- Author:
- Olivares, Jose de.
- Publication Info:
-
St. Louis:
N.D. Thompson,
1899,
pg 680
Text on page 680
68o
OUR ISLANDS AND THEIR PEOPLE.
WILD IGORROTES OF LUZON.
These people are spread over the northern half of the island of Luzon. They are large, brawny of limb and active, and, being very warlike, they are a constant menace and terror to the country where they live. They have high cheek-bones, flat noses and thick lips, are of a copper color, and wear their hair long and fluffy, like the Papuans.
boldest natives to accompany him as guides in quest of the dreaded man-ape.
With infinite labor they ascended to the top of the mountain and camped for the night in the intense cold. This was a new experience to the Tagbanuas, and they were greatly alarmed at the peculiar sensation, which they had never experienced before in their lives.
But they were furnished with heavy clothing, and after warming themselves by the fire, they regained their composure. The next morning they were astonished to find themselves in and above the clouds, a position to which they had not supposed any human being could attain. But the a packdaa could not be found, and when the natives saw that the white man understood their myth, they laughed immoderately at the joke they had played on him. After that the mere mention of a packdaa was sufficient to
set the tribe in a roar. On their return to the village, the natives could not believe that the party had actually ascended to the top of the mountain, whereupon the men who had accompanied the Professor became very angry, and a free fight took place, by which
forcible argument they soon convinced their fellow-countrymen of the truth of their claims; and they thereupon became popular heroes and basked in the sunshine of newly acquired greatness.
The Jesuits, who have established missions in various parts of Mindanao, recognize twenty-four distinct tribes of people inhabiting that island, each speaking a different language or dialect. Mindanao is very nearly the same size as Luzon, the latter embracing 41,000 square miles and th^ former, 37,500, each being a little larger than the State of Indiana, and the two combined forming an area 9,765 square miles greater than the State of Missouri. A considerable portion of Mindanao is still unexplored, and the entire island is practically a wilderness, with only a few small towns on the coasts. There are no roads leading into the interior, and whatever nation develops this island will have to begin at the bottom.
Of the twenty-four tribes inhabiting the island, seventeen are pagans, six Mohammedan Moros, and the remainder Christian Visayans, who have come here from the northern islands and settled along the coasts. The wild tribes are principally of Malay and Papuan origin, with a sprinkling of the dwarfish Negritos, among whom the other tribes have intermarried. Here again we see the demonstration of the principle laid down by Mr. Wallace, namely, that aside from the Moros, the Malays and Papuans constitute the main stock of the population of the archipelago. The Moros in Mindanao are found along the southern and southwestern coasts and near the lakes and inland rivers. They remain close to the water, and are dreaded by all the other tribes on account of their boldness and bloodthirstiness. During Weylera s
PAPUAN TRIBAL HOUSE.
Some of the Papuan villages are built in the form of a single house, with high, steep roof, and divided into sections as represented in the photograph.
