DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Duke University Libraries https://archive.org/details/pearloforientphi01brow_0 ADMIRAL GEORGE DEWEY. THE PEARL OE THE ORIENT THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS BY G. WALDO BROWNE AUTHOR OF “ TAVO AlIEEICAX BOYS IX HAIVAII,” “THE WOOD- RANGER,” “the PARADISE OF THE PACIFIC,” ETC. Ellustratct) BOSTON DANA ESTES & COMPANY PUBLISHERS Copyright, /goo By Dana Estes and Company ffiolonfal press Electrotyped and Printed by C. H. Simonds & Co. Boston, U. S. A. CONTENTS. CHAP. I. The Philippine Islands PAGE 1 II. The People of the Philippines . . 20 m. The Animal Kingdom . . 35 IV. Spanish Discovery and Dominion . 45 v. Kivalry of Church and State . . 57 VI. Colonial Wars .... . 70 VII. Resources and Commerce . 85 VIII. Most Xoted Towns . 104 IX. Struggles for Liberty . 116 X. America in the Orient . 131 457094 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Admiral George Dewey . . . Frontispiece Native Village, Island of Negros ... 1 River Scene on Mindanao 2 Volcano of Apo 4 Volcano of Mayon, Luzon 5 Looking up Pasig River at Pretil just above Manila ........ 6 Bamboo Bridge, Iloilo ...... 8 Bamboo Yard ........ 9 Construction of a Philippino House ... 10 Native Houses ....... 12 Village on Mindanao ... ... 14 General View of Iloilo . .... 16 Manila Street, Rainy Season .... 17 Manila Street, Rainy Season .... 18 Types of Malays 20 Negritos 22 Native "Warrior from Interior of Mindanao . 24 Philippino Fruit Girl ...... 26 A Wealthy Half - caste Philippino Lady . . 28 Mestizos 29 SuLU Prau 30 ix 45*7094 X LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Sultan of Sulu Interviewing European Visitors 32 Mohammed, Sultan of Sulu 33 Igorrotes 34 Boar 36 Carabaos Transporting Army Stores . . 38 Street - cars in Manila 40 Young Wild Goat 42 Peacock 43 Calao Bird 44 Merchant Vessels near Bridge of Spain, Pa- sig River 46 Village of Bahele, Palawan .... 48 Oldest Church in Manila 50 Arsenal at Puerto Princessa, Palawan . . 52 Philippino Girl 54 Drawbridge and Gate of Old City ... 56 Old Stone Bridge near Manila ... 58 A Tagalo Bungalow in Luzon .... 60 Church and Square at Malolos ... 62 Spanish Priest ....... 64 Manila Street, Rainy Season .... 66 Sentry on the Wall of the Old City . . 68 Native Boats on Pasig above Bridge of Spain 70 Cavite Arsenal and Shipyard .... 72 Bathing Place at Manila . . . . . 74 Square and Railway Station, Manila . . 76 A Tagalo Family out for a Drive in a Car- ETELA ......... 78 Travel in Rainy Season 82 Volcano of Apo 84 Scene in Bulacan 86 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xi PAGE Plantation on Mindanao 88 iSTative Huts, Puerto Princessa, Palawan . 90 Cigar Dealer ........ 92 Street in Old Manila ...... 94 Train on Manila and Dagupin Railway . . 96 Manila and Dagupin Railway Station . . 98 Governor’s Palace, Manila 104 Street in Business Section of Manila . . 106 Tillage in the Suburbs of Manila . . . 108 Cavite Arsenal ....... 110 Social Entertainment under Spanish Regime 112 Philippine Schoolhouse 114 Tillage of Olas Pinas, on Outskirts of Manila 116 Dagaupan, Rio Horno 118 SuLU Woman 120 A Native of Malabon and His Family . . 122 Emilio Aguinaldo ....... 124 Cannon Used by Insurgents in 1899 . . . 126 Sentry Post on the Luneta Road . . . 128 Aguinaldo’s Family and Relatives . . . 130 Scene in Suburbs of Manila .... 132 U. S. S. Olympia 134 U. S. S. Baltimore 136 The Battle of Manila Bay ..... 138 Ma.jor - General ITesley Merritt . . . 140 General Augusti 142 General Otis ........ 144 Group of Insurgent Officers .... 146 F. Agoncillo, Envoy of Insurgents . . . 148 Insurgents' Capitol at Malolos, 1899 . . 150 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. CHAPTER I. THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. A /TANY geologists believe that a vast conti- nent, rivalling in area any now existing, once extended from New Zealand on the south to the Mariana (Ladrones) and Hawaiian Islands on the north ; from the most eastern of the Poly- nesian Islands to the China and Suhi Seas on the west. According to this theory, the islands of the South Sea, including the extensive Archi- pelago of the Philippines, are the uplifted moun- tain peaks and highlands of the submerged hemisphere. Granting the plausibility of this assertion, the evidence remains that a large per- centage of these islands are of coral or volcanic formation. Those under consideration belona: largely to the latter class. 5 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. So little is actually known of the entire Pacific coast, that only an approximate estimate can be given of the size and situation of the Philippine Islands, variously supposed to number from six to twelve hundred. A conservative calculation places the land area at a little less than 115,000 square miles, equal to the State of Arizona, or nearly the same as the combined areas of the six New England States and New York. This col- lection of fragmentary lands, lying to the south- east of Asia, extends from 4° 45" to 20° 38" north latitude, a distance of over a thousand miles ; and from 117° to 126° east longitude, or six hundred miles east and west. The entire surface of the numerous islands is broken, and the coast-line irregular, the seas cutting in and making frequent bays, gulfs, isthmuses and peninsulas. The only plains are to be found along the rivers near their mouths, except the intervales between the mountains, which are inclined to trend north and south. These lowlands are rich with the alluvial deposits of ages. Between the islands are long stretches of canals and passages, though not many of them are navigable. Owing to the existence of Vn>LAGE, ISLAXK OF NEOKOS. KIVKJ^ SCENE ON MINOANAO. THE PHILIPPINE ISLANB8. 3 volcanic fires and tlie occasional overflow of hot water from the boilers of these mountain furnaces, coral growth is uncommon, although nearly all of the other islands in the South Pacific abound in its formation. The principal islands are twelve in number, in size and situation as follows, according to the Spanish official returns : Luzon, the most north- erly, and containing the capital of the Archi- pelago, Manila, having an area of 41,000 square miles, equal to the State of Ohio ; Mindanao, the most southerly, with an extent of 37,600 miles, a trifle larger than the State of Indiana ; Sa- mar, on the central east, 5,300 miles in area ; Panay, near the centre of the group, 4,600 miles ; Palawan (Paragua), a long strip on the south- west, 4,100 miles ; Mindoro, on the central west, 4,050 miles ; Leyte, 3,090 miles ; Negros, 2,300 miles ; Cebu, 1,650, Masbate, 1,318, Bohol, 925, Cantanduanes, 450 square miles each. The two first named are probably as large as all the others combined. Everjrwhere is seen the evidence of the vol- canic formation of the islands, and a continual change in the topography of some of them is yet 4 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. going on with surprising rapidity. Open water now exists where a few years since were inhabited islands. On the other hand, habitable lands now rise above the surface of the sea where not long ago the brown-skinned boatman plied his slight craft along an uninterrupted course. Many of the islands, taking Cebu for an example, wear yet their caps of lunestoue, indisputable proof of their birth in the sea. On others are the cones of extinct volcanoes, lava beds, and the boiling geysers, living reminders of those days when the ocean for thousands of miles was lighted by these internal furnaces. Nor are all of the volcanoes burned out, as witness that giant Apo on the island of Mindanao, with an estimated height of over ten thousand feet ; on Negros the Canloon, measuring over eight thousand feet, while the active volcano, Mayon, on Luzon, is the grandest specimen, rising to a summit of eight thousand and two hundred feet. The latter has a per- fect cone in constant activity, its last eruption having taken place in 1888. The premium of damage done within the history of man, however, belongs to Taal, which lies in the midst of a fresh-water lake, thirty-four miles south of I VOLCANO OF APO. THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 5 Manila, tliougli sixty as it is reached by travel. This famous volcano has been active from time immemorial, and its history is as closely associated with the island as Vesuvius is with the fortunes of Naples. During the eighteenth century no less than five noteworthy eruptions occurred, the most startling of them being in 1754, when the town of Taal was entirely de- stroyed and several other places suffered seri- ously. Property fifteen miles away was laid in ruins, and fljdng cinders fell in Manila. The outbreak lasted for eight days, which were as dark as midnight, so that the inhabitants of the distant capital dined at midday with lighted lamp, and. plodded blindly along the streets amazed and terrified, believing that the end of the world had come. The smell of sulphur and decaying debris lasted for six months, when such a malignant fever followed as to carry off half of the inhabitants of the province. The road from Taal to Balayan was impassable on account of the lava, and the town which had been the capi- tal was destroyed with all the government build- ings. Batangas, on the coast, then became the 6 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. centre of government. The eruption continued for six months and seventeen days. At its last explosion this volcano blew off its head, and now stands less than nine hundred feet in height, the lowest active volcano in the world. The Palawan group on the southwest is free from volcanic signs and from earthquakes. Besides the volcanic cones and peaks, there are many mountains, some of respectable height, among them being Mt. Halcon, on the island of Mindoro, 8,900 feet ; San Cristobal, Luzon, 7,400 feet ; Isarog, Luzon, 6,424 feet ; Giting Giting, Sibuyan, 6,642 feet; Banajao, Luzon, 7,333 feet. The mountains of this class are generally covered with magnificent forests of stately trees, set off with the rich foliage of the tropics and the bright-coloured flora of a sunny clime. Excep- tions to this are the bare crowns of Mt. Halcon 'and Giting Giting, the two like grim giants standing, amid broad vistas of tropical country, teeming with the prodigal gifts of a nature which knows no bounds to its rare bounties, with un- covered heads. Like many of the other islands of the South Seas, it would seem as if the dis- penser of earth’s gifts let slip here the string THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 7 from his horn of plenty to make this a modern Eden. Rivers and small streams are niimerons throughout the islands, many of the larger being navigable. Among these are the Rio Pasig, which has its source in the Bay Lagoon, and after flowing nineteen miles discharges its water into Manila Bay. The largest, the Rio Grande de Caayan, rising in the mountains of Eastern Luzon, flows nearly the length of the island, or two hundred miles, and falls into the China Sea. It annually overflows its banks, and along its course, as well as that of the Pasig, are found some of the richest tobacco districts in the islands. The Rio de Grande de la Pampanga is another noticeable stream, threading great tracts of forests, extensive flelds of rice and plantations of sugar cane, thrifty villages and towns, in the fertile and beautiful valley which gives it its name, and after a pleasure trip of thirty-eight miles enters Manila Bay by twenty creeks. The Rio Augusan, longer than any of them, cuts Mindanao Island almost in twain, though navi- gable for less than four miles. The Abra, rising in the slopes opposite to the Agno Grande, after 8 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. a race of nearly ninety miles over the sand-bars of Butao, Nioig, and Dile, surrenders its floods to the China Sea. There are many others more or less known. There are several hundreds of islands in the Archipelago covered with thousands of square miles of tropical forests, abundant with valuable woods, such as cedar, ebony, ironwood, mahogany, logwood, sapan-Wood, gum-trees, and fifty other kinds of woods unknown in America. In certain localities gutta-percha is found, while in others is the cocos nucifera, every part of which, includ- ing trunk, branches, leaves, fruit, shell, and husk, has a value. Bamboo and areca palm are com- mon and of great utility. The hanave and ma- lave are two woods prized for their properties of resisting the action of water for centuries. The most attractive and, next to the cocoanut- palm, most useful tree is the bamboo, growing on the plains, along the banks of rivers, under the shadows of boundless forests, around the homes of the natives, in fact everywhere except in marshes and on the hills. With light, feathery crests that sway gracefully in the slightest breeze, the more majestic rising to the very dignified BAMllOO BRIDGE, ILOILO. Tif-B PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 9 height of fifty feet, they give a matchless charm to the forest scene. Their slender trunks set in joints, each section strengthened by an inside web, present an odd array of forest pillars as seen in a collection of any size. Besides these there are many smaller varieties, which the na- tives cultivate for the young shoots that always command a good price in the market. Bamboo is a great building material in the construction of huts, houses, and even churches, and from it are made the mats, chairs, baskets, vessels for holding liquors, measures for grain, in short, every kmd of household utensil needed, organs and musical instruments in general, while outside it is made into carts to move merchandise, rafts to fioat on the rivers, palings for carrying poles, blow-pipes, for furnaces, hats to be worn on the head of its mgenious worker, until it seems to be in everything small and great, the most valu- able of all in building bridges hundreds of feet in length and so strong that a drove of buffaloes can pass safely over it. The leaves are eaten by horses and cattle, and its tender shoots by man. In a certain variety of the cane is found a stone which the native believes is a panacea for many 10 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. evils of the flesh. In another kind is a sticky substance good for inflammation of the eyes, which is very prevalent under the rays of the torrid sun. If not applied to as many uses as the bamboo, the cocoanut-palm is of greater value, it being the leading source of income to the native in- habitants. Plantations of these trees are found scattered all over the Archipelago. The fruit is always in demand for the foreign market, and, as with the bamboo, every part of the tree is utilised. From its smooth body the native con- structs the framework of liis dwellings, covers it with its leaves, and furnishes it with chairs, di- vans, and tables made from its wood. The mats upon which he sleeps, the brushes that he uses, are made from its fibres. From its nuts he gets his meat, and a drink called out of courtesy milk, which becomes a good vinegar if left to become acid, while from the shells of these he carves his household utensils. From its sap he obtains an oil which is indispensable at home and in great demand abroad. In the temperate climate it becomes a solid, and is converted into soap and candles. On the islands it remains in a thinner CONSTRUCTION OF A PIHLIPIMNO HOUSE. THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 11 state, and is used for lighting his home, cooking his food, and is an excellent lubricating sub- stance for machinery. In that land of perpetual fear of an outbreak from an earthquake, the matter of light is of no small importance. In every hut and house a small vessel is partially filled with water, on which a quantity of cocoanut oil is poured, and a wick fioating on top is lighted and kept burning from twilight until dawn, a tiny firefly lamp, but very useful at the least warning of danger. Besides all this, obtaining from its flowering stalk a delicious beverage he calls tuba, and clothing his body from raiment made of its fine fibrous particles, the Philippino owes his undying allegiance to his beloved palm. An exceedingly useful and common plant is the bejuco, or rattan, a sort of bush rope, which has been known to grow to the great length of one thousand feet. It is nothing unusual to find a specimen three or four hundred feet long. The application of this plant is almost as numer- ous as that of the bamboo, and it is often used in conjunction with the other. It is the natural cord with which to bind together whatever has become broken or needs putting together in the 12 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. home, on the plantation, in the street or forest, shop or warehouse. The thickest is used for making rafts and cables, and with the bamboo helps to make suspension bridges. It has deli- cate fibres out of which cloths are woven and hats made. Among the fruits the mango ranks first. It grows from four to six inches in length, is oval shaped, flattened on both sides, and yellow in colour when ripe. It has a large stone in the centre, and the meat is rich and delicious. The tree grows to great size, a majestic specimen of the wealthy woods in its dark green foliage, and especially beautiful during its flowering period. It is nothing unusual to get three pickings of fruit during a year, and two are the rule. The banana grows wild and is cultivated with profit, there being as many as fifty varieties. The banana [Musa paradisiaca), according to a Arabic legend, is believed to be the plantain from which Adam and Eve made their aprons, as well as having been the forbidden fruit of Eden. The papaw tree also grows wild here. This attains a height of twenty-five feet, and has •SMsnon 5IAIXVN: f''.. i 'll THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 13 leaves from two to three feet in length. The fruit, of a deep olive-green until ripe, when it is yellow, is in shape and flavour like the melon, very delicious in its native land. Guavas are found wild in great abundance, while tamarinds, with a fruit resembling beans, abound plentifully in a wild state. There is also a native fruit, bearing a delightful aroma but flavourless, which has the appearance of our peach. Pineapples grow abundant in the southern islands, but the fruit is not as fine as in other countries, and, being dangerous to eat in that climate, is not cultivated, except for its leaves, which have deli- cate fibres utilised in the manufacture of a costly texture known as •pina and worn very much by the women of the wealthy class. Two kinds of lemons, the Pomelo orange, of very large size, and two or three smaller varie- ties, the custard apple, citron, breadfruit, straw- berry of an inferior size and quality, with other fruits peculiar to the tropics, all flourish here. The durien, about the size of the common pine- apple and delicious eating, but bearing only once in twenty years, thrives in the western islands. 14 THE PEABL OF THE OBIENT. Numerous plants and herbs of medicinal value grow almost everywhere, the most commonly used remedy being the bark of the dita tree, which is used by the natives in case of fever. From this is obtained an alkaloid called ditaine, which resembles in a mild degree quinine. From the flowers of the ylang-ylang is extracted a highly prized perfume. The flora of the islands is rich in variety and magnitude. A general description of this, any more than that of the forests, cannot do it jus- tice, or convey to the imaginary beholder but a slight portion of the exquisite pleasure of him who gazes on the virginal landscape basking under the magical influences of a tropical climate. On the island of Mindanao, which means “ Man of the Lake,” grows the largest known flower, which is often from three to four feet in diameter. The Philippines have few, if any, of the barren lava plains of Hawaii ; none of the bare, desolate shores of northern coasts ; but from the great storehouse of natural treasures of Luzon, the largest and richest of these pearls of the Pacific, to the hundreds of smaller gems, all resplendent in a vegetation which clothes not only the plains -'Jf 'i I THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 15 and the lowlands but the mountains and the sea- shores with a verdure of many hues and never- fadmg gloss, here the florist flnds his paradise, and the botanist his wonderland. The staple food raised is rice, though in some localities maize holds this a good second. Pota- toes, peas, and wheat are cultivated successfully on the highlands. So rapidly do crops grow and mature that it is a common sight to see three stages of growth existing on the same plot of land, the planting, cultivating, and harvesting going on in alternation accordingly as the work had been begun. The extensive coast lines of the islands afford many good harbours, the best known of which are Manila and Sual, on the west shore of Luzon ; Iloilo and Cebu, the ports of cities by those names situated respectively on the east side of the islands of Panay and Cebu. The first named is one of the finest in the world, and is about one hundred and twenty miles in circumference. In stormy weather safe anchorage is to be had off Cavite, about eight miles by water to the south- west, which place has become noted as the scene of Admiral Dewey’s first victory in the capture 16 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. of tlie capital. Iloilo, next in importance, is about two hundred and fifty miles in a direct line from Manila. Studded with bays and creeks forming natural harbours, still the western coasts of Cebu, Negros, Mindoro, and the Palawan Islands have no safe anchorages for any but small craft, the water being shallow, with many dangerous reefs. While some of the streams reach the sea at fiat or swampy places through many mouths, others have cut their way through passages down precipitous hillsides, making deep, narrow defiles with steep banks not unlike the picturesque fjords of Norway, only here, instead of naked cliffs of rocks, are earth-cliffs clothed with the glossy foliage of a vegetation favoured with the warmth and moisture of the equatorial zone. Owing to the great length of the group, which extends from within about four degrees of the Equator to within the same distance of the Tropic of Cancer, the islands have considerable variety of climate, though without losing its tropical influences. The Spanish ironically described the seasons as “ six months of mud, six months of dust, six months of everything ! ” In fact, there GENEItAL VIEW OF ILOILO. L THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 17 are what are denominated the “ wet ” and “ dry ” periods, with a gradual change from one to the other. Takmg the vicinity of Manila as an ex- ample, the hottest season is from March to June, the highest temperature coming in the month of May, before the rainy season sets in. The ther- mometer then registers from 80 to 100 degrees in the shade. The coolest time is in December and January, when the temperature stands from 60 to 65 degrees at night, and seldom above 75 in the daytime. From November to February the sky is bright, the atmosphere cool and invig- orating, the weather delightful. The northern islands lie in the track of the typhoons which sweep over the China Sea, and may be expected any time between May and November, being the most frequent during July, August, and September. In 1875 a storm of this kind destroyed nearly four thousand houses and killed three hundred people. Earthquakes are of common occurrence, and often do vast amounts of damage to property and cause many deaths. One in 1863 destroyed the larger part of Manila, and killed or injured over three thou- sand of the inhabitants. 