27 in the preceding year (issued in consequence of advices from the
excellent governor Don José Basco y Vargas), in 1787 it suspended
its meetings on account of the gradual and progressive decline of the
society. In 1819 it resumed its functions, but suffered a period of
discouragement and paralysis as a result of the Asiatic cholera morbus,
which appeared then for the first time in these islands; and until
October, 1822, the few meetings which the society held had no other
object than questions of internal order, having little interest or
importance for its history. [222] A memoir published by the society
with date of January 1, 1860, [223] makes the following statement:
"From that date (October 22, 1822), it can be said, begins the series
of the society's labors and services--achievements all the greater and
more valuable, inasmuch as they proceeded from slight and ephemeral
causes, and from a corporation which could not depend on material
resources even remotely proportioned to the magnitude of its object;
and which plunged into labors [which meant] nothing less than the
advancement and civilization of a virgin country, containing more
than 8,000 square leguas of surface, with 3,000,000 of inhabitants
still half-barbarous, and without stable or established mercantile
relations with any part of the world (on account of the recent
crisis in the privileged commerce, which bad just been abolished),
with a capital of 30,000 pesos, at 5,000 leguas distance from European
civilization, and with a government occupied besides with the political
situation and calamities of those days, confiding only in its patriotic
enthusiasm and in its desires for the aggrandizement and prosperity
of the country." In the above memoir are concisely recorded three
hundred forty-seven notable achievements, all beneficial to the
country, accomplished by that distinguished society in the space of
thirty-seven years. We would gladly reproduce entire in our modest
book the relation of services so important; as we cannot do this,
we indicate those which, in our judgment, are the more notable.
1823. February 1--Free distribution of one thousand three hundred
twenty copies of [books of] grammar, orthography, and reading-lessons,
for popular use. February 15--The society bestows a gold medal on
Don Doroteo Punzalan Estrella, for opening a channel which gave a
new and more convenient direction to the river of Tondo; and another
of silver on Don Agustin Campuzano and Pedro Antonio for other and
similar services rendered, to the benefit of the country. March
1--The society resolves to give two hundred fifty pesos annually to
endow in this island a chair of agriculture; and it appoints a prize
for the best memoir which should be written "on the causes which
hinder the development of the agriculture of the country." October
8--Translation and printing by the society of the book entitled,
Guide for the Lancasterian Mutual System of Education, [224] which
manual was distributed gratis, by decision adopted on March 9 of the
following year. December 2--Establishment of a school of drawing; the
first examinations for graduation from the said school took place April
9, 1828. The society resolves to send to India, on its own account, an
intelligent person to study the method of dyeing the cambaya fabrics;
and to order from North America three machines for hulling rice.
1824. March 9--Offering of prizes for the best pieces of cloth woven
in Filipinas in imitation of those from China, and for the most
successful experiments in dyes for cambayas; the prizes were awarded
on September 22 of the same year. September 22--It is agreed to pay
the cost of instructing eight Indians in the art of dyeing, in order
to extend this knowledge through the country; on October 6, 1825,
the first dyers from the society's school are examined and approved.
1826. February--Orders are given to reprint a manual presented by
Don José Montoya on the cultivation and preparation of indigo.
1827. April 24--Printing of a memoir on the cultivation of
coffee. October 30--The society votes the sum of eight hundred pesos
for aid of the hospital for the poor in this capital.
1828. November 26--The society orders the printing of a manual of
the elements of drawing.
1829. November 8--Machines for hulling rice are received, sent by
the Economic Society of Cádiz. December 13--The society supports the
government's project for establishing a bank in this capital.
1830. March 21--Reorganization of the Mercantile Register. [225]
1833. August 13--The society discusses and reports on the project of
cultivating the poppy and making opium in Filipinas.
1836. June 30--Voluntary donation of five hundred pesos in behalf of
the necessities of the State, on account of the war in España.
1837. June 27--The society awards a prize of one thousand pesos to Don
Pablo de Gironier [226] for what he had done in exhibiting a coffee
plantation of more than sixty thousand trees, in readiness for its
second crop.
