plete without the symbolistic
dance which so epitomizes Filipino character. This is performed by a
young lady and her partner wielding fans and scented handkerchiefs,
advancing and retreating with all kinds of coquetries.

Long after midnight, when the party broke up with the customary
horse-play, the accommodating orchestra, who had enjoyed the evening
with the rest, still playing "Just One Girl," escorted the assembly
home.

Chapter XVIII.

Visayan Ethics and Philosophy.

He is the drollest little person in the world--the Filipino of the
southern isles. He imitates the sound of chickens in his language and
the nasal "nga" of the carabao. He talks about his chickens and makes
jokes about them. As he goes along the street, he sings, "_Ma-ayon
buntag_," or "_Ma-ayon hapon_," to the friends he meets. This is
his greeting in the morning and the afternoon; at night, "_Ma-ayon
gabiti_." And instead of saying, "Thank you," he will sing, "_Deus
mag bayud_" (God will reward you), and the answer, also sung, will be
"_gehapon_" (always)--just as though it were no use to look for a
reward upon this world.

You wonder how it is that he can spend his life rooted to one spot,
like a tree, passing the days in idleness. He is absorbed in his
own thoughts. If you should ask him anything he would not hear you;
he is far away in his own dreamland. You must wake him up first,
and then repeat your question several times. If you should have
instructions for him, do not give them to him all at once. A single
idea at a time is all that he can carry in his head. If he has not
been broken in to a routine, he will chase butterflies upon the way,
influenced ever by the passion of the moment. There is no yesterday
or no to-morrow in his thoughts. What he shall find to eat to-morrow
never concerns him. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Many mistakes have been made in the hasty judgment of the
Filipino character. Such axioms as "Never trust a native under
any circumstances;" "Never expect to find a sense of gratitude;"
"Never believe a word a native says," are only too well known in
Filipinia. The Spanish influence has been responsible for most of the
defects as well as for the merits of the native character. Then, the
peculiar fashion of the Oriental mind forbids his reasoning according
to the Occidental standards. Cause and effect are hazy terms to him,
and the justification of the means is not regarded seriously. His