18 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. During the heavy rains the rivers are swollen so as to overflow their banks, and the lakes over- run the surrounding country, the floods often doing great damage. A tidal wave in 1897 swept over the island of Leyte, causing extensive destruction of life and property. The rainfall at Manila averages from seventy-five to one hundred and twenty inches a year, while in the southern portion of the Archipelago the medium is one hundred and forty-two inches, or almost twelve feet. From local reasons considerable difference is often known, and the earth of one island may be dry and parched for long intervals, while an- other in sight may be deluged with rain. A mountain range sometimes makes a great varia- tion, while those of the Archipelago bordering on the Pacific have a climate quite the opposite of those next the Indian Ocean. If one cared, he could move about so as to escape the rains altogether. Though fever, malaria, and other diseases peculiar to a tropical clime are preva- lent, the Philippines are not as unhealthy as might be expected. The foreign-born citizen finds the heat very oppressive, and under its influence he soon finds his northern energy slip- MANILA STREET, KAINA" SEASON. MANILA STREET, RAINY SEASON. THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 19 ping away from him. Women and children feel most the dangers of the climate. Still, with good sanitary conditions about the towns, and a clearing away of large tracts of the dense and malaria-breeding forests, the Archipelago will, no doubt, show a far better health condition. The islands have been aptly termed the “ Pearl of the Orient,” but it is an unpolished jewel, which only American energy can bring to its proper lustre. Their geographical position being such as not to bring them in the direct line of communication with the Far East, as has been the case with the Hawaiian Islands, the Archi- pelago has long remained unrevealed to the rest of the world. It has been a realm by itself, an object of strange accounts and mysterious tradi- tions even as known at Hong Kong six hundred miles away. Here, unknown and undreamed of elsewhere, have been enacted over and over some of the most cruel wrongs and darkest tragedies in the checkered drama of colonisation, Spanish secrecy and resistance to progress always holding in the dark this land of the distant seas. CHAPTER II. THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. XTENDING as the Archipelago does over a vast extent of surface, it is not strange that the islands are inhabited by many races of people. No better beginning into a description of their ethnological relations can be made than by dividing them into four distinct races, leav- ing for further consideration, if one cares to con- tinue the subject to completion, nearly a hundred subdivisions and tribes of mixed blood.^ The Aetas or Negritos (“little Negroes”), which are found in the mountains and back- grounds of every peopled island, are no doubt the descendants of the original inhabitants, — the one race holding supremacy over the entire Archipelago before the invasions of the foreign element. During the centuries of Spanish occu- 1 Such readers are referred to Wallace’s “ Malay Archipelago.” 20 THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 21 pation they have changed the least of any race, and whether it was Moslem, Malay, Chinese, Japanese, or Spaniard, they have never been conquered. This has not been from any great prowess as warriors, for they are cowardly. In- stead of standing up in a square fight, they retreat to the dense jungles, and from behind breastworks of trees shoot down with poisoned arrows whoever has attempted to invade their rendezvous. As the tide of civilisation ap- proached, they retreated into the darker depths of the wilderness. This situation has existed longer than written history can show. The Negrito is dark-skinned, many of them as black as a true Negro, of which they are doubtless descended ; his hair is short and curly ; he is light in stature ; is content to clothe his body in a single garment made of the bark of a tree and covering only his loins ; he is a fieet runner, and can climb a tree like a monkey ; he is low in intellect, and cannot be domesticated to an extent which will make him a trusty servant ; in religion he has a sort of spirit worship, which teaches him to be respectful to his friends and reverential to the dead. The man is far from 22 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. good-looking, thougli hale in appearance until he begins to show his age, which is early in life, when he soon becomes emaciated in person. The woman is not superior to the man, and is satisfied if her dress is simply a short skirt about the hips. The Negrito maid, with her flash- ing black eyes, and coal-black, closely knotted hair, and well-rounded figure, is picturesque if not pretty : but the matron of a few years later is far from attractive. They live in bamboo huts, and subsist mostly on fish, nuts, and mountain rice, alternated with beef when they can find a chance to steal the cattle of the planters. They make a feint at agriculture by scratching the surface of the ground and scattering about a little seed. If it grows it means more rice for them ; if it fails, then a little more stealing will be required. In this respect they are disagreeable neighbours. The whole race is decreasing slowly, and before the advance of a progressive civilisation must eventually fade away. The Negritos were formerly masters of the island of Luzon, and held power over the Malays, who came first about eight centuries ago. As NEGRITOS. THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 23 the latter race increased, they were forced to retire to the highlands and leave to their usurpers the valleys and rich lowlands along the coast. So far and successfully did the newcomers spread out that to-day their descendants number not less than five millions, and are the most intelli- gent of the islanders. According to tradition, their early ancestors emigrated from the Malay peninsula, south of Asia, and first settled on some of the larger islands to the east of the con- tinent. They found already there the Polynesian race, but these latter, unable to cope with them, escaped to the smaller islands of the Pacific, going as far north as Hawaii. The two races are en- tirely distinct. From Sumatra, Java, and other islands, these Malayans eventually reached the Philippines, settling principally on the two largest. In the course of time they were over- powered by the Spaniards, whose excessive tyr- anny has so tempered their warlike spirit as to make the present Tagalogs the mildest and most submissive of the semibarbarous races. The men are seldom much above five feet in stature, of supple figure, bright eyes, high cheek- bones, and countenances that display very little 24 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. personal spirit or character. The richer class dress showily in trousers, with blouses worn out- side, both garments made of Manila hemp, or abaca. Another suit of silken texture is made of a fabric woven from the leaf of the pineapple, and called pina. Of a white or vivid yelloAv, this is often interwoven with bine or green silk, and sometimes embroidered with flowers. They encase their feet in sandals or patent leather shoes, unless the owner chooses to go barefooted, which is not considered bad form. A hat plaited from the 7iito or liana, ornamented with a wide band of embroidered cloth, or fancy work in silver, covers the head. His poorer brother imi- tates his style, but his clothes are made of a coarser material, and there is more likelihood that his feet will have no shoes. The women are better natured and more viva- cious than the men, but as a rule are not pretty. Like the females of all warm climates, they have a tendency to obesity as they grow older, though they are more industrious than their male con- sorts. Bright colours delight her, a skirt of burning red, with a many-hued undervest, over which is worn the waist of silken texture, dark. 'native warrior from interior of MINDANAO. THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 25 and ornamented with the gay and beantifnl pina, fringed with embroidery, thrown lightly across the shonlders. The raven hair falls from under a snowy mantle, while the toes, but not the in- step of the brown foot, are encased in a heelless slipper. The Philippino is an apt scholar, but indolent by nature ; loves music, but is sadly lacking many of the finer sensibilities of a higher civilisation. Long centuries of Spanish oppres- sion leave him discontented with his lot, and ever looking for an opportunity to strike a blow in retaliation, as well he might after the teach- ings along such lines for many generations. A voluntary act of yielding in any way to him, however well meant the intention, is looked upon by him as an indication of weakness on the part of his benefactor, and a fitting opportunity to move on the aggressive. The Spaniards long since learned this, and it has had something to do with their relentless measures. The race is strong in family affections, loves children, but the majority are superstitious to a great degree, though the only people on the islands who have the credit of beino; converted to that Christianity spread so assiduously by the 26 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. followers of Arneta, the pioneer of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. Among the ideas of their original religion is a belief that when the person is asleep his soul is absent from his body, and to awaken a sleeper suddenly will not give the spirit time to return to its proper place. The Philippino has been described on the whole ‘‘ as an incomprehensible phenomenon, the mainspring of whose line of thought and the guiding motive of whose actions have never yet been, and per- haps never will be, discovered.” After years of apparent faithfulness, he may, without any valid reason, turn against his master, hesitating at no crime. This trait may have been born inherent in him ; it may have been largely acquired from the influences surrounding his unhappy life. Above the pure native in intellect, better look- ing, more interesting, in one case with a higher grade of morality, and with greater influence in business and politics, are two classes of half- breeds, or mestizos. The first and better element of these are the descendants of native mothers who married Spanish husbands. This is really a fine race, though, if the alliance with European blood is not kept up beyond one generation, the PHILIPPIXO FKUIT GIRL. THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 27 distinctive traits begin to fade away. As a rule the mestiza girls are very beautiful, with soft complexions, white teeth, bewitching black eyes, graceful deportment, and they are noted as fine dancers. Many of them are educated in the convents, and have good musical talent, wliich is everywhere encouraged. The second class of mixed bloods are of Phi- lippino-Chinese extraction, native mothers and Chinese fathers. These are called mestizos- Chinese, and the men of this race are among the shrewdest merchants and most skilful me- chanics, but they have been troublesome factors in the affairs of government, and more than all other classes combined have been instrumental in the revolts and uprisings which have been so frequent. They were the original “rebels,” whom others, equally dissatisfied with Spanish rule, hesitated to join in a fight for freedom, fearing them more than the Spaniards. About the beginning of the sixteenth century, or just before the Spanish discovery of the islands, a warlike, piratical people overran the island of Basilan, in the southern part of the Ar- chipelago, and soon spread to the adjoining 28 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. islands, sweeping them clear of the native race wherever they went. The Spanish called them Moros, or Moors, and they are supposed to have been descended from the Mussulman Dyaks of Borneo. Their history here is one almost con- tinual warfare with the native races and Span- iards, until the latter were glad to compromise with so formidable an enemy. For over two centuries their war-junks carried terror to the inhabitants of all parts of the Archipelago. Whole towns were razed, plantations ravaged, and the people driven back into the forests. So complete was their work of devastation that dire poverty followed in the paths of their raids. But it was not alone for plunder that this was done. When the Church of Spain undertook to convert to its following the fanatical Moslem, it stirred np a people it could neither persuade nor put down. The hatred of the Mussulmans for the Christians was equal to that of the followers of Mahomet in the religious wars which deluged Europe in holy blood. Here, in the South Seas, was enacted the same bitter strife, and, as there, no real victory was gained on either side. Fore- man, in his “ History of the Philippines,” says : MESTIZOS, A WEALTHY HALF-CASTE PIIILIPPINO LADY. THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 29 “ From the time the Spaniards first interfered with the Mussulmans there was continual war- fare. Expeditious against the pirates were con- stantly being fitted out by each succeeding governor. Piracy was indeed an incessant scourge and plague on the colony, and it cost the Spaniards rivers of blood and millions of dollars only to keep it in check.” In the pres- ent century, the Mussulmans appeared even in the Bay of Manila. There are persons yet living who have been in Mussulman captivity. There are hundreds who still remember with anguish the insecurity to which their lives and property were exposed. The Spaniards were quite unable to cope with such a prodigious calamity. The coast villagers built forts for their defence, and many an old stone watch-tower is still to be seen on the islands south of Luzon. This race now extends over Mindanao Island and the Sulu group, about ninety islands in all, with a population of 110,000 on the Sulu Sul- tanate alone. The population of Mindanao is unknown. There are about 125,000 of the faith in Luzon. These people are generally rather prepossess- 30 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. ing in appearance, the men very robust, lithe, and active. Brave and bold when occasion de- mands, they are yet careful and conservative in their plans. They are fearless, skilful naviga- tors, and, armed with swords, lances, krises, their bodies protected with shields and armour, all of their own make, are formidable adversaries in battle. All males over sixteen years of age are obliged to bear arms, and they have an army of over twenty thousand on the Sulu group alone. Fond of bright colours, both men and women dress somewhat elaborately. The former wear tight-fitting breeches of a scarlet hue, a waist- coat, and jacket with small sleeves, all three garments decorated with rows of bright buttons, and he covers his head with the Turkish turban ; the latter encase their bodies in a glove-fitting bodice, covered with arabesque designs, and which is met by the baggy dual nether gar- ments that seem a part of their faith. On their heads they draw a peculiar hood, called the jabul, and made with a long skirt which falls down the sides when not held up under the arms. The Moros have a legend that man was a giant in his early days, and that he is gradually growing 1 THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 31 smaller, though, his mind mcreases in power as the body decreases. Their staple crops are rice, sugar-cane, maize, indigo, and coffee. The prin- cipal export is pearls, to secure which they often dive a hundred feet. The Sultan, or “ Stainless One,” is the despotic head of the State and Church. His palace, con- structed of wood, stands in the centre of the new capital of Maybun. He displays considerable pomp, and lives in ease and luxury, surrounded by a throng of sultanas. This power holds many slaves, captives obtained in their wars, or children born of them. With this fanatical people it would seem the American government is likely to have its most serious trouble, when brought into direct contact with them. At present an armistice or compromise has been arranged by which they are to remahi under their local authority, but ac- knowledging fealty to the republic. How long this will last or how creditable it is to republican ideas of government remains to be seen. On the southern islands are the visayas, a half-breed people composed of the bloods of the Tagalogs and the Mussulmans or Sulus. They are a sullen, savage, thievish race, whose ances- 32 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. tors were among the criminals of the lowlands of Negros and the sugar plantations of Luzon, driven out by the Spanish and married to Sulu women. They appear to have inherited all of the worst qualities of their progenitors without any of their better natures. The Spanish have had serious trouble with them, and the wars are records of the most cruel deeds on both sides. Among the less numerous races may be men- tioned the Gaddanes, of the northwestern part of Luzon. This is a dark, picturesque people, wearing long hair, taking the scalps of their victims in war, and offering them as a marriage dowry and proof of their valour. They still meet annually under the bursting buds of the fire-tree, and offer their collections of trophies of war with rude ritual rites to their gods. Another race still unsubdued is the Igorrotes, of the northern half of the same island. These people are copper-hued, like the North American Indians, and, like them and the Gaddanes, take the scalp of those they slay in battle. They are pagan of a fanatical type, but conceal their gods and graven idols in the caverns of the mountains. The Tinguianes live in the territory of El SULTAN OF SULU INTERVIEWING EUROPEAN VISITORS. ir MOHAMMED, SULTAN OF SULU. f . ■■ -v:. THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES. 33 Abra, in Luzon, and, while professing a certain sort of allegiance to a civilised government, hold their privilege to live under laws of their own making and chiefs of their own race. The head of the village, on accepting his office, swears hhnself by the following queer oath : “ May a blast of the tempest wither me, may the light- ning kill me, or the alligator eat me while I sleep, if I am unfaithful to my trust.” Even a partial enumeration of the different peoples, each with its peculiar characteristics, would not be complete without mention of the Chinese, who have come early and late, of whom there are now, in spite of many wholesale massa- cres and most violent measures of suppression, something like a hundred thousand. They have secret organisations, guilds, and courts, whose objects are to afford them such protection as may be secured from a power unfriendly to them, while they have representatives in the government. They have intermarried to a con- siderable extent, and in this way more than all others gained a foothold. As I shall treat of them quite fully in my description of the Spanish conquest, no more need be said here. 34 TEE PEARL OF TEE ORIENT. The population of the Philippines is supposed to be in the vicinity of eight million, the bulk of which belongs to the native element, with its eighty odd tribes scattered over a hundred islands. He who would learn very much of them from personal observation must travel extensively, and often with every precaution against danger to his life. It will be observed from what is written that the Philippines, or descendants of the Malays, are the only race or tribe the Spanish have succeeded in bringing into anjdhing like a state of subservience to the methods of a civilised government and church. But the light of Christianity fell on them like the burning embers of freedom smouldering to darkness, and the powers of the state were huge pillars raised on the ruins of that liberty so dear to them. They followed but slowly and with averted faces the way marked out by the black- robed Fathers of the Far West, with eyes closed to the prospect ahead, and the dark Inquisition behind. IGOEROTES. CHAPTER III. THE AXIMAL KINGDOM. NLIKE the island of Borneo, the Philippines are not specially favoured with animal life. There are few wild creatures, and only three that are really antagonistic to human life. These are the wild cat, wild boar, which the natives hold in considerable fear, and the carabao, a species of buffalo, dangerous only when aroused. Wild boars are found the most numerous on the island of Tawi Tawi. Domesticated hogs are to be found in every native village, looking very much like their kindred of the ’wilds. Three or four varieties of deer roam the mountain sides, afford- ing excellent hunting for the sportsmen and a good portion of the meat eaten. Monkeys abound in the forests, and among the several species is one of a pure white. The most important animal is the carabao, or buffalo, which is easily domesticated if caught 35 36 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. young. Stalking the wild carabao by moon- light, creeping upon the unsuspecting brute from behind a tame animal of its kind trained for the purpose, is considered the rarest sport of the Philippine huntsman. When close upon his game the hunter leaps from his covert, and with his machete (stout knife) hamstrings his victim with two swift, unerring blows. He knows that if he misses his life will have to pay for his mis- take, for the wounded buffalo is a terrible enemy. Its short, sharp horn is a weapon to be dreaded, and there is nothing short of death or victory in a fight with a carabao. In its domesticated state the carabao be- comes the plough-horse of the primitive planter. Hitched to a plough of the most crude pattern, being simply a long sharpened stick for point, fastened by rattan thongs at an angle of forty- five degrees to a pole which answers for beam, with a perpendicular piece lashed on for a handle, it moves slowly over the ground. He is faithful to the slightest command, but cannot work during the hottest part of the day, and he cannot live without his daily mud bath. He performs his ablutions by throwing himself on one side in HOAR, 4 THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. 