What If Rizal Was Not Exciled
In July 1982 Jose Rizal was exiled as prisoner in Dapitan. When he arrived in Dapitan, he found it to be a sleepy little town. He thought of ways and means to make it clean, beautiful, and modern. With the help of his friend, father Sanchez, he made a map of Mindanao in front of the church. The map was made up of stones, earth, and grass and it serves as adornment that makes the town plaza beautiful. He and Father Sanchez, together with the citizens, had erected a lamp post in every corner of Dapitan. By stroke of luck, he won six thousand pesos from lottery ticket and he spent the amount in Dapitan. Modern agriculture implements were taken and transmitted from the United State and he taught the farmers how to use them. He bought sixteen hectares of land along the bay where he himself built a little house. He had become a farmer who himself worked hard, toiled, and happy in planting coffee and cacao and from 800 to 1,000 coconuts. (Retana, 1907) As a doctor, Rizal was aware of a wide spread of malaria due to mosquito bites. In order to get rid of malaria, he drained the swap where mosquitoes were staying. He also directed the construction of water system to have potable water for the town. (Retana, 1907) As a scientist, he collected, with the help of his pupils, different kinds of species of insects, birds, snakes, butterflies, shells, and plants which he sent, for purposes of identification, to Museum of Dresden in Europe. As payment of these species, Director A.B. Meyer sent him scientific books and journals, artificial eyes, microscopes, and surgical instruments since he did not accept money. He also discovered three rare specimens of animals that were named in his honor by European scientist, these were: Draco rizali which is a small lizard know as a flying dragon; Apogania rizali a rare kind of beetle; and the Rhacophorus rizali, a peculiar frog species. Rizal was also an inventor although he was not as inventive wizard as Thomas Edison. He invented a