surveys of rivers and harbor improvements, construction of sewers, waterworks, and other public works requiring engineering skill excepting the construction of public buildings, and excepting also the harbor improvements of the port of Manila. It is also given general charge and supervision of all provincial supervisors in so far as relates to the laying out and construction of roads, bridges, and other engineering works. It has made a survey of the harbors of Cebu and of Iloilo with a view to extensive permanent improvements. At this time Cebu and Iloilo are the commercial centers to which the greater part of the commerce of the Visayan Islands and the northern coast of Mindanao gravitates. These islands are important both for their size and natural resources. They produce hemp, sugar, and copra in very considerable and steadily increasing quantities and are capable of great development.

At

Cebu and Iloilo are ports of entry to and from which foreign vessels come and go in considerable number. They are growing in population and business and their customs receipts are steadily increasing. present in both of these harbors vessels of large tonnage are compelled to lie off at considerable distance from the shore, which makes it necessary for all freight to be lightered in taking on and discharging cargoes. This causes much expense and delay and constitutes a heavy burden upon commerce, and is a serious drawback to the prosperity of the islands.

As a result of the survey and soundings made in the harbor of Cebu a plan has been prepared for building a concrete masonry wharf about 2,500 feet in length which may be extended from time to time as the. needs of commerce demand. Considerable dredging is necessary along its front and the material will be deposited behind the masonry wall, and thereby about 13 acres of very valuable land will be reclaimed which will belong to the insular government. This land will be subdivided, upon a proper plan, into streets and lots, and the latter will be sold and utilized for business purposes. The proceeds of sales will pay a large portion of the money expended in construction. When this improvement is completed vessels of 23 feet draft will be able to lie alongside the wharf in safety and load and unload their cargoes. Bids for doing this work have already been advertised and will be shortly opened and contract awarded.

The city of Iloilo is located on the river of the same name, which empties into the channel separating the island of Guimaras from the island of Panay. This port has heretofore ranked as second in importance in the Archipelago. Now vessels of about 12 feet draft only can enter the river at high tide and are always liable to ground on the bar at the mouth of the river. Larger vessels are compelled to anchor in the channel a mile or more from town. The scheme of improvement for this harbor involves confining and deepening the channel of the river by means of dikes and dredging, and also contemplates proper provision for suitable walls and docks. Advertisement for bids for the doing of this work has also been made and the contract will doubtless be awarded at the same time as that of Cebu.

An appropriation of $350,000 has been made by the Commission for the harbor of Cebu and $150,000 for the harbor of Iloilo. It is not supposed, however, that these sums will be adequate to complete the improvements contemplated.

PANSIPIT RIVER IMPROVEMENT.

Surveys have also been made looking to the improvement of the Pansipit River, which flows from Lake Taal, in the province of Batangas, a distance of about 6 miles, where it empties into the China Sea at the towns of Taal and Lemery. It is contemplated to deepen this river so as to permit boats of at least 6 feet draft to pass from Lake Taal to the sea. The lake itself is a considerable sheet of water, and its watershed contains several hundred square miles of fertile and beautiful country. At present the only outlet for this section is by means of ordinary roads, which are extremely rough, and, indeed, are little more than mere trails. The improvement of the harbor of Batangas, which is the capital of the province, and the construction of a wharf to which vessels of a considerable draft may come are also being provided for.

Batangas Province prior to the insurrection was perhaps the wealthiest province in the islands. It has suffered, however, very severely from the destruction of its coffee plantations, from the misfortunes of war, and loss of horses and cattle by disease. While the intended improvement of the Pansipit River would be well warranted because of its value as an internal improvement, it will be at this time of an especial benefit to the masses of the people of Batangas, as it will furnish them a much-needed means of livelihood. These works will be paid for out of the Congressional relief fund.

TARLAC AND PAMPANGA RIVERS.

The consulting engineer has also taken up the subject of overflow of the Tarlac and Pampanga rivers running through the provinces of the same name in the island of Luzon. The region lying along and contiguous to the banks of these streams is densely populated and very fertile. During the rainy season there are frequently disastrous overflows from the rivers. It is thought probable that by means of dikes and levees this overflow may be prevented. Nothing, however, has been accomplished beyond a preliminary survey of the sections involved, which will be followed by a topographical survey and estimate of cost of the work necessary to accomplish the end in view.

