50 THE PI.ANT WORLD 



hospital, and yesterday the wounded man was carried there on a litter, 

 accompanied by all of his family. 



To-day I received visits from three Spanish friars, who begged that 

 they might be allowed to remain on the island. They said that they 

 would become American citizens or do anything the Governor might 

 order, if he would only let them stay. I forwarded their request to the 

 Governor, who is still on the Yosemite. One of them, Fray Francisco 

 Resano, has been living for several months on the island of Saipan. He 

 arrived here on the Japanese schooner the other day, thoroughly dis- 

 gusted with the state of affairs on Saipan. He says that the Spanish 

 governor of that island, Don Eugenio Blanco y Ivcison, — Caballero d£ la 

 Gra7i Cruz del Merito Militar con distmtivo Rojo y Gobernador Politico 

 Militar de las Yslas Marianas, etc. — is a savage. He is colonel of a volun- 

 teer regiment of Macabebes, natives of Luzon, who aided the Spaniards 

 in the late war with the Tagalos. This governor with the long title has 

 shown an utter disregard for the rights of individuals and has been grossly 

 disrespectful to the clergy, showing himself to be autocratic and tyran- 

 nical. He even threatened to have a man named Antonio Diaz shot for 

 having expressed his opinion that Don Jos^ Portusach and his brother-in- 

 law, Captain Harrison, had the right to certain islands in the north of this 

 group which they had leased from the Spanish government and had planted 

 in coconuts. It is supposed that the northern islands will soon be sold by 

 Spain to Germany. At present certain widows of Spanish officials are 

 obliged to live in Saipan in order to draw their pensions from Spain. If 

 the islands are sold I do not know what these poor people will do ; the}'^ 

 can not afford to go with their families to Spain and live there. The 

 ladies in question were born and brought up on this island, and are 

 descendants of Spanish officials who married here. I do not know 

 what Germany can want with the northern islands. They have no good 

 harbors and it is very difficult to land on some of them. One of the 

 islands, Tinian, is of historical interest from the glowing account of it 

 in " Lord Anson's Voyage Round the World." Anson had lost many 

 men with the scurv-y. He had been sent to the South Seas to annoy the 

 Spaniards, and in 1742 was obliged to stop at Tinian for repairs and in 

 order that his crew might recuperate. 



Received the following communication from the Gobernadorcillo of 

 Merizo, the village at the southern extremity of this island, in reply to a 

 complaint made by a lady of Agaiia who owns a coconut plantation in 

 that vicinity. 



Senor Governor : Immediately after having received the superior 

 communication of your excellency dated the 28th of last month relating 

 to the complaint of Sefiora Regina Sigiienza concerning the damages done 

 to the cocal belonging to her on the island of Dano I caused to appear 



