The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1906-11-15
FILrpINos LEARN AGRICULTURE.
Students From Luzon to BE Placed
on Plantations of Louisiana.

Agricultural students from the far
off Philippines are coming to Louis
lana, where they may acquire q
knowledge of the methods used in
raising sugar, tobacco and other crops
suited to the islands In the Far East.
Government experts will bring them
here and place them either In the ag-
ricultural Institutes or on the planta-
tions. Here they will be drilled In
the methods of cultivating cane, to-
bacco, rice and other products, and
will then return to their Far Eastern
country to devote themselves to inn
proving the agricultural conditions
that now exist there.
w. A. Sutherland, of the Bureau of
Insular Affairs, is on his way from
Washington to New Orleans to make
necessary arrangements for the plac-
ing of the Philippine students in this
State. He has charge of the young
Filipinos being educated in this coun-
try at the Governments expense and
has selected Louisiana as the State in
which to drill these students in the
growing of sugar, rice and other
crops. Whether he will put them in
agricultural institutes or distribute
them among the sugar plantations
and rice farms will be decided when
he reaches this city.
From New Orleans Mr.. Sutherland
will go to meet q party of eight stu
dents, and by the time that they get
here he will have arranged for their
distribution among the plantations or
agricultural institutes. All are said
to be apt pupils, and the Government
will devote considerable time and at
tention to their agricultural training
All branches of agriculture in the
Philippines are said to be character
lied by imperfect and careless culti-
vation. The most important food
crop is rice, since it furnishes the
principal element in the diet of the
people. More care is taken in its
production than in the raising of any
other crop, but the methods and ap-
pliances are still primitive. Consid-
ering the natural resources, the re-
suits of this branch of agriculture are
less satisfactory in the Philippines
than in the neighboring countries of
Tonquin, Siam and Java.
The soil and climate are especially
favorable for the production of sugar,
and more Is produced than is con-
sumed in the islands; but this amount
is only a small part of that which
might be raised with more perfect
methods of cultivating cane and with
better mills. Prior to 1882 the rails
ing of tobacco and the manufacture
of cigars and cigarettes in the islands
were a Government monopoly. In
some districts the Filipinos were re-
quired to plant certain amount of
land in tobacco and to deliver the
product at the public warehouses at
a price fixed by the Government.
The indignation of the people,
aroused by the hardship imposed
upon them by the Government In car
rying out this policy. led to the aboli-
tion of the monopoly The produc-
tion of tobacco is now conducted as
freely as other industries.
Until few years ago raising coffee
was one of the most important
branches of agriculture. But the raw
ages of an insect which appeared in
1894 caused most of the last named
plantations to be abandoned The
small plantations in the provinces of
Benguet and Lepanto, however, es-
capped the blight and still produce a
limited amount of coffee, which is
shipped to Spain. The soil of the
islands, however, is best adapted to
the raising of sugar rice and tobacco.
and it is because of this fact that the
. agricultural students are being sent
to this State.--New Orleans corre-
spondent OF the New York Herald.