The new ports of entry: Davao and Legaspi

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Part of The American Chamber of Commerce Journal

Title: The new ports of entry: Davao and Legaspi
Language: English
Source: The American Chamber of Commerce Journal Volume 6 (Issue No.6) June 1926
Year: 1926
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Fulltext: 12 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL .June, 1926 The New Ports of Entry: Davao and Legaspi * * n * « * * Mindanao Port Surpasses Her Bicol Sister Now that the new ports of entry have been in operation for a third of a year, or from January 1 to April 30, the period for which the records are completed, it is possible to review their business and com pare them one with the other. First of all, their imports have not been at all iinpor— tant: in February gasoline to the value of 1’105,711 was imported into Legaspi, and in March a shipment of goods from .Japan va lued at 1’11,197 was imported into Davao. yTheir growth as importing centers will follow their growth as exporting centers— and perhaps always much behind. How ever, ibis may not be true of Davao. In the town and province of Davao is domiciled, engaged in business, farming and trade, the largest .Japanese community in the Philip pines; and it “may he that to supply this community and its patrons, an increasing quantity of goods will be imported directly into Davao. Concrete piles are being made for the new pier at Davao. There is even a small road allotment, 1’25,000; and some work will be undertaken this year. In the matter of roads, Legaspi will fare better than Da vao. The big fund will be the gasoline tax. about 1’2,500,000 this year; but the depart ment of commerce and communications has only a fourth of this to allot at its discre tion; the other three fourths are specifically allotted in the law, with population a factor and area not a factor; so that the large sparsely settled .provinces where roads are needed most, to induce settlement and de velopment, get the least, having neither po pulation nor completed roads to base claims upon. It may be assumed, however, that these prvinces will be favored somewhat by the department of commerce and communi cations; they will get a considerable portion of the 1*800,000 the department may allot at its discretion. Albay, of course, has large population and many completed roads. As a matter of fact, in the 1926 appro priations neither port, Legaspi or Davao, has any money whatever for piers or port improvements; what is being used at Davao is the P100,000 over from the 1925 appro priations, and at least 1’150,000 more is needed to complete the concrete work alone. It is planned in the bureau of public works to recommend such an appropriation, and, now that the work is well begun, to finish it as soon as possible. Investigations are underway at Legaspi. The site recommend ed by the railway is dangerously exposed to the sea: the only possible construction is a marginal wharf, and a site is being sought that is more protected from the s<>a and that may be accessible bv rail as well. The report is not yet submitted. The primary advantage of the ports is to the exportation of raw products of the islands. This is very materially the case in Davao. Various ports of the Philippines exported Manila hemp during the first four months of this year as follows, in kilo grams : Manila ............................... Cebu .................................. Zamboanga....................... Davao ........... ■................... Total .................................. 22,116.298 10,960,681 322,832 6,801,186 ■10,201,000 Hilton Carson Furniture Moved Contract Hauling Baggage Transferred Dump Trucks for Hire AUTO TRUCKING 1955 Azcatraga CO. Phone 22345 When There’s a GayWhter Heater Ln Your Home Manila handled, then, about 55 per cent of the hemp exported from the islands dur ing the period; Cebu 27 per cent, Davao 17 (). V. Il corf, JI'Aohi ./, /•’. Marias Declares JT«.s the Prime Mover in the Port Project for Davao. H’oofZ was born in Kings County, Mo., September 1, 1877, and died December 19, 1922, while on his wan to the United States from his planta tion at Malita, Davao. He suffered from pernicious anemia. His parents removed to California from Missouri when he was a small boy. He was educated at San Diego Normal School and came to the Phil ippines in 1901 (with the first A nt - erican teachers on the army trans port Thomas), to organize sloyd work in the Moro schools. Until 1906 he remained with the government in Davao; he was schools superinten dent, secretary of the Davao district, deputy governor and acting governor. In 1906 he left the service and. gave aU his time to his plantation at Malita. In 1918 he went to Cali fornia and married. His widow, Mr.-.. Dora A. JJ’ood, and daughter four years old, Dora Klien Il'ood, make their home in Pasadena when they are not at Malita. “H’c have at least 200 bushels of roses, of more than a dozen varieties, at, Manila,” Mrs. H’ood writes. "O.:r electric light and ice plant are run ly water power; also the copra cut ter. corn mill, rice mill and com shclle-r." She describes the garden, the plantation house, the genera! store and warehouses, and the wharf where cargoes are loaded on ocean steamers or for Davao. Malita has 110 hectares of Manila hemp, Kit) hectares of coconuts and 6,000 Castilloa rubber trees, all producing. CALL WRITE TELEPHONE MANILA GAS CORPORATION No. 5, Calle David Calle Otis, Paco Phone 443 Phone 289 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1926 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 13 per cent and Zamboanga less than one per cent. Baling stations and branch offices of export houses are busy at Davao. The progress of this port is of interest outside the Philippines. “1 assume,” writes Shelby Wiggins, manager of the foreign trade de partment of the Portland chamber of commeice, ‘you are familial- with the efforts which the Portland Chamber of Commerce has exerted through