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:1::.        The United States Philippine Commission-191 I:S~is.ifif     R.*... & ~      won W. Gilbert, Vice-Governor and Secretary of Publc Instnction De  C. Worst  Seretsr ot;to Mit.. Prank A. Branagan; Jose Luzuriaga; W. Cameron Forbes, Governor  era and President of
7'7X.C, Scretary of Pinance and Justice; Charles B. Elliott, Secretary of Commerce and Police.::~




U
THEPHILIPPINES
To he End of the Commission Government
A STUDY IN TROPICAL
DEMOCRACY
By
CHARLES BURKE ELLIOTT, Ph. D., LL D.
Author of
THE PHILIPPINES: To mait ENID OF TIM MILITARY RfoUt
Former Member United States Philippine Commission,
Secretary of Commerce and Police in the Goverment of the Philippines, AssociateJustice
of the Supreme Court of the Philip
pines, Associate justice of the
Supreme Court of
Minnesota
Portraits in Photogtrwmv
INDIANAPOLIS
THE BOBBS-MERRILL COMPANY
PUBLISHES






COPYRIGHT 1917
BY
CHARLES BURKE ELLIOTT
PRESS OF
BRAUNWORTH & CO.
BOOK MANUFACTURERS
BROOKLYN, N. Y.




To
WILLIAM WATTS FOLWELL
Former President of the University of Minnesota
AND
HARRY PRATT JUDSON
President of the University of Chicago




I




"The Song of the deed in the doing, of the
work still hot from the hand,
Of the yoke of man laid friendly-wise on
the neck of a tameless land."
"Clear the land of evil, drive the road and
bridge the ford.
Make ye sure to each his own
That he reap where he has sown;
By the peace among Our people let men know
we serve the Lord."








PREFACE


In the volume entitled The Philippines: To the End of the
Military Regime, I endeavored to present the background of
history against which the American treatment of the Philippines must be projected in order to be understood, to show the
place which our Philippine policy holds in the history of colonization, and to state the principles upon which it rests and the reasons which actuated the American government in assuming the
responsibility for the government of the Archipelago. The story
of the American occupation was brought down to the,inauguration of a civil governor on the fourth of July, 1901.
The present volume contains an account of the origin, institution and nature of the Philippine government, the manner in
which it has been administered, and a summary and analysis of
what has been accomplished by the Americans and Filipinos during the past sixteen years.
That a nation which maintains colonies is always on trial before the world is true in a peculiar sense of the United States because of the benevolent and altruistic motives which were declared to control her Philippine policy. The American people
feel that the honor of their country is involved in the Philippine
experiment, and it is of vital importance that they should know
and understand what has been done in their remote dependency.
In order properly to appreciate and value that work and judge
of its permanency it must be remembered that the American occupation broke the continuity of Philippine history, introduced the
Filipinos to new principles and ideals of life, and different conceptions of the essential legal and political rights of individuals.
It is an attempt to transplant a civilization based upon principles
and methods of government which are as different from those




PREFACE
which had prevailed in the islands as are the plants and products
of the temperate zone which agriculturists are trying to introduce
into the tropics.
Some of these principles of government and ideals of life and
conduct-and fortunately, those of the most fundamental nature
-seem to have found congenial soil; a few, possibly, are being
sustained artificially; while others, apparently, have found no
nourishment. Some of the optimism of the early years has faded,
but the statesmen, like the agriculturists, are still hopefully experimenting. It is beginning to be realized that not everything
that grows and prospers in the West, whether plants or governments, can be successfully transplanted to the Far East; that the
political system of an ancient race, the product of thousands of
years of strenuous experience, can not simply be presented to a
people who have had no experience in self-government.
We have changed the face of the country, and given law, order, justice, and equal rights and opportunities to the people,
but they are no more Americans to-day than they were two decades ago. There should be no illusions on this score. A few
individuals have been partially Americanized, but it is very doubtful whether we have materially changed the fundamental character of the Filipino people. They are still Spanish in culture
and their mental processes are those of Latins, not Anglo-Saxons.
We have, indeed, given them better opportunities for education
and an improved environment in which to live, and many Americans assume that there are no differences in the members of the
human family that can not be obliterated by education and environment. If true it is a matter of generations. The most
enthusiastic believer in the essential unity of the human race can
not reasonably expect characteristics which are the result of ages
of race experience to be permanently changed by a few years
of training in American democratic institutions. It will require
more than two decades of popular government to make the Filipino like unto the children of the New England town meeting.




PREFACE
When, in 1898, the Filipinos formed a constitution for the
republic which they proposed to establish, they went to France
and South America, not to the United States, for their models.
Mabini, Calderon and Paterno were the intellectual children of
the Abbe Sieyes, and followers of the a priori school of political
philosophy. They had nothing in common, intellectually or politically, with Washington, Madison, or even Jefferson. The
American statesmen who devised a government for the Philippines were of the latter school.  They dealt with realities,
not with abstractions. Their object was to give peace, order
and justice to the country and prepare the natives, en masse, to
manage their own affairs, and for that purpose they introduced
the machinery of a modern popular government. But it was
tentative, experimental and developable. It was expected that
new organs would be developed as new functions appeared. The
ultimate end was to be reached through a process of evolution,
along lines determined by those general principles which had been
found essential to the rule of law and the maintenance of individual freedom, and which are, therefore, the necessary foundations of every just and effective government.
The popular idea, however, was that the Filipinos were to be
promptly transmuted into Americans of the most approved type.
But the men who formulated the Philippine policy sought no
more than to create conditions under which all the people of the
islands should have an opportunity to develop the best that was
in them. Sir James Brooke, the wise Rajah of Sarawak, once
said that his ambition was to make his people good Malays, not
yellow Englishmen. So our ambition should be to make good
and efficient Filipinos out of all the inhabitants of the islands.
It is not necessary to try to make Yankees out of them. The
Malay will never be an Anglo-Saxon; he may be as good a man
and some day, possibly, as efficient, but he will never be the same
sort of a person. We must admit that race is a fact which can




PREFACE
not be obliterated by sentiment, a change of government, or even
of religion. What scientists call unit characters, such as skull
shape, stature, eye and hair color, and nose form, are transmitted
from generation to generation, in accordance with fixed mathematical laws. "They are," says Madison Grant, "to all intents
and purposes immutable and do not change during the lifetime
of a language or an empire." The skull shape of the Egyptian
fellaheen is absolutely identical in measurement, proportions and
capacities, with the skull of his ancestor who lived six thousand
years ago. -
The reader should also remember that the American administrators in the Philippines have worked under the serious and
often embarrassing limitations and restrictions imposed by the
political and ethical theories upon which the Philippine policy
rests. While simple in outline and easily stated, that policy involves considerations of a very delicate and complicated nature.
We have had to deal with forces which although subtle and intangible are very powerful. Education, health, material development, in fact all the external and visible work of the government
has been subordinated to the purpose of creating in the Filipinos
a consciousness of race unity, a sense of nationality, and capacity
for self-government. The extent to which this purpose has been
realized can not as yet be determined with certainty. To create
in an unhomogeneous people an intelligent unit consciousness of
nationality is vastly more difficult than to develop the material
resources of their country.
Other colonial powers, with more material and less ambitious
aims, have used much simpler methods. They have until recently ignored as much as possible the social and political aspirations and ambitions of their native subjects. Such policies
are definite and understandable, but they are, in a manner, temporary. Great Britain has worked with large and simple tools,
and the results are apparent. As Lord Curzon said of England's




PREFACE
work in India, "It is carved in granite, it is hewn out of the
rock of doom.... It is righteous, and it shall endure." It
has taken more than a century for strong men, troubled but little
by altruistic theories and working with the chisel of unlimited
power, to carve that magnificent record in granite. America in
the Philippines has worked, not with chisel on the everlasting
granite, but with the delicate instruments of the etcher-the steel
point of persuasion and the acid of liberalism. The lines of a
free government, based on the principles of equal rights for all,
have been clearly traced, and the acid is slowly giving them distinction, definiteness and permanency. Our work, too, is righteous, and we trust that it shall endure. But two decades are but
as a moment in the life of a people, and the lines on the etcher's
plate are easily confused, and even obliterated, by an unskilful
although honest workman.
Time is an essential element of the problem-time to erect
a suitable structure on a modern foundation, to train an ignorant and inexperienced people, and to test and measure their
capacities. The uncertainty which now exists as to the future
of the Philippines is due to the way in which the United States
has permitted itself to be hurried in its dealings with the Filipinos. The government which was established less than two decades ago was admirably adapted for its purposes. It was, until
complicated by the division of legislative power, simple in design, with parts well articulated, expandable, and capable of being
efficiently and economically administered. It assumed that the
natives were untrained, but capable of being trained to govern
themselves, and that considerable time would be necessary for
that purpose. Skilfully directed agitation has so hastened events
that the Philippine government is now under the immediate control of the Filipinos, and the ultimate success of our experiment
in nation culture depends upon the wisdom and ability of Filipinos, instead of Americans. If they succeed, it will justify the




PREFACE
faith in the inherent capacity of the natives upon which our Philippine policy is based, and redound to the honor of the United
States and to the credit of the men who laid the foundation upon
which the present structure rests.
I believe that the assumption of control over the Philippines
could not honorably have been avoided without a shrinking from
responsibility which would have been unworthy of a great and
self-respecting nation. Its responsibilities have been borne without reward or hope of reward, other than that which comes from
the faithful performance of gratuitous service for others. The
United States is a greater and nobler nation for having lifted the
Filipinos out of the slough in which they were floundering and
placed them well on the road toward nationality.
I have written of the American administration in a sympathetic
spirit, but I have not hesitated to criticize as well as commend.
Many mistakes have been made, but the work as a whole is good.
I owe much to the kindness of friends who have given me the
benefit of their criticisms and suggestions without assuming responsibility for my errors of fact or judgment. Former President William H. Taft; Doctor Victor G. Heiser, until recently
director of health; Frank L. Crone, for many years director
of education, and J. L. Manning, insular treasurer, have each
read parts of this volume in the proofs. General H. H. Bandholtz, until recently chief of the Philippine Constabulary; Doctor
W. W. Folwell, and Mr. H. S. Ross, my former private secretary, each read portions of the manuscript and gave me the benefit of intelligent and expert criticism and suggestion. I am under
great obligation to Brigadier-General Frank McIntyre, Colonel
C. C. Walcutt, Jr., and the other officials of the Bureau of Insular Affairs, for valuable statistical data and other information.
It is almost needless to say that no one other than the writer is
responsible for the opinions expressed with reference to the Philippine policy, the work of individuals, or the administration of
the government.                                C. B. E.
Minneapolis, May 1, 1917.




CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
PAGE
THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT.......                      1
Some Generalities-Transfer of the Executive Authority-The Inauguration of a Civil Governor-New Filipino Commissioners-The
Executive Departments-Departure of General MacArthur-Bureau
Organization-Education —tThe  Constabulary-Agriculture-Health
-Defective Powers of the Commission Government-Demand for
Congressional Legislation-Recommendations of the CommissionGovernor Taft's Visit to Washington-Pending Legislation-The
Senate Committee Investigation-Attitude of Parties-The Civil
Government Bills-The Assembly-Differing Views as to Its Value
-The New Philippine Legislature-The Election of Delegates-Political Parties-The Demand for Independence-Launching the Assembly-The Commission Government in Its Final Form.
CHAPTER II
THE AFTERMATH OF WAR.......                        21
The Proclamation of Peace-The Reconstruction Period-Conditions Unfavorable to  Order-Ladronism-Natural CalamitiesThreatened Famine-Death of the Carabao-Local DisturbancesPolitical or Criminal Motives-Premature Organization of Civil
Governments-Attitude of General MacArthur-General J. F. Bell
in Batangas-His Policy-Concentration Camps-Surrender of Malvar-Balangiga-The Pulijanes-The Presidential Election-Judge
Parker's Charges-Magtaon-The Pacification of Samar-Troubles
in Albay-Surrender of Ola-Cavite and Laguna-Suspension of
Writ of Habeas Corpus-Peace and Quiet-Conditions in the Moro
Country.
CHAPTER III
DISENTANGLING CHURCH AND STATE-THE FRIAR LANDS..             37
Church and State in Spanish Times-Misunderstanding of American
Policy-Archbishop Chapelle and General Otis-Administration of
Certain Trusts-The San Jose College Case-The Friar LandsTheir Extent and Value-Attitude of the Government-Purchase of
the Lands-Controversy over Sales-The Mindora Estate Congressional Investigation-The Result-Aglipay and the National Church
-Controversy over Church Property-Settled by the Courts.




CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
CHAPTER IV
CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION FOR THE PHILIPPINES                      61
Delay in Assuming Control-First Legislation Confirmatory OnlyThe Spooner Law-The Civil Government Law of July 1, 1902-Its
Nature-Bureau of Insular Affairs-Ratification of Acts of President and of the Commission-Location of Legislative Power-The
Judicial Organization-Jurisdiction of the Courts-Resident Commissioners-Citizenship-Bill of Rights-Trustee for Public Property-Power Granted to Provide for Needs of Commerce-Conservation of Lands and Mineral Rights-To Acquire Friar LandsCoinage-Bond Issues-Restrictions on Granting Franchises-Bonds
for Port Works, Roads, etc.-The Navigation Laws-The Chinese
Exclusion Law-The Immigration Laws-The Income Tax LawThe Tariff Acts-Acts of Congress Extended to Philippines-Entry
and Clearance of Vessels-Public Health and Quarantine, Extradition.
CHAPTER V, THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES.....75
Isolated Conditions-Local Self-government-Gradual Extension of
Native Control-Division of Country-The Provinces-Present Organization-The Provincial Officers-The Governor and His Duties
-The Secretary, Treasurer and Fiscal-The Provincial Board, Its
Duties and Powers-The Municipalities-Classification-The Municipal Officers and Their Powers-Powers of the Council and
Limitations Thereon-Municipal Revenues-Specially   Organized
Provinces-Local Governments for the Wild Tribes-The Moros- 
The Moro Province-Military Character of Its Government-Gradual Substitution of Civilian Officials-Creation of the Department of
Mindanao and Sulu-The Cities of Manila and Baguio-Local Governments Reasonably Successful.
CHAPTER VI
THE COMMISSION GOVERNMENT, AND ITS ADMINISTRATION..             96
Changing Character of Government-Self-government and Independence-The System of Commission Government-The Responsibility of the Commission-Represented American SovereigntyAmerican Majority in Commission-Its Duties-Organization of
Executive Departments-The Grouping of Bureaus-Rearrangement in 1907-Changes in Judicial System by Organic Law-Tenure
of Office of Justices-The Personnel of the Supreme Court-Juris



CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
diction-The Courts of First Instance-No Juries-Native Judges
-Reorganization Law of 1914-Injurious to Service-The Official
Language-Spanish Retained in Courts-Spanish Used in the Assembly-Probable Decline of English-Creation of Philippine Legislature in 1907-Two Distinct Legislative Bodies-Difficulties Resulting Therefrom-Unit Subjects of Legislation-Residuum of Legislative Power in Commission-Commission Reorganized by WilsonMajority of Members Filipinos-Loss of Prestige-Abolished in
1916-The Office of Governor-General-Sources of Authority-Specific Powers and Duties-Delegation of Legislative Power-Appropriations Subject to "Release" by Governor-General-Practise Condemned-Office Magnified by President Taft-Legislative Activities
of Governor-General-Log Rolling-Disrespect for Laws-Failure
to Pass Current Appropriation Bills-Automatic Renewal of Appropriations-Assumption of Power over Appropriations-The "Advices" to the Treasurer-Serious Effect of Misconstruction of the
Law-The Executive Secretary-The Insular Auditor-Independence Largely Imaginary-Resident Commissioners-Influence of the
Assembly-Methods of Legislation-Excessive Deference to Speaker
-Difficulties of Administration-Certain Tendencies.
CHAPTER VII
FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE...........    127
The General Financial Policy-Control by Local GovernmentTaxation Reasonable-Financial Embarrassment-Caused by Public
Improvements-Present Conditions-Bonded Indebtedness-Income
and Expenditure-The Currency and Coinage-The Gold Standard
-The Fund to Maintain Parity-Sources of Revenue-The Customs-Illustration of Duties-The Internal Revenue-Sources ofThe Cedula, Stamp and Privilege Taxes-Business and Occupation
Taxes-Specific Taxes-Revenues of Provinces and MunicipalitiesThe City of Manila-Gross Earnings and Franchise Taxes-Trade
Development.
CHAPTER VIII
DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY-THE ARMY AND NAVY... 162
Cooperation of Civil and Military Authorities-The Navy-Status
of Army-Gradual Reduction-Cost of Military EstablishmentDefense from External Enemies-Moral Effect of Army Presence
-Relation with Civil Government-Detailed Army Officers-Organization of Native Troops-The Scouts-The Constabulary-The
Municipal Police-Seditious Movements.




CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
CHAPTER IX
SANITATION AND HEALTH............ 184
Interest in Tropical Medicine-Sanitation in the East-Early Conditions in Philippines-Enormous Death Rate-Superstition and Fatalism-Spanish and Filipino Doctors-Clean-up by American Army
-New Health Regulations-First Board of Health-The Civil and
Military Hospitals-Functions of Health Officers-Causes of Communicable Diseases-Public Health Purchasable-Small Expenditure
in Philippines-Attitude of Natives-Education in Sanitation-Disposal of Garbage and Waste-The New      Sewer System-Public
Laundries-Cemeteries-The Modern Markets-The Drug and Food
Law-The Milk Supply-The Water Supply-Manila and Cebu
Water-Works-Artesian Wells-The Bubonic Plague-CholeraThe Smallpox —Results of Vaccination-Leprosy and Its Treatment-Beriberi —Infant Mortality-Tuberculosis-Malaria and Dysentery-Mosquitoes and Rats-An Unfinished Work-The Moro
Hospital Ship-Present Organization.
CHAPTER X
THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS....... 219
American Educational Theories-Belief in Education of MassesTraining a Governing Class Only-Spanish Theories-Filipino Social Organization-Education for the Select Few-The Attempt to
Establish Public Schools-Its Partial Success-Ecclesiastical Control-Introduction of Popular Government-Choice between EvilsEducational Work of the Army-The Commission Takes Charge
-Department of Public Instruction-The General Policy-Secularization of Schools-Religious Instruction-Adoption of the English
Language in the Schools-Its Justification-American TeachersTraining Native Teachers-Classification of Schools-Secondary
Schools in Provinces-Local Enthusiasm  for Education-Division
of School Funds-New Text-Books-Stress on Industrial Training
-Difficulties Encountered-Prejudice against Manual Labor-Results-Teaching Athletics-The Pensionados-Housing the Schools
-The Courses of Study-Special Insular Schools-The University
-Bureau Schools-The Cost of Education-Number of PupilsSchools for the Wild Men-Education of the Moros-Demand for
Compulsory Education-Dangers Ahead-Comparisons-Missionary
and Private Schools.
CHAPTER XI
THE LABOR PROBLEM.251
Climate and Labor-The Normal Labor Conditions-Customs of the


I




CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
Country-Problems Confronting the Americans-Exclusion of the
Chinese-Elect to Develop Filipino Labor-Encouraging ResultsMethods Used in Other Colonies-Penalties for Breach of Labor
Contracts-Advances Obtained with Fraudulent Intent-The Bureau
of Labor-Increase in Wages.
CHAPTER XII
THE POLICY OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT.... 268
A Land of "Projects"-Spanish Public Works-Backwardness of Industry and Agriculture-Misdirected Energies-Public Works and
Colonial Policy-Material Development and Educational WorkGovernor-General Wright's Announcement-Policy Inaugurated by
Governor-General Smith-Its Characteristics-"Hustling the East"
with Its Own Consent-Education of the People-Success of the
Policy.
CHAPTER XIII
TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION...... 279
Roads and Bridges
Primitive  Transportation  Methods-Road-Building  DifficultiesEarly Failures-No Provision for Maintenance-Bad LegislationForced Labor and Toll Roads-Failure of People to Adopt LawsThe Double Cedula Law of 1907-Inducements to Adopt Rules and
Regulations-Insular Appropriations-Conditions-The Road Committee-Classification of Roads-Apportionment of Insular Appropriations by Secretary of Commerce and Police-Encouragement of
Local Efforts-Construction of Permanent Bridges-Maintenance-The Caminero System-Pride in Good Roads-Road MaterialCost-Road Work in the Non-Christian Provinces-In the Moro
Province-Permanency-The Benguet Road-Early Mistakes-Difficulties of Construction-Policy of Government-Purpose of the
Road-Its Cost-Practical Abandonment-Its Justification.
CHAPTER XIV
TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION... 300
II
Railways-Automobile Lines
The Railway Policy-Commission Governed by Conditions, Not
Theories-The Cooper Law-Summary of Its Provisions-Manila
Railway Company, Limited, and Its Claims-New Concession to




CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
Manila Railroad Company-Terms of Original Concessionary Contract-Supplementary Concession of 1909-Guarantee of InterestDivision into Northern and Southern Lines-Concession to Visayan
Syndicate-Progress of Constructions-Government Loans to Manila Railroad Company-Proposed Purchase of the Manila Railroad
Company-Street Railways-Automobile Lines-The Benguet Road
Line.
CHAPTER XV
TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION...... 317
III
The Postal and Telegraph Service
Its Importance-Early  Methods-Gradual Expansion-An Independent Service-The Metric System-Money Orders-The ParcelPost-Attempts to Improve the Foreign Service-Acquisition of
Telegraph  Lines from   Army-Training   of Telegraphers-The
Cables-Wireless Stations Acquired-Plan for Joint Wireless Service-Franchise Granted the Marconi Company-Summary of Results.
CHAPTER XVI
TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION..... 326
IV
Water Transportation-Navigation
Importance of Water Transportation-The Coast Survey-Lights
and Lighthouses-The Weather Bureau-The Absence of Harbors
-Harbor Construction-Iloilo-Cebu-New Manila Harbor-Foreign Steamship Service-Effect of War and Congressional Legislation-Interisland Transportation-Old Spanish Methods-Necessity
for Government Ships-The New Bureau-The Coast Guard Steamers-Plan to Create New Merchant Marine-The Contract System
-Subsidies-The Results-The Bureau of Navigation and Its
Troubles-Abolished in 1914-The Cable Ship-River Improvements.
CHAPTER XVII
PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE....... 338
Basis of the Country's Wealth-Undeveloped State of Agriculture
-Inherent Difficulties-Early Work of Bureau of Agriculture —
Attempts to Introduce New Plants and Vegetables-Improving the
Domestic Animals-Horses and Cattle-Farm    Machinery-Animal
Diseases-Rinderpest and Surra-Policy of Isolation Adopted in




CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
1910-Its Results-Corn Culture-Native Fruits-Coffee, Tea and
Rubber-The Fiber Industry-Hemp, Method of Cultivation-Exports of-Government Grading-The Tobacco Industry-Its Revival-Exports-Sugar, Condition of the Industry-Table of Exports-Cocoanuts-Development of the Business-Table of Exports-Rice-Its Importance-Necessity for New Methods-Irrigation-Comparative Failure of the Work-The New Law of 1912 -Farmers' Credits-The Agricultural Bank-Summary of Results.
CHAPTER XVIII
POLICIES AND PERSONNEL....... 374
Attitude of the Public-Visiting Statesmen-Misinformation-Declared Republican Policy-Executive Statements-Approval Thereof
by Congress-The Most Difficult of All Possible Policies-Time
Necessary for Its Success-Failure to Control Local SituationChanging Officials-The American Employees-Filipinization of the
Service.
CHAPTER XIX
THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT AND THE REORGANIZED GOVERNMENT.. 404
Early Ideas of Independence-New      Conceptions-Attitude  of
American Government toward Independence-First Filipino Political Party-The Radicals and the New Men-Revival of SentimentNew Political Parties-Growth of Anti-American Sentiment-The
Assembly-Leadership of Osmefia and Quezon-The Propaganda in
the United States-Mr. Jones and His Bills-The Wilson Administration-Governor-General Harrison and His Policy-Defeat of
Clarke Amendment-Passage of Jones Bill-Provisions of the Law
-Organizing the New Government-The Future of the Independence Movement.
A LIST OF BOOKS AND ARTICLES ON THE PHILIPPINES, COLONIZATION AND
COLONIAL PROBLEMS....... 457
APPENDICES......... 477
Appendix A. Treaty of Peace between United States and Spain. 479
Appendix B. Instructions of the President to the Schurman Commission............... 484
Appendix O   Instructions of the President to the Taft Commission........ 485
Appendix D. Aguinaldo's Proclamation on His Arrival at Cavite 490
Appendix E. Aguinaldo's Proclamation of June 18, 1898, Establishing the Dictatorial Government...... 491




CONTENTS-Continued
PAGE
Appendix F. Aguinaldo's Proclamation of June 23, Establishing
the Revolutionary Government.....    493
Appendix G. The Constitution of the Philippine Republic... 498
Appendix H. List of Leading Officials of the Philippine Government 509
Appendix I. The Philippine Government Law of 1916.... 512
Appendix J. The Cost of the Army in the Philippines.... 523
INDEX.....................   529




THE PHILIPPINES




I I




THE PHILIPPINES
CHAPTER I
The New Civil Government
Some Generalities-Transfer of the Executive Authority-The Inauguration
of a Civil Governor-New Filipino Commissioners-The Executive Departments-Departure of General MacArthur-Bureau Organization-Education-The Constabulary-Agriculture-Health-Defective Powers of the
Commission Government-Demand for Congressional Legislation-Recommendations of the Commission-Governor Taft's Visit to Washington-Pending Legislation-The Senate Committee Investigation-Attitude of PartiesIThe Civil Government Bills-The Assembly-Differing Views as to Its
Value-The New Philippine Legislature-The Election of Delegates-Politiical Parties-The Demand for Independence-Launching the Assembly-The,Commission Government in Its Final Form.
The astrologers taught a mystic relation of numbers, days,
dates and events. Those learned in such lore claim that the Republic was born under a lucky star. While the American may
admit that the original association of the famous charter of our;liberties with the fourth of July was fortuitous, he is impressed
[by the fact that ever since that time spectacular events in American history have shown a disposition to happen on that anniversary day.
When the time came to establish a completely organized civil
government in the Philippines1 it was hoped, as said by President
Roosevelt, that the day dear to Americans might perhaps "be
associated in the minds of the Filipino people with good fortune."
The Anti-Imperialist propaganda in the United States had created an impression that in suppressing the Filipino revolt and
1 For the preceding years of American occupation, see the author's volume
entitled, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime (1917)..




