19th Century Tuy as Described by the Historian Manuel Sastron
This continues the series in this web site on 19th century Batangas based on the Spanish historian Manuel Sastron’s book “Batangas y Su Provincia1,” published in 1894. The feature this time is the western Batangas town of Tuy. Below is the translation of the chapter describing the town:
The town is located north of Balayan, west of Mount Batulao, east of Lian, and south of the lands of Nasugbu, which extend widely from east to west. It is 58 kilometers from the provincial capital. Its population is 10,450 inhabitants.
The town consists of 230 houses inhabited by 269 families. Among these light-material dwellings, some masonry houses roofed with iron stand out; and both types, perfectly aligned with proper spacing, form four wide, ventilated, parallel streets that present a good and modern appearance.
 |
| AI-generated image of the church plaza in Tuy under construction in the late 19th century. |
These streets converge at the public plaza, the largest seen in the towns of this province. The plaza forms a perfect square, on whose northern side rise the church and the parish house, built of mixed wood and stone with a metal roof. The structure is so recent that it is not yet finished, but the elderly and highly commendable parish priest, the Reverend Don Gavino de los Reyes, applies all possible activity and dedication to its construction.
On the opposite side, parallel to the church, stands the Tribunal building, small in size; yet it offers such a rational interior layout that we have not found anything lacking for the services under its charge, considering the scarcity of resources with which these towns commonly operate to meet municipal needs, especially those of a population as small as the one we are describing. The Tribunal of Tuy, because of how well maintained it is, presents a living example worthy of imitation by other towns with far greater means for organizing their internal affairs.
The slopes of Batulao and the ridges of Sungay and Talipusñgo, between which flow the rivers Bayudbud, Muntingtubig, Antipolo, Matayuanac, and Obispo, with their tributaries Binangbag and Caytitinga, form one of the most picturesque landscapes.
The waters of these rivers fertilize the lands of this jurisdiction without actually irrigating them. The beautiful network formed by these rivers, completed by numerous torrents and streams, maintains over the entire cultivated zone a constant degree of humidity, sustained by the tall vegetation that grows there. This is enough to keep the products of the soil always lush and to allow them to develop fully.
The surface area of this jurisdiction is estimated at 6,500 hectares, of which approximately 3,500 are cultivated.
The principal product is sugarcane, and in considerable quantity also palay. In smaller amounts they produce corn, peanuts, and mung beans, as well as a legume, the patani, very tasty and widely used in the diet of the residents. They also produce herbaceous cotton of good quality, camote, and gave, the latter being a tuber of great consumption in this town. Coffee and cacao are not cultivated extensively; they are kept only as garden plants within household lots.
The costs of cultivation and the average prices are similar to those of other towns. However, regarding labor, it must be noted that in years of good harvests it is not easy to obtain workers unless they are paid at a high rate; the ordinary wage is twenty‑five centavos of a peso plus food.
The only agricultural industry is sugar production, carried out through ten steam machines, one hundred twelve iron mills, and four stone mills. Up to 1,500 cattle are employed to move these trapiches. Until now they have produced only the class known as “ordinary sugar,” but many planters are already dedicating themselves to making it cleaner and beaten, that is, the class they call “improved.”
The sugar harvest in this town has risen to two hundred thousand picos2. Unfortunately, the fertile lands of this jurisdiction do not belong to the town itself but to landowners from neighboring towns.
As a small industry, they produce bilaos, sugarcane pans or large trays, baskets and hampers, and various woven containers.
This town exports sugar to Manila, with Balayan as the point of embarkation. The cost of transport is twenty‑five centavos of a peso per bayón and pico.
There are construction materials in this town, something not found in many towns of the province. There is abundant volcanic tuff and much alluvial stone along the banks and beds of the rivers mentioned earlier.
In the appropriate section we will discuss the forest production of this territory.
The main highway crosses this town. Passing through nearby Balayan, it continues through here toward Lian and Nasugbu. This road presents no major obstacle except at the Palico ravine. Another road leads toward the neighboring province of Cavite, continuing to the town of Alfonso after crossing the lands of Nasugbu. A local road toward the east connects this town with two adjacent barrios in that direction, and another road leads west to Lian, crossing the Talipusnó. Only one bridge exists on these roads, poorly built, over the Matayuanac.
The schools of this town are installed in houses made of light materials and lacking any proper capacity or condition; nevertheless, they are fairly well attended.
There is a cemetery east of the town, but it is too close to the settlement. This town shows very little criminality. It is one of the towns with the best customs in the province.
It is also one of the healthiest, even though it has no permanent medical service; however, complete medical assistance is available in the nearby town of Balayan.
2 A pico was a Spanish unit of measurement equivalent to 61.5 kilograms.