37 some miry pool, rolling and plunging about until be is plastered with the sticky substance. When he has dried himself in the sun he looks like an ugly image of clay in his mud shell. Nature in this way provides him with a means of safety from the stings of millions of insects which swarm about him as he feeds among the rank vegeta- tion. He is an amphibious animal, and gets a considerable part of his food from a plant grow- ing at the bottom of streams. If docile and attentive to his native master, he has an over- mastering fear of foreigners, and the mere sight of a white man has been known to stampede every buffalo in town. The meat of the carabao is eaten by the natives. Besides the species just described, there is another kind of buffalo on the island of Mindoro, which is a curious little animal living only in the dense jungles, and called the timarau. It is a mortal enemy to the carabao, and will attack the other upon sight, generally coming off the victor. Its flesh is good eating, but it cannot be tamed, and is seldom hunted, on account of its ferociousness. Wild cattle are found on several islands, and 38 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. the domesticated kine are extensively raised for beef, which is of poor quality, owing to a certain herb on which they feed. What is true of the beef applies to the flesh of fish and fowl, all of which has a disagreeable taste to the American and European. The cattle are a small, hump- backed variety, on a few islands used for draught j)urposes. Milk is everywhere very scarce, and fresh butter and cheese not to be had. Though not natives, wild horses are met with in different parts of the Archipelago. They are descended from the Andalusian horse and the Chinese mare, mere ponies in size and not used as beasts of burden. Still, they are strong for their size, and quite fleet of foot. They are now made to draw the street-cars of Manila, and, sure-footed and swift, nothing save a strong head wind seems capable of stopping them, but traffic has to suspend while the gale lasts. Other domestic animals are dogs, cats, pigs, goats, and monkeys, all of which are to be seen in a wild state. The first two are inferior in size and looks to American cats and dogs, the former being marked by a peculiar twist to the tail. ff THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. 39 Of reptiles and venomous insects there is a surfeit. The most prominent are frogs, lizards, snakes, centipedes, enormous spiders, tarantulas, hornets, beetles, ants, horned toads, and huge bats in numerous colonies. Some of the last named measure five or six feet from tip to tip of their wings, and they have bodies as large as cats. Europeans hunt them for their soft skins, while natives eat their flesh. Excepting the manajjo, which haunts the rice-fields, and whose bite is fatal if not immediately cauterised, the snakes are usually harmless. Mighty boa-con- strictors are the kings of serpents in the Philip- pines, but are seldom seen, and then not so much dreaded as the manapo with its deadly sting. Leeches are another disagreeable inhabitant of the wild woods and stagnant pools, leapmg upon the intruder when least expected, beginning to fill up on the blood of its victim at once. Croco- diles of great size swim in the bodies of fresh water and streams, though until one has tasted human flesh it is not much feared. But once one of them has broken the rule and becomes a man-eater, he is the most dreaded creature known in Mindanao. Cobras are occasionally 40 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. seen in Samar and Mindanao, while small-sized pythons are found almost everywhere, and are kept for sale as rat catchers in the larger towns. Ants and mosquitoes are the greatest pests of the islands. No bed is lacking its mosquito net, without which there would be no sleep for the occupant. There is a species, of white ants which feed upon dry wood in every shape and condition, eating into furniture, household uten- sils, and even the frame of the building in which the owner lives, actually eating him out of house and home. The natives tell strange and marvel- lous stories of their depredations. It is related that an elegant chair, owned by a wealthy man, who prized it for its associations with the nobility of his native land, suddenly collapsed as a visitor seated himself upon it. On examination, it was found that the whole structure was nothing but a shell, the white ants having eaten away all else. They had not been seen, for though blind themselves, they always manage to keep out of sight, working silently in the dark until the hardest piece of wood, without showing any signs of the havoc wrought, is but a husk. STKEKT - CARS IN IIIANILA, THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. 41 The greatest pest is yet the locust, which re- sembles a large grasshopper, and comes every few years in vast numbers, swarming over every green field until laying bare and desolate acres on acres of growing crops. The hemp plantation is exempt from their depredations, but nearly every other crop is in danger from them. Upon the approach of these ravenous creatures in great clouds, winging their flight from place to place, the natives assemble about the threatened field, and make all the noise they can, or make a dense smoke by burning damp fuel. These ef- forts may be partially successful, but a locust flight is always marked by a wide path of ruined crops. Still, it is “an ill wind that blows nobody good,” and the poorer class of inhabitants con- sider the locust a luxury for their table, and they lay their plans to catch all they can. In some cases the parish priest has been besought to pray that this scourge of the planter might come often and stay long with them. In 1851 some martins were imported from China by the government, it being claimed that they were great enemies to the locust. The 42 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. newcomers were received with great enthnsiasm, and treated with the utmost veneration. They have thrived well in their new home, while the locusts have not seemed to lose anything by them. Mosquitoes have enemies in the newt and chacon. The last is a sort of lizard, homely and ugly-looking enough to frighten away even mos- quitoes. The newt is liked by the inhabitants, and is spared with particular attention. A shy creature, he has a peculiar hal^it, if caught by the tail, of shaking that appendage off and scampering away minus the ornament. Fish of numerous kinds swim in the surrounding seas, while sharks add zest to the excitement of the fisher. If showing rather an unfavourable inventory of mammals and carnivorous animals, the Phil- ippines are fortunate in the number and variety of birds. No less than six hundred species are found on the islands. Some of them are of rare beauty, but among them all there is not a sweet- voiced songster. The game birds are snipe, pheasant, pigeons, ducks, woodcocks, and other waterfowls. Hawks, cranes, herons, parrots, and PEACOCK. ■I' ^vV I''' r- /i*' ' THE AHIMAL KINGDOM. 43 paroquets are peculiar to the Archipelago. Ro- mantic accounts are given of strange birds and their habits. Among them it is told of a bright little bird that immediately dies upon being cap- tured ; another is a small, dark-coloured bird which builds its nests in the tails of wild horses ; another has the colours of the rainbow, and can imitate the cries of all others of the feathered tribe ; still another is a pigeon with a crimson splash on its breast as if the blood had gathered there from a wound. The dusky-hued crow, known the world over, the brilliant cockatoo, the saucy kingfisher, and the poet’s turtledove are all found here. There is a species of swift whose nests are highly valued as an article of food. These are made from the salivary excre- tions coming from the builder, and are found in caves or on the sides of steep cliffs, where it is dangerous for man to climb. The first nest for the season made by the bird, usually in Decem- ber, is pure in its material, and when dry becomes hard and looks like glue. It is claimed to be worth its weight in gold. But after the bird has been robbed once or twice she begins to include foreign matter in its construction. Nest- 44 TEE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. hunting is a paying vocation, the Chinese being the principal buyers. At night, during the dry season, very brilliant fireflies hover and flutter around some of the native trees like moths around a candle, until the entire foliage is illuminated as if by thou- sands of tiny lamps swaying in and out among the branches, making it a fascinating picture. CALAO BIKD. CHAPTER IV. SPANISH DISCOVERT AND DOMINION. T the dawning of the sixteenth century, ^ while the Philippines were indolently whil- ing away hves that were less than scratches in the sands of time, their greatest concern the state of the activity of the near-by volcano, their only care to be prepared for the terrible typhoon which came with equinoctial regularity, or the earthquake which was likely to break upon them as a thief in the night, and their most severe exertion a skirmish with some rival tribe, Spain and Portugal were quarrelling over the suprem- acy of the world. It mattered not if these Euro- pean powers, in their ignorance of the land and sea, dreamed not of these island kinglets. Their fates hung in the balance of these ambitious nations. Anxious to court the mutual favours of the rivals. Pope Alexander VI., styled “ the vicar of 45 46 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. God on earth,” sought to end the intense feeling by issuing in 1494 a papal bull which declared that the globe should be divided into two hemi- spheres, the meridian of Cape Verde Islands and the same degree of longitude on the opposite side of the sphere to be the dividing lines of the nations. To Spain was decreed the western hemisphere, while on Portugal was bestowed that on the east, each to have the right to claim and colonise all heathen lands they might dis- cover within their respective allotments. The Spanish government, on the 10th of April, 1495, granted its royal sanction to all who wished to search for lands in the unexplored quarters of the globe. This done, in the excitement of the discoveries of Columbus, the rivalry was transferred from the courts of royalty to the ships of the adventurous navigators, who pushed out more boldly than ever into the far and un- known seas. Among these was Vasco Nunez de Balboa, whose discovery on the 26th of Septem- ber, 1513, of an ocean on the western shore of America created widespread interest. But if De Balboa gazed on the broad Pacific, it was from the mountain-top, with his ships far behind him. MKUCIIANT VESSELS KEAli liKlUGE OF STAIN, PASIG lilVEK. SPANISH DISCOVERY AND DOMINION. 47 and how to get them across to the newly discov- ered waters was a mystery and enterprise left to be solved by that prince of circumnavigators, Hernando de Maghallanes, a Portuguese noble by birth. Maghallanes had accompanied an expedition fitted out by Portugal to visit Moluccas or Spice Islands, with which that country had opened trade some years before, and on that voyage the islands of Tidor and Badau were discovered, suggesting to him an inkling of what might lie in the sea extending into the Far East. But before he could carry out his project of further exploration in that direction he had trouble with his king of such a serious nature that he re- nounced his birthright, and became, by natural- isation, a citizen of Spain, and his name was changed to Ferdinand Magellan. King Charles listened with favour to his scheme, and fitted him out with five vessels, which set sail on their long voyage the 10th of August, 1519. Crossing the Atlantic in four months, the little squadron reached Rio Janeiro safely on the 13th of December. Standmg then away to the south, in the hope of finding a passage to the Pacific, 48 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. Magellan soon found himself obliged to resort to strenuous measures in order to prevent an out- break among bis followers, some of whom ob- jected to the course taken by him. Unfavourable weather succeeding, a short stop was made at the mouth of the Rio de la Plata (Silver River), then named Rio Solis, in honour of one of bis captains who met bis death there. Soon after resuming his advance, one of his vessels was wrecked and another deserted him, so that only three ships of his little fleet were left him when, on the 28th of October, 1520, he entered the channel since known by his name, and on November 26th stood bravely out into the vast Pacific, with no knowledge of what lay in his pathway. Following a northwesterly direction, the Mari- ana, or Ladrone Islands, were discovered on the 16th of March, 1521, where a short stop was made. The natives crowded around the ships in such numbers that a fierce fight ensued, and as they seemed determined to steal everything they could, the place was given the name which in English means “Robbers’ Islands.” Sailing west- ward from this point, Magellan next reached one of the largest of the Philippine Islands, Mindanao. VILLAGE OF BAIIKLE, I’ALAWAN. ■i SPANISH DISCOVERY AND DOMINION. 49 Anchor was cast at the mouth of Butuan River, and the vessels lay off shore, while crowds of brown-tinted natives swarmed around them, believing that the light-skinned newcomers in their mighty ships were messengers of light coming from the land of dawn. The day of dis- covery having been that dedicated to St. Lazarus, the island was named in honour of that patron of the Church, a name afterward extended to cover the whole Archipelago. The natives prov- ing friendly, the Spanish took possession in the name of Charles I. without bloodshed, and it being Easter week they proceeded to consecrate the new possession to God and the Catholic Church with all the dazzling display of the ritualist rites. Then, inducing the Butuan chief to become his pilot, Magellan sailed to the island of Cebu, which he had been told was richer than the one first seen. Here he was greeted with a greater number of natives than before, all of whom were armed with spears and carried shields. A few words from the Butuan chief, however, convinced the inhabitants that the visitors were disposed to be friendly, when the chief of Cebu consented 50 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. to a treaty of peace, providing it could be carried out according to Cebuan ideas of ratification. This was to draw blood from the breast of each man, and from as many natives, one to drink that of the other. The condition was accepted by Magellan, and the ceremony denominated by the Spaniards as Pacto de sangre, or “ brotherhood of blood,” com- pleted, they proceeded to disembark. A hut was then erected on the shore, when the impressive scene of mass followed. Looking on with awe, the king and his men accepted the baptism, and swore allegiance to Spain. All of this but slightly understood by the natives, Spanish rule at once began. Upon learning that their new subjects were at war with the inhabitants of another island, called Magtan, Magellan offered himself and men as allies, seeing further visions of conquest, and it might be of riches . His offer was gladly accepted ; but at the first skirmish with the enemy Magellan was mortally wounded by a poisoned arrow on the 25th of April, 1521, when the allied forces retreated in disorder. Thus miserably perished, at the very zenith of OLDEST CIIUKCIl IN :\IANILA. SPANISH BISCOVHEY ANH DOMINION. 51 liis glory, a man worthy of a better fate. In his unt im ely fate Spain lost her most illustrious and deserving navigator, Columbus alone excepted. Both of these were not native-born, but adopted citizens. The deeds of the great Portuguese are commemorated by a monument, erected, it is be- lieved, where he fell on the island of Magtan. On the shore of Cebu is an obelisk marking the beach where he first landed on the island, while in front of the city of Manila, on the left bank of the Pasig River, stands a third testimonial to the memory of the discoverer of the Philippines. One of Magellan’s subordinates assumed com- mand of the squadron, but this leader, Duarte de Barbosa, with twenty-five of his companions, was killed at a banquet given by the King of Cebu. A Spaniard named Serrano was alone spared of all on the shore at the time, and he was held for a ransom of two cannons from the ships. In the hope of driving the Sj)aniards to their terms, this captive was marched up and down the beach in plain sight of his countrymen. In accordance with Serrano’s signals, and fearing to remain longer in that vicinity, the Spaniards weighed anchor, and sailed away from the island, leaving 52 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. their unfortunate comrade to an unrecorded fate. The history of this expedition, the first voyage around the globe, and the greatest which had been made at that time, is filled with a series of misfortunes and misadventures which give it a melancholy interest. Their numbers now re- duced to less than one hundred, which was too small to navigate the three vessels, after dividing the seamen between two of them, one was burned off the coast of Cebu. The remnant of the little squadron, which had sailed so proudly out of the home port, now headed for the island of Borneo, which was known to the Portuguese. On their way thither the island of Palawan was discovered, but some of the seamen were lost, the ships were separated, and after many more misfortunes and great hardships, three years from the time of their departure a mere handful of the original numbers — seventeen skeletons of hardy men, ragged, and famished — walked barefooted through the streets of Seville that they might reach the cathedral and offer their thanks to God for their safe return, before receiving the homage of their countrymen over AKSENAL AT niEJM'O I'lUNCESSA, I’AEAWAN. SPAmSH DISCOVERT AND DOMINION. 53 the achievements of their remarkable voyage. Elcano, the commander, was granted a life pen- sion, knighted by the exultant King Charles, and given permission to place on his coat of arms a globe having the motto, “ Primus cir- cumdedit me.” The remaining ship of Magellan’s squadron had fallen into the hands of the Portu- guese, after being disabled and most of the sea- men lost. The survivors were sent to Lisbon, which they reached five years from the time of their departure on the memorable expedition. Aroused by the discoveries of Magellan, Charles fitted out other expeditions, none of which ac- complished anything worthy of note. De Villa- bos, the commander of one, renamed the islands in honour of the king’s son, Philip, heir apparent to the throne of Castile, the Philippines. Philip II., who succeeded to the throne on the abdication of his father in 1555, was a religious bigot. He immediately fitted out a squadron of four ships and a frigate, with eight hundred sol- diers and six priests, with the avowed purpose of subjugating the natives of the Philippines and bringing them under the influences of the Church. A famous Basque navigator, named Miguel Lopez 54 THE PEARL OF TEE ORIENT. de Legaspi, was placed in command. In the due course of time the fleet appeared off the coast of Mindanao, to the wonder and terror of the in- habitants. The king set a watch over the mys- terious comers, who soon proclaimed that they were men of mighty stature, with white faces and long beards ; that they blew smoke and Are out of their nostrils, ate stones (sea biscuits), commanded the thunder and lightning, and were no doubt powerful gods. This announcement was received with dismay, and the natives re- ceived the Spaniards in a friendly manner, as their fathers had Magellan and his followers. They gave them glowing accounts of the power and riches of Cebu, lying to the south. Legaspi resolved to reconquer this island and add it again to the realms of the king. But the Cebuans resisted the new arrivals on every hand, and when they could not cope with them in open battle retired to the deep forest surrounding the town, and waged a predatory warfare. Harassed thus, Legaspi several times thought to abandon the quest, but he Anally cap- tured the city, and, winning over to his side some of the leading natives, made a firm stand. PHILIPPIXO GIRL. SPANISH DISCOVERT AND DOMINION. 