administration. He is the confidential clerk of the author of this report, and his great and meritorious services rendered to Americans and Filipinos have earned for him the appreciation and high consideration of all.

All of the other subordinate employees comply with their duties with more or less efficiency, and for that reason are able to retain their positions and cooperate with the labors of this provincial administration.

This report should be closed by a brief consideration relative to a procedure at present followed by the legislative body of the Philippines in the discussion and enactment of laws affecting the entire people. The internal-revenue bill, for example, whose enactment will be an accomplished fact in a few days, has been extensively discussed, it is true, but only by certain entities in the capital of the archipelago who, though worthy of the greatest consideration on account of their learning, and whose opinions are of great weight in the discussion, are not the genuine representatives of all the people of the Philippines, for whom the law is made and of whom its compliance is exacted.

In the procedure followed up to the present time by the Philippine Commission of having public discussions of laws of general interest prior to their enactment, if systematically developed, it is but just that it should develop into a system perfect enough to give a knowledge of the bills under discussion to all of the pueblos in the islands, so that those wishing to take part in the debate may give expression to their ideas, which, however humble, are of some weight as representing the immense majority of the taxpayers. If, as was done in Manila, copies of this bill had been sent to the pueblos, though even not more than one to each province, through the provincial board, there is no doubt that the discussion would not have been limited to persons living at the capital, and the people would have become convinced that the government desired to hear all before subjecting them to taxation. Respecfully submitted.

R. PARÁS,

Governor, Province of Tayabas.

The CIVIL GOVERNOR OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.

REPORT OF THE GOVERNOR OF THE PROVINCE OF LA UNION.

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR, PROVINCE OF LA UNION,

San Fernando, August 5, 1904.

SIR: The fact that I took possession of the office of governor in the month of March of this year, and that the records of the provincial offices do not contain the data I would desire for this report, makes it difficult for me to comply with the provisions of the law, if it is to correspond in all respects to my wishes and above all to the high purposes which characterize all of the administrative acts of the insular government, which desires to know in detail the moral and material conditions of the pueblos of the archipelago in order to adopt such measures as the good name of the government and the needs of the people would jointly demand.

My knowledge of the province and the assiduous study which I have been making of its affairs since I took possession of my office, by visiting all of the pueblos, issuing circular letters and recommendations to carry out the policy adopted by me at the beginning of my term of office outlining my course, are reasons which, if not complete, will be sufficient for me to form a fair idea of the present conditions in the province and its future possibilities if its affairs are conducted along the path of progress with zeal and perseverance, with the end in view of making it one of the richest provinces in northern Luzon-a thing not impossible of accomplishment because of the fertility of its soil and the honor and industry of its inhabitants.

When I took the office I forwarded to the different representative men of the province an address outlining the policy of my administration. Counting upon your good nature, I take the liberty to copy hereunder the address referred to, it being my great desire that you should know the sincere purposes animating the head of this provincial government:

“GENTLEMEN: Having now assumed the duties of this office which I owe to those persons who, completely unmindful of my modest personality, have given me their suffrage, as gratefully received as it is unmerited, let my first greeting be to all of the inhabitants of this province so dear to me. I would therefore

Implore you, the local presidents, to be the faithful interpreters to your pueblos of my sentiments toward each and all of them, and to tell them that so long as I am the head of the provincial government I shall not fail to avail myself of every moment to introduce and put into practice all that tends to develop the moral and material interests of La Union, to the end that it may become one of the most prosperous provinces of our magnificent country.

66

All of you know who I am and whence I come; it is therefore but just that you should learn whither I go and what I have promised myself to obtain as the head of this government.

"The platform which I considered necessary to adopt when I solicited the votes of the electors makes it unnecessary for me to give any explanations in this regard. There is nothing that I can add to it, nor is there anything that I desire to suppress. To live up to my policy, put it into practice, and make of it a truth backed up by facts I have more than sufficient firmness and energy, but I need your devoted, loyal, disinterested, and valuable support, which I demand and confidently expect to receive from all of you, knowing that you will give it as willingly as I ask it of you, for our cause is a good and noble one in which you can not honorably refuse to cooperate.

"I crave your attention for a moment; hear what I then said, and that I now ratify in full:

"Inhabitants of the province of La Union.

66

Urged by many valued friends to present my candidacy for the governorship of this province, I hesitated to follow their flattering advice, but what with the arguments of some and the insistent solicitations of others I was prevailed upon to desist from my purpose of keeping aloof from matters which did not concern my private interests; for the happiness of our present times is not sufficient to make us forget the annoyances and trials of a past which, though a bygone, is none the less of sad recollection.

