Tuesday, August 25, 2026

The Chinese Immigration, Settlement, Agriculture and Commerce in Misamis During the Nineteenth Century by Rhina Alvero-Boncocan, Faina A. Ulindang and Ian Kristian Sulmayor ABSTRACT

 

By 1800’s the Misamis province of Northern Mindanao was fully integrated as a Spanish territory through a combination of force and proselytization. The ensuing peace stimulated Chinese migration who came in as agriculturists in search for land to buy and produce cash crops. The opening of the Philippines to world trade became an incentive for lucrative ventures into copra, abaca and sugar. Thus, a number of Chinese based in Cebu ventured in nearby island of Mindanao to stake their chances.

            This paper focuses on Chinese presence in Misamis, Northern Mindanao by the nineteenth century; as well as its impact on the socio-economic transformation. Furthermore, this paper highlights how commerce and agriculture developed Northern Mindanao into its present highly urbanized status, foregrounding Chinese, Spanish and native Mindanawon relations during the period under study.

Key words: Misamis,  Chinese Immigration, Settlement. Agriculture, Commerce

 

Introduction

             Early commercial relations between China and the peoples of Mindanao are well-documented. Extant sources have already noted Chinese trade with Sulu, Maguindanao, Zamboanga and Butuan, such as Chu Fan Chih  and related sources. This paper utilized the archival collections of the National Archives of the Philippines (NAP), particularly the Padron General de Chinos, a census and register of Chinese residents;  the Contribucion Industrial, which details commercial and industrial exchanges; the Erecciones de Pueblos for the political, military and civil administrative relations; and the Mamitua Saber Research Center of the Mindanao State University, for Chinese relations with native Mindanawons.

             However, while the use of official documents produced by the Spanish colonial authorities may indicate certain biases and prejudice against colonial subjects, these can still be useful, as  one historian J.Tosh (2010,130) averts:  these biases can be historically significant for these may explain the context of a policy being implemented, or the motives for a shift in opinion.

 

Chinese presence in Mindanao before 1800 (a summary)

            An overview of early Chinese presence in Mindanao can be described in three phases:[1] First phase being the 7th to 9th centuries [2] when trading and proselytization combined brought the Muslim Hui Chinese along with the Arabs, and Malays to the Sulu Zone and successfully made their presence felt. Islamization further spread to the island of Mindanao by way of Zamboanga. The peripatetic Muslim Chinese traders eventually reached the Misamis province of Lanao and also became purveyors of the religion, Islam.[3]  The Second phase of Chinese presence will be during the 13th century from the same  Sulu Zone[4] to Maguindanao area by way of the Illana  Bay penetrating the interior of Cotabato Province. Eventually, the Maguindanaoans, the alleged overlord of Central Mindanao, further held sway to Lanao, opening the pathways for the Chinese traders. By the 15th century, Sultan Kudarat, a Maguindanao an Sultan became an effective ruler of the region before the Spaniards undercut his suzerainty over Lanao upon his demise. At this point, the tenuous relations between the Spaniards and the native Muslims in the island became a deterrent to Chinese migration. However, the opening of the Philippines to world trade and relaxed migration policies of the Spaniards in the 19th century (Third phase) placed Mindanao as a potential destination for the Chinese businessman. Chinese migration, as this paper would show, started to make an economic impact particularly in the province of Misamis. Thus, with the coming of the American invaders, superseding the Spaniards, Chinese presence was already well established in the area. [5]

                Misamis is one of the administrative divisions under which the Spanish colonial regime governed in the island of Mindanao. The Misamis region covered much of the northern and western portions of Mindanao, including the homelands of the Maranao around Lake Lanao. Although the Spanish began its conquest and administration of parts of the island centuries earlier, it was around the middle of the 19th century that the conditions developed for a significant Chinese presence in the area. By the late 1800s, the Misamis populace included peoples who were Spanish, natives, Chinese and Moros engaged in trade, commerce, and agriculture.

Buzeta [6] described the province of Misamis as one of the four political divisions of the island of Mindanao after its reduccion by the Spaniards.   It was identified as an alcaldía-mayor with the town with the same name Misamis as the capital or cabecera. The alcalde mayor resided in the province as it governed Misamis.  The ecclesiastical supervision of the province belonged to the bishopric of Cebu. In his accounts, Buzeta could not help criticize the lack of development of the towns, particularly the need to improve the towns’ utilization of resources. He blamed underdevelopment on the native ndio’s indolence and backwardness. He then suggested the products to be harnessed for the towns and the people to make progress: rice and cocoa crops, coconut and all kinds of fruits, cotton and abaca, beeswax, gold, and balate (sea cucumber). He also recommended the need for the towns to put up defenses against “Moro enemies” as the constant threat of piratical attacks prevented progress from taking place in the province. Moro raids brought death and desolation, greatly reducing the population.

Colonial reports taken from the records of the Erecciones de Pueblos of Misamis in the 1800s also depicted the problems faced by towns and provinces and the efforts of Spanish local officials to resolve these issues. The Misamis corregidor (politico-military governor) reported the construction of a new fort near the Laparan River to prevent Moro attacks from Lake Lanao [7] Another expediente narrated Moro assaults in various parts of the province which made the townsfolk apprehensive and threatened [8]. Likewise, another official report from the corregidor narrated the appearance of Moro boats on the coasts of the visitas of Lubungan and Dipolog as well as other parts of the province.  He also reported the measures he had taken to defend these visitas[9]

                In spite of the death and destruction brought about by Moro attacks in most coastal towns in Misamis during the Spanish-Moro Wars, normal daily life may be gleaned from these reports. Accounts featured some towns experiencing growth and prosperity brought about by productivity of the people in agriculture, trading, and other industries at certain periods. In 1837, the Misamis corregidor furnished the Spanish authorities with a report on the produce of his province, as well as the populations of each town [10]. The establishment of new towns through the separation of villages from the town matrices were also reported.  There were also requests of separation of certain visitas from the spiritual supervision of the cabecera. The townspeople petitioned for a separate parish priest who will administer their own visita.[11]

                We find that a number of factors explain the considerable presence of Chinese people in the Misamis area, which represents the possibility of contact between the Chinese and the natives in the area. Chief among these was the fact that the Misamis area achieved a level of pacification in the middle of the 19th century. This allowed the area to be a conduit for trade, a viable place for agriculture, and a destination for immigrant labor. This pacification was due in part to the establishment of missions by the religious orders in the area. Another development was the strengthening of Spanish naval power which contained the activities of raiders. These allowed trade and other productive activities to flourish, which in turn led to the region of Misamis becoming a locus for contact between peoples. The following sections of the paper discuss this thesis further.

