“ Almost the whole of the island, from the mountain summits to high-water mark, is covered with unbroken virgin forests, though in the narrow strip of lowland along the western coast there are some prairie and marshy regions. The rivers are all short and simple streams running down from the edge of the plateau on all sides, there being no large river-system. The climate is more variable than that prevailing in the southern islands, and Mindoro is especially exposed to the monsoons. ”

“ The mineral wealth is believed to be considerable, but only the coal-beds and sulphur springs have begun to be exploited. The principal exports are forest products, such as timber and pitch, and the forests also are the basis of the principal industries—wood-cutting and rattan-splitting. ”

“ In spite of the fertility and natural wealth of the island, its economic conditions are in a very backward state. A very small portion of it is cultivated, and the yield of agricultural products is scarcely enough for home consumption. ”