The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1909-02-04

the tribes, causing Uncle sam TO put
forth his best efforts at Cancellation,
sometimes cajoling, again resorting to
force of arms. The other tribes embrac-
ed the Catholic and Protestant religion.
The Moro's inhabit Mindanao and the
Sulu Archipelago, though had it not been
for the Spanish force, followed by Amer
lean occupation, they would long since
have exterminated the more peaceful
tribes.
Previous to the Spanish rule, the Sui
tan of Sulu and his pirates boldly sailed
up Manila bay and into the Pasig river,
levying tribute and taking such plumber
as suited their fancy. Even to this day
the Moro is the "Bogieman" of the
Filipino.
The large southern Islands of Samar,
Zeyte, Negros, Cebu and Panay are in
habited by the Visagans and Negritos.
The Visayans are the tribe that have
produced the most Jealous resistance to
the government; their bands of "pula-
james" showing the most bloodthirsty
cruelty to all isolated "barrios'' that
show desire to accept American auth
GRITTY, killing small parties of Americans
wherever they can find them; nearly al
ways subjecting their hapless victims to
horrible tortures. But a few months
ago school teacher and civil service
employee were enjoying their vacation
in hunting trip, accompanied by several
natives. The whole party were killed
by "pulajanes," and only recently was
their disappearance explained by a cap
tured member of the band.
A gang Of Igorrotes have been employ
ed the past summer as "cargadores" at
the government boat landing, unloading
supplies of provisions and coal for the
camp. They look much like the Filipin-
os in general, except being more dimin-
utive in stature, but what they lack in
height is made up in breadth; such breadth
of muscle and sinew as would make our
champion prize fighters die Of envy.
They are strong as Hercules, and as they
swarm over the freight barge and pier,
lifting weights to head and shoulders
that cause the onlooker to gasp, and
trotting off with the easy cooley gait,
one cannot but look with wonder and ad-
miration at the wonderful play of mus
cular development in the bare, glisten-
ing bronze bodies, clad but in primitive
loin cloth.
AS to their preference for dog diet!
The animals are tied up and fed for a
time to fatten. Their food is withheld for
three days, when they become ravenous,
and huge dish of nicely prepared rice is
put before them when they naturally
gorge themselves, thus unconsciously
preparing their own carcass for the
feast The poor creature is Immediately
killed, trussed up and roasted.
This seems disgusting to an American,
but more terrible to me is the fact of
animals of the highest order of intelli-
gence like the dog and horse being SUBJ
jected to the more acute torture Of mind
as we'll as body, generally incidental to
the butchery of the lower animals. The
suffering of the dumb creatures that God
has put in our care has always appealed
to me very strongly. The dog and horse
seem especially human, and have, fully
believe, an intelligence equal at least,
and in some respects superior, to the lower
order of humanity, could they but give
better expression to it in speech.
My heart has been wrung countless
times since being in these islands at the
exhibitions of natural, inherent cruelty
to all animals by these native descend
ants of the treacherous, cruel Malay
race. A Filipino never seems to have
the slightest conception of what suffering
is to an animal, and as among our Ameri-
can Indians all forms of cruelty are prac-
ticed, and the most lingering of deaths
are imposed on poultry and all animals
used for food. | have sometimes talked
myself black in the face in rage and ex-
postulation at some of these instances;
but all Americans do not combine as they
should to help teach these people and
correct their cruelty towards animals.
There is society for prevention of
cruelty to animals in Manila, which has
helped the matter there to a small ex-
tent, but they do not half do their duty
in regard to the daily abuse by the
''cocherros" of the ''carramata" ponies
for hire, in particular, and in the prov
inces no one interests themselves or
cares to NEEDLE in the least.
The little understood native ponies are
more commonly used here as pack ami
mails than to draw rigs, and long pro-
cessions of them daily move dejectedly
along the road in '1ndian file," each
being attached to the one ahead by a
rope; two or three "hombres" walking
beside and beating them along when so
heavily loaded down in some cases they
can barely stagger, and then when one
has been often to the large native mar
kets as have, and watched these poor
little animals heavy, burdens removed,
and noted the back and sides invariably
worn raw by the constant friction of the