THE ISLAND OF MINDORO. 
766 
ficiently fine and picturesque. It is a semicircular bay, whose 
mouth is shut in by a long and narrow island. An observer placed 
in the centre of the bay sees nothing around him but leafy coasts, 
beaches of fine white sand and ridges of coral, and beneath him the 
clear and tranquil waters which reflect all the brilliant tints of the 
tropical sky. 
How is it that a country so extensive, so rich in natural produc¬ 
tions, and so near to Manila and to the populous and industrious 
island of Panay, can be thus desert ? It can only be owing to the 
frequent incursions of the pirate Moors, to the insalubrity of many 
of the districts from their uncultivated state, but most of all to the 
excess of territory in proportion to the population which exists 
throughout this Archipelago, 
Although the forces of the marine flotilla continue to advance 
from year to year in their progress against the pirates 
on the coasts of Mindoro, which formerly might be considered 
as their exclusive property, not a year passes without its being 
subjected to their visits. They are invited there by the number 
of places of shelteT for their light prahus that are to be found in 
the canals or of Iling fcnd Ambulon, distant little more 
ct* ^ l ea gues from the labary nth of the Calamines, those 
of Pandan and Buyayao, the isles of Libagao, Naguba, Sibay, 
Maestre de Campo, and Tablas, on the south; with those of 
Crolo, Ambil and Cobras, and the west coast of Lubun on the 
north, all uninhabited; and also the shoals of Apo and Panagatan. 
Hie dread of encountering bad weather during their voyages does 
not restrain them. They furl their mat sails, and pay out five 
or six fathoms of cable from the prows of their vessels to prevent 
them being dashed against any coast, and then sleep amid the noise 
of the most furious waves, as tradition states the Esquimaux to do 
in their insubmergible vessels of whale-skin. It is true that some 
are occasionally lost; but this has only occurred often of late years, 
when they have been in the habit of carrying artillery of larger 
calibre than formerly, and have consequently been obliged to make 
their vessels of more heavy and solid construction. Thus it is that 
the inhabitants of the coasts of Mindoro have not a secure moment 
to dedicate to the labours of the field, as they are few enough in 
number to defend themselves in case of attack. 
The deep and marshy valleys we have previously described, 
covered with dense forests which preserve a perpetual humidity, are 
constantly exhaling miasma which prove prejudicial to health. 
The wind follows the direction of the valleys, and empoisons the 
atmosphere of the narrow gullies through which it makes 
its exit. At Abra de Ilog, which is situated in the mouth of 
one of these vallies, a stranger cannot set his foot, especially during 
the south-west monsoon, without catching a putrid or tertian fever. 
The inhabitants, taught by experience, have removed their parish 
church to Puerta Galera, and when they visit Abra de Ilog 