  General Spanish Policies toward the Chinese in the country

Spanish colonial policies regarding the Chinese peoples in the Philippines was largely determined by their colonial interests and status of relations with the Filipinos. Wickberg[12] described early Spanish policies on the Chinese as a balance between religious-cultural and economic interests. During the sixteenth century, economic interests demanded tolerance of Chinese presence, particularly those of Chinese traders and artisans. Chinese merchants were considered necessary for their role in the lucrative Manila Galleon trade system. Chinese workers also filled up certain occupations scoffed at by Spaniards and which they considered as unsuitable for the natives. Religious and cultural considerations, on the other hand, pushed the Spaniards to implement a more restrictive policy on the Chinese in Spanish-controlled areas in the archipelago. Hence, Spanish policies on the Chinese took three forms: “taxation, control and conversion.”[13]

By the middle of the 18th century (1750-1850), Spanish policies toward the Chinese vacillated from a relaxed and liberal policy to a restrictive and limiting policy on migration and mobility. The Spaniards were more tolerant of the Chinese moving and settling in the provinces. Wickberg[14] noted the expansion of Chinese presence in Cavite, Laguna, Bulacan, Pampanga, Bataan, Pangasinan, Vigan, Panay Island, and in Spanish settlements in Cebu, Naga, and Zamboanga. The expansion may have been the result of Spanish attempts to settle the Chinese in rural areas near Manila to support agricultural development. Large numbers of Chinese men were hired by Spanish religious estates as farm laborers and gardeners.[15] Spaniards were particularly more lenient on the mobility of the Christian Chinese. The Spanish desire to convert the Chinese actually became advantageous to the latter, who preferred less supervision from colonial officials. Becoming a Christian often meant a reduction of taxes to be paid, an award of land grants, and the liberty to reside anywhere[16]. For Corpuz[17], however, there was another reason for the move to permit the Chinese to reside not just in Manila but also in the provinces: that of corruption. Sales of residence permits and other illegal documents was a good source of income for Spanish officials. The residence permit was first required from the Chinese who wanted to reside permanently in the Philippines in 1614.[18]  Spanish officials sold residence permits to more Chinese people than what the laws allowed, making profits from the sale of extra permits and other illegal documents.

However, the policy of expulsion also remained. In 1755, Governor-General Pedro Manuel de Arandía implemented another order of expulsion. He also restricted Chinese traders who wanted to travel from Manila to other parts of Luzon before their boats were ready to sail back to China. Only the Chinese who already converted to Christianity and those contemplating conversion were allowed to stay in the Philippines with the provision that they engage in agriculture[19]. A majority of non-Christian Chinese were ousted from Manila and the provinces, with only about 5,000 to 10,000 Chinese remaining, mostly in Manila[20]. However, there are records demonstrating the ability of the Chinese to circumvent the law on expulsion by becoming Christians:

By June 30, 1755, the day fixed for their [Chinese] departure from Manila, 515 Chinamen had been Christians, in order to evade the edict, besides 1,108 who were permitted to remain because they were studying the mysteries and intricacies of Christianity. 2,070 were banished from Manila, the expulsion being rigidly enforced on those newly arriving in junks.[21]

Relating to the subject of this paper, it is interesting to note that some of the Chinese who were spared from the 1755 expulsion order settled in Mindanao, in Sulu and Cotabato where Spanish control was still minimal. In these areas, they worked as “rice millers, carpenters and palm wine distillers”.  Those who settled in Sulu traded Chinese products in exchange for rice and other products, continuing the Sulu-China trade from centuries ago. Moreover, local Moro datus were involved in the trade, giving out loans to the Chinese. Since Spanish attempts to control the Sulu area meant attacking Moro trading vessels, the Chinese replaced the Moro traders and carried on the trade themselves [22]

In the 19th century, the policies of the Spaniards over the Chinese encouraged Chinese immigration. This stemmed from the Spanish officials’ mandate to develop the economy in agriculture, commerce, and industry[23]. Since the eighteenth century, Spanish colonial policy favored the development of an export economy based on the production of cash crops such as sugar, abaca, and tobacco. Cash crops for export became new sources of revenues for the Spanish colony.

To complement liberal trade policies, Spanish regulations on the residence and opportunities to trade for non-Spanish foreigners in the colony were also implemented. A decree in 1834 allowed persons of any nationality to engage in trading and to reside in the Philippines. This further encouraged foreign merchant houses, particularly British and American tradesmen, to play a significant role in the development of the export economy. For the Chinese, restrictions on immigration and trade were also lifted to complement the relaxation on foreigner policies.  Changes in taxation regulations in 1832, 1837, and 1843 fixed the problem of arbitrary taxation long endured by Chinese traders. Restrictions on occupation and mobility came next. In 1839, Governor-General Luis Lardizábal issued a decree regulating the status of the Chinese in the Philippines. The decree also provided that should resident Chinese be arrested for not carrying the cedula or passport, they could be “condemned to labor on the public works; and deportation to Zamboanga, Misamis, Paragua and Calamianes …” [24]

 Moreover, according to Montero y Vidal [25] the Chinese were to be “classified as transients [invernados], those spending the winter [in the islands], and permanent residents [radicados]. They were allowed to choose the occupation which best suited them, without any restriction.”

Residence in the provinces and change in residences from different provinces were allowed through the application of a license from the governor-general in Manila or through provincial governors. However, travel from Manila to the provinces to trade remained restricted by travel permits with a duration of three months and in some cases with extension. According to the Superior Decree of June 1848, all Chinese who were to travel to the provinces had to obtain an internal passport from the colonial government[26]. This implied quite strict monitoring of travel by Chinese people to the provinces.  Also, any Chinese who wanted to travel must pay the amount for the first-class tax for every month that the permit was granted [27]. The 1839 decree also favored the settlement of Chinese in “uncolonized areas” acting as penal colonies for the Chinese who did not pay their taxes.(underscoring supplied by the Authors) Article 31 provided that: “Having several points on the islands, such as Zamboanga, Misamis, Paragua, and Calamianes and others, where the Chinese population will be very useful, all Chinese who cannot pay their tribute will be used for this purpose” [28]. Hence, the Chinese who were arrested due to the lack of official permit (cedula) or passport would be condemned to serve in public works.  Likewise, deportation was ordered for those who could not pay their capitation tax for Manila and Cavite, to help populate frontier areas[29]

               In order to promote agricultural development, the Spanish authorities also awarded tax incentives to any Chinese who would engage in agriculture.  Through a Royal Order on June 14, 1848, Governor-General Urbiztondo issued a proclamation in 1850 in which hacienda owners were allowed to hire Chinese agricultural laborers, with the number of laborers based on the size of the haciendas. First class landowners whose total production does not fall below 2,500 pesos per year were allowed to hire up to 400 Chinese in their estates, while those whose production go beyond 1,500 pesos were allowed up to 200 farm laborers [30].

