Under the long porch of the customs-house, a dummy7 engine noisily plies8 up and down among the long-horned carabaos and piles of merchandise. Types of all nations are encountered here. The immigration office swarms10 with Chinamen herded11 together, rounded up by some contractor12. Every Chinaman must have his photograph, his number, and description in the immigration officer’s possession. Indian merchants, agents of the German, Spanish, and English business firms are looking after new invoices13. A party of American tourists, just arrived from China, are awaiting the inspection14 of their baggage.
The Bridge of Spain, that famous artery15 of commerce, over which a stream of carabao-carts, crowded tram-cars, pleasure vehicles, and army wagons16 flows continuously, spans the Pasig River at the head of the Escolta in Binondo. Here the bazaars17 and European business houses are located, while the avenues that branch off lead to other populous18 and swarming19 districts. La Extrame?a, a grocery and wine-store; La Estrella del Norte—[25]“The North Star”—diamond and jewelry-store; the Sombreria, hatstore, advertised by a huge wooden hat hung out above the street; and a tobacco booth, are situated20 on the corners where the bridge and the Escolta meet. The Metropolitan21 policeman—one of the tall Americanos uniformed in khaki riding-breeches and stiff leggings—who, in former days, controlled the traffic of the street, is now supplanted22 by a Filipino comic-opera policeman. Very few of the old “Mets” are left. It was a body of picked men, the finest soldiers in the volunteer troops, and the most efficient police force in the world. This officer on the Escolta used to be a genius in his line. When balky Filipino ponies23 blocked the traffic in the crowded thoroughfare, it was this officer that straightened out the tangle. If the tram-car happened to run off the track, it was the “Met” who showed the driver how to put it on again.
The river above the bridge is lined with latticed balconies; but from the veranda24 of the Paris Restaurant, when that establishment was in its glory, one could sit for hours and watch the bustling25 river life below. The thatched tops of the [26]huddled cascos formed a compact roof that extended half across the stream. Upon these nondescript craft hundreds of Filipinos dwelt, doing their washing and their cooking on the decks. The scanty26 clothes are hanging out to dry on lines, while naked brats27 are splashing in the dirty water, clinging to the tightened28 hawser29.
All About the Town (The Tops of Cascoes)
All About the Town (The Tops of Cascoes)
Launches go scudding30 under the low bridge, rending31 the air with vicious toots. Unwieldly cascos are poled down the river, laden32 heavily with cocoanuts and hemp33. Small floating islands whirl along in the swift current, and are carried out to sea. At the Muelle del Rey—the “King’s Dock”—lie the inter-island steamers, and the gangs of laborers34 are busy loading and unloading them. Carabao drays are hauling fragrant35 cargoes36 of tobacco and Manila hemp, while over the gangplank runs a chain of men, gutting37 the warehouse38 of its merchandise. The captain of the Romulus stands on the bridge, daintily smoking a cigarette, and supervising the disposal of the demijohns of tinto wine. The derrick keeps up an incessant39 racket as the hold is gradually filled. Although the Romulus is advertised to sail to-day at noon, she is [27]as liable to sail at ten o’clock, or possibly to-morrow afternoon; and although bound for Iloilo or Cebu, you can not be at all sure what her destination really is. She may return after a month from a long rambling40 cruise among the southern isles41. The Spanish mariners42, in rakish Tam o’Shanter caps, lounge at the entrance to the warehouse, or the office of the Compania Maritima, dreamily smoking cigarettes, sometimes imperiously ordering the laborers to “sigue, hombre!” (get along!) a warning that the Filipino has grown too familiar with to heed43.
