retained Mr. D. H. Burnham, of Chicago, Ill., a landscape architect of the United States of great eminence in his profession, to come to Manila for the purpose of making a comprehensive and harmonious plan for the development of the park system of Manila and the proper location of public buildings which may have to be constructed. He is now enroute from the United States to Manila. Work on the electric street railway, the construction of which was commenced several months ago, has been prosecuted with great energy by the Manila Electric Railroad and Light Company, the owner of the franchise. Many miles of rails have been laid in the streets in a substantial and permanent way and the power house is now nearing completion. Doubtless the street cars will be in operation on many miles of their lines within the next ninety days, and the entire system will be completed during the present fiscal year. Permits for the erection of 1,041 houses to be constructed of strong materials at an estimated cost of P3,380,853, and for the repair of 642 buildings of strong materials at an estimated cost of P402,776, for 2,832 buildings to be constructed of light materials at an estimated cost of P455,752, and for the repair of 623 buildings of light materials at an estimated cost of P50,864, have been issued, which, all things considered, indicates a continued and satisfactory growth of population and wealth in the city.

Continued investigations have been made by Messrs. O. L. Ingalls and J. F. Case, the engineers in charge of the projected sewer and water systems for the city, and report has been made by Mr. Desmond Fitzgerald, the consulting engineer retained by the Commission for that purpose, upon the plans prepared by them, so that the city authorities are ready to begin work at an early date upon both the water and the sewer systems thus projected.

Altogether it may be stated that the fiscal year shows much work done and progress made in all lines which make for the improvement, development, and beautification of the insular capital. Hereto attached as Exhibit A will be found the annual report of the municipal board of Manila.

MANILA HARBOR IMPROVEMENT.

The work of improving the port of Manila, pursuant to the provisions of Act No. 22 of the Commission and its amendments, has steadily progressed during the past fiscal year. The Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific Company, of New York and San Francisco, to which has been awarded the contract for this work, had constructed at the close of the fiscal year 1903, 4,189.4 linear feet of pile and timber bulkhead and had deposited 102,955 tons of rock as filling and riprap for the same. On the east breakwater 12,728 long tons of rock had been placed, and on the west breakwater 81,105 tons. Their hydraulic

dredge had deposited behind the bulkhead thus constructed 1,150,233 cubic yards of material dredged from the outer basin.

During the fiscal year 1904, 849.6 linear feet of timber bulkhead have been constructed, and 49,393 short tons of rock were placed as filling for this bulkhead, thereby completing the contract for riprapping; 6,857 long tons of rock and 1,045 cubic yards of concrete blocks were placed in the east breakwater, thus completing the same on December 31, 1903; 152,607.56 long tons of rock were placed in the west breakwater and 106,709 tons in the detached breakwater; 5,373.68 cubic yards of rubble masonry were constructed, and 1,833,869 cubic yards of material were dredged from the outer basin and deposited behind the bulkhead. The placing of this large amount of material behind the bulkhead had the effect in several instances of causing it to give away, necessitating repairs and reenforcement. Indications now are that there will be no further trouble from this source and that a permanent structure has been secured. During the fiscal year 1904 there was expended on the harbor improvement work of Manila, exclusive of the work in the Pasig River, the sum of $1,183,928.14, and during previous years $778,484.25, or a total of $1,962,412.39, United States currency. As a result of this expenditure the sea walls have been so extended and built up and the interior basin so deepened by dredging as to furnish even now a safe and comparatively smooth basin in which ships drawing not more than 27 feet may find protection against typhoons and may take on and discharge cargo in security.

A careful investigation has been made by the engineer in charge of the work and plans have been matured for the erection of commodious piers against which vessels may moor, thus eliminating much of the tedious and expensive system of lighterage now in vogue. Existing contracts provide for a total expenditure of $4,029,000, and when the work specified in these contracts shall have been completed and piers constructed as contemplated, Manila will offer to the shipping of the world a safe and commodious harbor with a minimum depth of 33 feet, which will undoubtedly be the best in the Orient.

In view of the fact that several great steamships have already been constructed, which ply between San Francisco and other Pacific ports and Manila, with a draft of more than 30 feet, and that still larger vessels are now being constructed which will, perhaps, have an increased draft, it may become worth considering in the not remote future whether the depth of the harbor should not be increased by several feet for their accommodation. For the present and for several years to come, however, the harbor as projected will answer all practical purposes, and besides, the state of our finances would seem at this time to forbid any expenditure in excess of that already contemplated.

PASIG RIVER IMPROVEMENT.

As a part of the system for the improvement of the port of Manila the deepening of the Pasig River was considered essential. This stream has a length of about 12 miles, is the outlet of the large lake known as "Laguna de Bay," and empties into Manila Bay. It bisects the city of Manila and its lower reach furnishes a desirable harbor for coastwise vessels and other boats of small draft. For perhaps a mile from its mouth along either bank wharves have been constructed and are nearly always in constant use, and for this distance the natural depth of the river is about 14 feet, gradually lessening as it approches the lake. As many of the coastwise vessels draw from 14 to 16 feet it has been deemed necessary, in the interest of commerce, that a greater depth should be secured below the Bridge of Spain. The river, from that bridge to its entrance into Laguna de Bay, is more or less obstructed by shoals made by silt brought from the lake, so that the various water craft which ply between Manila and the towns upon the lake, and which furnish the vehicle for a very large trade, have found navigation always difficult and more or less dangerous. To obviate these difficulties the river has been dredged below the Bridge of Spain to a minimum depth of about 18 feet, and the shoals have been removed and the river deepened to the extent deemed necessary in the upper part. In prosecuting this work and in repairing the sea walls along the lower Pasig there has been expended by the insular government during the past fiscal year the sum of $131,315.67, United States currency.

