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A.Paulita Roa

IN one of the shelves of the Solhiem Library at the Archaeological Studies Program at the University of the Philippines in Diliman is a rare book printed in 1900 entitled, “The Inhabitants of the Philippines” by Frederic H. Sawyer. The author has traveled extensively around the country since the 1880s or earlier and wrote down voluminous notes on what he saw and learned particularly about the rich natural resources that we have. I was particularly drawn to chapter sixteen about the mineral wealth in the Philippines because it had an interesting description of gold taken from my hometown Cagayan de Oro (formerly Cagayan de Misamis) in 1888. More on this later.

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Sawyer begun this chapter by mentioning the maps made by two Spanish mining engineers namely Don Enrique Abella and Don Jose Centeno that marked hundreds of places around the archipelago where coal, gold, copper, lead, iron and other minerals can be found. Unfortunately, this was never published and I hope that today, there is at least a copy of that map somewhere.

At the Philippine Exhibibtion, held in Madrid in 1887, Sawyer reported that more than 700 specimens of auriferous earths or sand, gold quartz, and ores of various metals were shown, and in this branch alone there were 109 exhibitors from all over the country. This shows then that at that time there was a sizeable number that engaged in mining operations.

Besides ore, there were the tools and utensils used by the miners, models of the furnaces and forges in which the metals were reduced and worked, with the metals in different stages of concentration and manufacture, and a complete show of finished products.

However, it was noted that many mining companies were formed in Spain and in Manila in different times but they were shortlived. The reasons for this failures stemmed from lack of skill, bad management, costly operations or that the reported richness of the vein and seam was grossly exaggerated. Also, there was difficulty in getting laborers since most of the Filipinos do not care much about the work with exception of the people in Camarines Norte and Surigao. Another factor to consider was low wages for a back breaking work.

The early Spanish chroniclers in the Philippines noted that most if not all the islands are rich in gold.

Ferdinand Magellan’s chronicler, Pigafetta, wrote about a man in Caraga (Mindanao) that offered a ingot of massive gold for six strings of glass beads.That he saw many gold utensils in the house of the Rajah of Butuan and wrote:

“What most abounds is gold. Valleys were pointed out to me in which by signs they made me comprehend there were more lumps of gold than they had hair in their heads, but that, for want of iron, the mines extract greater labor to work them than they feel inclined to bestow.”

French writer Dampier noted that the people of Batanes have no coins but “crumbs of gold that they tied up in banana leaves. They would exchange it for several gallons of drink. They have no scales but did it by guesswork.

In 1810, Tomas de Comyn wrote: “Gold abounds in Luzon and many of these islands; but as the mountains which contain it are in the power of pagan Indians, the veins are not worked nor even the mines known. These savages collect it from placers or streams, and bring it as dust to the Christians who inhabit the plains, in exchange for coarse cloth or firearms, and at times, they brought it in grains of an ounce or two in weight.

“It is the general opinion that this class of mines abound in the province of Caraga, situated on the east of the great island of Mindanao, and that  there as well as various other points, gold is found of 22 carat fine.”

Comyn further stated that the Royal Fifth or rather Tenth (for this was reduced to half since the mines could not pay the fifth)in year 1809 amounted to $1,144. This would represent an extraction of gold equal to only $11,440. But Sawyer suspected that the real amount was not reported since he went to Camarines Norte in the late 1880s and was told that the value of gold extracted there was $30,000 gold dollars.

The author saw women washing sands where speck of gold can be found in the Province of Manila on a river called San Jose del Puray and was told that they earned 25 cents a day for their labor. Many groups of men and women in Gapan, Nueva Ecija and Rosales, Pangasinan work for a modest profit washing sands especially after a big storm because the rivers yield a big amount of gold by then.

But the Igorrotes (Igorots of the Mountain Province) have for centuries worked quartz veins or pockets and were known to extract modest amounts so they could buy tools, clothing or cattle. They were not known to hoard gold for they say it is safer in the mine and placed them in their houses. When one needed to purchase something, all he had to do was go his mine, extract it and immediately purchased what he wanted. they had no thought of the fact that their supply was inexhaustible nor get all the gold in the shortest possible time and sell it.

This is the same attitude of the 16th century Visayans as recorded by Philippine historian William Henry Scott in his monumental book entitled “Barangay” (1994). That the Spaniards were surprised at the low intensity mining operations of the Visayans who only went to get gold as needed. But they never saw a Visayan without gold in his person and were experts in this precious metal that they could tell where it was mined by just looking at it. Juan Martinez wrote in 1567, that they (Visayans) would rather keep their gold below the ground than in cash boxes because they have wars, they can steal it in the house but not in the ground. The wars here refers to looting, Spanish tribute collecting that moved the Filipinos to curtail or even cease their mining productions. (to be continued)

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