ar future in the political world, the world to come,
or any other sphere. He indifferently leaves everything to happen as
it may, with surprising resignation. The native, in general, will go
without food for many hours at a time without grumbling; and fish,
rice, betel-nut, and tobacco are his chief wants. Inebriety is almost
unknown, although strong drink (nipa wine) is plentiful.

In common with other races whose lives are almost exclusively passed
amid the ever-varying wonders of land and sea, Filipinos rarely express
any spontaneous admiration for the beauties of Nature, and seem little
sensible to any aspect thereof not directly associated with the human
interest of their calling. Few Asiatics, indeed, go into raptures
over lovely scenery as Europeans do, nor does "the gorgeous glamour
of the Orient" which we speak of so ecstatically strike them as such.

When a European is travelling, he never needs to trouble about where
or when his servant gets his food or where he sleeps--he looks after
that. When a native travels, he drops in amongst any group of his
fellow-countrymen whom he finds having their meal on the roadside,
and wherever he happens to be at nightfall, there he lies down to
sleep. He is never long in a great dilemma. If his hut is about to
fall, he makes it fast with bamboo and rattan-cane. If a vehicle breaks
down, a harness snaps, or his canoe leaks or upsets, he always has his
remedy at hand. He stoically bears misfortune of all kinds with the
greatest indifference, and without the least apparent emotion. Under
the eye of his master he is the most tractable of all beings. He never
(like the Chinese) insists upon doing things his own way, but tries to
do just as he is told, whether it be right or wrong. A native enters
one's service as a coachman, but if he be told to paddle a boat, cook a
meal, fix a lock, or do any other kind of labour possible to him, he is
quite agreeable. He knows the duties of no occupation with efficiency,
and he is perfectly willing to be a "jack-of-all-trades." Another good
feature is that he rarely, if ever, repudiates a debt, although he may
never pay it. So long as he gets his food and fair treatment, and his
stipulated wages in advance, he is content to act as a general-utility
man; lodging he will find for himself. If not pressed too hard, he will
follow his superior like a faithful dog. If treated with kindness,
according to _European_ notions, he is lost. The native ne