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CHAPTER 6: SPANISH PHILIPPINES

 

Section 3: Pronounced Economic Growth

I. Manila opened to foreign commerce in 1834.

A. America began shipping in Manila for trade.

1. In 1796, Astrea was one of the earliest American boats to come directly for trade.

a. It came from Salem, Massachusetts.

b. It brought hats, ship’s compasses, and wines.

c. It took back pounds of sugar, indigo, pepper and
pieces of tanned hide.

2. Andrew Sharp became the first American consul in Manila.

3. Three American firms (Peele, Hubble and Co., Richard D. Tucker, Russel Sturgis) were handling cargoes of sugar, hemp, and sampan wood.

B. Britain took part in the trade and established a firm in 1809.

1. British shipping was more frequent than that of the
Americans.

2. Agricultural products led to a growth of exports of sugar, tobacco, indigo, and hemp.

3. John William Farren became the first British consul in Manila.

II. Nicholas Loney became the first British consul in Iloilo.

A. He brought and introduced cheap manufactured English cotton
fabrics and had a hand-woven textile industry.

B. He promoted sugar industry in Negros.

III. The sugar industry in Negros expanded quickly.

A. Foreigners administered and capitalized the sugar industry.

B. Natives became laborers to increase the workforce of the
outgrowing industry.

IV. Abaca industry was developed in Bicol.

A. Abaca became a prime commodity in the world market because of
its quality.

B. Poor farmers cultivated abaca in small patches of land.

 

Section 4: Some Social Repercussions

I. Philippine society before 19 century can be drawn as a triangle of classes.

A. The peninsulares, or the Spaniards born in Spain, constituted the smallest population in the society.

B. The criollos were the Spaniards born in V Philippines and in South America.

C. The people, who were half-Filipino and half-Chinese, or half- Filipino and half-Spanish, were considered as the mestizos.

D. The indios constituted the biggest population in the society.

E. The cimarrones or infieles were the minority groups and they were considered as “unaccepted” in the society.

F. The foreigners, particularly the pure Chinese, formed a group by themselves.

II. The pure Chinese played an important role in Philippine economy.

A. Restrictive laws and policies against the Chinese were relaxed.

1. The government wanted to challenge the mestizo
ascendancy.

2. It was the failure of a plan forcing them to engage in agriculture and frontier colonization.

3. Chinese were not keen on farming.

B. Chinese population in the country grew.

C. Chinese acted as middlemen.

1. They retailed imports and in return collected products for exports.

2. They took loans either from individual Spaniards or from, the Banco Espanol Filipino.

3. They took goods on credit for a period ranging from d e to six months.

III. Chinese mestizos were the main proprietors who engaged in export agriculture.

A. They rose to social and political prominence.

B. They became the new Philippine elite or the illustrados, who were highly educated in the new ideas and Hispanized in word.

IV. Political implications happened and the class distinctions tended to disappear.

A. Social unification and intermarriage began.

1. The criollos and the Chinese mestizos tended to merge into one group through marriage.

2. The indios, the native elite and the commoners (timawas or cailianes) tended to merge with the criollos and mestizos
through common aspirations.

B. The Spanish conservatives fear that social unification might lead to political equality, and that the society must have strong leadership.

C. Reform programs were formulated.

D. Spanish colonial policies (Viana) made Spain to have two choices.

1. Spain will continue modernizing the Philippines and grant it political independence.

2. Spain will suppress all modem programs and keep the Philippines under continued Spanish rule.

[ Index ]

 

[ Index | Chap 1 | Chap 2 | Chap 3 | Chap 4 | Chap 5 | Chap 6 | Chap 7 | Chap 8 | Chap 9 | Chap 10 ]