               The Chinese workers who dedicated themselves exclusively to agriculture, especially in producing cash crops such as sugar, indigo, and abaca in the provinces of Luzon and Visayas were to pay only 13 reales: 12 reales for the capitacion personal (head tax) and 1 real for the caja comunidad (community chest fund). Those that would dedicate themselves to agriculture in frontier areas such as Cagayan, Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, Mindoro, Masbate, Ticao, Catanduanes, Polillo, Romblon and contiguous islands, Misamis, Caraga, Zamboanga, Nueva Guipuzcoa [Davao], Calamianes, and other unpopulated areas will pay the amount equal to that of the payment of the naturales (natives). Also, individuals who acquired realengas (estates) in unpopulated provinces or islands who dedicated themselves to tobacco cultivation were allowed to hire Chinese agricultural laborers of fifty, one hundred, and up to two hundred depending on the size of the land.  They were also exempted from paying taxes for the first five years [31]. Galang[32]  observed, however, that laws promoting Chinese immigration as agricultural laborers were not that successful since the Chinese who stayed as residents in the period, preferred  trading and commercial activities or work as artisans.

Some Chinese were also able to enter the Philippines using the “backdoor route” in Sulu. Since the Sulu trade was hardly regulated by the Spaniards, it was possible for the Chinese to unlawfully enter and stay in the Philippines through those islands. Upon arrival, the Chinese can travel through Muslim boats to Zamboanga and move to the Mindanao interior. This illegal way of immigration carried on even after the Americans controlled Mindanao [33]

Galang [34] described the general ease of travel of undocumented Chinese to Mindanao.  From Sulu, the indocumentados can proceed to Zamboanga and then enter the interior of Mindanao. They paid no fees and brought with them all kinds of products that the Moros and the natives sought. Spanish administrators labelled such relations with the Moros as smuggling and piracy. They were called contrabandistas y piratas. By Moros, they referred to the Maguindanaoans and the Maranaos.

 

The Chinese interactions with the Natives of Mindanao

            It was mentioned above that Spanish records yield accounts of Chinese commercial activities in the northern part of the Mindanao island which fell under the Province of Misamis during the Spanish occupation. The following are potential ways through which Chinese interactions with the natives in areas surrounding Lanao can be inferred. Diaz-Arenas[35] observed that in 1849, Misamis had the biggest number of Chinese settlers among all provinces, with 562 Chinese radicados (residents) from a total of 1,267 for all provinces. Of the 562 Chinese residents, 200 were staying in the cabecera. Only Tondo in Manila had a bigger number of Chinese residing in its area. Doeppers mention that in Cebu City  “of 486 Chinese registered in the city in 1891 but missing three years later, 12 are known to have died in the city; 11 were located living in various less-urbanized municipalities of the same island-province; and four were traced either to the neighboring province of Negros Oriental or to the then tiny port town of Cagayan de Oro on the north coast of Mindanao.”underscoring supplied.[36]

Furthermore, Records also showed Chinese merchants trading freely with natives, with some even engaging with the lumads and Moros in other areas surrounding Lanao. A Jesuit priest, Fr. Joseph Maclotet (or Fr. Jose Maria Clotet, S.J.) from Talisayan, who described the Buquidnons [Bukidnon] of Misamis province to the rector of Ateneo Municipal in 1887 claimed that the Chinese traded with the Buquidnon and often took advantage and cheated them[37] The Buquidnons chiefly engaged in agriculture. Bukidnon is located at the eastern border of Lanao, the homeland of the Maranaos. They were practically neighbors.  In the 1870s, Bukidnon farmers grew crops which wealthy Visayan and Chinese merchants in many coastal towns traded in exchange for sugar, salt, cloth, and liquor.  Their principal export was abaca, which according to Fr. Clotet was of widespread interest in 1889 due to the high price of the fiber in the market. Other crops for export were coffee, rice, cacao and copra, tobacco, and gutta-percha.[38]

            Iligan, then a town of Misamis, which is located in present-day Lanao del Norte, was and still is considered the entrance or gateway to the Maranao settlements in Lanao del Sur. Internal trade in Iligan between natives and Moros was described by Bowring [39] when he mentioned that one of the products for exchange was chinaware:

Some of the fairs in the interior are largely attended by the Mahomedan and heathen natives, who will not visit the ports or larger towns. That of Yligan (Misamis, in Mindanao) is much visited by Moros, who bring thither for sale paddy, cocoa, coffee, gold dust, cotton fabrics, krises and weapons of war, with many other native articles, which they exchange mostly for European and Chinese wares.

Buzeta [40] described the trade in Iligan by the “Moros.” Iligan’s main agricultural products were cocoa, beeswax, and rice. Its population was engaged in agriculture, hunting, fishing, and weaving. The Moros conducted trading activities with the natives of this town once a week.

Galang [41]described the general ease of travel of undocumented Chinese to Mindanao.  From Sulu, the indocumentados can proceed to Zamboanga and then enter the interior of Mindanao. They paid no fees and brought with them all kinds of products that the Moros and the natives sought. Spanish administrators labelled such relations with the Moros as smuggling and piracy. They were called contrabandistas y piratas. By Moros, they referred to the Maguindanaoans and the Maranaos.

A survey of the population counts presented by different authors would show a steady Chinese presence in Misamis. In 1870, the province was comprised of 15 pueblos: Aluvid (Alubijd), Balingasay (Balingasag), Cagayan, Dapitan, Dipolog, Jimenez, Jasaan, Lubungan, Misamis, Iligan, Iponan, Catarman, Mahinog, Marabahao, and Sugay (Cavada 1876, 197). Most of these towns saw Chinese traders residing in their areas during the latter half of the 19th century:

 

 


Year

Population Count

 in Misamis

Chino

Mestizo de Sangley

1850a

563*

97

1859h

17

255

1865b

18

-

1870c

85

697**

1875d

347

-

1881e

447

-

1886f

471

-

1890g

469

-

 

Sources: Arenas (1850); Chinese population statistics cited in Galang (2019); Cavada (1876);Del Pan (1886); NAP Chinos (Manila, 1890-1891), SDS 13066, S 123-123b cited in Galang (2019)
*200 were from capital.

The letters stand for the source of the data listed in the table referred to below

**Did not distinguish between Spanish Mestizo or Chinese Mestizo.

Note: According to Wickberg, Sangley is the Spanish name for Chinese immigrants which probably derived from ’Shang-li’ or “merchant traveller”; mestizo de Sangley referred to the offspring of mixed marriage between Chinese men and local women.  This was created as a separate category in the middle of the 18th century to categorize the growing number of offsprings of mixed marriages. The term Sangley was used from the 16th century while the term Chino was the Spanish term for Chinese in the 19th century.

In the latter half of the 19th Century, there was an influx of Chinese to Misamis in 1850, a year after Governor General Narciso Claveria allowed Chinese immigration and residence again [42](Galang 2019, 33).

There was a large drop in count in 1859 and 1865 but started to increase again in 1870 and even quintupled in 1875. In 1881, 1886, and 1890, a stable count of at least 400 Chinese residents were recorded in Misamis.