2


THE PHILIPPINES


denying the country immediate independence America was in
some way violating the principles of the Declaration of Independence.2 According to the views of the Americans who were
working in the Philippines this was a complete misconception of
the meaning of the Declaration, and of the purposes of their government and people. From the day when civil government was
instituted until the present, the fourth of July has been celebrated
in Manila exactly as elsewhere in the United States.     On each
recurring anniversary the Declaration has been read by American
officials, civil and military, to Filipino audiences who were invited
to learn the lessons taught by Jefferson, Adams and Franklin.
Their resistance to Spanish oppression has been commended because it was justified by facts much more potent even than those
which induced the resistance of the American colonists to parliamentary oppression. America has wished the Filipinos to learn
the true lesson taught by that famous document-the lesson that
all men are entitled to certain inalienable rights, among which
are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Under American
sovereignty the Filipinos are equal before the law, secure in the
opportunity to develop their lives according to their capacities
and natural opportunities, and free from petty interference by
state or church. It was intended that they should enjoy liberty
as the word was understood by the men who wrote and adopted
the Declaration of Independence and as it has been construed
and applied in the United States.3 The right of revolution was
2 See "The Philippines and the Declaration of Independence," The Arena,
XXVII, p. 538; "The Declaration of Independence, an Analysis by Manuel L.
Quezon," in The Filipino People, January, 1913.
3 "Nothing can be more misleading than a principle misapplied. Countless
crimes have been committed by men quoting texts of scripture or maxims of
philosophy wrested from their true content and meaning. The doctrine that
government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed was
applicable to the conditions for which Jefferson wrote it and to the people to
whom he applied it. It is true wherever a people exists capable and willing
to maintain just government, and to make free, intelligent and efficacious
decisions as to who shall govern. But Jefferson did not apply it to Louisiana.
He wrote to Gallatin that the people of Louisiana were as incapable of selfgovernment as' children, and he governed them without their consent. Lincoln did not apply it to the South, and the great struggle of the Civil War




THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


3


hever denied, but it is a right which must be maintained by force
and justified by success. In that respect the rights of the Filibinos could be no greater than those of the citizens of South
larolina or Massachusetts. They asserted the right of revolution against their lawful political sovereign and failed.  Upon
aying down their arms and taking the oath of allegiance they
vere pardoned for all political offenses. There is not a sentence
in the Declaration of Independence which any informed American
ever hesitated to read to the Filipinos. That Declaration contains
a statement of the reasons which justified the American colonists
in throwing off their political allegiance to their sovereign.  It
recited a long list of outrages and oppressive acts in violation of
their rights and of certain principles deemed to be of universal
application. No intelligent American has ever denied or will
deny the moral right of the Filipinos to adopt a similar course
when they can truthfully allege such a list of grievances against
the American government. No one ever desired to deprive them
of the inalienable rights of men. Life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness were to be and have been secured to every law-abiding
Filipino and protected under a form of government adapted to
the local conditions and the stage of social and political development of the people.
The fourth of July was therefore the most appropriate of all
days on which to launch a civil government, complete in all its
parts, in the pacified provinces of the Philippines. Its inauguration was to mark the end of military rule. Since September 1,
1900, the legislative power had been vested in a civil body. Conditions now seemed to justify a further step in the progressive narrowing of military administration by the creation of the office
was a solemn assertion by the American people that there are other principles
of law and liberty which limit the application of the doctrine of consent."
Elihu Root, Military and Colonial Policy of the United States, p. 42.
"The words 'that all men are created equal,' have since been subtly falsified by adding the word 'free,' although no such expression is found in the
original document, and the teachings based on these altered words in the
American public schools of to-day would startle and amaze the men who
formulated the Declaration." Grant, The Passing of the Great Race, p. xvi.




4


THE PHILIPPINES


of civil governor, and the transfer to him of the executive authority.
An executive order was therefore issued by the president
directing that on and after the fourth day of July, 1901, until
otherwise directed, the executive authority in all civil affairs in
the government of the Philippines which had been exercised by
the military governor should be exercised by the president of the
Philippine Commission. Mr. Taft was named as the first civil
governor. The power to appoint all civil officers was transferred
from the Philippine Commission to the civil governor, with the
advice and consent of the commission. Although the military
governor was relieved of civil duties in the pacified territory, his
authority was continued in districts in which insurrection against
the authority of the United States existed and in which public
order was not sufficiently restored to enable provincial civil governments to be established."
The continuance of military government in certain provinces
was necessary for another year, but it was finally terminated by
the order of President Roosevelt, issued on July 4, 1902, which
recited that the insurrection was ended and that civil government
had been established throughout the entire Archipelago not inhabited by Moro tribes.5
General Arthur MacArthur, who had been military governor
since the departure of General Otis, was a distinguished soldier
with a brilliant record for achievement, but he lacked some of
the qualities necessary for a commander who was required to
divide his authority with civil officials. His subordination to
the civil power in the islands made him unhappy and, while he
obeyed the orders issued by the secretary of war, it was sometimes done in a very ungracious spirit.
He seems never to have really grasped the part which the commission was designed to play in the work of pacifying the country
and organizing a permanent government and the friction between
4 Order of Secretary Root, June 21, 1910. Report of Sec. War, 1901 (Five
Years of the War Dept.), p. 208.
5 Ibid., p. 257.




THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


5


him and its members proved in the end very disastrous for the
general.'
The new civil governor was inaugurated with simple but impressive ceremonies. Across the Plaza from the Ayuntamiento
was the great stone foundation of the unfinished governor's palace which was to have taken the place of the one which had been
destroyed by an earthquake. The funds for-the completion of
the structure were misappropriated and for years the foundation
had stood as a mute testimonial to Spanish dishonesty and incompetence. There was a certain appropriateness in the choice
of the platform from which to launch a new and better government.
The day was perfect, judged by the standard of the tropics,
and a picturesque crowd representing many races, colors and
creeds filled the Plaza and adjoining streets.7 There was a reasonable amount of well modulated enthusiasm as the procession
passed from the Ayuntamiento to the extemporized platform.
General MacArthur introduced his successor and Chief Justice
Arellano administered the oath of office. Governor Taft's address summarized what had been accomplished since the arrival
of the commission and briefly outlined the policy of the immediate future. Most interesting to the Filipinos was the announcement that the membership of the commission had been enlarged
and that the president had appointed Doctor T. H. Pardo de
Tavera, Sefior Don Benito Legarda and Sefior Don Jose Luzuriaga, all natives of the Philippines, to fill the new positions thus
created. Pardo de Tavera was a highly educated gentleman who
had been a leader of the conservative, educated, wealthy Filipinos and who early recognized the folly of the revolt and sought
to reconcile the people to American control. He was the presi6 General MacArthur, soon after his return to the United States, succeeded to the rank of lieutenant-general in the United States Army. By that
time Mr. Taft had become secretary of war. General MacArthur was directed to report at his home in Milwaukee and await orders, which never
came. He was never permitted to command the army and died before Mr.
Taft ceased to be president of the United States.
7 Mrs. Moses (Unofficial Letters of an Official's Wife, p. 157), the wife of
one of the commissioners, gives an interesting account of the ceremonies.




6


THE PHILIPPINES


dent of the new Federal party and had been of great assistance
to the commission in the work of organizing civil governments
in the provinces. Sefior Legarda was a wealthy native who,
like Sefior Tavera, had rendered important services to the American government. Seiior Luzuriago had been a member of the
independent government which was organized in the island of
Negros and had consistently advocated cooperation with the
Americans.
It was also announced that on the first of the following September the effectiveness of the insular government would be increased by the organization of four executive departments to be
known as the Departments of the Interior, Commerce and Police,
Finance and Justice, and Public Instruction, which would be under the control respectively of Commissioners Worcester,
Wright, Ide and Moses.
After the ceremonies were concluded General MacArthur
drove directly from the Plaza to the landing and went aboard the
transport which was to carry him to the United States and out of
Philippine history. He was succeeded in the military command
and as military governor of the unpacified provinces by General
Adna E. Chaffee, who continued to act until relieved as military
governor by the order issued one year later.
The work of systematizing and developing the subordinate
agencies of the central government proceeded as rapidly as conditions would permit. Numerous bureaus had been organized
during the military regime and with some changes and modifications they were retained and distributed among the departments.
The taking over of the executive authority necessitated many
changes in personnel and some in organization. The grants of
power in the Spooner Law had been so carefully hedged about
with limitations and restrictions as to render them of no practical
value to the government and it remained without authority to act
in some matters deemed by the commission of vital importance
for the progress of the country, and the granting of franchises,




THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


7


the survey and sale of the public lands, and the development of
the mining interests were obliged to await the further action of
Congress.
The matters over which the commission had unquestioned authority were handled with much energy. The educational work
was entered upon with what many believed to be excessive enthusiasm. A general school law was passed and about a thousand
American teachers were brought over from the United States and
distributed among the nine hundred towns of the islands. The
preservation of order was of course of the most vital importance.
The local municipal police were of little value in this work and it
was manifestly undesirable, unless absolutely necessary, to use
the army in aid of the civil work of the administration. Brigandage, which was an inheritance from Spanish times, had been
given a great impetus by the war and now existed in nearly all
the provinces. The local police were unable to suppress it, even
had they and the people of the municipalities really desired to do
so. The distinction between ladrones and patriots was still very
shadowy, and it was not always easy to distinguish between voluntary contributions to insurgent bands and involuntary payments for protection against ladrones. A semi-military police
resembling that of India and some other eastern countries was
necessary.
The Spaniards had maintained an organization known as the
guardia civil which seems to have done about as much damage
to the country as the ladrones.8 As a result such organizations
were unpopular in the country, but it was believed that a body of
Filipinos commanded by American officers and subject to strict
discipline would be able to maintain order and serve as peace officers under the direction of the civil officials. The history of the
Philippine Constabulary, which was organized in 1901, has justified the policy of the government.
It was understood from the first that the prosperity of the
Philippines depends upon the success of its agriculture. To the
8Another body called the Guardia de Honor was organized and used
against the insurgents in 1896.




8


THE PHILIPPINES


Americans who were not familiar with the tragic history of tropical agriculture it seemed a simple matter to obtain vast wealth
from the fertile soil. They knew nothing of that law of compensation by which nature with its storms, droughts and highly
specialized insect life, equalizes the great productive power of the
rich soil.
Immediate attention was given to the organization of a Bureau
of Agriculture and experts from the Agricultural Department at
Washington were brought to the islands in the naive confidence
and belief that the natives were as ready and anxious to change
the methods of centuries as the Americans were to render them
service.
Much attention was given to the organization of a Department
of Health and of bureaus charged with the work of providing
better means of communication and transportation. The importance of developing and conserving the forests which covered the
mountains was fully appreciated and the Bureau of Forestry was
made as efficient as available means would permit.
Under the Customs Administration Bill which had been passed
the previous year the American system of appraisement and collection had been adopted. In September, 1901, a new tariff law
was enacted by the commission which imposed an average ad
valorem duty of twenty-five or thirty per cent. on goods imported
into the islands. The notable feature of the system was the reversal of the Spanish method and the imposition of heavy taxes
on luxuries and almost nominal duties on foodstuffs and other
necessities of life.9
The government as thus organized was simple in form and
well adapted for its work. But it was regarded as a temporary
structure and the commission, embarrassed by the uncertainty as
to its powers, urged upon Congress the necessity for providing
something more permanent.'0
9 For the conditions prior to September, 1901, see Report of the Military
Governor on Civil Affairs (Rept. War Dept., 1900, I, p. 79, Appendix E. E.).
10 In its Report of October 1, 1901 (Report of the Civil Governor, 1900 -1903, p. 272) the commission urged that Congress take some action toward
providing a permanent civil government. It was recommended "That Con



THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


9


In fact, the government had ample power, had it been willing to
assume full responsibilty. The real difficulty was that it rested
on the war powers of the president, and war had ceased. The
duty of providing a government was imposed by the Constitution
upon Congress but it was not ready to act. The general Philippine policy had been thoroughly threshed out during the presidential election of 1900, and most of the members of Congress who
visited the islands in search of information had returned to their
duties primed with material to justify their previously formed
opinions.
In the winter of 1901, Governor Taft returned to the United
States in order to recuperate his health and advise with reference
to necessary legislation. When he arrived in Washington, Congress was considering bills for the modification of the tariff laws
and the creation of a congressional as distinguished from a military government for the Philippines. The whole question of
Philippine policy was thus brought before Congress and elabgress be requested to confirm the legislation of the commission already enacted, and vest by Congressional enactment in the civil governor and commission and their successors to be appointed by the President the authority
heretofore exercised by them under the instructions of the President, with
the limitations therein contained, until January 1, 1904; and that provision
be made in such legislation for a government to begin January 1, 1904, and
to be composed of a governor and the heads of four executive departments,
to be appointed by the President; of an Executive Council, to consist of the
governor and the four heads of departments, and four others to be appointed
by the President (the Executive Council to consist both of Americans and
Filipinos), and of a popular assembly of not exceeding thirty representatives,
to be elected from districts to be determined after a census of the Filipino
population in the islands; that in such government the members of the popular assembly shall serve for a term of two years, and the popular assembly
shall be limited to an annual session of three months, from the first of January to the first of April, except as this may be extended by call of the governor for a definite period in extra session; that the power of the popular
assembly shall be that of a coordinate branch of the legislature, except that
in the case of appropriation bills, if the popular assembly shall fail to vote the
appropriations required by law during its regular session of three months the
right to vote such necessary appropriations shall vest in the executive council;
that the governor shall have the power to veto the legislation of the two
chambers unless the same shall be again passed by a two-thirds vote of both
houses; that Congress shall have full power to abrogate all legislation, and
that by a joint vote of the popular assembly and the Executive Council two
delegates, who shall be residents of the islands, shall be elected to represent
the interests of these islands and the Filipino people before Congress and the
Executive at Washington, their expenses and salaries to be paid from the
insular treasury."




10


THE PHILIPPINES


orately considered in all its bearings, political, economic and
personal.
It was with the greatest difficulty that the passage of the revised tariff law was secured. The objections to the bill which
proposed to reduce the duties on articles coming into the United
States from the Philippines and thus give the Filipinos access to
the American market in exchange for the Spanish market from
which they were excluded, were far from creditable to the country, as they were based on the purely selfish considerations of
individuals who feared that their business interests would be
affected by competition with Philippine products.
Separate bills to establish a civil government, differing in some
material respects, were introduced in the Senate and the House
and debated throughout the winter and spring. While these bills
were pending the Senate Committee on the Philippines was conducting an elaborate investigation which threw much light upon
existing conditions and past events. Senator Hoar's request for
a special committee with power to examine and report on the conduct of the war in the Philippines, the administration of the government there, and the conditions and character of the inhabitants was not granted, but the Senate Standing Committee on the
Philippines was instructed to proceed with an investigation along
somewhat similar lines.
This committee, of which Senator Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts was chairman, examined Governor W. H. Taft, General E. S. Otis, General Arthur MacArthur, General R. P.
Hughes and others who were supposed to possess special knowledge of conditions and to be able to speak authoritatively with
reference to political and economic matters. The questions covered a wide range and showed a very general desire on the part
of the members of the committee to learn the actual conditions."
But the proceedings before the committees and debates in Congress simply accentuated the positions which had been taken by
the Republican and Democratic parties toward the Philippine
problem during the presidential campaign of 1900. The Republi1 Sen. Doc. 33I, 57th Cong., ist Sess., 3 vols. (1901-1902).




THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


11


cans, with a few notable exceptions, supported the administration
and consistently adhered to the policy of holding the islands until
such time as the Filipinos are prepared for self-government, conserving while developing the natural resources of the country,
and giving the people as their competency appears, a constantly
increasing share in the work of the government. Republican senators and representatives differed as to the details of the system
which should be adopted but with few exceptions they supported
the general policy of the party leaders.l2
The Democrats seemed to be convinced that the Republicans
were insincere in their expressed desire for the well-being of the
Filipinos and that the real object of the proposed civil government
law was to render it easier to rob the Filipinos by transferring the
natural wealth of the country to American trusts and adventurers. The leaders of the opposition pretended to believe that
every one connected with the Philippine government, from President Roosevelt, Secretary Root, Governor Taft and the commissioners, to the lowest civil service clerk, was consciously engaged
in a vast conspiracy to rob the Filipinos and loot the Archipelago.
It would have been wiser to continue for a few decades the
simple form of commission government which Secretary Root
had created. But both the Schurman and Taft Commissions had
recommended the creation of a bicameral legislature with an appointive upper house and a lower house composed entirely of
members elected by Filipino constituencies. This meant accentuating the political instead of the economic factors in the local
situation. The Filipinos were already represented in the commission, and thus in the legislature, by appointed native members
and the local governments were entirely in their hands. It would
seem that the place to test their capacity for self-government was
in the provinces and municipalities. The wisdom of a policy
under which the natives would be placed in absolute power in one
house of the legislature was seriously questioned by many sincere
friends of the Filipinos. Legislative bodies in which the natives
12 See statement of Mr. Gillett, of Massachusetts, Cong. Rec., XXXV,
Pt. 8, p. 7702.




12


THE PHILIPPINES


were represented by elected members had been tried under conditions not greatly dissimilar in some of the British colonies with
very unsatisfactory results and the judgment of disinterested
students of colonial government seemed to be adverse to that
form of government.'3
As Professor Reinsch says: "It is a difficult matter to adapt
representative institutions to colonies in which the white element
is small, or to which the mother country is not ready to grant
practical autonomy with what this implies." It was generally
conceded that the time to grant such autonomy had not arrived
and it was certain that the creation of a native legislative body
with real power over legislation would increase the difficulties
of government.
However, those who were assumed to be best informed as to
the local situation in the Philippines were of the opinion that
under the circumstances the probable advantages of a popular assembly would more than balance the conceded disadvantages. In
his testimony before the Senate Committee Governor Taft said:
"I think that a popular assembly is what the people desire, and
I think it is the best possible means of educating their educated
men in popular government. It will give them an opportunity to
meet, to express their views, to take part in legislation, to propose
and enact laws which they deem useful in the country; it will give
them a part in the government and will by practice teach them
what self-government is..         I am  sure that with that
(granted) the people will have confidence that our statement to
them, that we desire to educate them in self-government, and
give them a measure of self-government increasing it gradually
as they become more fitted for it, is true."
In reply to a question by Senator Beveridge, whether the experience in Hawaii suggested very brilliant prospects for a popular assembly in the Philippines, Governor Taft said: "If you
prevent the legislative assembly from choking the government,
13 See Annals Am. Acad. Pol. and Soc. Sci., 1899, Supp., p. 15 et seq.,
Reinsch, Colonial Government, Chap. XI; also article in The Forum, June
1902; Lewis, Government of Dependencies (Lucas' Ed.), p. 307.




THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


13


from stopping things (by refusing to vote supplies), I think this
will be a very useful body."
As to the time when the assembly should be established Governor Taft said: "I may be frank about it. There is a good deal
of fundamental legislation yet to be passed. Here are the criminal
code and an internal revenue law and a number of other things
that will require a good deal of study. We are charged with
founding a government as distinguished from        running it; we
thought if we fixed a time within which we might pass those
fundamental legislative provisions, that then it would be safe,
at the end of that time. But I am sure, though I have not consulted with my colleagues, that there would be no objection to
making it conditional upon the establishment of peace in the
islands. That might make a leverage for bringing peace."'1
Secretary Root and many of the leading supporters of the administration doubted the advisability of creating the Philippine
Assembly until the natives had shown more evidence of capacity
and a stronger disposition to accept American sovereignty. They
believed that the practical native control of the provincial and
municipal governments and large participation in the executive
work was sufficient for the time being. However, Secretary Root
yielded to the arguments of Mr. Taft and consented to the insertion in the law of the provision for the assembly. The Senate
struck it out of the bill which it passed, but in deference to the
demands of the House of Representatives the provision for a
bicameral legislature was finally adopted and the Filipinos given
equal power in the lawmaking body.15
'4 Sen. Doc. 33I, 57th Cong., Ist Sess., Pt. I, pp. 333-5. See the letter of
Mr. Taft to Mr. Cooper, Cong. Rec., June 25, 1902.
15 Act of Congress, July 1, 1902. In his address at the opening of the
Philippine Assembly, October 11, 1907 (Rept. Phil. Cor., 1907, Pt. I, p. 224),
Mr. Taft, then secretary of war, said:
"I can well remember when that section was drafted in the private office of
Mr. Root in his house in Washington. Only he and I were present. I urged
the wisdom of the concession, and he yielded to my arguments and the section as then drafted differed but little from the form it has to-day. It was
embodied in a bill presented to the House, and passed by the House, was
considered by the Senate, was stricken out by the Senate, and was only restored after a conference, the Senators in the conference consenting to its
insertion with great reluctance. I had urged its adoption upon both commit



14


THE PHILIPPINES


The Democratic members objected not to the policy of providing a native legislative assembly but to the conditions precedent to its being established. They wished it established at
once. To their suspicious minds it seemed that the calling of
the election would be indefinitely postponed. Senator Patterson,
for instance, was certain that the bill did not hold out the
shadow of a reasonable hope of any sort of a legislative body
even in the distant future. He had no expectation that there
would ever be a general peace in the islands and if such a desirable condition should occur he was sure that the designing people
in charge of the government would find an excuse for denying
it in order to prevent the assembly from being instituted. As
Senator Culbertson expressed it, they were opposed to the bill because it did not fix the political status of the Filipinos, and did not
state the ultimate purpose of the United States government with
reference to the islands, and also because under its other provisions all of the property of the people would be disposed of,
mortgaged or pledged, long before the Filipinos would have any
substantial share in the government.l6
Assuming that the assembly was to be created, the conditions
precedent to the calling of a general election were certainly reasonable and necessary precautionary measures. It was provided
that whenever the existing insurrection had ceased and a condition of general and complete peace had been established in the
islands and the fact certified to the president of the United States
by the Philippine Commission, the president upon being satisfied
thereof, should direct the commission to take a census which
should as far as practicable show the name, age, sex, race or
tribe of the inhabitants, whether native or foreign born, literate
in Spanish, native dialect or language, or in English, the school
attendance, ownership of homes, industrial and social statistics
and such other information as the president and the commission
might deem necessary.l7
tees, and as the then governor of the islands, had to assume a responsibility
as guarantor in respect to it which I have never sought to disavow."
16 Cong. Rec., XXXV, Pt. VIII, p. 7733.
17 Act of Congress, July 1, 1902, ~ 6. The various proclamations and docu



THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


15


After this census had been completed and the results published,
two years were to elapse in which to test the genuineness of the
peace. If the conditions which had been certified continued to
exist during the two years in the territory not inhabited by the
Moros or other non-Christian tribes, and that fact was certified
to the president by the commission, the president being satisfied
thereof, was required to direct the commission to call a general
election for the choice of delegates to a popular assembly of the
people. The conditions precedent were (1) a condition of general and complete peace established to the satisfaction of the
president by the certificate of the Philippine Commission, (2)
the taking and publication of a census and (3) the lapse of two
years thereafter during which the condition of general and complete peace with recognition of the authority of the United States
had continued. The facts had to be found by the commission and
the president; but the president was left free to act on his own
judgment, on the certificate and such other information as he
might obtain. It therefore rested with the president to determine
when the Philippine Legislature would be established and had he
and the commissioners been the designing conspirators against
Filipino liberty that certain congressmen imagined them to be,
the birthday of the Philippine Assembly might have been remote
indeed.
The assembly was to consist of not less than fifty nor more
than one hundred members to be apportioned by the commission
among the provinces as nearly as practical according to population. The qualifications of electors at such election were to be the
same as those which had already been provided by the law passed
by the commission for electors at municipal elections. Any
elector so qualified being twenty-five years of age, resident in
the district, and owing allegiance to the United States, was eligible to election as a member of the assembly. It was provided
that after the assembly convened and organized "all the legisments, and an account of the institution of the assembly as a chamber of the
Philippine Legislature are printed in the Report of the Executive Secretary,
Report Phil. Cor., 1907, Pt. I, pp. 202-228.




16


THE PHILIPPINES


lative power heretofore conferred on the Philippine Commission
in all that part of said islands not inhabited by Moros or other
non-Christian tribes, shall be vested in a legislature consisting
of two houses,-the Philippine Commission, and the Philippine
Assembly."
The commission thus remained the sole legislative body for
that part of the Archipelago which was not inhabited by Moros
and non-Christian tribes.
The usual powers of one branch of a legislative body were conferred upon the assembly. It was made the judge of the election
returns and of the qualifications of its members. It could choose
its speaker and other officers, but their salaries had to be fixed by
law; that is, by the action of both houses of the legislature. There
was no provision with reference to money bills originating in the
popular branch of the legislature and although the assembly at
one time claimed this right on general principles it was never
conceded by the upper house.
Congress did not close its eyes to the possibility that the assembly might prove troublesome and as there was no intention of giving it the power to force its will upon the upper house by refusing to make the appropriations necessary to keep the government
alive, provision was made in such an event for the automatic
renewal of former appropriations.18
The bill became a law on July 1, 1902,19 and five years thereafter the Philippine Legislature came into existence. On September 8, 1902, the commission certified to the president that the
insurrection, except in the Moro country, had ceased and that
"a condition of general and complete peace has been established."
Thereupon on September 25, President Roosevelt, "being satisfied of the facts therein stated," directed that the commission
should take the census in accordance with the provisions of the
Act of Congress. It required three years to take the census and
publish the results, the last volume being published on March 27,
18 See Chap. VI, pp. 116-120.
19 For its provisions, see Chap. IV, infra.




