The Spell of the Hawaiian Islands and the PhilippinesAnderson, Isabel
History
The Spell of the Hawaiian Islands and the Philippines
Anderson, Isabel
Hawaii; Philippines
Some of these Bontoc Igorots are skilful smiths, and they make excellent
earthen pots and clay pipes. They have interesting athletic sports of
their own and take to those of the Americans. They are especially fond
of beads, which are wound in their hair or hung about the neck, and
greatly value large white stones, caring little for agates, so highly
prized by the Kalingas.
Into Bontoc for this great occasion had been brought warriors and women
from the Kalingas and Ifugaos, with Igorots from about, some from a
distance of several days' travel; and for the first time these warring
tribes, who only two years before were taking each other's heads, came
peacefully together, and watched each other with as much interest as
they watched us.
The adventures of the American lieutenant governors read like romances,
and here they were before us with their following: the Kalingas more
dangerous and warlike than the Ifugaos, and the Ifugaos more picturesque
and interesting than the Igorots, and all together making a
never-to-be-forgotten scene.
There were, too, several small companies of native constabulary, for
these hill men make splendid soldiers and take great pride in their arms
and uniform, and have proved loyal to the death. All the different
tribes and the constabulary had turned out to receive the Secretary, and
it was a vociferous and noisy yelling crowd that streamed about in
irregular procession. We were, some of us, taken to a government house
that was comfortable, and took our meals at a club which the officials
have built and which is quite pathetically complete, and that evening we
did little before turning in--the first evening since we had landed in
the Islands when we were able to turn in at a reasonable hour with the
prospect of sleeping as late as we pleased next day.
Next day was a day of festivities, a cañao, for from morning till night
there was dancing by these fantastic peoples, whom so few white men
have ever seen. We were waked early enough, alas! by the _ganzas_--the
tom-toms--and there were parades of the different tribes through the
town. A small grandstand had been erected in the plaza, and there we
stood with the Secretary and the few white teachers and the missionaries
from about, while the procession was reviewed.
The constabulary came first, dressed only in loin cloths of different
colours below the waist, but with the regulation khaki uniform blouse
and cap above. They are officered by Americans and a few natives, and
are most military, notwithstanding the strange appearance of their bare
legs. Some companies were very well drilled, and they gave exhibitions
of different manuals as well as any regular white soldiers might have
done.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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