Note 2 — Chapter I · Geographical Description of the Sulu Archipelago1

The island is very rich in timber; all its hills and mountains are forest-clad to their summits. Excellent boats are constructed on the south and west coasts of the island which rival the Tawi-tawi boats in every particular. A few Americans have started hemp and coconut plantations on the north coast, but native cultivation is not extensive and compares very poorly with that of the Islands of Sulu, Tapul, and Siasi. Most of the cultivation on the island is carried on by Yakans, the Samals living chiefly on the products of the sea. The staple products of the soil are rice, tapioca, and corn. Ubi (a kind of tuber used as food), camotes (sweet potatoes), and wild fruits abound. The number of cattle is not inconsiderable, but horses are few. Most of the settlements on the island are on the sea coast and lie on the north and west coasts. The larger ones, beginning at Isabela and going east, are, on the north, Isabela, Patasan or Balaktasan, Malu’ung, Nipa, Lamitan, Tagima, and Kandi’is; on the east, Tambunan, Buhi-lubung, and Ubung; on the south, Amalwi, Giyung, and Mangal; on the west, Libuk, Kabkaban, Kanas, Malusu, and Pangasa’an; on the north, Bulansa, Atung-atung, Batanay, and Panigayan.2 The prominent chiefs of the island live at Lamitan, Ubung, and Malusu, which form the principal centers of native power. The old name of Basilan was Tagima, so called after the name of the old settlement of Tagima mentioned above.