The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1909-02-18

eoiuhaS Hohheys IL mat Wnen troop O
wild ones come in the vicinity of can
tive pet, they will shrek anathemas at Il
and if not driven away, will rush dow,
and tear it in bits, SO that any pet mon
key will scream with fright at sight O.
another of its species in the trees.
There is a large variety of beautiful
song birds around us, and parrots in al
their brilliant colored plumage, as well a.
thousands of crows, which seemed to me
on my arrival, like meeting old friends ir
these distant south sea islands: but
learned later they are more on the orde,
of the raven, with larger more powerful
beaks, and far more wicked bird thar
their American brethren, carrying off
chickens and young birds, proving con-
siderable of pest in that way, as well
as descending in clouds on thrifty rice
fields. which they pull up and destroy in a
few hours if left unprotected.
Lewis Grant, who is engaged in the
commercial cultivation of the cocanut in
grove of 10000 trees in Tayabas pro-
vince, says that between the crows and
the parrots it is almost impossible to
cultivate corn and rice in his locality.
Thousands of the green and white par
rots flock around there and in one day he
shot l28 which his Is Igorote laborers
made into big :'canyao" and stuffed
themselves fit to burst.
The copra industry all through the is
lands is improving rapidly. Many
Americans have come in and bought up
large tracts of land, setting out the
trees; others have bought the groves
already started, and seeing the energy
and interest displayed by them, and the
good returns, is an incentive to the ma
tives to enter more actively into this
branch Of industry.
We often stroll down the road in the
evening and watch the process of smok-
ing and curing the copra for market at
nearby smoke house. A hole in the
ground is lined with rocks, about six
feet above which is erected platform of
bamboo poles, and above this simple
"nipa" roof as protection against rain.
The ripe cocoanuts are cut and brought in
saddle baskets until huge pile is form
ed, then fire is started, the nuts are.
cleft open with heavy ''bolo" and piled
on the platform, where they are smoked
until the meat cleaves away from the
shell. The meat is then sewed up in
sacks and shipped, some to the States,
and more to foreign port. One can
hardly believe that from those dark,
tacky bits, all our fine desiccated cocoa
nut is prepared. Much Of it, too, is
ground and the rich oil extracted, this
being one of the finest oils used in the
making of many toilet preparations,
soaps, and other utilities of commerce.
Cocoanut oil is used by the Filipinos,
which helps produce the long abundant
heads of hair possessed by them.
The tender green of the rice fields
looks very pretty now, with plenty of
rain to grow it to perfection. 1t is
always daily sight among the ''barrios,'
the pounding out or hulling of rice by
hand with crudely constructed pestle and
BOWL each family preparing its own. 1t
is the principal article of food with these
primitive people; rice and the fish
which can be caught in great abundance
,,,o nd of
are certainly a sturdy, muscular lot, as
are also the cooleys of the Japanese and
Chinese races, who do the most laborious
work, and live almost exclusively on
rice. If we Americans were to better
realize the value of rice as staple arti-
Gle of our regular diet fully believe,
from my personal observations here,
where one sees laborers of the two races
mentioned las well as Filipinos) that We
would be much stronger and healthier
race. Rice is cheap commodity. and if
introduced properly by Settlement work
ers into the crowded tenement districts
and slums of our large American cities,
it would help greatly in eliminating the
large percentage of sickly, under-nourish-
ed bodies, especially among the children.
1t is not generally known, but it is a
fact, nevertheless, that fully one half Of
/ the human race makes rice its principal
article of diet, and this statement is
borne out by government statistics, but
very small portion indeed of that half
is found in our United States among our
native Americans. No, it is the for
eigners as we term them, who bring
forth far sturdier race of beings than
our own. The greatest drawback the
rice industry has had to contend with in
the States has been the limited knowI-
edge of the nutritive properties of this
cereal
The development of the industry has
been of such proportions during the past
eight or nine years that the problem be.
fore the rice men was to decide on prac.
teal plans for increasing consumption OF
it. With this object in view a demon.
strative rice kitchen, explaining the
virtues and all the different methods Of
preparation for table use, was conducted
at the Buffalo Exposition, and $25, OO(