Part 14 (1/2)
”From Malacca and India came fleets of the Portuguese subjects of Spain, with spices, slaves, Negroes and Kafirs, and the rich productions of Bengal, India, Persia, and Turkey. From Borneo, too, came the smaller craft of the Malays, who from their boats sold the fine palm mats, the best of which still come from Cagayan de Sulu and Borneo, slaves, sago, water-pots and glazed earthenware, black and fine. From Siam and Cambodia also, but less often, there came trading-s.h.i.+ps. Manila was thus a great emporium for all the countries of the East, the trade of which seems to have been conducted largely by and through the merchants of Manila.” (Ibid., pp. 173-174.)
”Their position, whether in a political or a commercial point of view, is strikingly advantageous. With India and the Malay Archipelago on the west and south, the islands of the fertile Pacific and the rising empires of the new world on the east, the vast market of China at their doors, their insular position and numerous rivers affording a facility of communication and defence to every part of them, an active and industrious population, climates of almost all varieties, a soil so fertile in vegetable and mineral productions as almost to exceed credibility; the Philippine Islands alone, in the hands of an industrious and commercial nation, and with a free and enlightened government would have become a mighty empire--they are--a waste!” (Bl. and Rb., Vol. 51, pp. 74-75, Remarks on the Philippine Islands, 1819-22, by ”An Englishman.”)
[5] ” * * * No one who has studied this subject with care can get rid of the idea that the religious aim was not the chief basis of the activities connected with the occupation of the Philippines. It was purely commercial. It was only later that the religious element acquired greater strength. * * * ”
” * * * In such mercantile activities, the Philippines played the role of a central market for the distribution of products between the West and East,--a work which was of greatest importance. * * *
These Islands were not only a great commercial market, but also a great religious center. * * * ”
” * * * No one who has followed the opportunities offered to these Islands, can doubt the importance that they will have, due to their geographic position, in the modern commercial market which is opened to them with the establishment of their new means of communication with the world. (Referring to the Panama Ca.n.a.l.) These Islands, and not j.a.pan, or Hongkong will bind the East with the West.” (”The Importance of the Study of Philippine Geography,”--Lecture delivered by Dr. J. A. Robertson, before the Asociacion Geografica de Filipinas, November 27, 1912.)
[6] Manila, October 7, 1701. (The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898--Blair and Robertson, Vol. 44, p. 139.)
[7] ”Historia General de Filipinas,” Jose Montero y Vidal, Vol. 1, p. 66.
[8] ”Purposely introduced species comprise those of various other tropical countries that, for reason of their economic importance, have been introduced either in prehistoric or within historic times. Naturally the first plants introduced were those of the Malayan region that were familiar to the original invaders or their successors in western Malaya, and these include such species as Job's tears (Coix lachryma-jobi L.), the more common form of use for ornamental purposes, another form cultivated for food; sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum L.), as a source of sugar; lemon gra.s.s (Andropogon citratus DC), used as a condiment; vetiver (Andropogon zizanioides Urb.), for its aromatic root; sorghum (Andropogon sorghum L.), for food; Italian millet (Setaria italica Beauv.), for food; rice (Oryza sativa L.), for food; bamboos (Bambusa vulgaris Schrad., and B. blumeana Schultes), for purposes of construction; coconut (Cocos nucifera L.), for food (this species is unquestionably of American origin, but reached the Orient long before the advent of Europeans); betel-nut palm (Areca catechu L.), for its stimulating properties; sweet flag (Acorus calamus L.), medicinal; taro (Colocasia esculentum Schott), food; yam, ”ubi”
(Dioscorea alata L.), for food; garlic (Allium sativum L.), for food; various varieties of the banana (Musa paradisiaca L.), for food; various zingiberaceous plants (Kaempferia galanga L., Curc.u.ma zedoaria L., C. longa L., Zingiber zerumbet Sm., and Z. officinale Rosc), for condiments, etc.; betel-pepper (Piper betel L.) for use with the betel-nut for chewing; bread fruit (Artocarpus communis Forst.), and the jak fruit (A. integrifolia L. f.), for food; amaranths (Amaranthus gangeticus L., A. caudatus L.), for ornamental purposes and food; ”libato” (Basella rubra L.), for food; champaca (Michelia champaca L.), for its fragrant flowers (this may have been introduced later by the Spaniards); siempre viva (Bryophyllum pinnatum Kurz), for medical purposes; horse radish tree (Moringa oleifera Lam.), for food and medicine; sappan (Caesalpinia