Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1908-02-28
A Weekly Letter From the Orient
FURNISHED By THE RECORDER sSPaO
IAL CORRESPONDENT, Who Is
MAKING A Tour OF THE EAST
ERIN COUNTRIES.
Especial to Recorder.)

ERIN COUNTRIES.
Especial to Recorder.)
Manila, P. |. October IL ar.
rived at this port Of our strangest
possessions several days ago and
have not yet gotten over my feel
ing of establishment. It is all, 80
queer that one can scarce compre-
| bend it. We have here the highest
type OF civilization side by side
with the lowest type of savagery;
| we have all the conyenieces and
Injuries of modern life, and in the
next block natives live in abject
squalor in huts of palm leaves; we
zee elegantly dressed ladies and
gentlemen riding in carriages and
automobiles, on splendidly paved
streets, and a few block, distant
We find ancient carts OF natives
drawn by bullocks over roads that
would be a disgrace to the least
progressive American village.
These are Che first impressions
one gets while walking about Ma
Mia. There is 50 much OF con-
trast that is kept in constant state
of bewildermsnt. see 80 many
evidences Of betterment owing to
American possessions that | feel
sure that If we are given inst a lit
Gle time we shall make new coun-
try out Of the Philippines. The
natives are beginning to realize
that American domination is for
their good. They note the differ
ence between the present and the
past when Spain had all Of this
country for what she could get
out of it. Now everything is done
for the betterment of t lie islands
and the people who live here.
There is an undeveloped empire in
these islands, and some day Amer
lean people wilt wake up to the
fact that here is an opportunity
for untold riches TO be carved out
Of undeveloped industries. In the
lumber business alone millions of
dollars are to be made, while the
mining industry has not been
touched. Gold lies in the bills in
abundance, while lesser valuable
metals are found everywhere.
Precious stones may be found in
the hills, while il the agricultural
possibilities were to be fully devel-
oped the results would astound the
world. There is magnificent OPP
portunity for manufacturing in
many lines, and some bright Amer
leans have already begun opera
tons that will make them million
aires.
There is n general impressions
that the climate is bad for white
men. II 10 a mistaken idea. 1t is
not the climate that hurts whites
but tho habits Of the men. Most
white men who come to this coun-
try get TO drinkingand eating un-
usual things and INDUCING in ex.
cesses which would kill them as
quickly in America as here. They
ssem to feel that they are away
from all restraint because they are
far from the United States, and
they do MANY things they ought
not to do and do not do many
things they ought to do, eonse'
quently they lose their vitality and
readily sucumb to fevers which lie
waiting for ell with depleted sys-
TENS. Sanitation in Manila has
been greatly Improved since Amer
| lean possession, and as a result
shere is much less sickness than
formerly. From stories have
heard Of the habits Of Spanish |
have reached the conclusion that
they were \ little worse 10 their
habits than the savages. There
are soil few evidences of their
Glthiness which show that what
ever illness they had was due them
for their neglect OF the simplest
hvgenic rules. All this is changed
now, and tie city Of Manila is
we'll severed and governed by
strict sanitary regulation.
The Filipino native in Manila is
queer mixture OF Malay and
Mongol, and, as is always the case,
the potent blood Of the Mongol
gives its inersdicsble cast to the