Commerce

During the 1890s, it was evident that the Chinese engaged in commercial activities within the Misamis area and around the vicinity of Lanao. In the 1894 and 1896-1897 Contribución Industrial, a late 19th century industrial tax record showed that the most numbers of taxes being paid by Chinese shop owners were from businesses established in Loculan, Aloran, Yligan, Misamis, and Sta. Ana. These locations were situated to the north of Lanao.

 

Tariff Classification of Chinese Businesses in Misamis Province, 1894 and 1896-1897

 

 

 

 

 

Tariff Classification

 

 

Place of Business

1a

2a

3a

4a

Count per Pueblo

 

ALORAN

-

3

5

-

8

 

ALUBIJID

-

1

1

-

2

 

BALINGASAG

-

1

2

-

3

 

CAGAYAN

2

1

-

-

3

 

CATARMAN

-

-

1

1

2

 

GINGOOG

-

-

2

1

3

 

JIMENEZ

-

-

1

-

1

 

LAGONLONG

-

-

1

1

2

 

LOCULAN

-

1

9

-

10

 

MAMBAJAO

-

-

1

-

1

 

MISAMIS

-

2

4

-

6

 

NAAUAN

-

-

-

1

1

 

NAUAN

-

-

2

-

2

 

OROQUIETA

-

-

4

-

4

 

SALVADOR

-

-

2

2

4

 

STA. ANA

-

1

4

1

6

 

YLIGAN

-

4

4

-

8

 

YPONAN

-

-

3

1

4

 

Total per Tariff Classification

2
(3%)

14

(20%)

46

(66%)

8

(11%)

70

 

 

Source: NAP, Contribución Industrial (Misamis, 1894 and 1896-1897), SDS 15415

Explanation: According to Galang a new tax system was introduced in 1852 which prescribed heavier taxes on the merchant class to encourage the Chinese to engage in  agriculture.  The Chinese were classified into four groups:  the shop owners comprised the first class and they were required to pay the patent industrial, a  new shop tax.  The shop owners were further grouped in four subclasses based on the type of shops they owned. The four new subclasses were required to pay 100 pesos, 60 pesos, 30 pesos, and 12 pesos, respectively. The second class was comprised of Chinese agriculturists  and those working in industries like mining, logging, naval construction, and fishing. They were required to  pay 1.5 pesos.  The third class referred to the  transients or  transeuntes who have resided in the colony for a year or less. They were not required to pay taxes within a one-year stay but if they remained in the colony after one year, they were reclassified as either belonging to the first or second class based on their occupations.  The fourth class was for Chinese who were exempted to pay taxes due to their age (reservados por edad), namely 60 years old and above.

Furthermore, the contribucion industrial was imposed in 1878 which created a system of taxation applicable to all groups according to income. This was similar to the patente industrial or shop tax required from the first class  Chinese in 1852. This was eventually applied to all business and shop owners which created more tax classification.  Henceforth, the highest tax classes between 1852 and 1878 paid 100 peso and 600 peso after 1878.[43] 

Majority of the Chinese owners (66%) were categorized under the industria (3a) classification of tarifa. They either applied as especulador (speculative merchant), as in especulador de frutas y productos del país (speculator of fruits and country products) or expendedor (vendor), as in expendedor de alcohol al por menor (retail vendor of alcohol). The industria could also be cesado (ceased operations) such as “cesado la industria de hilados y tejidos de al queden empresas a prendas” (the industria of fabrics has ceased operating) or traspasado (transferred) like “traspasado la industria al Chino Tan Tuaco vecino del mismo pueblo” (transferred to industria of a Chinese Tan Tuaco in the same town).  

On the other hand, a minority of the Chinese owners were involved in the comercio of managing a tienda (store) as in “tienda conocido con el nombre de sari-sari” (sari-sari store) or being a contratista (contractor) as in “contratista de fumadero de anfión de este Distrito y del de Surigao” (contractor of smokehouse in Surigao). In general, they were engaged in the industry and commerce of fruits, alcohol, and even opium. The Chinese merchants were sought after for these commodities.  

Some Chinese paid tariffs for several businesses.  For example,  Sy Yenco and Sy-Lliquing, both residents of  Yligan (Iligan),  paid for tariffs as retailer of fruits and country products  under Tarifa 3a  No. 13 and as seller of fabrics and yarns under Tarifa 2a No. 13. (Contribucion Industrial, 1894, SDS 15415)

Laborers

Some Chinese who had arrived in Misamis identified themselves as agriculturists or farmers (agricultor). An example would be Sy-Songle, who was 29 years old in 1895. He arrived in the Philippines in 1885 from Emuy (Amoy, now Xiamen), and resided in Misamis (Padron General de Chinos, 1893, SDS 13444, 17b-18). He and other farmers might have helped in further developing the farming systems of the area given their technical knowledge and skills, since Misamis was then rich in agricultural produce, particularly of abaca.

Agriculturists were classified under the Clase de Cedula  6a, which was designated for “all adult males not included in the first 5 classes; employees of the self-employed shop owners and professionals who occupied the first five tax classes (1a-5a)” (Chinos: sus reglamentos y sus contribuciones, cited in Galang 2019, 135). In the Padrón data for Misamis, a great majority of the Chinese were identified in the 6a, followed by 4a and 5a classes.


Padrón General de Chinos: Misamis, 1893 and 1895

Name

Year of Arrival

Clase de Cedula

Profesion

SY-TACO

1877

5a

Comerciante

JULIAN LEDESMA DY TUNLAY

1881

6a

Dependiente

SY-GUIANCO

1884

6a

Dependiente

ANG CHIONGCO

1870

6a

Dependiente

JULIAN SY-PECO

1869

4a

Comerciante

SY-SONGLE

1885

6a

Agricultor

O-SONGCO

1885

6a

Dependiente

SY GACO

1877

5a

Comerciante

JULIAN LEDESMA DY JUNLAY

1881

6a

Dependiente

ANG CHINIGU

1870

6a

Dependiente

JULIAN SY PECO

1869

4a

Dependiente

SY-SONGLE

1885

6a

Agricultor

TAN-LUCIO

1880

6a

Dependiente

TAN-TIANJIN

1883

6a

Dependiente

Source: NAP, Padron General de Chinos (Misamis, 1893 and 1895), SDS 13444, SDS 13446

The Chinese also worked as shopkeepers and employees (“comerciantes”and “dependientes”) under employment, reiterating the previous findings on the involvement of Chinese in local industry and commerce.

 

 

Ejercicio o profesion (Employment)

Number

Employee (Dependiente)

132 (83.0%)

Shopkeeper (Comerciante)

18 (11.3%)

Agriculturist (Agricultor)

7 (4.4%)

Carpenter (Carpintero)

1 (0.6%)

unspecified

1 (0.6%)

 

 

 

159

 

 

Age

Padrón General de Chinos: Age, 1893 and 1895

Age Range

Count

Percentage

 

Age Statistics

 Age

15-20

7

4%

 

Minimum Age

16

21-30

70

44%

 

Average Age

34

31-40

37

23%

 

Mode Age (greatest number count) 

29

41-50

32

20%

 

Maximum Age

69

51-60

8

5%

 

 

 

61-70

5

3%

 

 

 

Total

159

100%

 

 

 

 

Source: NAP, Padron General de Chinos (Misamis, 1893 and 1895), SDS 13444, SDS 13446.

