Sheep.The old race of sheep, imported by the Spaniards previous to this century, still flourishes and is easily propagated. Those occasionally brought from Shanghai and Australia are considered to be deficient in endurance, unfruitful, and generally short-lived. Mutton is procurable every day in Manila; in the interior, however, at least in the eastern provinces, very rarely; although the rearing of sheep might there be carried on without difficulty, and in many places most profitably; the people being too idle to take care of the young lambs, which they complain are torn to pieces by the dogs when they wander about free. The sheep appear to have been acclimatized with difficulty. Morga says that they were brought several times from New Spain, but did not multiply; so that in his time this kind of domestic animal did not exist. Swine.Pork is eaten by wealthy Europeans only when the hog has been brought up from the litter at home. In order to prevent its wandering away, it is usually enclosed in a wide meshed cylindrical hamper of bamboo, upon filling which it is slaughtered. The native hogs are too nauseous for food, the animals maintaining themselves almost entirely on ordure.
Guesses at history from language.Crawfurd observes that the names of all the domestic animals in the Philippines belong to foreign languages, Those of the dog, swine, goat, carabao, cat, even of the fowl and the duck, are Malay or Javanese; while those of the horse, ox, and sheep, are Spanish. Until these animals were first imported from Malaysia, the aborigines were less fortunate in this respect than the Americans, who at least had the alpaca, llamanda, vicuña. The names likewise of most of the cultivated plants, such as rice, yams, sugar-cane, cacao and indigo, are said to be Malay, as well as those for silver, copper, and tin. Of the words relating to commerce, one-third are Malay; to which belong most of the terms used in trades, as well as the denominations for weights and measures, for the calendar—so far as it exists—and for numbers, besides the words for writing, reading, speaking, and narrative. On the other hand, only a small number of terms which refer to war are borrowed from the Malay.
Ancient Filipino civilization.Referring to the degree of civilization which the Philippines possessed previous to their intercourse with the Malays, Crawfurd concludes from the purely domestic words that they cultivated no corn, their vegetable food consisting of batata(?) and banana. They had not a single domestic animal; they were acquainted with iron and gold, but with no other metal, and were clothed in stuffs of cotton and alpaca, woven by themselves. They had invented a peculiar phonetic alphabet; and their religion consisted in the belief in good and evil spirits and witches, in circumcision, and in somewhat of divination by the stars. They therefore were superior to the inhabitants of the South Sea, inasmuch as they possessed gold, iron, and woven fabrics, and inferior to them in that they had neither dog, pig, nor fowl.
Progress under Spain.Assuming the truth of the above sketch of pre-Christian culture, which has been put together only with the help of defective linguistic sources, and comparing it with the present, we find, as the result, a considerable progress, for which the Philippines are indebted to the Spaniards. The influence of social relations has been already exhibited in the text. The Spaniards have imported the horse, the bullock, and the sheep; maize, coffee, sugar-cane, cacao, sesame, tobacco, indigo, many fruits, and probably the batata, which they met with in Mexico under the name of camotli.[7] From this circumstance the term camote, universal in the Philippines, appears to have had its origin, Crawfurd, indeed, erroneously considering it a native term. According to a communication from Dr. Witmack, the opinion has lately been conceived that the batata is indigenous not only to America, but also to the East Indies, as it has two names in Sanscrit, sharkarakanda and ruktaloo.
Slight industrial progress.With the exception of embroidery, the natives have made but little progress in industries, in the weaving and the plaiting of mats; and the handicrafts are entirely carried on by the Chinese.
Rice and abaca exported.The exports consist of rice and abaca. The province exports about twice as much rice as it consumes; a large quantity to Albay, which, less adapted for the cultivation of rice, produces only abaca; and a fair share to North Camarines, which is very mountainous, and little fertile. The rice can hardly be shipped to Manila, as there is no high road to the south side of the province, near to the principal town, and the transport by water from the north side, and from the whole of the eastern portion of Luzon, would immediately enhance the price of the product. Chinese monopolize trade. The imports are confined to the little that is imported by Chinese traders. The traders are almost all Chinese who alone possess shops in which clothing materials and woolen stuffs, partly of native and partly of European manufacture, women’s embroidered slippers, and imitation jewelry, may be obtained. The whole amount of capital invested in these shops certainly does not exceed $200,000. In the remaining pueblos of Camarines there are no Chinese merchants; and the inhabitants are consequently obliged to get their supplies from Naga.
Land for everybody.The land belongs to the State, but is let to any one who will build upon it. The usufruct passes to the children, and ceases only when the land remains unemployed for two whole years; after which it is competent for the executive to dispose of it to another person.
Homes.Every family possesses its own house; and the young husband generally builds with the assistance of his friends. In many places it does not cost more than four or five dollars, as he can, if necessary, build it himself free of expense, with the simple aid of the forest-knife (bolo), and of the materials to his hand, bamboo, Spanish cane, and palm-leaves. These houses, which are always built on piles on account of the humidity of the soil, often consist of a single shed, which serves for all the uses of a dwelling, and are the cause of great laxity and of filthy habits, the whole family sleeping therein in common, and every passer-by being a welcome guest. A fine house of boards for the family of a cabeza perhaps costs nearly $100; and the possessions of such a family in stock, furniture, ornaments, etc. (of which they are obliged to furnish an annual inventory), would range in value between $100 and $1,000. Some reach even as much as $10,000, while the richest family of the whole province is assessed at $40,000.
People not travellers.In general it may be said that every pueblo supplies travellers, its own necessaries, and produces little more. To the indolent native, especially to him of the eastern provinces, the village in which he was born is the world; and he leaves it only under the most pressing circumstances. Were it otherwise even, the strictness of the poll-tax would place great obstacles in the way of gratifying the desire for travel, generated by that oppressive impost.
Meals.The Filipino eats three times a day—about 7 a.m., 12, and at 7 or 8 in the evening. Those engaged in severe labor consume at each meal a chupa of rice; the common people, half a chupa at breakfast, one at mid-day, and half again in the evening, altogether two chupas. Each family reaps its own supply of rice, and preserves it in barns, or buys it winnowed at the market; in the latter case purchasing only the quantity for one day or for the individual meals. The average retail price is 3 cuartos for 2 chupas (14 chupas for 1 real). To free it from the husk, the quantity for each single meal is rubbed in a mortar by the women. This is in accordance with an ancient custom; but it is also due to the fear lest, otherwise, the store should be too quickly consumed. The rice, however, is but half cooked; and it would seem that this occurs in all places where it constitutes an essential part of the sustenance of the people, as may be seen, indeed, in Spain and Italy. Salt and much Spanish pepper (capsicum) are eaten as condiments; the latter, originally imported from America, growing all round the houses. To the common cooking-salt the natives prefer a so-called rock-salt, which they obtain by evaporation from sea-water previously filtered through ashes; and of which one chinanta (12 lbs. German) costs from one and one-half to two reals. The consumption of salt is extremely small.