CONDITIONS UNDER GOVERNOR VILLALOBOS. 35 



tobacco, and the means employed to keep the plants free from worms; 

 the introduction of manila hemp and the failure to make it profitable; 

 the cultivation of eggplants, red peppers, tomatoes, squashes, water- 

 melons, muskmelons, and peanuts in the natives' gardens; the scarcity 

 of sugar cane on the island; the importance of the coconut palm, and 

 the manufacture from it of toddy, vinegar, yeast, brandy, oil, syrup, 

 fiber, and thatch for houses; the importance of breadfruit, both sterile 

 and fertile, as a food staple; the manufacture of fecula, like arrow- 

 root, from nuts of ^federico" (Cycas circinalis); the yield of betel 

 nuts from Areca palms, growing spontaneously on the islands; the 

 manufacture of mats, hats, and lashings from the leaves of Pandanus; 

 the scarcity of mango trees and sappan wood (used for dyeing); the 

 abundance of achiote or arnotto (Bixa orellana), and the cultivation of 

 the orange, lemon, lime, citron, bergamot, custard apple, tamarind, 

 papaya, carambola, island arrowroot, and turmeric. He also reports 

 on the wild and domestic animals, and states that on the neighboring 

 islands of Saipan and Tinian there are thousands of cattle and swine 

 roaming in the woods. a 



Villalobos erected a kiln for making pottery and tiles, paying the 

 cost of it partly from his own pocket. He also made charts of the 

 island at his own expense, and superintended in person the construc- 

 tion of bridges and the repairing of roads, stimulating the workmen 

 by fees and small gratuities. In consequence of mutinies and acts of 

 insubordination on the part of crews of ships in the harbor, England 

 proposed to establish a consulate either at Guam or in the Bonin Islands. 

 Villalobos objected to this, saying that if there were an English consul 

 at Guam questions might arise leading to international complications, 

 which might perhaps result in the loss of the island. On the other 

 hand, if a consulate were established in the Bonin Islands, the w r haling 

 fleet would assemble there to the detriment of the natives of Guam, 

 who derived much benefit from trading with the said vessels. He pro- 

 posed that an arrangement be made whereby the British Government 

 would authorize the governor of the Mariannes to act in settling cases 

 of mutiny and the like. He also recommended the establishment of a 

 store of marine supplies by either one of the two governments, and 

 called attention to the immense advantages of the presence of many ships 

 at Guam with liberty to trade with the islanders, the governor being 

 prohibited from engaging in trade of any kind. Orders having been 

 issued to collect import duties from the ships coming to Guam, Vil- 

 lalobos informed the captain -general that it would be practically impos- 

 sible to carry out the provisions of the decree. He stated that if 

 guards were placed on board the ships, the cost of maintaining them 



Villalobos, manuscript report to the captain-general of the Philippines, dated 

 November 16, 1831. 



