Under American rule the Tinguian have proved themselves to be quiet, peaceable citizens; a few minor disturbances have occurred, but none of sufficient importance to necessitate the presence of troops in their district.  They have received less attention from the Government than most of the pagan tribes, but, even so, a measure of progress is discernible.  They still stoutly resist the advances of the missionaries, but the few schools which have been opened for their children have always been crowded to overflowing; trade relations are much freer and more friendly than a decade ago; and with the removal of unequal taxes and labor requirements, the feelings of hostility towards “the Christians” are rapidly vanishing.  It now seems probable that within one or two generations the Tinguian will again merge with the Ilocano.

CHAPTER II

PHYSICAL TYPE AND RELATIONSHIPS

From the time of the Spanish invasion up to the present, nearly every author who has mentioned the people of northern Luzon has described the Tinguian as being different from other Philippine tribes.  The majority of these writers has pictured them as being of larger stature than their neighbors; as lighter in color, possessing aquiline features and mongoloid eyes; as being tranquil and pacific in character, and having a great aptitude for agriculture.  From these characteristics they have concluded that they are probably descended from early Chinese traders, emigrants, or castaways, or are derived from the remnants of the pirate band of the Chinese corsair Limahon (Lin-fung), which fled into the mountains of Pangasinan after his defeat by Salcedo in 1574.

These conjectures are strengthened by the reported discovery, in early times, of graves in northwestern Luzon, which contained bodies of men of large stature accompanied by Chinese and Japanese jewels.  The undisputed fact that hundreds of ancient Chinese jars and dishes are still among the cherished possessions of the Tinguian is also cited as a further proof of a close relationship between these peoples.  Finally it is said that the head-bands, jackets, and wide trousers of the men resemble closely those of the fishermen of Fukien, one of the nearest of the Chinese provinces. [20]

Two writers, [21] basing their observations on color, physical resemblances, and the fact that the Tinguian blacken their teeth and tattoo their bodies, are convinced that they are the descendants of Japanese castaways; while Moya [22] states that the features, dress, and customs of this people indicate their migration from the region of the Red Sea in pre-Mohammedan times.

Finally, Quatrefages and Hamy are quoted as regarding the Tinguian as modern examples of “the Indonesian, an allophylic branch of the pure white race, non-Aryan, therefore, who went forth from India about 500 B.C.” [23]

Dr. Barrows [24] classes all the pagan tribes of northern Luzon—­the pygmies excepted—­with the Igorot, a position assailed by Worcester, [25] particularly in regard to the Tinguian; but the latter writer is convinced that the Apayao and Tinguian are divisions of the same people, who have been separated only a comparatively short time.