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THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


17


1905.20 On the following day Governor-General Wright2' issued
a proclamation calling attention to the fact and to the provisions
of the Act of Congress which required that the conditions of general and complete peace should continue for two years more before the election could be called.
Those two years were not in fact entirely peaceable, as certain
outlaws in Cavite and Batangas and pulijanes in the mountains
of Samar and Leyte were causing very serious disturbances. Had
the commission been actuated by the desire to postpone the creation of the assembly the certification of a condition of general and
complete peace might very well have been delayed. On the contrary the facts were strained a trifle in order to get the assembly
organized. It was undoubtedly true that the majority of the people of the provinces in which there were still disturbances had
taken no part therein and neither aided nor abetted the acts of the
bandits and outlaws.
Being satisfied that the great mass and body of the Filipino
people had during the period of two years continued to be lawabiding, peaceful and loyal to the United States and had continued to recognize the authority and sovereignty of the United
States, the commission certified that the conditions existed which
justified the calling of a general election for the choice of delegates to the assembly. On the same date the president issued an
executive order which after reciting the various resolutions and
certifications directed the Philippine Commission to call the election.
The Act of Congress provided that all who were then qualified
to vote at municipal elections under the law which had been
20 Census of the Philippines. Taken under the direction of the Philippine
government in the year 1903, Gen. J. P. Sanger, U. S. A., director. Four
volumes, Washington, 1905. These volumes are a mine of information about
the islands. Volume I, devoted to geography, history and populations, is particularly valuable. Act 2352, February 28, 1914, provides for the taking of a
second census, and presumably the work is progressing.
21 The title of the chief executive was changed from civil governor to
governor-general soon after Governor Taft resigned, to become secretary of
war. He was succeeded by Commissioner Wright, the vice-governor, who was
thus the first governor-general.




18


THE PHILIPPINES


passed by the commission might vote for delegates to the assembly. But before the general election for delegates was called the
commission had enacted a general election law which raised the
qualifications and increased the disqualifications of voters and
the result was that lower qualifications were required to vote for
a delegate to the assembly than to vote for an insignificant municipal office. Felons, victims of the opium habit and persons
convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude whose cases were
pending on appeal, were ineligible under the general law to election to a provincial or municipal office but fully qualified to vote
for or be elected as a delegate to the assembly.22
The election was called for July 30, 1907, and passed off without much excitement.23 One hundred and four thousand nine
hundred and sixty-six votes were cast. The creation of the assembly had given a tremendous impulse to the movement for independence. Numerous political parties were organized and factional feeling was strong. The people were taught to believe that
the assembly would be potent in the cause of independence and
the delegates were elected primarily upon that issue. The Federalist party which represented the wealthy and conservative
element and from which the government had expected so much
assistance, had been succeeded, or rather, absorbed, by the Progresista party, which hoped for independence at some time in
the future and in the meantime was satisfied with American sovereignty. A political party which conceded its present incompetence to run a government could hardly expect to win a popular
election. Its principal opponent, the Nacionalista party, adopted
no such modest position. Its members boldly asserted their abil22Rept. Phil. Corn., 1907, Pt. I, p. 49.
23The commission, under the spell of days, in its Report (1907, Pt. I,
p. 48), noted that "by a strange coincidence the day of the month fixed for
holding the election was the same as that on which the first legislative body
in America, the House of Burgesses, met in the year 1619." There were
some disturbances in Manila, which led to the amendment of the sedition
law and the forbidding of the display of the Katipunan flag and other insurrecto emblems. 
A bill to repeal these laws was the first introduced into the new Philippine
Legislature created under the Philippine Government Law of 1916.




THE NEW CIVIL GOVERNMENT


19


ity to govern the country now, and demanded immediate independence. On this issue they won control of the assembly. Of
the other factions the Immediatistas demanded independence at
once but the Urgentistas, under the stress of apparent necessity,
went them one better and demanded it quicker than immediately.
The result was that a small popular majority of those who exercised the franchise-voted for candidates who favored the immediate separation of the islands from the United States.24
The new Philippine Legislature, composed of two houses, met
for the first time on October 11, 1907. The secretary of war
journeyed again to the islands in order to be present at the opening session of the experimental assembly for which he had stood
sponsor. It was already certain that the assembly would be the
organ of the independence movement and that it would assume
to speak for all the people of the Philippines. The authority of
the commission was of course thereby greatly weakened. It was
inevitable that the Filipinos would soon come to regard the assembly as the champion and representative of their special interests as against the commission which they assumed would look
after the interests of the United States.
Secretary Taft still preserved his spirit of optimism.25 The
experiences of the five years which had passed since he had induced Congress to provide for the creation of the assembly which
gave the Filipinos an equal share, theoretically, in the legislative
power, had not shaken his faith in the wisdom of the policy.
Probably every other American in the Philippines at that time
felt that it was a mistake; that it was placing in the hands of the
political class of the country an instrument which would enable it
to cultivate a public sentiment in favor of independence which in
time would force the hand of the United States and overthrow
24In the first assembly there were thirty-two Nacionalistas, four Independistas, seven Immediatistas, ten Progresistas, twenty Independents and one
Centro Catolico. For accounts of the political parties, see W. H. Taft's
Political Parties in the Philippines, Annals Am. Academy of Pol. and Soc.
Sci., XX, Sept., 1902; Millard, America and the Eastern Question, Chaps.
XXX and XXXI, 1909.
25 Secretary Taft's speech, October 11, 1907 (Rept. Phil. Com., Pt. I, pp.
215-226).




20                THE PHILIPPINES
the policy which for its success required several generations of
American control.
With the institution of the Philippine Legislature in 1907, with
jurisdiction over the Christian provinces, the legislative power
over what remained of the Archipelago continuing in the commission, the government assumed the final form provided for by the
law of July 1, 1902, which it retained until October, 1916,
when a new legislature with two elective houses was instituted
with full legislative power, subject to the veto of the governorgeneral, vested in the elected representatives of the Filipinos.




CHAPTER II


The Aftermath of War
The Proclamation of Peace-The Reconstruction Period-Conditions Unfavorable to Order-Ladronism-Natural Calamities-Threatened FamineDeath of the Carabao-Local Disturbances-Political or Criminal MotivesPremature Organization of Civil Governments-Attitude of General MacArthur-General J. F. Bell in Batangas-His Policy-Concentration Camps
-Surrender of Malvar-Balangiga-The Pulijanes-The Presidential Election-Judge Parker's Charges-Magtaon-The Pacification of SamarTroubles in Albay-Surrender of Ola-Cavite and Laguna-Suspension of
Writ of Habeas Corpus-Peace and Quiet-Conditions in the Moro Country.
On July 4, 1902, one year after the inauguration of the insular
civil government, President Roosevelt issued a proclamation announcing that complete peace prevailed throughout the Archipelago and granting amnesty to all who had been engaged in
the insurrection. The statement of fact upon which the proclamation was based was strictly correct in the sense that war had
ceased, but the country was far from being in a condition of perfect order. Nearly half a decade was to pass before the last
dying embers of the insurrection were stamped out.
The physical nature of the Islands, the character of the inhabitants, and the abnormal social and political conditions made the
task of restoring order peculiarly difficult. The country had to
go through a period of reconstruction which presented problems
almost as difficult of solution as those which faced the American
people after the great Civil War.
The insurrection had brought new men to the surface, many of
them from obscurity and some from the ranks of the old bandits
and cattle thieves with which the country had always been cursed.
The remoteness and inaccessibility of the mountain regions, the
guerrilla character of the last years of the war, the ancient custom
of the disaffected and the criminal fleeing to the mountain fastnesses and gathering about them bands of ladrones, the popular21




22


THE PHILIPPINES


ity of these leaders with the common people, the attractions
of such a career for former insurgent leaders who were conscious
of guilt of acts of barbarism which made it unwise to trust their
persons to the care of the American officers, the lingering bitterness and antagonism of the sore and conquered people, their disposition to follow plausible self-appointed leaders, ignorance,
credulity and superstition which made them the easy dupes of political and religious fakirs and silly "papas" who sold charms
called "anting-antings," warranted to render the wearers invisible to the Americans and impenetrable by bullets, and the sincere
desire of the government to avoid as long as possible the resort to
harsh measures-all combined to render it inevitable that there
would be a period of unrest and many local outbreaks and disturbances.1
The social and political conditions were greatly aggravated by
a series of unusual natural calamities which befell the country in
the early years of the occupation. Cholera, famine, locusts, riceworms, rinderpest, surra, anthrax, floods, typhoons, droughts,
and almost every misfortune and pest known to the tropics descended upon the stricken war-torn land.
"Out of the clouds come torrents, from the earth,
Fire and quakings, from the shrieking air
Tempests that harry half the planet's girth,
Death's unseen seeds are scattered everywhere."
The Filipinos as a people are not much addicted to crimes of
violence, but under such conditions it is not surprising that during
1In its Report for 1903 the commission said:
"One of the great obstacles that this government has to contend with is
the presence in a large majority of the towns of the Archipelago of dissolute,
drunken and lawless Americans who are willing to associate with low Filipino women and to live upon the proceeds of their labor. They are truculent
and dishonest. They borrow, beg and steal from the natives. Their conduct
and mode of life are not calculated to impress the natives with the advantage of American civilization. When opportunity offers, however, they are
loudest in denunciation of the Filipinos as an inferior, lying race."
To get rid of this undesirable class the commission passed acts defining
vagrancy and providing a punishment therefor. The definition of what
constituted vagrancy was very broad and the islands were gradually relieved
of this undesirable class. Repts. of the Phil. Cor., 1900-1903, p. 495.




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


23


the years immediately following the war there were disturbances
and that the byways and remote regions witnessed many scenes
of violence and bloodshed. Famine and disease drove, or at least
encouraged, many to resort to evil ways. The organized bands
of ladrones usually made their headquarters in the mountains and
raided the lowlands, killing the people and carrying away their
property. Advantage was often taken of the disturbed conditions
to wreak private grudges2 and to take bloody vengeance for old
wrongs and real and fancied grievances originating during or before the war.
The situation called for active government assistance. Until
there was some relief from threatened famine it would be impossible to restore order. In 1903 Congress appropriated three
million dollars for the relief of distress in the Philippines and the
money was used to purchase food and work animals and for the
construction of roads and other public works on which the people
could be given work and thus earn wages.3
In 1902 a group of enterprising merchants attempted to corner
the short rice crop and the commission appropriated one million
dollars4 to be used to regulate prices and with it imported rice
from Saigon and Calcutta, which it sold to the people at a loss of
about one hundred thousand dollars. The presidentes of the municipalities were directed to call their people together and urge
them to plant quick-growing crops, such as corn and sweet potatoes, with seed furnished them at the expense of the provinces.5
But most of the crops which were planted with this seed withered
and died during the drought and what threatened to mature was
eaten by the locusts. Various measures were taken to destroy
2 It was for a murder committed during this period that the Filipino General Noriel was convicted and executed in 1915.
3 See Rept. Phil. Cor., 1904, Pt. I, Exhibit G, p. 719. This is the only direct
financial aid ever extended to the Filipinos by the Congress of the United
States. Mr. Freer (Philippine Experience of an American Teacher) tells
how fifty sacks of congressional relief fund rice aided in building a schoolhouse in the town of Bula. "By means of congressional relief fund rice
more than thirty schoolhouses were constructed in many different places in
Camarines, most of these being too poor to build unassisted."
4 Act No. 485. This operation was repeated in 1912 and 1915.
5 Act No. 517, Nov. 12, 1902. Some of the municipal councils proceeded to
make it a criminal offense not to accept this advice.




24


THE PHILIPPINES


the locusts, and with a portion of the congressional aid fund
carabaos were imported from China.6 The energetic measures
taken by the medical, health and sanitary authorities were effective and the dread diseases were brought under temporary control.
Second only in importance to existence itself, which was threatened by the cholera and famine, was the establishment of law and
order. Until that was done, everything else was illusory. The insurrection in the sense of a general uprising ceased before July,
1901, but internal disturbances seriously affecting public order
continued in various parts of the Archipelago until shortly before the general election for delegates to the assembly in 1907.7
The theory of the insular administration was that the real Filipino people were not involved in these uprisings; that they were
the work of outlaws and bandits who were influenced by the desire for excitement, plunder and revenge on their fellow countrymen who were friendly to the Americans. The military men
generally regarded the conditions as resulting from the premature transfer of control from the army to the civil government.
The irreconcilables among the natives and the opposition in the
United States claimed that it was a continuation of the struggle
of the Filipinos for independence.
Looking back over the records of those years with our present knowledge it seems that Governor Taft and the commission
underestimated the strength of the influences which were operating to induce the disturbances. It may be correct, technically, to
describe them as the work of bandits and outlaws, but the popular
sympathy for the outlaws, whatever its cause, was much more
general than they realized or were willing to admit. On the other
hand, it was not a general insurrectionary movement against the
Americans as contended by those who were seeking to discredit
6 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-3; Rept. Civil Governor, Dec. 23, 1903, p. 482;
Rept. Phil. Corn., 1904, Pt. I, p. 288.
7 This sudden cessation of bandit activities showed the control of the
political leader over the people for whose acts they refused to be held responsible.




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


25


the administration and make political capital out of the unsettled
condition of the country. Mistakes, indeed, and many of them,
were made, and in some instances it would have been wiser not to
have delayed so long to use the regular army to suppress the
outlaws.8 Nevertheless, the principle upon which the government
acted, namely, to rely upon the civil police, the constabulary and
the scouts, who were all natives, so long as there was any reasonable prospect of success, was a valid one.9 But it relied upon
them too long. The commission in its desire to avoid the use of
adequate force seems to have fallen just short of the policy of the
ruler of the Papal States who once made a formal treaty with
his brigands by which they were to give themselves up as prisoners for a year, after which they were to be pensioned.
Some of the provinces had been prematurely organized. As
we have seen, General MacArthur was not in entire sympathy
with the policy of the administration and after he had formally
acquiesced thereii a difference of opinion arose between him and
the commission as to who should say when a particular province
was ready to be organized.'0 He finally conceded that it should
be determined by the commission and thereafter seems in all instances to have concurred, at least officially, in the decision to organize particular provinces. There had been serious doubts by
all parties as to whether Batangas, Cebu and Bohol were ready
8 Regular troops were used to good advantage against the Moros and the
pulijanes in Leyte, but in Batangas and Cavite they accomplished little.
9 In his report to the commission, dated Nov. 15, 1903 (Repts. Phil.
Corn., 1900-1903, p. 491), Governor Taft said: "It is of the utmost political
importance that the regular soldiery, under a command more or less independent of the civil government, should not be called in to suppress disorders and to maintain the authority of the civil government until all the
forces of natives, whether Constabulary or Scouts, should be used for this
purpose. Nothing could be further from the truth, nothing could be more
unfounded or unfair, than the inference that the use of Scouts in association
with the constabulary for the suppression of disorder is a reflection upon the
military establishment or upon those who are in command thereof; but we
know in our own country how loth Governors of States are to call out
militia, and how loth the President is to summon the Regular Army in the
suppressions of domestic disorders. In this country it is politically most important that Filipinos should suppress Filipino disturbances and arrest Filipino outlaws."
10Sen. Doc. 33 I, I, pp. 85, 86. Statement of Governor Taft.




26


THE PHILIPPINES


for civil government, but General MacArthur and the commission
finally agreed that the experiment had better be tried."1 It proved
a failure and in July, 1901, these provinces were returned to the
care of the military governor.
The civil government had been severely criticized for its softhearted efforts to suppress the disturbers of the peace without
using the military forces. The army was now criticized for excessive severity. Neither General J. Franklin Bell in Batangas
nor General Jacob Smith in Samar made war with their gloves
on. It was recognized that the time for gentleness had passed.
The situation in Batangas was handled with great skill. While
the methods adopted by General Bell were undoubtedly severe,
they were strictly in conformity with the laws of war and were
necessary under the circumstances. When the results obtained
are compared with the actual loss of life it must be conceded that
General Bell's Batangas campaign was from every point of view
not only successful but merciful.
During the autumn of 1901 the insurgent General Malvar and
his adherents were very active in Batangas. The military authorities, unlike Governor Taft and the commissioners, believed that
practically all the natives of the province were in sympathy with
Malvar and that those who professed friendship for the Americans were secretly giving aid to the insurgents. General Bell
simplified matters by dividing the natives into two classes, friends
and enemies. According to his simple soldier philosophy there
11 H. C. Ide, North American Review, December, 1907.
General MacArthur assumed his share of responsibility for what was
done. In a letter February 13, 1901, he informed Governor Taft that the
commander of the Department of Southern Luzon reported but one province
as ready for civil government. "I added," he wrote, "the provinces of Laguna, Batangas and Cavite, believing that the institution of civil government
in all these provinces will be of assistance to the military authorities in the
work of pacification." Mr. Worcester (The Philippines, I, p. 340), who presumably speaks from personal knowledge, says that "Similarly, in establishing civil government in Cebu and Bohol, the Commission acted on the
specific recommendation of the military authorities, and rather against its
own judgment. There seemed to be no good reason for refusing to try civil
government, if the commanding general wanted it tried, and when it failed,
as it promptly did, in Cebu, Bohol and Batangas, these provinces were immediately returned to the full control of the military and left there until conditions became satisfactory."




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


27


were to be no neutrals. Everybody was to be made to "want
peace and want it badly." Those who were friends must come
out in the open. Thereafter, according to his statement issued on
December ninth, "The only acceptable and convincing evidence of
the real sentiments of either individuals or town councils should
be such acts publicly performed as must inevitably commit them
irrevocably to the side of Americans by arousing the animosity
of the insurgent element.... Those who publicly guide
our troops to the camps of the enemy, who publicly identify insurgents, who accompany troops in operations against the enemy,
who denounce and assist in arresting the secret enemies of the
government, who publicly obtain and bring reliable and valuable
information to commanding officers, those in fact who publicly
array themselves against the insurgents and for Americans,
should be trusted and given credit for loyalty, but no others."'2
But the distinguishing feature of General Bell's policy was the
creation of concentration camps into which all the people were
required to come or take the consequences and be without food
and protection. Of course, the real object of the concentration
policy was to make it impossible for the insurgents to obtain food
by levying contributions on people who desired to be peaceful.
The word reconcentration had acquired a sinister significance to
the people of the United States in connection with General Weyler's proceedings in Cuba. But such camps were strictly legal
under the laws of war.'3 They are, when properly conducted,
efficient and humane agencies in bringing such conditions as existed in Batangas to an end. But all depends on how they are
managed and how the people in the camps are cared for. In
this instance reconcentration was a humane policy. Although the
people suffered the loss of their crops and other property which
they had to leave behind, in the long run they were benefited.
Military commanders must often be cruel in order to be kind.
The mortality in the camps was low, the people were well fed,
furnished with proper medical attendance, and their sufferings
12 Circular Order, Dec. 9, 1901.
13 See Rebellion Records, Sec. 1, XXII, Pt. II, p. 473.




28


THE PHILIPPINES


were such only as were incidental to their forcible removal from
their homes.14
After the people had been gathered into the concentration
camps the plan was so to harry and harass those who were outside and keep them in such a state of anxiety and apprehension
that life would become so intolerable that they would earnestly
desire and become active for peace. Small detachments were to
search every ravine, valley and mountain peak for insurgents
and food. Everything found outside of the towns was to be destroyed and all able-bodied men killed or captured.15 All food
supplies which could not be transported were to be destroyed.
In order to make life less pleasant for those leading citizens who
were aiding the insurgents while professing loyalty to the Americans, subordinate commanders were authorized to put them to
work on the roads.'6 What the critics of the commission called
the era of coddling had come to an end in Batangas.
14 Testimoney of General Wagner, Sen. Doc. 331, Pt. III, p. 2873.
A great deal was made of these camps in the United States. On May 23,
1902, Senator Bacon read in the Senate a letter from an officer which referred to "a reconcentration pen with a dead line outside, beyond which
everything living is shot" and where "at nightfall clouds of vampire bats
softly swirl out on their orgys over the dead." The writer was evidently
trying to make the senatorial blood curdle. So difficult is it for one with the
literary touch to refrain from the picturesque at the expense of truth.
Even Mr. Blount (American Occupation of the Philippines, p. 393), who
is a savage critic of most things done in the Philippines, says: "There were
about 100,000 people, all told, gathered in the reconcentrado camps in Batangas under General Bell... There was no starvation in these camps.
All the reconcentrados had to do was not to cross the deadline of the reconcentration zone, and to draw their rations, which were provided as religiously
as any ordinary American, who is not a fiend and has plenty of rice on hand
for the purpose, will give to the hungry. The reconcentrado camps and the
people in them were daily looked after by medical officers of the American
army."
15 Circular Order No. I9, Dec. 25, 1901.
Circular Order No. 22, same date. Sen. Doc. 33r, p. 1623. "I expect,"
wrote General Bell, "to first clean out the wide Looboo Peninsula. I shall
then move command to the vicinity of Lake Taal, and sweep the country
westward to the ocean and south of Cavite, returning through Lipa. I shall
scour and clean up the Lipa Mountains. Swinging northward, the country... will be scoured... which will then be thoroughly searched
and devastated. Swinging back to the right, the same treatment will be
given all the country, etc."
16 "The most serious discomfort experienced by any one within the areas
was caused to the mestizo ruling group whose members bitterly resented the
blow to their prestige in being treated like every one else. They had been
accustomed to have others work for them and obey them blindly. To a man




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


29


The policy which had been outlined and followed by General
Bell was approved by General Wheaton and by General Chaffee,
the division commander. A campaign on these lines was commenced in January, 1902, and in April Malvar, with three thousand two hundred and thirty-six of his followers, surrendered.l7
Notwithstanding the severe methods adopted, the Filipino loss
was only one hundred and sixty-three killed and two hundred and
nine wounded. For the time Batangas was quiet.
The system of concentration camps which had been used in
Batangas was also applied in a much modified form in the province of Albay in 1903. A little later the commission passed a
law which authorized the bringing of the people from districts
where they were subject to the attacks of the outlaws into the
towns where they could be properly protected and cared for at
the government expense."8 Of course it was an arbitrary proceeding and of doubtful legality during peace. But in a locally
celebrated case which arose in 1905 the Supreme Court refused
to discharge one of the people who was held in a concentration
camp. The province had been declared in a state of war and
the writ of habeas corpus had been suspended by the governorgeneral. The finding of the Executive Department that a state
of rebellion and insurrection existed was held to be conclusive
upon the court.19
In September, 1901, a company of the Ninth U. S. Infantry
was attacked by outlaws under circumstances of peculiar treachery at a place called Balangiga in Samar and almost annihilated.
Only twenty-four out of sixty-six escaped after a desperate fight
with the bolo men.
who could speak Spanish, and who had always been the lord of his barrio,
the possibility of having to cultivate a field with his own hands was an unspeakable and scandalous thing. These men suffered and suffered acutely;
but it was not their bodies which suffered-it was their pride." Taylor,
Phil. Insurg. Recs.
17 From eight thousand to ten thousand persons actively engaged in the
insurrection were captured at various times and released upon taking the
oath of allegiance.
18 See Rept. Civil Governor, Nov. 15, 1902 (Repts. Phil. Corn., 1900-1903,
p. 492).
19 Barcelon v. Baker, 5 Phil. Repts. 89.




30


THE PHILIPPINES


The island of Samar was a place of evil reputation. The province had not been organized under the provincial government
law and the military authorities took prompt action to avenge
Balangiga. General Jacob Smith was sent there with orders to
put an end to the intolerable situation. General Smith, like General Bell, desired to create in the minds of the people "a burning
desire for the war to cease," but he lacked General Bell's faculty
for getting results while keeping within the military law. He
simply issued an order directing his troops to lay waste the country and kill "everything over ten years old." No one ever attempted to justify this order. The only question was whether the
primary responsibility for it rested upon General Smith or upon
the division commander.20
Samar was reduced to temporary subjection but several years
were to pass before it was finally pacified.
The ignorant mountain people of the island had always suffered at the hands of the more intelligent residents of the lowlands. Conditions in this respect seem to have been worse in
Samar than in any other place. They were dependent upon their
trade with the towns along the coasts and it was customary for
the municipal authorities who were frequently traders, to seize
those who came down with their products, throw them into jail
on fictitious charges and under various pretenses confiscate their
property.21
These people, who were known as pulijanes, were inherently
neither better nor worse than the average of the ignorant natives.
20General Smith was known as a humane and efficient officer. In some
way the story was started that he was known in the army as "hell-roaring
Jake." I am informed by a general officer who served for many years with
General Smith that the sobriquet was never heard until after the Samar
campaign. It did very much to create a prejudice against him in the public
mind which aided in forcing his retirement.
21 When in 1904 Governor-General Wright and Commissioners Luzuriago
and Forbes visited Samar they learned that most of the presidentes and councilors of the coast towns were agents for the hemp buyers and that they had
been taking advantage of the ignorant hill people. They had been "in the
habit of practically taking their hemp at a nominal valuation, or one much
below the market price, and turning it into the export houses at the market
price. In many cases it was fairly evident that when a producer protested




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


31


Their country was the home of escaped criminals and the natural
hiding-place and headquarters of the insurrecto leaders who had
turned outlaws. Being densely ignorant, they were susceptible
to the influence of political impostors and religious fakirs who
claimed to possess divine authority and supernatural powers.
Superstitious, wronged and outraged, they became the easy dupes
of designing leaders who themselves sought nothing but revenge
and plunder.
During 1903 and the spring of 1904 numerous raids were made
on the coast towns of Samar and as the peaceful people were unarmed it soon became a choice of joining the pulijanes or being
harried by them. There was no adequate police protection and
thousands joined the movement which soon reached serious proportions.
In July, 1904, the town of Taurian was raided and twenty-six
peaceful natives were killed. The following day at Cantaguio,
the pulijanes captured the chief of police, who had been appointed
by the American authorities, made him a turban out of an American flag, saturated it with kerosene and burned him as an example to his countrymen. -The burning of villages continued during the summer and by September it was estimated that fifty
thousand innocent people had been rendered homeless. Many of
the raiders were captured by the constabulary and turned over to
the courts for trial. The local officials urged the government to
call for the regular troops, but this they were loath to do for fear
it would be misunderstood and misrepresented by political enemies in the United States. A presidential election was soon to
take place and the Democratic candidate for president was ringing the changes on "towns in ruins and provinces in revolt." In
response to an inquiry from the secretary of war, GovernorGeneral Wright cabled that except in the one province of Samar
against this imposition he was arrested upon some trumped up charge and
thus both despoiled and punished. With the sense of injustice and wrong
rankling in the breasts of these ignorant people, it was an easy matter for
shrewd and unscrupulous leaders, some of whom had been outlaws from
Spanish times, to organize them into bands for purposes of reprisal and
revenge against their oppressors." Rept. Phil. Corn., 1905, Pt. I, p. 50.




