Note 2 — Chapter XXV · ILOILO AND PANAY.

The next day we made our arrangements for visiting the different pueblos on the coast, and, starting in our carriages soon after daybreak, we passed through Molo and Arévalo to Oton. Arévalo has some celebrity in the annals of the Philippines, and had a special interest for the Governor, as here had been lately displayed the affection of the Indians for his son, whose funeral they had honoured with such special marks of sympathy and regret. Arévalo was formerly the residence of the governor—built by Ronquillo in 1581, who gave it the name of his birth-place. Molested by the Indians, attacked by pirates and the government quite disorganized, it was for a long time abandoned; and the seat of authority being removed to Iloilo, Arévalo presents few signs of activity: there are about 8,000 inhabitants in this district. At Oton we saw from the Augustine convent an interesting ceremony. It was on a Sunday; and on quitting the church the inhabitants were summoned by beat of drum to attend the reading of a proclamation of the government. They were all in their holiday garments, and men, women and children formed a circle round one of the native Indian authorities, who, in a loud voice, read in the Bisayan tongue the document which he had been ordered to communicate to the people. There was perfect silence during the reading, and a quiet dispersion of the crowd. Fortifications are erected along the coast, and a great variety of manufactures were brought to us for examination. A good deal of English cotton twist is sold, which forms the warp of most of the fabrics.2 There were rugs of silk and cotton; varieties of coloured ginghams; tissues, in which the fibres of the abacá and the piña were mixed with our cotton thread, whose importation is, however, confined to the colours which the Indians are themselves not able to dye. Oton has nearly 23,000 inhabitants. I observe the proportion of births to deaths is as nearly four to one, and that while there are five births to one marriage, the deaths exceed the marriages by less than one-third, so that the increase of population must be very great. In 1818, it was less than 9,000. Tigbauan, with its 21,000 inhabitants, was our next halting place. Its general character resembles that of Oton. Rice is the principal agricultural production, but the women are mostly employed in weaving stuffs, which find markets in Albay and Camarines. We were accompanied from the Augustine convent by a friar of Guimbal, who obviously exercised much influence over his brethren and over the whole community. His conversation was both entertaining and instructive. He had a good stud of horses, a handsome carriage, and he certainly employs his large revenues with generous hospitality. Not to repeat what has been repeated so often, the Indians, on the whole line of our journey, made a holiday time for our reception, which partook everywhere of the character of a public festivity. After the principalia had accompanied us to the convents, and received their thanks from me, and their dismissal from the Governor and the friar, a number of little girls were introduced, to whom the service of the table and attendance on the guests were confided. There was a strange mixture of curiosity, fear and respect in their deportment; but they gathered round my arm-chair; their bright black eyes looked inquiringly into my face, and asked for orders; while one, who seemed rather a pet of the ghostly father, put her hand into the curls of my white hair, which she seemed to consider worthy of some admiration: but the friar told me they were discoursing among themselves whether it was possible I could be a general and a great man, who had no gold about my clothes; I was not dressed half as finely as the officers they had been accustomed to see. They were very proud of some of the piña garments they wore, and one after another came to display their finery. They took care to supply me with cigars, and that light should be ready whenever the cigar was extinguished, and when we sat down to our well-furnished repast, several of them were at hand to remove the plates, to provide others, and to see that we were well provided with the delicacies of the day. On our way back to Iloilo, we learnt that the principalia of Molo were to escort us in their carriages to our domicile; they were waiting for us in the main road, so that we made together quite a procession. They had before invited Captain Vansittart and the officers of the Magicienne to their ball, and many attended, keeping up the dance to an early morning hour.