riculture. There are also said to be some Negritos, but of
these very little is known. There are many short streams. The island is
110 miles long and has an area of 3,087 square miles. The population
is 106,170. There is little known of the mountains of the interior,
as the inhabitants dwell mainly on the coasts. Mindoro constitutes
one of the provinces of the Philippines under an alcalde.

The capital is Calapan, with a population of 5,585. It is situated to
the north, on the harbor of its name, defended by a fort of regular
construction; it has about 500 houses, among the notable stone ones
being the parish, court house and jail, and casa real. It is the
residence of the alcalde mayor and several public functionaries. The
city is situated 96 miles from Manila.

Mount Kalavite is a long-backed promontory, the western slope of
which forms Cape Kalavite, and the northern slope Point del Monte;
the summit, about 2,000 feet high, appears dome-shaped when seen from
the west, but from the north or south it shows a long ridge fairly
level; the western end of this ridge is the highest part.

The capital of the province, Calapan, is a coast town. The inhabitants
are occupied in hunting, fishing, and ordinary weaving. The commerce
is insignificant. Sand banks extend in front of the town to a distance
of one-half mile. To clear these, the northern Silonai islet should
not be shut out by Point Calapan. On this line, near the north edge
of the banks, the soundings are 36 to 46 fathoms.

The Semirara Islands form a group of eight islands, all surrounded
by reefs.

Semirara, the largest of the group, is hilly, about 512 feet high
at the highest part. The west coast includes several little bays
almost entirely obstructed by reefs, on the edge of which are depths
of 4 3/4 to 13 fathoms; and off the town of Semirara, which stands
on the top of the hill facing the largest bay, the anchorage is
very bad, even for coasters. The east coast is bordered by a reef,
which extends about a mile from the northeast part of the island; on
coming from the north this coast of the island must not be approached
within three miles until the town of Semirara bears full west. There
is anchorage at the south of the island in 5 to 8 fathoms, sand,
during the northeast monsoon. Good coal for steaming purposes was
found on the island by Captain Villavicencio, of the Spanish navy.

Tablas Island is, mountainous, and on its northern extremity is
the peak