The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-30
WHEELER WRITES OF NATIVES.
-,,,r OF THEIR ANTIPATHY TO
CHURCH AND FRIARS.


uoyId Be All Right If Assured of
~. protection of Their Property.
,,,ut The Industries of LuzOn.
,...tytue. Tenn, Oct. 29.-The following
has. been received from Gen. Joe
rrs.jsr in the Philippines:
Sent, Reta. Isle of Luzon, Sept. IS,
..o -v3pI.eer Kirkman: My Dear Young
r,ein-I have now seen much of the
-,,,rtr. and the people in that part of
-..,,r for about fifty miles north of Ma
ala In every town there is a magnifi-
..rr stone church and a convent or mon
.s,srr The insurgents have a great an
.r,-5v 10 the priesthood or friars, and
nave dismanted many of the church.
The value of the church and mOnas-
,.r,o f "a town seems to be equal in many
.ss to ,he value of all the other build
ioas In the town. The more l talk to the
,.,-,rs the more am convinced that the
t,.,rg.nts are actuated, in measure, by
. shirt of communion, and in their talks
t5s,r most serious objection to the church
sesns 10 he the fact that ecclesiastical
orgsniza ions own so much of the prop
cr,v and one of Aguinaldo's most earnest
demands is that the church property be
condscated.
There is a general impression that the
irsursent army is made up very largely or
people without property and that people
Who have property desire the Americans
TO control. so that they can have protec-
lion and feel mat their property is secured
to them but I find that there is also
fear or apprehension among some of the
wealthy that if Americans control and give
universal suffrage, the power OF the
wealthy people would be taken away and
their hold on property very much impair
tl I think that if the wealthy people
would be assured that they would be pro-
tcted in their property rights by the
United States, it would have a very good
effect. The friars and priests are charg,
ed with all sorts of expressions and mis-
demeanors, but it must be remembered
that frars and priests are very numerous
and ia so large a body there
VIII be found every possible phase
Of character and disposition. Some
Of them are. no doubt, oppressors of the
the people. eXacting in the collection OF
selves in many ways and leading lives very
d1eEnt from what should characterize
the life Of a priest. But there are vely
many good men among them. The sta e.
ment that l had said that 70 per cent of
The people of LuzOn can read and write is
great mistake. 1t may be true of MANY
out il is not true of those in the rural dis
ucts and the percentage of illteracy in
the other islands is much greater than in
LuZOn. The appearance, mode of life and
method of performing work are to-day
very much like they are described in the
Bible at the time of and even before the
Christian era.
Customs Are Ancient.
The people dress very much as they did
$50 years ago To-day / spent some time
in watching natives cleaning shucks from
rice The method of she.dng and cleaning
is primitive and no better than it was 20 0
years ago. Nearly everything can be grown
but oranges and bananas are not SO good
as in other localities, the reason no doubt
being hat they seem to give them no cui-
uvation whatever. Coffee is grown which
is said TO be superior to Mocha. Rice is The
principal product and a failure Of that
crop would cause a terrible famine as the
people depend almost entirely upon it for
food. Sugar is the principal crop for eX-
port The greatest amount exported in any
one year was POI, 6S1 tons, which was in
lSS Corn grows very rapidly and the ears
reach their full growth about sixty days
from the time of planting. There is a great
amount of very valuable timber in these
islands and many varieties of beautiful
hard woods under native names such as
mahogany, black walnut and ebony. Gold,
copper coal, iron, sufpnur, lead, building
stone petroleum and guano are found.
mere are many different tribes living
IN these Islands, the only ones in active
rebellion being the Tagalos. This tribe
occupies some eight provinces in the neigh
borhood of Manila, and their association
WIN europeans has made them more civ
hlzed than other tribes.
We are now seven or eight miles from
Forac where an lnsurgent force has been
s.aloned for some time, but around here
ana through this vast valley the people
b .g dIltlVely engaged in planting rice.
'0 DSeu fldlng around the outskirts of
ullS place, and the fields are dotted with
men, women and children planting rice.
Cavalry Could Do 1t.
am confident that brigade of cavalry
.oud easily travel through a great part
Of the island
Inc Suez canal brought the Philippines
IuCn nearer TO Europe, and has greatly
p1,.gased their commerce. The exports of
1sHp nave greatly increased In 1882 A, POS
VNS OIL hemp We're exported which has
100 tons, and this output can be largely
increased
me shipments of coffee gradually in
sasea until the year 1886 when the
united exported amounted to 1897 tons
s-o a rom 1880 to 1880 the shipments aver
lS,t aDout 5000 tons a year, but from
.a I 'me they have fallen off.
re,.t earn the following about cotton from
me Inc cotton tree is found growing in an
waited state in many islands of the
r,eI!peaso. Long staple cotton was for
ipoa extensively cultivated in the prov
i4re OIL llocos Norte when many years ago
60 Quantities of good cotton stuffs were
..T5l Lle1. This industry still exists.
e..- ne cultivation of this staple was, how
i, discouraged by the local governors
II. Order TO urge the planting of tobacco for
so4eIhment supplies. 1t has sin be-
IN uncut to revive the cotton produ,-
(fo ,' dI.hough an essay in pamphlet form
g 2. winch prize was awarded in Madrid).
o sialulLously distributed over he col
ss,L ~ IoSS with that object in view. New