Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1904-01-11


makes it unwise TO travel without a
strong escort. This is unfortunate, for
the little island-it is only thirty-four
miles long and twelve wide-is a won
derfuIiy beautiful and attractive spot
for a ramble. Down TO the very
waters edge il is covered with grass OF
the softest green, and groups OF brown
matched houses crawl out over every
little indentation OF the irregular coast
The surface is made up Of gently roll
ing hills. dotted with copses and small
forests of fruit bearing trees. Birds
and butterflies are everywhere, and at
night the mangOes are alive with fire.
flies and great fox-bats. The grass is
covered with a network of well-worn
trails. and at all hours you meet Mr..
and Mrs. Moro, jogging along on little
shaggy horses or big sleepy carabaos.
The Moro is a great lover of brilliant
colors. His turban may be purple his
tight jacket of yellow, and his close
trousers of green, with a wide red sash
added as a browning touch. His lady.
If wealthy, wears the same tight jacket
and baggy trousers. or if poor. simply
the "iabul." which is a FELLOWSHIP sort
of thing worn any way that strikes the
fancy. and is a skirt or a sunbonnet at
will.
The men are walking arsenals. Into
their sashes are stuck the ugly, ser
pentine krises. barongs, daggers, and
sometimes the long. heavy campilan,
or executioner's sword. Newcomers
are apt TO smile at the gaudy dress and
fierce appearance of these people, but
men who have met Moros in the course
OF the days work waste no smiles.
Fighting for the Fun of 1t.
The Moro is a fighting man through
and through, and lives in conformity
to the good old customs which were so
dear to knights-errant. Every boy
grows up expecting death by cold
steel. and regarding the prspect with
little emotion, less probably. than you
and I feel at thought OF our allotted
pneumonia or appendicitis. Courts as
we know them do not exist, each datto
! rendering SOlomonic justice to his fol
lowers. When two men from different
towns disagree, the dispute is usually
quickly and very permanently settled.
Fighting in anger is not all. They
occasionally fight for the fun of the
thing. In at least one case, an kmeri-
can has seen this. He was a friend of
several dattos. and went out TO a fes-
tivaI in a remote village. After much
music and dancing two men. armed
with krises. shields and brass coat
armour. stepped out and fought TIL
one Of them was killed. to the great de-
| light OF the assembled merrymaKeTs.
And it's not so long ago that a datto
proposed 10 the commander of our
forces in Jolo that each pick a thous-
and men, and match them in a little
valley not far from town. where the
/ guests could sit at their ease and
watch the combat. This datto was a
friend TO Americans. and proposed the
thing in n sincere way, merely as a
/ piece Of sport ''foT love" as the phrase
| IS
With a hundred thousand such fierce
and reckless children to hold in check,
/ the poor young sultan of Jolo must
have had many an uneasy hour since
he signed his treaty with General
Bates in the summer of 80. when he
recognized the sovereignty of the
United States. and agreed to preserve
peace with us. Though as have said.
the sultan has little or no military or
Il Is = Of -
faith for all the Philippines, and as
such his influence in the Jolo Archi-
lpelago is strong. He appears to have
acted in good faith. too, for until the
/ other day, when General Wood was
obliged to kill a number of Moros in
( the interior of the island. we have real
~ had no trouble with the people of
the JOlo group. The few hostilities
have been with criminals. and had no
racial or religious significance.
Moro is Frank at Least.
| The Moro, indeed. has many good.
I even attractive qualities. He is a
savage. a Malay and a MOhammedan
rolled into one. so of course he is a
bundle of prejudices. superstitions anil
SUSPICION. He is very proud and sensi-
tive. especially in regard to his re--
9Onal dignity and his religion. ANY
fancied hurt to these meets with fier~e
and undying resentment. And while
these people have no written laws or
form Of government. custom is strong
as law and is religiously followed. As
n general thing Moro in whose house
yCu have eaten and slept can be trust
ed completely. If he must become
your enemy later. he will tell you so,
fairly. The Moro knows none of that
Milling treachery in which the Christ
ian Filipino is such an adept.
These customs OF his, the right of
1 personal revenge in certain cases, the