of the Cuyo Islands. The latter depth curve has a south-southwesterly trend from the vicinity of Seco Islands to near Sombrero Rock. Northeastward of this plateau there is a deep basin with numerous banks and shoals, but there are large stretches of good water, and the various islands furnish well-defined leading marks.

The courses which would be pursued are various, and no directions are given, as they may be readily laid out on the chart, the islands forming excellent marks for avoiding the different shoals. The route to the eastward of the islands is generally used in the northeast monsoon from Basilan Strait to Mindoro Strait, thus taking advantage of the constant northerly current along the Panay Coast.

QUINILUBAN GROUP, the northernmost of the Cuyo Islands, consists of several islands and rocks on a circular reef about 6 miles in diameter. They are of limestone formation, have no permanent streams, and very little wood, but are covered with tall grass. They are sparsely inhabited and there is some cultivation on the larger islands, but they are of no commercial importance. The reef itself is flat and sandy with numerous coral heads, some of which bare at low water. Breakers are in evidence at the windward edge of the reef whenever the monsoons are blowing. Anchorage, partly protected from the sea during the northeast monson, may be had on the southwest side close up to the edge of the reef.

Quiniluban, the largest of the group, lies near the northeast edge of the reef and rises to a height of 1,010 feet (308 m.). From northearly directions it appears as a sharp cone. From easterly directions it appears as a ridge with a dome-shaped elevation in the center. It has the reddish-brown color of cogon regions and makes a prominent landmark.

Alcisiras Island, 510 feet (155 m.) high, lies southwest of Quiniluban with the small islands Calumpin, Yanuta, and Arorunga between them. Mandit Island, 183 feet (56 m.) lies 1 mile southsoutheastward from the peak of Alcisiras. Maligun, Silad, and Tinitiuan Islands, 515, 335, and 480 feet (157, 102, and 146 m.) high, respectively, Tatay and Namaroc Islets and Cambug Rock lie on the northwestern part of the reef.

Halog Islands are two small islands lying on a reef about 3 miles southeast of Quiniluban Island. The northeastern one is 80 feet (24.4 m.) high and the other 1/2 mile southwestward of it 16 feet (4.9 m.). The channel between the Halog and Quiniluban reefs is 2 miles wide and free from danger, though there are several banks with from 6 to 9 fathoms (11.0 to 16.5 m.) of water over them.

A reef with a least depth of 234 fathoms (5.0 m.) lies 7 miles 193° true from the highest point of Quiniluban Island. The reef is steepto on the west, but a bank with 6 to 8 fathoms (11.0 to 14.6 m.) of water extends about 11⁄2 miles eastward.

PAMALICAN ISLAND, 7 miles south westward of Quiniluban Island, is low, covered with a scrub growth and uninhabited. The higher of its two hills is 83 feet (25.3 m.) high. The island is surrounded by a coral reef which extends about 1 mile off the northeast side.

Manamoc Island lies about 3 miles southwest of Pamalican. It is 720 feet (219 m.) high, roughly circular in form, about 134 miles in

diameter, and surrounded by a wide coral reef partly bare at low water. Á break in the reef permits the shallow draft native boats to enter the lagoon in the southwestern part of the island. This lagoon has about 3 feet (0.9 m.) of water at low tide. The population of the island is estimated at 300 and the products are rice and copra, but there is no regular communication among any of these islands.

Lean, 223 feet (68 m.), Imaruan, 430 feet (131 m.), and Oco, 320 feet (98 m.) in height, lie, respectively, 6 miles south, 7 miles southsoutheast, and 10 miles east-southeast from Manamoc Island. These islets are all steep-to on the western sides with banks extending from 1/2 to 12 miles northeastward.

DIT ISLAND is an oval-shaped island about 111⁄2 miles in extent and rises to a height of 820 feet (250 m.) near the center. Two lesser peaks appear as shoulders on the higher peak when viewed from north or south. The shore line is composed of large stones and boulders with the exception of one small sand beach on the west side and one on the south. Two small shoals with depths of 234 and 31⁄2 fathoms (5.0 and 6.4 m.) lie 1/2 mile off the southwest part of the island. This part of the island should be given a berth of at least 1 mile.

Gosong Rocks, 15 feet (4.6 m.) high, are a group of rocks on a shoal about 1/4 mile in diameter lying 2 miles 220° true from the south point of Dit Island. The channel between the rocks and Dit Island is deep and over 1 mile wide.

A shoal with a least depth of 32 fathoms (6.4 m.) lies 534 miles 23° true from the highest part of Dit Island. The shoal lies on the southeastern part of a bank 2 miles in extent northwest and southeast and 1⁄2 mile wide with depths of 6 to 9 fathoms (11.0 to 16.5 m.).

MARACAÑAO ISLAND, 431 feet (131 m.) high and about 1/2 mile in diameter lies 8 miles eastward of the south end of Dit Island. The bank on which it lies is steep-to and free from dangers.

