His declaration is confirmed by Dr. Montano, a French traveller and skilled explorer, who however does not say that he saw the gold dust amongst the sand. From Surigao to Gigaquil the people are engaged in washing the sands for gold. Foreman states that for many months remittances of four or five pounds weight of gold were sent from Mindanao to a firm in Manila, and that it was alluvial gold from Surigao extracted by the natives. Don José Centeno, Inspector of Mines, says in a report: "The most important workings effected in Surigao are in the Caninon-Binutong and Cansostral mountains, a day's journey from the town. "These mountains consist of slaty talc much metamorphosed, and of serpentine. In the first are found veins of calcite and quartz from half-an-inch to three inches thick, in which especially in the calcite the gold is visible mixed with iron and copper pyrites, galena and blende. It is a remarkable circumstance that the most mineralized veins run always in an east and west direction, whilst the poor and sterile veins always follow another direction. The workings are entirely on the surface, as the abundance of water which flows to them prevents sinking shafts, and nothing is known of the richness at depth. Rich and sterile parts alternate, the gold being mostly in pockets. From one of the veins in Caninoro in a length of eighteen inches one hundred ounces of gold were taken." Some time after this find, Messrs. Aldecoa & Co., a Manila firm, erected stamps at Surigao, and a certain amount of gold was sent up by every steamer to Manila, but in spite of the apparently favourable circumstances, the enterprise was ultimately abandoned and the machinery removed. I do not know the reason, but people in Manila are so used to the collapse of mining companies that it is regarded as their natural and inevitable end, and no explanations are required. Nieto (p. 75) mentions the northern parts of the province of Surigao and Misamis as the richest in gold. In Misamis there is both alluvial gold and rich quartz reefs, the richest known spots being Pighoulugan on the River Cagayan, Iponan and Pigtao. The ore at the latter place is auriferous iron pyrites, called by the natives Inga. Nuggets weighing from two and a half to four ounces have been found in these places, so that Pigafetta's stories are not without foundation.