Armenian and Indian bazaars, where ivory and the rich fabrics44 of the Orient are sold; cafés and drugstores, harness-shops, tobacco-shops, and drygoods-stores, emporiums of every kind,—are found on the Escolta, where the prices would astonish any one not yet accustomed to the manners of the Far East. During the morning hours the quilez and the carromata rattle45 along the bumpy46 cobblestones, the native driver, or cochero, in a white shirt, smoking a cigarette, and resting his bare feet upon the dashboard. Behind the curtain of a passing quilez you can catch a glimpse of [28]brown eyes, raven47 hair, and olive-tinted cheeks, displayed with all the coquetry of a Manila belle48. A Filipino family in a rickety cart, tilted49 at an impossible angle, are drawn50 by a moth-eaten pony51, mostly bones. Public conveyances52—if these are not indeed a myth—are most exasperating53. You can never find one when you want it, even at the “Public Carriage Station.” If by chance you come across one in the street, the driver will ignore your signal and drive on. Evidently he selects this walk in life merely to discharge the obligations of his conscience, for he never seems to want a passenger, nor will he take one till he finds his vehicle possessed55 by strategy. The gamins of the corner offer eagerly to find a carromata for you, but they frequently forget the object of their mission in their search. Sometimes, when you have ceased to think about a carromata, one of these small ragamuffins will pursue you, with a sheepish-looking coachman and disreputable vehicle in tow. Then twenty boys crowd round and claim rewards for having found a rig for you; as they all look alike, you toss a ten-cent piece among the crowd and let them fight it out among themselves. [29]
The driver will begin by making some objection. He will ask to be discharged at noon, or he will make you promise not to turn him over to another Americano. When the preliminary arrangements are completed, lighting56 his cigarette, he cramps57 himself up in the box, and, maintaining a continual clucking, larrups his skinny pony as the crazy gig goes rocking down the street. The driver never seems to know the town; even the post-office and the Bridge of Spain are terra incognita to him. And so you guide him, saying “silla,” left, or “mano,” right, “direcho,” straight ahead, and “’spera,” stop. You must be careful when you stop, however, as while you are busy with your purchases, your man is liable to run away. While, as a general rule, he shakes his head at the repeated inquires of “ocupato?” (taken?) even though the carriage may not be engaged, if some one more unscrupulous or desperate should step in, you would find yourself without a rig. And the result would be the same if dinner-time came round, and he had not had “sow sow.” Even the fact that he had not collected any fare would not deter58 him from his resolution. [30]
Is it any wonder, then, that, after all these difficulties, no complaint is made against the rickety, slat-seated carts, with wheels that seem to bar the entrance of the passenger; against the sorry-looking quilez,—that attenuated59 two-wheeled ’bus, where the four passengers must sit with interwoven legs, getting the more implicated60 as the cart goes bounding on? No; the Americans are glad enough to ride in almost any kind of vehicle. But you must be good-natured, even though the cab is tilted at an angle of some thirty-odd degrees, and even though, in getting out, which is accomplished61 from the quilez in the rear, you lift the tiny pony off his feet. It is enough to take the breath away to ride in one of these conveyances through the congested portions of Manila. Not only does the turning to the left seem strange, but taking the sharp corners—an accomplishment62 for which the two-wheeled gig is well adapted—frequently comes near precipitating63 a collision; and, in order to avoid this, the driver pulls the pony to his haunches. When the coast is clear, you will go rattling64 merrily away, the quilez door, unfastened, swinging back [31]and forth65 abandonedly, regardless of appearances. It is impossible to satisfy the driver on discharging him, unless by paying him three times the fee. The stranger in Manila, counting out the unfamiliar66 media pesos and pesetas, never knows when he has paid enough. Whether to pay his fifteen cents, American or Mexican, for the first hour, and ten cents, or centavos, for the hour succeeding, and how many media pesetas make a quarter of a dollar in our currency,—these are the questions that annoy and puzzle the newcomer, till he learns to disregard expense, and order his livery from the hotels or private stables.
At noon the corrugated67 iron blinds of the shops are pulled down; all the carriages have disappeared; the only sign of life in the Escolta is the comical little tram-car, loaded down with little brown men dressed in white, the driver tooting a toy horn, and all the passengers dismounting to assist the car uphill.
The banking68 center of Manila, built around a dusty plaza69 in the Tondo district, and consisting of low buildings occupied by offices of shipping70 and commercial companies, suggests a scene from [32]“The Merchant of Venice” or “Othello.” English firms—such as Warner, Barnes & Co.; Smith, Bell & Co.; the Hong Kong-Shanghai Banking Corporation, where the silver pesos jingle71 as the deft72 clerks stack them up or handle them with their small spades—are situated hereabouts.
Near by, and on an emerald plaza, stand the buildings of the Insular73 Tobacco Company and of the Oriente Hotel. These buildings are the finest modern structures in Manila. Carriages are waiting in the street in front of the hotel, and at the entrance may be seen a group of army officers in khaki uniform, in white and gold, or—very much more modern—olive drab. The dining-room is entered through the rustling74 bead-work curtain. Here the Chinese waiters, in long gowns glide75 noiselessly around.
