Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1899-08-09
HIS FIRST NIGHT in MANILA.
4 voLuNrrnNs ADVENTURE,

A vOLUNTEER's ADVENTURE.
An injury. received ut Cavlte, n few
days after our troops entered Manila,
incapacitated me for further service.
was furloughed and might have come
home on the transport to San Fran
cisco, but wanted to see a little more
sof life In the Philippines.
Two American friends of mine. with
an eye to future business, Ind bought
9 number of houses of departing Span
tsh residents on street leading off
the EscOlta, and Mt their request, 1
hired a native servant and went to
live In one of these houses, to look
after the property and "hold down the
claim for them, us they say in Ne
braska, til they could take possession
thenselv The casa, or house, where
became thus domiciled was typical
Spanish structure of Manila, built
around an enclosed open patio, or in
ner courtyard, with strong walls and
grated windows. The roof over the
wider front portion of 1t was of CORFU
gated Iron, as is common here on ac-
count of earthquakes; but the lower
portions ut the wings and rear were
provided with roofs of red earthen
tiles.
Having the whole house to choose
from, selected two rooms ON the Sec
ond floor, fronting the street. The
Spanish family who had lived here
had left much of the old furniture,
curtains, bamboo chairs, bedsteads,
colchons and other articles not worth
moving away. Even the braziers for
cooking still stood on the gallery out
side the door. l had but to fetch in
my personal belongings and begin my
bachelor housekeeping.
You get n mozo, or native male SER
want, for four dollars month here,
and this boy does everything for
you, even to laying out your clothes
and fetching in your meals For an
indolent life Mt moderate cost, Manila
10 the ideal city, in time of peace. The
mozo does all the small buying, and
1t is often necessary to trust him with
several of the big silver dollars which
constitute the medium of exchange
here.
Although found the old casa shut
up, 1t was far from being wholly I'M
occupied and empty. A Chinese
"chow" dog, with black tongue,
curly hair, and tail that was still
trying hard to keep in its peculiar
curl, was in the patio when l unlock
ed the outer door and entered. The
fOfl0rn creature seemed uncertain
whether to bark Mt me for an intruder
or whine for food, and she watched
my face with sad, longing eyes, per-
hnps pleading for her three little pup
pies.
A dirty, lean, white cat, with a
broken tail was also peering out from
under a rank banana stalk. The
whole patio was now overrun with
neglected flower plants, shrubs, pep.
per-vines and "fre-tree.'
Mosquitoes had bred in the little,
half dry pool Of the fountain, and a
lizard three or four feet long was
squatting on the rim Of it. There
were five more of these long lizards
about the court and late that after
noon they began to "sing." thought
that half dozen locksmiths had en-
tered and were filing keys below, till
my new mozo told me the noises were
made by the lizards.
The first night after taking posses
sion 1 spent down at Cavite with
some friends; but the mozo remained
and awaited himself of my absence to
smuggle into the patio two tough-look-
ing game cocks of his own; for all
these native boys are incorriglble
cock fighters.
He also kept yeeping turkey there,
FOR what purpose never knew, and
raised "hongos"-mushroom a
dark back room of the ground floor.
Still, he was very good mozo, as
Manila mozos go, and was usually on
hand when he was wanted.
The old house had still other deni-
gems which did not learn about till
the second night which was the first
that actually passed there. Any
one living in Manila-even a newcom-
er Of few weeks experience of the
city and its inhabitants-would have
understood matters better than did.
At Cavite l had lived either in bar
racks or at hospital.
A very diminuttve kerosene lamp
furnished what light was to have in
the old casa. After stroll up and
down the street outside, / went in,
locked the great door, assembled to my
new quarters, and sat down to read
an old copy of Waverly which had
found its way to the Philippines on a
war-ship.
Something about the queer, musty
old place gave me singular sensation
--lonesomeness, perhaps. / forgot 1t
in the narrative Of "Callum Beg" for
a time. Then heard Florencio, my
mozo, coming up the stairs from the
patio. He brought in drinking water,
opened my bed, and laid pair of
slippers beside 1t. AS vet the mozo
and l had much difficulty in under.
standing each other. He spoke Taga.
log and little Spanish; still less
Spanish and no Tagalog, thought
that he appeared uneasy. and scarcely
wondered at it, the house was SO 81.
lent and deserted. asked him IL he
were afraid.
"Ah, mao, senor," he replied, with a
doubtful look around, but added some.
thing about picaros, and then ex.