Explanation on changes on the “menores” in  1893 and 1895:

According to Galang[44] (2019, 166-167), “in the latter part of the nineteenth century, the standard legal definition of a “minor” Chinese who was exempted from paying taxes became a major concern to the government. When the polo y servicio was imposed upon the Chinese, all Chinese between the ages 16 and 60 years old had to render labor to the government. In effect, Chinese less than 16 years old were considered “minors,” hence, exempted from paying the falla. In 1871, Chinese who were 18 years old and above were required to pay the poll tax. Almost 2 decades later, in 1889 when the cedula de capitacion was initially implemented, “minor” was defined as 12 years old and below. Petitions from the gobernadorcillo de sangleyes and the gremio de Chinos in Manila made the government decide to define “minor” as any Chinese 14 years old and below.”

Most Chinese were in their 20s when listed in the Padron, of which many of them were in age 29. Each of the age range 31-40 and 41-50 composed around one-fifth of the dataset population. Based on the percentage per age range, the Chinese population in the Misamis Province was relatively young during 1893 and 1895. The average age was 34.

Origin

Padrón General de Chinos: Naturaleza (Place of Origin), 1893 and 1895

Naturaleza (Place of Origin)

Count

Percentage

EMUY (Amoy)

105

66%

TANGUA (Tong’an)

28

18%

CHINCAN

13

8%

CHIANCHIN

7

4%

LAMUA (Nan’an)

4

3%

LEONQUE (Longxi)

2

1%

 Total

159

100.00%

Source: NAP, Padron General de Chinos (Misamis, 1893 and 1895), SDS 13444, SDS 13446. Equivalent Chinese place names are identified in Richard Chu, Chinese and Chinese Mestizos of Manila (Leiden, 2010), p. 227.

 

Majority of the Chinese came from Emuy (Amoy) and almost one fifth of the listed population came from Tangua (Tong’an). Chinese coming from Chincan (8%), Chianchin (4%), Lamua (Nan’an) (3%), and Leonque (Longxi) (1%) when combined, comprised only about one-sixth of the population (16%).  All the areas indicated in the table were from ports in southern China in Fujian province.

As to their destination according to  Doeppers [45]… the late 19th century, immigrants from Tung-an/Amoy and a smaller number from Lung-chi, tended to go to other parts of the archipelago. The Tung-an/Amoy immigrants formed a highly distinctive set of regional concentrations. These included the principal centers in the Muslim South, which were protected by the colonial military, and the sugar-producing regions of Negros, Cebu, and Pampanga in Central Luzon.”

 

Year of arrival

 

Padrón General de Chinos: Fecha de su llegada (Year of arrival), 1893 and 1895

Fecha de su llegada (Year of arrival)

Number

1860s

29 (18.2%)

1862

2

1865

4

1867

4

1868

1

1869

18

 

 

1870s

37 (23.3%)

1870

6

1872

3

1873

1

1874

5

1875

3

1876

3

1877

5

1878

6

1879

5

 

 

1880s

88 (55.3%)

1880

6

1881

21

1882

6

1883

16

1884

13

1885

14

1886

10

1888

2

 

 

Unspecified

5 (3.1%)

 

 

 

159

Source: NAP, Padron General de Chinos (Misamis, 1893 and 1895), SDS 13444, SDS 13446

Beginning in 1862, a number  of Chinese migrants arrived each year. One exception was in 1869, when 18 Chinese men arrived in the region. Subsequently, a wave of immigration to Misamis came in the 1880s, which was when most (55.3%) of the people listed in the Padrón arrived. The year 1881 was the single year that saw the most arrivals with 21. Over-all,  one-third of the Chinese population in Misamis arrived in the four-year period between 1883 and 1886.

 

Religion

Padrón General de Chinos: Religion, 1893 and 1895

Listed religion

Number

Christian (Cristiano)

29 (18.2%)

Non-Christian (Ynfiel)

130 (81.8%)

 

159

Source: NAP, Padron General de Chinos (Misamis, 1893 and 1895), SDS 13444, SDS 13446

The Chinese population was predominantly non-Christian. The Padrón General de Chinos did not identify which religion these “ynfieles” [infieles] adhered to. Galang (2019, 193) noted that those who converted to Christianity can be identified by their (sometimes exclusive) use of Christian names.

 

Civil status

Padrón General de Chinos: Estado (Civil status), 1893 and 1895

Estado (Civil status)

Number

Married (casado)

6 (3.8%)

Single (soltero)

153 (96.2%)

 

159

Source: NAP, Padron General de Chinos (Misamis, 1893 and 1895), SDS 13444, SDS 13446

 

The Chinese population in Misamis were overwhelmingly (96.2%) single. Only six people were listed as married. No information was listed pertaining to who they were married to or where and when they married. It can be noted that all the men listed as married or casado were part of the Christian minority.

 

A Chinese Merchant (“Chino Comerciante”) in Manila. Source: Lozano (1847)

 

Parishes

                Estado de Almas, 1879

Pueblos

Chinos Cristianos

Chinos

Mestizos Sangley

Infieles Bautizados

Jasaan

7

29

-

-

Iponan

-

28 (Mestizos Españoles are part of the count)

-

82

Alubijid

-

-

14

2

Misamis

-

-

25

4

 

Mambajao

-

-

17

36

Total per Classification

7

57

56

124

Source: Provincia de San Nicolas de Tolentino de Agustinos Descalzos de la Congregacion de Espana e Indias (Manila, 1879)

 Summing up, the profile of the Chinese migrant to Misamis, based on the above data are the following:

1.      That most of them came as dependents i.e. most probably they had relatives who already came ahead of them and in terms of profession they were shopkeepers (comerciantes), agriculturists. and carpenters.

2.      The majority were young, of  the age group  16-34 years old.

3.      Of their place of origin, most came from Amoy, China.

4.      Most were non-Christians.

5.      They were mostly male and single.

6.      They were classified as mestizos Sangleys or Chinese half-breeds

 

We can thus infer that by the 19th century when the country was opened to international trade, thereby increase in demand for agricultural commodities that led the Spanish government  (particularly Governor General Urbitztondo’s indorsement of the Royal Order of June 14,1848) had a much more relaxed migration policy that Chinese migrants began to settle to far-flung provinces in the country. Misamis in Northern Mindanao became a preferred destination for most which is probably due to its accessibility and serve as the gateway to interior Mindanao due to its established ports and transportation facilities. They  came as agriculturists and shopkeepers to meet the demand of growing urban areas in the island that produced cash crops such as abaca, sugar and copra. Many of those who settled will remain rice producers which is a staple food for Filipinos and therefore a profitable venture. Furthermore, having originated from the poor province of Amoy, China they were most motivated to look for greener pastures which they found in Mindanao. Mestizo Chinese who were classified as dependents and single would eventually marry with the native women and settle. They will, thus, form the urbanizing sector in many of cities found all over the county.