32


THE PHILIPPINES


life and property in the Philippines was as safe as in the United
States.22
Undoubtedly the political conditions in the United States
caused the insular government to hesitate to call for the regular
troops. Assistant Attorney-General Harvey, who had been sent
to Samar to assist the local prosecutor, made a full report of conditions to Governor-General Wright. "While he did not say
much," wrote Mr. Harvey, "what he did say convinced me that
there would be something doing if it were not on the eve of election and in my opinion there will be things doing in Samar within
thirty days."23
This conjecture proved to be well founded. Immediately after
the election, Governor-General Wright and Commissioners Luzuriago and Forbes visited Samar and on their return sixteen hundred regulars and about the same number of native scouts and
constabulary were sent to the island.
It required almost two years for even this force to capture or
kill all the pulijanes and establish law and order in the island of
Samar. Captain George Curry, a volunteer officer, who was
appointed governor of the island, prosecuted the work of reorganizing the municipalities and opening the interior country
by establishing towns and stations with such vigor that on November fifth the commission, with renewed optimism reported
that "many of the pulijanes have voluntarily surrendered, bringing in their guns, and it now looks like the worst were over in
Samar."
The provisions of the Provincial Code, designed for the civilized Filipinos, were manifestly not suitable for these ignorant
people who needed a simple paternal government by which they
could be controlled and protected in person and property. The
Provincial Board of Samar therefore was authorized to apply
22 The New York Tribune, Oct. 25, 1904.
23 Mr. Harvey to Judge Blount, Oct. 15, 1904, Cong. Rec., Feb. 25, 1908.
The conditions in Samar before the arrival of the regulars were assumed to
be described by a young Englishman named Hyatt, in a lurid novel called
The Little Brown Brother. Hyatt pretended to have a grievance against
Commissioner Forbes, who was then secretary of commerce and police, and
attacked him very bitterly in the novel and in a book published some years




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


33


to these new towns the provision of the law relating to local governments among the non-Christian tribes.24
In the spring of 1906 Governor Curry arranged for the surrender of what remained of the outlaws. To the number of
about three hundred, under the notorious "Pope" Otoy, they
assembled at a place called Magtaon but, finding the constabulary
force of fifty men with their guns unloaded, they made a sudden attack and killed about one-half and wounded all the survivors, who, however, succeeded in beating them off. Soon thereafter the outlaws were all killed or captured and since that time
Samar has been quiet and peaceful.25
During the winter months of 1903-1904 the constabulary carried on an active campaign in Albay against one Simeon Ola and
a large body of ladrones. Ola finally surrendered to Colonel H.
H. Bandholtz, under circumstances which induced his friends in
the United States to claim that he had been offered immunity
from punishment. There never was a better illustration of the
habit of certain good people of springing to the defense of any
scoundrel upon whom the law has succeeded in getting its
clutches, particularly when by so doing they can strike at the reputation of some officer. Ola turned state's evidence and cheerfully aided in sending many of his associates to the scaffold but
never made any claim that he had been promised immunity.26
later, in New York, under the title of The Diary of a Soldier of Fortune.
In this book he foolishly charged Secretary Forbes with grafting and "using
his utmost endeavor to get us killed."
24 "It is not doubted that, with this kind of government, when schools and
churches are established among them and they are made to appreciate the
benefits and blessings of decent and orderly living, they will become lawabiding and prosperous." Rept. Phil. Cor., 1905, Pt. I, p. 52.
One finds it difficult to read this sort of optimistic matter, which is so
common in the early reports of the commission, without a feeling of irritation and wonder whether the writers really deceived themselves.
25 Otoy was killed by Lieutenant Pufio, a Filipino constabulary officer and
one of the survivors of the Magtaon fight. The constabulary at Magtaon was
under the command of Captain (now Colonel) R. W. Jones. The guns were
unloaded at the request of Governor Curry, who desired to show confidence
in the pulijanes.
26 See Rept. Phil. Cor., 1907, Pt. I, pp. 3642.
Judge Blount, before whom Ola was tried, says that neither he nor his
counsel ever suggested that he had been promised immunity or that any paper
such as is referred to in Willis' Our Philippine People, p. 140, existed. See
also Governor Taft's statement, Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-3, p. 489.




34


THE PHILIPPINES


As late as 1905 there were disturbances in Cavite and Laguna,
in the vicinity of Manila, which had more a political tinge.
Leaders such as Sakay, Felizardo, Montalon and others, were
ladrones but they had formerly been officers of the insurgent
army and had the sympathy of many of their old followers.
After even the guerrilla stage of the war was over these men
and others like them continued to assume "the convenient cloak
of patriotism and, under the titles of defenders of the country
and protectors of the people, proceeded to inaugurate a reign of
terror, devastation, and ruin." The disturbances became so
serious that it was found necessary to suspend the writ of habeas
corpus in Batangas and Cavite, but the situation was handled
without using the regular army.
Since 1906 a condition of absolute peace and order has existed
in all parts of the Archipelago other than the southern islands inhabited by the Moros.27    In 1907, as we have seen, the commission, by resorting to what was possibly a fiction, was able to make
27 The few ladrone leaders remaining were gradually brought in and sent
to prison or executed. One of them, named Salvador, was not captured until
1911, but, in the meantime, he had been quiet. After 1907 those who were
out were merely fugitives from justice and were kept busy dodging the constabulary and local police.
In addition to the military operations carried on against the ladrones the
commission passed a statute designed to make it possible to convict persons
charged with crimes of violence in the civil courts. It had been found practically impossible to find evidence to fix guilt upon particular persons. It was
easy to show that persons captured had been members of an armed band
running about the country, committing or attempting to commit robberies
and murder, but to prove that individuals were present at particular robberies
was impossible. The act known as the Bandolerismo Statute was passed,
which provided that whenever three or more persons conspiring together
should form a band of robbers for the purpose of stealing carabao or other
personal property by means of force and violence and should go out upon the
highway or roam through the country armed with deadly weapons for that
purpose, they should be deemed highway robbers or brigands, and that every
person engaged in the original formation of the band or joining it thereafter
should, upon conviction, be punished by death or imprisonment for not less
than twenty years. To prove the crime described in this statute it was not
necessary to adduce evidence that any member of the band had in fact committed robbery or theft-it was sufficient to justify conviction thereunder if
from the circumstances it could be inferred beyond a reasonable doubt that
the accused was a member of such an armed band as that described. This
act was very effective and for a time the courts were overwhelmed with
cases. Many were convicted and punished, but the majority were ultimately
pardoned. For this statute and the reasons for its enactment, see Rept. Phil.
Corn., Dec. 23, 1903 (Repts. Phil. Cor., 1900-1903, p. 492).




THE AFTERMATH OF WAR


35


the certificate that complete peace had existed during the preceding two years, in order to comply with the conditions precedent
to the establishment of the Philippine Assembly. The struggle
for order had, in fact, been long and serious. But too much importance should not be given to the disturbances which have been
described. While they were serious enough, they were not continuous and except in Batangas and possibly Cavite, they were not
of a political nature and were never voluntarily participated in by
more than a small minority of the people. They were the final
sputterings of the fire of insurrection which had swept over the
islands.
During this period the conditions in the country inhabited by
the Moros were bad,28 but as no question of local self-government
was involved the problem was comparatively simple. The Moro
was a soldier-a fighting man-and soldiers were left to govern
him. In 1903 the Moro country was organized as a special
province and a quasi civil government was instituted with General Leonard Wood, the commander of the Military Department
of Mindanao and Jolo, as governor. Important military operations had been carried on in the Lake Lanao and Cotabato regions and all organized armed resistance to the sovereignty of the
United States had ceased. But there were still many marauding
bands and the ambush and murder of American soldiers was frequent. The situation in Jolo was much more serious than elsewhere in the Sulu Archipelago. The authority which had been reserved to the sultan by the so-called Bates Treaty had been abused
or not exercised, with unfortunate results. The sultan had been
unwilling or at least unable to perform his part of the stipulations
and on the recommendation of General Wood and Governor Taft
the treaty was abrogated on March 21, 1904.29
The ineffectiveness of a conciliatory policy when dealing with
28 See generally, statement of Governor-General Wright (Rept. Phil.
Corn., 1904, Pt. I, pp. 5-14).
29 The sultan visited Manila and had a conference with Governor Taft,
who seems to have been satisfied that His Majesty was merely inefficient.
When the treaty was abrogated the sultan was allowed an income of six
thousand seven hundred and fifty dollars, gold, per year with which to mainsain his dignity, with the understanding that he should thereafter assist the




36                    THE PHILIPPINES
the Sulu Moros had been demonstrated and for several years
thereafter they were controlled by stern military power.30
government in every way possible. Rept. Phil. Cor., 1904, Pt. I, p. 13. For
the reports of General Wood and his subordinates, see Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903,
Pt. I, pp. 489-542.
In 1915 the Harrison administration negotiated a formal treaty with the
sultan, who therein relinquished his claim to sovereignty over the country.
(Report Phil. Cor., 1915, p. 297.) It ought to be added as a sort of epilogue
to George Ade's comic opera, The Sultan of Sulu.
30 General Wood's report as governor for 1904 contains a summary of the
events in the Moro country from the American occupation down to that
time. Rept. Phil. Corn., 1904, Pt. II, pp. 572-594, and app.
For the present form of government for the Moros, see infra, p. 94.




CHAPTER III


Disentangling Church and State-The Friar Lands
Church and State in Spanish Times-Misunderstanding of American Policy
-Archbishop Chapelle and General Otis-Administration of Certain TrustsThe San Jose College Case-The Friar Lands-Their Extent and ValueAttitude of the Government-Purchase of the Lands-Controversy over
Sales-The Mindora Estate Congressional Investigation-The Result-Aglipay and the National Church-Controversy over Church Property-Settled
by the Courts.
The close political and business relations which during the
Spanish regime existed between the civil and ecclesiastical authorities made it inevitable that the American government would
have to determine some very troublesome controversies with the
Roman Catholic Church. The bitter feeling against the friars,
the suspicious attitude of the Filipinos, and the extreme sensitiveness of the American people, Catholic and Protestant, when
the State is called on to deal with the Church, made it necessary
to act with great tact and judgment.      Questions which were
purely legal in their nature, under the circumstances were given
political significance by the public and every move of the authorities was watched with intense interest. The Filipinos and a
section of the American public demanded that the American government follow the example of the Malolos Congress and confiscate the property of the monastic orders in total disregard of
property rights which were protected not only by American statute law but expressly by the Treaty of Peace with Spain.'
The new papal delegate, Archbishop Chapelle, of New Or1Article VIII, Treaty of Paris. So distinguished a divine as Doctor
Leonard Woolsey Bacon urged the government to adopt a policy which
amounted to simple confiscation. See his article, entitled, "A Flaw in the
Title?" in The Outlook, LXIII, p. 689 (1899), and the adverse editorial comment thereon, p. 668. See also Lew Wallace, Jr., "Church Property and Our
Recent Acquisitions," The Outlook, LXIV, p. 402; James R. Rogers, "Religion
in the Philippines; A Missionary's Views," ibid.
37




38


THE PHILIPPINES


leans, did not make a very tactful entrance upon the scene. He
allied himself openly with the Spanish religious orders, thus at
once alienating native sentiment and creating disaffection among
those who assumed that as an American he must represent the
views of President McKinley and the insular government. Before leaving the United States Monseigneur Chapelle gave out
an interview in which he supported the friars, and upon arriving
at Manila he injudiciously expressed similar views without much
reserve. A Manila anti-friar paper, El Progresso, published an
alleged interview in which the delegate was made to say, among
other things, that "the four public lectures given by Father McKinnon caused President McKinley to realize the necessity for
the monastic orders remaining in the Philippines. I come to
Manila with ample authority for everything. The friars in the
Philipines have alarmed themselves without any reason. I know
their importance and am openly predisposed in their favor. If
the friars occupy the parishes they will be considered as elements
of order, and therefore as American agents."2
This interview was repudiated but nevertheless it seems to
have expressed the archbishop's sentiments as they are disclosed
in the correspondence between him and General Otis.3 It was, of
course, reasonable that the delegate should support the friars; no
one really expected him to take any other position, but the attempt to convey the impression to the Filipino public that he represented the views of President McKinley was another matter..
The courtesies, some of them possibly a trifle overdone, shown
the papal delegate and other ecclesiastical dignitaries by the
American officials were construed as manifestations of official
favor, and the fact that some of the friars who were being sent
2 Quoted in Robinson's The Philippines, etc., p. 332. In a letter from
Manila dated June 12, 1900, the Associated Press correspondent said: "Archbishop Chapelle... believes the policy of leniency is wasted upon
Asiatics who fail to comprehend the motives for it. Archbishop Chapelle
has taken no uncertain stand on the question of the friars which the Filipinos regarded as the keynote of all their troubles. The Archbishop ha!
expressed his opinion freely to many officers and civilians, although he de
dines to give any formal interviews for publication." Harper's Pictoria
History, p. 381; Le Roy, The Americans in the Philippines, II, p. 297, note
3 Gen. Otis' Report, 1900, p. 306.




CHURCH AND STATE


39


to the distant Batanes Islands, were assured of protection from
violence4 and that a Filipino priest named Adriano Garces, who
was known as an enemy of the friars, was imprisoned by the
military commander at Dagupan,5 were "generally regarded as
proving a community of ideas and interests between the Americans and the friars."
All their suspicions now seemed confirmed and the native
papers renewed the attacks on the friars and Americans with the
greatest violence. As one of the correspondents expressed it,
"they let themselves loose. That which had been whispered in
corners was shouted from the housetops."
The difficulties of the political situation were greatly increased
by this misunderstanding of the motives and intentions of the
government. It would all have been cleared up if the public
could have read the correspondence which was then being carried on between General Otis and Monseigneur Chapelle with
reference to the friar lands and the disposition of certain property over which the Church assumed to have legal control. General Otis made it very plain that instead of being under the
control of the friars he was a strong and consistent opponent of
the policy of permitting them to return to their parishes.6
The question whether the Church or the government had the
right to administer certain charitable and educational trusts was
raised almost immediately after the military occupation.7 Several
institutions were ultimately involved, but the College of San Jose
case attracted the most attention, as it was carried into the courts.
4Sen. Doc., 1900, 56th Cong., 2nd Sess., p. 219. The letter which Archbishop Chapelle sent with these friars to the commander of the American
troops at Aparri is printed in part in Le Roy, II, p. 301, note.
5 The secretary of war cabled for information as to the imprisonment of
Garces, and General MacArthur replied: "The native priest removed because
not loyal. Removal requested by majority of communicants of parish. Action necessary to preserve peace." Corr. Rel. War, p. 1238 et seq.
Le Roy (II, p. 303) suggests that it was unfortunate, in view of the situation, that Garces had a long record as an anti-friar as well as anti-American
agitator.
6 Otis' Report, 1900, p. 293 et seq.
7In 1898 Archbishop Nozaleda (Defensa Obligada, appendix) called the
attention of General Otis to certain obras pias, the funds'of which were being
used in the banking and loan business.




40


THE PHILIPPINES


General Otis, at the request of a local medical society, issued an
order forbidding the use of the property belonging to the College
of San Jose, which, in 1875, had been incorporated into the University of Santo Tomas school of medicine and pharmacy, on the
ground that it had, under the treaty with Spain, become the property of the United States and was held in trust for the benefit of
the Filipino people.8 The ultimate question in all the cases was
whether the Spanish government, in its admitted right to control
the property in question, had acted in its secular or civil capacity
or as a mere agent of the Catholic Church under a concordat between the Pope and the Spanish Crown. The Church claimed
that under the Spanish law, all charitable and religious foundations were presumptively pious works, obras pias, and under the
control of the Church. There were two kinds of obras pias, one
under the immediate control of the ordinary or the bishop of the
diocese, the other under the control of the king as the universal
patron of all religious trusts. It was claimed that the popes had
transferred most of their authority in the Philippines, and especially their authority as patrons of religious trusts, to the king of
Spain and that all the trusts which had originally a religious
foundation pertained to the Roman Catholic Church down to the
end of Spanish rule in the Philippines.
In July, 1900, the rector of the University of Santo Tomas
petitioned the military governor to vacate the order, which had
been made by General Otis, and permit the College of San Jose
to reopen its medical school. This was strenuously opposed by
certain leading people of Manila. General MacArthur referred
the matter to the commission which would soon have legislative
authority to deal with the question. A full hearing before the
commission9 resulted in the enactment of a law which made spe8 Otis' Report, 1900, pp. 296, 304. A Board of Medical Examiners was
created in order to enable the students of the suspended school to be admitted to practise. Gen. Orders, Mil. Gov. Phil., 1900, April 1, 1900.
9 The commission heard the elaborate arguments evidently on the theory
that it intended to decide the question involved. The leading counsel for the
government, that is for the Filipinos, was Felipe G. Calderon. The argument
for the Church, prepared by Archbishop Nozaleda, was read by a repre



CHURCH AND STATE


41


cial provision for the decision of the question by the Supreme
Court of the Philippines, with an appeal to the Supreme Court of
the United States, should Congress, on or before March 1, 1903,
prqvide for appeals to that court.l0 The action was duly brought,
argued and submitted, but before the decision was rendered the
entire controversy, which had come to involve other trusts, was
compromised by an agreement between Mr. Taft as secretary of
war and Archbishop Harty. Under this arrangement entered
into in 1907, the Church retained possession and control over the
Hospicio San Jose, the Hospital of San Juan de Dios, and certain
other small trusts, and the government obtained the valuable
San Lazaro estate with certain deductions therefrom."
sentative. It was regarded as something of an occasion, when a Filipino
lawyer could meet the churchman on equal terms. "Nozaleda took a position
quite openly depreciative of the Filipinos, and was evidently nettled that he
should be measuring swords with the young Filipino lawyer, Calderon, who
had been in the Malolos Congress, and having a sharp tongue and quite keen
wit was very ready to use his opportunity to express Filipino feeling toward
Spanish friars." Le Roy, II, p. 307. For the arguments, see the statement
by the Philippine Commission in referring the matter to the court, printed
in a pamphlet entitled, Negotiations for the Settlement of Title to Certain
Lands, etc., Manila, 1907. San Jose Case. Statement of His Excellency,
The Most Reverend P. L. Chapelle, Apostolic Delegate. Petition of Archbishop Harty to President Roosevelt, 1907. Sen. Doc. I90, 56th Cong., 2nd
Sess., pp. 26-46.
lOAct No. 69, Jan. 5, 1901. The commission in referring the case said:
"There has been much popular and political interest in the controversy in
which we have now stated our conclusions. The questions considered, however, have not any political color at all. They have been purely questions of
law and proper legal procedure, and so will they be in the court to which
they are now sent. The decision of the right to control San Jose College
can not legitimately be affected by the political feeling which one may have
for or against the friars."
11The San Lazaro estate was valued at about one million five hundred
thousand dollars, gold. The settlement was very favorable to the church
authorities. However, there was a serious doubt as to the legal merits of the
government's claim. The Supreme Court never rendered a decision, but the
probability is that the decision would have been against the government.
The commission in referring the case to the court expressed no opinion on
the merits. Governor Taft and Commissioner Wright had no confidence in
the position taken by the government and sustained by the attorney-general
of the islands. Commissioners Ide, Worcester and Moses believed that the
claim of the government could be sustained. However, neither Commissioner
Worcester nor Commissioner Moses were lawyers and as the questions involved were very technical, the weight of authority on the commission was
against the government's position. In a letter to President Roosevelt, July 2,
1907, Secretary Taft said: "The question is a most intricate and complicated
one, and one upon which, although I have given it some study, I am by no




42


THE PHILIPPINES


The disposition to be made of the friars and their landed estates presented much more difficult questions. The great majority
of the Filipinos were Catholics and the most of them were sincerely attached to that church. In 1898, according to the church
registers, there were over six million native communicants in
the islands, and the history of the next decade shows that the
feeling which existed against the friars did not extend to the
Catholic Church or to its regular priests. These friars, about
which the bitter controversy raged, were Spanish monks of the
Dominican, Augustinian, Recolletos (a branch of the Augustinian) and Franciscan orders. The Jesuits, Capuchins, Benedictines
and Paulist padres were teachers and missionaries and never having interfered with political matters, were not included in the
general native condemnation.
As we have seen, there had been a long controversy over the
right of the friars to act as parish priests,l2 but they had been
so successful in asserting their claims that in 1898 they were in
charge of all but one hundred and fifty of the seven hundred and
forty-six parishes. So great was their power in civil as well as
in ecclesiastical matters that the Spanish government in fact
rested  upon them.    As the Provincial of the Augustinians
said, the friars were "the pedestal and foundation of the sovereignty of Spain in the islands." This blending of ecclesiastical,
political and economic powers and functions in the parish priests
produced a composite which to the natives represented all that was
oppressive and objectionable in their lives. They were unable
to distinguish between religious and political functions when the
authority of the one was always invoked to sustain the other.
When the possessors of both became also oppressive landlords
the people rose in revolt and drove out the men who represented
the system. Before the arrival of the Americans, all but 472 of
means clear as to the result which would be reached at the end of a long litigation." The settlement included the dispute over the charter of the Spanish'
Filipino Bank, the majority of the stock of which was owned by the Church
or by the monastic orders. In Spanish times this bank had the exclusive
right to issue notes.
12 See C. H. Cunningham, "Origin of the Friar Land Question," Am. P~o
Sci. Rev., X, p. 465.




CHURCH AND STATE


43


the 1,124 friars who were in the country in 1896 had been killed
or expelled from the country.
The personal and political feeling against the friars was greatly
aggravated by the fact that the orders had become great land
owners. The Franciscans were not permitted by their rules to
own land, but the Dominicans and Augustinians and Recolletos,
who were not subject to such restrictions, had acquired valuable
business property in Manila and landed estates in nearly all the
northern and central provinces. They were also extensively engaged in banking and general business. The Dominicans held
161,953 acres; the Augustinians, 151,742 acres, and the Recolletos 93,035 acres, in all, 406,730 acres. By provinces their lands
were distributed as follows: in Cavite, 121,747 acres; La Laguna, 62,172 acres; Manila, 53,162 acres; Bulacan, 39,441 acres;
Morong, 4,940 acres; Bataan, 1,000 acres; Cagayan, 49,400
acres; Cebu Island, 16,413 acres; and Mindora Island, 58,455
acres.13
In the older provinces large amounts of money had been spent
by the orders on irrigation and other improvements and the
haciendas were very valuable. These estates were divided into
small holdings and leased to tenants for three-year terms, but it
had been customary to renew the leases so that land had remained in the same families for generations and the tenants came
to believe that they had vested rights therein. Most of the estates
had been held by the orders for more than a generation, the most
valuable for from one to two centuries. The lands in Cagayan
and Mindora were undeveloped and had been granted by the
Spanish government within recent years in the hope and expectation that they would be brought under cultivation. There
was much said about the inability of the monastic orders to show
titles to their lands and investigation by the Spanish government a century and more earlier had cast doubt on their moral
rights, but the Spanish government had long acquiesced in their
13 Surveys made after the sale to the government reduced the acreage
Slightly. See Rept. on Friar Land Surveys, July 27, 1904. Rept. Phil. Corn.,
1904, Pt. I, Exhibit H, p. 747.




44


THE PHILIPPINES


claims, and the investigations made by counsel for the government at the time of the transfers, disclosed that they had legal
title to substantially all the lands which they claimed.14
The annual income from the agricultural lands held by the
orders averaged about four hundred and fifty thousand dollars,
Mexican, of which the Dominicans received almost one-half.
During the war and insurrection the orders made no attempt
to collect the rents. The Malolos government promptly enacted a law confiscating all Of the Triar lands on general principles but it did not live long enoulgh to make the law effective.
Its action showed conclusively, howevier what the friars had to
expect from a Filipino government. Upon the establishment of
the American government the friars expected, or at least hoped,
to return to their parishes and the enjoyment of the property,
and the actions of Monseigneur Chapelle suggests that there was
some justification for their confidence.
14 Secretary Root informed the House Committee that there was some
question as to the validity of their title. Governor Taft said that the friar
titles were good in law and protected by the Treaty of Paris. Cong. Rec.,
XXXV, Pt. 8, p. 7446 (1902). Of course the treaty protected titles, not every
claim of title.
For the opinions of counsel on the title of each separate estate, see
Rept. Phil. Corn., 1904, Pt. I, Exhibit I, pp. 753-816. For the investigations
of the title of the friar lands by the Spanish government during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, see T. H. Pardo de Tavera, The Philippine
Census, I, p. 340; Concepcion, Historia General de Philipinas, VIII, p. 192;
Montero y Vidal, Historia General de Filipinas, I, p. 385; and C. H. Cunningham's "Origin of the Friar Land Question in the Philippines" in The
American Political Science Review, X, pp. 465-480. Mr. Cunningham says:
"The government was forced to modify its attitude because of the fear that
the friars would cease their missionary and parochial labors. The government,
it may be said, failed in its efforts to maintain as a principle the right to inspect periodically the land titles of the friars, though it successfully upheld
the right to correct such abuses as were called to its attention through legal
means. The orders were compelled to accede to the right of the civil government to intervene for the protection of the natives' lands in the latter case,
and the jurisdiction of the juez subdelegado and of the audiencia was admitted on several occasions. The friars were unable to plead ecclesiastical
immunity when brought before the civil tribunals to answer charges of
fraud or unjust deprivations. The right of the religious orders to the occupancy of their lands seems clearly established. The various conflicts between
them and the civil government served to strengthen their claims, and they
were finally confirmed in the right to hold their estates without molestation
as long as they did not abuse the privileges which were conferred upon them.
They were not even called upon to prove their titles after 1739 except when it
was in their interests to do so." See supra, p. 47, n. 17.




