Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1900-04-15

of "Dobie" Dollars.
Norman S. Wood, a former Wheel
ing boy, who is at Jolo, in the Phil
ippine Islands, serving as a member
of Company B, Twenty-third U. S.
Infantry, has sent another interesting
letter to one of his friends in this
city. The communication, which
was written by Mr.. Wood on January
2Sth, is in part as follows:
Il have noticed that incoming re-
cruits have been amazed at the ap-
pearance of the natives here. and ask
endless questions about them. On the
18th the tine transport Warren brought
in 81 recruits and some officers, and
also half a dozen white women, and
their appearance on our streets, dressed
IN American style, caused the Chino
and Now women to stare at them in
wonder. Two days later the Sultan
OF Sulu came in state to Jolo with
reference cit was said) to the stealing
of several horses belonging to c COM
panys officers. The sentry at the south
gate gave notice of his approach, and
in few minutes the battalion was
lined up and, headed by the band, it
marched out the main gate and lined
up in battalion front along the road
that runs outside along the wall. Those
of us who did not turn out clambered
upon the offset to the wall and got as
good view as possible by putting our
feet in the loopholes and raising our
selves up. Presently the command
Attention" was given, and then
Present Arms!" and around the cor
ner of the south wall appeared the
motley and gaiIy dressed throng called
the "bodyguard," walking along the
front of soldiers and officers in a go
as-you-please manner, while along the
road walked the Sultan, accompanied
by our commanding officer. The horses
of the natives had been left in the
shade of a neighboring village. The
Sultan was dressed in a dark grey
suit, with a sack coat and black shoes.
He wore a black fur, flat-topped fez,
and carried his head we'll back, and
around his loins underneath his coat
he wore the usual strip of bright plaid
cloth, wrapped several times around
his body, and reaching nearly to his
knees. On reaching the main gate he
was introduced 20 the ladies and Off
GERS from the Warren. 1t was there
| got a good look at him. He is about
5 feet inches tall, and has a swarthy
complexion about the color of a Span
iard's, and has a small black mus
tache and straight black hair. He was
taken out to visit the Warren, the ship
oriu It,fn @f 10
is Mohammedan, a polygamist, and
a Shareholder, and people who think
it an honor to shake his hand here
would not deign to notice such a per-
son in the States.
Lately a customs port has been
made of Jolo, and it's operation is an
other interesting thing. On some ar
ticles the duty is almost prohibitive,
and the commissary will no doubt do
large business from now on. English
long-cut smoking tobacco that was
formerly 80 cents Mexican, is now Is
cents. Probably the great number of
Chino and Indian stores will be thus
reduced. There has been Sikh police
man over here from Borneo the last
two pay days. He wore shoes the
points of which curled over to his
ankles, and around his calves, and his
red fez were wrapped yards of khaki
cloth. He had bag full of ''dobie"
dollars, and was buying gold, paying
at the rate of $22 silver for $40 gold
piece. Our gold" dollars are worth
81. 40 silver in Sandakan and Singa-
pore. Thus the United States gov
eminent is paying out millions of dol
lars in gold over here on a parity with
free silver and the Chinos and Ma
lays are reaping a harvest | forgot
to say that a "hadji" stopped the Bor-
neo man, and the former managed to
get out of town in time to escape a
beating. 1t looks to me like terri
BILE drain on our country. Why, a
Chino would rather change a $40 gold
piece for nothing than to sell a silver
dollars worth of goods. IN one COM
pany the Captain changes the gold
and the premium goes to the company
fund.
The weather here is very pleasant,
about like it is in Wheeling in May,
and in the seven months l have been
here the rising of the sun has not
varied any, coming up about 6 o'clock.
The tropical evenings are beautiful
beyond description. On the water
front the neighboring islands loom
dim and distant and gentle swells
come rolling in, breaking with a roar
on the coral reefs. The surface of the
water is lit up with phosphoresence,
and every object on it stands out with
ghostlike distinctness. l have learned
to swim while here Tin fact, we all
had to-, and it was funny snap" to
see the entire company jump in with
shoes, hat and other clothing on. 1t
is a great pleasure to swim in salt wa
ter
You have no idea of the cheapness
of fruit here now. You can buy
peck of mangoes, basket and all, for
or cents Mexican. The Mocos make
very neat basket out of green palm
leaves. The mangoes look something
like paw-paw, and are awful good
eating. Fine oranges are lie Mexican
each. Then there are "mogustines"
las the Mocos call them), and another
fruit we call Japanese strawberries,
neither of which grow in the temper
ate zone, and both are delicious and
cheap. There are also many CHINA
mon and chocolate bean trees. In fact,
the market here is a mixture of strangs
fruits, and fishes, and products of the
soil. No one but Chinos eat bread
fruit. because it smells so.
I'VE have fine quarters here build-