Billabong

“ There was one hawker who came regularly to Billabong; a cheery old fellow, well known and respected, whose caste was not strict enough to prevent his refusing the station hospitality, and whose appearance was always welcome. He had been coming so long that he knew them all well, and took an almost affectionate interest in Jim and Norah, always bringing some little gift for the latter. The men liked him, for he had been known to "turn to" and work at a bush fire "as hearty as if he weren't a fat little image av a haythen," said Murty O'Toole ”

“ The stockyards of an Australian station form a very important part of its working establishment. A big “run” may have several sets of yards to save the trouble of driving stock far on any direction; but the main yards are always near the homestead—sometimes, indeed, a great deal too near. The yards at Billabong, however, did not err in this respect, being planned in a secluded corner whence they opened upon two paddocks. A belt of dwarfed gum-trees surrounded and shaded them ”

“ Distribution of These Peoples.—All through the central islands, Panay, Negros, Leyte, Samar, Marinduque, and northern Mindanao, are the Bisaya, the largest of these peoples. At the southern extremity of Luzon, in the provinces of Sorsogon and the Camarines, are the Bicol. North of these, holding central Luzon, Batangas, Cavite, Manila, Laguna, Bataan, Bulacan, and Nueva Ecija, are the Tagálog, while the great plain of northern Luzon is occupied by the Pampango and Pangasinan. ”

“ The father accepted this man willingly, promising to treat him as one of his own men, and to regard him as such. Thereupon they set sail for the port of Buliano, whence they had come hither, taking leave of the master-of-camp and the rest of the army, not without the shedding of tears, no less than by those at Manila. The master-of-camp sent with them, to accompany the fathers and their companions, as far as the said port, the sargento-mayor, [29] who bore the letter to Omoncon and a present to the same of provisions and other articles. ”

“ I own I doubt it; the people in the vicinity we know nothing of, but we shall find them, in all probability, hostile. The Sooloos we are already too well acquainted with. The Illanuns are in the vicinity. In the case of Labuan, the details of the first establishment (no small step) can be clearly seen and arranged; but I do not see my way regarding Balambangan. The matter is of secondary importance, but a languishing settlement at first is to be dreaded; food will be scarce, and houses difficult to build; while at Labuan the population of Bruni are at our disposal, and the government our own. ”

“ The alcalde-mayor and overseer-general of the Malucos lives there. Otóng lies about one and one-half leguas from the port. One may reach it either by the beach, or by a salt-water creek which flows through the village (and even to the very gates of our convent) , and then makes [219] a turn, leaving the village an island. About two leguas along the coast lies the convent of Tigbauang, which belongs to our order. Today it is in charge of more than eight hundred Indians. The capital is very small, for it enjoys the conscriptions of Ilong-ilong. ”

“ The district of Bislìg, which is the last and most distant from Manila among those possessed there by our reformed order, is located in Carhàga, in the island of Mindanào and consists of five villages. These are Bislìg, which is the chief one, Hinatòan, Catèl, Bagàngan, and Carhàga. At its beginning the province was named from the last one, as it was then the settlement of the greatest population. Two religious only are generally designated [138] for the spiritual administration of this district, and they have too much work in the exercise of it. ”

“ I paid a visit to Buninyong, and two visits to Ballarat. Buninyong is properly the name of the mountain there, an extinct volcano, which forms a prominent object in the landscape. The small town takes the same name. It is remarkable chiefly for the fertility of the land in the immediate neighbourhood. It is older than Ballarat, which previous to the discovery of the gold there in 1851 did not exist. There are gold mines, too, at Buninyong, both alluvial and quartz, but chiefly the latter. The Salvation Army flourishes at Buninyong as well as at most places in the Colonies. ”

“ Balambángan is exactly analogous, in every respect, to Pinang; it does not admit of territorial extension, and must exist, if at all, by commerce solely. Malúdu, on the other hand, is a dependency on the island of Borneo, which admits of any degree of territorial extension, may always subsist any number of inhabitants by its own produce, and is said to communicate, by a land carriage of little more than forty miles, with the central lakes in the vicinity of the gold countries. ”

