CHAPTER VIII

[To Albay by schooner.] Towards the end of August I started from Manila for Albay in a schooner which had brought a cargo of hemp and was returning in ballast.  It was fine when we set sail; but on the following day the signs of a coming storm increased so rapidly that the captain resolved to return and seek protection in the small but secure harbor of Mariveles, a creek on the southern shore of Bataan, the province forming the western boundary of Manila bay.  We reached it about two o’clock in the night after cruising about for fourteen hours before the entrance; and we were obliged to remain here at anchor for a fortnight, as it rained and stormed continuously for that period.

[Mariveles.] The weather obliged me to limit my excursions to the immediate neighborhood of Mariveles.  Unfortunately it was not till the close of our stay that I learnt that there was a colony of negritos in the mountains; and it was not till just before my departure that I got a chance of seeing and sketching a couple of them, male and female.  The inhabitants of Mariveles have not a very good reputation.  The place is only visited by ships which run in there in bad weather, when their idle crews spend the time in drinking and gambling.  Some of the young girls were of striking beauty and of quite a light color; often being in reality of mixed race, though they passed as of pure Tagal blood.  This is a circumstance I have observed in many seaports, and in the neighborhood of Manila; but, in the districts which are almost entirely unvisited by the Spaniards, the natives are much darker and of purer race.

[Storm-bound shipping.] The number of ships which were seeking protection from the weather in this port amounted to ten, of which three were schooners.  Every morning regularly a small pontin [70] used to attempt to set sail; but it scarcely got a look at the open sea before it returned, when it was saluted with the jeers and laughter of the others.  It was hunger that made them so bold.  The crew, who had taken some of their own produce to Manila, had spent the proceeds of their venture, and had started on their return voyage scantily provided with provisions, with the hope and intention of soon reaching their home, which they could have done with any favorable wind.  Such cases frequently occur.  A few natives unite to charter a small vessel, and load it with the produce of their own fields, which they set off to sell in Manila.

[The straits.] The straits between the Islands resemble beautiful wide rivers with charming spots upon the banks inhabited by small colonies; and the sailors generally find the weather gets squally towards evening, and anchor till the morning breaks.