The Local Commerce of Batangas by Jose M. Hilario, 1915
This page contains a transcription of an ethnographic paper written by one Jose M. Hilario in the year 1915. It is part of the Henry Otley-Beyer Collection at the National Library of the Philippines Digital Collections. Corrections in spelling and grammar were made when possible. Pagination has been retained for citation purposes.
[The original file at the National Library of the Philippines’ digital library is extremely blurred and/or faded in parts and almost impossible to read using human eyes. This transcription, therefore, was made with the assistance of AI technology. There may be some errors in the transcription.]
[Cover page]
Tagalog Paper No. 221.
THE LOCAL COMMERCE OF BATANGAS
By
José M. Hilario
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Classification:
1. TAGALOG: Province of Batangas, Luzon.
2. Economic Life: Commerce: Industries: Weights and Measures.
3. Social Life: Miscellaneous data.
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Manila
1915
[p. 1]
ANTHROPOLOGY V
THE LOCAL COMMERCE OF BATANGAS
By
José M. Hilario.
Intimate and indicative of the progress of Batangas province, as a whole, is the study of its local commerce. It is the tendency, I believe, of Philippine commerce to be domestic rather than foreign. However true may be the statement that Philippine ports were opened to foreign trade as early as a century ago, yet we find that it was only in comparatively recent years that Filipino business men undertook to trade with the rest of the world. And so in the province, the old customs, the old ways of exchanging and buying products still survive.
In Batangas province almost every town has a definite day for marketing goods. Let us, for example, note the market days of the following towns: Rosario, on the northeastern part of the province, almost east of Lipa, Friday; Lipa, a first class municipality, Wednesday and Sunday; Batangas, capital and also first class municipality, Thursday; San Jose, northeast of Batangas, and about nine miles away, Saturday; Tanauan, on the road to Manila, Tuesday and Thursday; Sto. Tomas, the town next to Tanauan, and about four miles distant, Wednesday and Sunday; Cuenca, a fourth class municipality built about 1887 at the foot of Macolod mountain, Sunday; Taal, the proud possessor of the largest church in the islands, Saturday; Calaca, the town next to Lemery, Wednesday. Interesting enough it is to see that with these few towns almost all the days of the week are
[p. 2]
occupied. Monday is the only day that is not used. There must be a reason for this fact. Unfortunately, I have not as yet discovered what that reason is.
On Saturdays the market-place in Batangas town is crowded with people not only from the different barrios of the municipality but also from other towns. There are a good many [buyers and sellers] in Batangas. It, therefore, is one of the most important towns. The [best?] woods are in the western part of the town towards the sea. [The town is situated near the sea and is bounded on the south by the sea? – lines too blurred] and is [divided?] into the [poblacion? – blurred] within San Jose.
Across the Calumpang river which [lies] southeast of the town [equivalent] to the barrio of “Ellion”? The same [barrio is?] called “Balilo”, in Tagalog, [is about six? – blurred] [The people of this barrio are mainly engaged in this industry?]
[The people of this barrio are mainly engaged in fishing? – blurred] Lipa [has?] taken to other towns [on horseback?], one has [a cart?], altho [immediately by the owner, to use a small?] cart and run and ride thereby [reaching?] to place the whole [cargo?] at yate. Ocean [breeze? – blurred] is also the practice are [pleasant and at the same time easy for the salesmen, they] leave late in the afternoon and walk [all? – blurred] night, or else [start?] in the early hours of the morning to arrive at their destination. Or they sometimes begin their journey early in the morning about three or four o’clock.
The system used in carrying produce to market is the [kangga?] system, if we may be allowed to use the term. It is a [common?] sight to see men or women seated in twin [baskets of a] [kangga? – cut off at bottom]
[p. 3]
albeit slow, [something due?] to the slow rate of [transportation?]. The [carriers?] are daily “...”. Sometimes on... use all [?].... is when on returning home, instead of the greater bulk [of] products, are laden with [?molluscs?].
Small rice fields or hills, has [its...?] [illegible] (al...[?]), silver and [silver?], [suitable?] for the...[?].... fish, cloth, vegetables, [fruits?],... are some of the articles sold on market day (tiangui). Also [cooperative?] has not as [yet the additional event of being engaged in initiative? – heavily blurred]
In both...[?], however it... [is?]. [More than the...], more than... [?]. In other words, the people are... [of] Batangas [from?]... [have become accustomed? – blurred] to “Minatamis” [?], [which in the first place...?]
