The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-07-24
THE LADR0NE ISLANDS
THEIR HISTORY SINCE THEIR DIS
CoyERY-EARLY EXPLORERS.
Religious Conquest by Diego de San
vitOres-Facts About Their Gov
ernment and Population.


Americans recalls the old theory of the peo-
ping of America from these islands. Ma
gellan, some years before he sailed west
ward as naturalized Spaniard. to discover
the Ladrones and lose his life in the Philip
pines. had already. as native of Portugal
sailed eastward TO the Spice islands. When
the Portuguese settled in the Spice islands
they found the natives exchanging spices
for silver and emeralds from the Ladrones
The Portuguese, however, were never able
to find any mines of precious stones or
metal in the Ladrones, and the question
arose. Whence came the silver and en-
eralds of the Ladrone islanders?" Consider
ing that emeralds were not produced in the
East Indies, that the Ladrones had been
identity the home of an old civilization, and
that the Ladrone islanders were still re-
markable navigators. it was concluded
by certain writers that their silver and en-
eralds were from America; and, this con-
nection established, 1t was conjectured that
here lay the answer to the question,
Whence came the American Indians?"
OF the flying proas of the Ladrone island
ers, the reports of travellers are almost in
credible. The appearance of the proa filled
the early voyager with establishment, and
its speed with wonder. This invention
says a recent writer, would do credit 10
any civilized nation. The stem and stern
are alike. and are very. sharp. The boat
sails in either direction. and always with
the same side to the wind. On the wind
ward side is a long outrgger, and at its
extremity Is a log Of wood pointed at both
ends and parallel with the boat This pre-
vents the capsizing of the boat, the lee side
Of which is vertical TO prevent drifting TO
leeward, while the weather side is built in
To change the direction of the boat the
free end of the yard is brought down while
the other is raised. and thus the direction of
the boat is reversed. with that of the lateen
or triangular sail, while the outrigger is still
to windward. These proas passed between
Magellan's ships going at fun sail and the
skillfully that it was marvel" Van MORT,
the first Dutch circumnavigator, says that
sometimes two hundred of these proas,
with four or five men apiece. would come
TO trade, all hallooing together Hero
Hero, that is, Iron IRON and witt, very
eagerness run their proas upon the ships.
jacques lie Hermite, who was off the coast
of Guam in 1875 says that the inhabitants
cut six mies to meet hing with fa all al
iron, and that there were a hundred and
fifty proas trading with him at one time.
being dispatched from Guam TO Manila,
which is 400 good leagues performed the
voyage in four days
REMARKABLE BOATS.
Dampier, who was at Guam during one
of his voyages round the world, says: Il
believe they are the fastest boats in the
world Sailing one by our log, we had twelve
knots on our reel, and the whole of it was
run out before we turned the half-minute
glass. which was twelve miles per hour
believe they run nearly twenty-four miles
an hour" Malte-Brun speaks of these hy-
ing proas as models of naval architec-
tflrc''
From these proas Magellan gave the ISL
ands the appropriate name Islas de las
n hn a g dc
but his sailors called them Ladrone or Rob
Der islands. Drake called the Pelew ISL
lands, ffty-eight years later. the Islands CT
Thieves. The Ladrone islanders were honest
among themselves and were kind TO the
stranger in distress. In 1888 the ship Con-
ceptlon was wrecked on one OF these ISL
ands. The natives writes La Gobien,
gave friendly assistance to those VINO
We're saved of the Spanish crew, and en-
deavored to. alleviate their misfortunes by
Kind treatment" Los Jardines, or the Gar
dens, and Dos Prazeres, or the Pleasant
been given to these islands; but since 1868
their official designation, in honor of Mari
me Of t nfro has f been }bal the Mariannes
19zl 10 1923 is one OF voyage and discovery.
That master spirit Magellan. with his sour
yey-stricken starving crew, steered his fail
ing ships across the waste of waters to-
wards the high peak of Rota, then south
westward to the evergreen asylum of Guam.
death in the Philippines, and the Victoria
to the completion of her decentralization.
Pacific. touched at two other islands of the
Ladrones and three sailors ran away one
OF whom was picked up five years later by
the ships of Loyasa in still another island
of the Ladrones.
In 1928 saavedra took nominal possession.
as dld Legaspi in 1866, but no settlements
were made. Gaspar and Grijalva, writing
IN this latter year, describe the houses as
lofty, neatly built, and well divided into
apartments the whole raised story from
the earth, and supported upon strong pill
lars of stone Besides these dwelling houses.
hoA Afh n~e e. III.
likewise with great stone pillars, one of
Which VIII contained four large proas. During
Spilbergen, Schouten. lie Marie and the
Nassau fleet, on their way around the
world. stopped at the Ladrones and We're
heartily welcomed and entertained by the
natives.
BREAD-FRUIT TREE.
The account given by Dampier of the re-
markable bread-fruit tree is the best: "a
certain fruit called the bread-fruit growing
on big tree as big as our large apple trees.
with dark leaves. The fruit is round, and
grows on the boughs. like apples, of the
bigness of a good penny loaf When ripe
1t turns yellow, soft and sweet: but the
natives take it green and bake it in an oven
till the rind is black This they scrape off
ard eat the inside. which is soft and white.
like the inside of new-baked bread. having
neither seed nor stone: but if il is kept
above twenty-four hours it is harsh AS
the year, the natives feed upon no other
sort of bread during that time. They told
us that all the Ladrone isles had plenty of
IL. ] have never heard of it in anv other
place Little else is known of the original
fiora, but the crops at present are maize
tobacco and sugar, while cotton, coffee.
rice, cocoa and Manila hemp are grown and
the cocoanut is abundant. Deer are numer-
Gus. ana cattle, hogs and fowls have run
wild for more than century. There are
no snakes in The Ladrones
The second period, 1868 to 1899. is that of
conquest. The religious conquest is repre-
scented by the Apostle of Mariana" Diego
Illus de Sanvitores, the scion of an illus
trtous house of Old CASTLE, and descended
by his mother from nephew of the Cid.
lie gave up the most brilliant prospect of
court preferment TO enter the order of the
Jesuits. He arrived at the Ladrones with
IlYe other priests and some Law assistants
IN 'oeS. He established his faith in thirteen
OF the islands. founded eight churches and
tnree Summaries. baptized $1,000 natives and
was Killed in 1872 at the age of forty-five
while successfully attempting to bapt5ze a
baby against the will of its parents His
Agana.
The political conquest is represented bv
soldiers who came with Sanvitores and bv
others who came later. The apostle did NOT
want them, and the historian let's us see
them only incidentally. A melee occurs.
and these soldiers, happening to be there
fortunately find a cannon lying on the sea.
ard hundred soldiers guarding some con,
Vets hound for the Philippines, arc saved;
sud Gobien. the historian, says: '.It was q
SuS ,or which God seemed to send for the
readetion of the islands, Burney in his
Voyages says: .Of all the intercourse of