BENGUET IMPROVEMENT WORK.

The work of building the road from Pozorrubio, in the province of Pangasinan, to Baguio, in the province of Benguet, has now been in progress for more than two years. Much has been said in our former reports concerning the importance of this road as furnishing an easy and convenient passage to the highlands of Benguet. The Commission has already had constructed a sanitarium at Baguio where invalid civil servants may recuperate, and is determined to make further appropriations for the construction of government buildings and residences for government officials and employees, for occupancy during the heated season. At present access to Baguio is very difficult and involves a journey of several days, much of it over rough mountain trails. The road now in course of construction will make access comparatively easy, especially if, as is contemplated, a steam or electric railroad is constructed thereon.

WAR 1903-VOL 7—2

The first survey of this road was made nearly three years ago by Capt. Charles W. Meade, Thirty-sixth U. S. Infantry, who at the time of his selection for this duty was acting as city engineer of Manila under appointment of General MacArthur, then military governor. The result of the survey as made by him showed that the road could be built at a cost of about $3,000 per mile upon easy grades and that there were no serious engineering difficulties to be overcome. Believing this report to be reliable, the Commission had Captain Meade assigned to take charge of this work and made the appropriation which he stated was adequate. After the exhaustion of the first appropriation, however, it was discovered that his estimate of cost was much too small and that it would probably require twice the sum originally estimated to complete it, and the Commission again made the necessary appropriation. After a large amount of work had been done on the road along the line originally projected, and when an early completion seemed in sight, we were much disappointed to find that owing to the shifting character of the soil and rock through which it ran the route as surveyed was impracticable. In several places where the road ran along the shoulders of the mountains, when heavy rains fell, loose rock and soil would slide down upon it and the bottom of the road itself would frequently drop out into the valley below. More careful investigation disclosed that this was due to the fact that the mountains themselves were composed of a mass of small broken rock mixed with volcanic mud which when cut into in building the road caused the downward movement above mentioned. It was found also upon investigation and after experiment that this could not be prevented even by building heavy retaining walls, because the roadbed itself when saturated by heavy rains would and did give way, carrying the retaining wall with it. The original error made by Captain Meade in underestimating the cost of the road, as stated above, was perhaps not remarkable. At the time he made his first estimate labor conditions were exceedingly unsettled, and the difficulties experienced in transportation of food and other supplies necessary for carrying on the work were very great. The most serious error, however, he committed was in not making a more careful exploration as to the character of the rock and soil through which the line of road was projected. Had he done this the impracticability of his route would have been made manifest. The original route, as surveyed by Captain Meade and thereafter abandoned for the reasons stated, will not, however, be entirely useless, as it opens up a very pretty mountain country. In this embarrassing situation the question was presented to the Commission as to whether it should permanently abandon the project of building the road or proceed along another line. The Commission was indisposed to adopt the first alternative, and therefore directed Mr. J. W. Beardsley, consulting engineer to the Commission, who came to us highly recommended and who, as his subsequent work has demonstrated, is a careful, conscientious, and thoroughly equipped civil engineer, to make a careful survey. This he did, and reported that it was feasible to build a substantial road along the banks of the Bued River above the flood line, but that this route involved the expenditure of at least a million dollars, as much of the way ran through solid rock. The Commission determined that notwithstanding the great outlay of money involved the accruing benefits warranted the expenditure, and directed the work

to proceed. It has been prosecuted under many difficulties, both in the matter of procuring labor and competent supervising engineers. The duties of the consulting engineer were so exacting as to make it impossible for him to devote his time to directing operations. Realizing the necessity of having an engineer of skill and energy in charge, some six months since, the civil governor asked for and procured the detail of Maj. L. W. V. Kennon, Tenth U. S. Infantry, and placed him in charge. He came highly recommended as an engineer of skill, experience, and energy, having had much engineering experience in tropical countries. Since he has taken charge he has fully justified his selection and is now engaged in pushing the work forward successfully and rapidly and it is hoped and believed will complete it within the next twelve months. He is constructing the road upon comparatively easy grades and of proper width so that it may be used either as an ordinary highway or as the roadbed of an electric or steam road. He now has about 3,000 men engaged upon the work, 2,500 of whom are Filipinos.

