Arizona republican., 1898-06-05
TROPICAL SEASONS.
Philippines Have Three. But
Two Are Different.
The Cold Season Is Delightful, the
Hot and Rainy Seasons Some
thing TO Get Away From.

To those Americans who are to take
up their residence in the Philippine is
lands and have never experienced the
tropical rains" as the wet season.
lasting from June to October, is 1acon-
ically called, a few remarks on the
lovely climate may not be deemed
impairment. Lovely climate is the
generic epithet one hears applied in .,
vague way to the remote region around
Manila by amateurs
There are three seasons in the true
tropics-the Ncold weather." the "hot
weather and the rains" The eli
mate of the first is like that of para-
disc, that of the second like very diff
ferent and antipodal territory, which
shall be nameless in this polite article,
and of the third-well, if there is a,
climate that is a combination of a
steam bath, warm pnultice and blue
mold, the rains is like that
In other words, from the middle of
November till the middle of March
every day is like one of our most beau
tiful June days. with a cold morning
and evenings thrown in, the thermom-
eter marking 65 degrees, perhaps, at
noon, and 40 degrees or trifle lower
even at night. That is the very per-
lection of weather; it is weather as
is weather." and no mistake.
From the middle of March till early
in June the heat grows gradually ter
rifle till it gets to be unbearable. This
climax happens about the middle OF
May; then you go on bearing it two
or three weeks longer. The heat flies
about in zigzags, the ground flies up
to meet it, and together they mako
your head swim. Hot and dry, dry and
hot; no rain, yet not drought, be-
cause it never does rain, and can't
rain at that time OF year. 1t doesn't
know how In the hot weather it is
only hot. In the rainy season it only
rains There are no postponements on
account of the weather, because there
is only one kind of weather-at time
There are no sudden changes. for the
same season. There is comfort in these
away in camphor in September,
knowing that you will not require it
again for eight months at least. And
you tin" your ribbons, silks and kid
gloves hermetrically in May, away
from mildew, knowing that you will
not see them again before October.
for the dweiler in the tropics. There
is no starting on a picnic in the dis
tant woods, full of life and spirits
at O'Clock in the morning, in a light
muslin dress and straw hat decked
with roses, with a teeth-chattering re-
turn at 4: 30 O'Clock, the muslin soaked
with rain and then frozen on you, rills
OF pink from the saturated roses
adjoining your nose. You may come
home in Manila with your gay blue
muslin faded out white, but it has not
been rained or showed on, and your
feet are drier and hotter than when
you set forth on them. But then, you
don't go much on pfcnics in the trop-
les. Too many snakes.
But the hot weather, being prepared
for it. can be got through somehow.
Wet sail cloth on the top of the
a servant with an UNI
brella whenever you move, houses built
to keep cool in, with high ceilings and
punhabs, and no movement required
Of you and no dressing for falls in the
and no burdening one
self with wraps for such drops-which
is one reason why we suffer so IN
tansely here when we venture out OF
sight of home-all these appliances
and immunities make it possible to
gasp through the sitting hot weather.
A day or two of cremation, lot OF
dark clouds, and one day, oh, refresh
Ing remembrance, "a few big, round
solemn drops" are heard to slap the
baked earth smartly, then more and
more. a hard shower, and the monsoon
has burst The rains have come.
Hug well the first few hours of de-
Iicious relief. for there comes time
when an extra rain drop breaks the
oanel's back, and you are as over
borne with wet as you were with dry
ness. But at first! The dusty earth
reIents and begins to allow the water
to soften it's surface; the earth sends
up a grateful fragrance, which you
drink in with deep breaths; the shrubs
shine. open their leaves and hold up
their heads to- the wholesome down
pour How tired they get OF their ex-
uberance later, when, soaked and wa
ter logged, they sometimes lie sprawl
ing and sullen over the turf, no one
knows, but just now they are greet
ing the preservers of their lives.
When your gates and fences sprout,
two months later, and you have to
rush to the looking glass every few
hours to be sure you have not grown
tender shoot of green from your ears.
yourse1f-when your boots mold over
night. and nothing that you touch ia
free from c1amminess-when trenches
are eaten through the hearts of your
hooks, and the covers are nibbled and
~chawed" and otherwise defaced by
white ants-then you ask yourself now
you ever could have stood at win
nn,nf xxrbI ri n
earth exuded and throwing out your
hands to catch what Austin Dcbson
calls .spurtles of rain" Oh, "spurtles.
indeed Waterfalls, cataracts, deluges,
they soon enough develop into.
It does not rain every minute in the
rains, but it is likely at any mlnute to
do so. In this way, hoping ct fear
ing, you snatch drives. And it some
times rains at night and gives you a
day fair and serene. If it rains all
day, you have to take your drives. If