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They were treating with the sultan of Sooloo for the island of Basilan, the natives of which had beat off their boats, with the loss of a lieutenant and four men killed and many wounded. The island of Basilan is subject to Sooloo, although the natives have refused to pay tribute for many years.
On one of these occasions, our troops obliged an army of more than 5,000 Moros, who had closely beset the fortress of Zamboanga, to raise the siege; and also in the years 1731 and 1734, fresh detachments of our men were landed on the Islands of Jolo, Capul and Basilan, and their success was followed by the destruction and ruin of the fortified posts, vessels, and settlements of those perfidious Mahometans.
"Bosh, Piang, you mustn't believe those fairy tales now. You are a good American." "Sure, me good American, now," grinned the boy. There is nothing to differentiate the island of Basilan from the many others in the Sulu group. The natives seemed far from hostile, however, and Lieutenant Lewis remarked upon their docility to Sergeant Greer.
Those men who ran to the mountains when they saw the flood rising became monkeys; those who flung themselves into the sea became fish; the Chinese turned into hornbills; a woman who was eating seaweed and kept on eating after the waves broke over her became a dugong. In Mindanao, Basilan, and Sulu the pig is held in suspicion and its flesh is not eaten. Christ said that he did not wish to do so.
A banana and some sugar repaid the monkey for the experiment and after he was free, he followed the travelers, chattering and begging for sweets. When they came to Isabella, capital of Basilan Island, Piang scurried off in search of the sultan. The men amused themselves watching the excitement they created. An American soldier is a wonderful and dreadful thing to these wild folk.
Somber, lowering Basilan guards its secrets to this day; Sacol, home of Dato Mandi, invites and then repels the intruder; tiny clumps of vivid green rise out of the channel in the most unexpected places, as if timidly wishing to investigate before adding their emerald mite to crown the Celebes.
In several instances we did not pass the act organizing a given province at the time of our visit, but for one reason or another postponed action until a later date. We visited a number of places like Joló, Basilan, Zamboanga, Cotabato, Davao and Samar, where we had no intention of establishing civil government, in order to observe local conditions.
This tribute continued to be paid until the flight of Amir to Basilan, about the year 1752, where he entered into a secret correspondence with the authorities at Zamboanga, and after two years a vessel was sent from Manila, which carried him to that capital, where he was treated as a prisoner of state. Dalrymple remained at Sulu for three months, engaged in making sales and purchases.
A friend, a physiologist, conjectures the cause to be the free use of very fat pork; but the natives commonly eat but little flesh, and the pigs are very seldom fat. Compare A. Erman, Journey Round the Earth Through Northern Asia, vol. iii, sec i, p. 191. According to Semper, p. 69, in Zamboanga and Basilan.
Some said that he had been killed by a crocodile, others that he had escaped and swum to Basilan; but the tribe had not heard of him since the bichara, and they were relieved to be rid of his bullying presence. Especially the little slave girl, Papita, whom Sicto had annoyed since infancy, was glad that he was gone.
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