THE MARIANA ISLANDS^. 85 



he keeps up an intercourse, and the necessary 

 trade with Manilla, and carries on, besides this, 

 the trade of the Biches de mer. He has begun 

 to encourage the Carolinians to bring him this 

 article, which is frequent on their islands, as 

 his pilot, an Englishman, has refused to fetch 

 them on account of the dangerous reefs. 

 This step may have a very great and beneficial 

 influence on the farther civilization of these 

 islanders. 



The Jesuits, till the abolishment of their order, 

 remained in possession of the missions which 

 they had founded in the' Marianas. They 

 consigned to the flames a part of their books 

 and papers when the Augustines came to suc- 

 ceed them, and then abandoned the field. 

 As there has, for some time, been a want of 

 missionaries, the spiritual care of the Marianas 

 has been given to secular priests. The islands are 

 divided into two parishes ; that of Agana and that 

 of Rota, which latter includes a part of Guahon. 

 Both of them are properly under the bishop of 

 Zebu ; who, on account of the too great dis- 

 tance, leaves the administration of them to the 

 archbishop of Manilla. 



The parish priests are young Tagalese from 

 Manilla ; for whom the Spanish language is suffi- 

 cient for their duty. They live in Agaiia, in the 

 building of the mission. 



On the island of Rota there is now a fixed set- 

 6 3 



