Directory_and_Chronicle_1899 — Page 997

MANILA

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thoroughfare in Binondo, is occupied chiefly by Chinese shops, and is a busy quarter. San Miguel is the aristoaratic suburb, being the seat of the residences of the wealthy merchants and other residents. Around the walls and the edge of the bay is a fashionable drive lined with almond trees, where the well to do inhabitants walk, drive, and meet their friends. The architecture of Manila is not imposing, successive earthquakes having wrought much damage, and the city has an old-world aspect, tem- pered by its tropical surroundings. The streets present the greatest animation in the evening, when the cigar factories are closed and the carriages of the upper clases are out for the customary promenade. There are several ancient churches which are worthy of notice. The Cathedral, founded originally in 1578, has been several times destroyed by earthquakes and did not escape in 1863. It has been since rebuilt, but again sustained considerable damage in 1880, when the tower was so much shattered that it had to he pulled down. There are several theatres, but none worthy of the place. The opera is well supported in Manila. A statue of Charles IV. stands in the centre of the Palacio Square, and one of Isabella II. opposite to the Variedades Theatre. The Observatory, admirably managed by the Jesuit Fathers, is well worthy of a visit. There is a good English Club. Of the hotels the Hotel de Oriente is the principal. The city and its suburbs contain a population of 300,000 and are the seat of a con- siderable and yearly increasing commerce. The principal articles of export are hemp, sugar, tobacco, cigars, coffee, and indigo, while of the imports cotton goods form the chief item. The anchorage is distant some three miles from the shore. The river presents a scene of great animation, being crowded with native craft interspersed with vessels of foreign build. The hot season commences in March and continues until July. The rains commence in August and continue to December, during which time the roads and streets get into a very bad condition. The maximum annual rainfall recorded is 114 inches and the minimum 84 inches. The maximum of the ther- mometer is about 92; a cool sea breeze sets in at night, reducing the heat to an endurable temperature for sleeping. According to the census of 1883 there were residing in Manila 250 foreigners of European origin, 4,189 European Spaniards, 15,157 Chinese, 46,066 Chinese mestizos (or half-breeds), 3,849 Spanish mestizos, and 160,896 pure natives.

In 1880 special dues were imposed on the trade of the port for the construction of a new harbour, namely, 2 per cent, on imports, 1 per cent, on exports, tonnage dues, and a tax on fishing boats. The total sum collected amounts now to a large total and the works are in progress.

Tramways run in the principal streets of the city, and a railway to Dagupan was opened to traffic throughout its entire length, 123 miles, on the 23rd November, 1892. There is also a steam road to Malabon: and electric lights have been laid in the public squares and walks, in the business houses, and in the principal streets. There are a marine arsenal and a patent slip at Cavite, on the opposite side of the Bay.

The city and its suburbs receive their drinking water by pipes leading from Santalan, on the river Pasig. The water is carried to fountains, distributed in con- venient places through the streets, whence the inhabitants may draw for their domestic needs. The telephone system extends throughout the city and out as far as Malabon. Manila possesses many educationaland charitable institutions, among others the Royal and Pontifical University of St. Thomas, which is managed and maintained by the Dominican Fathers. In this there are schools of theology and church law, jurisprudence, notarial law, medicine, and pharmacy. The College of St. Thomas, which belongs to the Univer- sity, maintains forty free scholarships for Spanish boys, who may pursue both primary and advanced studies. The College of San Juan de Letran, also under the Dominicans, devotes itself to the education of natives, and this college, as well as the other, is provided with an abundance of select scientific materials and with good physical and chemical outfits and exhibits and museums of natural history and fine arts. The College of San José (St. Joseph) is under the immediate direction of the Viceregal Patron and in this college instruction is given in medicine and pharmacy. The Orphan Asylum of Cambobong, founded by the Ladies' Union at Manila in 1882, is in charge of the August- inians and imparts elementary and advanced instruction and qualifies boys for clerical situations both in public and business offices. The Mandalova Orphanage, likewise under the care of the Augustinians and of the sisters of that order, gives to its inmates elementary instruction and teaches them hønsehold duties and other accomplishments suited to their sex. The St. Joseph's Home, founded in 1810, is under the immediate control of the Viceregal Patron and its object is to give shelter to poor and demented children. The Hospital of San Juan de Dios, founded by the Brotherhood of Miseri-