CHURCH AND       STATE                45
The work of investigating the friar land question was commenced immediately after the commission arrived in the Philippines. Mr. Taft, who was an experienced lawyer, devoted a
great deal of his personal attention to it. But it was not a matter which could be disposed of on purely legal grounds. The
friars had practically no friends among the native people and interested parties, in order to create disaffection, were active in
circulating the story that the friars were to return and the old
conditions be restored with the approval and support of the
Americans. Few Filipinos were sufficiently educated to grasp
the American idea of the separation of Church and State. To the
native mind the return of the friars would have been conclusive
evidence that the government was in sympathy with them and
all their works. As the commission reported, it would have had
"the same effect on them that the return of General Weyler under an American commission as Governor of Cuba would have
had on the people of that island." Mr. Taft and his associates
fully appreciated the fact that the Catholic Church had done
much toward civilizing the country and that it must continue to
be a factor in its future. Nor were they inclined to charge all
the offenses of the monastic orders to the Church. It was not
necessary to determine the merits of the long-standing controversy between the Filipinos and the friars. The disposition of
the lands was, in fact, more a question of policy than of law or
business. The new government was just entering upon the task
of pacifying the country and leading the people along new and
untried paths, and it was important and proper that the great
power and influence of the Church should be on the side of advancing civilization.
The friars as individuals could not legally be expelled from
or prevented from returning to the country. If they returned
they would be entitled to the protection of the law. It was urged
that their influence would be thrown in favor of the government, to which they would look for protection against the disaffected people. But it would have been a purely interested support of a government which had overthrown their former power




48


THE PHILIPPINES


Governor Taft and Cardinal Rampolla a demand was now made
upon Monseigneur Guidi for a statement of the exact interest retained by the religious orders in the lands under consideration.
No formal reply was made to this request, but Governor Taft was
notified informally that they had so disposed of their interest
that it was impossible to state what, if any, remained.18
It at once became evident that the interested parties had very
different ideas as to the money value of the lands. A Filipino
surveyor, who had been employed by the commission, placed the
value at $6,043,000 gold. The agents of the various holding
companies claimed that the lands were worth something more
than $13,000,000 gold. An offer of $6,043,219.07 gold, the
amount of the valuation taking into consideration certain fluctuations in the value of silver, was refused, but Monseigneur
Guidi informed Governor Taft that he thought an offer of
$10,500,000 would be accepted. Later the agents of the English
Company intimated that $8,500,000 would be accepted. The
government then raised its original offer by $1,500,000. There
was considerable delay while the various owners were trying to
agree upon how the money should be divided. Finally, after
certain small tracts which were of no particular value for agricultural purposes had been deducted, the purchase was effected
for the sum of $7,239,000 gold.
It is very probable that this was more than the lands were
worth at that time, and there was much criticism of the government. But the transaction was never regarded as a purely business one. As Governor Taft said at the time, the insular govtestified: "The real reason why we conveyed our property to another party
was to have nothing further to do with the administration of these agricultural lands, and to remove that complaint which was made against us, that
the friars owned all the lands, and were making all the money." It was admitted that they held stock in the corporation to which the lands were transferred. Sen. Doc. 190, pp. 54, 61. Cong. Rec., XXXV, Pt. 8, p. 7435 (1902).
The church lands had been alienated temporarily in 1834 and 1846, at the
time of a quarrel between the Pope and the Spanish government. In 1851
the Spanish government guaranteed the titles of all church property. In
1890 the ecclesiastical corporations were authorized to dispose of their possessions in accord with the canon law and the laws of the Indias.
18 Report of Governor Taft to Philippine Commission, Nov. 15, 1903. See
letter of Governor Taft to Monseigneur Guidi, July 5, 1903.




CHURCH AND STATE


49


ernment had "not entered upon the purchase of these lands
with a view to a profitable investment but it is knowingly paying
a considerable sum of money merely for the purpose of ridding
the administration of the government in the islands of an issue
dangerous to the peace and prosperity of the people."
As a part of the settlement it was understood that a portion
of the purchase-price received by the Church should be expended
for the benefit of the Church in the Philippines and that the Spanish friars would soon be withdrawn from the islands. It is to
be regretted that the implied obligation to use the fund for the
upbuilding of the Philippine church has not been recognized. The
friars were gradually withdrawn but many returned and were
absorbed and lost in a community that had become interested in
other matters.
The settlement of the friar lands question was one of the
last acts of Governor Taft's administration. Governor-General
Wright, in his inaugural address, February 1, 1904, said that "in
making this settlement, the government has been just, not to say
liberal, to the religious orders, and at the same time will confer a
substantial benefit upon the occupants of the land. It is believed
that the spirit which dictated this transaction will be fully appreciated by those affected."
By this transaction the government acquired title to 386,120
acres of agricultural land19 which was divided into twenty-three
disconnected tracts or estates, much of which had never been
brought under cultivation.
An old and bitter controversy was thus ended. It was a wise
and statesmanlike transaction, probably the most effective and
important act of Governor Taft's administration. With settled
conditions the lands increased in value and it soon became evident that with careful management the government would in
time be reimbursed from the land sales. Reasonable progress
has been made in the disposition of the lands. The sales prices
are determined by the original cost, which is increased each
19 These figures are substantially correct.




50


THE PHILIPPINES


year by the addition of the pro rata share of accumulated interest and the expense of administration. The occupied lands,
all of which have been sold, were rapidly disposed of under
leases and contracts, which gave the purchaser twenty years
within which to pay the purchase-price.  Thereafter, as the
public lands could be acquired much cheaper, the sales were
of course slower. On August 29, 1911, the secretary of the
interior reported that 202,167Y2 acres had been sold under
contracts, and 10,182'2 acres leased on three-year terms.
The total value of the land then sold and leased was $7,220,398.45Y2. The contract income from sales and leases amounted
to $553,522.23. On account of the unsatisfactory agricultural
conditions many of the purchasers of these lands have fallen in
arrears in their payments and many suits have had to be brought
to collect the large amounts due. In 1911 there remained unsold,
unleased and unoccupied, 173,772 2 acres valued at $3,225,613.71. To January 1, 1916, 246,722 acres had been sold, and
the total receipts from sales amounted to $1,898,906.37. The
sinking fund for the retirement of the bond then contained
$290,105.37.
Under the authority of the Act of Congress the Philippine
Commission enacted a law20 "providing for the administration and temporary leasing and selling of certain haciendas and
parcels of land commonly known as friar lands, for the purchase
of which the government of the Philippine Islands has recently
contracted." It was assumed that the friar lands were not "public lands" in the sense in which these words are used in the Public Lands Act, and that they could not be acquired or leased under
the provisions of that act. However, the provision of the Public
Lands Act with reference to the number of acres which could be
purchased by an individual or corporation, was adopted.
These lands had been originally selected by the friars as separate estates which were to be developed as large haciendas.
The Act of Congress providing for the disposition of the public
20 Act No. 1120, April 26, 1904.




CHURCH AND STATE


51


lands proceeded on the theory that they should be held by the
government in trust for the people of the Philippines and disposed
of in such manner as to create a body of small landholders who
would be free from the exactions of landlords and free from the
oppressive features which had marked the old system of large
estates with numerous dependent tenants. Experience has demonstrated that the American homestead idea can not be suddenly
transported and established among a people who have little desire
for economic independence at the price of personal isolation.
The Filipinos were a gregarious people, accustomed to live in
villages, and could not at once be induced to change their habits,
even by the gift of free land. Hence there was no rush for public lands and the sales were slow. The law, by limiting the
amount which a person or corporation could acquire, effectually
prevented speculators from securing large tracts of land; but it
also prevented those who in good faith wished to develop the
sugar and tobacco industries from acquiring the amount of
land absolutely necessary in order to make the business profitable.
The result has been to discourage capital from entering the
country.
Theoretically the policy is correct, but the fear of exploitation
is largely illusory and is entertained by few intelligent Americans
who are familiar with actual conditions in the country. It would
have been much better had Congress left the matter in the hands
of the commission which was familiar with local conditions.
However, the disposition of the public lands was a matter which
could wait. They were not a burden of expense upon the government. The friar lands, which had been purchased with borrowed money which had to be repaid, presented a very different
question. Unless these lands were promptly sold the annual interest and charge and ultimately the principal of the bonds would
have to be paid out of the proceeds of general taxation, thus imposing a very heavy burden upon the people who received no
direct benefits therefrom.  The annual interest charge alone
amounted to more than three hundred thousand dollars gold, and




52


THE PHILIPPINES


under the method adopted for selling the lands in small tracts upon
long payments the administration was necessarily expensive. It
was soon found that the estates upon which there were no tenants
could not within any reasonable time be sold in small tracts, but
there was reason to believe that sales could be made of large
tracts to people who were able to develop them and thus bring
much needed capital into the country and furnish employment for
native workmen. The land act was therefore amended by removing the restriction upon the amount of land which could be sold
to an individual.21
When the opportunity arose to sell the large Mindora tract to
certain Americans who contemplated developing it into a sugar
estate with modern equipment the insular officials congratulated
themselves on the advent of good fortune. There were no
tenants on the estate, not an acre of the land had ever been cultivated or occupied, and its location was such that generations
might pass before it could be sold in small tracts. Apparently
the question of the right of the government to sell the land in large
tracts was raised as a precautionary measure by the prospective
investors. The Philippine government had proceeded on the
theory that the restrictions on the sale of public lands did not
apply to the friar lands and had passed the statute which removed
the restrictions imposed by the original land act.
It did not seem that there could be any serious doubt about
their legal right to do so. When the Act of July 1, 1902, was
under consideration in Congress the democratic members had
objected to the provision in the bill on the ground that it would
permit exactly what the Philippine government now proposed
to do.
The section of the act relating to the public or "crown lands"
which had been acquired under the Treaty with Spain, which
provided that the public lands should not be sold in greater
quantities than forty acres to an individual and two thousand five
hundred acres to a corporation, had already been adopted in the
21 Act No. 1847, June 3, 1908.




CIJRCH     AND   STATE                  53
committee. Thereafter provision was made for acquiring the
friar lands and it was proposed:
"That all lands acquired under authority of Section 15 of this
act shall constitute a part and portion of the public property of
the government of the Philippine Islands and may be held,
granted, sold and conveyed by the government of such islands
on such terms and conditions as it may prescribe; Provided:
That actual settlers and occupants at the time said lands are
acquired by the government shall have the preference over all
others to purchase or otherwise acquire their holdings within
such reasonable time as may be determined by such government."
No material change was made in this provision and as enacted
it became Section 65 of the Act of July 1, 1902.
Mr. Jones, of Virginia, who subsequently, as chairman of the
Committee on Insular Affairs, became prominent in connection
with legislation for the Philippines, under the impression evidently that all the lands were occupied, moved to amend this
language by inserting a provision that the friar lands
"shall only be granted, sold and conveyed to actual settlers and
occupants at the time said lands are acquired by the government,
not exceeding forty hectares22 to any one person, and on such
terms and conditions as it may prescribe."
Had this amendment been adopted the vacant lands could not
have been sold at all. "Now this section as it stands," said Mr.
Jones,23 "will enable corporations, the organization of which is
provided for in this bill, to acquire these friar lands,"
Mr. Cochran, of Missouri, wanted the maximum fixed at sixty
hectares. It is evident that both gentlemen understood that
the bill made a distinction between the public lands and the public property of which the friar lands were to constitute a part.
Mr. Goldfogle, of New York, objected to the section as it
stood24 because
"it does not provide in what quantities of land the disposition
shall be made. It gives general and unlimited power to sell the
22 A hectare is two and one-half acres.
23 Cong. Rec., June 26, 1902, XXXV, Pt. VIII, p. 7443.
24 Ibid., p. 7447.




54


THE PHILIPPINES


land on any terms and conditions that may be prescribed by the
government of the Philippines.... It is within the power of
the government of the Philippines to put up the property either
at public or private sale in such large tracts as to make it impossible for actual settlers and the poor inhabitants of the islands
to compete for the lands with the wealthy speculators."
Mr. Lacy,25 of Iowa, said:
"As to the public lands there is a provision further on in the
bill limiting homesteads to sixteen hectares, or about forty acres,
the idea being that in that tropical climate with that rich soil,
most of the land requiring irrigation, a forty-acre homestead is
ample, but when the problem of handling the four hundred
thousand acres of the friar lands arose this bill, I think, has
dealt wisely with the question by leaving the whole matter of the
purchase on the one hand and the disposition on the other with
the Philippine Government.... The question is whether we
shall give the local government the power of disposition of the
lands. First, they are authorized to buy and then to sell, and
the purpose of sale is to get money to pay the bonds.... The
best plan is to leave such matters with the local government."
Referring to Section 15, Mr. Cooper said:
"Now this is a provision to dispose of the public lands generally distinct from the friar lands."
In defending the provision which left the manner of disposing of the friar lands to the Philippine government, Mr.
Crumpacker said:2
"No man need suffer on account of the administration of this
law, and it was deemed safer and wiser to vest this discretion in
the commission, who are on the ground, who may know the real
conditions, than for Congress to undertake to make a law with
hard and fast lines, absolutely providing for the method of disposing of these lands."
The superlatively virtuous Mr. Sulzer, of New York, felt certain, so he announced, that the real object of the law was "to
turn the resources of the Philippines over to the tender mercies
of the trusts and a few private looters."
25 Ibid., p. 7444.
26 Ibid., p. 7444.




CHURCH AND STATE


55


However, the various amendments were defeated and the bill
was passed with the understanding that the government of the
Philippines should have a free hand in disposing of the lands.
It should be noted that the act of the Philippine Legislature which
removed the restrictions upon sales which had been imposed by
the original land act of the commission, was passed without a
dissenting vote, by the assembly, all the members of which were
Filipinos, duly reported to Congress and not disapproved by that
body. It therefore, under the Organic Act, remained effective
with the approval of Congress.
When the opportunity arose to sell the distant Mindora estate,
out of abundant caution the question was referred to the attorney-general of the United States, and on December 8, 1909, he
rendered an opinion that the restrictions imposed by Section 15
of the Act of Congress July 1, 1902, upon the sale of the public
lands which had been acquired under the Treaty of Paris, did
not apply to the lands acquired by purchase from the friars under
the authority of Sections 63, 64 and 65 of the same act. Hence
the friar lands, having been purchased under the authority of
an Act of Congress which delegated to the government of the
Philippines full power to determine the method of sale and to
provide thereby a fund for the retirement of the purchase price
bonds, could be sold in any manner authorized by the Philippine
Legislature.27
The Mindora tract was then sold to parties who, under very
adverse conditions, proceeded to erect a modern sugar mill and
to put the land under cultivation. This transaction was attacked
with much violence by certain badly informed and ill-advised
members of Congress.28
The tariff law of 1909 opened the United States market to
Philippine sugar and encouraged the sugar growers to develop the
industry. The American beet sugar interests, which saw competition in their home market, joined forces with the political party
27 Opinion Attorney-General, U. S., Dec. 18, 1909. Cong. Rec., March 25,
1910.
An opinion by Mr. Moorfield Storey to the contrary will be found in the
Cong. Rec. for Feb. 16, 1910.
28 The 53,000 acres were sold for $367,000, the original cost having been
$298,782.07.




56


THE PHILIPPINES


which seemed committed to the policy of questioning every act of
the Philippine government, and a vigorous attack was made on
the land policy which made it possible to develop the Philippine
sugar business on a large scale. The Filipino public were excited
by the cry of trust exploitation. Mr. Martin, of Colorado, in a
violent partisan speech in the House of Representatives charged
President Taft, Secretary Root, and practically all the men who
had been connected with the government of the Philippines, with
having been engaged in a gigantic conspiracy to turn the islands
over to the Sugar Trust and its predatory friends. GovernorGeneral Forbes, Secretary of the Interior Worcester, and Executive Secretary Carpenter were charged with being financially
interested in certain land transactions of the government. The
charges were so sweeping and general that they answered themselves. The political and business motives by which they were
inspired were patent on the surface.
But on June 25, 1910, the House directed its Committee on
Insular Affairs to make an investigation of the conduct of the Interior Department of the Philippine government touching the administration of the Philippine lands. Certain officials were called
from Manila to Washington and a great deal of evidence was
taken, much of it of a very general character. The issue other
than the charges against officials, rested on the legal right of the
government to sell the friar lands in large tracts. The AntiImperialist League was represented before the committee by counsel and the legal question and the charges against the individuals
were fully investigated. The result was complete vindication of
the Philippine officials. Mr. Martin failed miserably to sustain
his charges. The majority of the committee sustained the right
of the Philippine government to sell the friar lands in large tracts
and the entire committee exonerated Mr. Forbes, Mr. Worcester and Mr. Carpenter from any intentional wrong-doing.29
29 The Friar Land Inquiry, reports to secretary of war by Messrs. Forbes,
Worcester and Carpenter (Manila, 1910).
Rajah Brooke, after passing through the fire of such an investigation,
said:
"Do not disgrace your public servants by inquiries generated in the fogs




CHURCH AND STATE


57


Notwithstanding the action of the committee and the complete
vindication of the Philippine officials, the secretary of war directed that until Congress should take some further action the
friar lands should be sold subject to the limitations of the Public
Lands Act. The secretary of war had no power to change the Act
of Congress, but as he had the undoubted power to change the
officials by which it was administered, the result was the same.
The Philippine Legislature, in 1914,30 after it had passed under
Filipino control, passed a law limiting the sales to sixteen hectares
to an individual and 1,024 hectares to a corporation; and by
the Philippine Government Law of 1916, all the unsold friar
lands are placed under the control of the Philippine Legislature, with power to act with reference thereto as it may deem
advisable. But acts "with reference to the public domain, timber and mining, hereafter enacted, shall not have the force of
law until approved by the President of the United States." The
question remains: Are the friar lands a part of the "public domains"? If not, the Philippine Legislature has full control over
them; if so, it has the same power subject to the approval of the
president.
It was a short-sighted policy. Under the law the annual
charges, including interest, must be added to the sale price and
the expenses of administration are enormously increased by sales
in small tracts on long time to purchasers dependent on the year's
crop for the money to meet their payments. The report for
1915 shows payments aggregating four hundred and twenty
thousand dollars in default and over four thousand suits pending
against delinquents.31 This is the direct result of the ill-advised
policy of limiting the sales to such small tracts. All this expense
which must be added to the sales price and the lands must thus be
held at prices much higher than that at which public lands of
equal value can be purchased. The result of the policy will probof base suspicion, for remember, a wrong done is like a wound received; the
scar is ineffaceable. It may be covered with glittering decorations, but there
it remains to the end." Rajah Brooke, by Sir Spencer St. John, p. 177.
80 Act No. 2379, Feb. 28, 1914.
31 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1914, p. 102.




58


THE PHILIPPINES


ably be that the outstanding bonds will have to be paid out of the
treasury instead of from the proceeds of the sales of the lands.
Any controversy which required the government to interfere
between church factions was dangerous to the peace of the country, and the attempt during the early days of American rule, of
Gregario Aglipay and certain Filipinos who had left the Roman
Catholic Church, to establish a national church under the name
of the Independent Filipino Catholic Church, for a time threatened serious consequences. Aglipay was a regularly ordained
Roman Catholic priest who had come into collision with Archbishop Nozaleda during the early years of the insurrection.
While with Aguinaldo at Malolos he issued, over the latter's
signature, a denunciatory letter to the archbishop in which he
charged that the Catholic Church had entered into close relations with the Americans for the protection of the friars.32 This
letter was effective in inducing the people to believe that the success of the Americans meant the return of the friars with the
powerful support of the new government. Having broken with
the Catholic Church, Aglipay became an insurgent general and
was active in the Ilocos provinces, being one of the last to surrender. His experience as a priest had shown him how easy it
was to influence the natives through their religious feelings and
superstitions, and he skilfully utilized the conditions in building a new church which should be national in character and independent of Rome. The Filipinos are by nature and training religious, but many of them were dissatisfied with the Roman
Catholic Church which had supported Spain and the hated friars.
Conditions were ripe for such a movement. The idea of a national church was attractive to those who had imbibed revolutionary principles, and the native priests, who had been kept in
subordination by the Spaniards, saw in the new movement an
opportunity for personal advancement.
After his surrender, Aglipay and one Isabelo de Los Reyes,
who had been editing an insurgent paper in Madrid, started an
32 See Otis' Report, 1900, pp. 117, 118.




CHURCH AND STATE


59


active propaganda among the native priests and an organization
was effected with Aglipay as archbishop and fifteen Filipino
priests as bishops. While there were reasons for believing that
Aglipay's motives were primarily political, the government gave
him and his followers the benefit of the doubt33 and maintained
an attitude of impartiality between the contestants. It announced
that it would protect Aglipay and the regular Catholic priests
and their respective adherents impartially in their constitutional
right to worship God in their own way.
In communities where the majority of the people joined the
new Church they assumed that they were entitled to the use of
the church buildings which had been constructed, often on municipal lands, by the voluntary contributions and labor of the people. As a result there was some violence and disorder. In one parish the women took possession of the church building and Aglipay
celebrated mass therein. When reasoned with by Governor Taft
he promised that the church should be returned to the regular
priest, but the women had other views, and it was only after a
lively interview with the governor that they consented to deliver
the keys to the chief executive. Although the protection of the
Church in its property rights was certain to be used by Aglipay
and his followers as further evidence of an alliance between the
American government and their old enemy, there was only one
course to be pursued. The government simply held that whichever party was in actual possession of a church building would
be protected in its possession until the property rights were determined by the courts. As there was much excitement and constant danger of violence the commission conferred upon the
Supreme Court original jurisdiction to hear and determine the
question involved. In the meantime the police maintained the
status quo.34 The decision was against the Aglipians and with the
loss of the church property interest in the movement soon died
33 For the quasi religious propaganda carried on by Aglipay in the Ilocos
provinces during the period of the insurrection, see Rept. War Dept., 1901,
Pt. VI, p. 798; Pt. VII, p. 237.
34 Rept. Phil. Corn., Nov. 1, 1902; Rept. Phil. Cor., 1904, Pt. I, p. 19.




60                THE PHILIPPINES
out. The people gradually returned to the Roman Catholic
Church, leaving Aglipay and a few irreconcilables to play at running a Church and to flirt with subterranean sedition.
The transfer of the control over education from the Church
to the State was effected with very little difficulty. The delicate
subject was handled with tact and good judgment. The higher
places in the Church passed to American Catholics who were familiar with the American school system, and those who did not
sympathize with it soon recognized and bowed gracefully to the
inevitable.




CHAPTER IV


Congressional Legislation for the Philippines
Delay in Assuming Control-First Legislation Confirmatory Only-The
Spooner Law-The Civil Government Law of July 1, 1902-Its NatureBureau of Insular Affairs-Ratification of Acts of President and of the
Commission-Location of Legislative Power-The Judicial OrganizationJurisdiction of the Courts-Resident Commissioners-Citizenship-Bill of
Rights-Trustee for Public Property-Power Granted to Provide for Needs
of Commerce-Conservation of Lands and Mineral Rights-To Acquire Friar
Lands-Coinage-Bond Issues-Restrictions on Granting Franchises-Bonds
for Port Works, Roads, etc.-The Navigation Laws-The Chinese Exclusion
Law-The Immigration Laws-The Income Tax Law-The Tariff Acts-Acts
of Congress Extended to Philippines-Entry and Clearance of VesselsPublic Health and Quarantine, Extradition.
The power and duty to govern territory acquired by and belonging to the United States is granted to and imposed by the
Constitution upon Congress, and it may create such subordinate agencies for the purpose as it deems advisable. Congress
was slow in assuming the duty of providing a form of government for the territory which had been acquired from Spain in
the Far East. When it did act it merely authorized the continuance of the government which had been framed by Secretary
Root and established under the independent constitutional authority of the executive. Shortly thereafter it again ratified
what had been done by the president and the government of the
Philippines and somewhat in detail defined the powers of the
agency through which it willed that the country should for a time
be governed. In view of the peculiar constitutional and political
relations which arose out of the acquisition of this territory, it
is important to know in what manner and to what extent Congress has exercised its powers of government directly and how
far it has delegated them to the local government which is its
agent and creature.
61




62


THE PHILIPPINES


It will be remembered that before Congress passed any laws
relating to the Philippines a fairly complete civil government
had been established in the islands by the president under the authority derived not from Congress but directly from the Constitution. Theoretically the war powers of the president were suspended upon the conclusion of peace but considerations of a
practical nature required that it continue operative until Congress
assumed control. The insurrection dragged along under conditions which required the occasional exercise of military authority. It was at least convenient that the velvet glove should conceal an iron hand and civil government was permitted to rest on
the war power until the midsummer of 1902.
Possibly the provision attached as a rider to the Army Appropriation Bill of March 2, 1901,1 which delegated the power to
govern the Philippines to the president and granted certain limited legislative powers to the commission, changed the character
of the local organization from a quasi-civil agency resting on
military authority to a pure civil government created or authorized by Congress in the performance of its constitutional duty
to provide rules and regulations for the government of a new
territory. But for another year, while Congress was considering
Philippine affairs, the president continued to govern the islands.
On July 1, 1902,2 Congress passed the law which, according to
its title, was designed to provide temporarily for the administration of civil affairs in the Philippines and under which the country
was governed from that time until October 16, 1916. Though
commonly called the Organic Law, the Act of July 1, 1902, was
not a formal constitution, although it contained the essentials of
such an instrument. It was tentative and provisional, and designed to provide for existing conditions subject to such revision
and amendment as in the future should be deemed desirable. It
was far from being a finished definitive instrument such as was
turned out by Pedro Paterno for the Schurman Commission
and by Mabini and Calderon for the Philippine Republic. It
1The Spooner Law, 31 Stat. L., 910.
2 Chap. 1369, 32 Stat. L., 691.




CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION


63


was a modest suit of governmental clothes prepared by an excellent workman for a political small boy who was expected to
grow but whose future size and proportions were undeterminable.
The United States had no machinery for controlling and
governing colonies and as Congress was not ready to establish
a colonial department it followed the precedents established by
Great Britain and other nations, and imposed the duty of administering the affairs of the external possessions upon the secretary
of war as the representative of the president. Secretary Root
had organized a Division of Insular Affairs and this was retained
under the name of the Bureau of Insular Affairs of the War Department. In the language of the statute the "business" assigned
to this bureau embraces "all matters pertaining to civil government in the island possessions of the United States, subject to the
jurisdiction of the War Department."3 The original act authorized the secretary of war to detail an officer of the army with the
rank of colonel as chief of the bureau, and subsequent legislation
provided for a chief with two assistants with the rank respectively
of brigadier-general, colonel and major. The duties of the chief
of this bureau resemble those of a permanent under-secretary of
state for the colonies.
The Spooner Act did not specifically confirm the president's acts
under the war power and as there were a few people who doubted
the legality of many of the things that had been done,4 Congress
now specifically approved, affirmed, ratified and confirmed the
action of the president in creating the United States Philippine
Commission and authorizing it to exercise the powers of government in the manner and form and subject to the regulations and
3 Section 87, Act of July 1, 1902. See statement of Brig.-Gen. McIntyre,
Hearing before Senate Committee on Philippines, Dec. 14, 1914.
4 During the debate in Congress on the civil government bill, Mr. Jones,
of Virginia, said: "My opinion is that the President acted without legal authority, that no warrant is to be found in the Federal Constitution for the
appointment by the President of a civil commission vested with full legislative authority."
Mr. Crumpacker, of Indiana, replied: "Let me suggest to the gentleman
that that is why we have to have them approved and confirmed by this bill to
satisfy such opinions as the gentleman from Virginia may entertain. We
think they are valid." Cong. Rec., June 19, 1902.




64


THE PHILIPPINES


control set forth in the president's instructions of April 7, 1900;
in creating the offices of civil governor and vice-governor with
the powers as defined in the executive order of June 21, 1901,
and in establishing the four executive departments; and by order
of July 12, 1898, and amendments, authorizing the levy and collection of a tariff of duties and taxes in all ports and places in the
Philippines upon their passing into the occupation and possession
of the forces of the United States.5
The effect of the law was to continue the established government and approve the laws then on the Philippine statute books,
including the old Spanish laws which had not been expressly or by
implication repealed.6
The legislative power was left in the Philippine Commission.
But provision was made for the future division of the Archipelago for governmental purposes into two sections, the lines of
which were to be determined by the character and degree of
civilization of the inhabitants. When certain conditions had been
complied with there was to be created in one of these territorial
divisions a new legislative body which should be known as the
Philippine Legislature, to be composed of two houses, the Philippine Commission and the Philippine Assembly. The members of the assembly were to be elected by popular vote, which
meant, of course, by the Filipinos. After this legislature was
organized it should exercise the legislative power in its defined
territory and the commission would continue as the sole legislative body for the remaining territory.7
The existing judicial organization was retained with the important provision that the chief justice and the associate justices
5 Provided that the act should not be held to amend or repeal the Revenue
Act of March 8, 1902.
6 In United States v. Bull, I6 Phil. Repts. 7, the Supreme Court said:
"The act of July 1, 1902, made no substantial changes in the form of government the President had erected. Congress adopted the system which was in
operation, and approved the action of the President in organizing the government. Substantially all the limitations which had been imposed on the legislative power by the President's instructions were included in the law, Congress thus extending to the islands by legislative act not the Constitution, but
all its provisions for the protection of the rights and privileges of individuals
which were appropriate under the conditions."
7 See infra. Chap. VI, pp. 107-110.




CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION


65


of the Supreme Court should thereafter be appointed by the
president with the advice and consent of the Senate, and that
they should receive the compensation which had already been prescribed by the commission until otherwise provided by Congress.8
The judges of the courts of first instance were to be appointed
by the civil governor with the consent of the commission, and
their compensation was left to be determined by the legislative
authority of the islands.
The Supreme Court and the courts of first instance were to
exercise the jurisdiction which had been conferred upon them
by the commission "and such additional jurisdiction as shall
herea fter be prescribed by the government of said islands, subject
to the power of said government to change the practise and method
of procedure," provided, that the admiralty jurisdiction of said
courts could not be changed except by Act of Congress. The
municipal courts were to exercise the jurisdiction which had been
conferred upon them by the commission, "subject in all matters
to such alterations and amendments as may be hereafter enacted
by law." The Supreme Court of the United States was authorized to review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm the final judgments and decrees of the Supreme Court of the Philippines in all
cases and proceedings in which the Constitution or any statute,
treaty, title, right, or privilege of the United States is involved
and in cases in which the value in controversy exceeds twentyfive thousand dollars or in which the title or possession of real
estate exceeding in value the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars
is involved, or brought in question. The procedure was to be the
same as far as applicable as that provided for reviewing the
judgments and decrees of the circuit courts of the United States.9
No change was made in the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court by
the Philippine Government Law of 1916.
8 The Act of March 6, 1905, authorized the government of the Philippines
to fix the compensation of the members of the Supreme Court provided that
the pay of the chief justice should not exceed $10,500.00 per annum and of
each associate justice $10,000 per annum. By the Act of August 29, 1916, the
salary of the chief justice was reduced to $7,500, and that of the associate
justice to $7,000.
9 Sections 9 and 10, Act of July 1, 1902.




66


THE PHILIPPINES


After the Philippine Legislature had been organized it was
directed to elect two resident commissioners to the United States
who "shall be entitled to an official recognition as such by all
departments upon presentation to the president of a certificate of
election by the civil governor of said islands." The salaries of
these commissioners, payable by the United States, were fixed at
five thousand dollars per annum and two thousand dollars additional for expenses, but this was subsequently increased and is
now the same as that of a member of Congress.
All inhabitants of the islands who were Spanish subjects on
April 11, 1899, and who had not, as authorized by the Treaty of
Paris, elected to preserve their allegiance to the crown of Spain,
and their children born subsequent thereto, were declared to be
citizens of the Philippine Islands and as such entitled to the protection of the United States."~
The provisions of President McKinley's Instructions," which
constituted a bill of rights and restrictions for the Filipinos, were
somewhat extended. For the protection of individuals from oppressive acts of the government, it was provided that:
(a) No law shall be passed which shall deprive any person of
life, liberty, or property without due process of law or deny to
any person therein the equal protection of the laws.
(b) In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the
right to be heard by himself and counsel, to demand the nature
and cause of the accusation against him, to have a speedy and
public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and to have compulsory process to compel the attendance of witnesses in his behalf.
(c) No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense
without due process of law; and no person for the same offense
shall be twice put in jeopardy of punishment, nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself.
(d) All persons shall before conviction be bailable by sufficient
sureties, except for capital offenses.
(e) No person shall be imprisoned for debt.
10 The Act of Congress of March 23, 1912, authorized the Philippine Legislature to provide for Philippine citizenship in certain cases. 37 Stat. L. 77.
See infra, p. 348.
11 See Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 503.




CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION


67


(f) The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be
suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion, insurrection, or invasion, the public safety may require it, in either of which events
the same may be suspended by the president, or by the governor,
with the approval of the Philippine Commission,12 wherever during such period the necessity for such suspension shall exist.
(g) Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines
imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.
(h) The right to be secure against unreasonable searches and
seizures shall not be violated.
(i) Neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist in said islands.
(j) No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech
or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble
and petition the government for redress of grievances.
(k) No law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, and the free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall forever be allowed.
(1) No warrant shall issue but upon probable cause, supported
by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to
be searched and the person or things to be seized.
(m) No person in the islands shall under the authority of
the United States be convicted of treason by any tribunal, civil
or military, unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same
overt act or on confession in open court.13
Legislative and executive action was restricted by the following general provisions:
(a) No money shall be paid out of the treasury except in pursuance of an appropriation by law.
(b) No law impairing the obligation of contracts shall be enacted.
(c) The rule of taxation in the islands shall be uniform.
(d) No private or local bill which may be enacted into law
shall embrace more than one subject, and that subject shall be
expressed in the title of the bill.
(e) All money collected on any tax levied or assessed for a
12 The present statute confers this power upon the governor-general alone.
13 32 Stat. L. 55 (Act March 8, 1902). This provision is not in the original bill of rights.




68


THE PHILIPPINES


special purpose shall be treated as a special fund in the treasury
and paid out for such purpose only.
(f) No law granting a title of nobility shall be enacted and no
person holding any office of profit or trust in said islands, shall,
without the consent of the Congress of the United States, accept
any present, emolument, office, or title of any kind whatever from
any king, queen, prince, or foreign state.
(g) No ex post facto law, or bill of attainder, shall be enacted.
All the property and rights which the United States had acquired in the Philippine Islands by virtue of the treaty with
Spain, except such land or other property as should be designated for military and other government reservations, were
"placed under the control of the government of said islands to be
administered for the benefit of the inhabitants thereof, except
as provided in this act." The government of the Philippines
thus became a quasi trustee of the public domain and other public
property which had been acquired from Spain.
Specific authority was given the insular government to provide
for the needs of commerce by improving harbors and navigable
waters and constructing lighthouses, piers and other such structures, including bonded warehouses. Great care was taken to
provide for the conservation of the public lands, forests, and
mineral resources of the country. Their sale was in fact so carefully hedged about by restrictions that the development of the
country has been seriously retarded. In order to develop a class
of small landowners the sales of public lands were limited to forty
acres to one person and twenty-five hundred acres to a corporation. The insular government was authorized to provide by law
for the disposition of the public lands subject to the restrictions
of the Act of Congress and the approval of its rules and regulations by the president, who was required to submit the same to
Congress for its approval or disapproval.14 Special provision was
made for the protection of actual occupants and settlers. The
sale of the timber lands was carefully guarded.
All public lands valuable for minerals were reserved from sale
14 Section 13, Act July 1, 1902. See House Doc. 422, 64th Cong. ist Sess.




CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION


69


except as specifically directed by law. Mineral deposits in the
public lands were declared open to exploration, occupation and
purchase by citizens of the United States or of the Philippines.
The Act of Congress contained detailed provisions for the locating and marking of mineral claims. The holder of a claim was
declared entitled to all minerals which might lie within the vertical boundary-lines of his claim. Under a mistaken restrictive
policy no person was allowed to hold, directly or indirectly, more
than one mineral claim on the same vein or lode.l5
After granting power to the government of the Philippines to
acquire title to real and personal property for public uses by the
exercise of the right of eminent domain, specific authority was
given to exercise such power in reference to any lands which on
August 13, 1898, were owned or held by religious orders, communities or associations in such large tracts or parcels and in such
manner as in the opinion of the commission injuriously to affect
the peace and welfare of the people of the Philippines, and to
issue bonds, on terms and conditions carefully prescribed, for the
purpose of paying therefor."e
The Philippine government was authorized to establish a mint
and coin money and in 1903 Congress provided that the unit of
value in the Philippine Islands should be the gold peso, consisting
of twelve and nine-tenths grains of gold, nine-tenths fine, and
authorized the coinage of seventy-five million silver pesos in addition to the minor coins which had been previously authorized.17
The power to issue bonds was carefully guarded by Congress.
The Philippine government was authorized when current taxation was inadequate for the purpose, under such limitations, terms
15 Sections 20-62, Act July 1, 1902. The provisions with reference to public lands and various mineral claims were detailed in the Act of Congress,
and very little discretion was left to the government of the Philippines.
Each annual report of the commission recommended changes in the line of a
more liberal policy, but the law remained unchanged until 1916, when somewhat enlarged power was granted to the local legislature, subject to the approval of the president.
16 This authority was given in order to enable the insular government to
acquire the so-called friar lands. See Chap. III.
17 Chap. 980, 32 Stat. L., 952 (March 2, 1903). For subsequent legislation
relating to the currency and coinage, see Act of June 23, 1906, Stat. L., 453,
and Chapter VII, infra.




70


THE PHILIPPINES


and conditions as might be prescribed by legislation, approved
by the president, to permit municipalities to incur indebtedness,
borrow money, and issue and sell bonds for the purpose of providing funds for necessary sewer and drainage facilities, to secure
a sufficient supply of water, and provide necessary buildings for
primary public schools. But the entire indebtedness of any municipality should not exceed five per cent. of the valuation of the
real estate in the municipality and any obligations in excess
thereof were declared to be null and void. For the purpose of
providing funds to construct sewers and provide a water supply,
the government might, with the approval of the president of the
United States, permit the city of Manila to incur indebtedness and
to issue bonds to an amount not exceeding four million dollars
gold.
The Philippine government was also authorized to grant franchises, privileges and concessions for the construction and operation of works of public utility and service and to adopt rules and
regulations under which the provincial and municipal governments may authorize the use and occupation of their streets,
highways, squares, reservations and other similar property. But
no franchise, privilege or concession could be granted to any corporation except under the condition that it be subject to amendment, alteration, or repeal by Congress and that lands or rights
of use and occupation of lands thus granted should revert to the
government by which they were respectively granted upon the termination of the franchise and concession. All such concessions
should forbid the issuance of stock or bonds except in exchange
for actual cash or for property for a fair valuation equal to the
stock or bonds so issued; forbid the declaring of stock or bond
dividends and in the case of public service corporations, provide
for the effective regulation of the charges thereof, for official
inspection and regulation of the books and accounts of such corporations, and for the payment of a reasonable gross earnings tax
to the government.8 All these matters which were regulated in
18 To the same effect, Act Aug. 29, 1916.




CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION


71


detail by Congress show the extreme care exercised for the protection of the public.
The Cooper Law of February 6, 1905, empowered the Philippine government, with the approval of the president of the
United States, to issue bonds to provide funds for the construction of port and harbor works, bridges, roads, buildings for
provincial and municipal schools, court-houses, penal institutions
and other public improvements. It was also authorized under
certain conditions and subject to carefully devised safeguards and
limitations, to guarantee the payment of the interest on bonds
to a designated amount issued by private corporations for the
construction of railroads in the Philippines.19
After a good deal of hesitation and legislative fumbling it was
decided that it would be bad policy to extend the United States
navigation laws which confined the coastwise traffic to American
vessels, to the Philippines. As early as 1902 Congress provided
that after July 1, 1904, foreign vessels should be prohibited from
carrying passengers and merchandise between the ports of the
United States and the ports of the Archipelago, but as there were
not sufficient American vessels to handle the business, the time
when the law should go into effect was postponed from time
to time and it was finally repealed.20 Hence, foreign vessels
may transport merchandise and passengers between the ports of
the United States and the Philippines and between the various
ports of the Philippines. Until Congress shall have authorized
the registry as vessels of the United States of the vessels owned
in the Philippines the Philippine government may adopt and enforce regulations governing the transportation of passengers and
merchandise between the ports of the Archipelago. The same
19 Section 66, Act of July 1, 1902, as amended by Sec. 2, Act February 6,
1905. Chap. 453, 33 Stat. L., 689. The statute now simply authorizes the government to issue bonds subject to the restrictions as to the total amount.
Sec. 11, Act Aug. 29, 1916. See Chap. XIX, infra.
20 See the Acts of March 8, 1902; March 15, 1904, and April 20, 1906, repealed by Act of March 26, 1908. The secretary of war and the Philippine
Commission from the first opposed the policy of bringing the Philippine
Islands within the scope of the coastwise navigation laws. Rept. Phil. Corn.
1907, Pt. III, p. 83.




72


THE PHILIPPINES


tonnage fees are collected on all foreign vessels coming from
the Philippines to the United States as on vessels coming from
foreign countries,21 but the Philippine government imposes no
tonnage tax on vessels arriving in its ports from any foreign
country.
In 1902 Congress extended the Chinese exclusion laws to the
island territory under the jurisdiction of Congress and directed
the Philippine Commission to make the necessary regulations to
render the law effective.22 The immigration laws of the United
States were put into effect in the islands by executive order and
the Act of Congress of March 3, 1903, regulating the immigration of aliens into the United States, defined the United States
as meaning "the United States and any water, territory or other
place now subject to the jurisdiction thereof."23 The Act of
February 20, 1907, provided that it should be construed to mean
the United States and any water, territory, or property subject
to the jurisdiction thereof, except the canal zone. In the Pure
Food Law of June 30, 1906, the word territory is made to include the insular possessions.
The Federal Income Tax Statute is in force in the Philippines,
although the proceeds of the tax go into the insular treasury.24
The tariff relations between the United States and its insular
possessions are determined by Congress. Prior to 1909 the then
tariff law of the United States was enforced against articles coming from the Philippines to the continental ports of the United
States. The Payne Law of 1909 provided for free trade with the
islands under certain restrictions, which were removed by the Underwood Law of 1913.25 The tariff laws enacted by the Philippine
government under its delegated authority, imposing duties on
articles imported into the islands from countries other than the
21 Chap. 152, 57 Stat. L., 70. (Act April 29, 1908.)
22Chap. 641, 32 Stat. L., 176. (Act of April 22, 1902.) The exclusion
laws were already in force there under military orders.
23 The Appropriation Bill of March 12, 1904, contained a provision that
the immigration laws of the United States in force in the Philippines should
continue to be administered by the officers of the Philippine government.
24 Act of Oct. 3, 1913.
25 See Chapter VII, infra.




CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION


73


United States, have all been passed by Congress also and thus
made United States laws. The Philippine Government Law of
1916 authorizes the Philippine government to enact tariff laws
applicable to all countries but the United States, subject to the
approval of the president.
The laws of Congress are not effective in the Philippines unless
expressly made so by Congress.
The Act of July 1, 1902, declared that the section of the Revised Statutes of the United States26 which extends the laws of
the United States to the territories shall not apply to the Philippines, and then specifically extends certain enumerated statutes
over the islands. Thus it provides that the laws relating to entry,
clearance and manifests of steamships and other vessels arriving
from or going to foreign ports shall apply to voyages each way
between the Philippine Islands and the United States and its
possessions; that the provisions of Chapters 6 and 7, Title 48,
Revised Statutes, so far as in force, and amendments thereof,
shall apply to vessels making voyages either way between ports
of the United States or its possessions and ports of the islands;
that the provisions of the law relating to public health and quarantine shall apply in the case of all vessels entering a port of the
United States or its possessions, from the islands; that the customs officers at the port of departure in the Philippines shall perform the duties required by law of consular officers in foreign
ports; that the laws relating to the transit of merchandise through
the United States shall apply to merchandise arriving at any port
of the United States destined for any of its insular and continental
possessions or destined from any of them to foreign countries;
that the laws relating to seamen on foreign voyages shall apply
to seamen on voyages going from the United States and its possessions to the islands, the customs officers there being substituted for consular officers in foreign ports.
For the application of the statute conferring authority on officers the Philippines are deemed a territory of the United States.2'
26 Sec. 1891. Rev. Stat. U. S., 1878.
27 Revised Statutes, U. S., Secs. 5278, 5279, pp. 1022, 1023.




74


THE PHILIPPINES


The extradition laws of the United States, so far as applicable,
have been extended to the Philippines,28 and the Act of February
6, 1905, makes certain provisions of the Revised Statutes of the
United States applicable when the government of the Philippines
seeks for the arrest and removal of any fugitive from justice
charged with the commission within the jurisdiction of any foreign government of any of the crimes provided for by treaty between the United States and such government. the order and
warrant for the delivery of a person committed for extradition
must be signed by the governor-general of the Philippines and
not by the secretary of state.
The foregoing brief summary will give the reader a fair idea
of the manner in which Congress has performed its duty of providing a government for the distant territory under its control.
Before considering the administration of the commission government and the radical changes in the form of the government
which were made by the Philippine Government Law of 1916, it
is necessary to describe the local governments in the provinces
and municipalities where the Filipinos have largely governed
themselves under the supervision of American officials.
28 Acts of Feb. 8, 1903, and Feb. 9, 1905, U. S. Comp. Stats. (1916), Vol.
10, secs. 10124-10126.




CHAPTER V


The Provinces and Municipalities
Isolated Conditions-Local Self-government-Gradual Extension of Native
Control-Division of Country-The Provinces-Present Organization-The
Provincial Officers-The Governor and His Duties-The Secretary, Treasurer and Fiscal-The Provincial Board, Its Duties and Powers-The Municipalities-Classification-The Municipal Officers and Their Powers-Powers
of the Council and Limitations Thereon-Municipal Revenues-Specially Organized Provinces-Local Governments for the Wild Tribes-The MorosThe Moro Province-Military Character of Its Government-Gradual Substitution of Civilian Officials-Creation of the Department of Mindanao and
Sulu-The Cities of Manila and Baguio-Local Governments Reasonably
Successful.
It is chiefly in the subordinate governmental units that the
qualifications of the Filipinos for self-government are being
tested. The economic, political and social life of the people is
localized in the provinces, municipalities and pueblos to a degree
unknown in western states. Few of the common people have
ever seen the capital city or been brought into personal relations
with the officials of the central government. Their knowledge
of Americans and their characteristics is derived from intercourse with the few teachers, engineers and constabulary officers
who are stationed in their midst and from respectful observation of the high officials who at intervals make their rounds of
inspection. The American papers are seldom read by the Filipinos. The native papers printed in the Spanish language or in
some local dialect furnish the perverted data upon which they
form their opinions of the American government and its work.
The laws, decisions of the courts, and executive orders are
printed in the Official Gazette which is sent to the more important officials, but of course it constitutes constructive notice only
to the ordinary citizen of what the government is doing.
President McKinley directed that the people should be given
every opportunity to control their own affairs in the smaller
75




76


THE PHILIPPINES


political units. The work of organizing local governments which
had been commenced by the military authorities before the arrival of the commission was pushed rapidly forward.l The law
under which the provinces and municipalities were organized
granted a large measure of control to the provincial governments
and almost complete local autonomy to the municipalities. All
the municipal officers but the treasurer were made elective. Originally the provincial board was composed of an elected governor,
an appointed treasurer and a provincial school supervisor. This
was found unsatisfactory, and in pursuance of the general policy
of extending power to the natives the people were authorized to
elect a third member of the board, the treasurer only remaining
appointive. The provincial treasurer was the particular bete
noire of the provincial governor and in time he was regarded
as the malign influence on the board to which every evil of the
province might safely be attributed. Remedies which it was
sought to apply to abuses in the local government lost much of
their effect by being attributed to the influence of the American member of the board. The Provincial Government Act
was finally amended so as to permit the election of the governor
and a third member by direct vote of the people. The treasurer
only remained appointive and responsibility for conditions was
placed on the local electorate. The elected officers realized that
they were on trial and friction between them and the treasurer
soon disappeared. The central government thus kept its hand on
the finances and through the executive secretary exercised general supervision over the local administrations. The governorgeneral has always had the power to remove any official, whether
elected or appointed, who neglected his duty or was guilty of official misconduct, and the effect of the existence of this power in
the chief executive has had a very steadying effect upon the local
officials. Under the Administration Code of 1916 the entire
membership of the provincial board is now elected by the people.
President Wilson's reorganization of the Philippine Commisx See Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 519.




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


77


sion gave the Filipinos a majority of the members, thus giving
them control of both legislative bodies.2 Legislation enacted by
the Filipino Legislature before Congress passed the Jones Bill
had also placed the Filipinos in full control of the executive and
legislative power in all the local governments, subject, of course,
to the control of the governor-general.
The local governments are thus entering upon a new phase of
their history with increased powers and responsibilities. Whether
they will be administered successfully will depend, as in the past,
almost entirely upon the way in which the supervising power of
the central government is exercised.
The importance that Americans attach to the principle of decentralization in government and the general feeling that the
people of a locality have an inherent right to control the affairs
which affect that locality alone, as well as President McKinley's
instructions that these privileges should be extended as rapidly
as possible to the Filipinos, re4uire a somewhat detailed description of the provincial and municipal organizations.
Probably there has not been an American official in any municipality in the Philippines during the past five years.3 Hun- A"'
dreds of thousands of Filipinos have there elected their offici4Js
and governed themselves. How well have they discharged the
duties inposed upon them?
For governmental purposes the islands are divided into provinces and subprovinces, and the provinces into municipalities.
The so-called Department of Mindanao and Sulu is merely a
larger name for the old Moro Province. In some remote sections
the people are grouped into settlements under special governments adapted to their simple requirements.
Although some new provinces have been created and many
2 However, the reader will not lose sight of the fact that President Wilson
retained the power to remove the Filipino members of the commission if they
refused to obey orders.
3 Possibly there have been a few treasurers appointed for the purpose of
training some Filipinos for the position. Manila and Baguio are not classed
as municipalities.




78


THE PHILIPPINES


boundaries have been changed the large divisions of the country
are not very different from what they were in Spanish times.
As now organized the Archipelago comprises thirty-six principal
provinces,4 the city of Manila,5 and the Department of Mindanao and Sulu with its seven subprovinces.6
A province bears a relation to the insular government suggestive, although not very much like, that of a state to the United
States government. Some of the provinces have a population
greater than that of many states of the Union. They have in
some instances interests and industries of a purely local nature
which require special treatment. They constitute what President McKinley's Instructions referred to as those "larger administrative divisions corresponding to counties, departments or
provinces, in which the common interests of many or several
municipalities falling within the tribal lines or geographical limits
may best be subserved by a common administration."
They are public corporations with the usual powers, capacities
and liabilities of such bodies, resembling in this respect the
counties of an American state.7 The chief officers of a province
are the provincial governor, the treasurer, and the members of
the provincial board, all of whom except the treasurer are elected
for definite terms by the qualified electors of the province. They
are thus independent local officers who hold office by fixed tenure
subject, however, to the rather important provision of the law
that should the governor-general have reason to believe that any
provincial officer or any lieutenant of a subprovince is guilty of
4 Albay, Ambos Camarines, Antique, Bataan, Batanes, Batangas, Bohol,
Bulacan, Cagayan, Capiz, Cavite, Cebu, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Iloilo,
Isabela, Laguna, La Union, Leyte, Mindoro, Misamis, Mountain Province,
Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Occidental Negros, Oriental Negros, Palawan,
Pampanga, Pangasinan, Rizal, Samar, Sorsogon, Surigao, Tarlac, Tayabas
and Zambales.
5 The city of Manila constitutes a separate jurisdiction and is not included
within the territory of any province. In the absence of a special provision,
the term "province" may be construed to include the city of Manila for the
purpose of giving effect to laws of general application.
6 Agusan, Bukidnon, Cotabato, Davao, Lanao, Sulu and Zamboanga.
7 Administrative Code, Book III, Title XI, Chap. 46. This law repeals the
old provincial law and municipal code.




