THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 
117 
THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 
On the following day Mindanao came in sight, and early on the 23rd we entered 
Basilan Strait. After a brief dredging-cruise among the thickly-wooded islands of this strait, 
we arrived off Zamboanga, one of the oldest settlements of the Spaniards in the Philippines. 
The town is situated upon the margin of an alluvial plain, covered with rice-fields, and 
traversed by several rivers. It is defended by an old-fashioned fort, contains a large military 
hospital, and is used as a penal settlement. The churches in this part of the world seldom 
possess any striking architectural features, being purely conventional in style; but their cool 
interiors, dimly lighted by the few rays which penetrate the stained-glass windows, afford 
a welcome retreat from the hot glare of the street without. The chapel in the cemetery of 
Zamboanga is flanked by two wings, the front of which is divided into four tiers of vaults 
used for sepulture. We observed that some of the vaults were open, others walled up. 
The latter were probably opened after the lapse of a certain time, and the bones lying 
therein added to the common heap preserved in the mortuary chapel close by. Strange 
indeed is the scene here presented, the remains being ranged as it were on shelves, like 
books in a library. 
The streets and squares of Zamboanga, planted with trees, Have a pleasant, neat 
appearance ; but the sight of gangs of chained convicts in this region where Nature, lavish 
of her gifts, seems to have done everything to render man happy and contented, strikes one 
like a discordant note in music. A walk to a village situated about a mile to the eastward, 
near the banks of the river Tumaga, afforded an insight into the daily surroundings of 
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VIEW ON THE RIVER TUMAGA, NEAR ZAMBOANGA. 
peasant-life in the Philippines : the thatched houses raised on piles some ten or twelve 
feet above the ground, their platforms occupied by women and children ; the slow buffaloes, 
either mounted by a rider, or drawing some primitive vehicle furnished with two large wooden 
discs in lieu of wheels ; the native black pigs taking their siesta in the middle of the road , 
the sporting youths of the village walking about with fighting cocks under their arms , and 
the lightly-clad maidens enjoying their cigarette. 
We were indebted to the hospitable “ Comandante ” of Zamboanga for an opportunity 
of witnessing a native dance. The performers belonged to the class called by the Spaniards 
41 Moros ”—a name which they seem to apply to all races of the Mohammedan faith. 
