No less absurd are Blount's suggestions as to the general worthlessness of the island. There are high mountains in its interior, and there are great stretches of the most fertile land in the world along its coast. Its northern and eastern portions have a very heavy and evenly distributed rainfall, and are admirably suited to the growing of cocoanuts, hemp, cacao, rubber and similar tropical products. In this region rice flourishes wonderfully without irrigation. There was a time in the past when Mindoro was known as "the granary of the Philippines." Later its population was decimated by constant Moro attacks, and cattle disease destroyed its draft animals, with the result that the cultivated lands were abandoned to a considerable extent and again grew up to jungle, from which, however, it is easy to redeem them. The west coast has strongly marked wet and dry seasons similar to those at Manila. There is abundant water available for irrigation, furnished by streams which never run dry. Much of the soil is rich, and will grow the best of sugar in large quantity. The forests, which now cover extensive areas, abound in fine woods, and produce rubber and other valuable gums. There are outcroppings of lignite at numerous points on the island, and in the vicinity of Mt. Halcon is found the finest marble yet discovered in this part of the world. Gold is also present in some quantity at various places. In short, Mindoro is naturally one of the richest islands in the Archipelago. If its tillable lands were under high cultivation, it would support half the population of the Philippines. _Palawan_ In endeavouring to show that Palawan is without political importance Blount has followed precisely the procedure which he adopted in the case of Mindoro. First, he gives the area and the population of the island, when he should concern himself with the province. The area of the island is 4027 square miles; that of the province, 5238 square miles. According to the 1903 census, the population of the island was 10,918, while that of the province, which contains such thickly settled and fertile islands as Cuyo and Agutaya, was 39,582. Of course, if one wishes to emphasize the unimportance of Palawan, it is more convenient to take the figures for the island. Blount says:-- "Paragua, [327] the long narrow island seen at the extreme lower left of any map of the archipelago, extending northeast-southwest at an angle of about 45°, is practically worthless, being fit for nothing much except a penal colony, for which purpose it is in fact now used." [328]