Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1901-10-30
MODES R AMP GUSTOm&
AzA OF 77f1E [FlLN[7lNOS.
Pursuits Of Or Pacific Possessons-7-he 1nha ah,,+s A
Curious Customs-Chinese are Progressive



Rockies. Among them are several
active volcanoes and great many
extinct orators. l climbed into the
latter and spent nearly a day getting
out again. These islands arc the
most isolated land on earth, being
more than two thousand miles from
any inhabited country. 1t is a m ost
remarkable fact that the original in
habitants could sometimes navigate
the ocean for that distance in their
large double canoes. They had no
compass and they were either guided
by the stars or they had the same Sc nse
of direction as a dog, cat or carrier
pigeon. With the exception Of be-
ing much larger, the natives arc simi-
lar to those of the Philippines. They
make the same kind of boats with
outriggers to keep them from turn
ing over; their language is related
and they have some similar customs,
although nearly five thousand miles
apart.
After another trip of about three
weeks we sighted the Ladrone Is-
lands. 1t was Christmas, but the
weather was 80 hot a number of us
slept on the decks at night. The
transport carried several hundred
soldiers. Most of the veterans put
in their timo gambling, while the
recruits put in theirs singing gospel
hymnS, holding prayer meetings and
trying to persuade their wicked
brothers to "ilee from the wrath to
come, and be saved" There is but
little animal life in the Pacific COM
pared with the Atlantic, and the
trip becomes monotonous. This
caused a great effort among the very
high-toncd element on board to have
some diversion, and, as "idle men are
the DEVILS playmates," it wound up
very naturally in scandal or two.
Those officers, however, who had
brought plenty of liquor molested
nobody.
After sighting land again we soon
passed Cavite, where number of
the wrecks Dewey left are to be
seen. Manila is quite near and the
first sight which attracted my atten-
tion on landing was big water buff
falo, which looked like . GROSS be-
tween a hippopotamus and COW.
1t was hitchcd to crude two
wheeled cart and driven byan uneasy
looking Chinaman with a breech-
clout around his loins and syphalitic
ulcers around both ankles. After
looking around further l thought of
how an old fellow in Texas described
Arkansas City. 1t is about the
worst town on the Mississippi river,
and when | asked him what sort of
a place it was, he thought for some
time and then said "Wcll, I'll tell
you; it is a hell of a place /" Parts
OF Manila are foul smclling-vermin-
infested nests of niggcrs, Chinese,
bubonic plague and sin, but the
board of health and tho police arc
improving it wonderfully. The eli
mate is simply delightful, so far as
temperature is concerned. The hot.
test weather is never as hot as that
of the Atlantic States, and the cool.
est is never cold enough to prevent
the little native children from going
about the streets wearing nothing
but a small pair of earbobs. -Four
languages are spoken hcre--Spanish,
Chinese, Tagalog and English. They
are rs different from each other as
can be. In tho Chinese language
many of tho words arc spoken with
the mouth closed. They say thom
through the nose and seem to articu-
late with different infections, and
by varying the tones just as we can,
grunt one way to Indicate bad
smell and slightly different way to
Indicate ono which is much worse.
There are about fifty thousand Chi.
neso in and about Manila. I have
formed most excellent opinion OF