66

But in soliciting the vote of some, the support of others, and the acquiescence of all I must tell you what my feelings are and what, therefore, my line of conduct is to be, in order that I may not forget it and that you may not have to remind me of it.

"The exceptional conditions prevailing in our country, the radical change which has taken place in a short time, which led us into new paths tried on the spur of the moment with better intentions than skill on the part of the directing powers, would to-day advise that other routes be chosen and followed with a valiant spirit and manly fortitude if we do not wish to see the total ruin of the land that gave us birth and the stagnation of a people called, like all others, to form a part of the general concert of civilization, to participate in its social culture and in the wealth produced by labor which dignifies man, the elements that lead to liberty, prosperity, and peace, to that state of happiness and satisfaction to which we have an unquestionable right.

"But to reach that which appears to us a beautiful ideal, we need a lever capable of moving all things-peace. And this great blessing will not be given to us. It is necessary to win it for ourselves by leaving dangerous experiments, with the untoward results of which we are intimately acquainted, untried. "Past deeds are as irrevocable as a sentence of the courts of justice and facts are stubborn things.

"Let us therefore have done with mad ventures, and under the beneficent influence of peace let us avow the law, and, improving every instant, avail ourselves of every means to take that road that all peoples who feel and think have followed to reach the goal of their just aspirations; the liberty of the individual rightfully understood, progress and prosperity, the most shining example of whom is the great American people.

"But, I ask, are these grand liberties, is this condition of public welfare, to be won by the Filipino people by war, by the shedding of blood, that, far from fertilizing the soil, renders it sterile? No; a thousand times, no. He who so thinks is an insensate; who so advises, an unworthy son of his native land; who would put such an idea into practice, worse than a madman.

"We have in our hands the means of securing the reward of progress in its most ample extent, of placing ourselves in a condition equal to that of the wealthiest and most cultured peoples. What is needed then? To wish it. "Favor me with your attention.

"Providence has been liberal with us in scattering her gifts on this magnificent country. We have an exuberantly fertile soil, a large extent of territory permitting development on a vast scale of the public wealth, in itself sufficient

to convert the Philippines into the richest country in the world. But if we are to continue doing as we have up to the present time, dreaming of chimerical experiments and turning a deaf ear to the demands of our own best interests, in a very short period of time our total ruin will be certain, positive, and inevitable.

66

Consider that we have twenty-eight millions of hectares of virgin land eagerly awaiting the hand of the native to make it fructify-to yield coffee, cocoa, hemp, cotton, cocoanuts, tobacco, indigo, maguey, and sibucao, wonderfully productive plants of immense yield which bring fabulous prices in the markets throughout the world. We have immense forests of valuable and varied woods, mines of gold, copper, coal, marble, etc., and yet we need foreigners to tell us of these facts because we appear not to know them.

"What, then, is needed to make the great wealth which God has given us available for our own uses? Peace, and to relegate to absolute and complete oblivion the deceitful siren called 'politics,' to whom we must not harken if our minds are to run in serious thought, if we wish to lift ourselves from the poverty which is general throughout the country and from the ruin which presages us. We must needs labor a great deal if we are to reach our goal.

If the citizen is to labor, as he must, for he was born to it, he will surely not think of gambling, the besetting sin which it is our duty to extirpate with a strong hand, for it is a passion that kills all activity and brings disorder to the home and the immorality that undermines the existence of the family-the basis of society, the sole foundation of the nation.

"At the same time we must give a great impetus to public education, for you must not forget that ignorance among the people is the principal cause of every evil. How can we lay claim to being able to govern ourselves if we are not even capable, if we have been unable yet to overcome routine practices, stupid superstitions which make us appear in the eyes of cultured nations not as a people in its infancy but as one which believes in a lot of stupid fables, the truth of which facts eloquently refute?

Public education must be developed, we must take it as an antidote for our ignorance even as the penalty is imposed upon the infringer of the law; we must give to it our best attention without regard to the means employed, for we know that the end justifies the means. Always bear in mind that a prison is closed when a school is opened, and that it is no longer the cannon but the schoolmaster that settles disputes between peoples.

"Peace, to maintain it; profound respect for past experience; agriculture, for its development the personal effort ably directed of every citizen; morality, public and private; education on a large scale. There you have, inhabitants of the province of La Union, my platform. Does it please you? I will stick closely to it if you favor me with your suffrage.

"MANILA, January 15, 1904."

JOAQUIN LUNA.