55 The island was declared to belong to the Crown of Castile, and its inhabitants to be subjects of SiDain. A messenger was de- spatched back to the mother country with the news of their success . The natives began to flock to the standard of their conquerors ; the king’s daughter married one of the Spaniards, and several alliances by marriage were after- ward made. In the midst of the good fortunes of these for- eign invaders, the Portuguese, who, ever since their discovery by Magellan, had claimed that they belonged to them, according to pontifical appointment, appeared on the scene to dispute the authority of the new claimants. But they proved weaker than their rivals and were obliged to withdraw, whereupon Legaspi built a fortress and laid out streets on which the Spanish began to build houses. In 1570 intelligence reached Legaspi that the King of Castile had declared him governor-general of all the islands he might discover and hold. He thereupon proclaimed Cebu a Spanish capital, and sent an expedition to bring the island of Luzon, of which he had heard much, under his jurisdiction, giving the 56 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. command to his grandson, the youthful Juan Salcedo. The appearance of the warlike strangers before Manila, then called Manyla, the ancient capital of Luzon, caused the natives to capitulate without resistance. The island of Mindoro was next seized, and the governor-general apprised of the conquests. On the arrival of Legaspi at Manila the following year, that city was declared to be the capital of the whole Archipelago, and the sovereignty of the king was pronounced over the entire group of islands. Governor-General Le- gasj)i died on the 20th of August, 1572, and his war-worn body was given burial in the St. Augus- tine Chapel of San Fausto in Manila, where the standard of Spanish royalty and the armorial bearings of the conqueror remained until the oc- cupation of the capital by the English nearly two hundred years later. Thus, with what was relatively a mere handful of followers, this persevering and honourable champion of Spain won almost without bloodshed one of her richest colonial possessions, and estab- lished Spanish power in the Far East. PRAWlJRirxf K AM) GATE OF OLD CITY. CHAPTER V. El VALET OF CHUECH AND STATE. TF winning control of the Archipelago with little trouble at the outset, the Spanish were soon called npon to defend their newly acquired domains against the successive attacks of organ- ised leagues of pirates and adventurers then ter- rorising the islands of the South Seas. Among the most dreaded of these was a Chinese corsair named Li-ma-hong, who had been outlawed from his native land. He had organised a fleet of sixty-two jnnks, manned by over two thousand sailors, and carrying nearly three thousand sol- diers, besides fifteen hundred artisans and women with which to found a colony in the rich Philip- pines. \Yith this formidable array of war-ships and armed warriors, this crafty pirate suddenly appeared before the walls of Manila on the 29th of November, 1594. So secretly and adroitly had this entrance into the harbour been made 57 58 THE PEABL OF THE ORIENT. that the armed horde swarmed through the gates of the city before the Spaniards were aware of their danger. A desperate fight ensued, and the invaders would have captured the city but for the timely arrival of Captain Salcedo with fresh soldiers, who met the foe in a hand-to-hand encounter, as they were making their second attack led by Li-ma-hong in person. It was an hour fraught with an outcome which meant European or Asi- atic supremacy over the islands of the South Sea. The Chinese, fired by the impassioned speeches of their leader to stake their lives on the tide of battle, fought everywhere like fiends incarnate, but, through the bravery of Salcedo and his men, they were finally repulsed, and the surviv- ors driven in wild disorder back to their junks. Not discouraged by his defeat here, the Chinese rover went to another part of the island, and in the province of Pagasinan founded his dream of an empire in the islands, with himself as grand mogul. The Spanish tried in vain to dislodge him from his capital, and it began to look as if a serious outcome was imminent, when the news reached the Emperor of China of what was taking OLD STONK liltIDOE NKAU IMANILA. RIVALRY OF CHURCH ANB STATE. 59 place. An expedition was at once fitted ont to be sent against the outlaw, upon learning of which Li-ma-hong abandoned his ambition and disappeared from the scene. A portion of his followers, who were left behind, fled to the fields, where some of their descendants are jet to be found. The history of those trying periods is filled with conflicting accounts of battles with the pirates of the seas. A dependency of New Spain, as America was then called, the only course of communication between the islands and Spain was by way of Mexico, and the gal- leons coming from hither, laden with the manu- factured goods and money needed by the colony, or returning with the rich cargoes of the tropics, were tempting prizes for the outlaws of the ocean. Thus the memory of the defence against the Chinese was still vivid in the minds of the Spanish when Dutch buccaneers appeared in the surrounding waters. Securely quartered on the Moluccas, these freebooters ventured forth on conquests in which mercy was neither shown nor expected. The galleons of Spain were ruth- lessly seized, the last defender put to death, and 60 THE PEABL OF THE OBIENT. the valuable prize borne away in triumph. So ineffectual was Spain’s resistance that the colony was despoiled of gold, silver, and treasures of value beyond estimate. Finally, grown bold in their piratical warfare, the pirates stationed a squadron of their ships off Manila Bay. A war then existing between Spain and Hol- land was thus carried to the Philippines. Had these corsairs besieged the city at once, it is evi- dent they might have captured the islands, and thus they would have passed into the same power which to this day controls Java. But they dal- lied, content with capturing such merchantmen as came in their way, until the Spaniards had collected their forces. Then Juan de Silva, the governor-general, under sanction of the Church, which had declared the Dutch to be infidels (they were Protestants), went forth to drive the free- booters from the bay, while mass was said in all the churches, bells were tolled and images of the patron saints were borne through the streets of old Manila. Fired by the zeal of the Church, the Spanish were determined to win at all odds, while the Dutch were confident of victory. The battle RIVALRY OF CHURCH AND STATE. 61 that followed, which has since been denominated as the famous victory of Playa Honda, was waged until the corsairs were utterly annihilated, their ships destroyed, and plunder to the value of over three hundred thousand dollars taken. Other struggles took place between the enemies in the Philippines, until Holland gained her mdepend- ence in 1648, but this was the decisive contest as far as the islands were concerned. The Dutch began to devote their energies toward developing their possessions in the East Indies, and let the Spaniards alone. If freed in a great measure from the depreda- tions of ocean outlaws, whose temerity equalled only their cunning, the Spanish found themselves with all upon hand that they could attend to. The policy of Spain and her representatives from the beginning showed no organised effort to dis- cover or develop the natural resources of the colony. Juan Salcedo established the system of letting the native chiefs and their male successors rule over their respective tribes as long as they acknowledged allegiance to the Spanish monarch, and rendered such tributes as were demanded. This practice was followed for over three hundred 62 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. years. More than from any other source the peace of the colony was assailed by dishonest officials and unscrupulous friars. A faulty con- stitution, constructed on lines similar with that of Mexico, and but poorly understood, gave en- couragement rather than held in check conten- tions long and often bitter between the state and the Church. Wherever the sword of Spain hewed the path for the royal standard, the cross of the pontifical followers was planted on the battle-fields ere the blood of the slain was dry. It was so wherever the fortune-seeking courtiers penetrated, whether amid the copper-hued natives of North America, the semi-civUised legions of the Aztec princes, the Children of the Sun, or the heterogeneous races of the Far East. The conversion of the natives to the religious doctrines of the Catholic Church was the para- mount object of Philip II. in sending the Legaspi expedition to the Philippines. Accordingly, a faithful leader in the sacred cause, who had been in Mexico, named Urdanate, and half a dozen Augustinian friars, were the pioneers of religious teachers in the Archipelago. These Augustin- 'J 'I RIVALRY OF CHURCH AND STATE. 63 ians were soon followed by the representatives of other orders, Dominicans, Franciscans, and the Recoletos, or barefooted monks. No doubt, these religious fathers, while often resorting to methods peculiarly crude and often governed by anything but a Christian spirit, did considerable good in lifting up the moral standard of the benighted races. On the other hand, bound together in the bonds of a united brotherhood, when this clerical corporation undertook to meddle in the affairs of government, serious struggles began, which have existed as long as Spanish rule in the islands. Ecclesiastical authority was claimed by the priesthood to be superior to civil govern- ment, and so intense became the contention be- tween the rival factions that an appeal was made to the king. This brought about the first real action of the king in regard to the conduct of affairs of the colony. This decree, framed to placate as far as possible the ill-feeling between the two powers, provided that a cathedral should be erected at Manila, and that forty Augustinian friars should be added to the clerical force, while the wander- 64 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. ing mendicants, who had been causing consider- able disturbance, should be expelled from the islands. All slaves then existing in the colony should be set free, and the pernicious custom to end. The city was to be strengthened by further fortifications ; four penitentiaries should be es- tablished ; a number of strongly equipped war- vessels should be added to the defence of the city ; and all soldiers and employees of the state should have fixed salaries. To meet these ex- penses, import and export duties were to be levied, and the natives to be taxed. The sum thus raised was to be divided into equal parts for the state. Church, and army. This action checked, but did not end, the dis- sension between the opposing bodies, while it fomented strife in other directions. The system of taxation was early abused, and so inexorably applied that the native population suffered untold indignities. The parents of the child were taxed at his birth, and his children at his death ; be- ' tween the two events every act of his life was subject to the same collector. There was no escape, and if once he got in arrears his punish- ment was of the most brutal kind. Women, for SPANISH PRIEST. -i RIVALRY OF CHURCH ANB STATE. 65 the simple offence of selling produce of their own raising without a license, which they had no money to buy, were publicly whipped. Men were sent to dungeons that held horrors exceed- ing death for no greater crime than having al- lowed a sick buffalo to die on their hands. Tax collectors, called gobernaclorcilloes,vfQTQ appointed for certain districts, and were held responsible for the amounts of taxes ordered to be collected. Whatever deficiency existed at the time of settle- ment they were obliged to make up from their own property. These had their deputy collectors, who were likewise held responsible to them, and if they failed to render the expected returns their property was seized, and from the proceeds of a forced sale the balance made up. If this did not equal their indebtedness they were sent to prison. It has been no unusual sight to see able-bodied men, who had once been planters of means, despoiled of their crops and animals, even their homes, ragged and penniless, on their way to imprisonment for some paltry sum, while their families were left to look out for themselves. This situation is better understood when the actual power of the Church is considered. This 66 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. ecclesiastical corporation, when arrayed against an individual, was invincible. It was always for the interest of this body that the tribute de- manded from the people should be made. So not alone were the weak and middle classes made to suffer, but often men of great wealth were called upon to make contributions toward enrich- ing the order. If one dared to refuse in ever so slight a manner, he invariably lost, not only the amount demanded, but along with it his home, and often his freedom, glad to escape with his life. Agents of the Inquisition held powers in the Philippines the same as in the other colonies of Spain, to watch over the lives of whomever might be placed under suspicion, and reported accord- ingly if he committed any act considered under the pale of religious condemnation. It was or- dered that the names of the victims should be read in public every three years, and twice, in 1669 and again in 1718, this was done. Not only did trouble early arise between Church and state, but each body soon began to quarrel within itself. The representatives of several orders that had come to the islands, though be- MANILA ST14EET, RAINY 1 BIVALRY OF CHURCH ANH STATE. 67 longing to one religion, became jealous of each other, and added to the strife between civil and ecclesiastical powers were the petty contentions among the friars. In one thing these monks presented a united front, and that was in opposi- tion to every reform. Education for the masses was the least desired of all objects by them, as on the superstition of the natives depended their prestige. The mere rudiments of knowledge they sanctioned were given a religious bearing in unison with their teachings, and the press was always under a rigid censorship, while the colleges and the University of Manila were made the exponents of their narrow doctrines. A cause of ill-feeling between the public and the churches was the fact that the superiors of the convents were making serious demands on society by the great numbers of young, marriage- able women they were coercing into taking the veil and leading secluded lives. It was demanded on the part of the people that the number should be greatly lessened and fixed at a regular quota. It is related that as late as 1750 a nun of Santa Catalina, falling in love with a Spaniard, whom she had met occasionally, asked that she 68 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. be relieved of her obligations. This being refused by the friars, the governor, as vice-regal patron, was appealed to for succour. He decided favour- ably to the request, but even he was opposed. Thereupon he ordered the troops to be placed under anus, and the cannon to be pointed upon the nunnery, with instructions to the gunners to rase the building if the freedom of the girl was longer denied. Upon this threat the friars al- lowed the girl to leave the place, but she was lodged in the College of Santa Potenciana until the question of giving her complete release was settled. The archbishop being now appealed to, his order to set her free was ignored, and an appeal was next made to the Bishop of Cebu. He declined to enter into the quarrel, and the Archbishop of Mexico was then called upon. It was necessary that the nun should appear before the ecclesiastical court of that country. Thus, accompanied by her husband, for she had im- proved an opportunity to get married, she went to Mexico, where, after a long and vexatious delay, she was declared free, and her marriage proclaimed valid. This result, with all its delays and vexations, could not have been accomplished SEXTRY OX THE WALL OF THE OLD CITY. h-' RIVALRY OF CHURCH AND STATE. 69 had she not been aided by strong friends in state and court. Royal decrees or Church edicts could not en- force honesty in the management of public af- fairs, which continued to grow worse through the successive administrations. As early as the reign of Philip III., a royal commission was ap- pointed to investigate and report some way of avoiding or rectifying the gross misconduct of affairs. This commission advised the abandon- ment of the island colonies, declaring that they w^ere unprofitable and the bone of contention in serious disputes. The king was prevented from acceding to the recommendation by the advice of a missionary from the islands, and made to ex- claim that his conscience would not allow him to discontinue the work of salvation among the benighted races until the Mexican treasury was depleted. CHAPTER VI. COLONIAL WARS. MONG the critical periods in the existence ^ of the rising government in the Far East, was none more tragic and striking in its outcome than that connected with the fate of the martyred saints in Japan. At an early date the Japanese entered into commercial relations with the inhabi- tants of Luzon. The emperor, upon learning of the Spanisli occupancy of the islands, at once sent a demand to the governor-general to sur- render at once all rights and powers to him. Too weak to cope with so powerful an enemy, the Spanish received the royal representative from Japan with every appearance of friendliness, j)ro- fessing a desire to treat with his Highness. Ac- cordingly, the Japanese ambassador returned to his country accompanied by a Spanish envoy. An amicable settlement was reached, but unfor- tunately the Spanish emissaries were lost at sea 70 NATIVE liOATS ON I’ASIG AliOVE BKIDGE OF SPAIN. COLONIAL Tr^iJS. 71 on their journey home, which left the situation in as critical a situation as before. Two religious embassies were next sent to Japan, with the double purpose of renewing the treaty and of converting the people to the Cathohc Church. The first object was easily accomplished, and the Friar Bautista, chief of the embassy, obtained permission to build a chapel, which was opened with great ceremonial display in 1594. If the emperor failed to foresee the result, the Portu- guese, ever on the alert for their interests in that vicinity, saw that Spanish supremacy was sure to follow the establishment of the Church, which meant danger to them. The emperor was warned, and seeing at once the peril menacing his power, should these wily foreigners succeed, he issued a mandate forbidding any more prose- lyting for converts to a faith at variance with his own ancient religion. In their zeal to carry on their work of converting the Japanese, the priests disregarded the royal order, and in con- sequence were seized and sent back to Manila. Fra Bautista was not to be deterred from his pious purpose, and he returned to Japan with a body of twenty Franciscans, to resume the work 72 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. of conversion. The emperor was now thoroughly indignant, and he ordered the arrest of the for- eigners. With a few Japanese who had been converted, twenty-six in all were condemned to death. Before their execution, in the hope of deterring others from following in their footsteps, the ears and noses of the victims were cut off, and they were marched through the neighbouring towns as a warning to all others. On the breast of each hung a board describing the reason of their treatment. They were put to death by spears. Great excitement stirred the colony, and many other priests, more zealous than wise, undertook to take up the holy work of the unfortunate Franciscans, all of whom perished as unmerci- fully as Bautista and his companions, until finally Japan refused to allow Spanish priests to land on Japanese soil, or to treat with the islands any longer. If a harsh measure, it is quite cer- tain that it alone saved the empire and its relig- ion from a speedy end. Like Japan, China early began an intercourse with the natives of the Philippines, though the semi-barbarous inhabitants of the islands were :AVri'K ARSKNAL ANI> SIIII’YARI). COLONIAL 73 feared by the Chinese, who conducted their trans- actions with them from their junks, prepared to move away at an instant’s warning. Under Span- ish dominion the Chinese gained confidence, so that they went ashore, and eventually became important factors in the development of the colony. They penetrated farther into the in- terior of the islands than the Spaniards, and increased in numbers, until it was deemed neces- sary to regulate the amount of business done by them. Thus a large building, called the alcer- ceria, was erected under the supervision of the government in 1580. This structure being finally destroyed by an earthquake, another, larger, to accommodate their increasing trade, was con- structed for them within the city of Manila, and known as the Parian, a Mexican word for mar- ket-place. All this encouragement was given the Chinese under the correct understanding that, without these prudent business men and industrious workers in all crafts and trades, the colony could not have existed. Juan de la Conception, a Span- ish writer of undoubted veracity, said : “ Lacking the trade and commerce of the Chinese, the col- 74 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. ony could not have prospered.” He places the number of the Chinese there in 1638 at 33,000. Not only as traders and mechanics were they needed, but also as common labourers. Without the rivalry they offered, scarcely a native could have been induced to work at any price. The needs of his life had not previously called for it, and he was not likely to begin under the dicta- tion of a foreigner. AYlien the Spaniards began to realise the rapid growth of the Celestials in their dominion, both in numbers and power, they began to fear them, lest they should attempt to seize the government. The natives became jealous of them, and were anxious to have them driven back to their own country. Massacres of the Chinese on the most flimsy pretences occurred in 1603, in 1639, and again in 1660. But for these unwarranted abuses it soon looked as if the Spanish were to be paid back in their own coin in the latter part of the seventeenth century. Immediately following the great Tartar invasion of China, a certain man- darin, named Koxinga, driven from his native land by the invaders, wrested the island of For- mosa from the Dutch, and established himself as COLONIAL WAB8. 