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


79


disloyalty, dishonesty, oppression or misconduct in office he
may suspend him from the discharge of the duties of his office
and after investigation, with the consent of the upper house of
the legislature, remove him from office.
The governor of a province is the most important officer
elected by the direct vote of the Filipinos. The office is one of
dignity and responsibility and is much sought for by the leading
men. A candidate for governor need not be a resident of the
province at the time of the election but if elected he must reside
at the provincial capital during the term of his office. He reports annually through the executive secretary to the governorgeneral. Subject to the general law he controls the local police
and may call upon the constabulary to apprehend criminals and
suppress disorder. At least once in every six months he must
inspect every municipality in his province and advise the local
authorities in matters connected with the performance of their
duties and investigate complaints regarding official misconduct.
He must also keep the governor-general informed as to conditions in his province and recommend such measures as he deems
advisable for the improvement of conditions.
A provincial governor receives a salary of from fifteen hundred to three thousand dollars per year depending upon the importance of his province.
The provincial treasurer is the financial officer of the province.
He collects the insular, provincial and municipal taxes and has
the custody of all funds and property of the province. The insular auditor exercises direct supervision over the treasurers and
has the power, when he deems it proper, to supersede the treasurer and take possession of his office for the purpose of checking up his accounts. The salary of the treasurer is the same as
that of the governor. In each province wherein is located real
property subject to the land tax the executive secretary, on the
nomination of the provincial board, appoints from the residents
of the province a provincial assessor and deputy assessor to appraise the real property subject to taxation.




80


THE PHILIPPINES


There is also a provincial fiscal who is the local legal adviser
of the provincial government and its officers and who acts also as
register of deeds. The fiscals are under the general supervision
of the attorney-general of the islands. In each province there is
a district engineer who has charge of the construction, repair and
maintenance of all roads, bridges and ferries not within the inhabited portions of the municipalities. The engineer is assigned
to the provinces from the Bureau of Public Works and is subject
to the general supervision of the director of that bureau. The
engineer acts as the adviser of the provincial board in all matters
relating to public works.
The provincial board must meet weekly in public sessions at
the provincial capitol for the consideration of business. The
elective members may, by resolution of the board approved by
the governor-general, be required to perform the duties of any
other provincial officer or any ministerial duty required by the
board. Records of the meetings of the board must be kept by
its secretary and copies of the minutes of all executive orders,
resolutions and ordinances must be furnished to the executive
secretary at Manila.
Certain specific duties are imposed on the provincial board.
Thus, each board must provide a seal for the province, a jail,
offices for the officials and for the division superintendent of
schools, and accommodations for the courts. It must bring or
defend suits by or against the province, provide for the construction and maintenance of roads and bridges and other public
works, and conduct a systematic campaign against dangerous
communicable diseases, agricultural pests, and epidemics of
cattle diseases.
The powers of the board fall into two classes.
It may, without the approval of the governor-general, appropriate the general funds of the province to pay its lawful debts
and carry on its lawful activities; to purchase draft animals for
breeding purposes; to organize, equip and maintain schools in
any municipality or other district where local funds are insufficient; to pay for property destroyed by the health authorities;




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


81


or to make loans to municipalities, townships and settlements to
enable them to combat diseases or pests.
It may also establish toll roads and ferries, but no tolls may
be collected from any person in the service of the United States
government or from any foot passenger on any road or bridge.
The provincial board may also establish and maintain provincial
schools to be conducted as a part of the public school system. It
may also, with the public money, maintain two professional students at the university or some other government institution.
With the approval of the governor-general the provincial board
may appropriate money for loans to municipalities for purposes
other than combating diseases; fix or change the salary of the
lieutenant-governor of any subprovince; authorize municipal
councils to fix the salaries of their officers in excess of the amount
fixed by law; exercise the power of eminent domain in aid of
the construction of roads, public buildings and other enumerated
purposes, and appropriate money "for purposes not specified by
law, having in view the general welfare of the province and its
inhabitants." Under this clause the governor-general and provincial board may appropriate money for almost any imaginable
purpose.
All regularly organized provinces are required to maintain
a special road and bridge fund which may be appropriated by the
board for the following purposes only:
(1) To repair, maintain and improve, and construct roads and
bridges in the provinces, priority to be given to maintenance of
existing roads and bridges.
(2) With the approval of the governor-general to provide
and maintain wharves, piers and docks, and to remove obstructions to navigation.
(3) With the approval of the governor-general to acquire,
operate and maintain, or subsidize means of water transportation within the province.
All specially organized provinces must maintain a road and
bridge fund which may be used to maintain and construct roads
and bridges, and with the approval of the secretary of the in



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THE PHILIPPINES


terior, to subsidize or acquire an improved means of water transportation.
In all provinces where there are non-Christians a special fund
must be maintained to be used for their benefit under the direction of the secretary of the interior. In the regularly organized
provinces the provincial board may in its discretion create and
maintain a special fund to be used for local fairs or for the Philippine Industrial Exposition.
It will be noted that the system of loans by one government
unit to another is in general use. The insular government loans
money from special funds to the provinces or municipalities. The
provincial boards make loans to municipalities, townships and
settlements for many purposes, and the provincial treasurers are
authorized to loan not to exceed twenty per cent. of the municipal funds deposited with them and held in reserve, to municipalities to be used in the construction of permanent public works,
for the purchase of land for school purposes, and for the erection of substantial school buildings.
The Municipal Code which was enacted soon after American
occupation was recently repealed and municipalities are now governed by the Administrative Code of 1916.8   The power to
organize new municipalities is by the new law vested in the provincial board with the approval of the provincial governor.
Prior to the Maura Law of 1893, the pueblos were governed
by a body called the principalia. That law converted the pueblos
into municipalities and the principalias into municipal councils
with the officers required by the new conditions.9 The Municipal Code simply took the pueblos with their names, boundaries
and property and made them municipalities with the usual powers of such public corporations. A municipality in the Philippines resembles an American township or New England town
and not a city. It frequently embraces many square miles of
territory in which there are a number of cities and villages. This
8 For the present municipal law, see the Administrative Code, Title XII,
Chap. 47, Secs. 2110-2270.
9 See Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 231.




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


83


territory is divided into barrios or wards which for administrative purposes are grouped into districts.
There are four classes of municipalities, determined by population, which also determines the size of the governing body.
The first class, with not less than twenty-five thousand inhabitants, has eighteen councilors. The second class, with eighteen
thousand and less than twenty-five thousand inhabitants, has
fourteen councilors. The third class, with ten thousand and less
than eighteen thousand, has ten, and the fourth class, with less
than ten thousand inhabitants, has eight councilors. A municipality passes from one class to another as its population increases or
decreases.
The councilors, with the president, vice-president and treasurer, are the chief officials and all but the treasurer are elected by
the qualified electors of the municipality. Ecclesiastics, soldiers
in active service, persons receiving salaries or compensations
from provincial or insular funds and contractors for local public
works, are ineligible to municipal office. The salaries of the
president, secretary and treasurer are fixed by the council subject
to the provision that they may not exceed in the different classes
of municipalities, for the president, $600, $500, $400 and $300;
secretary, $300, $250, $200 and $150; treasurer, $400, $300,
$200 and $150. The offices of vice-president and councilors are
honorary and the incumbents receive no compensation. The
president, commonly called the presidente, is the chief executive
of the local government and exercises general supervision over
the affairs of the municipality. He is charged with the duty of
seeing that his subordinates perform their duties properly and
that the laws and ordinances are enforced. He presides at the
meetings of the council and assists the treasurer in collecting the
taxes and the health officers in enforcing the sanitary laws. In
the absence of the justice of the peace he may hold preliminary
investigations in criminal cases. Subject to the approval of the
council he appoints, and may remove, all the non-elective officers.
Each year he renders to the provincial governor, a report of the
most important events which have occurred in the municipality




84


THE PHILIPPINES


during the year and quarterly he sends to the Bureau of Agriculture a detailed report on the condition of agriculture, live stock
and other such matters.
The vice-president is ex officio a member of the council and has
all the rights and duties of a councilor. The municipal treasurer
is appointed by the provincial treasurer with the approval of the
provincial board and subject to the provision of the civil service
law. His authority thus comes from an outside source. The
secretary in addition to the ordinary functions of such an officer,
collects and preserves vital statistics relative to marriages, births
and deaths.
The councilor is an important person in the community and the
fact that the office is honorary seems to add to its dignity.10 Each
councilor is given charge of a particular barrio, or district containing more than one barrio, and he acts as a special representative of the people of his barrio or district and must keep them
fully informed of what occurs in the council and of all other matters which directly concern them by suitable notices posted in
conspicuous places. He must also promptly notify the president
of "any unusual or disturbing events occurring in his district."
He may also appoint a lieutenant in each barrio or district under
his immediate supervision, who shall assist him in the performance of his duties.
The municipal council is a legislative and administrative body.
It has very important powers which, however, it must exercise
in some cases under the supervision of the provincial board, the
corresponding body of the higher governmental unit. The powers granted to the councils by general law are divided into two
classes. It is required to:
"establish and fix the salaries of municipal officers and employes
10 Following the Spanish custom the municipal officers and the provincial
governors are authorized to carry official canes. The governor may carry a
"white walking stick of white india cane with gold head and gold cord and
tassel." The municipal president is authorized to use as a symbol of office a
"black cylindrical cane with gold head and silver cord and tassels." The vicepresident may use a "gilt ferule with black cord and tassels" and councilors
may carry a "cane with a silver head, gilt ferule, and black cord and tassels."
In Spanish times the governor-general carried a cane as a badge of office.




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


85


except the treasurer and public-school teachers; make appropriations for proper municipal expenses; erect suitable buildings;
regulate the construction, care, and use, of streets, sidewalks and
piers; declare and abate nuisances; prohibit the throwing of waste
into the streets; provide for the disposition of garbage; regulate
the keeping and use of animals in so far as the same affects public
health and the health of domestic animals; require private premises to be kept in sanitary condition at the expense of the owner;
construct and maintain sewers and drains and regulate the construction and use of closets and drains; regulate the burial of the
dead; establish or authorize the establishment of and regulate the
inspection of articles of food; adopt measures to prevent the introduction and spread of disease; establish and maintain a police
department; prohibit gambling, disorderly houses and opium
joints; provide for the punishment of prostitutes and habitual
disturbers of the peace, intoxication, and disorderly conduct;
provide for the regulation and suppression of vagrancy; restrain
riots and public disturbances; suppress and punish cruelty to animals; provide by ordinance for the levying of taxes for municipal
purposes; and regulate the sale of intoxicating malt and fermented liquors at retail.""
In addition the council is authorized to:
"suspend or remove appointive officers and employes; provide for
the care of the sick and the insane; establish fire limits and make
building regulations; provide for the naming of streets, the numbering of houses, lighting and sprinkling of streets; establish
roads, streets, canals and parks; provide a building for a postoffice; regulate the keeping and impounding of dogs and the running at large of cattle; regulate cockpits and the keeping of game
cocks; regulate stables and garages and the keeping of vehicles
for hire; designate stands for public vehicles; regulate cafes,
hotels, inns, and lodging houses; regulate or prohibit public
dance houses and horse races; regulate and provide for the inspection of steam boilers; regulate the use of water courses; provide for the impounding and sale of animals at large contrary
to law; and regulate any business or occupation subject to a
municipal license tax."
1 No attempt is made to state in detail all the powers of the municipal
council, but this enumeration is necessary to show what the American supervision requires the local Filipino officials to do.




86


THE PHILIPPINES


Persons engaged in certain occupations or exercising certain
designated callings may be required to procure licenses at rates
fixed by ordinance.
Certain granted powers may be exercised only with the approval of the governor-general. On that condition a municipal
council may exercise the power of eminent domain for certain
purposes. It may also appropriate money in aid of any insular
and provincial charitable, beneficial or educational institution
which might be maintained by the municipality. The duty of
providing elementary schools is imposed on the municipalities'2
and after that duty has been performed they may establish and
maintain night schools in English and even special or professional
schools.
The duty of maintaining law and order is imposed on the municipality and for that purpose it must maintain the necessary
police force. For a number of years the municipal police were
practically useless. Neglect and abuses rendered it necessary to
restrict the powers of the president and council and in 1911 the
legislature required the chief of constabulary to prepare rules
and regulations under which policemen are now selected from a
list of applicants who have qualified by passing a special examination. The president still appoints the members of the force with
the approval of the council, but the chief of police in each municipality is appointed by the provincial governor on the recommendation of the president and with the approval of the
council.'3
Each municipality must provide the necessary equipment for
fire protection and where there is no paid fire department the
police act as firemen.
The habit of excessive indulgence in holidays rendered it necessary to restrict the municipal fiestas to one a year. Restrictions
are also placed on cock fighting which now may take place only
in licensed cockpits and on legal holidays, and for a period not
exceeding three days during the celebration of the local fiesta.
12 See Chapter X.
13 See Chapter XIII.




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


87


However, when the provincial board decides that a fair, carnival
or agricultural or industrial exhibit, "or any other act which may
redound to the promotion of the general interest" shall be held
the municipal council may authorize the cock fighting permitted
at a local fiesta to take place at such celebration if held at a time
other than that of the local fiesta.
The municipalities have ample power to raise the necessary
revenue. Their incomes are derived from an ad valorem tax on
real estate and from license taxes and fees for various services
and the proceeds and income from the sale, use and management
of the property held by the corporation.4 It is held to be a fundamental principle that the revenues obtained from taxation shall
be derived from such sources only as are expressly authorized
by law. Taxation must be just and in each municipality uniform. No taxes in any form may be imposed on goods carried
into or out of a municipality. The collection of taxes can not
be farmed out. The municipal funds must be collected by the
proper officers and when collected they must be devoted exclusively to local public purposes. The taxes are collected by the
provincial treasurer, who may use the municipal treasurers as
his deputies.
The money collected for school purposes is required to be
kept as a special fund and certain other special funds are also
authorized for such purposes as the aid of provincial industrial exhibitions, but the money may be appropriated for such
purposes only with the approval of the governor-general.
Early in January of each year the municipal treasurer is required to prepare and present to the council a detailed statement of the municipal receipts and disbursements during the
preceding year. With this as a guide the council must then make
a careful estimate of the probable income for the current year
and upon that basis make its allotments for the year. The appropriations so made constitute the municipal budget which,
after the allotment for school purposes has been approved by
the division superintendent of schools, must be submitted to and
14 See Chapter VII.




88


THE PHILIPPINES


approved by the provincial treasurer before it becomes effective.
If that official disapproves of any particular item or items the
council may appeal from his action to the provincial board and
its action thereon is final.
The old custom of absorbing the revenues in payment of officers and employees made it necessary to limit the amount which
may be used for salaries and wages, other than teachers', to a
fixed proportion of the income ranging according to the class of
the municipality from fifty to eighty per cent. Detailed provisions are made for the disbursements of public funds.
The municipality may own, conduct or provide for the conducting and operation of public utilities such as water-works, ferries,
wharves, markets and slaughter-houses.
The regularly organized provinces were supposed to be inhabited by civilized Filipinos who were able, under reasonable
supervision, to conduct a modern local government. The country inhabited by the Moros and wild tribes required radically
different treatment. Lying between these extremes there were
provinces in which the people were in an intermediate stage of
development and for them special governments were created.
In the more advanced, the form of provincial government differed but little from that of the regularly organized provinces
except that the officers were appointed by the governor-general
and control was in the commission instead of the legislature.
The Filipinos who resided in these provinces were active in the
work of bringing them fully under the jurisdiction of the legislature and this seems to have been effected by the Administrative
Code of 1916, which contains a number of provisions applicable only in specially organized provinces under the departmental
control of the secretary of the interior. The special provisions
applicable to these provinces are a little confusing and are of
general interest only in so far as they illustrate the practise of
passing the natives through different stages and granting them
additional powers of local government as they become more
capable of exercising them.




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


89


President McKinley instructed the commission to adopt, in
dealing with the wild tribes, the general policy which had been
followed by Congress with reference to the American Indians
and to permit them to retain their tribal organizations while
subjecting them to a firm but not an irritating control.
As the provincial and municipal governments provided for the
civilized people were not suitable for the wild men, special laws
were passed as particular provinces in the non-Christian territory were organized. The province of Benguet was thus organized as early as 190015 and soon thereafter the special provinces
of Nueva Vizcaya, Lepanto, Bantoc, Palawan and Mindora
were created. Gradually a form of government suitable for
these people was worked out and in 1902 a general law was enacted under which special provinces and townships were thereafter organized. This act provided for a provincial governor,
treasurer, supervisor and attorney, with a provincial board composed of the governor, treasurer and supervisor.16 The governor
was required to see that the laws were made known to the people and faithfully observed, to visit each township and settlement
in his province once in six months, to control the local police,
to act as sheriff in the courts of first instance, and to care for the
prisoners. The secretary performed the usual duties pertaining
to such an office. The treasurer collected the property tax, fines
and license fees and supervised the assessment of taxes. Once
a month a committee consisting of the governor, supervisor and
district superintendent of schools counted the money in the possession of the treasurer and reported the results to the insular
auditor. The supervisor was charged with the construction,
repair and maintenance of the roads, bridges and ferries of the
province, and of the public buildings of which he was custodian.
The provincial board was the real governing body of the province
and upon it were imposed many ministerial duties. It was authorized to pass ordinances for designated purposes, to approve
R5 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-1903, p. 60.
16 Some of the provinces were divided into subprovinces in which there
were lieutenant-governors and other officers.




90


THE PHILIPPINES


or disapprove of acts of the township councils of the province,
and to require the council of any township to pass suitable ordinances and upon their neglecting to do so to issue written
orders for securing the ends in view which should have the effect
of laws subject to disapproval by the secretary of the interior.
The provincial officers were informed that their aim should
be to aid the people of the several townships of the province to
acquire the knowledge and experience necessary for successful
local popular government and that their supervision and control
should be confined within the narrowest limits consistent with
the requirements that the powers of government in the townships
be honestly and effectively exercised and law and order and individual freedom protected and maintained.
The board was also required to provide necessary school buildings for the province where instruction might be given in academic and commercial subjects, manual training and agriculture,
and normal-school work, and to provide for the maintenance of
such schools subject to the general supervision of the division
superintendent and the director of education. It was also authorized out of provincial funds to make loans to townships for school
purposes not, however, to exceed ten per cent. of the gross income of the province.
When in its opinion the inhabitants of any township or settlement had advanced sufficiently in civilization to make such a
course practicable, the board might, with the approval of the
secretary of the interior, provide that the people shall no longer
be exempt from the payment of the cedula tax and that other
provisions of the general law relative to taxation shall be applicable to said township or settlement.
An annual tax of two pesos is imposed on every male inhabitant over eighteen and under sixty years of age, with certain exceptions, to create a fund for the purpose of protecting and improving roads and trails in the province and to construct public
works. A person delinquent in the payment of this tax is required, in person or by substitute, to work for ten days on th<
roads, trails or public works under the direction of the super




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


91


visor. The inhabitants of any township or settlement who have
not, in the opinion of the provincial board, advanced sufficiently
to make the collection of the tax practicable or advisable in the
public interest, may, with the approval of the secretary of the
interior, be exempt from the payment of this tax.
All provincial officers in these provinces were subject to removal by the governor-general with the consent of the commission.
There were many provisions which related to particular provinces only. The secretary of the interior was required to visit
and inspect each province at least once each fiscal year, but under
recent legislation the supervision of the secretary is exercised
through an officer entitled "Delegate of the Secretary of the
Interior for the non-Christian people."
Going still further down in the system we find the township,
the government of which is vested in a president, vice-president,
and council composed of one resident from each barrio. There
are also a secretary, treasurer, and such non-elective officers and
employees as the council deems necessary and the provincial
board authorizes.
It will be observed that the duties of the provincial board and
of the provincial officers in these provinces are largely super,
visory and controlling. The government of the non-Christian
provinces was from the first under the immediate supervision of
the secretary of the interior subject, however, to the control of
the commission. With various changes of detail this form of
government is still in force and under it the wild men have developed considerably. Schools have been established and many
hundreds of miles of roads and trails constructed through the
mountains.17
Until within very recent years it was recognized that the
existence of the Moros in the southern islands created peculiar
conditions which required special governmental treatment. It
17 The reorganization of the central government under the Act of August
29, 1916, which abolished the commission, will necessitate many changes in
the statutes relating to the special provinces.




92


THE PHILIPPINES


was admitted that there was a racial and religious antagonism
between the Moros and the Filipinos which made it impossible
to associate them together for purposes of government. It was
not pretended that the Moros were sufficiently advanced in the
ways of civilization to justify granting them any substantial
part in the work of operating a modern government. But the
Filipino political leaders soon adopted a theory of racial unity
and claimed that the Moros were merely backward Filipinos who
should be treated as wards of the more advanced Filipino people.l8 This theory seems to have been adopted by the Harrison
administration and to have found recognition in the Philippine
Government Bill of 1916.
What has been accomplished in the way of civilizing the Moros
and bettering the condition of their lives was done under a form
of government which has just been abolished. What can be
done under the new plan is necessarily problematical.
The Act of Congress of July 1, 1902, recognized the longestablished distinction, based on religion and different stages of
development, between the Filipinos, and the non-Christian tribes
and Moros, and the consequent necessity for providing different
forms of government for the different groups of people. On
July 1, 1903, that part of the Archipelago inhabited by the
Moros was by the commission organized as a separate province
under the name of the Moro Province, with a form of local
government which had been worked out by Brigadier-General
Davis while in command of the military department. Prior to
that time the government was purely military and thereafter
military influence was continued by the detail and appointment of
army officers to the civil offices. From the organization of the
province until the reorganization in 1913 Generals Wood, Bliss
and Pershing in turn were in command of the military department while occupying the civil office of governor of the province.
During that time nearly all of the subordinate civil offices were
also held by army officers. The number, however, was gradually reduced until in December, 1913, when General Pershing
18 For an account of the feeling among the Moros, see the Special Report
of Secretary of War Dickinson after his visit to the Philippines in 1910, p. 8.




....~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~;:~i~l~i..~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"~.R 6~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~:~;~.;,,i,~i                                                         i/ E












THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


93


resigned, only the position of health officer was held by an
officer of the United States Army.
The Moro Province which was thus governed directly or indirectly by military officers during fifteen years9 included
nearly all of the island of Mindanao, the Sulu Archipelago, the
Tawi Tawi group, and the other islands south of the eighth parallel except Palawan, Balabac, and certain small islands adjacent
thereto. The territory was divided into five districts with subordinate local governments in each. The legislative power was
vested in a legislative council composed of the provincial governor, secretary, treasurer and attorney. This council was, for
legislative purposes, the agent of the Philippine Commission
in which the primary legislative power was vested. It raised revenues by the imposition of taxes and in its discretion provided
for the maintenance of a school system, a system of public works,
and tribal courts for the determination of cases in which the
Moros were interested. With certain reservations it exercised
the general legislative power for the province. Its laws had
to be reported immediately to the Philippine Commission and
by it approved before they became effective. With the exception
of the customs receipts collected at its ports, which were turned
over by the insular government to the provincial government, it
was dependent upon its own revenues. It received nothing from
the insular government for public works, or the support of its
schools.
The provincial governor, secretary, treasurer and attorney,
were appointed by the governor-general with the consent of the
commission. The governor and secretary might be, and in fact
always were, officers of the army detailed by the commanding
general at the request of the commission. The offices of engineer and superintendent of schools were created by the legislative council and the incumbents were appointed by the provincial
governor with the approval of the council. The district officers
were all appointed in the same way.
19 It is only in a restricted sense that the Moro Province was under military government. The control was in the Philippine Commission and the
governor-general.




94


THE PHILIPPINES


The jurisdiction of the insular courts extended over the Moro
Province but it was subject to certain restrictions imposed by
legislation enacted by the commission.
During the life of the Moro Province there was a continuous
agitation by the Filipinos for the abolition of military rule and
the organization of the Moro country under the general provincial and municipal laws. Control by the Philippine Legislature, what they really desired, was impossible under the terms of
the Act of Congress.
During the latter years of Governor-General Forbes' administration considerable progress was made toward the substitution of civilian for military officers and General Pershing recommended that the provincial government be reorganized and
turned over to full civilian control. Soon after the change
of administration the newly-constituted Philippine Commission
changed the name of the Moro Province to that of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu20 and transferred the authority
theretofore exercised by the secretary of the interior in connection with the province of Agusan and its subprovince of Bukidnon, to the government of the new department. These provisions became effective January 3, 1914, and Mr. Frank W.
Carpenter, who for several years had held the office of executive
secretary, became the first civilian governor for the Moros.
Pursuant to another act of the commission2 a general reorganization of the department was made and special forms of
government were provided for the provincial or local municipal
units.22 The administration program as then announced had
for its object the rapid extension of the regular provincial and
municipal codes to all parts of the Archipelago.23
20 Act No. 2309, December 20, 1913.
21 Act No. 2408, July 23, 1914. See the first report of the provincial governor, February 10, 1915, in Rept. Phil. Cor., 1915, pp. 324 et seq.
22 See the Administrative Code, Title XIV, Secs. 2560-2617.
23 The purposes of this legislation are thus stated in the preamble of the
act, which is entitled, The Organic Act for the Department of Mindanao and
Sulu:
"Whereas the change of government in the Department of Mindanao and
Sulu, effected in January last, necessitates certain reforms, and not only is




THE PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES


95


The legislative control formerly exercised by the Philippine
Commission over Moroland has now, under the Philippine Government Law of 1916, passed to the new Philippine Legislature
but the government is still a special one differing from that in
force in other parts of the Archipelago. As Secretary of War
Dickinson, after his visit to the islands in 1910, said, the Moros
will have "to be essentially recreated to make them an integral
governing part of a republican government reuniting them with
the Filipinos." The form of rudimentary government provided
for the subprovinces of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu
requires no special consideration.
The cities of Manila and Baguio are governed under special
charters. Baguio has always been governed by Americans. The
government of Manila has passed rapidly from American to
Filipino control. At first the members of the Municipal Board
were appointed by the governor-general. A certain number were
then made elective and under recent legislation the entire membership is elective. The results have not been very satisfactory.
The provincial and municipal governments have been reasonably efficient.
the time ripe for these reforms, but they are insistently demanded by present
conditions in said department; and
"Whereas it is the desire of the people of the islands to promote the most
rapid moral, social, and political development of the inhabitants of said department in order to accomplish their complete unification with the inhabitants of other provinces of the archipelago; and
"Whereas for the accomplishment of this purpose the extension thereto of
the general laws of the country and of the general forms and procedures of
government followed in other provinces under certain limitations in harmony
with the special conditions now prevailing in said department, is among other
measures advisable and necessary, but always with the understanding that
such limitations are temporary and that it is the firm and decided purpose of
the Philippine Commission to abolish such limitations, together with the departmental government, as soon as the several districts of said region shall
have been converted into regularly organized provinces: Now, therefore," etc.
This, in substance and tone, is a Filipino document expressing the "aspirations" of the Filipinos rather than the desires of the Moros or the judgment
of wise Americans.