sappan L.), for dyeing; the tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.), for food; indigo (Indigofera tinctoria L.), for dye; ”caturay” (Sesbania grandiflora Pers.), for its edible flowers and its resinous exudation; the pigeon pea (Caja.n.u.s cajan Merr.), for food; the cow pea (Vigna sesquipedalis L.), for food; the asparagus pea (psophocarpus tetragonolobus DC.), for food; ”batao” (Dolichos lablab L.), for food; the mungo (Phaseolus radiatus L.), for food; various citrus fruits, such as the pomelo (Citrus dec.u.mana Murr.), the lime (C. lima Lunan.), and varieties of the orange (C. aurantium L.), for food; the santol (Sandoric.u.m koetj.a.pe Merr.), for food; the lansone (Lansium domestic.u.m Jack), for food; some euphorbias (E. tirucalli L.), for medicine; ”iba”
(Cicca disticha L.), for food; crotons (Codiaeum variegatum Blume), for ornamental purposes; castor oil plant (Ricinus communis L.), for medicine; croton oil plant (Croton tiglium L.), for medicine and for poisoning fish; balsam (Impatiens balsamina L.), for medicine and for ornamental purposes; cotton (Gossypium sp.), for textile purposes; silk cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra Gaertn.) for its fibrous floss; various Eugenias (E. jambolana Lam., E. malaccensis L., E. jambos L., and E. javanica L.), for food; ”papua” (Nothopanax fruticosum Miq.), for medicine and for ornamental purposes; jasmine (Sasminum sambac Ait.), for its fragrant flowers; ”solasi” (Ocimum basilic.u.m L., and O. sanctum L.), for condiments; sesame (Sesamum orientale L.) for its oily seed; the bottle gourd (Lagenaria leucantha Rusby), for food; the sponge gourd (Luffa cylindrica Roem. and L. acutangula Roxb.), for food; the ”condol” (Benincasa hispida Cogn.), for food; and the ”ampalaya” (Momordica charantia L.) for food.
From an examination of the above list it will readily be seen that a great number of species were purposely introduced in prehistoric times from various parts of the East, chiefly through Malaya, for one reason or another, usually for their food value or for other reasons of economic importance. It is quite certain that none of the species enumerated above are natives of the Philippines, and it is equally certain that none reached the Archipelago without the aid of man. Again it is equally certain that, with possibly very few exceptions, all these species were introduced by the early Malay invaders, by their successors, or by peoples of various other nationalities with whom they came in contact, long before the advent of the Europeans in the Orient.”--”Notes on the Flora of Manila with special reference to the Introduced Element. E. D. Merrill. The Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. VII, No. 3, Sec. C. Botany, pp. 192-194.
[9] ”If we exclude the abaca plant (Musa textilis Nee) and the various trees yielding timbers, gums, and resins, a few palms, some bamboos, the rattans, etc., it will be found that practically all the species now found in the Archipelago that are of the greatest importance in the economy of the native, whether for food, for condiments, for clothing, for dyes, for ornamental purposes, and very many for medicinal purposes, have originated outside of the Philippines, and have purposely been introduced at one time or another.” (The Flora of Manila, E. D. Merrill, Ibid.)
[10] Sucesos de las Islas Filipinos, Antonio de Morga, Chap. 8. In Blair and Robertson Vol. 16, p. 87.
”Instead of olives and other pickled fruit, they have a green fruit, like walnuts, which they call ”paos.” (Paho.) Some are small, and others larger in size, and when prepared they have a pleasant taste. They also preserve ”charas” in pickle brine, and all sorts of vegetables and greens, which are very appetizing. There is much ginger, and it is eaten green, pickled, and preserved.” (Ibid. p. 97).
[11] Merrill: Flora of Manila.
[12] However, both Dr. Tavera (Census of the Philippine Islands, Vol. I, p. 329), and Montero y Vidal (Historia General de Filipinas, Vol. I, p. 66.), state that the sweet potato was being cultivated here at the time of the conquest. Pigafetta also mentions it in his account.
[13] The American element in the Philippine flora is of peculiar interest as showing the effect of commerce on the vegetation of a country. Even with the limited communication between the Philippines and Mexico, it is surprising to consider the number of American forms introduced here through the medium of the galleons in the years when all communication between Spain and the Philippines was via Mexico. From the time of the Spanish conquest up to the year 1815, a period of nearly 300 years, the government galleons sailed annually for Manila, first from Navidad and later from Acapulco, on the western coast of Mexico. These galleons carried not only the civil, military, and ecclesiastical authorities between Spain and the Philippines via Mexico, but also other travellers, merchants, etc., as well as large quant.i.ties of merchandise.
