an  intra-tropical 
people  a  satisfactory  one  to  eye  or  mind.  But  this  cannot  be  said 
of  the  Philippine  Malays  who  is  bodily  formation  and  mental  char- 
acteristics alike,  may  fairly  claim  a  place,  not  among  middling  ones 
merely,  but  among  almost  the  higher  names  inscribed  on  the  world's 


552  THE  FORMER  PHILIPl'J S'ES   THRU   FORFIGX  EYES 

national  scale.  A  concentrated,  never-absent  self-respect,  an  habit- 
ual self- restraint  in  word  and  deed,  very  rarely  broken  except  when 
extreme  provocation  induces  the  transitory  but  fatal  frenzy  known 
as  'amok,'  and  an  inbred  courtesy,  equally  diffused  through  all  classes, 
high  or  low,  unfailing  decorum,  prudence,  caution,  quiet  cheerful- 
ness, ready  hospitality  and  a  correct,  though  not  inventive  taste. 
His  family  is  a  pleasing  sight,  much  subordination  and  little  con- 
straint, unison  in  gradation,  liberty — not  license.  Orderly  children, 
respected  parents,  women  subject  but  not  oppressed,  men  ruling 
but  not  despotic,  reverence  with  kindness,  obedience  in  affection, 
these  form  lovable  pictures,  not  by  any  means  rare  in  the  villages  of 
the  eastern  isles."  (Here  again  comes  the  necessity  of  combatting 
the  popular  impression  that  the  Philippines  is  a  tropical  land  peopled 
by  Malays.  The  modification  of  climate  from  being  an  ocean 
archipelago  suggests  that  these  islands  are  really  subtropical,  while 
mixture  of  blood  joined  with  three  centuries  of  European  civiliza- 
tion makes  the  term  Malay  misleading. — C.) 


FILIPINO  MERCHANTS  OF  THE  EARLY  1890s 
F.  Karuth,  F.  R.  G.  S.,  (President  of  an  English  corporation 
interested  in  Philippine  mining)  about  1894,  wrote: 

"Few  outside  the  comparatively  narrow  circle  who  are  directly 
interested  in  the  commerce  and  resources  of  the  Philippine  Islands 
know  anything  about  them.  The  Philippine  merchants  are  a  rather 
close  community  which  only  in  the  last  decade  or  so  has  expanded 
its  diameter  a  little.  There  are  a  number  of  very  old  established 
firms  amongst  them,  several  of  them  being  British  .... 
Amongst  them  also  are  firms — perhaps  as  far  as  wealth  and  local 
influence  go,  the  most  important  firms — whose  chiefs  are  partly  at  least 
of  native  blood. 


I 


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