The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1899-07-14
DRESS OF THE FILIPINos.
Some Interesting Information iD q
Private Letter to a St.
LOuisan.

An interesting description of social
life in the suburbs of Manila is given
in letter received lately by Miss Mat
tie Waggoner, a daughter of Sol Il. Wag-
goner, of this city, from DR.. R. '. Wit
ter, Mr.. Waggoner's nephew, who is at
tached to the hospital corps of the Fiji
ty-first Iowa infantry. The letter was
written on March i'll little bamboo
town called Pasay, seven miles from
Manila. Their battalion hospital is a
native schoolhouse, he says, surround
ed by banana trees, betel shrubs and
indigo plants, and little farther away
are rice fields. Bamboo grows about
in abundance" he writes, "and near
ly everything is made of it," Then he
writes: ''rhis is a much better hut
than some, as the frame is made OF
mahogany instead of bamboo, but the
sides and roof are matched with leaves.
The native men and women are short
and quite dark, have straight black hair,
and are quite intelligent. Those from
the mountains are mora of the negro
type, but these are a combination OF
natives, Chinese and Spanish, and are
called Fiipinos. The women wear a
skirt of calico or some light stuff, gen.
orally something colored, and a gray
or black piece of cloth drawn around
the waist, tucked in. The waist con.
sists of some light material, generally
made of cocoanut fiber. 1t is quite short,
and very loose, and has short, large,
loose sleeves. The neck, or rather
opening at the top, is so large that usu-
ally the waist hangs from just below
the shoulders. That completes the
dress, except wooden shoes, with places
for the toes"
The Filippina usually has cigarette
or a cigar in her mouth, says the doc
tor. Sometimes she wears straw or
bamboo baslset-shaped hat, turned mp
side down." Continuing, he writes:
'''The men wear light, white trousers
and light underwear around the waist
outside of the trousers. When Sunday
comes the man generally wears a white
shirt, and this is out at the waist all
around. The woman's dress Sunday is
the same as on other days, only of bet
ter goods, and sometimes she has a
handkerchief tied around her neck. The
baby is generally carried astride the
mothers hip. There are very few horses
here, and what they have are about the
size of our Shetland ponies, but they
are strong and are good workers. To
see a four-wheeled cart (no wagons
here) or carriage is rare. Everything is
two-wheeled, because the Spanish taxed
their wheels, and, finally, even each
spoke. So nearly everything, except
when they ride, is carried on the ends
of bamboo pole by the men or on the
heads of the women. From 100 to 500
pounds is carried either way quite cas-
ily-which an American cannot do.
1T is sight to see going along the main
road to Manila every morning hundreds
of native women (not men, as they are
insurgents generally carrying wagon
loads of vegetables in baskets upon
their heads, and maybe with a kid on
one hip, too. On account of the habit
of carrying these loads, their outer
skirts being drawn tight around the
hips, they have a sort of waddling gait
as they shuttle along on their shoes.
'The days are quite warm here, but
the nights are nice and cool this time
of year. Fruit is not so plentiful, as
it is not the fruit season at present. [
still eat the ordinary army rations, and
am quite satisfied with them. We must
be careful in our eating, and especially
as to what is drunk in this country, if
we want to keep free from malaria, ty-
phoid fever, etc. Our water is boiled
before we drink it. When q case of
smallpox occurs among the natives we
send the patient to quarantine in Ma
Mia and then burn up his home-the
only way to prevent the spread of the
disease. Our regiment is one of the
best vaccinated here. l have been vac
cinated four times. From what l have
written about the Philippine women,
you won't blame me if don't fall in love
with them. AS for the Spanish girls
well, they are quite pretty brunettes,
but they hate us, and won't even look
at us in a civilized manner. think the
muchacha Americana american girD
is good enough for me."-St. Louis Re-
public.