Now, gentlemen, that is what I stated and that is what I repeat shall be the guide for my conduct. In order to live up to these principles I shall spare no effort. To encourage, to reward, to adopt severe measures if necessary, every means shall appear good and sufficient to carry out and crown my noble purposes with the most complete success. Whatever the means may be I shall consider them all as good and correct if the results justify it.

"I have solicited the support of the Filipinos, but their cooperation is not sufficient. I need more. I need the support of the American residents in this province, to whom I also extend my best greeting; and though it is true that I do not call upon them for their assistance, which I so sorely need, I ought not in truth to do so because I know that they will extend it to me an hundredfold; for when you say 'American' it is a synonym for progress, civilization, culture, wealth earned by rude labor, liberty of the individual by the peaceful and orderly use of individual rights coupled with strict compliance with individual duties. In giving to each one what is his own and in living honestly, you have justice. It is not such a great thing after all that I should count beforehand upon the powerful assistance of those who are to-day our fellow-citizens, as I also count upon that of the constituted government, which it is necessary for us by all means to respect and render to it all of that obedience which the sanctity of our oath, made without mental reservation, would demand, because it is not possible to hope that the governmental powers, whose sphere of action is so vast, should be able to extend to us full and decided support and protection in everything if the people on their part do not respond gratefully by rendering

'unto Cæsar the things which are Cæsar's, and unto God the things that are God's.'

"People who understand their true interests and feel a horror of suicide are fervent in their support of authority because it is the safeguard of the rights of all; the security for peace so necessary for men of good will and without which there can not be an harmonious concert between labor, capital, and the moral and material welfare of the individual, of the family, and of society. To oppose authority by lending a willing ear to the deceitful song of the treacherous siren is the most absurd thing, because it is equivalent to opposing one's own best interests; it is to work one's own ruin; and we have had enough of dangerous and doleful experiments which have given no result other than the impoverishment of the country by drying up its natural sources of productivity.

"If the people, instead of plunging into the intricate problems of political science, which when it descends from its highest plane is an element of disturbance that carries men along with it to but one solution-war, the trade of barbarians in whose arena right is on the side of the strongest and of him who can kill the most and destroy the most-if instead of this they should appeal to education, to the school-teacher for the solution-for the thread of Ariadne to lead them out of the labyrinth of Crete; if instead of forging cannon, they would forge plows, steam engines, machinery, and a thousand other useful inventions; if instead of watering their fields with blood they would water them with the fructifying sweat brought by honest labor; if instead of all this, which can be of no benefit to the Filipino people, we lead our youth to the temple of Minerva and away from that of Mars, we shall have acted like good men for the best interests of our native land, and will have merited, aside from that satisfaction always resulting from duty done, the eternal blessings of the coming generation for the priceless inheritance which our labor has left them.

"Yes, gentlemen, beware of all political strife, be moral, industrious, aim high in public education, and let your hearts be set on the greatest good to the greatest number, for on this all depends and we shall see that soon the most beneficent results will follow.

Pardon me if I have wearied you in responding to the promptings of my soul, and before finishing permit me to greet with the purest affection my old and dear friend and colleague who delivers into my hands the government of this province, and whom I congratulate upon the skill and exquisite tact with which he has discharged the arduous duties of this office."

On the 26th day of March, this year, after having become acquainted with all the affairs of this government I made my first visit of inspection to all the pueblos of the province, and in order to learn better their moral and material existence I did not limit myself to inspecting only the central part of the pueblos, but extended my visits to the barrios also. I greatly recommended the embellishment and sanitation (which I found greatly neglected); the repair of roads and bridges in municipal districts and that attention be given preferably to agriculture, recommending the planting of other sorts of products capable of producing wealth and making for the welfare of the pueblos. I also recommended that the greatest possible impetus be given to education, and that parents send their children to schools in the pueblos as well as in the barrios. Having found all the schoolhouses in quite a bad condition, and understanding the necessity for reconstructing some of them, I pointed out to the municipalities the urgent necessity of constructing new buildings or repairing the old, and found that my propositions were favorably received, the pueblos having voluntarily offered to undertake this work without any compensation whatever. The only thing that they would require is that they be granted the privilege of free utilization of State timber, which petition I referred to the division superintendent of schools, who agreed to obtain free licenses for them.