[?] conducive to the price [and is...]. For the [traditional? – blurred] mind, however, who [can?] do much... [?].... and others can perform “Lina-long” [?], “...” [?], or to attain the... of fiber after... [?]... The whole work consists in cutting... [?]... loops of... fiber, then after attaining a certain length, the fiber is arranged in the form of a braid, with a fixed [price?] for each braid. I have not yet found out how... [it depends?] on the size of these braids.
Taal is famous for its fish. Salt is also one of the... It is a good combination, fish on the one hand, and [salt?], on the other. Also textiles are exported from Taal. The so-called “burang ganta [? Taal...]...... [?]... in Batangas. [Salt?] also comes from Taal. For...
[p. 4]
“sibuyas Taal” has become current in Batangas markets.
Lemery is another port devoted to the fishing industry.
The garlic (bawang) from Bauan is sent to other towns.
Loboo, separated from Batangas town by a range of mountains is famous for its hogs. The lack of transportation facilities makes it difficult to export these hogs. The harbor in Loboo is not good, because it offers little protection to vessels either from the wind or the waves.
Lipa is noted primarily for its good horses. The government experimental station there has done much toward the improvement of the breed. Hemp is being raised in Lipa, and now special efforts are made by the Bureau of Agriculture to revive the coffee industry.
San Juan, to the extreme northeastern part of the province is nearer Lucena than Batangas. Good horses are raised there, ever—contributing no small part to the development of a breed “fleet of foot” and possessing good wind.
At its highest stage, the local commerce of Batangas has not passed beyond money economy. Barter economy still exists to a considerable extent. During harvest time, an exchange of products takes place, — either rice for sugar, or salt for sugar, or whatever are the needs of the one man which another can supply. This process is called in Tagalog “mamalite.” From the months of March to June, the salt-works in Batangas are the means of barter. Oftenest the articles exchanged for sugar is in the form of food stuffs, not those that last long, but those which demand immediate consumption.
[p. 5]
There are several Chinese merchants in Batangas. They deal mostly in dry goods and in iron and steel articles. It has been a tradition in Taal that no Chinese merchant should live there. In the past days, the Chinese were murdered, and today, even if no such act of violence takes place, the Chinese seem to preserve the memory of those early days and they dare have their residence there.
Now that we have sketched briefly the trend of the exchange, the buying and selling of goods, we shall try to give an idea of the weights and measures used. The most common weight is the pound. Twenty-five pounds constitute an arroba. This weight is the exact reproduction of the Spanish weight of the same name. As far as measures are concerned, we shall begin with those of capacity. The ganta is called “gantang” in Tagalog.
Chupa — Gatung.
Salop — Salop.
Cavan (25 gantas) — Caban.
In Batangas there is an intermediate measure between “gatang” and “salop.” This measure is called “pitle” which is equivalent to four “gatangs,” or the exact half of a “salop.”
Measure of Length: “Dancal” (is even[?] mostly used when buying a cloth; “bara” supposed to correspond to the Spanish vara, but for practical purpose, the distance from the tips of the fingers to the middle of the chest is considered a “bara.” More recently the metric system has been introduced. This system is however, more used in [cities? – blurred at bottom].
[p. 6]
Besides the local names for weights and measures, there are also names for fractions of a peso. The local denominations are confined only to fractions of a peso, because from the peso up the denominations follow the orthodox way of calling the different numbers of pesos.
One-half centavo — isang pera.
One centavo — isang sentimo.
Five centavos — walong cuarta.
Ten centavos — labing anim or labing anim na cuarta.
Twelve and a half centavos — anim na apat.
Twenty centavos — isang billón.
Twenty-five centavos — caheti.
Thirty centavos — caheti at waló.
Thirty-five centavos — caheti at labing anim.
Thus we shall notice that what is being done is merely to add “walong cuarta,” or five centavos to “caheti,” and likewise “labing anim,” or ten centavos.
Forty centavos — dalawang billón.
Fifty centavos — isang salari.
One peso — piso.
The different denominations are used according to circumstances. The most common are “walong cuarta,” “labing anim,” “ani-apet,” “isang billón,” “caheti,” “isang salari.” The other denominations are derived from these.
There is a measure which I forgot to mention before. It is in connection with the salt industry. In gathering the salt for storing up, the mineral is put in baskets called “panacan.”
[p. 7]
These “pangcanans” are supposed to hold twelve and one half gantas, the ganta used being according to the regulations of the internal revenue authorities. So that two “pangcanans” hold the amount that they are expected to hold almost exactly!
In this brief sketch, we have only given a sort of an outline of what may ultimately result in a bigger work, after more investigation has been put into it. Another object is to picture local trade in general, so that if there are differences with that of any other province, these differences might be detected.
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