Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1899-01-27
PHILIPPINE COMMERCE.

ueTCldl COuultlOuS III tue L NIP
pines: Americans are arriving
by every steamer from the United
States to look for investments.
Some represent syndicates in
Chicago, New York, Boston or
other money centers, but many
appear to be organizing specula-
tive companies for themselves and
associates. One concern of Taco
ma, Wash, is in the field with a
philippine Island Industrial
Company" capitalized atSlOO,OOO.
Its purpose is to buy and develop
coffee lands, mines, rice planta-
tons and do general merchan-
disc business.
Business men in the United
States who contemplate making
investments in the Philippines
will be very cautious if they are
rightly informed OF conditions here.
The population of Luzon Island
the largest and most important in
the group, is generally estimated
at 100000. Some good authori-
ties put it as high as 100000. A
high. rugged range of noun
tains forms the eastern coast line.
Another range extends along the
western coast. These mountain
ranges are thinly populated by
half savages, and the gravelly soil
and cloudy climate there is not
adapted to cane, coffee, tobacco, or
rice, the staples of the islands.
The main part of the population
is, therefore, confined to the river
valleys and the lowlands adjoin.
ing the coast. The population is
congested 10 villages and settle
ments of from fifty to 5000 huts,
or "nipas," each.
The rice fields are chiefly in the
hands of the Chinese. A rice patch
of half acre is a pretty good.siz
ed farm for one man. Three crops
are harvested each year. The Chi
nese of the Philippine Islands are
much like the coolies in the Unit.
ed States, but are larger and bet.
ter physically. They descend from
the Tartar, or northern tribes of
China. The coolies in America
are Cantonese. The Philippine
Chinese differ from their relatives
in America in another respect.
They wear queues only six inches
or foot long, and seam to have
little regard for them.
The rice lands are not as a rule
owned by the coolies who cult
vate them, but by rich Chinese or
half castles, who lease the tracts
usually on shares.
There are some large planta-
tons OF from one to ten thousand
acres each, managed by overseers.
These plantations are devoted to
the production of tobacco, sugar
cane and the tree from which the
hemp fiber is taken. The monks
and Spanish officials were the
plantation owners under the Spa
nish regime. Their swarms of la
borers were paid 20 to % cents
day Mexican, equal to 10 or II
cents gold. The laborers were
obliged to board themselves. The
plantation system, however, is
rapidly passing through reno
walton since the American occupa-
ton. The monks are disposing
of their lands as fast as they can,
and will probably succeed 10 sell
ing all their holdings to one or
more English syndicstes. A Bos-
ton syndicate also is represented
here, negotiating for the purchase
OF hemp plantations.
Coal mines are being worked in
the southern part of Luzon Island
and on the island of Cebu, but
the coal is soft and far inferior to
the Australian and the Japanese
variety. Prior to the breaking
ont of the war Cebu coal was de-
livered at the coast in large guam
titles at $3.50 per ton (Mexican),
but was consumed mainly by the
inter-island steamers. The price
under the new conditions is prob
lematical.
Good opportunities seem to be
abundant for dealing in hard.
woods. The islands are dense
with the choicest of mahogany,
ironwood, camphorwood and many
other varieties of hardwoods, ca
pable of taking a high polish.
Two primitive sawmills supply
the native lumber trade. They
have been amDlv able to meat the |