Upon the petitions of all the municipalities of the province, and in view of complaints received from several members of the municipal police that their salaries were not paid monthly; and taking into consideration that the municipal funds could in no manner pay the excessive cost of these salaries; and further considering that the state of tranquillity prevailing in this province does not require so numerous a corps for the preservation of peace, the undersigned, in agreement with the senior inspector of constabulary of this province, presented a plan for the reorganization of this body to the provincial board, which was approved by it, the reform bringing about a saving of 857 monthly or 10,284 a year to the municipalities of the province. (See Exhibit A.)

As the use of firearms by the municipal police of the pueblos of this province was not in accordance with all of the requirements of the law, I petitioned the

chief of constabulary to call in all arms in their hands until the municipalities had complied with all of the legal requirements for the use of firearms before issuing permits. I hope that this formality will soon be fulfilled and would beg your honor to approve the permits, so that the pueblos of the province may have these arms for their defense.

Such, honorable sir, is the work which I have done during the three months that I have been at the head of this government.

DESCRIPTION.

The province of La Union is situate on the west coast of the island of Luzon. It was organized as a province in the year 1850, and at that time included 13 pueblos named Bangar, Balaoan, Namacpacan, Bacnotan, San Juan, San Fernando, Bauan, Naguilian, Cavá, Aringay, Agóo, Santo Tomas, and Rosario; San Fernando, situate in the center of the province, being selected as the capital. In 1875, the pueblos of Bacnotan, San Juan, San Fernando, Bauan, Naguilian, Cavá, Aringay, Agóo, Santo Tomas, and Rosario belonged to the province of Pangasinan; and those of Namacpacan, Balaoan, and Bangar to that of Ilocos. In 1886 a barrio of the pueblo of Agóo, called "Tubao," was organized as a civil pueblo with the name of San Isidro of Tubao. Subsequently, on March 5, 1903, the pueblo of Galiano (now a barrio of the municipality of Aringay), which formerly belonged to the province of Benguet, was added to La Union. Area. The area of the province is 193,537 hectares. It is 90 kilometers-that is, 55 miles and 1,625 yards long, approximately, and from 5 to 25 miles broad. Boundaries. It is bounded on the north by the Amburayan River, separating this province from Ilocos Sur; on the east by the said river and the old comandancia which is called "Amburayan" (to-day the province of Lepanto-Bontoc), and by the former district and now the province of Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, and Lepanto-Bontoc; on the south by the province of Pangasinan; and on the west by the Gulf of Lingayen and the China Sea.

Ports. The principal port is that of San Fernando, situate in the capital of the province, where all vessels and boats on the northern run stop. On the western part this port is well sheltered from the greatest storms. It is the only one in the province which is a port of entry.

There are other ports of secondary importance, such as Santo Tomas and Darigayos, suitable for native boats and small-draft steamers.

Rivers. The principal rivers are Amburayan, which rises in Lepanto and passing through Benguet and Ilocos Sur flows into the China Sea; that of Busilac or Maluyo, which rises in the Vito Mountain, in the pueblo of Balaoan, and crossing Namacpacan and Bangar, disembogues into the China Sea; that of Maragayap, which rises in the Lipay Mountains, in the pueblo of San Juan, and is the boundary line between the pueblos of Bacnotan and Balaoan, also flows into the China Sea; the Baroro River, which rises in the mountains of San Juan and, flowing through this pueblo and that of Bacnotan, disembogues into the China Sea and that of Benguet, Naguilian or Bauan, which rises in the mountains of Baguio, Benguet, flowing through the pueblos of Naguilian and Bauang, where it forks and flows into the China Sea.

The Galiano River, which rises in the settlement of the same name, and passing through the pueblos of Tubao and Aringay, flows into the sea on the eastern coast.

The Agno River, which rises in the mountains of Lepanto, flowing through the pueblos of Rosario and Pangasinan, discharges into the Gulf of Lingayen.

There are besides these other smaller rivers flowing through the different pueblos of the province, as well as creeks, streams, and lakes which have such an infinity of names as to be scarcely worth mentioning.

None of the rivers mentioned are navigable on account of their shallowness and irregular course. During the hot season the majority of these streams are completely dry.

Mountains. The boundary of this province on the eastern part is a chain of mountains running north and south. Besides these there are other parallel chains whose height decreases as they approach the plains in the western part of the province. They have an infinity of names, the principal of which are Guiray, Guinusot, Dogadog, Amontoc, Laylaya, Binutubut, Quimmallogong, and the range of Santo Domingo, which has to be crossed in going from the pueblo of Naguilian to the province of Benguet.

Population.

According to the census of 1903 the province has a population of 136,433 souls, 127,735 being Christian inhabitants, and 8,659 Igorrotes of the so-called non-Christian tribes.