the Oregon delegation and our personal representative in Wash ington in the matter of having Davao made a port of entry and assisting that city in other ways. In view of the substantial volume of cargo which comes to this port from Davao, you can readily appreciate our sincere interest in its progress.” Is not this a cogent comment on the whole Philippine problem? Where they realize their interests are affected, Ameri cans at home bestir themselves. Mr. Wig gins was acknowledging receipt of the January number of the Journal, the special issue on Davao. “If we can be of service to your esteemed body I trust you will make your wants known,” he says. Legaspi exported no hemp during the first four months of the year. She did export copra. The copra exports to the United States from the various ports were as follows, in kilograms: Manila . ......................... Iloilo ................................... Cebu.................................... Zamboanga ....................... Davao .......................■. .. . Legaspi ............................. 1,212,595 2,582,987 15,887,868 •1,301,719 960,852 761,832 Total ................. •............... 25,707,853 In this trade Manila's share was approxi mately 1.7 per cent, Iloilo’s ten per cent, Cebu’s 61.75 per cent, Zamboanga’s 16.7 per cent, Davao’s 3.73 per cent, and Legas pi’s three per cent. In addition, Cebu ship ped 657,800 kilos of copra to Germany and 2,175,800 to Spain. Manila shipped 34,270 kilos to Spain, and Jolo 14,985 to Singapore. It should be stated that until recently the copra crop of the Legaspi district has been far below normal and ruling prices of co pra at preduel ion points outside the Philip pines have caused considerable buying in those regions for the United States. Now however production in Tayabas and Laguna is rapidly increasing. Zamboanga is report ed to have suffered severely by the drouth, which was broken May 7 by copious rains O. V. Wood is, above all others, respon sible for the making of Davao a port of entry for the Philippines, in the opinion of J. V. Marias, who was in charge of shipping board matters in the orient when the initial steps were taken. He was afterward vice president and acting manager of the Bank of the Philippine Islands and is now resid ing in San Francisco, whence he writes: “In April of 1921 I went to Davao. It was a filthy place. There was not a decent bed to sleep in or a decent meal to be had. but it had possibilities. I saw’ them and told the planters," among whom was Wood, and I learned all I could about their troubles, particularly the shipping obstacle. I told them that if they got behind me and sup ported me that I would give them direct shipments to the United States ... O. V. Wood believed in me, the only ong who did, the result of which was that he negotiated w’ith me for a ship to go after 4,000 bales (of hemp) ; and he offered to pay a dif ferential so that the ship would not lose. I agreed to send a ship there, the Dewey. I went with it. I was on the bridge when we docked, first at Manila, then Davao and then Taloma. Needless to say I was happy. I had made good my promise and proved my faith. Poor Wood was on his last legs. We had a terrible time. We did not get our premised 4,000 bales; we lost money; he agreed to pay dead freight but I don't think the charge was ever pressed. That was only the start of my troubles. Wood died. He was my only active supporter. . . However, we finally won out and I am mighty pleased with the results. They cer tainly prove that the effort was worth while, but how much easier it could have been made if I had some kind of coopera tion.” Cooperation was finally forthcoming, especially from the office of the governor general. The reader perceives that the opening of both Legaspi and Davao was a deal: to get the one, Davao, it was neces sary for the executive branch of the govern ment to approve the other. Both are to be connected with Manila by direct wireless communication. Bids for new equipment have been opened at the bureau of posts. One covers a long-wave system, two others cover short-wave systems. Decision among them has not been made (May 25), but one will be accepted and the work undertaken. THE NEWEST EQUIPMENT IS ON THE NORTH COAST LIMITED SEATTLE TO CHICAGO (DIRECT CONNECTION TO THE EAST AND SOUTH) “NEWEST” means an Observation-Lounge Car surpassing all others heretofore designed. Barber, Valet, Ladies Maid, Bath, Library, Smoking and Card Rooms, Writing Desk, inviting leurge and wide observation platform. “NEWEST” means Pullman sleeping cars different from any you have seen on any other train. Permanent head-boards divide the sec tions for greater privacy. Interior Decorations in soft, new colors. Here is luxury unlimited for sleeping car passengers. All Steel Construction Means Safety. In the Dining Car are those “femcusly geed” Northern Pacific meals, served with deft courtesy and skill at low prices. from Seattle to Chicago IN 70 HOURS. No change of cars. F»r raUs and lilirature write R. J. TOZER GENERAL AGENT 609 Robert Dollar Bldg. Shanghai, China. Northern Pacific Railway “2000 MILES OF STARTLING BEAUTY’.’ It also seems probable that the telegraph office at Davao will be removed from the town, inland, to the new town of Santa Ana, at the port. The report of the ins pector is awaited but has been ordered sub mitted. It cannot but show that the bulk of the commercial telegraph business arises at the port and not in the town of Davao itself. MRS. FRANK DIES IN HOSPITAL News has been received in Manila of the death in San Francisco of Mrs. George I. Frank April 30, after an operation. Mrs. Frank, wife of the well known Escolta merchant, had been a resident of Manila for many years; many friends mourn her death. She was an Eastern Star; the funeral ser vice was conducted by Reverend Tracy., formerly of the Episcopal cathedral of Manila. Z.V RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTI'V THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL
pages: 12-13