HARDBOUND
SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR.
FIRST PAGES DETACHED, BUT IN GOOD CONDITION.

ABOUT THE WORK

Its author, of Asturian origin, was born in Granada in 1840. Felipe Canga-Arguelles was the son and grandson of politicians and writers. He had military training and was part of the Spanish Navy but left it as a frigate captain to devote himself to politics. He was secretary of the general government of the Philippines and governor of the island of Paragua (Palawan.) A man of culture, he belonged to the Economic Society of Madrid. He published articles on Philippine geography, but the present book is his most important work. The island of Palawan was called during the Spanish period “Isla de La Paragua,” and it was a relatively uncolonized territory where there were only small military posts for defense against attacks by Moorish pirates, and towns where Recollect missionaries worked, especially on the north coast and in the area of Calamianes. The best-known testimony of the Spanish presence is the fort of Santa Isabel in Taytay, from the end of the 17th century. This volume is one of the very few monographs devoted entirely to the beautiful island of Palawan, and its author wrote it after finishing his three and a half years as governor. It gives a lot of curious pieces of information. First, the island was almost unpopulated, with only 16,000 inhabitants in total. Tribal warfare was unknown, and they only resorted to force to defend themselves against Moro piracy. He briefly discusses each ethnic group and gives a historical summary of their colonization. The government of Palawan was only created in February 1872 — relatively late. There were only 1269 inhabitants in Puerta Princesa, of whom only 68 were Spanish and 54 were Chinese. The plan he proposed was the emigration to Puerto Princesa of 100 Spanish families to work the land and create a prosperous society since the climate was healthy and the land abundant. The book ends with several appendices and tables about the most frequent illnesses and the endowment of the infirmaries. The whole volume is of great interest. Retana defined this book as “the most complete about such an important and rich island.” Very rare.