75 emperor of the island. He had a hundred thou- sand armed warriors behind him, and having routed the Dutch without trouble, he sent an embassy to Manila, demanding tribute from the colony of Spain. The Chinese ambassador was an Italian Do- minican friar named Vittorio Riccio, who, if the representative of an adventurer, was received with marked respect by the Spaniards on ac- count of his religious affiliation. There was di- plomacy, too, in showing open honours to this Chinese mandarin. While they dallied with him, such preparations were made to avert the impending ruin of the colony as could be. The governor issued orders to destroy several forts on the other islands, while the work of fortifying Manila was carried forward as secretly and rapidly as possible. Eight thousand soldiers, besides a small body of cavalry, were put in readiness ; the contents of the public treasury were removed to safer quarters ; the Chinese in the town were put under strict surveillance, and two masters of junks were seized. It was the plan of the Span- ish to massacre every Chinese on the islands, but first they wished to provoke their intended vie- 76 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. tims to some act which should give them a plausible excuse for doing so. In their alarm, the Chinese, who numbered over ten thousand, attempted all sorts of devices to escape. Those who felt like joining their countrymen in the intended attack on the Span- iards sought to reach them by swimming out to their canoes lying off the coast, the majority of these meeting death in the water. Only a few reached the hosts of the daring Koxinga. Some tied to the mountains, but fully nine thousand waited anxiously the development of the situa- tion. This was precipitated by the killing of a Spaniard by one of their number. Attacks on every hand quickly followed, and the wildest excitement reigned on every hand. But the governor soon found that the surprise had not been as comjffete as he had anticipated, and the Chinese began to win. In this dilemma he asked for a cessation of hostilities, until some terms of peace could be arranged. Riccio con- sented, but while he was obtaining pardon for the so-called rebels they killed the priest left with them, when the massacre began in earnest. Though it was the original intention of the SQUARE AND RAILWAY STATION, MANILA, COLONIAL Tr^JJS. 77 Spanish to kill every Chinaman on the islands, some of the wiser ones pointed ont the inevitable harm which was likely to follow such a whole- sale slaughter of the tradesmen and mechanics, whom the city conld ill afford to lose, so it was agreed to pardon all who would sign the papers of his Catholic Majesty and lay down their arms. All the others were slain, and it is clamied that the waters of the Pasig ran red for many days. While Koxinga was preparing to devastate the Philippines in return for this terrible treat- ment of liis countrymen, he fell ill of fever and died. A rebellion soon followed, and Formosa, falling into the hands of the Tartars, became a part of the new dynasty of the Far East. In spite of the opposition to them, the Chinese soon began to come to the islands again, until in 1755 it was resolved to expel the race entirely from the Philippines. But as before, the only merchants were the Chinese, with the exception of a few Europeans and a dozen Asiatics. With the welfare of the Church always in mind, it was decided to exempt all Christian Chinese. This caused many to espouse the Catholic faith, but over two thousand were banished from Manila 78 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. on the SOtli of June, 1755, and a more rigid cen- sorship was maintained over the entrance of Chinese into the islands. Seven years later, when the Chinese became involved in the trouble of Great Britain with the Philippines, over six thousand of them were mur- dered under the order of the notorious Simon d’Anda. Yet once more a wholesale slaughter was attempted, when great numbers of the na- tives were dying of the cholera in 1820. The Chinamen and other foreigners were accused of poisoning the drinking water, and not even the exertions of the priests and most influential citi- zens could disabuse the rioters of their mistake, until many of the Chinese and a few British sub- jects had been killed in and around Manila and Cavite. Notwithstanding all this opposition and op- pression, the Mongol race has persisted in coming to the Philippines, content to pay big tributes often for the bare privilege of living. Some have professed the Catholic faith in order to give them a better social standing, and con- tracted marriage with native women. To the Chinese belongs the credit of having stimulated TAGALO FAMILY OUT FOR A DRIVE IN A CAKETELA, 4 /iv ■■ •! 'o' ' T/’ V. 7 ^iS^r >v, , , . m 'W y ■ ;V'' , ' - ■ "'U. .‘■ItVT.'Sfj •» ■ . .r COLONIAL WABS. 79 the natives to the limited industries they have gained ; they taught the Philippinos the method of extracting the juice of the cane, and built for them the first sugar mill, with stone crushers and iron boiling-pans. They also showed them how to work wrought iron. In return they have been invited to take up agriculture, but the Ce- lestials are of a commercial bent of mind. The towns, too, offered them greater security than the isolated districts, where their crops were liable to be plundered by more thriftless neigh- bours. The Spanish did not hesitate to accuse them of being robbers themselves, as they slaved and stinted themselves while on the islands that they might carry back to their home land all of their earnings there. Thus there has never been, and is not to-day, any harmony between the races so dissimilar, — the Philippine-Malays, with their utter lack of care for the morrow or ambi- tion to rise above their present position, and the frugal Mongols, who are content to work or trade at whatever price they may get. Just how many Chinese there are on the islands now it is impossible to say, but the best authorities place their number as high as one 80 THE PEABL OF THE ORIENT. hundred thousand, nearly all men, and over forty thousand dwelling in and around Manila. As severely as they have fared under Spanish do- minion, their condition would be even worse under a native government, for one of the avowed purposes of the Tagalog revolutionists has been a complete exclusion of the race from the Philip- pines. Besides their trouble with the Chinese, har- assed more or less by the Dutch, Portuguese, and other enemies, as well as internecine con- tention, the Spanish continued to strengthen their hold on the island colony until the war of Great Britain against France and Spain brought them the most formidable enemy they had to meet. The British had captured Havana, and, acting under the advice of Colonel Draper, who had visited the Spanish East India, sent an expedi- tion under the joint command of him and Ad- miral Draper to seize Manila. Inferior in force and equipments, the Spaniards, supported by five thousand natives who rallied around them, made a stubborn defence. Still the defenders were soon routed, and the city fell into the hands of COLONIAL WARS. 81 the British, who closed the doors of the convents and nunneries, and allowed their soldiers to pil- lage the town. The English troops, it is said, behaved very well, but over two thousand Sepoys under Draper stopped at no crime. The arch- bishop, who was at that time acting in the double capacity of governor-general and pontifical head, plead so earnestly for a restoration of order that the supplication was finally heeded, but not un- til a wrong had been committed which placed an everlasting stain on the reputation of the invaders. Papers of capitulation were drawn up, which stated that the territory given over to the British included the entire Archipelago, but in reality they obtained possession of only Manila and its immediate surroundings. Even in this they were not long left in peaceful occupation. A Spanish justice by the name of Simon d’Anda escaped from Manila, carrying with him half a ream of paper bearing the official government stamp. Upon this paper he sent out proclamations de- claring himself Governor-General of the Philip- pines. Troops flocked around him, and two or three ineffectual attempts were made to rout the 82 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. British. In the midst of this a conspiracy among the Chinese in the province of Pampanga to as- sassinate him was discovered, when he turned his vengeance on the Mongols, putting to death thousands who were innocent of any thoughts of sedition. The British claimed an indemnity of four mil- lion dollars as an offset against giving up the city as pillage-ground, which the Spanish agreed to pay. But only a fourth of this was really paid, and, harassed by attacks from outside and quarrels within the ranks, the English were hav- ing an uncomfortable experience, when word came that the war was at an end. The terms of the Peace of Paris, concluded on the 10th of February, 1763, provided for the evacuation of Manila by the British forces. The British now agreed to accept one million dollars as indemnity, but more than half of this was never paid, and quibbling and quarrelling arose as to who was the rightful person to make settlement. D’Anda was making some headway toward getting affairs under his control, seeking a delay under pretence of wishing to get news of the cessation of hostilities by way of Madrid. In TRAVEL IN RAINY SEASON. COLONIAL TFyljBS. 83 the meantime a goTeriior-general was sent over from Spain, who proved his authority, and the British withdrew. Peace was not restored in the islands until March, 1765. This struggle cost seventy lives on the part of the Spanish, and one hnndred and forty natives, while over ten thousand of the rebels perished. About two miles south of the city, near a point of land where the British first effected a landing, and where the American troops in 1898 did the same, stands a small, square fort of masonry called the Poveinna, or Powder Maga- zine. Against this General Draper directed an assault, and on the walls of the ancient structure are yet to be seen the indentations of the Brit- ish cannon-balls, while alongside of them are the recent effects to he seen from the shells of Admiral Dewey’s fleet. Another monument of that stirring episode, from which the Spanish have since claimed much glory, stands near the north end of that fashion- able promenade, Pasco cle Lucia, and can be seen by the vessels passing up and down the river. This is a proud obelisk proclaiming in glowing terms the expulsion of the British from 84 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. the Philippines by the heroic Spaniards, led by that great patriot, Simon d’Anda. So much for the accumulated valour of a hundred years. From the evacuation of the British in 1764 no great event occurred in the checkered history of the island colony for one hundred and twenty- five years, which period ends with that most momentous revolution of 1896. VOLCANO OF APO. 1 CHAPTER VII. RESOURCES AND COMMERCE. XPLORERS and discoverers are imbued with the spirit of great reward for their hazardous adventures lying somewhere just be- yond their range of knowledge ; the undiscovered realm in imagination is peopled with strange races of beings, and its wilderness is the store- house of marvellous treasures. The first suppo- sition has proven correct in the case of the Philippines ; how near the other is to the real situation remains yet to a great extent for Yankee enterprise to solve. Taking the island of Luzon for the wrist, the Palawan line of islands for the thumb, and we have a mighty right hand, clothed in the rich verdure of the tropics, laid palm up on the heaving bosom of old ocean. In the hollow of that hand, which Spain has guarded as a tniser does his hoard, is laid the lavish ofierir gs of the great Southern Pacific. 85 86 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. The wealth of the forests has been briefly described, but the deposits of ore of various kinds remain to be considered. Gold is found in the mountainous districts of Luzon, Mindanao, Mindoro, and other islands. In the early days of its discovery by the Europeans stories of its great abundance were heralded abroad, and for- tune-seekers flocked here as they did to America, and later to Australia. Here were repeated the scenes of human sacrifice in a greed for gold such as had been enacted in the land of the Aztecs and Incas. With their wash-board and a wooden bowl of unknown antiquity, the natives had dug and washed the precious ore for time beyond the computation of the historian, and necklets, brace- lets, and anklets of pure gold were worn by them as common ornaments. Thus when the sailors of Spain found their way hither, galleon after galleon went home fairly laden with the golden treasure, and not alone did Spain, but many of the semi-corsairs of Old England, seize on ill- gotten gains. Sir Francis Drake, in his famous voyage around the world, captured two of these prize-ships of the Philippines, which he sent home “ under sail of damask and cordage of SCKNE IN BULACAN. BESOURCES AND COMMERCE. 87 silk.” Anson’s fleet in the last century hovered for years in the southern waters, eagerly watch- ing for the gold-laden galleons which from time to time crossed his path. Longer than they will aclmowledge, the Chinese have sought in the fastness of the wilderness the hidden wealth of the mines, all of which ore has been transported to the home land, a steady revenue for centuries. Abandoned mines worked in years long since passed are to be found here and there. But this gold has been all profit to Spain. Vast sums, aggregating nearly a million and a half of dollars, have been expended in Spanish ways to work these mines, without reaping one dollar in profit. The natives have been averse to cooperating with them, and the friars have found greater benefit in resisting all attempts to open up the placer deposits of the mountain streams. One great reason of the failure has been Sj)ain’s indiffer- ence to build suitable roads in order to reach the scenes of operation and to make transportation easier and cheaper. Until the ulterior of the gold-producing islands has been explored, the value of this kind of mineral must remain un- known. 88 TEE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. The islands of Cebu and Masbate have beds of lignite of very good quality, those of the last named island being estimated to afford about twenty thousand tons to the acre. But true coal is not believed to be fonnd in any considerable deposits. Iron ore, on the other hand, is abun- dant and of excellent quality. There are also many rich deposits of zinc and copper. In the vicinity of the ancient volcanoes sulphur is found in sufficient quantities to make its mining profitable with better means of trans- portation. As an illustration of the methods of dealing * with any mining or other enterprise, it is related that in 1750 a Spaniard by the name of Salvador, after agreeing to pay enormous bounties to the government, got possession of the iron mine of Santa Ines in Morong. The next difficulty which confronted him was to obtain labourers. Finding that he could not get the natives to work, he hired some Chinese. Thereupon the Church interfered, denying him the right to hire infidel help. Finally, he was compelled to send the Chinese home at his own expense. Then, when he had got his ore into the market, the PLANTATION ON MINDANAO. BESOURCES ANB COMMERCE. 80 royal stores refused to buy it on the ground that it had been worked by men who were not Chris- tians ! He was thus obliged to give up the en- terprise, and the government claimed renewed possession, leaving him a ruined man. Though really a valuable mine, nothing has ever been done with it since. Another story is told by Foreman, where in the Bulacan province an iron mine was attempted by a couple of Englishmen at the heginning of the present century. They erected at great ex- pense machinery necessary to carry on the work, and then eno'ao’ed all the head men round about O O the country to hire help for them at a fixed salary. For a time this scheme worked well ; then the agents began to demand their wages in advance and grew importunate, though the num- ber of the miners was steadily decreasing. In vain the Englishmen tried to secure a sufficient number of labourers to carry on their undertak- ing, and finally, having spent over twenty million dollars without any promise of success, they hired a native to paddle them out to sea in his canoe, where both blew out their brains with pistols. 90 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. Everywhere the short-sighted policy of Spain has held in check all progress ; the mines have been deserted ; the forests abandoned ; only the native, too indolent to profit by them, knows anything of the undeveloped riches stored in the unexplored districts . U nder American enterprise it is not rash to predict that highways will soon penetrate to the great heart of these islands, and the shriek of the iron horse will awaken the soli- tude of far-reachmg wildwoods where now the foot of man has never made its imprint. Of the value of the mines and forests the na^ tives have had little concern. As with all primi- tive people, the cultivation of the soil has been and is the main occupation. The Philippino does not take up manufacture with enough determi- nation to make it a success, except it is the roll- ing of tobacco leaves into cigars and cigarettes. Many thousands of natives are employed at this in Manila. I have spoken of converting split bamboo into hats and utilising certain parts of the palm for marketable products. In Iloilo is manufactured a coarse cloth from hemp fibres, and from the pineapple is woven the pina mus- lin, so highly prized by the better class. The EESOUECES AND C02IMEECE. 91 chief industries are the raising of rice, sugar, and hemp. The staple food of the people, the rice crop, is grown in every province, and is really the only product of agriculture the Philippino knows how to cultivate successfully. Formerly it was raised in such quantities that large shipments were made to China, but of late years sugar- cane has so supplanted it that not enough is now raised for home consumption. The reason of the decline is that it is not profitable. As a rule, only one crop a year can be raised, the annual yield being from fifty to one hundred fold. The species of sugar-cane most successfully cultivated differs from that of the West Indies, and is of the kind grown in the Polynesian Archipelago and Malaysia. The best sugar land is on the island of Negros, where it is sold for fifty dollars an acre. Land partially worn but situated near to Manila is considered worth over one hundred dollars an acre. The difference in price is owing to the location, and not the quality of the soil, which is inferior to the other. Rail- roads would open up good lands in the interior 92 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. and tend to equalise the prices. The methods of cultivation and manufacture are very primi- tive. Much of the saccharine substance is lost and the sugar produced of a poor quality ; but the yield is large and under proper management might be made very profitable. There are good cane-fields and unimproved lands on the islands of Cebu, Panay, Negros, Luzon, and others, in the central Archipelago. The plantations are large and small, according to the capital of the owner, but as a rule do not produce more than a thousand tons each annually. The planters are generally of the Malay race, and their labourers are from their people very largely. These last live in little bamboo huts, clothed in the most primitive attire, with rice and fish almost entirely their diet. Few of them save any part of their low wages, while their employers are equally improvident, often owing more than they are worth, and compelled from year to year to mort- gage their crops in advance. The wealthy spec- ulators and exporters let them have money at exorbitant rates, and in the majority of cases eventually get possession of their plantations. The manufacture is done in an equally slovenly BESOURCES AND COMMERCE. 