Evening star., 1899-01-02
The Undeveloped Resources Of the
Philippines.
RICHEST LANDS IN THE WORLD
Need for More Railway and Steam
boat Service.
PRODUCTS OF THE ISLANDS


fairs of the War Department has just re-
ceived the following very interesting COM
munication from a highly intelligent resi-
dent of Manila. Speaking of the necessary
internal improvements and of the resources
of the islands, he says:
THE River Pasig dredged out to
the mouth of the lake and points cut down
to make navigation easy for decent pas
senger steamers, would Immediately at
tract capital to put on daily morning and
evening service. Then the people of Ma
Mia could and would avail themselves of
the service to pass the nights in the many
cool resorts fringing the lake. No heat in
the daytime would be felt after a cool
night. In a very short time Laguan de
Bay twenty-five by twenty miles in it's
greatest dimensions, would be studded over
with yachts and pleasure craft of every
kind to afford pleasurable recreation to all
who could spare the time and expense
With capital and enterprise the nearest
approach to an earthly paradise is here at
beck and call 1t is perfectly amazing the
strides made by progress within the past
thirty years since province steamers be-
promoters of the enterprise can recall that
as late as 1863 it took two weeks or more
for one of the small schoonerS then en-
ployed to bring in outside produce a dis
tance of 80 miles to the shipping ports. In
1853 twelve capitalists, principally for
elgners, got together capital of $4,000 to
bring out a small boat to make trips to the
open ports of Iloilo and Cebu. The result
was so satisfactory that boat after boat fol-
lowed until there is at the present time
line of fifty province steamers large and
small, running in the islands
So much for what steamers have done
through private enterprise. What might
not be done under a highly intelligent ad-
ministration such as the government of
the United States will confer upon these
Islands? The short 12o-mile railway put
down by English capitalists gives but a
faint idea of what a network of railroads
could do. But quite enough to show what
a profitable investment some roads can be
made in this country under a liberal up
to-date government.
Roads and Railways Needed.
That which applies to Luzon applies
equally to all of the other islands. where
the produce in many cases is left to rot
in the field for want of adequate means of
conveyance. Roads. good public roads, and
railroads would send these islands ahead
by leaps and bounds, and material progress
would be the sure precursor of the light
of civilization.
why European governments, who have
for centuries been opening up and civiliz-
ing the darkest countries, should have
overlooked the Philippines without having
a look into them, and if necessary force
reform upon the ruling powers, seems in
eXplicable. And now that at last an en-
lightened power has taken hold it is fer
vently hoped that they will open up the
country until the light of the age shall
have penetrated the remotest crevice of
these most fertile and valuable islands.
This done. there would be no rebellion nor
the thought of one.
Richest UneXpIOred Territory.
when the island shall have been fully
STnlC he will ha nd
to be the richest unexplored territory in the
known world. When we think of the i'm
mense sum spent in prospecting unknown
lands and in many cases locating a find,
it is simply amazing that here where un-
told riches are staring us in the face, cap
italists should have so long held aloof and
fought shy of the place.
Take LuZOn first to give a faint idea of
known resources. In the north Is a rich
and extensive tobacco country, where quail
tiles equal to Cuba can be produced. Com
ing south. the two YiOcos provinces COM
prise rich sugar and rice lands. Indigo can
also be largely produced and, with more
labor, be increased in quantities and i'm
proved in qullity.
In the long range of mountains practi-
cally unexplored copper, gold and other
minerals are known to exist and without
doubt in considerable quantities. Copper
has been worked for many years in noun
tains Of south Yiocos, Mancayan and Le
communication
great obstacle to the mining not being on
large scale In this neighbOrhood we have
the district of Benguet, over 1000 feet
above the sea level, with a climate not to
be beaten in Europe. In winter it borders
on frost and in summer it is never over
50 Fahrenheit.
There is an extensive pine forest there,
and exquisite potatoes and home vegetables
of all kinds can be grown to any extent.
The Spanish government had arranged TO
put vi. a sanitarium there to save sending
invalided troops and employees to Europe to
recruit.
"A mountain lire of railroad for the
ascent and a short level line to connect
with the terminus of the Mania-Dagupan
line, would take passengers from Manila
| in about twelve hours to this desirable re-
| treat.
Some of the Products.
THE provinces of Union, Zambales, Pan
eastman and Bulacan, largely produce to-
bacco, sugar. rice, &c. The Angat noun
| tains, Bulacan and Bosoboso. only a few
| miles from Manila, produce iron ore, yield
| ing upward of - per cent of pure metal
These mines have been worked but lit
| tie. Some iron ore from Angat is stated
| to have produced s. per cent of pure metal.
| The latter exists IN very large quantities
| only requiring capital and enterprise to de-
| velop a large production. Lead, silver,
gold and coal are to be found in many parts
| of Luzon Hemp, sugar and coffee are
also produced the two first in large quanti-
| ties.
''Mindora, close to Manila is only occu-
| pied by Europeans in small ports. 1t is
| covered, as well as many parts of Luzon
| with valuable timber from the water s
| edge to the mountain top. The variety OF
| hard and other woods number about seven
| ty of known good woods. Valuable but un-
| developed coal beds exist in Halcom, the
| highest mountain in the group.
| ''RomblOse is rich in marbles and covered
| with coCoanut trees, only partially eXplor
| ed. The islands of Tublas, Marbate, Bu
| rias and Martinique, etc, are good timber
| producers and also possess excellent pas
| ture lands. The large and fertile Island o.
| Panay produces sugar, rice and sapaT
wood in abundance, and there are indica
| tions of petroleum and coal in some places
| Owing to a lack of roads, it is next to i'm
| possible to bring the produce to the ship
ping port, lloilo, unless at an exorbitan
| and prohibitive cost. This island and it:
| neighbOr, Negros, are most promising fieid
| for railways, the port of Iloilo bidding fa
| to be the principal exporting center of th
| archipelago at no distant date. In 1S5
| Negros and Iloilo exported about 600 ton
| of sugar. In 1897 the production was clos
| to 100000 tons. Rapid communication
would increase the yield fourfoId in a shor
time.
| Cebu Full of Coal.