 

Opium Trade  in Misamis

The opium trade in the Philippine islands under the Spanish colonial government merits a discussion in this paper because it is historically significant both in its importance to the administration of the islands as a great source of revenue and its prominence in the context of the colonial government’s relationship with the Chinese residents of the Philippine islands. No discussion of Chinese life in the Spanish colonial era is complete without a characterization of the opium regime in the area.       

The literature on the opium industry from 1898 onwards has been described as lacking.[46]

There is a similar dearth in sources describing the opium trade and regulation in its heyday. Most studies look into the American colonial government’s attempts to prohibit opium use and suppress its trafficking. This section uses the available existing literature, especially the works of Victoria[47] and

 Bamero[48], alongside material from the National Archives’ collection on the opium trade to characterize the commerce, regulation, and use of opium in the Misamis area in the 19th century. It also describes a potential point of engagement between the Chinese population and the Maranao peoples towards the end of the century facilitated by the demands of the opium industry.

The opium industry in the Spanish era in the Philippines was part of a broader trend across European colonies in Asia in the nineteenth century of states using opium as a source of revenue. Every colonial state as well as the independent Siam controlled the opium trade and gained funding for their colonial bureaucratic apparatus through taxes from these trades in an institution known as the opium farm.[49]

These were not literal farms but state-controlled monopolies over the importation of opium. Beginning in 1843, the colonial state in the Philippines implemented the opium farm system, with the state importing opium products and auctioning off the rights to sell the opium in a particular region to contratistas or local contractors. These contractors were also allowed to form comisionados, private security forces that policed their monopolies over their regions. The colonial state gained revenues from the auction of contracts and from the sale of opium products without needing to spend on enforcement and policing, making the opium industry particularly lucrative and helpful in increasing state coffers. According to Bamero[50], Spanish authorities allowed opium trading which was supervised by the Alcaideria de San Fernando until in 1843; they allowed the opium farm system because of its contribution to the Spanish coffers.

However, the colonial state in the Philippines was unique because it only allowed Chinese residents to engage in the trading, distribution and consumption of opium, and natives were totally banned from any role in the entire opium industry. Previous studies have described the cultural significance of opium consumption to Chinese men:

“as an important form of male recreation, its potential to alleviate the symptoms of some tropical diseases, and its ability to reduce hunger pangs and help workers toil for more hours as major reasons for the popularity of the habit; these factors made opium consumption very conducive to the environment of the overwhelmingly male overwhelmingly male, proletarianized Chinese overseas communities in Southeast Asia.”[51]

            The opium industry was an exclusively Chinese affair at the consumers’ side. It was initially limited to the Chinese in Manila, but the policy was expanded in 1851 to include the provinces with significant Chinese populations. In May 1851, permission to establish opium dens in provinces included the following areas: Cavite, Pampanga, Bulacan, Laguna, Batangas, Ilocos and Zamboanga.[52]

However, at the production and distribution side, it was predominantly but not exclusively Chinese. Businessmen of all ethnicities participated in auctions to win the exclusive rights to buy opium stock and distribute opium products in a certain territory for a certain period of time, with the most common contract period being three years.[53].

These contratistas dealt with the aduana or customs officials on one end and to local sub-contractors, subarrendadores, at the other. There were also estanquilleros, retailers who operated the fumadores or opium houses, the only place where consumption was permitted.

In Mindanao, whose Chinese population was much comparatively less than Manila, opium farms were divided among so-called blocs that combined multiple localities. Victoria[54] identified five blocs in Mindanao from the 1850s onwards: Zamboanga, Misamis, Davao, Jolo, and Iligan. These divisions corresponded roughly to the Spanish administrative districts of the time. This section will focus on the blocs in Misamis and in Iligan using documents from the Anfion collection of the NAP.

From the 1850s to the 1860s, the Zamboanga district was the only place in Mindanao with significant opium trading, either through the official franchises or through the contraband that entered the region through the Sultanate of Sulu. In  1873[55], a new franchise was established to allow for opium trade and consumption east of Zamboanga. This new opium farm bloc served practically the entire northern half of the island of Mindanao by combining the administrative districts of Surigao in the east coast with Misamis, along with the smaller island of Camiguin situated to its north.

The opium farm of 1873 began with a one-year concession to an interim contractor named Tan Puintion, also known as Segundo Tan Pintion[56]

            By 1874, a full three-year contract was awarded to another businessman, Toribio Guitarte Y Yuco. A document in the archives notes a complaint filed by a man named Tan Tiengsin, who was a representative of Tan Pintion.[57] Tan Tiengsin filed a complaint to the Misamis authorities after they confiscated a shipment of opium upon its arrival from Cebu.[58]

The authorities had apparently confiscated two chests full of opium because they thought that the interim license of Tan Pintion had expired, and so shipments made through the concession under his name were considered contraband. In actuality, the term for the full concession of Guitarte Y Yuco had not yet started. This incident resulted in a significant loss for the Segundo Tan-Pintion as the opium was never returned to him. However, he was eventually cleared of wrongdoing and not officially sanctioned as a smuggler.

Toribio Gutlarte Y Yuco had the exclusive franchise to the provincial opium farm from 1874-1877. After this three-year term, a new contractor by the name of Santiago Gomes Pastrano Uy Chioco. For Uy Chioco, the holding of licenses from 1877 to 1883 would be the first of multiple long term contracts controlling the opium industry in Misamis and Surigao that would span decades. Towards the end of Uy Chioco’s second three-year lease in 1882, a cholera epidemic struck the Philippine Islands. The governor of the politico-military district in Misamis, Leopoldo Roldan, thus ordered the quarantine of ships and their cargo bound for the island of Camiguin. The mandated quarantine involved vaccination of ships’ crew, fumigation of ship cargo holds, and quarantine at the nearby island of Mantigue. Because the island is part of the opium farm territory, this also affected the opium trade, and prompted Uy Chioco to initiate the construction of a temporary warehouse to store the opium bound for Camiguin.[59]

The second three-year lease for Uy Chioco ended in 1883, and the contractor who took over the lease after auction was actually not ethnically Chinese; it was instead a man called Don Eulogio Mendoza, who held the opium license from 1883-1886.[60].Mendoza appears to be the only non-Chinese contractor on record for the province. After three years, the concession was granted to Calisto Asensi Uy Conchiao, who won the concession bid from 1886-1889[61].

            After Uy Conchiao, Santiago Gomes Pastrano Uy Chioco once again controlled opium operations in the provinces. Uy Chioco’s concessions were granted for another six year period from 1889 to 1895. Basilio Cembrano Uy Bondan took over in 1895[62] and held the opium contract until the advent of the American colonial government disrupted the established opium farm system.