But the Rosario, where opium-saturated Chinamen sit tailor-fashion at the entrance to their little stalls—where narrow galleries and alleys76 swarm9 with Chinese life—is one of the most interesting and complex: of all Manila’s thoroughfares. On one side of the street the drygoods-shops are shaded from the sun by curtains in broad stripes [33]of blue and white. The dreamy merchant sits barelegged on the doorsill, and is not to be disturbed by the mere54 entrance of a purchaser. The opposite side is lined with Chino hardware stores, and in each one of them the stock is just the same. These shops supply the stock of merchandise to the provincial77 agents; for an intricate feudal78 system is maintained among the Chinese of the archipelago. The rich Manila merchants who have seen their fellow-countrymen safe through from China, and have furnished goods on credit, reap the profits like so many Oriental Shylocks.
At four o’clock the shopping begins again in the Escolta. Apparently79 the whole town has turned out for a ride. Since the Americans have come, odd sights have been seen in Manila,—cavalry horses harnessed to pony vehicles, phaetons drawn by Filipino ponies, and victorias, intended for a pair of native horses, hastily converted into surreys. Not only do the Spanish women come out in their black mantillas, but the Filipino belles80 and the mestiza, girls, in their stiff dresses of josé and pi?a cloth. A carriage-load of painted cheeks and burnished81 pompadours of Japanese [34]frail sisterhood drives by upon its way to the Luneta. Army officers in white dress uniform, the wives and daughters of the officers, bareheaded and in dainty gowns, stop off at Clark’s for lemonade, ice-cream, and candy. Soldiers and sailors strolling along the street, or driving rickety native carts, enjoy themselves after the manner of their kind. A brace82 of well-kept ponies, tugging83 like game fish, trot84 briskly away with jingling85 harness, with the coachman and the footman dressed in white, a foreign consul86 lounging in the cushions of the neat victoria. A private carruaje, drawn by a sleek87 pony, hastens along, the tiny footman clinging on for dear life to the extension seat behind.
After the whirl on the Luneta, where the military band plays as the oddly-assorted carriages go circling round like fixtures88 on a steam carousal89, the pleasure-seekers leave the driveway on the sea deserted90; soldiers and citizens vacate the green benches, and adjourn91 for dinner. The Spanish life is best seen at the Metropole, where se?ors, se?oritas, and se?oras, exquisitely92 gowned, sip93 cognac and coffee at the little tables, carrying on an animated94 conversation, with expressive95 flashes of bright eyes or gestures with elaborately-jeweled hands.
Below, in the Luzon café, the Rizal orchestra is playing the impassioned Spanish waltzes, “Sobre las Olas,” “La Paloma,” to the click of billiard balls and the guffaws96 of soldiers. When the evening program ends with “Dixie,” every soldier in a khaki uniform—bronzed, grizzled fellows, many of them back from some campaign out in the provinces—will rise immediately to his feet, respectfully remove his hat, and as the music that reminds him of the home-land swells97 and gathers volume, fill the corridors with cheer upon cheer as the lights are put out; then the sleeping coachman rouses himself, and starts the reluctant pony on the journey home.
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1
awnings
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| 篷帐布 | |
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crouch
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| v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏 | |
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tugs
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| n.猛拉( tug的名词复数 )；猛拖；拖船v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的第三人称单数 ) | |
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tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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barge
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| n.平底载货船，驳船 | |
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copper
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| n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的 | |
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dummy
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| n.假的东西；(哄婴儿的)橡皮奶头 | |
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plies
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| v.使用（工具）( ply的第三人称单数 )；经常供应（食物、饮料）；固定往来；经营生意 | |
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swarm
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| n.(昆虫)等一大群；vi.成群飞舞；蜂拥而入 | |
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swarms
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| 蜂群，一大群( swarm的名词复数 ) | |
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herded
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| 群集，纠结( herd的过去式和过去分词 )； 放牧； （使）向…移动 | |
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contractor
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| n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌 | |
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invoices
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| 发票( invoice的名词复数 )； （发货或服务）费用清单； 清单上货物的装运； 货物的托运 | |
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inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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artery
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| n.干线，要道；动脉 | |
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wagons
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| n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车 | |
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bazaars
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| （东方国家的）市场( bazaar的名词复数 )； 义卖； 义卖市场； （出售花哨商品等的）小商品市场 | |
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populous
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| adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的 | |
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swarming
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| 密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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metropolitan
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| adj.大城市的，大都会的 | |
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supplanted
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| 把…排挤掉，取代( supplant的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ponies
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| 矮种马，小型马( pony的名词复数 )； ￡25 25 英镑 | |
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veranda
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| n.走廊；阳台 | |
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bustling
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| adj.喧闹的 | |
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scanty
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| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
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brats
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| n.调皮捣蛋的孩子( brat的名词复数 ) | |
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tightened
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| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
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hawser
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| n.大缆；大索 | |
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scudding
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| n.刮面v.（尤指船、舰或云彩）笔直、高速而平稳地移动( scud的现在分词 ) | |
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rending
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| v.撕碎( rend的现在分词 )；分裂；（因愤怒、痛苦等而）揪扯（衣服或头发等）；（声音等）刺破 | |
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laden
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| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
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hemp
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| n.大麻；纤维 | |
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laborers
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| n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工 | |
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fragrant
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| adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的 | |
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cargoes
