RICE FARMING, ETC., IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 43 



crude, except soiiic in Negros, Panay, and CVbii. In Luzon tlic sugar 

 factories are mainly of the open-kettle sort, and witli machinery cruder 

 tlian is g-enerally us(>d in farm sorghum manufacture in America. 

 Some stone rollers for crushing- the cane are used, and many factories 

 have only large wooden tubs with iron bottoms for boiling the cane 

 juice. In Panay and ('ebu the mills are of a higher type, although 

 crude as compared with American up-to-date milling plants. (PI. YI 

 %. 2.) 



RICE FARMING. 



The method of raising rice in the Philippines is practically the same 

 as in India, except that the plowing is almost exclusively done with 

 water buffaloes, and a larger proportion of the land is sown broadcast. 

 Rice planting is usuaHv done in June, and harvestincr in November 

 and Decem))er. Only one crop is raised each year. With artificial 

 irrigation two crops could be produced annually, one in the sunnuer 

 and one in the winter and early spring. The area devoted to rice 

 could be considerably enlarged, but it is doubtful whether in the evo- 

 lution of the islands under American conditions such will be the result, 

 •as a number of other farm products are more profital)lc and are culti- 

 vated with less labor. The natives much prefer to plant and work 

 man i la hemp {Mnsa text His), as when once planted it produces a crop for 

 several years with slight attention. Coffee and some of the spices are 

 favorite products in certain sections. Plowing the land and setting 

 rice plants in the mud is a disagreeable task, even to Filipinos; conse- 

 quently the general trend of agricultural industries in case of expansion 

 will be away from rice and toward crops more easily handled and 

 more profitable. 



FRUITS. 



Nearly every known variety of fruit can be produced on these 

 islands, from such as require extreme tropical conditions to the hardv 

 fruits of the temperate zone, like the apple and the cherry, for the 

 islands possess a great range of climate. There are valleys where the 

 temperature never falls below 70° and there are table-lands where it 

 drops nearly to the frost line in the winter. These extremes are found 

 on the same island. At Manila 65° F. above zero would be extraordi- 

 nary weather. A hundred and thirty miles north, in the province of 

 Benguet, the grains and fruits of northern New York can be pro- 

 duced. 



TIMBER. 



It is estimated that only about one-fifteenth of the land has been 

 brought under cultivation. A large portion of the remainder is timber 

 land, and nearly all of it belongs to the Government. Many very 