93 and unbusinesslike manner, wliicli has made what might have been a profitable industry a discouraging outlook. Rough cutting mills with cylinders of wood are used in the southern islands, and wheels of iron have been common in the north, both introduced by the Chinese. Of late, however, iron rollers, revolved by buffa- loes, and steam mills have been introduced. Of more importance than the sugar-cane or any other plant of the Philippines is a species of plantain, called by the natives abaca. It resem- bles the banana so closely as to deceive the casual observer, but the tree does not attain the height of the other, its leaves are of a darker green, while its fruit is not palatable. What it lacks in the last respect it more than makes up in af- fording that most valuable of all fibres for bind- ing purposes, the world-famous Manila hemp. It is a tree-like herb, growing on the mountain slopes inclined to be dry, and will not flourish in swampy districts. It reaches the height of ten feet, at the end of three years’ growth sending up a central stem which produces flowers, and later fruit. But the latter is not allowed to ap- pear, the stem being removed and the stalk of 94 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. leaves torn into strips of five or six indies in wicltli and usually about as many feet in length. From these long pieces come the fibre desired, which has to be scraped of the pulp around it and left to dry in the sun for five or six hours. The cleaning is done by hand, and nearly one- third of the fibre is spoiled by the process. The best hemp raised so far has been on the islands of Leyte and Marinduque, and the districts of Gnbat and Sorogon, Luzon, and the province of Albay, on the same island. Manila coffee is as highly prized in Spain as hemp is in the United States. Coffee was intro- duced by the Spanish in the early part of the present century, but its raising as an industry has been sadly neglected, and what might have proved a profitable industry was lost through indifference. From the trees first planted on the island of Luzon have sprung coffee-bushes all over that island, a small animal resembling the weasel having scattered the seeds. From these plants and the original trees planted nearly a hundred years ago, many thousand pounds of berries have been gathered annually. The missionaries introduced maize, wheat, po- STREET IN OH) MANILA, BESOURCES AND COMMERCE. 95 tatoes, peas, beans, onions, encumbers, and other vegetables, all of which are grown with more or less success, which depends verj^ largely on the way the crops are tended. In some of the southern islands, maize, or Indian corn, is raised as a substitute for rice ; but there is no foreign market for it, and its cultivation is thus limited. Wheat and rye have both been grown success- fully. The cacao-tree, imported from Mexico in the seventeenth century, grows well in the Philip- pines, and from its beans is obtained a good chocolate. The castor-bean grows wild here, and its oil is an article of export. Cinnamon of a poor quality, ^ahi, a turnip-shaped plant of little value, and others of more or less worth are raised. Owing to the restrictions which have been placed on what little ambition they may have possessed, few natives own plantations or lands of any extent. In order to do so he must not only keep a suitable stock, such as cattle, at least one pig, a dozen hens and cock, but he must plant trees adapted to the soil, and raise cereals and vegetables of all kinds. In most 96 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. cases the land has been taken from him at the end of two years. Spanish progress has consisted principally in putting a premium on indolence. The cultivation of tobacco ought to have been made profitable in the Philippines, where every- body smokes, and at all times, except at the short time spent at coffee. The Philippino smokes at his place of business, smokes over his work, smokes while he rests, smokes at the opera between acts and while he waits for the audience to gather, smokes while attending di- vine worship, in fact seems to smoke at all times, at home and abroad. 'With the feminine sex it is almost the same, for women of all ranks and degrees of wealth and poverty, young and old, pretty and plain, are to be seen puffing away at their cigarillos, a kind of cigar made expressly for them. Neither do they always stop to get these, but help themselves to brands smoked by husband, brother, or father. The history of the island commerce is on the same line of Spanish mismanagement as that of the development of the inland industries. From the organisation of the colonial government in 1571, to the rebellion in Mexico in 1811, a soli- RESOURCES AND COMMERCE. 97 tary galleon, of fifteen linndred tons burden, made an annual trip to the Philippines and re- turned, the round trip taking about a year. Tills vessel came from the islands laden with a cargo of baled Chinese goods, which had been obtained from them in exchange for the produce paid into the treasury as taxes from the natives, and was known as the tribute of the Philippines. Returning, this same galleon to the Philippines bore sundry articles of manufacture the colonist needed, some stores, and coin for circulation, principally with the Chinese. This comjirised the Spanish commerce with its rich colony for nearly two hundred and fifty years. Besides this the islands had more or less trade with India and Persia, while still greater traffic was had with China. But no Spaniard was per- mitted to seek either country for business, and must content himself with buying what was brought his way, and at the price the seller chose to fix. As it has been stated, these treasure-ships were tempting prey for the corsairs of the south- ern seas, and many of them fell into the hands of these watchful freebooters. Whenever this 98 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. happened another galleon was sent to take the place of the one lost. But even then there were periods of nearly three years in length, when no galleon visited the Philippines. Upon the expulsion of the Chinese in 1755, the closing of their shops brought about a stag- nation in business, which took a quarter of a century to revive, and cost the government over twenty-five thousand dollars a year in taxes. The collapse of business caused the Spanish to form a large stock corporation to handle goods, but this suffered with the dry rot of all Spanish enterprises, and finally failed. Spain’s persistent efforts to secure a monopoly of the trade, as in the matter of the industries, always worked against herself as well as other powers. It was not until 1807 that the first foreign house was permitted to establish trade with the Philippines, when an English firm opened business in Manila. The permission was so restricted that nothing came of it, until five years later, when it became more general. In 1834 such freedom was granted that the development of the natural re- sources of the islands was manifested, and the BE SOURCES AND COMMERCE. 99 island colony was opened to the commerce of the world. This begun, or in fair way of progress, stupid Spain began to burden foreign trade with enor- mous duties, most of which collections went into the pockets of customs officials rather than into her treasury. Every pretext seemed to be taken to make these taxes onerous, and to put the trader to every inconvenience possible. It is related that a certain American merchant was heavily fined for having a cargo a stone short of what it was expected to be. Decrees antagonistic to each other, but unani- mous in having an object toward driving away foreign trade, were issued from time to time, until a royal decree was put forth declaring all others should be subordinate to that, which abol- ished export duties and the still more pernicious port charges. But this did not seem to remedy the evil, and in 1886 it was declared that foreign trade was detrimental to the best interests of Spain and her colony. In addition to the short-sighted policy of Spain, which has ever been centuries behind the progress of the world, the Philippinos have 100 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. never had any real idea of values, and they have clung to the behef that the market was ruled by the whims of the buyer. This came naturally from their intercourse with the Chinese, who understood them, and always fixed a scale of prices which they could well afford to reduce, and the native felt that he had made a good trade if he had caused the seller to drop from his original price, no matter how high that may have been. As well as lacking in judgment, he fails to realise the importance of making good any agreement, and his word is never taken to mean literally what it expresses. Another serious drawback to business has been the faulty facilities of transportation, as has already been mentioned. Such roads as there are, during the rainy seasons are rendered difficult of passage, if not impassable, while coast navigation at these times is dangerous. Only one railroad on the islands has been built, and that connects Manila with Pangainan, at distance of one hundred and twenty-three miles. It is of single track, of fairly good construc- tion, and connects the capital with the rice- growing districts. EESOUECES AND COMMEECE.. 101 The principal staples of export have been hemp, sugar, coffee, cocoa, and tobacco, raw and manufactured. The chief imports have been rice, flour, dress goods, wines, coal, and petro- leum. The total imports into the islands at the breaking out of the revolution in 1896 were valued at $10,631,250 ; the exports for the same year amounted to $20,175,000. The great bulk of foreign trade was received by the Americans until the recent troubles with Cuba, just before the last Spanish- American war, aroused the Span- iards to such abuses as to drive the American representative from the Philippines, and England profited by the other’s loss. Public revenue is in round numbers twelve million dollars per annum, raised mostly from direct taxation, customs, monopolies, and lot- teries. The basis of the financial system is the poll-tax, which every male and female under sixty has to pay. The abuses and oppressions arising from this system burdened the common people, until they became unbearable. But neither Spain nor the islands profited by it to any extent. The prime object of the officials from the establishment of the colony to the 102 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. time of its loss to Spain seemed to be to reap the spoils of office. A native historian, Lala, in speaking of tliis, says : “ More money was set aside for the transportation of priests than for the building of railroads, while ten times the sum was donated to the support of the Manila Cathedral than was spent for improvements and for public instruction. Regarding the officials, from the governor-general down to the lowest underling, they seem to have devoted themselves industriously to robbing the people with one hand and the government with the other, sowing a crop of hatred of the Spaniard and of Spanish rule, which had its harvest in the fierce insurrec- tion of 1896-98.” All of which is too evident to be disputed. For three centuries lotteries, cock-fights, and gambling were the most popular sources of recreation and speculation. The suppression of them cost the government enormous loss in revenue. The licenses on cock-fights alone amounted to 1 150,000 per annum. The por- tion that fell to the state from the monthly government lotteries reached $600,000 a year. These lotteries were not only popular with the BE SOURCES AND COMMERCE. 103 Spaniards and Philippines, but with the English at Manila, Hong Kong, and Singapore. A series of graduated prizes was offered for tickets costing ten dollars, proportional parts for fractional por- tions of the same. The grand prize of $500,000 was a bait. Every merchant deemed it a part of his business to invest ten dollars at every drawing. The smaller prizes usually made up a portion of his investment, and the fascination of the fortune which headed the list tempted him to try again. CHAPTER VIII. MOST NOTED TOWNS. |F the cities and towns of the Philippines, Manila, the capital of the Archipelago, ranks first in size and importance. This Venice of the Far East stands on both banks of the Rio Pasig, on a wide, fertile plain slightly elevated above the water. Along the banks of the stream are still to be seen countless remains of mussel- shells, of a kind still existing in the surround- ing sea. The city is commonly spoken of as “ old and new Manila,” by which it is to be inferred that the town has known two stages of construction. That portion which claims precedence on ac- count of its earlier existence is a walled town, called by its Malay founders, before the Spanish occupation in 1571, “Intramuros,” and is situated on a peninsula, so it is nearly surrounded by water. The Pasig River flows in front or on GOVERNOR S PALACE, MANILA. ■ ( MOST NOTED TOWNS. 105 the north, the sea being on the west, while the remaining sides are flanked by moats. The fortifications were built about 1590 by Chinese labour, and done to protect the town from the depredations of the sea pirates, then a great menace to the safety of the early inhabitants of the islands. The moats are connected with the river and sea by sluices, so the city could be isolated at short notice. There are six gates^ three to the north on the road to the river, and as mamy more on the land side, all well defended by bastions. The public entrance is now through the first of the arates on the river road and called o the Parian. The sluiceways have become so filled with stagnant water as to be a menace to the health of the people. The streets of Manila are narrow, and have a dark, oppressive, monastic atmosphere, seeming decidedly gloomy in these modern days. Relig- ious processions are about the only relief af- forded the secluded, monotonous life of the town, the sole object of whose builders seems to have been that of self-defence. It is, perhaps, need- less to say that these precautionary works are not such as to prove very effective in modern 106 THE PEABL OF THE OBIENT. warfare, though they have served a good pur- pose in the protection of the city against the real or threatened attacks of the many enemies of Spanish peace in the years gone by. It does not take the stranger long to see all that interests him in the old mart, and he must cross over the river if he wishes to catch a glimpse of life and progress. The drawbridge between the two parts of the city was faithfully closed at nightfall as late as 1852, giving to the walled town the appearance of one of the feudal cities of the middle ages. The business section of Manila is the suburb of Binondo, situated opposite the older portion of the town, though the streets are as narrow and poorly paved as in the other part. But along the main thoroughfare, lined with its com- mercial warehouses, bazaars, and shops of vari- ous kinds, it is estimated that ten thousand people pass and repass daily. In Binondo are the large tobacco factories, which employ ten thousand men, women, and children, earning on an average about fifteen cents a day. But with low rents and cheap rates of living, they manage to get along quite comfortably on even this. MOST NOTED TOWNS. lOT The clothing for the men is merely a pair of thin trousers, and for the women an equally simple attire. Chinese shops and traders are everywhere seen, and some of these Celestial merchants are very rich. A suburb called Tondo is the dwelling-place of many of the labouring class, the extensive collections of their huts, thatched with nipa, presenting a picturesque appearance. But the drainage around these dwellings is poor, and this part of the city is very unhealthy. Beyond Binondo is the suburb of San Miguel, the residential part of Manila for the most wealthy class, where many of the government officials and European merchants reside in ele- gant dwellings. Connected to the walled town on the south by the Luneta, or beautiful public promenade by the old sea-wall, are the twin suburbs of Ermita and Malete. Of the many celebrated and attract- ive drives of Manila, the Luneta stands first, a fashionable resort teeming with life and merri- ment in the cool summer evening, and yet over- hung with an air pervaded with tragic memories. It was here hundreds of prisoners taken in the 108 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. insurrection of 1896 were executed, while bands played airs of lively interest, and the most fash- ionable of the Spanish inhabitants waved hand- kerchiefs and cheered in grim mockery over the fate of the hapless natives facing the sea from the top of the ancient wall, with their backs to the firing squad but waiting the signal to shoot them down like dogs. It is often the case that many rebels must die before their comrades in arms can become patriots. Before the recent warlike disturbances, it was a common sight to see the banks of the river, which is not navigable for the big ocean steam- ships, lined with schooners, Chinese junks, long canoes hewn from the trunk of some mighty tree, small dugouts with shades of nipa palm leaves and outriggers of bamboo, ferry-boats, and other craft of various kinds and sizes, each doing its part in the passenger and business traffic of the provinces. All the smaller craft were manned by Tagalogs, naked above the waist, or wearing a shirt allowed to fall outside of their thin panta- loons. The anchorage for the vessels visiting the port is about two miles southwest from the entrance of the river, and ships at anchor com- VILLAGE IN THE SUIiUKIJS OF MANILA. MOST NOTED TOWNS. 109 municate with the shore by boats or steam- launches, the handling of their cargoes being done by lighters. Having a circumference of one hundred and twenty nautical miles, Manila Bay is too large to allow proper protection to ships. A few years ago all repairs made on ves- sels had to be done at Hong Kong, but the patent slip near Cavite affords sufficient facilities now. Previous to 1893 the streets of Manila were lighted by petroleum lamps or cocoanut oil, but the year mentioned an electric light plant was established, and the old way of lighting the streets succeeded by more modern methods. The river is spanned by three bridges, one of them constructed of stone and iron. Along; the streets rattle vehicles of many kinds and various degrees of antiquity, the most respectable of which is the carruage, or two-horse barouche, rented by the most wealthy ; the quelis is a small, square two- wheeled trap, the driver seated high up in front, with seats for four inside ; the caromata, a native cart drawm by one poor spechnen of a pony in a rope harness. This ancient styled concern is a two-wheeled affair, which reels and groans as it 110 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. staggers along the way with its load of natives, Chinese, or sailors. The driver’s place is with his passengers, and if the seats are filled, it is not considered improper for him to sit in some one’s lap. Tram-cars, of which there are two lines, cross the bridge connecting the old and new towns, and for four cents one can go anywhere within their limits. These cars, built after the pattern of other countries, are drawn by small ponies, plucky and hardy, but ill-used and incapable of pulling the load often demanded of them. The buildings of Manila, outside of the churches and cathedral, are not of striking or unposing appearance, a fact due largely to the common occurrence of earthquakes. A building above two stories in height is rarely seen. The church edifices, however, are of interest from their architecture and their historic associa- tions. The cathedral, founded in 1570, has been destroyed by earthquakes and rebuilt several times. The imposing structure now seen was built on the ruins of the old one which was destroyed by an earthquake in 1880. It is built of stone and brick at a cost of over half a million CA\ irK AltSKNAL. MOST NOTED TOWNS. Ill dollars, and the most noteworthy building on the islands. It is in the heart of old Manila, and the great rehgious processions for which the town is famous aU start here, and finally come back here to break up. The oldest church building, also in old Manila, is the Church of San Francisco, under the pat- ronage of the Franciscans. This is one of the finest edifices to be found anj^here. The Roman Catholic is the established church of the Philippines, and it has one archiepiscopal see and three bishoprics. The various religious orders, Dominicans, Franciscans, Augustinians, and others, have been the real power behind the throne in the management of affairs, and to them is due largely the misconduct of the officials. It is far behind modern ideas of progress, and in its selfishness has retarded rather than helped to advance the enlightenment of the native races. As a rule priests and friars from Spain, who have come to stay, have been sincere in their purpose, though their overzeal for the welfare of the Church has caused them to commit many grave mistakes. The work has been left largely to native priests, elevated from the common 112 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. classes, who could not be expected to live strictly up to the severe monastic vows, and to them can be traced greater evils than to their superiors. If they have sought consolation in diversions not altogether clerical, it shows they were more hu- man than divine. Education has been sadly neglected, and per- haps here has been the greatest blame that can be attached to the Church. It is true the schools have been under the jurisdiction of the state, but the Church has been powerful enough to have raised their standard if it had chosen. Nearly every town and village has its government school, hut the methods are antiquated, aud the results far from being satisfactory. Next to the prome- nade on the Luneta, the people flock to witness an execution, where the condemned is borne in the draped death-cart, followed by a long proces- sion, and accompanied by several priests to his place of doom. This is a raised platform, on which is a rude seat that the victim accepts with a grim stoicism peculiar to his race. He is then bound to a post behind him, a heavy brass collar, the deadly garrote, fastened around his neck with a click. The executioner steps SOCIAL KN'TKU l AliN'-MICN r ITN’DKH SI’ANISII KKIilME. MOST NOTED TOWNS. 