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The Former Philippines thru Foreign Eyes by Rudolf Ludwig Carl Virchow;Chas. Wilkes;Fedor Jagor;Tomás de Comyn
page 147 of 732 (20%)
find, as the result, a considerable progress, for which the Philippines
are indebted to the Spaniards. The influence of social relations has
been already exhibited in the text. The Spaniards have imported the
horse, the bullock, and the sheep; maize, coffee, sugar-cane, cacao,
sesame, tobacco, indigo, many fruits, and probably the batata, which
they met with in Mexico under the name of camotli. [113] From this
circumstance the term camote, universal in the Philippines, appears
to have had its origin, Crawfurd, indeed, erroneously considering
it a native term. According to a communication from Dr. Witmack, the
opinion has lately been conceived that the batata is indigenous not
only to America, but also to the East Indies, as it has two names in
Sanscrit, sharkarakanda and ruktaloo.

[Slight industrial progress.] With the exception of embroidery, the
natives have made but little progress in industries, in the weaving
and the plaiting of mats; and the handicrafts are entirely carried
on by the Chinese.

[Rice and abaca exported.] The exports consist of rice and abaca. The
province exports about twice as much rice as it consumes; a large
quantity to Albay, which, less adapted for the cultivation of rice,
produces only abaca; and a fair share to North Camarines, which is
very mountainous, and little fertile. The rice can hardly be shipped
to Manila, as there is no high road to the south side of the province,
near to the principal town, and the transport by water from the north
side, and from the whole of the eastern portion of Luzon, would
immediately enhance the price of the product. [Chinese monopolize
trade.] The imports are confined to the little that is imported by
Chinese traders. The traders are almost all Chinese who alone possess
shops in which clothing materials and woolen stuffs, partly of native
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