The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1900-02-08
A PHILIPPINE RESUME.
GENERAL WHEELER WRITES A SUR.
VeY or PEOPLE AND RESOURCES.
MaGnificence Of the Churches and Mon
asteries-Natives Dress ns They Did
1000 Year Bgo--A Failure of the Rice
Crop Would Cause a Famine.

~ ENERAL JOS EPH WHEEL
1 ER, of the United State
| Army, writes as follows to tn
New York Sun from SAINT
Rita, Philippine Islands:
] have now seen much of the coun
try and the people in that part of Lu
zon for about fifty miles north OF Ma
Mia. In every town there is mag
niticent stone church and convent o
monastery. The value of the churcl
and monastery of town seems to b,
equal in many cases to the value of al
the other buildings in the town.
The sugar storehcuses are also ex
| pensively constructed buildings. They
have very thick stone walls and either
tile or metal roofs and cover consid-
erable space of ground; come of then
have dimensions of about sixty or sew
enty feet by 100 feet.
There is a general impression that
the insurgent army is made up very
largely of people without property,
and that people who have property
desire the Americans to control SO
that they can have protection and feel
that their property is secured to them,
but find that there is also fear Oh
apprehension among some OF the
wealthy that il the Americans control
and give universal suffrage, the power
of the wealthy people would lie taken
away and their hold on property very
much impaired. 1 think that if the
wealthy people could be assured that
they would be protected in their prop
erty rights by the United States it
would have very good effect.
The friars and priests are charged
with all sorts OF expressions and mis-
demeanors, but it must be remem-
bered that friars and priests are very
numerous, and in so large body
there will be found every possible
phase of character and disposition.
The religious orders are very rich.
They have been acquiring prorerty
for nearly three centuries.
The statement j have seer that
seventy per cent. of the people of Lu-
zon can read and write is great mis-
take. 1t may be true of Manila, but
it is not true of the rural districts, and
the percentage of illiteracy in the other
islands is much greater than in Luzon.
The appearance, mode of life and
method of performing work is to-day
very much like that described in the
Bible of the beginning of the Chris
tian era.
The people dress very much as they
did 1000 years ago, the means of
transportation by carts drawn by cara
boas is about the same, and their
methods of shelling and cleaning rice
are MS primitive as possible and no
better than they were 1000 years ago.
During the last few years sugar mills
and rice mills have been erected in
some OF the larger cities, and this has
especially been the case since the
building of the Manila and Dagupan
Railroad, but in the smaller cities and
towns rice is husked by pounding by
hand, and is winDowed by throwing
it up and thus separating the chatf just
as in the earliest times.
Nearly everything can he grown,
but oranges aud bananas are not as
good as in other localities, the reason
no doubt being that they seem to give
them no cultivation whatever. II they
were cultivated believe they would
be as fine as the products of any other
country.
l Tobacco is grown in the valley of
Cagayan, in the northeastern part of
Luzon, which is said to be equal
to any tobacco in the world. The
coffee grown is said to be superior to
Mocha.
Rice is the principal product, and
failure of that crop will cause terri
BILE famine, as the people depend al.
most entirely upon it for food. Sugar
is the principal crop for export. The
greatest amount exported in any ono
year was 261, ,6S1 tons, which was in
1898.
Corn grows very rapidly and the
ears reach their full growth about sixty
days from the time OF planting. The
provinces which are especially spoken
OF as productive OF corn or maizo are
Viscaya, Isabella, South Camarines,
Pampanga, Pangesinan, Nueva Ecija,
Bulacan, Batangas, Albay and ARRAY.
Wheat is grown in Batangas and San
lsidro, Isabel and Ilocos Sur.
There is great abundance 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, sulphur,
lead, building stone, petroleum aud
guano are found.
There are many different tribes liv-
ing in these islands, the only ones in
native rebellion being the TagaIos.
This tribe occupies some eight prov
inces in the neighborhood OF Manila,
and their association with Europeans
has made them more civilized than
other tribes.
Monkeys are numerous. the flying
squirrel which has fine skin is
found, and nlso the wild cat, the wild
hog, and the water buffalo. The lion,
the tiger, the hyena, leopard and the
bear are found in these islands. In
variety, plumage aud charming sing
ing the birds are said to be superior
to those OF any other part of the earth.
Crocodiles, boa constructors and
lizards are found. There are many
dangerous snakes, but in this ,lensely
populated district there are very few,
and the people tell me that very sell
dom Is any one bitten by them. They
also tell mo thnt the nativea undar.