1838. December 10--Another prize, of five hundred pesos, bestowed
on Don Vicente del Pino for a second coffee plantation of sixty
thousand trees.
1839. July 12--The society assigns the sum of one hundred fifty
pesos a month, for one year, to the publication of a periodical of
industries and commerce. [227] Information regarding the uncultivated
and crown lands of Filipinas is furnished by the society, by reason
of the royal decree of May 13, 1836.
1840. March 21--The sum of five hundred pesos awarded to Father
Blanco for the costs of printing and publishing the Flora filipina,
which bears his name.
1843. September 14--A prize is offered for the invention of a machine
for combing abacá [fiber].
1844. March 14--A memoir by the society on the cultivation of sugar
cane.
1845. August 22--An informatory report on the increase of population
and the necessity for protection to agriculture.
1846. September 22--Prizes of one thousand and 500 pesos to Don Iñigo
Gonzales Araola for two plantations of coffee, in accordance with
the conditions of the royal decree of April 6, 1838. The society
resolves to send young men from Filipinas to study mechanics in
foreign countries.
1847. February 3--A fifth prize, of five hundred pesos, to Don Antonio
Ortega for the cultivation of coffee. The society allots five hundred
pesos to the support of the university; and five hundred pesos for
the erection of nipa houses to aid the unfortunate [rendered homeless]
in the burning of the village of Santa Cruz. November 25--A proposal
for improving the construction of buildings in this capital; and
decision that the society build a house and afterward raffle it.
1849. October 10--The society votes one thousand pesos for a second
attempt to acclimate in these islands the martin, a bird which destroys
the locusts. On February 27, 1850, was added another allotment of
five hundred pesos; and on November 16, 1852, another of one thousand
three hundred eleven pesos, with the same end in view.
1850. August 16--Report is made in regard to a museum, and to
the provisional allowance of one thousand five hundred forty-seven
pesos to arrange that such museum be formed. The sum of five hundred
pesos is voted, to be spent for specimens of articles representing
the industries of the country, so that these can be exhibited at
the London Exposition; in consequence of this exhibit, the society
receives (April 12, 1853) from the Universal Exposition of London
a prize for the specimens that were sent there of fabrics woven from
vegetable fiber, and a special prize for the weaving of the cigar-cases
[petacas] of Baliuag. [228] On May 13, 1858, it receives from London
a new medal as a prize for articles from Filipinas.
1852. November 16--Systematic report on the opening of more ports to
the external commerce of Filipinas; on June 15, 1855, the society
congratulates the government on the establishment of the ports of
Iloilo, Sual, and Zamboanga.
1853. April 12--Prize of two thousand pesos and honor of a medal
awarded to Don Cándido Lopez Diaz for the invention of a machine
for cleaning the abacá. November 15--The sum of one hundred pesos is
voted to the subscription for the necessities of Galicia.
1854. March 17--Contribution of five hundred pesos for aiding the
necessities of the village of Tondo, in consequence of the fire which
occurred there some time before that date.
1855. January 9--The society offers the government twenty per cent of
its capital, without interest, for the improvement of the construction
of public buildings; on July 23, 1857, money is paid out for public
works. May 18--Gives information on the importance to the country of
the government being favorable to the free exportation of rice. August
26--Project for instituting a school for small children. October
3--Distribution of elementary books provided by the society, treating
of the cultivation of coffee, the preparation of indigo, and the
principles of drawing.
1856. March 4--Report in regard to sending young men to Europe,
in order that they may devote themselves to mechanical studies.
1856 [misprint for 1857?]. July 27--Votes a grant of one thousand
pesos to purchase objects for the museum and preserve them with those
already therein. December 12--Consideration of matters relating to
a company for [operating] steamboats. [229]
1858. September 6--Scheme for rendering uniform the weights and
measures of Filipinas. November 15--Consideration of two crops of
rice in Filipinas, and report favorable thereto by Señor Govantes
(a member), who furnished information on the mode of improving and
making dikes without any cost or difficulty.