113 to one side, the priests cease their weird chants, the populace for a moment hold their breath ; then the crucifix is lifted, the chant resumed, the doomed wretch tries to smile and say his prayers at the same tune, the officer raises one hand, the executioner twists the screw, a shiver, a groan, and the spectators turn away with a merriment jarring sadly on the solemn scene. The population of Manila is not far from 300,- 000, of which over two-thirds, or 200,000, are natives, nearly one-sixth, or 50,000, are Chinese half-castes, 40,000 are Chinese, 5,000 are Span- ish, or Spanish Creoles, 4,000 Spanish half-castes, and less than 500 Europeans and other white foreigners. Manila is connected with Hong Kong by cable and by a line of steamers. A line of steamers running to Liverpool maintains a monthly service to Europe, touching at Singa- pore, Colombo, Aden, by way of Suez, Port Said, and Barcelona. Several local steamers ply be- tween Manila and the ports of the other islands. The Philippine capital is 7,050 miles from San Francisco, 9,465 miles from Cadiz, and 625 miles from Hong Kong. O O 114 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. On the whole, Manila has its many attractions, like all great centres of population, its unpleas- ant features, most charmingly surrounded by a scenery of tropical picturesqueness. Second only in importance to Manila, and with brighter prospects under American government, is Iloilo, the capital of the province of Panay, and situated 250 miles south of the former city. Here is an excellent harbour, well protected, one of the leading seaports of the islands. Owing to constant sea breezes, it is cooler and more healthy than at Manila, while typhoons are less common and earthquakes of very seldom occurrence. Surrounding is a fertile country, which is good sugar-cane land, but Iloilo is a manufacturing town, many cloths and fine fabrics being woven here. At present the facilities for transportation from different parts of the island are in a bad state. This has been a port more than any other visited by American ships, and it is destined to be a great commercial centre. It represents the district of the large islands of Panay, Cebu, and Negros, with several smaller islands. A large part of the traders are mestizos-Chinos, MOST NOTED TOWNS. 115 many of whom have accumulated considerable property. The third city of importance is Cebu, the cap- ital of the island by that name, and was the first city founded by the Spanish. It has the most celebrated cathedral on the islands, many thou- sands of pilgrims visiting annually the shrine of the Holy Child of Cebu. The best roads in the Philippines are to be found on this island, but the inhabitants have lacked the energy and thrift to make Cebu the port it should be. CHAPTER IX. STEUGGLES FOR LIBERTY. O 0 far the situation has been viewed from the vantage-ground of the Spanish ; but there' is another side to these centuries of foreign colonis- ation, another and deeper shade to the scenes of tyranny and revolution. Over six millions of native-born inhabitants, though of mixed races, and nearly one-fourth of them outlaws of the jungles, lagoons, and the mountains, have a story of their own waiting for the historian to do it justice. It is not a record that redounds wholly to their credit. “ Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad,” seems to have been the jiolicy of the Spaniards in their treatment of the Philippines, and the servant must have been other than human had he not retaliated in the manner of his master. As has been stated, at no time has the sover- eignty of Spain been complete over the Archi- 116 VILLAGE OF OLAS PINAS, ON OUTSKIRTS OF MANILA, STRUGGLES FOR LIBERTY. 117 pelago, or anj'^vay permanent where it has reached. The Malay, or Philippino, is really the only race Spain has domesticated. It may have subdued certain individuals of other nation- alities, but the tribe as a whole still roams the wilderness as fierce and untamable as its ances- tors in the days of Magellan and his followers. In no sense road-builders, the Spaniards had no way of penetrating the tropical jungles, where at all times lurked the revengeful Negritos, the patriots of Pampanga, the Moslems of the Min- danao, and the Sulu Sultanate, all contestants for a hberty a foreign power would wrest from them, rising: in rebelhon first on one island and then on another, one generation after another carry- ing on the long struggle for liberty. Still the pressure of the government went on, drafting young men into fighting for rights which they were far from enjoying, enslaving them in labour, such as felling the heavy timber of the interior districts, without hope of a reward for their arduous toil, while them wives were tortured for the tribute they could not be expected to raise, and their homes left to despoliation ; still the tyranny of the Church, which not only robbed 118 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. them of worshipping according to their own de- sires, but made them support liberally a religion they did not believe in, continued from century to century. An insurrection caused by religious oppression took place on the island of Bohol in 1662, when the natives erected a temple in the wilderness and proposed to worship a god of their own, and to escape paying tribute to one which they did not know. They were finally routed, but the exaction of the Jesuitical priests a century later brought about another uprising in 1774. So strongly did the rebels rally this time that for thirty-five years they maintained their inde- pendence, and the Jesuits were driven from the colony. At the time of the Bohol revolt another was ripe in Leyte, when the natives rose in a vain attempt to throw off the Spanish yoke. Upon the capture of the native chief, his head was decapitated and placed at the end of a long pole carried about the town in order to strike terror to the hearts of the vanquished rebels. Another was burned at the stake, by a people who pro- fessed to be Christian ! DAGAUl’AN, KIO HOllNO. STRUGGLES FOR LIBERTY. 119 Seven years later an attempt was made in eastern Mindanao to escape Spanish dominion, and three years of bush warfare were required to put down the rebellion, during which four villages were burned and as many priests put to death. In 1649 a series of riots opened, owing to a refusal on the part of the natives to cut the gov- ernment thnber without pay. These revolts are filled with deeds too dark and inhuman to be described, the savage cruelty of the natives always more than equalled by the barbarities of their Spanish oppressors. A serious outbreak occurred in 1872, instigated by some friars in the hope of obtaining the ban- islunent of some families with views too liberal to suit their fanatical ideas. Besides these, which are only a few specimens shorn of their awful indignities, the list might be continued, always with the same grievance of Church and state tyranny, closing with identical barbaric chastise- ment, but each time with added strength on the part of the insurgents. Stories of Spanish atrocities in Cuba and Porto Rico came often to the knowledge of American and European conn- 120 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. tries, but the great Pacific Archipelago was too far removed from the centres of modern civilisa- tion to attract attention, until the revolution of 1896 was an appeal heard around the world. The causes which had led up to this were the same as heretofore, the tyranny of the ruling party, the demands of the Church, the burdens of an exorbitant taxation, and heavy fees of many kinds. In order to unite themselves for protection, the insurgents had formed a secret organisation called the Katijpunan. Upon learn- ing of this mysterious body, with its strength and numbers unknown, for the first time the priesthood became alarmed. This league really numbered over fifty thousand men ready to strike a blow when the moment came, and the province of Cavite becoming the muster-ground of the rebel forces, gatherings of the uprisers soon became common in the province of Batangas. The headquarters of the first body wms fixed at Silan, where a young schoolmaster by the name of Emilio Aguinaldo laid aside his text-books to teach to this unarmed rabble of discontented people the manual of arms and to unite them into closer bonds of union by the inspiration of SULU ^VOMAN STRUGGLES FOB LIBERTY. 121 liis own passion for freedom. Born at Imus in 1869, this zealous advocate of liberty, then but twenty-seven years old, at once showed greater powers of organisation and discipline than any of the so-called leaders before him. Intelligence reaching him that the priests had discovered the secret of the masonic league among his country- men, and that the Spanish were premeditating measures to capture the leaders, Aguinaldo, on the 31st of August, 1896, issued his first mani- festo, which was simply a stirring appeal to his downtrodden race to rally in a desperate fight for freedom. The foresight or good fortune of the insurgents in establishing themselves in the situation that they did is shown by the position of the strong- hold of that island, Cavite. The Bay of Manila is thirty miles in length, running north and south, and is nearly twenty-five in width, too large to afford ample protection to ships within its waters. But the entrance to this port is be- tween the perpendicular sides of two volcanic mountains. The island of Corregidor, rising above the water six hundred and forty feet, lies in the channel, while just beyond is the island of 122 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. Caballo, four hundred and twenty feet in height, both well fortified, and having lighthouses. Commanding the passage to the bay are the fortifications of Cavite, ten miles distant from the capital. Cavite has a population of five thousand, a garrison of five hundred men, and a patent slip where needed repairs could be made to disabled vessels. Cavite, then, was the key to Manila. Immediately after, issuing his manifesto simul- taneously from Novaleta and San Francisco de Malabon, Aguinaldo marched the insurgent army against Imus, and on the 1st of September he captured that town, securing thirteen priests as prisoners. These were treated most inhumanely. One was cut to pieces ; another spitted on bam- boo sticks, bathed in oil, and set on fire. The treatment accorded the remaining prisoners need not be described. The heartless execution of their countrymen on the wall of Luneta was still fresh in their minds, and the compact made by Spanish officers at a recent banquet in Manila, “ to shoot the savages like wild beasts in their lair, without showing quarter,” was still ran- kling in their breasts. One crime does not atone NATIVE OF MALABON AND HIS FAMILY. STBUGGLES FOR LIBERTY. 123 for another, but as yet the Spaniard, with his thumb-screw, stake, and rack, had shown himself the greater savage. Some captives who fell into Aguinaldo’s per- sonal keeping shared honest treatment, and it was evident that he was more humane than his followers, if powerless or disinclined to interfere with the punishment inflicted on the captives of those under him. The village of Imus amounted to little, being a few rude huts, with one fortified house belong- ing to the Religious Corporation, but its situation and the capture of the priests who had fled there for fancied security were important. Establish- ing themselves here, while making further in- trenchments at Novaleta, the insurgents seized two towns. Las Pinas and Paranaque, nearer to Manila, which was about fourteen miles from Imus. Astonished at this daring manoeuvre of the rebels, General Blanco, at the head of five thousand Spanish troops, hesitated about trying to repel the insurgents, claiming that to do so would leave the city exposed without sufficient protection. Soon, however, the Spanish forces were in- 124 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. creased to about twenty thousand, and the insur- gents, many of them without arms, were checked in their triumphal march, and obliged to retreat to the mountains near the capital, where they began to intrench themselves. Their force now numbered about seven thousand, not more than one in four of them having firearms. In the provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga a legion of three thousand or more had rallied under the leadership of a half-breed, named Llaneros. In October, 1896, the Kepublic of Tagal was organised, and Andreas Bonifacio was declared its President. Bonifacio did not live long to hold his honours, and immediately after his death Aguinaldo was chosen President and com- mander-in-chief of the army. At this time was being enacted one of the most romantic and melancholy tragedies of the bloody and protracted drama of insurrection. Among the many friends and sympathisers of the insurgents outside of their ranks was the president of the Manila University, and physi- cian and statesman, named Jose Bizal. Doctor Rizal had been educated in Europe, travelled extensively, and written two books on the situa- EJriLIO AGUINALDO. STRUGGLES FOB LIBERTY. 125 tion in the Philippines, one of them intended to arouse the dormant patriotism of the subjugated race. This so aroused the priesthood that a sys- tematic seizure of his property was begun, which only ended when he had been despoiled of every- thing in his home and his house burned over his head. He was then declared to be at the head of a conspiracy to raise a company of emi- grants to found a republic on the island of Borneo, and arrested. After a brief trial he was sentenced to be exiled to the island of Mata- pan, where he remained until about the time of the breaking out of the revolution of 1896. Naturally expecting that he would resent the treatment he had received, and fearing so able a man, he was again arrested, under the charge of being concerned in the rebellion. Though his sympathies were with the insurgents, it is very doubtful if he advised a resort to arms. In spite of his protests of innocence, at what was merely a trial in appearance, he was condemned to be shot on the 30th of December, 1896. Doctor Rizal had many friends and S 3 rmpa- thisers in his misfortunes outside of the insur- gents, and the most loyal of them was a woman. 126 THE PEARL OF TEE ORIENT. young and beautiful. Her name was Josephine Bracken, and she was the daughter of an Irish sergeant in the British army, who at the end of his military service settled at Hong Kong, where she was born. Her father falling under the medical treatment of Doctor Eizal, she met the latter, and a mutual attachment sprang up be- tween them, so that they were engaged to be married at the time of his last arrest. Nearly frantic over her lover’s sentence. Miss Bracken did all in her power to save him. But her efforts availed nothing. Finding this to be the case, to show her faith in him, and that she might better fight for his good name, she pro- posed that they be married even under the shadow of death. Thus on the fateful morning of the 30th, at five x\. m., the unhappy lovers were united in marriage by the chaplain of the forces, and in the presence of the officers of the guard. It was a most affecting scene, and an hour later the doomed bridegroom was marched under an escort of the artillery regiment to the Campo de Bag- umbayan, back of the Luneta, Manila’s most beautiful and yet most tragical spot. It lacked an hour of the time appointed for STRUGGLES FOB LIBERTY. 127 the execution, but under the pretence that an uprising was likely to take place in order to rescue the prisoner, the unfortunate man was bound hand and foot, placed near one of the lamp-posts, with his face to the sea and his back to his executioners, to be shot like a common traitor. So perished, without any evidence of guilt of wrong, the noblest and most intellectual patriot of the Philippines. Following the sad termination of her brief married life, Madame Rizal joined the insurgents at Imus, where she was greeted as a modern Joan of Arc. Accepting the command of a com- pany of the rebels, she showed her bravery and prowess with arms, by leading them to several victories over the hated enemy. During the succeeding year a desultory warfare was kept up, so favourable in its general results that the Spanish, on the 14th of December, 1897, gladly signed a treaty of peace, known as the Pact of Biaonabato, from the town where the instrument was drawn. By the terms of this pact Aguinaldo, as the commander-in-chief, was to receive in trust four hundred thousand pesetas, to be placed in the Bank of Hong Kong as a 128 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. fund, the accumulation of which was to be devoted toward giving native youth an English education. Such reforms as the disorganisa- tion of religious orders, native representation in the Cortes, equal justice in court with the Span- ish, unity of foreign and domestic laws, the Philippino to share in the offices, the matter of taxation to be equalised and lightened, the individual rights of natives to be allowed, the liberty of the press and general amnesty, were conceded. On the part of the insurgents, Aguinaldo and the most prominent leaders with him agreed to leave the Archipelago for three years, and that they would make no trouble for the colony dur- ing that time. Their followers laid down their arms, forts were surrendered, ammunition given up, and all advantages so far gained abandoned by the rebels. The first stage of the rebellion ended here. General Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy is the son of a planter in humble circumstances. He was educated at the College of St. Jean de Lateran and the University of St. Thomas in Manila. He proved a dull scholar, and upon the death of his STBUGGLES FOE LIBEBTT. 129 father, before he had completed his full course, was obliged to return home. Soon after he was suspected of being at the head, or among the leaders, of the order of Katipunan, which was believed to have a mem- bership of a quarter of a million. In this league were many free masons, who were among the most bitter against the friars, who have ever been at enmity with that fraternity. Not many years since three thousand masons were seized on a slight pretext, and placed in irons. It was now feared by the priests that this order would join with the native league, and active measures were taken to crush out the latter. A squad of native soldiers under command of a Spanish officer was sent to capture Aguinaldo. Upon being met by the demand to surrender, he quickly felled the captain, and then induced liis followers to fly to the mountains with him. Nothing serious seemed to come of this affair, and he came to the front at the very outset of the struggle around Manila. So fiercely did the Spanish hate him that a reward of twenty-five thousand dollars was offered for his head. It is, perhaps, somewhat singular that 130 THE PEABL OF THE ORIENT. no one in his ranks attempted to betray him or take his life. Like all of the Philippines, he is short in figure, but with a closely knit frame. He has a swarthy skin, coal-black hair which he wears pompadour, and a countenance which gives little if any expression of his true feelings. He has surrounded himself with shrewd advisers, though seldom listening to their counsels. That he is a man of great influence over his countrymen has been evident from the beginning. No one has ever doubted his bravery, many have extolled his patriotism, but the depth of his sincerity remains to be proven. i CHAPTER X. AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. N tlie 25th of April, 1898, war was formally declared between the United States and Spain, and on the following day Commodore Dewey, commander of the American fleet then lying in the harbour of Hong Kong, received this message ; Washington, April 26. u “ Dewet, Asiatic Squadron : — Commence op- erations at once, particularly against the Spanish fleet. You must capture or destroy them. “ McKinley.” This squadron, which had just exchanged its coat of white for the gray of war, every officer and seaman of which was impatient to move against the enemy, consisted of the flagship Olympia, Captain Charles V. Gridley command- ing, with Commodore Dewey on board ; Boston, Captain Frank Wildes ; Concord, Commander 132 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. Asa Walker; Petrel, E. P. Wood; joined by the Paleigh, under command of Captain J. B. Cogli- lan, and the Baltimore, Captain N. M. Dyer com- manding. No time was lost in heading for Manila, and on the 30th of April the island of Luzon was sighted. Keeping in the background until after nightfall, the fleet advanced in single flle, the Olympia leading, slowly and cautiously approaching the southern and more narrow en- trance to the bay. The lights on the ships had all been extinguished, except the one astern, but the sub-tropic moon, flooding their pathway with a yellowish hght that on the calm sea looked like a foil of gold, made the scene sufficiently bright for them. A constant lookout for the Spanish fleet sup- posed to be moored somewhere in that vicinity was maintained, but no sign of the enemy was seen and the American fleet kept on, increasing its speed so as to get as far inside as possible before being discovered. The men were at the guns ready for instant action, while unchallenged the line of war-ships sped along the perilous passage, mined with its submarine explosives, the grim device of destruction liable to explode at SCENE IX SUBURBS OF JIAXILA. AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 133 any moment with the power to hurl them all into eternity. The commander had learned his part under the indomitable Farragnt, and, as on the memorable occasion that made the other famous, Commodore Dewey calmly awaited the result of his hazardous dash past the frowning ramparts of the Spanish fortifications on the isle of Corregidor, regardless of the torpedoes set to catch the unwary. Past the dark fortress of Corregidor swept the squadron without raising an alarm, until a cloud of sparks, flying from the smoke-stack of the 2IcCulloc]i, a convoy with two transports, Nashan and Zapiro, gave the first warning to the Spanish. A bugle sounded the alarm on the shore, followed by a shrill whistle and the boom of a cannon. This was the opening shot of the battle of Cavite and of the war. It was then quarter past eleven. Not until the Spanish had fired their third shot, with their usual inaccuracy, did the Boston fire the first gun on the part of the Americans. Another missile -from the shore hurtled over their heads, and the Concord sent a six-inch shell into the battery, which silenced the guns. 134 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. In tlie gray light of morning the Spanish squad- ron was discovered at anchor off Cavite. In order to get a knowledge of the true posi- tion of the enemy, Commodore Dewey moved steadily across the bay, and swinging about led the way on the first circuit of the inland waters at six minutes past five, on Sunday morning. May 1st. The Olympia was followed in un- broken line by the Baltimore, Raleigh, Petrel, Concord, and Boston, which order was main- tained throughout the action. Old Glory was streaming from every masthead, and the patriotic airs of the drum rang far and wide on the still atmosphere of that Sabbath morn, as the little fleet bore down upon the sullen ships of Spain. Two mines exploded ahead of the Olymgna, but, undeterred, the squadron continued to advance, until at forty-one minutes past five it swept within four thousand yards of the enemy, when at the signal the cannon of the six ships sent their mis- siles with deadly aim into the Spanish fleet. The answer was given with a terrific roar, but the Spanish gunners failed to make a single effective shot, while the American ships swung around in the circle to' give another broadside at OLYMPIA. AMEBIC A IN THE ORIENT. 