Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1908-09-04
Or. Edwards Letter

Manila, P. l., January 20. Til
fnlnpplnes are famous for the abur
dance and variety of land shells whic
are, with few exceptions, formed b,
snails. They are most varied il
form, size and color, and many o
tnem are extremely beautiful. Their,
are a number of species of edible
oysters and clans, which are eater
by the natives, and sometimes by tn,
europeans who come here. but mont
OF them compare with the oysters ant
clans Of America. The shells o.
one species, cut into thin plates Of
squares of two inches on a side are
used in place of glass for windows
They are translucent, and are SET
In sliding wooden frames, producing
much the same effect as ground glass
Shells of the enormous clam some.
times attain the length of from five
to six feet, and weigh hundreds of
pounds. The valves are frequently
used for baptismal fonts, and the ma
tlves use them for utensils of many
Kinds in addition to burning them for
lime. Divers are much afraid of them
and with reason, for they shut with
a vise-like grip, and when one gets
his hand inside one of these shells in
deep water he is held until he is
drowned Numerous accidents of
this kind are reported at various
places along the coast.
Irue pearl oysters are found in
many places along the southern coast
OF Mindanao, and in the Sulu archi.
pelago. They are especially fine and
abundant in the later region, and
many valuable pearls are found there
mere are no more expert divers in
the world than the Moros, who train
themselves to remain under water two
minutes and sometimes longer. The
wonderful pearly nautilus, or as it
Is more generally known, the cham
oered nautilus, is so common that its
shell is used by natives as drinking
cups.
Shrimps, crabs and Holsters abound
In the waters of the archipelago, and
form an important part of the food
supply of the natives who live along
the coast. One of the strange crabs
found here is the giant or spider crab
the spread of the claws sometimes
reaching fifteen feet. The tree crab,
which is a land crab, living off the
cocoanut, is found on some of the
Islands. This is large hairy crab,
which climbs the cocoanut trees, and
detaches the nut. The crab then
breaks the shells by dashing them
on rocks and feeds on the meat.
1t is strange that with all this
wonderful form of marine life, that
the fish market of Manila is not near
SO interesting as in Honolulu. This
is accounted for in part from the
fact that the fish do not keep in
this climate and they have to be eat
en- shortly after being taken from wat
er or they spoil. In Honolulu the
climate does not deteriorate the fish
so quickly, and the market is a con-
slant source of pleasure. Here the
fish are carried about by the natives
and Cinnamon in baskets and dispos-
ed of from house to house,
Owners of fish corrals make al
steady income, and in return for
the privilege they have to pay tax
to the village nearest to the fishing
ground which they occupy. With
the great plenty of fish for propoga-
ton have been taken, but some of
the natives have hit upon the plan
Of catching small fish of species that
grow rapidly, placing them in closed
ponds and feeding them until they
become of marketable size These
fish are sold alive and afford fresh
fish at any time.
The tree oyster is found in many
places in lagoons. These oysters at
tach themselves to the limbs of ov-
erhanging trees which droop into Ihe
water at high tide, and when the tide
falls, the oysters are carried into the
air. They appear like immense string
of beads attached to the slender
limbs of the trees, and are gathered
by natives in boats who find this
the easiest way Of getting something
to eat. These oysters have pecul'
lar flavor and are not palatable to
an American, and are eaten only by
the natives. One can hardly believe
that oysters grow on trees but all
you have to do is to travel along any
Of the lagoons on the islands and
you will see them by millions. Some
Of the oysters here grow to immense
size. but It is claimed that they are