LEYTE, WM. An island of the Visaya group in the Philippines, constituting with a number of small dependent islands the Province of Leyte (Map: Philippine Islands, .1 9). It is situated to the southeast of Luzon, and is separated from the island of Samar on the northeast by the Strait. of San 'Titanic°, from 1 to 3 miles wide, and from Mindanao on the southeast by the Strait of Surigao (q.v.). The principal de pendent islands are. Biliran, 22 miles long by 14 broad, off the north coast ; Pana5n, 20 miles long by 5 broad, off the southeast coast; and the emotes. a group of three islands 20 miles from the west coast. The island of Leyte has an ex treme length from northwest to southeast of 120 miles, and an extreme width of 45 miles. Its area is 3872 square miles; with the dependent islands, 4214 square utiles, or nearly as large as Connecticut.
It has a roughly rectangular shape with a large bay indenting each of the four sides, and a number of smaller inlets forming in several plaees excellent harbors, such as that of Tacloban (q.v.). The coasts are as a rule clear, with deep water close inshore, except along the north western end, where there are reefs and shoals. The eastern coast is high and steep, the western low and sandy, interrupted by a number of rocky headlands. The interior is generally mountain ens; an irregular chain with a number of peaks runs parallel with the western coast. about six miles inland, and reaches in Mount Sacripante a height of 3930 feet. There are several extinct volcanoes, some of which are over 4000 feet high. The rivers of Leyte are numerous, but are as a rule small mountain torrents. The chief among them are the Bao and the Leyte, both in the northwestern part. There is only one consider able lake, the Laguna de Bito, five miles long by three broad, situated near the centre of the island.
The climate of Leyte is temperate and health ful; the extreme annual temperatures are 52° F. lowest, and 86° F. highest. The island is abun dantly watered and very fertile. Large parts of it are covered with forests, in which one of the predominant species is the Dammar pine, from which great quantities of pitch are pro duced; these forests also yield some of the finest hard woods of the archipelago. The nu merous broad valleys are among the best culti vated lands of the Philippines, and yield abun dant crops of hemp of an excellent quality, be sides sugar, rice, coffee, cotton, and corn. The production of hemp in the island in 1896 amounted to 359.346 pieuls (1 picul = 137.9 pounds) ; it declined during the war with Spain, but with the reestablishment of peace the output is growing. The mineral wealth of Leyte in cludes gold, silver, iron, lead, and sulphur, only the last mentioned being mined to any extent. The leading industries consist in the manufac ture of hempen fabrics and cocoanut oil. Ship building is also an important industry, the large shipyards of Tacloban employing several hundred persons. The population was estimated in 1902 at 270,490, almost all of whom are Visayans, speaking the Visayan language. They are intel ligent and industrious and show great interest in American institutions.
Leyte was first seen by Magellan in 1521. Its original name was Abuyog, and the Spaniards called it first Filipina. which name was later extended to the whole archipelago. Civil govern ment under American rule was instituted on April 22, 1901, and the inhabitants showed such a friendly attitude toward the new regime that before the end of the year most of the island was intrusted to the native constabulary.