135 the right time. As they passed the battery on the west a closer fire than that from the ships was dhected upon them, but with line unbroken the American fleet made its second round, pass- ing this time within three thousand yards of the bewildered Spaniards, giving a more destructive cannonade than before. Wild disorder now reigned everywhere among the enemy. The Spanish admiral’s flagship, Reina Christina, was on fire, and it had to be run ashore near the fort of Cavite. Admiral Montojo’s flag was trans- ferred to the Castilla, which was already disabled, and sank a few minutes later. Other ships of the squadron were on fire or sinking, so that a little past seven the only Spanish ship in fighting order was the Don Juan de Austria. The smoke now hung so dense over the scene that it was impossible to see either friend or foe. The three batteries at Manila, one at the entrance of the Pasig Eiver, the second on the south bastion of the walled town, and the third at Malate, about half a mile farther south, had all kept up their firing, which had not been answered. But now Commodore Dewey sent a message to the governor-general that if he did 136 THE PEABL OF THE OEIENT. not cease firing lie slionld shell the city. The guns immediately became silent, and at a signal the Americans stopped firing. Then, at thirty- five minutes past seven, the six ships stood off toward the eastern side of the bay, where all hands were piped to a well-earned brealffast. At a quarter past eleven the attack was resumed, but it proved that the brunt of the battle had been borne. The entfie Spanish squadron was in flames, and inside of three- fourths of an hour the American fleet returned and anchored off Manila, with the exception of the Petrel, left to complete the destruction of the gunboats. The gallant commander-in-chief was then able to send his graphic despatch to Washington: “I have executed jmur orders!” Then he proceeded to cut the cables. The loss on the part of the Spanish was heavy, though not exactly known. Three vessels were sunk, Reina Christina, Castilla, Don An- tonio de Ulloa ; seven were burned, ^dz., Isla de Cuba, Isla de Luzon, General Lezo, Marquis del Duero, El Correo Valasco, and Isla de Min- danao, a transport. Several small launches and two tugs, the Rapido and Hercides, were cap- BALTIMORE, AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 137 tured. The Americans did not lose a man, ■while but seven -were ■wounded. Commodore De^wey’s victory at Cavite at once sho-wed that, in order to foUo'w up the advan- tages so far earned, it ■was necessary to augment the naval force with a reinforcement of land troops, before the capture of Manila and the island of Luzon could be attempted. San Fran- cisco was selected as the best located mustering- ground, and so promptly did the United States government act that the first reghnent of volun- teers, the Second Oregon, reached the Philippines on the loth of May, 1898. Three days later Major-General Wesley Merritt was placed in command of the Department of the Pacific. On the 30th of June the first expedition to the Phil- ippines, under Brigadier-General Thomas M. An- derson, arrived off Manila ; July 17th the second expedition, under Brigadier-General F. V. Greene, joined the other; and on the 31st of July the third fleet of transports, with troops in command of Brigadier-General Arthur McArthur, reached the scene of action. The three expeditions ag- gregated a force of 470 officers, and 10,464 enlisted men. 138 THE PEAEL OF THE ORIENT. Meanwhile Commodore Dewey remained mas- ter of the bay of Manila, his ships passing to and fro unmolested by the Spanish. Aguiualdo had returned from Hong Kong on the 24th of May, and offered to cooperate with the Americans in their campaign against the Spanish. The latter had broken their pact with him, and he declared himself dictator of the island, forbidding his people from making any further terms with the Spaniards. Under the stimulus of Dewey’s first victory, the insurgents rallied under their old leader, and inside of a month they had captured the province of Cavitd, with sixteen hundred Spanish pris- oners, two batteries, and over four thousand rifles. Other victories succeeded, and in July Aguinaldo announced himself President of the Philippine Republic. At the time of the arrival of the third expedition from the United States he had established his headquarters at Bacoor, had or- ganised executive and legislative departments, and thus came into control of an independent government. Aguinaldo, in a correspondence with the com- mander of the United States forces, was profuse 'i * '{ \f - 1 AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 139 in his declarations of assistance to them in every way possible, but stipulated that the American troops should not land on territory that had been seized by the insurgents. This correspond- ence ended with this declaration on the 24th of July. The insurgents occupying the territory between the American troops under General Greene and the Spanish, made it impossible for our forces to advance without breaking this de- mand made by the insurgent chief. Finally^ however, Aguinaldo’s consent was gained, and the troops advanced to a position in front of that taken by the insurgents. This brought about the engagement on the night of July 31st, when six men of the Tenth Pennsylvania and four men of other regiments were killed, including Captain Pitcher of the First California. The construction of trenches was now vigor- ously pushed, the transports landed under great difficulties, so that on the 7th of August General Merritt and Admiral Dewey together requested the surrender of Manila, under threat of a bom- bardment of the town within forty-eight hours. The Spanish delaying their reply under one pre- tence and another, on the 13th, according to the 140 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. understanding between the navy and the troops on shore, the former opened a bombardment upon the line of the Spanish intrenchments. After an hour of this attack, the troops under Generals Greene and McArthur occupied, though not without some earnest fighting, the line of the enemy for a considerable distance. As the Spanish retreated toward the walled city, they blew up or burned their works. The flag of truce soon followed the retreat of the Spaniards, and General Merritt immediately proceeded to meet Commander-General Jaudanes at the gov- ernment building, where terms of capitulation were hastily drafted and signed. Fearing with good reasons that if the insur- gents were allowed to enter the city they would commit outrages and depredations foreign to civilised warfare, the Americans took every pre- caution to prevent them from doing it. This was done so successfully that no crime was committed. The Spanish were still holding in check the lines most distant from the city, and these were reheved the next day, when the American cap- ture of Manila was complete. Having virtually MAJOK - GENERAL WESLEA" MERRITT. ' (I AMEBICA IN THE ORIENT. 141 paralysed tke power of Spain in the Philippines, the Americans suddenly found themselves con- fronted by a new antagonist, that not only ignored the favour just done them in freeing them from the Spanish yoke, but demanded pro- tection without being willing to make any con- cession to the new power in the Orient. How far their claims were based on equitable footing yet remains a mooted question. The provisional government which, under the dictation of Aguinaldo, assumed control of affairs in the Philippines, upon the overthrow of the Spanish domination, was a military despotism. The President was general of the armed forces, and the offices of the government throughout the islands were filled by military men under him. In justice to the leader of this regime, it should be recognised that he claimed this pre- rogative only as long as war should last, but at the same time it lay in his province to place upon the people under him a yoke as gallmg as that which the Americans, not his followers, had thrown off. How well this promise of the insurgent chief would have stood the crucial test of peace is not hkely to be shown. 142 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. Aguinaldo obtained his importance among the Philippinos from the claim that he was the accred- ited agent whom the United States was at the outset willing to meet in the establishment of a government for the Archipelago. This mistake has been proven, but so far his people have ral- lied around him in the blind hope to found a government. In the sober judgment of disin- terested lawmakers, the Tagals, whom Aguinaldo represents, form but a small portion of the in- habitants, and it would seem a worse fate than Spanish rule to yield the islands up to the dictation of this young, ambitious adventurer. Should this same Aguinaldo be placed in con- trol of affairs, it is not improbable that within a few months abler men would dispute with him for a supremacy, and soon or late the Philippines would be embroiled in continual dis- sensions and revolutions. He shows his dread of this by the continual jealousy he displays of his associates. Brigadier-General Elwell S. Otis succeeded to the command of the American forces, which were increased to twenty thousand men, and preparations were begun to bring about peace GENERAL AUGUSTI. AMEEICA IN THE OEIENT. 143 as soon as possible, by diplomatic means if possi- ble ; if not, by armed troops. In December, 1898, General Otis appointed a commission of three conservative men, Gen. R. P. Hughes, provost-marshal of Manila, Col. E. H. Crowder, jndge-advocate general. Col. J. F. Smith, of the First California Regiment, to meet a simi- lar number of representatives selected by General Ag-ninaldo to confer in regard to an amicable set- tlement of the unpleasant situation in the Phil- ippines. This commission was in session until the last days of January without coming to any agreement. The Philippines seemed to have no settled policy, and their only term was absolute independence for the islands, with protection from the United States, which should have no control in pubhc affairs. The representatives of the insurgent leader refused to acknowledge the unfairness of such a proposition, and refused all overtures offered by the Americans. This perverse action came from a complete misunderstanding of the real situation. It would seem that, however sincere and patriotic Aguin- aldo’s motives had been at the outset, he was now actuated by the blindest sort of an ambition 144 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. to place himself at the head of another revolu- tion rather than yield in the least to American dictation. He had fired his countrymen with the idea that nothing would be gained by ex- changing Spanish rule for that of the new power in the Far East. He discounted their fighting qualities so far as to declare that they could whip them as easily as their ancient enemy. The conflict between the Americans and the insurgents was opened by a shot fired on the evening of February 4, 1899, by a sentry named Grayson, belonging to a Nebraska regiment. General Otis had given an order not to allow a Philippino to pass the lines after nightfall, and this order had been confirmed by Aguinaldo. Thus the Philippino who met this death by this shot in trjdng to pass the sentinel knew the risk he was taking. Firing all along the line, from Tondo on the north to Malate on the south, was begun within half an hour. Thrown at first upon the defensive, the Ameri- cans the following day assumed the aggressive, and on the 7th had driven the insurgents from their trenches, thus gaining possession of all the suburbs of Manila. During the three days of GENERAL OTIS. AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 145 almost intermittent fighting, the Philippines had fully two thousand men killed, while the slain on the American side were four officers and fifty- two soldiers, with eight ofiicers and two hundred and seven men wounded. The force of the first numbered twenty thousand ; that of the Ameri- cans thirteen thousand. The great loss of the insurgents was cine to the fact that they had not yet learned the difference between Spanish and American means and methods of fighting, and they stubbornly stood their ground until so hard pressed they had to retreat. They learned a lesson they have not forgotten, and since they have retreated early enough in the fray to escape with a smaller list of the dead. Thus far this has been the greatest battle of the war, and while the Americans fired the first shot, the Phil- ippines were really responsible for it. No doubt Aguinaldo was planning to attack the city di- rectly in the hope of winning a victory before the treaty between the United States and Spain had been perfected, but the overconfidence and impetuosity of his followers, who believed it an easy matter to outdo their new adversary, pre- cipitated the fight. 146 THE PEABL OF THE ORIENT. The day following the opening of hostilities, Agninaldo issued a stirring appeal to his coun- trymen to flock to liis standard, and declaring in intent, if not words, that he meant war. The battle of Calcoocan, in which the navy took an important part, occurred on the 10th, resulting for the Americans in establishing a complete cordon of more than thirty-five miles in length around Manila. General Otis cabled on the 12th, “ If regular troops en route were here, could probably end war or all determined opposition in twenty days.” But his forces were inadequate to main- tain sufficient protection for the city, and send out expeditions to follow up the advantages won. The insurgents improved the comparative in- activity of the American army for a wliile by keeping up a guerilla warfare. On the 15th of February an order was secretly issued from Ma- lolos to assassinate every foreigner in Manila, but the design was discovered in season and the infamous scheme never tried. Seven days later the rebels made an attempt to burn the city, but through a miscarriage of this desperate plan only GUOUl’ OF 1>SU1IGKNT OFFICERS. AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 147 Tondon, the suburb inhabited by the Phihppinos, suffered. This wanton act cost the homes of over a thousand of their countrymen, and the loss of property to the amount of a hundred thousand dollars. Some fighting took place at this time, and immediately General Otis issued his famous order which forbade any person with- out a passport to enter the town after dark. This proved effectual. General Lawton arrived at Manila March 10th with reinforcements, and on the 13th Wheaton’s flying column was sent to the Pasig. Other ex- peditions into the interior followed until well into the month of August, when the wet sea- son had fairly set in and further progress was checked. The insurgents were routed on every hand, but Aguinaldo always managed to rally his forces at some more remote place, and make another stand. He had changed his capital to suit his convenience, Bacoor having been his first seat of so-called government, and when he found that too uncomfortable, he moved to Malolos. General McArthur’s division of troops soon pressing him too hard for his safety, he again shifted his base. The Americans now 148 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. held the territory as far north as San Isidro, on the east to Santa Cruz and Longes, and to the south as far as Perez das Marinas, on the west to the bay. So far Luzon has been the battle-ground of the insurgents, both against Spain and the United States. The inhabitants of the islands to the south have been more disposed to friendli- ness, or, at least, indifferent to the change in ruling powers. Had it not been for the emis- saries of Aguinaldo misrepresenting the true sit- uation to them and coaxing or coercing the people into disputing their sovereignty, it is cpiite safe to say that the Americans would have met with little, if any, opposition. As it is, the better class of Philippino or Visayans in the southern groups are in sympathy with the establishment of a republican government. The contest in Luzon over, the brunt of the fighting will be done. Iloilo was taken on the 11th of February by a land and sea force under General Miller. Since then there have been several skirmishes with the insurgents allied with the lawless tribes of the interior, in which the natives have suffered severe ■m- \ A’ AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 149 losses, thougli a few wounded comprise tlie cas- ualties on tlie American side. A part of the town was burned by the insurgents, but it is being rebuilt with better bouses than before. General E,. P. Hughes has been appointed gov- ernor-general of the Visayan province, with bis headquarters at Iloilo. So far no appearance of a disturbance in the Palawan island has been apparent, and none is looked for from the present indication of the situation. An agreement has been reached with the Mos- o lems of the Sulu group, whereby they are to ac- knowledge allegiance to the United States, but be allowed to govern themselves as heretofore. This assures peace for the present, if not for all time. On the whole, the situation is very hopeful, both for the interest of the colony and the United States. With Aguinaldo removed from active campaigning, the war would undoubtedly end in a few weeks. That be can bold out much longer, vutb the reinforcements being sent to the Ameri- can forces and the determination on the part of the leaders to bring the whole unpleasant affair to a speedy termination, seems improbable. 150 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. The Philippinos have now obtained arms such as are used by American troops, with a few anti- quated cannon. But their national weapon is the hola, or native knife, used in peace and war, the one weapon above all others with which they gained such advantage as they did with the Spanish. It has no regulation size or shape. The most common type used in warfare is be- tween two and three feet in length, including the handle, and has a wide, thick blade edged like a guillotine. When wielded by a frantic Philippine in the heat of battle, it is a formidable instrument of death, which is capable of cutting a human head clear from its seat at a single blow, split the body from shoulder to hip, or cleave the skull in twain. At the call to charge, these native troops discard all other weapons and spring to the wild attack hand to hand, wielding the bola with a terrible effect. On April 4, 1899, the war between Spain and the United States was formally and officially ended by the ratification of the treaty of peace. By one of the provisions of. this the latter coun- try was to pay twenty million dollars as indem- nity for the Philippines, and more active measures AMERICA IN THE ORIENT. 151 than before were begun to take possession of tbe islands. Tbe land forces bad now readied twenty- two tbonsand men, while tbe army bill passed on tbe 1st of March gave tbe President power to call for thirty-five tbonsand men. Tbe scene of action has been practically re- moved from tbe naval to tbe land force. Tbe splendid achievements of tbe former have cov- ered it with glory, and its gallant cliief. Admiral Dewey, has been received at home, after a con- tinnons stay at Memila of thirteen months, with such honours as have been showered upon few men. A Philippine commission, consisting of Dr. Jacob G. Scburman, Prof. Dean C. Worcester, Hon. Charles Denby, Admiral George Dewey, and Gen. E. S. Otis, held their first meeting at ^Manila on tbe 4tb of April, 1899, and issued a proclamation setting forth tbe intentions of tbe United States government. This was answered by Agumaldo on tbe 28tb by asking for a truce and close of hostilities. General Otis demanded full surrender, when tbe Philippine commission was recalled by Aguinaldo, to be followed by others. Still, nothing satisfactory could be ob- 152 THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT. tained from them, and the Americans despaired of reaching any peaceful settlement. Doubtless the American commission will make a report at no distant day which will throw con- siderable light on the situation. As it is, its president, Doctor Schurman, has given to the public some interesting facts concerning the people of the islands, in which he points out the fact that the population is made up of many races. “ Over sixty different languages are spoken in the Archipelago, and, though the majority of the tribes are small, there are at least a dozen each having over a quarter of a million members. The languages of these people are as distinct from one another as French and Spanish or Italian, so that the speech of any one tribe is unintelligible to its neighbours.” He also shows that there are various degrees of so-called civil- isation and Christianity, which will require a long time of the inspiration of American civilisa- tion ” to maintain its sovereignty. If the bur- den is heavier than was anticipated, it cannot well be laid aside. THE END. Date Due ' FORM 335 45M 10-41 919.14 B882P 457094 Bro^vne 7 ~?earl of the Orient. DATE tSSUED TO 919.14 B882P 457394