Chinaman Shoals are two shoals lying 4 miles 10° true and 61⁄4 miles 24° true from Maracañao Island, with a least depth of 34 and 4 fathoms (5.9 and 7.3 m.), respectively. In the area between these shoals and Luzon Bank, lying 11 miles eastward of Maracañao Island, there are a number of banks with from 7 to 9 fathoms (12.8 to 16.5 m.) of water. Luzon Bank itself has a least known depth of 8 fathoms (14.6 m.).

There is a deep channel 16 miles wide between these banks, and the group of dangers comprising Sultan Bank, 334 fathoms (6.8 m.), Carman Bank, 21⁄2 fathoms (4.6 m.), and Seco Islet, 9 feet (2.7 m.) above mean sea level. These banks lie in latitude 11°23′ N., longitude 121°35' E. (see chart 4707), on the northeast edge of the submerged plateau on which the Cuyos are situated and the water deepens abruptly northward and eastward of them.

AGUTAYA ISLAND is the second largest of the Cuyo group with an area of about 412 square miles. The northeastern part is hilly. The middle and highest of the four peaks, 885 feet (270 m.) high, is covered with cogon, the others being wooded. The western part of the

island is 450 feet (137 m.) high in the center and slopes gradually to the beach. There are three barrios, Agutaya, Villafria, and Villasol, on the island, with an estimated population for the entire island of 3,000. Wide coral reefs, bare at low water, extend off the northwest and the southeast sides of the island.

Guinlabo, 21⁄2 miles southward of Agutaya Island, is a small islet 195 feet (59 m.) high, lying near the eastern edge of a shoal about 1/2 mile in diameter. The islet is steep on all sides except the northwest, where there is a rocky beach.

A reef with a least known depth of 34 fathom (1.4 m.) lies 334 miles 263° true from Guinlabo Islet; another reef with a least known depth of 2 fathoms (3.7 m.) lies 8 miles westward of Agutaya Island in latitude 11°08'40" N., longitude 120°48'12" E. Both reefs lie on banks that rise steeply out of depths of 40 to 45 fathoms (73 to 82 m.).

MATARABIS ISLET, situated about 11 miles east of the south end of Agutaya Island, is easily recognized by its steep conical hill, 364 feet (111 m.) high, which when viewed from the northwest or southeast appears to be in the center of the island. This hill makes the islet the most prominent landmark in the group. The islet lies near the southern edge of a bank that slopes gradually toward the north. There is a bank with a least known depth of 534 fathoms (10.5 m.) about 3 miles 285° true from Matarabis Island.

Siparay, 260 feet (79 m.) high, is a small islet lying 5 miles southward of Matarabis. Tacbubuc, 300 feet (91 m.) high, lies 311⁄2 miles southwestward of it. Both islets are steep-to on the southeast and a berth of 1/2 mile clears all known dangers.

TAGAUAYAN ISLANDS (Chart 4336) are two islands connected by a rocky ledge and between them form the best-protected anchorage in the Cuyo Islands. The larger island has three high ridges, the northern being 556 feet (169 m.) high, the middle 390 feet (119) m.), and the southern 490 feet (149 m.) high. Both islands are steep-to except in Tagauayan Bay.

Anchorage. Tagauayan Bay affords good anchorage during the southwest monsoon, though the wind draws with considerable force through between the two islands. Fair shelter from the northeast can be obtained behind the peninsula that forms the northern side of the bay. There is a ridge of shoals about the middle of the bay with a least depth of 234 fathoms (5.0 m.) near the center of the bay. A wreck, visible at all stages of the tide, lies on the beach at the head of the bay. This wreck, the sharp rock on the ledge between the islands, and several hilltops make good marks for entering the bay.

Cocoro Island, lying 4 miles south-southwest of the Tagauayan Islands, is steep-to and generally low with one hill, 293 feet (89 m.) high, in the southern part. The entire island is given over to the cultivation of rice and coconut trees.

CUYO ISLAND has a population of about 16,000. It is about 62 miles long and 5 miles wide, and consists of two hills joined by a low narrow neck of land. Mount Bombon, the northern hill, is 851

feet (259 m.) high and about 12 miles across, with a rounded outline and profile. The slopes of the hill are smooth and fairly steep, reddish brown in color during the dry season, and are covered with short grass and a few small bushes and bamboo. The shores in both of the bights directly south of the mountain are mangrove, while that of the northern end of Cuyo Island is steep and rocky.

Mount Aguada, 602 feet (183 m.) high, lies in the center of the southern and larger part of the island. It is a sharp hill with long slopes that are covered with a mixed vegetation comprising cultivated land, orange, mango, bamboo, nangca, papaya, and arica. The shores are low rocky ledges, or mangroves with coconut along the beaches. There are extensive coral reefs along the western shore and in the bight on the eastern side.

Lucbuan Hill is a sharp peak on the eastern side, rising to a height of 360 feet (110 m.), making an excellent landmark when approaching the island from the eastward. Putic Island is 420 feet (128 m.) high and prominent from the northwestward; it rises to a sharp peak and has rough, steep, rocky shores on the seaward sides. It is connected to Cuyo Island by a reef almost dry at low

water.