In this interesting account of meritorious deeds we have omitted,
in order not to make it too long, the numerous reports sent out
by the society for draining marshes, loans of money for promoting
agriculture and the mechanic arts, rewards to literary works, etc. We
should state that at present [in 1875] the society holds the meetings
provided for in its by-laws; and that each member, in order to defray
in part the expenses of the corporation, contributes annually twelve
pesos from his own funds. We do not doubt that it will continue its
vigilant efforts, in order to realize, as far as possible its motto,
"Public felicity." The chronological record of its resolutions
from 1822 to 1860 also forms a memorial of the progress which has
been made in this country in agriculture and industries; [230] and,
although it is not strictly proper for this place, we set down here,
in continuation, some data referring to the said acts, for the purpose
of bringing together in this section of our work all the activities
in which the said Economic Society has exerted an influence.
1822. November 25--Woolen cloth [paño] woven, the first in Filipinas,
by one of its members, Don Santiago Herreros.
1823. July 18--First cards for wool made in Filipinas, by a member of
the corporation, Fray Diego Cera. It sends to China a plant and some
seeds of the vanilla of the country. The existence of cerpentaria
[sic] is recognized, a plant equally valuable with xiquilite [231]
for the production of indigo. On April 24, 1827, report was made
of a record of experiments made for extracting from the said plants
the fecula [i.e., coloring matter] of the indigo; and on September
5, 1828, a botanical description was furnished of the cerpentaria,
and an analysis of the fecula which it produces. September 4--Seed
of the sugar cane of Filipinas is sent to Habana, and that of rice
(or palay) to the Economic Society of Sevilla.
1824. September 2--The first permanent dyes for cotton and
nipis. October 19--Wool, silk, and shellac [goma laca] are produced
in Cebú.
1825. April 2--First report of the society on the establishment of
a paper-mill; the second report on the same subject was issued on
March 14, 1835.
1826. February 11--Spinning machinery is ordered from the United
States. June 13--The first of the goods called "Coast" cambayas and
kerchiefs, [but] of inferior quality, are woven and dyed, through
the influence of the corporation. December 9--The cochineal insect
is brought into these islands.
1827. April 24--Importation of a horse and two mares of superior
blood, presented to the society in order to improve the breed in
these islands.
1828. November 26--Information regarding the pine, the torch-wood
[tea] of northern Luzon, and of a plant which produces a blue dye
like the indigo.
1834. February 24--Reports for the acclimation of tea in Filipinas; the
first trial of this cultivation was undertaken on August 14, 1837, and
five hundred plants ordered from Batavia. August 8--Abacá is exported
for the first time. December 12--Information upon the existence of
mineral coal in Cebú, Surigao Angat, and Monte de San Mateo.
1835. March 14--Information collected regarding the silk industry
in Caraga, various kinds of fiber for cordage (including one which
appears suitable for replacing hemp), a bark suitable for dyeing black,
and the discovery of a copper mine in Masbate. September 15--First
sowing of abacá in Laguna; on March 19, 1837, the first specimens of
the said product are presented.
1836. April 23--Machines for hulling rice by steam power, and on a
large scale, introduced by Don Eulogio de Otaduy. Cottonseed sown in
Antique, using seed from Pernambuco.
1839. July 12--Caldrons [made] of red copper from the mountains
of Pangasinan.
1841. January 29--Propagation here of the cotton from North America
known by the name of "[Sea] Island;" and request for seeds is sent
to the United States.
1843. March 14--Importation of a steam machine for extracting the
fiber of [para acorchar] abacá.
1848. June 14--Inquiry into the existence in the country of the white
poppy from which the opium is extracted. (On April 20, 1849, the
society issues a very explicit report on the cultivation of the said
plant and the preparation of opium [232] in Filipinas.) December 22--A
note regarding gutta percha and gamboge, by Don Jacobo Zobel, a member.
1849. April 30--Acquisition and planting of eleven roots of the
tallow-tree, [233] at the country-house of Malacañan.
1850. November 4--Introduction of new apparatus and methods proposed
by Señor Sagra for the manufacture of sugar. Report on the promotion
of abacá culture.
1851. May 5--Memoir on clays in the environs of this capital,
and their application in the art of pottery. Wild cha [i.e., tea]
found in abundance in the island of Masbate. July 18--Report on the
exportation of rice.
