622 
THE VOYAGE OF H.M.S. CHALLENGER. 
world to the other on the very exploring vessel which eventually brings them hack 
round half the globe preserved in spirit for home inspection. 
“ It would not be proper to conclude this brief abstract without calling attention to 
the fine Cystosoma figured and described en route by the late Dr. v. Willemoes-Suhm 1 
(see fig. 209), a specimen which, if colour be put out of the question, surpasses in beauty, 
as also it probably exceeds in size, every other known Amphipod.’’ 
Ilo Ilo. 
Ilo Ilo is situated on the island of Panay, one of the most fertile and densely 
populated isles of the Philippine group. Well irrigated by abundant mountain streams, 
it produces rice, sugar cane, cotton, coffee, tobacco, pepper, and cocoa ; its forests yield 
ebony, and its shores and rivers abound with fish ; the chief town of the island, Ilo Ilo, 
is, therefore, an important commercial emporium, and from it a brisk coasting trade is 
carried on. In Ilo Ilo there is also the largest manufactory of piha, a fabric made of 
thread stripped from fibres of the leaves of the pine-apple. This fabric cannot be woven 
at all times, as extreme heat or humidity affects the fibre ; it is stronger than any other 
of equal fineness, and its colour is unaffected by time or washing. The machinery 
employed in its manufacture is of rude construction and entirely of wood. The use of 
pina is extensive, and the value of the annual export to Europe for dresses, handkerchiefs, 
collars, scarfs, and finely embroidered shirts is considerable. 
The harbour of Ilo Ilo is formed by a narrow strait separating the island of Guimaras 
from that of Panay ; a small river runs into the strait on the Panay shore, which has a 
low sandy flat on its right bank on which the town stands ; at the end of this flat is a 
spit, on which a fort is built, and close to which there is deep water. Vessels of moderate 
draught (16 feet and under) may ascend the river a short distance and lie alongside 
wharves which communicate with the merchants’ storehouses, but large vessels should 
anchor off the fort. 
Strong tides run through Ilo Ilo Strait, forming numerous eddies and causing 
vessels to sheer considerably. At its full strength the tide ran 3 miles per hour, but a 
patent log registered only 10 - 25 miles as the total distance traversed by one tide of six 
hours’ duration. The stream turns at high and low water by the shore. The eddies 
appeared to be fewest oft’ the mouth of the Ilo Ilo river ; this, therefore, would be a good 
place for a ship to anchor. Coal may be obtained in small quantities at this port ; other 
supplies are plentiful and moderate in price. 
1 Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond. (Zool.), ser. 2, vol. i. p. 24, 1875. 