In the 1890s, the colonial government tried to revive the centuries-long attempts to force the conquest of Maranao territories.[63] Part of this plan was to build a railroad from the town of Iligan to Lake Lanao. The plan necessitated the importation of Chinese workers from Manila to construct the railway, which provided demand for opium.[64] As such, in 1895 a new opium farm was carved from the erstwhile territory of the Surigao-Misamis-Camiguin concession near Lake Lanao. Fermin A Billaba (sometimes spelled Villaba) Cua Buco, who was also from Manila, was granted the provisional contract for the new Iligan farm. However, Uy Bondan, who held the contract for the Surigao-Misamis-Camiguin area, complained that the new concession intruded on his territory and broke his monopoly.  However, it seems that his complaint was never actioned upon as the Iligan concession stood until the American victory.

The opium industry flourished in Mindanao, especially in Misamis in the latter half of the 19th century. Initial contract prices when the opium farm started were in the 30,000-40,000 peso range. This figure nearly doubled to more than 70,000 pesos in the 1890s. Although total revenue figures are unavailable, it is likely that revenues from the entire system grew similarly. This underpins the point that the period saw a large and growing Chinese population in the area, so much so that it was even profitable for a new opium farm to be established.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1879 registry of local retailers and operators of fumaderos in each district of Misamis under the contractor Santiago Gomes Pastrano Uy-Toco.

 

Conclusion: The Chinese settlement in Misamis, a Precursor to the Agricultural and Commercial Development of Northern Mindanao

Three main themes are evident in this paper:

1.The the Chinese presence in Mindanao was brought about by successive waves of stimulated by favorable political and economic climate during the nineteenth century. The Spanish intention to consolidate their power in the Philippines necessitated the pacification of Mindanao island. While the decision to locate the capital of the archipelago was in Manila, Luzon island they were cognizant that attacks on Luzon and Visayas necessitated the eradication of threats to peaceful union of the entire country. By the nineteenth century Sulu’s power was already eclipsed; the powerful Maguindanao sultans tolerated Spanish presence through treatises and Lanao, the third powerful Muslim territory almost completely subjugated by 1896 (although the Revolution of 1896 stole that Spanish victory due to the relocation of Spanish resources to Luzon). With the Spanish victories and eventual conversion of the people of Misamis, agriculture and commerce were promoted and supported by the colonial government. Frontier areas in Misamis were opened for cultivation and land ownership by the natives, Spanish migrants, as well as the Chinese. Thus, the Philippines’ participation in international trade during the late 19th Century became a stimulus for agricultural and commercial growth. Cash crops such as abaca, copra, bananas, corn, and coffee became in demand. Northern Mindanao became a hub for the production of these crops.

2. With the pacification of Mindanao, the opening of the Philippines to world trade and Governor General Urbitztondo’s indorsement of the Royal Order of June 14,1848, Chinese migrants began entering northern Mindanao, particularly, Misamis province. Chinese migrants would largely be either agriculturists, shopkeepers or traders. Some came in as laborers and as dependents and most of them will settle and populate centers of growth in Mindanao. The paper showed that there were Chinese traders and workers residing in the Misamis province during the latter half of the 19th century, and as Diaz Arenas noted, the province had the greatest number of Chinese residents compared to all other provinces in the Philippines in 1850.

3. As shown in this paper, the Chinese had considerable control of trade commodities such as abaca, copra, and rice being the producers and landowners themselves. In addition to these crops, opium production also became lucrative. It was also found that Chinese laborers were recruited by the Spaniards to work on their war infrastructures. These Chinese were the consumers and substantial market for this drug. 

Finally, the growing economy during the transition from the 19th to the 20th  century when the Philippines experienced political and economic upheavals,  the Chinese merchants, traders and workers found themselves deciding to remain permanently in the area. Their relations with the natives in the area particularly in Misamis was fairly tolerable if not totally amicable, that would translate into significant cultural and social transformation. This paper, thus, recommends further exploration into this topic for future research.

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

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Contribucion Industrial. SDS 15415. National Archives of the Philippines.

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Murillo Velarde, Pedro. (1749). Historia de la provincia de Pilipinas. Blair and Robertson, The Philippine Islands, Vol. 44.

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Clemente, Tina S. ( 2015). Spanish Colonial Policy Toward Chinese Merchants in Eighteenth Century Philippines. In Lin Yu Ju and Madeleine Zelin, eds.  Merchant Communities in Asia. London and New Yor:Routledge.

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Ferrand, Gabriel. (1913). Relations de voyages et textes géographiques arabes, persans et turks relatifs à l'Extreme-Orient du 8e au 18e siècles; traduits, revus et annotés. Paris: Leroux.

Fox, Robert B. (1967). The Archeological Record of Chinese Influences in the Philippines. Philippine Studies, 15(1), 41-62.

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[1] A detailed narrative of this theory on the three phases of Chinese migration into Mindanao is found in the study of Ulindang and Sulmayor’s paperThe Dynamics of China Trade in Mindanao Before 1898 : Contextualizing Pre-Hispanic and Hispanic Sino-M’ranao Relations” presented during the Conference on Pre-Colonial and Colonial Philippines-China History 23 February 2022 hosted by the Confucius Institute at the Ateneo de Manila University. MS

 

[2] Cf. Sohayle Abdul Rachman ”Chinese Centrist Theory on the Introduction of Islam in the Philippines in the 7th Century. PPIBD Press, 2015  p.8

[3] See Melvin Mednick, M.. Encampment of the lake: The social organization of a Moslem-Philippine (Moro) people Doctoral dissertation, The University of Chicago.1965. Also, H. Otley Beyer Outline Review of Philippine Anthropology, 1947; Robert B. Fox, “The Archeological Record of Chinese Influences in the Philippines”. Philippine Studies, 15 (1), 41-62; William Henry Scott, Filipinos in China Before 1500,” Asian Studies 21, 19. April, August, December 1983, pp.1-19; Benito Lim, “The Political Economy of Philippines-China Relations,” Philippine APEC Study Center Network (PASCN) Discussion Paper no. 99, 11 September 1999.