1854. August 29--Appointment of a commission to report to the society
upon the present state of agriculture in the country, and obstacles
which must be removed for its complete development.
1855. January 9--Gutta-percha found in Romblon. [234] July 28--The
society grants a gold medal to Don Juan B. Marcaido for his efforts
and studies in the method of extracting the abacá fiber from all the
species of bananas which grow in the country.
1856. March 4--Communications referring to the method of securing the
[edible] birds'-nests in Calamianes.
1857. October 1--Presentation of specimens of soaps made in the
country.
1858. April 19--Knowledge of a gum called conchú found in
Marianas. August 15--Information given by Señor Barbaza, a member,
relative to a hundred kinds of rice in Visayas.
1859. May 10--Project regarding agriculture and commerce.
(We have endeavored to make note of the important activities in which
the said society has taken the initiative or has shared since 1860,
up to the date of the printing of the Manual; and here is the result
of our investigations.)
1860. February 11--The society makes a subscription of five thousand
pesos to defray, in part, the expenses of the African war.
1861. October 8--The society votes to contribute two thousand pesos
from its funds for the expenses of sending articles from Filipinas
to the London exposition. Efforts are made to acclimate in Filipinas
the cochineal insect.
1862. March 8--It decides to give a prize to the cotton-grower
who produces most. May 26--Full report by the society in favor
of the establishment of a school of agriculture, theoretical and
practical. Report on conducting water to the capital. [235] September
30--The society resolves to obtain seed of cotton from Egypt, to
distribute it among the farmers. October 30--The society receives
official notice of the prizes awarded to the Philippine exhibitors
in the London exposition.
1863. May 23--A specimen of spirits of turpentine is presented to the
society, having a strength of 37° by Cartier's areometer, obtained
from the trees of the country; a prize is granted to the person who
prepared it. October 27--The society subscribes five hundred pesos
to relieve the necessities of the artisans and laborers who suffered
in the earthquake of June 3.
1864. July 8--Full report regarding the rebate of import duties on
wheat flour.
1865. July 17--The society votes three gold medals and five of silver,
and five prizes of one hundred pesos each, for the owners of new houses
which may be built, which in the greatest degree shall combine the
requirements of solidity and economy, and in which no nipa shall be
used. October 31--Full report on the establishment of a quarantine
station in the bay of Manila. The society resolves to contribute a
sum monthly for the promotion of the botanical garden, a practical
school of botany. [236]
1866. December 22--The society votes seven prizes in money for the
best exhibitors, in the fair at Batangas: for cows with their calves,
for the two finest female carabaos [caraballas] with their calves; for
the two finest mares with their colts; to the female weaver who shall
present [specimens of] the best ordinary fabrics of cotton or abacá
for common use in the garments of the people; for the best fabrics of
silk; for rewarding makers of hats or petacas; and for the horse-races.
1867. October 30--The society resolves to spend five hundred pesos in
purchasing plows, spades, and other farming implements, to distribute
them among the farmers of Ilocos and Abra who may have suffered the
greatest losses in consequence of a terrible inundation.
1868. July 11--The society decides to reward, with a gold and a silver
medal, the authors of the best two memoirs which shall be presented
proposing "the means which the government and the society can employ
to secure the development of agriculture in the country." October
16--Motion for the establishment of a savings bank and public loan
office.
1871. December 11--A gold medal is granted to Don Santiago Patero
for the memoir presented to the society by that gentleman upon the
cultivation of coffee and cacao, besides the printing of five thousand
copies of the said treatise in order that it may be brought to the
knowledge of the farmers.
1874. Project for an annual fair and exposition at Manila. A study
of the mutual use of bills of exchange in Filipinas. Preparation of
a memoir on the cultivation and manufacture of sugar; and others on
the trade in coffee and cacao, and the abacá industry. Appointment
of a commission for studying the project for establishment of an
agricultural bank.
