WHEN Fr. Eusebio Locsin of Iloilo became the parish priest of Silay in 1840, he invited his relatives and friends to go to Silay and Negros because of the promising sugar industry. The "land," as mentioned by Father Locsin, served as the Pied Piper for Iloilo barons to come to Negros.
The "buena familias," "admiradas," "ilustrados" and the "aventureros" flocked to Silay and elsewhere... Locsin, Ledesma, Hilado, de la Rama, Jalandoni, Conlu, Araneta, Montelibano, Suanico, Yemo, Moralidad, Canas, Severino, Marifosque, Gamboa, and more. The frontiers paved the way for the Sugarlandia. It all started in Silay, "the Paris of Negros."
There was the participation of the Frenchman, Yves Leopold Germaine Gaston (later known as German Gaston), in 1846. He planted Habana and Puerto Rico sugarcane which he brought from French Isles of Mauritius and Bourbonne. The Gaston sugar was costing P1.00 per picul while others were sold at P0.85 per picul in 1896.
Many prominent families became "hacendados" (big plantation owners) and "hacenderos" (with small plantation). The sugar barons called their "plantaciones" as "haciendas" (land devoted to sugarcane). These sugar lords were able to have "jornaleros" (workers in the field). At first, they were treated so well like the extended members of the family.
The Cinco de Noviembre Revolution against the Spaniards was won in a "zarzuela" way because of the canine devotion of the "jornaleros" to the semi-feudal lords. Sugar in Negros was good and life was sweet. Palatial mansions ranging from the floral to geometric styles of the "bahay na bato" were constructed.
Those who were able to travel abroad opted to have Art Nouveau and Art Deco. The "hacendados" feasted with imported European goods. They were served by a dozen of "muchachas and muchachos." They bought fashionable cars and maintained houses in their "haciendas" and in the center of the "pueblo."
Where are the haciendas of Negros now? Ah, the Old Rich were gone. The New Rich are few and the younger "herederos" (heirs) do not know how to manage the farms effectively. The sugar produced from the canes is suffering a low cost at the local and world markets. The Land Reform Program of the government is hitting the big haciendas.
The sugarcane workers prefer to work in the construction firms where salary is high. The children of the workers who have been to school would prefer to work in the malls or call centers. The young generation of planters would prefer to work in offices rather than manage their haciendas.
The haciendas are gradually bought by Tsinoys who would convert agricultural lands to industrial and commercial areas. The "haciendas" of Negros would soon be just a memory.