Both the Manila harbor and the Pasig River improvement work have during the past year been under the efficient supervision and direction of Maj C. McD. Townsend, Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, whose report is hereto attached as Exhibit " B."

PHILIPPINE CIVIL-SERVICE BOARD.

The instructions of the President of the United States, promulgated for the direction and guidance of the Philippine Commission, directed that it should begin the performance of its legislative duties on the 1st of September, 1900. On the 19th of that month the Commission enacted Act No. 5, entitled "An act for the establishment and maintenance of an efficient and honest civil service in the Philippine Islands," and declared that the act should apply to all appointments of civilians to executive positions in the various bureaus and offices of the insular government which had then been established, with the exception of the position of school-teacher in the bureau of public instruction, for which it was stated special legislation would be provided. There were also excepted temporarily the heads of the various bureaus and chief officers until the end of a period of eighteen

months after the civil-service board should certify that it had a sufficient list of eligibles to supply vacancies, after which these appointments were to come under civil-service rules and be governed by the provisions of the act. Several other bureaus were later created, all of which were brought within the provisions of the civilservice act, except certain professional and technical positions, for which other provision was made. From time to time the original civil-service act has been extended and enlarged, so that it now includes all provincial treasurers and supervisors and their deputies and assistants, municipal treasurers, American school-teachers, and Filipino school-teachers in the city of Manila.

In making appointments under the civil-service laws it was declared that preference should be given first to Filipinos, and second to honorably discharged soldiers, sailors, and marines of the United States. The Commission in the beginning fully appreciated that without such laws civil government in these islands would be unsatisfactory, productive of scandal, and would certainly result in mortifying failure. The original civil-service act blanketed into the service all civil employees then in office, with a proviso for their future examination by the civil-service board and dismissal if found incompetent. The law has been rigidly enforced and has fully justified its enactment. Whilst there have been a number of dismissals from the service either for incompetency or dishonesty, such cases have generally been among those thus blanketed into the service without an opportunity for investigation as to their antecedents, character, and competency; but it is gratifying to note that these instances of official delinquency, whilst too numerous to be agreeable, have been comparatively few in number and that the officers and employees of the government as a whole have been honest and efficient.

As it was contemplated to establish in the islands a government based upon American principles and to follow in administration, as far as was practicable, American methods, it was obviously necessary that the principal executive offices should in the beginning generally be filled by Americans, and, in order effectively to carry on the government, that the majority of their most important subordinates should have a knowledge of the English language.

The use of the English language in administering a government for the Filipinos, who did not as a rule speak it, was less open to criticism than it might otherwise have been, for the reason that the Spanish language, which was the official language under the former régime, had been taught only sparingly and was practically unknown to probably 95 per cent of the people, and that the great mass of the people lacked a common language of their own, as they were divided into numerous tribes, each speaking a different dialect. For these reasons it was believed advisable by the Commission to make English the

official language in all the executive bureaus, to obtain, as far as practicable, Americans as employees who had a thorough knowledge of the Spanish language, and to secure Filipinos wherever practicable for those positions in which a knowledge of Spanish could be properly utilized. It was believed that the use of English in this way would have a strong tendency to spread the knowledge of the language among the people, and through this medium to give them a language which would facilitate intercourse among themselves, as well as with the Americans charged with the duties of administration, but it was obvious that the spread of the language would necessarily be halting and slow unless it were more directly brought home to them through the public schools. For this and other sufficient reasons, although it has proved a very considerable drain upon the financial resources of the government, provision by law was early made for the importation of 1,000 American school-teachers, who were brought to the islands and scattered throughout the provinces. The same somewhat radical course, however, was not pursued in carrying on the business of the courts, for the reason that Americans with a knowledge of Spanish and educated Filipinos, who, of course, were possessed also of that language, were available, and, moreover, a great majority of the lawyers who came into contact with the people were natives and spoke only Spanish. It was therefore deemed inequitable at once to make English the language of the courts, and it was provided that until January 1, 1906, Spanish should be the official language thereof, and thereafter English.

The work of the American school-teacher is now bearing fruit. It is a very conservative estimate to say that there is now more English spoken to-day in the archipelago than Spanish, and the number of those who speak and write English is steadily and rapidly increasing. The civil-service board has presented both English and Spanish examinations for those seeking to enter the civil service, and during the past year a far greater number of Filipinos have applied for the English examinations than for the Spanish. The prime reason for this is found in the fact that when they speak English they are enabled to secure more lucrative positions in the service. During the nine months from October 1, 1903, to June 30, 1904, 1,063 Filipinos took the English examinations, of whom 282 passed. The interest taken by the Filipinos in acquiring English is further stimulated by the fact that only in this manner are the higher and more responsible clerical and other executive positions open to them. The policy of the Commission, which is being faithfully carried out by the civilservice board, is to fill positions with Filipinos wherever they are available and properly equipped for the duties. As a result of this policy a great majority of the subordinate positions are now filled by Filipinos as well as a number of the more important ones, and they