Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1820-08-10


Enrob'd in Immortality;
Aad tread the happy shores where ne'er
Is heard the sigh, or seen the tear.
Celestial pity bland and free,
Child of sensibilityl
IT'S thine TO humanize, and bless,
And soothe the soul in deep distress;
Thine TO relieve the throe Of pain,
And balmy peace restore again.
ABELLlNO.
In The poetry in last Mondays Gazette,
the first line Of the first stanza should read
thus:
How sleep the hearts who sink to rest.
Extract ola letter from an officer on board
the American friga,e Congress, to his
friendin this city, dated
.Manilla, Feb. 81, 1890.
6 |. was on the .lth of January that we
took leave OF Liniin Island, some distance
below Canton. and proceeded to sea, bound
70 Manila, where we arrived after hne
passage Of A or days. happy once more to
regain land Of civilization, and to get among
christians.
/" We saluted the town with 81 guns, and
were answered by the governor with an e.
quail number. He received Captain Hend-
lev very handsomely offered any supplies
which might be wanted, repairs &c. as far
as in his power, and observed, he was hap
by to say we had arrived among friends.
In overhauling the ship, our mizen mast
was found so defective as 10 require new
one--this was furnished at the navy yard
without any dificulty--the wood, however,
is inferior to our own for making spars, be-
ing much heavier and less handy.
This place and its suburbs, in 1918, con-
tanned SO. 900 souls, including indians, who,
indeed, make up the great portion OF the po-
pulation (; the number now is said to De in
creased.
6 Manila, in lis form and the construction
ofits houses, ,resembles other Spanish places.
The city, strictly speskioggfs small, but
nevertheless, is well walled and strongly
fortified by several large aud we'll planned
batteries, and these surrounded by deep
, bitches The defences, fproperly manned,
might resist great force. The city is under
martial Flaw, and supports considerable
number of troops, principally Indians. who
are of too harmless disposition 10 be great
Warriors, The Notifications are in tolera-
bic repair, though the discipline is much re-
iaxed.
"If was reduced by the British in 1880.
but shortly after ransomed the debt, how
ever. believe, was never paid sand since
that period, it has remained unmolested in
the hands OF the Spaniards.
8 There appears to have been two de-
scriptions ofnatiyes on this Island one in
habiting the interior. 9pnilar to the Africans
incoiour, hair, &c. the other of a light cop
per color, and living on the sea board.
All live in villages of matched bomboo
huts their dresses are universally made of
the grass of the island, woven as fine, and
made as white, as the best linen That of
the females consists of "a colored skirt, reach
ing as high as the hips, over this is thin
wrapper. tucked in at the same height to
which is added kind of jacket, extending
so as just to meet the other part of the dress;
the latter is quite transparent.
Slippers are universally worn so as just
TO contain their toes, which gives them
sloyenly and dragging kind o5 walk, though
they are as erect as an arrow.
g The features OF those on the seaboard
are small, and not uDhandsome, being well
shaded with long black hair, shining with
cocoa nut oil, and either tsstetully turned up
with mother of pearl ornament, or flowing
ever the shoulders in graceful tresses and,
were it not for the disgusting habit (introdu-
ced by the Spaniards) of smoking segars, or
chewing quantities OF he beetle nut, and to
which all are addicted, they would appear
really quite interesting.