The herald., 1898-05-05
no FOR MANILA!

II the plan of sending troops to tbs
Philippine islands be carried out a bril-
liant chapter of adventure will open ir
the lives of the young men compos-
ing the California volunteers In the
proposed expedition. Apart from the
patriotic duty of strengthening the hands
of the gallant Admiral Dewey at Manila,
to the performance Of which our young
men will go with alacrity, there awaits
them in the 400 islands, great and small
constituting the archipelago Of the Phil
ippines, an experience as novel and in
teresting as it may prove fruitful Of good
results.
No more picturesque. fertile and avail
able territory, no land more richly en-
dowed by nature with the essential ele-
ments on material growth and prosperity.
can be found In all the orient. Under any
other management than that Of Spain
in whose ha;Es these islands have been
since 166O-tAat land would today be
among the/richest and most prosperous
in AsiaE Broad savannas and valley
lands, the natural home of commercial
products, such as sugar cane, coffee, to-
baccof hemp and other plants, promise
snrer fortune In the Philippine islands
to the cultivator Of the soil than do the
Klondike hills to the miner of Alaska.
Splendid forests of hard woods, of the
costly kinds eagerly sought by cabinet
makers and workers in vertu, abound
in nearly all the islands Of the group,
while their mineral resources are said
to be simply inexhaustible.
Even undeh the semi barharic manage
ment of Spain the Philippine islands
yielded in 1896 considerable revenue
while the wealth in the hands of Spanish
adventures, extorted by ubiquitous
practices far exceeded the customs duties
at Manila. In that year the value Of ex.
ports was $33,149,984 and Of imports $685.
529,777. The principal commercial prod
ucts were: Manila hemp, 4.517, 900; SUI
gar. $10.975,000; tobacco, $3,159. 900; cocoa
nuts, $2,349, 900; coffee, s356. 900; coal, $3.50,
900. The cigars Of the Philippines are
said to be superior to the best Havans
cigars. In 1893, 2S0,6 quintals OF Leaf
tobacco and 1873. ABS. 900 Of cigars were ex.
ported.
American enterprise and American cap
ital in few years would multiply thes'
products of the soil e. thousand fold ant
convert those far-off islands into source!
nf wealth hovopS Tho draop,c Of QUO r;,a
But it is the market for American good:
which the Philippine islands, under the
protection Of the American flag, will af.
ford, which constitutes the really i'm.
has had monopoly of this trade and has
made millions of dollars out of 1t. She
levies heavy import and export duty
on everything bought or sold by the ma.
tives and residents of the islands. The
duty on tobacco is almost prohibitory
while that on petroleum and cotton clotl
is 100 per cent ad valorem.
The possession of the city Of Manila by
the United States would open up profit.
able market for our cotton fabrics, hard
ware, cutlery, and all the thousand-and
one articles needed by the tribes of tn,
interior Of the large islands of Luzon ant
Mindanao-the principal islands Of tn,
Philippine group. These people generally
"lay in their supplies" in Manila.
Along the mountain slopes and in thu
valleys of these islands flora and fauna
abound Of exceptional variety and of in
terest to the naturalist as we'll as to tn,
huntsman. Rivers and streams, rich il
ash. traverse the valleys and plains, Will
the coast is indented with commodiou
iand-locked bays and harbors.
1t needs only the magic Of the railroad
and telegraph and the intelligent appli
:ation of labor and capital, to build cite
on those bays and convert the idle land
II those valleys into ranches, garden
md smiling orchards-for there tn
orange and lemon are Indigenous and 9Th
htron and olive are fairest of fruit"
When Spain is brought to her senses
vhen she yields with what grace she ma,