Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1905-03-10
LIFE IN THE ISLANDS
Walter Nichols Tells of Conditions in
Uncle Sans New Eastern
Possessions.

did not know that the climate here
could make me more lazy than was
when in Dallas, but if such thing is
possible, I am lazier here than there.
| 1t has been several months since I
wrote you. If l remember rightly, /
wrote you from Dagupan. We left
Dagupan, June II, for Asingan, a
town 80 miles to the East. The trip
consumed six hours, and cost us $3.50
for ourselves, to say nothing of our
trunks and provisions.
Asingan has a population Of 81 1000
natives and three Americans. The
Americans are Mr.. Sheehan, the prin-
cipal Of the grammar school here,
Mrs. Nichols and myself. We have
no street lights, sidewalks, sewers, or
water-works. Mail service is good
here, as compared with some of the
more remote towns. Mail is received
on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Satur-
days, and ''States" mail is received
three days after it lands in Manila.
The climate here in November, De-
cember and January is very much
like September weather in Oregon; /;
that is, very hot days and cool nights,
Under three large covers, we sleep
none too warm at the present time.
The climate in Baguio is very much
like the Oregon climate-very cool
during the winter months, and notex-
cessively hot in the summer months
Instead of four seasons, we have but
two, the wet and dry. The rainy sea-
son begins the last Of June and con-
tinues until the end of October, and
the other months are all dry months.
The rain here is much different from
our "Oregon mist" 1t seldom rains
more than a few hours at one time,
but rains as much in one hour as Ore
gon can produce in six. During the
four months of rainy season, l remem-
Der but two times when it rained more
than one day.
The people in this municipality are
mostly weavers and farmers lefore
going farther, perhaps it is best to ex-
plain more fully the word municipal
ity." Each island is divided into
provinces, and each province into
municipalities. Each municipality is
divided into barrios, villages and the
pueblo, or city proper. Asingan has
twenty barrios outside of the pueblo
The entire municipality is about 12
miles long and nine miles wide.
The people, as a rule, have no edu-
cation except in Spanish and English,
and this is usually confined to the
pueblo, the boys and girls in the
barrios seldom receiving any educa-
tion at all. The prevailing religion
is Catholic. At present the Aglipay
branch of the Roman church has a
large membership. These people,
under the leadership Of man named
Aglipay, rebelled against the severe
treatment of the friars and established
the Independent, or Aglipay, Catholic
church. In Asingan, both churches
have a large membership, but all
worship in the Roman church, because
the Independent people have no build
ing.
The principal crop in this section is
rice. but fine gardens and fields of
corn and sugar-cane may also be
seen. Tropical fruits are abundant.
Bananas ripen every month in the
year. Oranges may also be had, but
the ordinary orange is not so good as
the oranges we buy at home. Fresh
pineapples can be had during the
months of February, March, April,
May and June, and when many are
on the market we can buy them for
one and one-half cents each. Bananas
cost from one to three cents per dozen,
depending upon the kind.
think the Philippine Islands pro-
ducc. nearly every kind Of tropical
fruit, but the natives are not pro-
gressive in any of their work, hence
the farming industry and fruit-rais-
ing are at present in need Of improve
ment The natives follow in the foot
steps of their ancestors, and, as a
result, the land is not worked any
better than it was 100 years ago. This
condition does not apply to the people
in the pueblos, but only to the people
living in the barrios, The rural peo-
pie have no desire to advance or be
more progressive.
The Government is now building
and opening industrial and agri-
cultural schools throughout heentire
archipelago, with the hope Of meeting
the needs of the people and encourag-
ing them to use modern methods, i'm
plements and machinery, besides
teaching all the useful arts and trades.
The hemp industry Of the Southern
Archipelago has very bright future
at present, owing to the invention Of a
machine to separate the fibre from
from the pulp. This machine, so the
leading daily papers say, will be to the
hemp industry what the eotton-gin is
to the cotton industry.
It is glad news to us to hear Of the
subsidy bill passing Congress, thus
giving us mail from home every two
weeks. Asingan affords two schools
"a municipal school and a grammar