THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 
59 
while, on the other hand, it was found impossible to keep 
down illicit fields in the wilder districts and the sale of 
the leaf to private buyers. The abandonment of the 
rtgie is a step in advance, and will tend to improve the 
export in quantity, though possibly not in quality. The 
best tobacco comes from the province of Cagayan in the 
extreme north of Luzon, but since 1884 plantations 
have been established in Sulu Island for the growth of 
“ wrappers ” (as the outer leaves of cigars are technically 
termed) for the best Havana cigars, and with some suc¬ 
cess. In 1890 some 8000 tons of leaf tobacco and 
110,000,000 cigars were exported from Manila, showing 
a slight falling off from the previous year. 
Manufactures are chiefly of two kinds—cigars and 
textiles. The great cigar factories of Manila employ 
several thousands of hands. The textile fabrics are 
chiefly made for home use, an immense quantity of abaca, 
cotton, and silk stuffs being produced. The fibre of the 
pine-apple, known in the islands as pina , is wrought into 
fabrics of excessive fineness,—to such a fineness even that 
some of the looms are protected with curtains to prevent 
the breaking of the thread by a current of air. These 
pincc dresses often fetch enormous sums, a single one 
having been sold for over £300. The Philippines prac¬ 
tically clothe themselves, for there is very little importa¬ 
tion of stuffs for the people. Mat-making is also a great 
specialty, as well as hats and cigar cases, made from 
palm leaves and split rattans. The chief other native 
manufactures are gold filagree work and coarse pottery. 
The buffalo is the chief beast of labour, and is bred 
in vast numbers. It is specially suited for a country in 
which the roads and tracks are for a great part of the 
year half under water, and utterly impassable for horses. 
In some of the islands both buffaloes and horses have 
