The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1898-07-29
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.

The following description OF the
Philippine Islands at present was
written by Dean c. Worcester, of the
University of Michigan. to the New
York Independent.
The Philippines lie wholly within
the tropics, reaching at the south to
within four and half degrees of the
equator. Big and little, they number
six hundred. varying in size from
Luzon, winch is 10000 square miles,
to tiny isles hardly worthy of the
name. The islands are in most in
stances Of volcanic origin, and several
fine volcanic peaks may still be seen in
Luzon, Negros and Mndanao. De
structivc eruplions have occurred with
in recent times. while earthquakes are
frequent and often of great violence.
The climate is intensely hot, AMI in
many of the islands very unhealthy for
Europeans. The sevcrcst cold which
| ever experienced at sea level during
three years and half was 60 Fahren-
heit. There are four months of rain,
four OF sun. with intense heat. and two
months oi Variable weather ut each
change of the monsoon<. Revolving
storms of great magntu le and fright
tul violence occur at certain sea sons,
and frequently cause enormous damage
to property. attended with heavy loss
of life.
The tropical scenery IN the forests of
this archipelago is of unsurpassed splcn-
dor, the heat and moisture combining
toprodnce vegetation OF magniticcnce.
which beggars description. Gigantic
trees, towering to a height of 200 to
300 feet, are festooned with graceful
rattans, beautiful ferns, and exquisite
orchids, while underneath splendid tree
ferns rear their lovely beads thirty or
forty feet into air SO dense is the
vegetation in some of these forests that
the fierce tropical sun hardly pene-
trates to the ground beneath them,
and the dense underground perpetually
drips with moisture.
The population of the islands Is esti-
mated at from eight to ten millions
Excluding foreigners for the moment,
we find the natives divided into some
thing 1iks two hundred tribes, each
with its peculiar dialect and customs.
With the single exception of the
Nesrtos, these tribes are of Malay ex-
traction. The Negritos are race of
dwarfish blacks, confined at present to
4 few of the loiticst mountain ranges.
They are characterized not alone by
their color, but 10y closely curling hair,
which serves at once to distinguish
them from the straight haired Malay
races. They are commonly believed
to be the aborigines of the islands.
They are punv, sickly race, and are
rapidly becoming extinct.
The tribes of Malay origin vary in
their development from state ofabso-
lutte savagery to civilization The in
teriors Of several of the larger islands
was populated by nearly naked tribes
many Of whose members have never
seen white man. Having notl.irg 9 to
excite the cupidity of the Spanish,
they are, and seem likely to remain,
completely independent
Extreme poverty is the rule among
the civilized natives, and its cause is
found in the heavy burden Of taxation
imposed upon them by their Spanish
masters. Every person over eighteen
years of age is required to procure an
nnally 4 creduala personal, or docu-
ment of Identification, the charge for
which varies from 81 80 to S25, accord
ing to the means OF the applicant.
Should these sums seem insignificant
it must be remembered that the aver.
age native has little or no opportunity
to work for hire; that if he does sue
cced in securing employment his wages
are often not more than five cents per
day, and that he is usually unable to
dispose Of his farm products for cash,
deing compelled to exchange them for
other commodities. In addition to this
personal tax there is a tax on cocoanut
trees, Il tax on beasts of burden, tax
on killing animals for food, 4 tax tor
keeping shop, 4 tax on mills or oil
presses, tax on weights and meas
urcs, Il tax on cock fighting, and so on
to the end of the chapter. At every
turn the poor native finds himself face
to face with the dire necessity of pay
ing tribute; and he frequently spends
his life in an Intellectual effort to meet
the obligations thus imposed.
Delinquent taxpayers are treated
with the utmost severity. The first |
step is usually to strip them to the
waist, tie them TO Il bench or post and |
beat them numerically V. | have seen
women subjected to this treatment.
If this does not suffice Imprisonment |
follows, while pressure is brought to
bear on relatives and friends. Should |
none of these methods prove effective
deportation follows, with contiscatioE
of property and leaving of women and
to shift for themselves.
| once saw forty-four men deported
from SiInijor hccauSe they owed taxes
varying in amount from two to forty
dollars. | was informed that tEcv