Cuyo (Chart 4336), the first town on the Cuyo group and largest municipality in the province of Palawan, is situated opposite a break in the reef on the west side of Cuyo Island. There is a radio station, maintained by the Bureau of Posts, and a small hospital. Communication with Manila and Palawan ports is furnished by a steamship line which maintains a regular schedule averaging about three times each month. Supplies of all kinds are scarce and expensive but small amounts of food, gasoline, diesel and lubricating oil are obtainable. Water is secured from wells, is scarce and indifferent in quality. The Philippine Weather Bureau maintains an observer at Cuyo.

From the west and southwest three iron roofs of school buildings are seen in the northern part of town; south of these are the iron roof of the church and gray stone walls of the fort and iron roof of the tribunal, and farther southward an old stone tower near the end of the short stone mole. The depth of water at the mole is such that landing is possible only in small boats at high water.

Cuyo Light, latitude 10°51′12′′ N., longitude 121°00′17′′ E., is fixed red visible 7 miles and displayed at an elevation of 32 feet (9.8 m.) in the cupola of the old tower near the end of the stone pier. Good anchorage for small vessels, protected from all winds except those from the southwest, may be found in a break in the reef off the end of the mole. A black can buoy marks the northern side of the entrance to the anchorage off Cuyo and a red nun buoy marks the southern side; both buoys are moored in 3 fathoms (5.5 m.) of water. The depth at the entrance between the reefs is 4 fathoms (7.3 m.), decreasing gradually toward the pier.

During the southwest monsoon vessels calling at Cuyo are sometimes obliged to seek shelter close to the northern side of Bisucay Island. During heavy southwest weather vessels will find good protection in the bay on the east side of Cuyo Island, and this place is used for landing in bad weather.

Directions.-Vessels bound for Cuyo when about 111⁄2 miles westward of Bisucay Island should bring Mount Bombon, the peak at the

north end of Cuyo Island, to bear 61° true and steer that course passing about 1/2 mile northwestward of Balading Point on Bisucay Island. This course leads midway between the island and a 42fathom (8.2-m.) shoal, the southernmost of the Gosong Dangers. When Cuyo Light bears 85° true change course and head for the light, passing midway between the buoys, and anchor 250 or 300 yards from the end of the pier in 22 or 3 fathoms (4.6 or 5.5 m.) sandy bottom or farther out according to draft.

Pier. In 1938 a pier was under construction extending southwestward from Dabunan Point across the reef to the deep water of Bisucay Channel. When completed the development will consist of a rockfill causeway 2,592 feet long and a 492-foot concrete pier extension with a depth of water of approximately 26 feet (8.0 m.) at the outer end. A road connection to the town of Cuyo, about 111⁄2 miles to the northeastward, is being made.

In approaching this pier through the north entrance to Bisucay Channel care should be exercised to avoid the 1-fathom (1.8 m.) shoal extending northwestward from the reef 0.6 miles 280° true from Dabunan Point. The southern entrance is deep and lies between two shoals with depths of 31⁄2 and 42 fathoms (6.4 and 8.2 m.) respectively. A course of 8° true, heading for the end of the dock, should lead between them. The currents through this channel are reported to be weak and almost imperceptible in the northeast mon

soon.

Indagamy Island, lying 1 mile westward of Putic Island, is small, steep, and rocky with an uneven rounded sky line reaching a height of 130 feet (40 m.) near the center.

Gosong Dangers.-A shoal with a least known depth of 21⁄4 fathoms (4.1 m.) lies 234 miles 305° true from Indagamy Island. This is the northernmost of a large number of dangers lying between the west coast of Cuyo, Putic, Bararin, and Bisucay Islands. There are several deep channels through this area, but the best approach to the town of Cuyo is through a deep channel 34 mile wide just north of Bisucay Island. Gosong Rock, 10 feet (3.0 m.) high, lies 114 miles west-southwest of Indagamy Island.

Canipo Island, 540 feet (165 m.) high, lying 8 miles northwestward of Cuyo Island, presents the appearance of a ridge with regular slopes from all directions. It is covered with grass and underbrush. Some rice and copra are produced, but the island is of small importance and vessels should keep well outside the 10-fathom (18.3-m.) curve as there is always danger of coral heads in less water.

Bararin Island, a small triangular-shaped island, 297 feet (91 m.) high, lies 44 miles west-northwest from the pier at Cuyo. It is steep-to on the western side, but a reef makes out from the southeastern shore. The island is covered with a scrub tropical growth and is of no commercial importance. A 5-fathom (9.1-m.) shoal lies 3 miles 302° true from Bararin Island.

Bisucay Island is oblong in shape, 12 by 114 miles, with a double-peaked hill, 320 feet (98 m.) high, near the middle. The hill slopes sharply from its summit to about the 100-foot (30.5-m.) elevation and then more gradually to the shore. Coconuts fringe the shore and the peak is wooded. The northeast point is low and sandy;