Image provided by: The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde; Grand Ronde, OR
About Weekly Chemawa American. (Chemawa, Or.) 189?-198? | View Entire Issue (May 22, 1903)
THE CHEMAWA AMERICAN 7 "Carriage Shops in Cbe Philippines," i The following, taken from The Hub, wai handed in by Mr. Flilb, overseer of the wagon dppartment. It not only gives a very good description of affairs in the wgon repair line in the Philippines, but also Rhows that there are many good open ings for those learning thw wagon making trade at this school. Not onlv in these is lands is there a demand for skilled wagon makers but throughout the country com petent men are needed and liberally pid: The carriage repair shops in the Philip pine Islands, like all other iudustrial estab lishments on the archipelago, are crudely fitted with the apparatus necessary for do ing the work that comes to hand, yet there i3 no place where carriage repair shops are needed more. The shops are not supplied with theuecessary number or kind of tools, with the result that a great deal of work which comes to band cannot be handled. I have seen good vehicles which have been imported from Spain and other countries out of service at an early stage of their ex istence Bitn ply because some pimple part has broken or worn and cannot b replaced by the carriage machinists of the islands. Often the owners of the vehicles will en deavor to make the needed repairs them selves, because they know that the regular repair shops are not furnished with the machinery and tools needed to accomplish the work, and therefore the carriage shop men lose considerable business in this way. What is needed in the Philippines are shops properly equipped with the necessary machiutry and tools for repairing carriages, wagons, bull carts, drag sleds, bicycles aid vehicles in general. Americans will evi dently take this matter in hand some day, and then thure will be needed improve ment made. At the present time all of the mechanical work is done by natives or Spaniards, but there are a number of dis charged soldiers in Manila and Iloilo who are machinist by trade, and those who und rsiand the wheelwright business in tend to open frhups for the repair and coti- s'ructioD of the various descriptions of vehi cles in service on these islands. For the time being, however, thQ work will have to be done by the crude appliances now in use. "The Philippine teamster operates his carts without lubrication of the bearings in the wheel hubs. This is a most ridiculous and costly custom. On market dys. when the large numbers of bull carts and other vehicles arrive in town, the pqueakiug of these dry bearings is very troublesome, and can be heard for long distand-s. The newly imported vehicles are wdl lubricated at the bearings previous to arrival, ac companied usually by some definite instruc tions regarding the nece.-sity of applying oil, so that the owner takes the time and trouble to apply a little oil now aod then , but the older forms of vehicles are not greased at the hubs, and the grinding, heating and wearing is a serious matter in the vehicle question in these island. Of course tha lack of lubrication to the wheels acs like a brake on the vehicle, and we can see little native horses, powerful caribou and oxen struggling along with a squeak ing crt which might be made to h ml much easier if a little grease were applied to the axles. The soldiers have done a great deal to ward remedying this trouble, for squeak ing carts pass into a garrisoned city or town the carts are halted and the owners made to get down and go to work and oil the wheels. If the same party appears saveral times in the town with a squeaky cart he is locked up and compelled to joint the street gang for thirty or more days. But up iu the hills and out in the interior in the jungle, where there are few soldiers, this sort of practice cannot be undertaken, and the car riages and wagous gu squeaking along the. roads. The items handed in by the fifth grade last week were exceptionally well written and would be a credit to a higher grade. In f-ict there is a gradual' improvement in all the pupil items and we were pleased to se a number f them c.pid in the last is-Sue uf the Native American.