Abaca was the most important commercial crop in Samar at the turn of the 20th century. It provided cash to the native population, ensuring prosperity for many landowners, and it made Samar the second biggest abaca producer in the country next to the Bicol Region. However, its abundance did not help the revolutionary cause of Gen. Vicente Lukban, who was sent by Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo to reorganize the municipal governments in the island. When the American colonial forces put up a food blockade in the region, Lukban’s troops faced starvation as the native population scarcely cultivated food crops. The tariff that the latter collected from abaca trading was of no practical use to them. Lukban had to disperse his troops and engaged the Americans in guerrilla warfare, which the latter countered using harsh measures, such as reconcentration (reconcentrado) of the population, which slowly eroded Lukban’s mass support. But it took more than two years before the Americans could capture him and cause the surrender of his troops.
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