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| n.（船或飞机装载的）货物( cargo的名词复数 )；大量，重负 | |
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gutting
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| n.去内脏v.毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的现在分词 )；取出…的内脏 | |
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warehouse
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| n.仓库；vt.存入仓库 | |
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incessant
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| adj.不停的，连续的 | |
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rambling
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| adj.[建]凌乱的，杂乱的 | |
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isles
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| 岛( isle的名词复数 ) | |
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mariners
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| 海员，水手（mariner的复数形式） | |
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heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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fabrics
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| 织物( fabric的名词复数 )； 布； 构造； （建筑物的）结构（如墙、地面、屋顶）：质地 | |
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45
rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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bumpy
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| adj.颠簸不平的，崎岖的 | |
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raven
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| n.渡鸟，乌鸦；adj.乌亮的 | |
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belle
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| n.靓女 | |
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49
tilted
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| v. 倾斜的 | |
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50
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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pony
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| adj.小型的；n.小马 | |
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52
conveyances
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| n.传送( conveyance的名词复数 )；运送；表达；运输工具 | |
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53
exasperating
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| adj. 激怒的 动词exasperate的现在分词形式 | |
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54
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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56
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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cramps
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| n. 抽筋, 腹部绞痛, 铁箍 adj. 狭窄的, 难解的 v. 使...抽筋, 以铁箍扣紧, 束缚 | |
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deter
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| vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住 | |
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attenuated
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| v.（使）变细( attenuate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）变薄；（使）变小；减弱 | |
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implicated
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| adj.密切关联的；牵涉其中的 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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accomplishment
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| n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能 | |
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precipitating
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| adj.急落的，猛冲的v.（突如其来地）使发生( precipitate的现在分词 )；促成；猛然摔下；使沉淀 | |
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64
rattling
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| adj. 格格作响的, 活泼的, 很好的 adv. 极其, 很, 非常 动词rattle的现在分词 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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unfamiliar
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| adj.陌生的，不熟悉的 | |
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67
corrugated
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| adj.波纹的；缩成皱纹的；波纹面的；波纹状的v.（使某物）起皱褶(corrugate的过去式和过去分词) | |
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banking
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| n.银行业，银行学，金融业 | |
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plaza
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| n.广场，市场 | |
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shipping
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| n.船运（发货，运输，乘船） | |
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71
jingle
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| n.叮当声，韵律简单的诗句；v.使叮当作响，叮当响，押韵 | |
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deft
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| adj.灵巧的，熟练的（a deft hand 能手） | |
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insular
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| adj.岛屿的，心胸狭窄的 | |
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rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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glide
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| n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝 | |
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76
alleys
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| 胡同，小巷( alley的名词复数 )； 小径 | |
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provincial
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| adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人 | |
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feudal
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| adj.封建的，封地的，领地的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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80
belles
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| n.美女( belle的名词复数 )；最美的美女 | |
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81
burnished
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| adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光 | |
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82
brace
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| n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备 | |
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83
tugging
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| n.牵引感v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的现在分词 ) | |
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84
trot
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| n.疾走，慢跑；n.老太婆；现成译本；(复数）trots:腹泻（与the 连用）；v.小跑，快步走，赶紧 | |
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85
jingling
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| 叮当声 | |
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86
consul
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| n.领事；执政官 | |
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87
sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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88
fixtures
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| （房屋等的）固定装置( fixture的名词复数 )； 如（浴盆、抽水马桶）； 固定在某位置的人或物； （定期定点举行的）体育活动 | |
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carousal
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| n.喧闹的酒会 | |
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90
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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adjourn
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| v.（使）休会，（使）休庭 | |
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92
exquisitely
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| adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地 | |
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93
sip
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| v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量 | |
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animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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expressive
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| adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的 | |
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96
guffaws
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| n.大笑，狂笑( guffaw的名词复数 )v.大笑，狂笑( guffaw的第三人称单数 ) | |
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swells
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| 增强( swell的第三人称单数 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
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