At an early date various Spanish officials, but, apparently, chiefly the priests, introduced here the various species of economic value, food plants, medicinal plants, fruits, etc., that were familiar to their countrymen in tropical America, most often bringing seeds, but in some cases most certainly living plants. Undoubtedly many species were introduced at that time that failed to become established here. Among the American species purposely introduced from Mexico may be mentioned the following: ”Maize (Zea mays L.), introduced for food; the ”pineapple” (Ananas sativus Schultes), for its edible fruit and its fiber; maguey (Agave cantula Roxb.), for its fiber; the tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa L.), for its fragrant flowers; the spider lily (Hymenocallis tenuiflora Herb.), for ornamental purposes; the canna (Canna indica L.), for ornamental purposes; arrowroot (Marania arundinacea L.), for food; ”aposotis” (Chenopodium ambrosioides L.), for medical purposes; four o'clock (Mirabilis jalapa L.), for ornamental purposes; ”libato” (Anredera scandens Moq.); various species of Anona (A. muricata L., A. reticulata L., and A. squamosa L.), for their edible fruits; the avocado (Persea americana Mill.), for its edible fruit; the Mexican poppy (Argemone mexicana L.), for ornamental purposes or for medicine; ”camanchile” (Pithecolobium dulce Benth.), for its tanbark and its edible fruit; ”aroma”
(Acacia farnesiana Willd.) for its fragrant flowers; ”ipel-ipel”
(Leucaena glauca Benth.), as a hedge plant; the sensitive plant (Mimosa pudica L.), for ornamental purposes; ”cabellero” (Caesalpinia pulcherrima Sw.), for ornamental purposes; ”acapulco” (Ca.s.sia alata L.), for medicinal purposes; the ”peanut” (Arachis hypogaea L.), for food; indigo (Indigofera suffruticosa Mill.), for dye; ”madre cacao”
(Gliricidia sepium Steud.), for hedges and for ornamental purposes; the lima bean (Phaseolus lunatus L.), for food; the yam bean (Pachyrrhizus erosus Urb.), for its edible root; the bilimbi and carambola (Averrhoa bilimbi L., and A. carambola L.), for their edible fruits; physic nut (Jatropha curcas L.), for medicine, as well as J. multifida L. for ornamental purposes; ca.s.sava (Manihot utilissima Pohl), for food; the cashew nut (Anacardium occidentale L.), for its edible fruit; ”ciruelas” (Spondias purpurea L,.), for its edible fruit; ”cotton”
(Gossypium braziliense Macf.), for textile purposes; ”cacao”
(Theobroma cacao L.), the source of chocolate and cacao; acheute (Bixa Orellana L.), for dye; the ”papaya” (Carica papaya L.), for its edible fruit; various species of cacti (Nopalea and Cereus), for ornamental purposes; the guava (Psidium guajava L.), for its edible fruit; the ”chico” (Achras sapota L.), for its edible fruit; the ”chico mamey” (Luc.u.ma mammosa L.), for its edible fruit; the ”sapote negro”
(Diospyros ebenaster Retz.), for its edible fruit; the temple flower (Plumeria acutifolia Poir.), for its fragrant flowers; the periwinkle (Lochnera rosea Reichb.), for its ornamental flowers; ”campanello”
(Thevetia neriifolia Juss. and Allamanda caihartica L.), for ornamental and medicinal purposes; some species of convolvuli (Ipomoea nil Roth, Quamoc.l.i.t pinnata Boj., Colonictyon aculeatum House), for ornamental purposes, and the ”sweet potato” (Ipomoea batatas Poir.), for food; lantana (Lantana camara L.), for ornamental purposes; ”dama de noche” (Cestrum nocturnum L.), for its fragrant flowers; ”tobacco”
(Nicotiana tabac.u.m L.); the tomato (Lycopersic.u.m esculentum Mill.); the peppers (Capsic.u.m frutescens L. and C. annuum L.), for condiments and for food; some ornamental Bignoniaceae (Crescentia alata HBK., and Tecoma stans Juss.); (?) the squash (Curcubita maxima Duch.), for food; some ornamental Compositae (Tagetes erecta L., Helianthus annuus L., Cosmos caudatus HBK., and C sulphureus Cav.), and ”ayapana”
(Eupatorium triplinerve Vahl), for medicine.”
(Merrill: Flora of Manila, pp. 198-199.)