242 ^'i^ Philippine Journal of Science wie 



The Suyoc Igorots have been miners for hundreds of years, 

 and their old mine workings can be found in ahnost every part 

 of the Suyoc district. There are workings all around the Palidan 

 slide, but none is as large, although some of the veins mined 

 before look more promising than the Palidan vein. 



The Palidan vein was worked by at least four generations of 

 Igorots before the coming of the Spaniards. It is possible that 

 it was worked for a longer period, but the names of only four 

 chiefs are remembered. They were Alaban, Gislang, Wasawas, 

 and Witawit. The last, Witawit, was alive when the first Span- 

 ish military governor was put in charge of the district. 



According to the history of the inhabitants, the first coman- 

 dante attempted to take possession of the mine as soon as he 

 saw it was valuable, but the Igorots objected. The case was 

 finally taken to the governor-general, who ruled that owing to 

 their long possession of the ground the Igorots were rightful 

 owners and could not be removed. The comandante accordingly 

 gave up his attempts to take possession and allowed the natives 

 to work, but contrived to buy their gold at 10 pesos ' per Mexican 

 peso's weight (27.07 grams) of gold, a very profitable procedure 

 which continued until the insurrection of 1895. The insurrec- 

 tos took forcible possession of the property and compelled the 

 Igorots to work throughout the season of that year. No record 

 was kept of the gold extracted for the insurrectos, but it is 

 probable that the amount was small. 



After the American occupation the former Spanish comandante 

 tried to obtain possession of the ground under the concession 

 law, but his claim was disallowed. Meanwhile the Igorots con- 

 tinued working the ground. 



In 1903, upon request of the leading Igorots, Mr. C. E. Petit 

 staked out the ground under the American mining law for 

 six Igorots and himself. The Igorots who signed the location 

 notice were Congosan, Pig, Bayongosan, Madanis, Abalos, and 

 Pagian. All of these are still working the ground with the 

 exception of Pagian, who is now a prisoner in Hongkong. 



The location of the property by the six Igorots and one Amer- 

 ican has not changed the local mining custom. The whole village 

 still continues to regard the ground as common property and 

 to work it as such. The real owners apparently have no more 



' One Mexican peso equaled about 40 cents United States currency. One 

 peso Philippine currency equals 100 centavos, equals 50 cents United States 

 currency. 



