The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1902-10-30
Letter From R. o. DoIlisOn.
Base Hospital, Cebu, Cebu I P. ],
September 7th, 1902.


hospital and getting along very
well; have been in the hospital
since July 9th, little over six
weeks now the doctor gives me
pass nearly every day, and l walk
around two or three hours; think
l will be out in short time.
AS you have asked me number
of time to give you a description
of this island, the people, etc., l
will try it.:
Cebu Island is among the small
est, being about 110 miles long
and 20 or % miles wide; on this
island the chief agricultural pro-
ducts are tobacco, corn, sugar
cane, hemp and rice. The corn is
the only one OF the five that does
not amount to much. The Philli-
pinos are so far behind the times
they don't know how TO tend it.
1t is simply planted and nothing
more done to it until time to husk
it. The sugar cane is planted in
swampy ground, and is allowed to
grow about six feet high, then it
is cut. They cut pieces from the
stalks about eight inches long, and
it is put in water until sprouts be-
gin to grow on them, and then it
planted slanting in the ground
with just the sprouts left out of
the ground; nothing more is done
to it until it is ready to cut. The
rice is grown in what are known
as rice paddles. They dig small
trenches for the water to run in so
it will flow all oyer the field.
When it is ripe enough to cut, men,
women and children go into the
field with their curved knives,
and it is all cut and placed in a
heap; then the threshing begins ;
bamboo platform is built six or
seven feet high, with a roof over
| it; bundle of rice is laid on the
platform aud the grain is tramped
out with the feet. This is gener-
ally done when the wind is blow
ing, so the chaft will be separated
| from the grain as it falls from the
| platform. They plant the tobac-
leo where the ground is not SO
swampy; have seen it planted on
the side of mountain where moth
ing else would grow, or at least
it seems so. They take working
bolo or 'sangdon," and dig small
holes and place the small plant in
it, they plow this two or, three
times That is one of the ode
sights to see over here. The ma
tives use a carabon or water buf
falo to do all this kind of work
they go so slowly that it looks i'm
possible to plow more than three
or four rows day, but if the
carabon goes mad for water ant
maker charge for you, you wou!c
think he could plow whole fielt
in few minutes. The only two
} farming implements they use arr
a working bolo, and plow, tha
by the looks of of it, must hav,
} been invented about the tim,
Methusaleh was learning his a, b
c's. All the tools they use, ant
} nearly all their customs and man
ners are those used about 60(
years ago. The only way / car
, account for it is, that years agt
these islands must have been {
mountain chain belonging to Chin;
or some other nation, and being
inhabited by such worthless
treacherous people, were pushed
into the sea, and the so-calleC
vallies and plains are paths mad,
by natives trying to find way t.
get off the islands. They are S,
far behind modern times that the,
didn't think of using a boat unit
it was too late. / think it mus
have been about this time tina
Spain found them, but / am n,
authority on this subject so L will
change.
AS general thing the house
of the natives are built of BAN bo
and nipa, about five or six from
the ground four stout posts ar
placed in the ground in the way tn
natives want them, and as soon u
the frame works. up the roof !
put on, then the sides are sewe'
on with rattan bark, the floor j
of bamboo rods placed about al