The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1926-04-06
SCHOOL,
HELPS

Directly east OF the Indo-C Chinese
peninsula, and north of the East
Indies and Australia are the Philip.
pine Islands. so far away from their
guardian, the United States, that
when It Is Il o'clock noon In New
York City It is 1903 a m. tomorrow
in Manila. They lie wholly within
the tropics, so that If they could be
brought straight across the Pacific
20 the American continents they
would extend from the middle OF
| Mexico to the middle of Colombia,
| South America. populated almost
entirely by people Of the colored
races, these distant tropic islands
seem strange wards for America;
and indeed the United States IS only
waiting for the Filipinos TO become
capable Of selfgovernment before
granting them independence. In the
meantime It is continuing ifs work;
of education and sanitation begun
in 1899 at the close Of the Spanish
American War, when It acquired the
islands by conquest and purchase
from Spain.
Scattered in haphazard fashion be
tween the Chira Sea and the Pacific
| Ocean, the 3,140 islands of the Phil
ippines form an archipelago almost
as large as that Of Japan proper.
Luzon. the farthest north OF the
large islands. Is equal In area TO
Ohio, and Mindanao. In the extreme
south. is as large as Indiana. Be
tween L,uzon and Mindanao are eight
other islands Of considerable I'M
portance. while to the southwest In
the long, narrow island Of Palawan.
Hundreds, however. are so small
that they are mere specks on the
ocean, inhabited only by seabirds.
All but 367 out Of the $40 islands
occupy areas Of less than one square
mile apiece.
On all the large islands the
scenery IS made beautiful by high
mountains ranges and by the
diversity and abundance Of tropical
vegetation. The Philippines have
no deserts, nor even barren lava
beds. More than half Of the entire
surface is covered with forests,
many Of which in the mountainous
Interiors, are inhabited by savages
and have never been fully explored.
There are about fifty volcanoes
scattered about the archi elago,
some of which are still active. OF
these the most beautiful is Mayor,
in southern Luzon, a perfect cone
rising to a height of almost 5000
feet, its lofty crater perpetually
enveloped in a great cloud of vapor,
and the most remarkable "a Taal,
which has a crater containing
several lakes Of many-colored boiling
liquids.
Summer and winter are much
alike in the Philippines; It IS al
mountain tops. Manila, the capital,
has an average variation of only 8
degrees between winter and sum-
mer temperatures. From June to
November the southwest monsoon
waters only the west side of the
mountains. while from November
to June The monsoon blows in the
opposite direction, making the east
side raily.
The original inhabitants were pig
by blacks. the Negritos or Little
Negroes" one Of the most diminu-
tive peoples in the world. The Ig-
orots and allied tribes are a much
more savage people. who keep to
the mountain as persisently as the
Negrltos to the forests.
The most formidable people with
whom the Spaniards and Americans
had 10 deal were the Moros. a Ma
layan race with a religion Of de-
graded Mohammedanism. They re-
celved their first serious defeats In
1902-03, when Capt. John Joseph
Pershing led troops against them
in Mindanao, and Gen. Leonard
Wood quelled an uprising in the
Susu Islands.
The seven great tribes In the