[Courteous Spanish officials.] To the captain of the port, Don Juan Salomon, I feel under many obligations for his attentions.  I was desirous of obtaining information relative to the Sulu Seas, and to learn how far the Spanish surveys had been carried.  He gave me little hopes of obtaining any; but referred me to Captain Halcon, of the Spanish Navy, who had been employed surveying some part of the coast of the islands to the north.  The latter whom I visited, on my making the inquiry of him, and stating the course I intended to pursue, frankly told me that all the existing charts were erroneous.  He only knew enough of the ground to be certain that they were so, and consequently useless.  He advised my taking one of the native pilots, who were generally well acquainted with the seas that lay more immediately in my route.  The captain of the port was afterwards kind enough to offer to procure me one.

The intercourse I had with these gentlemen was a source of much gratification, and it gives me great pleasure to make this public expression of it.  To both, my sincere acknowledgments are due for information in relation to the various reefs and shoals that have been recently discovered, and which will be found placed in their true position on our charts.

During our stay at Manila, our time was occupied in seeing sights, shopping, riding, and amusing ourselves with gazing on the throng incessantly passing through the Escolta of the Binondo suburb, or more properly, the commercial town of Manila.

[Cigar factories.] Among the lions of the place, the great royal cigar manufactories claim especial notice from their extent and the many persons employed.  There are two of these establishments, one situated in the Binondo quarter, and the other on the great square or Prado; in the former, which was visited by us, there are two buildings of two stories high, besides several storehouses, enclosed by a wall, with two large gateways, at which sentinels are always posted.  The principal workshop is in the second story, which is divided into six apartments, in which eight thousand females are employed.  Throughout the whole extent, tables are arranged, about sixteen inches high, ten feet long, and three feet wide, at each of which fifteen women are seated, having small piles of tobacco before them.  The tables are set crosswise from the wall, leaving a space in the middle of the room free.  The labor of a female produces about two hundred cigars a day; and the working hours are from 6 a.m., till 6 p.m., with a recess of two hours, from eleven till one o’clock.  The whole establishment is kept very neat and clean, and every thing appears to be carried on in the most systematic and workmanlike manner.  Among such numbers, it has been found necessary to institute a search on their leaving the establishment to prevent embezzlement, and this is regularly made twice a day, without distinction of sex.  It is a strange sight to witness the ingress and egress of these hordes of females; and probably the world cannot elsewhere exhibit so large a number of ugly women.  Their ages vary from fifteen to forty-five.  The sum paid them for wages is very trifling.  The whole number of persons employed in the manufactories is about fifteen thousand; this includes the officers, clerks, overseers, etc.