East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-03-14

from George II. Guy in the Review
of Reviews, will prove highly enter
tanning to the readers of the East Or
egcnian:
The United States had no sooner
assumed sovereignty over the Philip
pine Islands than 1t began to educate
the people. AS soon as a captured
town or district had become peace
able, our army established schools for
the Filipino children, and detailed
teachers to instruct the native teach
ers and children in English.
Following closely on this radical
preparation of the Filipinos for the
responsibilities and benefits Of higher
civilization came the industrial inva-
sion of the country. The distrustful
Filipino was still skirmishing brlskly
day by day with the American troops
In the outskirts of the city of Manila
when j. G.. White & Co., of New
York city, sent out an engineer to
look over the ground and see how
far conditions encouraged the intro
duction of the electric light and the
trolley car. That was three years
ago. and now the Filipino is crowding
the white man in the trolley cars that
ply in and out of the city, while the
duty of the native policeman is inn
measurably lightened by the shining
of the friendly arc in the narrow
streets through the watches of the
tropic night.
The story of the American engin-
eers-how the Filipino. at first sus-
picious and shiftless, was developed
into a labor factor of high efficiency
and reliability-forms a chapter of
unique suggestiveness. 1t makes
palmer than ever the fact that If we
intend to get close to these people we
must understand their ways of think
ing and working, not insisting always
on their accepting our methods abso-
lutely. hut occasionally having the
patience to let them work them out
and learn for themselves the superior
value and utility of the American
way.
Chinese, working by contract on
railway work. will carry In baskets
as much as five cubic yards of clay
per day a distance of so feet and de-
post II on an embankment from -four
to five feet high. Filipinos will not
do half as much. They construct al
most everything very lightly with
wood, bamboo, rattan and other fiber
They use no nails, iron or wire in
making either tools, pumps or houses
carts or other appliances for their
work. They employ "bolos" almost
entirely in place of axes and hatchets
The bolo is long knife with a blade
about IA inches to l6 inches long
three inches wide, and about one.
eighth of an inch thick. With this
knife alone they will build an entire
house. making II answer the purpose
OF plane, hatchct, axe, or adj, using
the point as a chisel, and the blunt
back of the blade as a hammer fol
driving home the wooden spikes ol
pins which take, the place of nails
The spike holes are made with hot
iron.
Early Difficulties With Native Labor
The first clash of methods came
when the machinery for the electric
plant had to be unloaded from the
ship. The Filipinos simply would moi
touch the work at any price, so
lighterage company was employed
The men engaged by the company
did very well until some of the Ions
girders had to be handled. The native
foreman got a rope, fastened 1t TO
few of the sections, and put on 81
men to drag them to an adjacent pile
The tools had been shipped specially
for this purpose. but at these the Fill
pinos shook their heads. The rope
was the only thing they could work
with.
The morning came to begin oper'
ations on the plant. About 200 mer
were waiting on the ground. They re-
fused to work unless native fore
man was placed in charge. The engi'
neer promised that that should be
done as soon as he could educate on'
to his new duties. But still they huns
back. and nothing would induce then
to begin work. The simple reason
was they feared they would not gei
paid. In the old Spanish days they
were usually cheated out of some oi
their pay. There was no redress, a!
any chance of a native securing JUS
tice in a Spanish court was out of tho
auetsion. They had as yet no reason
TO think the American more homes
than the Spaniard. Hence, they
would not move a hand until paid {
whole days wages in advance. Pres
entity the manager bethought him o
a large number of brass tool room
checks, stamped with the letters -
G. w. & Co." which had been stowet
away in a cellar. These were givei
out as vouchers for the amount o
the days pay. The plan worked wei
and after few weeks the natives
finding they were treated fairly, be
came more tolerant Of their new
duties.
When the first batch of men mus
tered for work they looked small an'
pinched and half-starved, and man!
OF them were hollow-chested ant
weak of limb. The manager CAV
them daily an allowance wherewitl
to buy a hot lunch, and saw that
was duly spent. There were tienda
attached to every gang, where whole
some food was served. The bette
fare soon worked a wonderful chang
in the physique of the men. Thei
muscles filled out, they grew bigge
and held themselves straighter. The
began, too, to put on the airs of pros
perity, for such wages as they wer
earning had never before been dream
ed Of. Moreover, the Americana ha
made a clean sweep of the "capitas,