“ It thus appears that from Aparri to Bayombong there would be but a week or ten days of unresisted marching to reach the watershed region, Nueva Viscaya. The Japanese soldier’s ration is mainly rice, so that he can carry more days’ travel rations than almost any other soldier in the world. Never fear about their making the journey inside of a week or ten days, once they start. To descend from the watershed aforesaid, over the Caranglan Pass, and down the valley of the Rio Grande de Pampanga to Manila, another three or four days would be all that would be needed. ”

“ There is a beautiful park in the centre of the town, and a fine drive, where the European residents are wont to meet. In and around the town are many pretty bungalows and some large sugar-factories.
Santa Cruz de Malabon is a town in the rice-district of Luzon. It is a charming little place, and some wealthy natives live there. Near the town are several water-power rice-husking mills, that give [143] employment to hundreds of natives. The country all around is low and flat, but not lacking in beauty. ”

“ The greater number of the people are Mahometan Moros and Indians; besides other Indians who tat-too themselves in the fashion of their ancestors, and invoke the demon. They have no native king. Certain of the richest individual chiefs rule the country. They wage war with one another, take prisoners in their wars, enslave them, and sell them from province to province.
This island of Luzon is sixty leagues from the mainland of China. The city and harbor of Manila is in thirteen degrees north latitude. This island measures five hundred leagues in circumference. ”

“ It is gratifying to know that as our troops got away from the immediate vicinity of Manila they found the natives of the country exceedingly friendly * * *. This was doubtless due in some measure to the fact that the Pampangos, who inhabit the provinces of Pampanga and Tarlac, and the Pangasinanes, who inhabit Pangasinan, as well as the other more northerly tribes, are unfriendly to the Tagalogs, and had simply submitted to the military domination of that tribe, from which they were glad to be relieved. ”

“ The island is larger than that of Labuan, and, as far as we know, has no coal. The great, and to me conclusive consideration against Balambangan is, that it is in the very nest of pirates, and surrounded by warlike and hostile people; and that to render it secure and effective, at least double the force would be necessary there that would suffice at Labuan. If Labuan succeeds and pays its own expenses, we might then take Balambangan; for the next best thing to a location on the main is to influence the people thereon by a succession of insular establishments. ”

“ Malabon is five miles north of Manila, on the bay, not far from Caloocan. On the day named, a landing party of 125 men from the U. S. S. Bennington went ashore near Malabon to make photographs, in aid of navy gunnery, of certain entrenchments and buildings that had been struck by shells from the Monadnock. They foolishly failed to throw out scouts ahead of their column, and were suddenly greeted with a withering fire from a whole regiment of insurgents who had seen them first and lain in wait for them. They retired with considerably more haste than they had gone forth. ”

“ Mamonglo ordered the family under a white blanket, and then Page 336touched the head of each person with a lead sinker, while his companion spirit waved a bundle of rice and a firebrand over them, “To take away the sickness which they had sent.” Six other spirits came long enough to drink, then Bisangolan occupied the attention of all for a time. He is an old man, a giant who lives near the river, and with his head-axe keeps the trees and driftwood from jamming, and thus prevents floods. ”

“ It has about six hundred Indians as tributarios. Two religious live there generally. Service is performed in the Tagál tongue. We have mentioned this convent in our description of the lake of Bongbong or Taal, which is the nearest convent to Batangas, from which it is even distant only one day’s journey; the road passes through certain most excellent meadows, resembling those of España; where one may rear an immense number of cattle. The Indians through all this district, which they call the Comintan, make use of domestic cattle on which they travel and carry their loads. ”