I do not hesitate to recommend that the Commission should ultimately establish rail connection between Dagupan, the northern terminus of the Manila and Dagupan Railroad, and Baguio. The distance between these two points is about 55 miles. The road between Dagupan and Pozorrubio, a distance of about 30 miles, presents no engineering difficulties. It would run through a beautiful and fertile agricultural country now dotted with rice paddies and villages, the traffic from which would make the building of the road to this point fairly profitable. The road from Pozorrubio to Baguio, for the most part, would run along the valley of the Bued River and through a country practically uninhabited until it reached Baguio at an elevation of nearly a mile above the lowlands. This, as will be seen, involves a steady climb of about 4,500 feet in a distance of about 25 miles. The Bued River, along which the road will run, has a heavy fall and a very considerable volume of water and would furnish the means of procuring proper power for the operation of an electric line from Pozorrubio to Baguio.

It seems reasonably certain that there are valuable deposits of gold and copper in the Benguet Mountains, which probably can be profitably worked as soon as reasonably cheap transportation for machinery, supplies, etc., can be furnished miners. If we are not mistaken in this, the road ought to be self-supporting and will be an important factor in the development of the mineral resources of this section. Aside from this, however, it is believed that if the plans of the Commission are carried out there would be a very considerable increase in the population of Benguet Province. There are several fairly rich valleys in the neighborhood of Baguio, and all the mountains are covered with a growth of grass, upon which cattle flourish.

Prior to the insurrection the Igorrotes, who are the only inhabitants of this region, were the owners of considerable herds of cattle, and it is believed that cattle raising would be engaged in on an extensive scale so soon as means of communication were furnished with Manila and other centers of population. As matters stand to-day, there is quite a large trade in importing cattle from China to be slaughtered and sold in the Manila market.

The Commission, by Act No. 926, has provided for the laying out of

town sites and the sale of lots, having in mind especially the laying out of a town at Baguio, and it is thought that with a ready and comfortable way to reach Baguio there would spring up a town of considerable proportions which would contribute largely to the support of the road; but the prime consideration for its construction lies in the importance of making accessible this beautiful pine-wood mountain country with its running streams of pure water and its ideal climate. Experience has shown that white men, born in and accustomed to colder climates, live and flourish there to as great a degree as in California or other sections of the United States. Experience further shows that when enervated by long-continued living in the lowlands, or when suffering from dysenteric and other tropical diseases, if they resort to Benguet they quickly recuperate. It would be unquestionably, in the long run, by far the most economical if, for at least four months during the hot season of each year, this place could be the official seat of the government, easily accessible to government employees and to Americans and Europeans engaged in business here. It would be a thorough solution of the health problem in so far as it relates to living in the islands. The wealthier Filipinos are also much interested in the development of the Benguet project, and will doubtless erect summer homes there instead of going to Japan and other more northern countries during the heated season, as heretofore.

Maj. Gen. George W. Davis, shortly before surrendering command of the Division of the Philippines, visited Benguet and selected a location containing 700 acres for a military reservation, which is an ideal site. If comfortable quarters and barracks were erected thereon for officers and men, it would be wise to keep in garrison at that point at least one-third of the American troops stationed in the islands. By shifting a portion of those stationed in the lowlands to Baguio for a proper period, and the reverse, the term of duty of troops in the Philippine Islands could be much extended and a consequent saving made in the cost of frequent transportation to and fro of troops from the United States to the islands and from the islands to the United States. Moreover, the Government would not so frequently suffer the loss of service and efficiency of its employees on account of the effects of a tropical climate. In adopting such a plan as this we would be but following the course pursued by the English in India and other tropical countries with such eminent success.

ELECTRIC POWER FOR MANILA.

The bureau has also had under its direction, pursuant to acts of the Commission, the investigation of the falls of certain small rivers in the provinces of La Laguna and Bulacan in order to develop power for transmission to Manila and neighboring cities and towns. Preliminary surveys have already been made of the falls of the Angat River in the province of Bulacan and of the Dilitinan, Lamot, and Calarayan rivers in the province of La Laguna, with this end in view. The first of these rivers is about 35 miles and the others are about 50 miles from Manila. A careful topographical survey is now being prosecuted so that certain and accurate information may be obtained. Already it has been ascertained that from fifteen to twenty thousand horsepower can be derived from these sources. So far no serious engineering difficulties have been encountered, and it is believed that a completion of