 

[4] See James Warren, The Sulu Zone,1768-1898: The Dynamics of External Trade, Slavery  and Ethnicity  in the Transformation of a Southeast Asian Maritime State. (Quezon City: New Day Publishing, 1985)

[5] a 1900 report noted that the Chinese have traded with these islands before Spanish control was established and commercial transactions were conducted in boats. See Report of the Philippine Commission to the President, January 31,1900 to December 20,1900,Vol.1 no.1 p.150

 

 

 

 

[6] Manuel Buzeta and F.Bravo. Diccionario Geografico, Geologia y Estadistica de Filipinas, vol.II: Visayas and Mindanao. (Madrid, 1850-1851) pp.440-444

[7] NAP Anfion SDS 14045, Exp.31

[8] NAP Anfion SDS 14045,Exp.32

[9] NAP Anfion SDS 14045 Exp 40,47

[10] NAP  Anfion SDS 1044, Exp.12

[11] NAP SDS 14044, Exp. 6

[12] Edgar Wickberg The Chinese in the Philippine Life, 1850-1898. (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press,2000) p. 8

[13] Ibid. p.9

[14] Ibid. p.12

[15] Onofre D. Corpuz The Roots of the Filipino Nation (Quezon City: Aklahi Foundation Inc. 1989) Vol I . p. 260

[16] Wickberg op cit p.16

[17] Corpuz, op cit p.259

[18] Jely Galang “Vagrants and Outcasts: Chinese Labouring Classes, Criminality, and the State of the Philippines,1831-1898”. Ph.D Thesis Murdoch University. 2019. p. 142

[19]  Tina S. Clemente  “Spanish Colonial Policy Toward Chinese Merchants in Eighteenth Century Philippines” in Lin Yu Ju  and Madellin Zelin eds. Merchant Communities in Asia. (London and New York: Routledge, 2014. p. 129

[20] Wickberg op cit. p. 22

[21] John Bowring, A Visit to the Philippine Islands. ( London: Smith, Elder and Co.,1890) p.111

 

[22] ibid., 22-23, 36

[23] ibid., 24, 45

[24] Galang,op cit. p. 33 According to Galang, the 1839 decree liberalized Chinese immigration, allowing the Chinese to travel, reside and conduct business in the islands. Sobre el empadronamiento de Chinos cited by Galang, in “Hacienda Gomantong: The 1888 Chinese Immigration Decree , A German Tobacco Plantation and Chinese Laborers in Jolo, Sulu, Southern Philippines.” Asian Studies Journal of Critical Perspectives on Asia vol 56 no.2, (2020) p.4

 

[25] Jose Montero Y Vidal Historia de Filipinas (1894) in Blair and Robertson , The Philippine Islands vol.51 p.70

[26] Galang 2019 p. 38.

[27] Edgar Wickberg, The Chinese in Philippine Life 1850-1898. (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila Press, 2000)p.52

[28] Rafael de Comenge, Questiones Filipinas,La Parte: Los Chinos (Estudio Social y Politico) ( Manila: Tipo-Litografia de Chofre y Compania (1894) p.387

[29] Galang, op cit  p. 33

[30] ibid.; Chinos sus reglamentos y sus contribuciones (1893)pp. 5-7;  Also in  Rafaek Diaz -Arenas Memorias  Historicas y Estadisticas de Filipinos. Imprenta del Diario de Manila ( 1850) pp. 6-7.

 

[31] Chinos sus reglamentos y sus contribuciones  (Manila: Establicimiento Tipo-Litografico de Ramirez y Ca.(1893) pp. 5-7

[32]  Galang op cit p.35

[33] Fonacier 1949, 3–28 cited in Galang, op cit. p.  7

[34] Galang, ibid. pp.51-52

[35] Diaz-Arenas op cit pp.5-6

[36] D.F. Doeppers, “Destination, Selection and Turnover among Chinese migrants to Philippine Cities in the Nineteenth Century” Journal of Historical Geography.Vol 12, No.4  (1980) p.387

 

[37] Frank Lynch, “The Bukidnon of North Central Mindanao in 1889”   Philippine Studies vol 15 (1967) p. 477

[38] Ronald K. Edgerton, “Frontier Society on the Bukidnon Plateau 1870-1941”. Philippine Social History:Global Trade and Local Transformations. Ed. By Alfred McCoy and Edilberto de Jesus (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila Press 1982) p.366.

[39] Bowring op cit p.300

[40] Buzeta op cit pp.111-112

[41] Galang op cit pp. 51-52

[42] Galang op cit p. 33 The increase noted in 1850 may be due to the opening of Manila to foreign commerce in the 1830s. The increase in 1870 to 1875 may be due to the opening of the port of Cebu in 1860.  According to Cullinane, Cebu’s Chinese mestizos could be found along the north coast of Mindanao, especially in Misamis. An aduana or customs house was established which attracted  a large number of British  and American merchant houses and the arrival of large numbers of Chinese. Commercial networks were made through Cebu linking Northern Mindanao after 1860s. Cf. Michael Cullinane “The Myth of the Portuguese Ancestor: The Veloso Family of Nineteenth Century Cebu.” Philippine Quarterly of Culture and Society, Vol. 43, Nos. 3 & 4, (2015) pp.  210,224

 

[43] Galang, ibid.

[44] Ibid.pp.166-67 Cited from: AHN, Ultramar, 5217, Expediente 43. Doc. 3, No. 6, Proyecto de la Administracion de Impuestos en el que estan ya introducidos las modificaciones consultadas en su informe de 6 de setiembre de 1867 y algunas otras introducidas por el … Gobernador Superior Civil Don Rafael de Izquierdo; AHN, Ultramar 5339, Expediente 13. Doc. 2, El Subsecretario del Ministerio de Estado traslada con R. O. fecha 4 de Febrero de 1890 una instancia del gremio de Sangleyes solicitando reformas en el nuevo reglamento sobre capitacion personal de Chinos; NAP, Chinos (Manila, 1889-1897), SDS 13076, S 12-13b.

 

[45] D.F. Doeppers, “Destination,Selection and Turnover Among Chinese Migrants to Philippine cities in the Nineteenth Century.” Journal of Historical Geography.Vol.12 no.4. p. 389

[46] A. Foster,  “Models for Governing: Opium and Colonial Policies in Southeast Asia, 1898–1910.” in J. Go and A. Foster, eds. The American Colonial State in the Philippines: Global Perspectives. Durham: Duke UP. (2003) p.

 

[47] Victoria, F. 2020. “Opium to Mindanao: Revenue Farming in the Southern Frontier of the SpanishPhilippines, 1851-1899.” Paper presented to The Philippines, Spain, and Globalization, Sixteenth Century to the Present: An International Conference. MS

[48] A. Bamero.  “Opium: The Evolution of Policies, the Tolerance of the Vice, and the Proliferation of Contraband Trade in the Philippines, 1843-1908.” Social Science Diliman Vol.3 Nos 1-2(2006) pp. 49-83.

 

[49] Ibid.

[50] Ibid.

[51] D.J.Wertz “Idealism,Imperialism, and Internationalism:Opium Politics in the Colonial Philippines,1898-1925”. Modern Asian Studies.Vol47 no.2  (2013) p. 468 citing Dikötter, F., Laamann, L. P., & Xun, Z. (2004). Narcotic culture: a history of drugs in China. Hong Kong University Press.

[52] Bamero, op cit p.60

[53] T. Victoria op cit p.

[54] ibid

[55] ibid

[56] NAP Anfion SDS 3730 13718.

[57] Ibid., 13713-A

[58] Victoria  op cit. p.

[59] Ibid.

[60] NAP Anfion SDS 3730 13732

[61] Ibid 14466

[62] Ibid

[63] Saber, M. “Maranao Resistance to Foreign Invasions.” Philippine Sociological Review Vol. 27, (1979) pp. 273-282

[64] Victoria op cit.

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