“ It is not possible to even approximate the enemy’s loss other than on the battlefield. The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Philippine Atlas gives the table estimating the population of the various provinces of the Philippine archipelago prior to the American occupation. This estimate gives the population of Batangas province at 312,192. The American Census of the Philippines of 1903 gives the population of Batangas province at 257,715.6 This would present a difference in the population of Batangas prior to 1898 and its population after the war of 54,477. ”

“ Besides these peaceful tribes there are in Bontoc, and in the northern parts of the Cordillera, many large tribes, with splendid mountain villages, who are nevertheless in a constant and dreadful state of war. Nearly every town is in feud with its neighbors, and the practice of taking heads leads to frequent murder and combat. A most curious tribe of persistent head hunters are the Ibilao, or Ilongotes, who live in the Caraballo Sur Mountains between Nueva Ecija and Nueva Vizcaya. ”

“ Zamboanga in Mindanao is the capital of the whole Moro Province and one of the most important ports in the Islands. Its population is very cosmopolitan—an admixture of Moros, Filipinos, Orientals, and Caucasians. The city was for more than three centuries the rallying point of the Christian forces in their seemingly endless contest with the Moro pirates in neighboring waters.
The city has a healthful site and is cooler than Manila. ”

“ The territory over which it presides, as proper to itself, includes the ten civil provinces nearest to Manila—namely, Tondo, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva-Ecija, Batangas, Laguna, Cavite, Bataan, Zambales, and Mindoro—in addition to the small island of Corregidor, which is found outside the said province, and which forms a military police commandancy. It is not so extensive, with these provinces, as are its suffragan sees; but it is the one that unites the greatest number of souls. ”

“ Baloey, a Kagan living at Padada, claims to have seen a Bila-an sacrifice at Ma-al, about ten years ago, while Bagobo Datu Ansig of Talun, and Tongkaling of Cibolan claim to have witnessed several of these events. As their accounts agree in most particulars with the two just recorded, it seems probable that we have here a fairly accurate account of a rite which no white man has seen or can hope to see.
In studying the decorative art of this people a person encounters the same difficulties as with the Bagobo. ”

“ The general chapter of 1672, meeting in Spain, assigns definitors and discreets to the Philippine province.
Chapter iv of the ninth decade of the history carries us into Mindanao, where the work among the heathen Tagabalòyes is reviewed. These are a heathen people living in the neighborhood of Bislig in Caraga, the Recollect mission center farthest from Manila, in the mountains called Balooy (whence their name) . They are a domestically inclined people, courageous and intelligent, faithful in their treaties and promises, and said to be the descendants of the Japanese. ”

“ Southern Luzon, the country of Batangas, and the Camarines, extends a hundred miles south of Manila Bay. [52]
In the far north are the rich provinces of Cagayan, Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur, Abra, Benguet, and Nueva Viscaya. The land at the sea level produces hemp, tobacco, rice, and cocoanuts; the heavily-timbered mountain slopes contain rich woods, cedar, mahogany, molave, ebony, and ipil. A wonderful river rushes through the mountain cañons, and the famous valley of the Cagayan is formed—the garden of Eden of the Philippines. ”

“ Filipinos apparently are not fond of [57] this drink, and we nearly always had to send out and get more. No sooner were we in the house than addresses began, one of these being in Ilokano. The native language of Bambang, however, is the Isanay, spoken elsewhere only at Aritao and Dúpax, a dying tongue, doomed to early extinction.
Bambang, like nearly all the other Nueva Vizcaya towns we had seen or were to see, shows signs of decadence. It has a good church and convento, a great plaza, and is surrounded by a fertile country, but something is missing. ”

“ On the west lies the swampy foreshore of Panay with a mountain range inland, daring the sunlight with scarpy flanks, on which every ravine and every cleft are sunk in shadows of violet and pink. The water of the straits is glassy and full of jelly-fish, some of the white dome-like kind, but more of the purple ones that float on the water like a petalled flower.
Iloilo was a miniature edition of Manila, save that there were more gardens and that there was a rural atmosphere such as is characteristic of small towns in the States. ”