[The limitations of our available space compel us to omit any detailed
account of agriculture in the islands; we have chosen to present,
in the preceding papers, a view of agricultural conditions at two
different periods--in Basco's decree, 1784; and in Jagor's account,
1866--with an outline of the efforts and achievements of the Economic
Society from 1781 to 1874 (which aimed to develop the agricultural
resources of the country and with these its manufactures and commerce),
and references to the leading authorities on this subject, most of
these works being easy of access for the student and thus rendering
unnecessary our further use of them in this series. These references
here follow: Comyn, Estado, pp. 6-21, and chart ii at end; Mas,
Informe, ii, section on agriculture (47 pp.); Mallat, Les Philippines,
ii, pp. 255-282; Buzeta and Bravo, Diccionario, i, pp. 169-206; Jagor,
Reisen, in various places; Montero y Vidal, Archipiélago filipino,
pp. 204-216; Worcester, Philippine Islands, pp. 503-510--and, for
description of native methods, [237] his "Non-Christian Tribes of
Northern Luzon," in Phil. Journal of Science, October, 1906; the
Annual Reports of U. S. Philippine Commission; Official Handbook of
Philippines, pp. 99-118; Census of the Philippines, iv, pp. 11-394
(including detailed and classified statistics of the subject for the
year 1903); and the Farmers' Bulletins published by the Insular Bureau
of Agriculture, Manila. Cf. also the chapters on agriculture, titles
to land, and agricultural products, in "Remarks by an Englishman"
and Bernaldez's "Memorial," in VOL. LI; the section on agriculture
in LeRoy's contribution to the present volume; and titles of works on
these subjects which are enumerated in Griffin's List of Books on the
Philippines, Pardo de Tavera's Biblioteca filipina, Vindel's Catálogo
biblioteca filipina, and Retana's Aparato bibliográfico de Filipinas
(Madrid, 1906).]
ERRATA AND ADDENDA TO VOLUMES I-LII
VOLUME I
P. 91, lines 1-3: This is not correctly stated; see p. 30, last
sentence in first paragraph.
P. 130, middle: Navarrete, cited; "edition 1858" should read "edition
1859."
P. 185, last paragraph: The following information is furnished by
the courtesy of Prof. Winslow Upton, director of Ladd Observatory,
Brown University: "The first and second methods enumerated in this
quotation refer to that now known as the Method by Lunar Distances,
which was already in use in the sixteenth century. In the former the
position of the moon was to be determined by its measured distance from
some star, in the latter from the sun. Since risings and settings at an
assumed horizon are specified, it is probable that the distance between
moon and sun was determined by the time interval of their respective
risings and settings. The fourth method is that still known by the same
name. The statement of the third method is obscure. It may mean that
the longitude was to be found by a measured distance on the surface
of the earth from a station whose longitude was already known. This
distance could be turned into difference of longitude if the length
corresponding to a degree of longitude in that latitude were first
determined. This method is used today in geodetic operations."
P. 218, note 184: The India House of Trade (Casa de Contratación) was
created by a decree of Isabel of Castilla (January 14, 1503) as both a
commercial board and a tribunal; and it partly replaced the admiralty
court which had been established in Sevilla since the thirteenth
century, the quarters of the latter (in the old Alcázar) being
assigned to the India House when the latter was first organized. The
powers of the India House increased greatly in the course of time,
and it was subordinate to no council save that of the Indias; in
1583 a chamber of justice was added to it. This institution was, by a
decree of 1717, removed in the following year to Cádiz. An interesting
study on the India House is found in Los trabajos geográficos de
la Casa de Contratación (Sevilla, 1900), by Manuel de la Puente y
Olea. This work--prepared by careful examination of the documents in
the archives--is devoted to the early voyages of discovery that were
undertaken under the auspices of the India House and its navigators,
ending with that of Loaysa (1525); the geographical studies made by
its cosmographers, and other scientific researches connected with
its enterprises; and the enrichment of the fauna and flora of the
New World due to the conveyance thither of useful plants, fruits,
and animals through the agency of the House. See also the detailed
account of this institution, its organization, policy, and methods,
by Bernard Moses, in Annual Report of American Historical Association,
1894, pp. 93-123: a large part of that paper also appears in his
Establishment of Spanish Rule in America (N. Y., 1898), chap. iii.
P. 275, note 201: For "inflicted" read "afflicted."