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They closely resemble the tame stock, and are generally considered to be derived from animals which have escaped. Iron-Working. Little iron work is now done in the valley of the Abra for the competition of the Ilocano smiths of Santa and Narvacan, in Ilocos Sur, and the cheap products brought to the coast, and as far inland as Bangued, by Chinese traders, have swamped the native industry.
About this time the work in Abra also took on a more favorable aspect; by 1753 three Tinguian villages, with a combined population of more than one thousand, had been established near Bangued, and in the next century five more settlements were added to this list.
To protect the Christianized natives, as well as to aid in the conversion of these heathens, the Spanish, in 1598, entered the valley of the Abra and established a garrison at the village of Bangued. As before, the natives abandoned their homes and retreated several miles farther up the river, where they established the settlement of Lagangilang.
He told us that the country was very dangerous, doubtless confusing it with Bangued, the capital of Abra, near which there was at that time a strong and active Insurgent force. We insisted on going, so he said that he would send a troop of cavalry with us, and he kept his word. During the last week of July we finally sailed from Manila on a naval vessel for San Fernando in the province of Union.
In it hang the vines and other articles, used by the female dancers in one part of the rite. A portion of one of the slaughtered pigs is placed here for the spirits of Bangued. In Lumaba the Sogáyob is built alone as a part of a one-day ceremony; while in Sallapadan it follows Kalangan after an interval of about three months.
Even to-day the people of Balbalasang make the long journey to Bangued, or even to Vigan, to secure Chinese iron, which they carry back to their mountain forges. There is no positive proof that the Filipinos formerly mined and smelted iron, but there is a strong probability that they did so, prior to the introduction of trade metal.
Everywhere they are fed by minor streams and waterfalls until at last, as they emerge into the broader valleys of the Abra and its tributaries, they are rivers of respectable size. The great central valley of Abra is far from being a level plain. In places, as about Manabo, Bukay, and Bangued, there are stretches of level land; but, for the most part, the country is rough and broken.
In the detailed description of the Ilocano, all the subjects have been drawn from the cities of Bangued in Abra, and Vigan in Ilocos Sur, in order to eliminate, so far as possible, the results of recent intermixture with the Tinguian, a process which is continually taking place in all the border towns. The more general tabulation includes Ilocano from all the northern provinces.
From Bangued as a center, the Augustinian friars worked tirelessly to convert the pagans, but with so little success that San Antonio, writing in 1738, says of the Tinguian, that little fruit was obtained, despite extensive missions, and that although he had made extraordinary efforts, he had even failed to learn their number.