Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1896-10-12
A Day on Shore. No. 16.

Sometime in April 1921, Magellan dis
crnnlost islands of the Australasia
archipelago. They are between the
attitudes of thirteen and twenty-on,
! degrees north and form a row nearll
fNe hundred miles in length TIL,
longitude east of Greenwich is abou'
ore hundred and forty-tiVe degrees
Magellan put on somuch style and car
ried SO high a hand that the proverbs
worm SQuirmed to some purpose anC
that brilliant navigator went down BE-
fore the sudden onslaught of thost
fierce saVageS. reaping only that Whicl
he had soWn.
The Spanish established regua
settlement in 1867 became more ant
more overbearing toward the one hun
dTed thousand people of this group
until the natives unable to stand tn,
abusive treatment, revolted The wa
resulted in determination of the natives
and today Spain has but 5000 or 0Ot
ciinging subjects where We're 100 00(
people at the time she took possession
Of their territory, in all about 800
square miles.
These islands are of volcanic origin
The climate is warm but very healthy
The soil is fertile and but for the iron
rule of Spain the people would be hap
py and contented. where now they dare
not call their souls their own. Magellan
called his discovery Las Isles de los
, LadrOneS the islands of thieves) arc
that name seemed to fit the people thoi
and now is not far amiss. Among those
Ia n of, I hal mo, ,la ,r,
were men that coveted a portion of the
glory attending the discovery of thi:
land of savages and insisted that The
islands be named for Maria Anna, The
, then Queen of Spain, hence the Mari
anna Isles as they are often called
IRON Manila, the chief port of the
PHILIPPINE Islands and seat of govern
ment of the Spanish possessions in this
quarter of the globe, are received al
orders and these orders are supposed tC
be executed to the letter by the COVER
nors of the various islands.
We dropped anchor half a mile from
shore and after our cruise of many
months, found Saypan fairto look upon.
Ten or twelve miles in length, its
width varied by numerous Shoal bays
and high points, whose irregularity
could have been produced in no Other
way than by some convulsion of ma
ture. coral reefs, ragged and broken,
through which innumerable openings
led to submarine caverns, the home of
the shark and the octopus, beaches
sloping gradually upward to the very
roots of the cocoa palms that grew tall
and straight to a height of seventy
feet where the brown rfpening husk.
the green fruit and the blossom shared
alike the protection of the broad cano-
by of leaves that shielded them from
the tropical sun. Bamboo, tall slim and
rank of growth, that hung their heads
as if in very shame at their lean and
lengthy symmetry. The houses of the
people, the patches of corn, melons and
sweet potatoes that grew in the Shell
heaps or the low, salt impregnated,
sandy flats that extend inland for
quarter of a mile, bananas along the
foot of the rising ground. lines and
lemons higher up.every shade of green
from the very darkest to the lightest
olive. is it any wonder that it rested
the eye that had looked upon nothing
but the blue sky and blue water for
so many days
The people call themselves Chimoros.
/ found at Saypan something more
than one hundred natives, men and
women, that had been brought from
the Caroline islands to make cocoanut