CHAPTER VI


The Commission Government, and Its Administration
Changing Character of Government-Self-government and IndependenceThe System of Commission Government-The Responsibility of the Commission-Represented American Sovereignty-American Majority in Commission
-Its Duties-Organization of Executive Departments-The Grouping of
Bureaus-Rearrangement in 1907-Changes in Judicial System by Organic
Law-Tenure of Office of Justices-The Personnel of the Supreme CourtJurisdiction-The Courts of First Instance-No Juries-Native Judges-Reorganization Law of 1914-Injurious to Service-The Official LanguageSpanish Retained in Courts-Spanish Used in the Assembly-Probable Decline of English-Creation of Philippine Legislature in 1907-Two Distinct
Legislative Bodies-Difficulties Resulting Therefrom-Unit Subjects of Legislation-Residuum of Legislative Power in Commission-Commission Reorganized by Wilson-Majority of Members Filipinos-Loss of Prestige-Abolished in 1916-The Office of Governor-General-Sources of Authority-Specific Powers and Duties-Delegation of Legislative Power-Appropriations
Subject to "Release" by Governor-General-Practise Condemned-Office
Magnified by President Taft-Legislative Activities of Governor-GeneralLog Rolling-Disrepect for Laws-Failure to Pass Current Appropriation
Bills-Automatic Renewal of Appropriations-Assumption of Power over
Appropriations-The "Advices" to the Treasurer-Serious Effect of Misconstruction of the Law-The Executive Secretary-The Insular AuditorIndependence Largely Imaginary-Resident Commissioners-Influence of the
Assembly-Methods of Legislation-Excessive Deference to Speaker-Difficulties of Administration-Certain Tendencies.
On October 16, 1916, a government by trained Americans
with the assistance of Filipinos was replaced by a government
of Filipinos with the advice and assistance of Americans. After
little more than a decade of preparation for self-government, the
country, under the Philippine Government Law of 1916, is entering upon a new period which may be characterized as one of
preparation for absolute independence. The slow processes of
evolution and growth through training and experience are being
hastened by congressional legislation based upon assumptions of
very doubtful validity.
96




THE COMMISSION GOVERNMENT


97


For fifteen years the Philippines had a system of commission
government very similar to that of many progressive American
cities. During the greater part of that formative and constructive period the United States Philippine Commission was,
under the president, responsible to Congress and the American
people for the success of the rather unique experiment in nation
building which was being tried in the Far East. It was the sole
legislative body for all parts of the country inhabited by nonChristians and Moros, and without its consent no legislation
could be enacted by the Philippine Legislature, of which it was
the upper house. As the original possessor of all legislative
power in the islands, it in law if not in fact retained for the entire Archipelago, exclusive legislative control over all subjects
which, in their nature, were not capable of division by territorial
lines.
The original Instructions to the commission, which had the
force of law, vested it with executive powers, some of which it
retained to the end. Even after the creation of the office of
governor-general, it was the sole agency through which the
insular government communicated with Congress. The secretaries of the several executive departments and the governorgeneral, made their annual reports to the commission, which reported to the secretary of war as the immediate representative
of the president.' But in practise, after the creation of the assembly, the power and prestige of the commission steadily declined until, during the closing years of its existence, there were
few so poor in spirit as to do it reverence.
The Schurman Commission, which was sent out by the State
Department in the spring of 1899, before the insurrection, was
an investigating body; its functions were inquisitorial and recommendatory. The second, the so-called Taft Commission, was
directed by President McKinley to proceed to Manila and organize a government on the lines laid down in his Instructions.
1The Administrative Code, enacted Feb. 24, 1916, requires the secretaries
of departments to make annual reports to the governor-general. The executive secretary is required to make an annual report "in representation of the
governor-general." The law does not say to whom this report shall be made.




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The form which the central government should take was determined by these Instructions and the commission was charged with
the duty of working out the details of the government in accordance with certain declared principles, and subject to the restraints
of a group of prohibitory and limiting rules which were the
equivalent of a bill of rights in an American constitution.
On September 1, 1900, the commission, as directed by its Instructions, assumed legislative authority over the Archipelago.
On July 4, 1901, the executive power of the military governor
in the pacified provinces passed to the president of the commission, with the title of civil governor.2 In the meantime provincial and municipal governments had been established and special governments authorized for the Moros and the wild men. At
the time of the inauguration of the civil governor the membership of the commission was increased from five to seven, by the
appointment of two Filipinos.3 Soon thereafter the work of the
executive was apportioned among four newly created executive
departments, designated as the Departments of the Interior, Commerce and Police, Finance and Justice, and Public Instruction,
each with its group of bureaus.4 Each American commissioner
became secretary or head of one of these departments. The
Bureaus of Audits, Civil Service, the city of Manila, and the
Executive Bureau, were left outside of the departmental organization and placed under the immediate supervision of the civil
governor.5
The institution and inauguration of the new legislature has
been already described. As its members were all Filipinos and
there was a majority of but one American in the commission,
which constituted the upper house, and the governor-general did
not have the veto power, the American control of legislation in
2 The military governor retained control of the unpacified provinces until
July 4, 1902.
3 Subsequently the number of commissions was increased to nine, including the governor-general, who was president of the commission.
4 Congress subsequently authorized the creation of another department,
but it was never established.
5 The title of civil governor was changed to that of governor-general by
Act of Congress.




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99


the Christian provinces rested on a very delicate foundation.6
Because of the membership of the assembly, it was thus impossible for the legislature to pass a law without the consent of the
Filipinos.
The judicial system had been reorganized and new judges and
justices appointed by the commission before the executive power
passed to the civil governor. As thus organized the insular government continued until the enactment by Congress of the socalled Organic Law of July 1, 1902, in which Congress wisely
contented itself with approving and ratifying what had been done
and resolving doubts and ambiguities through prohibitions, limitations, and grants of specific powers.
This Act of Congress maddvery material changes in the executive department. The appointing of justices of the Supreme 
Court was taken from the civil governor, and vested in the president of the United States, with the advice and consent of the
Senate. As the government had been instituted on the theory
that the Filipinos should be given the greatest possible part in
the administration of which Itey were capable of taking advantage, Congress took the radical step of providing for the early
creation of a legislature, one house of which should be composed entirely of delegates elected by Filipino constituencies.
It was recognized that for some years the Moros and wild men
would have to be governed under special laws, and they were left
under the control of the commission. In 1907 jurisdiction over
all parts of the Archipelago not inhabited by these people was
transferred to the new legislature and from that date until 1916
there were theoretically two distinct, independent legislative
bodies in the islands.
We find, thus, that from July 4, 1901, to October 16, 1916,
there was a fairly well-organized central government at Manila,
with the usual organs of a free popular government. The executive power was vested in a governor-general with the usual subordinates; the judicial power in a system of courts organized
6 The president could of course control the Filipino members of the commission, who were subject to removal.




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on the model of American courts; and the legislative power in
two bodies, one of which constituted the upper house of the other.
The country was divided into provinces in which there were
many municipalities and other local governmental bodies.
The Moro country was organized as the Moro Province with
its own legislative council and executive officials appointed
by the governor-general, but subject to the commission, which
existed until 1914, when it was reorganized as the Department of
Mindanao and Sulu. The laws passed by the legislative council
of the Moro Province did not go into effect until approved by
the commission.
The administrative work of the ins'ular government was
conducted through bureaus, grouped into four departments, each
under a secretary who was also a member of the commission.
Three bureaus remained under the immediate supervision of the
governor-general. There was a vice-governor appointed by the
president from among the secretaries, who became acting governor-general during the absence or disability of the governorgeneral. The members of the commission, the governor-general,
the vice-governor, the secretaries of the departments, the insular
auditor, the insular treasurer and the justices of the Supreme
Court, were appointed by the president of the United States, by
and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and held office at
the will of the president. All other officials were appointed by
the governor-general with the advice and consent of the commission.
Although the secretaries of the departments were selected from
the membership of the commission, the offices were distinct, different salaries being attached to each office. The vice-governor
received no additional compensation. Under this organization,
the heads of the executive departments, that is, the members of
the cabinet of the governor-general, had seats in both of the
legislative bodies.
The military government had created an unnecessarily elaborate bureau organization and this, to some extent, continued
through the whole of the period under consideration. When,




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101


the civil government was formed many of these bureaus were
abolished or consolidated, and in 1907, as the result of the work
of what was known as the head-hunting committee, a general
reorganization was effected. Thereafter no material changes
were made until the Harrison administration came into power
and abolished the Bureau of Navigation. The original distribution of bureaus among the departments was not very logical,
having been made apparently more with reference to the desires
and qualifications of the men who were to be the secretaries than
according to any natural method of grouping correlated subjects.
Comparatively few changes were made by the Administrative
Code which became effective in July, 1916.7 It designated the
governor-general as the department head of the Executive Bureau, the Bureau of Audits, the Bureau of Civil Service, and all
other unattached offices and administrative branches of the government. The speaker of the assembly was made "the department head of the permanent force of employees of the assembly
and employees of committees of the assembly acting during
recesses."
As organized at the end of the commission regime the Department of the Interior had executive control and supervision over
the Philippine Health Service, the Philippine General Hospital,
the Bureaus of Quarantine Service, Science, Weather, Lands, and
Forestry, the supervision of Fisheries, and general supervision
over the non-Christian inhabitants except in the Department of
Mindanao and Sulu. The administrative supervision vested in
the secretary of the interior over the non-Christians was to be
exercised through an officer known as the delegate of the secretary of the interior for the non-Christian people.8
The Department of Commerce and Police controlled the Philippine Constabulary, the Bureaus of Public Works, Posts, Labor,
Coast and Geodetic Survey, with supervision over all corpora7 Administrative Code, Chap. VI. For the changes made by the Philippine
Government Law of 1916, see Chap. XIX, infra.
8 This is a new office. Previously the secretary of the interior devoted a
great part of his personal attention to the non-Christian tribes.




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tions except as otherwise provided.9 The Department of Finance
and Justice controlled the Bureaus of Justice, Customs, Internal
Revenue, and the Treasury, with general supervision of banks,
banking, coinage and currency. The Department of Public
Instruction controlled the Bureaus of Education, Agriculture,
Supply, Prisons and Printing.
The judicial system, established by the military government
and reorganized by the commission, was but slightly changed by
the Act of July 1, 1902. The Supreme Court, the courts of first
instance, the municipal courts, and the justice courts, were retained, and the legislature was authorized to create other inferior
courts, a power which it subsequently exercised in the creation
of the court of land registration. The jurisdiction of the Supreme
Court was fixed by the Act of Congress and the independence
of the justices was secured by vesting the appointing power in
the president. The Supreme Court was composed of seven justices and the original arrangement of four Americans and three
Filipinos, one of whom was chief justice, has been retained to
the present time. It is the only governmental body in the government at the present time in which the Filipinos do not have
a majority.
The law is silent as to the tenure of office of the justices, and
consequently they hold during good behavior, as that phrase is
understood in legal nomenclature. Although appointed by the
president, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate,
they are not federal judges in the technical sense and are not
entitled to the benefits of the federal retiring law. Probably
they are removable from office at the will of the president, although custom has made their tenure permanent. This court has
always enjoyed the deserved confidence and respect of the country. It is a tribunal of great power and dignity with jurisdiction
equivalent approximately to that of the Supreme Court of a state
and of a United States circuit court of appeals combined.
There have been but few changes in the membership of the
9 This includes all corporations except those engaged in banking. Until
abolished the Bureau of Navigation was in this department.




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103


court. Chief Justice Arellano and Mr. Justice Torres have
served since 1901, when the present court was instituted. Mr.
Justice Mapa, also one of the original judges, served until 1914,
when he resigned to become secretary of finance and justice and
was succeeded by Manuel Araullo, who had been a judge of the
court of first instance in Manila. The Filipino members of the
court are all learned lawyers with the judicial outlook and
breadth of view that comes with a knowledge of different systems of jurisprudence.
The retention of the Spanish law, with its background of old
Spanish codes and the imposition thereon of the results of the
legislative activities of the commission and the Philippine Legislature, soon produced a rather confusing body of law which it
would have been extremely difficult for a court composed exclusively of Americans or Filipinos to deal with. This composite
law required a composite court and had there been no personal
and political reasons for so constituting the court, that alone
would have been sufficient. The members of the court have
worked harmoniously together and never, apparently, except in
one instance, have the justices differed on racial lines, and then
upon the question whether a Filipino should suffer life imprisonment or death, the Filipinos voting for death, and the Americans
for the lesser penalty. Three of the present American justices
had served an apprenticeship in the lower courts of the islands
and came to the appellate court with full knowledge of the Spanish laws and local conditions.
For judicial purposes the islands are divided into districts, in
each of which there is a court of first instance with one or more
judges. These courts correspond to the ordinary district or circuit courts of the states of the Union, with substantially the
same jurisdiction plus the admiralty, customs, patent, bankruptcy,
and other such special jurisdictions of the United States district
courts.'~ As there are no juries,"l the trial judges bear great re10 No federal courts were ever organized in the Philippines. On the title
Page of Blounts' The American Occupation of the Philippines, the author is
described as former judge of the United States District Court in the Philip



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sponsibilities, relieved to some extent, however, by the law which
requires that the record of every criminal case in which the death
penalty is imposed, shall be forwarded to the Supreme Court and
there approved before the sentence is actually executed. On ordinary appeals by the defendant, in criminal cases, the Supreme
Court may affirm, reverse, reduce or increase the sentence imposed by the trial court, and even impose the death sentence when
the defendant has appealed from a sentence of imprisonment
only. The judges of these courts are appointed by the governorgeneral subject to confirmation by the commission and hold office
during good behavior, subject to removal by the governor-general
with the consent of the commission. During the Taft regime
great care was taken to divide the judicial offices as nearly as
possible equally between American and Filipino lawyers, and a
judge who did reasonably well was secure in his place. While
there have been charges of executive pressure being brought to
bear upon judges to influence their official actions, there was
little, if any, justification therefor. The judges of first instance
are assigned to districts at the will of the governor-general and,
as the salaries vary in different districts, to say nothing of the
desirability of living and working in the large cities, the chief
executive has it in his power to express his discontent with a
judge and, in effect, reduce his salary by transferring him to a
less desirable field of activity. The power is a dangerous one
but it has been seldom abused.
There are some features connected with the recent reorganization of the judiciary which are of doubtful propriety. Shortly
after Mr. Harrison became governor-general the entire judicial
system was revised. The law under which this was done, which
was drafted by a commission that, for several years, has been
engaged in the arduous task of codifying the laws of the islands,
redistricted the country, provided for a number of additional
judges, abolished the court of land registration, and made its
pines. As no such court ever existed the statement is evidently a misprint.
The author was one of the judges of the court of first instance.
11 The assessors, authorized by law, are seldom, if ever, utilized.




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105


judges members of the court of first instance and retired all
judges at the age of sixty-five without a pension. It seems to
have created an unnecessary number of judges, thus burdening
the country with additional expense.
A very unusual and indefensible provision, effecting the personnel of the court, resulted disastrously to some of the older and
more experienced American judges, and the charge was freely
made that back of the legislation was the sinister motive of displacing American judges and providing additional offices for
aspiring Filipino lawyers. The law simply legislated all the
judges of the courts of first instance out of office by providing
that they should be commissioned anew by the governor-general.
A number of the American judges resigned and there was much
dissatisfaction.'2 Governor-General Harrison reported that all
the judges who did not resign were in fact reappointed, but
the assignment to districts was such as to induce some forced
resignations, thus creating vacancies to be filled by Filipinos.
The effect was to increase the already great unrest among the
Americans, to the serious injury of the service. The vacating,
by an act of the legislature, of the commissions of the entire judiciary of the islands below the Supreme Court and leaving the
question of their reappointment to a new governor-general who
had just arrived in the islands and who was supposed to receive
his information with reference to qualifications from Filipino
sources only, was a serious blow to the principle of the independence of the judiciary, upon which the system had been built.
Great care had been taken to secure honest and efficient justices of the peace. Their jurisdiction is practically the same as
that of similar officers in the United States. Justices and auxiliary justices are all appointed by the governor-general for each
municipality and district and the cities of Manila and Baguio, and
hold office during good behavior, under the present law.13  No
person is eligible to appointment unless he is (1) at least twenty12 See the letters of Judge J. C. Jenkins in New York Tribune, July 21
and Aug. 8, 1916; also letter of Secretary of War Baker, New York Times,
July 31, 1916.
13 Administration Code, Chap. II, Art. I, Sec. 239.




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three years of age, (2) a citizen of the Philippine Islands or of
the United States, (3) of good moral character, and (4) admitted by the Supreme Court to practise law, or have completed
the course of study in a recognized law school, passed the civil
service examination for clerk of court, or passed the examination which is held in each province by a board composed of a
judge of the court of first instance, the provincial fiscal and a practising lawyer appointed by the judge. Only a member of the
bar is eligible to appointment in Manila or in any provincial
capital.4 The examination requirements are not enforced when
the appointee is an officer of the United States Army,15 or when
no one having the necessary qualifications is willing to accept the
office. In such cases temporary appointments are made.
Justices of the peace unless otherwise provided, receive salaries of from three hundred to four hundred eighty dollars
per year. All fees are paid into the treasury. In Manila the
justice is paid a salary of one thousand eight hundred dollars and
in the provincial capitals amounts running from five hundred dollars to one thousand two hundred dollars. The judges of the
courts of first instance exercise certain administrative control
over the justices of the peace.
Immediately after the civil government was established English was made the official language, but for reasons which seemed
satisfactory to the commission, Spanish was retained as the official language of the courts until the year 1906. There was bitter
opposition on the part of the American members of the bar, to
this concession, but it was a very just and reasonable law as, to
have made English the official language of the courts at that time
would have practically eliminated the Filipino lawyers and necessitated the appointing of Americans only as judges. There
were not enough natives who spoke and read English to fill the
various executive and clerical positions connected with the courts
and it seemed but fair to retain the Spanish language until the
14The justice courts in Manila, Iloilo and Cebu are allowed two clerks,
who receive salaries from the cities.
15 In the remote islands it has occasionally been found necessary to make
such appointments.




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107


native lawyers could learn English and the public schools could
train young men for clerical and other minor positions.
The opposition to the English language has always been much
more active than is popularly supposed, and under strong pressure the time when it should become the official language of the
courts was extended until 1912. By that time the assembly, then,
as always, dominated by the party which was maneuvering for
independence, was opposing everything that suggested further
Americanization of the country, and as there could be no legislation without the consent of the assembly, the controversy ended
in a compromise under which both languages are used.
In the executive departments English has been used from the
first and of course it has been the language of the commission
although certain Filipino members were never able to speak it.
In the assembly there probably never was a word of English
spoken. The proceedings have always been in Spanish and the
elaborate Diario de Sessiones which corresponds to the Congressional Record, is printed in the Spanish language only. However, under the law the English translations of the statutes are
the official copies, and as the translators are Americans, the laws,
in their official form, take the phraseology of, and thus read like,
American statutes.l6 One result of the creation of the new legislature under the 1916 law, with a membership solely Filipino, will
be that the laws will be Spanish in form and substance as well as
language, and that the English language will be ignored by the
legislative department of the government.
The peculiar division of the legislative power between the
Philippine Commission and the Philippine Legislature resulted
in considerable friction between the Americans and the Filipinos.
The commission has been criticized by certain members of Congress who had no just conception of its nature, for lack of
deference to the assembly. In fact it was the excessive deference
shown the assembly which led to the elimination of the commission. The jurisdiction of each body was determined by territo16 The statutes and also the decisions of the Supreme Court are published
in both English and Spanish, in separate volumes.




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rial limits and not by the subject-matter of legislation. Each
was supposed to have exclusive control over all subjects of legislation within the territory where certain conditions existed. Congress defined the conditions but left the determination of the fact
of their existence to the commission which, at the time, was the
sole legislative body. As was to be expected, the Philippine Legislature, or, rather, the lower house thereof, the assembly, was,
from the day of its institution, jealous of the authority exercised
by the commission, and constantly maneuvered to increase its
powers and prestige at the expense of the commission.
But legally the commission retained all the power of which it
was not deprived by the Act of Congress. The president had
transferred that part of the military power which was legislative
in its character from the military governor to the commission,
which was thereby vested with all the legislative power necessary
and proper for the government of the islands, subject to certain
express and implied restrictions. The Act of July 1, 1902, required the commission to prepare the way for the new Philippine
Legislature, and declared that, after it was convened and organized, "all the legislative power heretofore conferred on the
Philippine Commission in that part of the islands not inhabited
by Moros or other non-Christian tribes shall be vested in a legislature consisting of two houses, the Philippine Commission and
the Philippine Assembly." The effect was to carve out of the
territory over which the commission then had general jurisdiction, certain parts thereof and to transfer to the newly created
body the legislative power which had previously been exercised
by the commission within that particular territory. The division
of power was territorial, no direct reference being made to any
subject-matter of legislation.
The commission continued as originally created, with the executive power transferred to the governor-general to be exercised
in certain instances with the advice and consent of the commission, but deprived of that part of its legislative power which it
had formerly exercised within the so-called Christian provinces.
It retained all its original legislative power which had not been




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109


transferred to the Philippine Legislature. The jurisdiction of
the new legislature was limited to the part which had been carved
out of the whole and that part was determined territorially and
not according to subject-matter. The residuum of power remained with the original possessor of the entirety and when, for
any reason, the legislature could not act because of want of
power the legal right to act was reserved to the commission.
There are certain subjects of legislation which are incapable
of division upon territorial lines. They are unit subjects. Laws
relating to the currency and coinage, and the gold standard fund,
which exists for the maintenance of the parity of the silver
coinage with the gold standard necessarily affect the entire country. The care, custody, investment and handling of the gold
standard fund was a proper subject of legislation but it had no
relation to particular territory as determined by the presence or
absence of either Christians or non-Christians.  If the commission as a legislative body had no power to enact laws with
reference to it then the legislature, as the legislative body for a
certain defined territory, certainly had no power. Neither could
the cooperation of two distinct legislative bodies increase the
powers of either. The enactments of each body had to find their
validity in the sources of their legislative authority. For illustration, as the legislature of a state in the Union has no power to
enact a law regulating interstate commerce, the enactment of an
identic law on the same subject by every state legislature in the
Union would not legalize such an act. As in numbers, so in
jurisdiction, nothing added to nothing ad infinitum produces
nothing.
It was contended that the commission could not properly appropriate money for use in the non-Christian territory which had
been raised in part by taxation within the territory under the
jurisdiction of the legislature. But participation by the legislature in making appropriations for the non-Christian provinces
would have been to extend its legislative power over such provinces in violation of the express provisions of the Act of Congress.
If the commission could not appropriate money out of the insular




110


THE PHILIPPINES


treasury which was created by Congress for the entire Archipelago, for use in the non-Christian provinces, it could not govern
such provinces as Congress requires it to do. It was no answer
to say that the commission as the upper house of the legislature
could prevent an undue proportion of the money in the treasury
from being appropriated for use in the Christian provinces leaving nothing for the territory under its control. It certainly could
have done that, but the assembly could, by the same token, have
prevented the appropriation of any money for the use of the
non-Christian provinces. It would have been in the power of
the assembly to stop the wheels of government unless the commission was willing, in the interests of peace and harmony, to
accede to its demands. The result would have been a complete
deadlock and necessarily an appeal to Congress. So long as the
Filipinos were in a condition of pupilage it was proper and essential that the commission, as the real representative of American sovereignty and responsibility, should have the ultimate word
on questions affecting that sovereignty.
In 1908 the commission was enlarged by the appointment of
two additional Filipino members, thus leaving the Americans
with but one majority. Under President Taft the Filipino members of the commission, with one exception, were members of the
political party which was in favor of, and in sympathy with,
present American control. But President Wilson promptly revised the entire commission and reconstituted the body with four
American and five Filipino members, all of whom were openly
opposed to American sovereignty and in favor of immediate
independence.17 As thus constituted, the commission was worse
than useless for the purpose for which it was originally created
and it was very properly abolished by the Philippine Government
Law of 1916. The unfortunate loss of prestige by the commission began before Mr. Taft ceased to be president and was due,
partly at least, to his disposition to regard the governor-general
17 The Report of the Philippine Commission for the Year, 1915, is signed
by Francis Burton Harrison, president, and Rafael Palma, Victorino Mapa,
Jaime C. de Veyra, V. Ilustre and V. Singson Encarnacion, members.




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as the government of the Philippines and the members of the
commission as merely conveniences to have about when a divided
responsibility was desired.
The powers of the governor-general during the commission
regime were conferred in very general terms or left to be implied
from the nature of the office. The executive order of July 1,
1901, directed that the president of the Philippine Commission,
who was appointed civil governor, should exercise the executive
authority in all civil affairs in the government theretofore exercised by the military government. The latter, as the representative of the president under his war powers, had been vested with
all the executive authority which was necessary for the government of the country while it was subject to military control.
This authority was to be exercised in conformity to the Instructions to the Philippine Commission of April 7, 1900, and subject
to the approval and control of the secretary of war as the immediate representative of the president.18
The president of the commission was appointed civil governor
and this practise was continued although there was no law which
required the two positions to be filled by the same person.19
The Act of July 1, 1902, ratified the acts of the president in
creating these offices with authority "to exercise the powers of
government to the extent and in the manner and form set forth
in the executive order of June 21, 1901"-that is, to exercise
the powers previously vested in the military governor. Congress
conferred no other powers upon the governor-general2 until it
18 This order, according to its strict terms, vested the executive power in
the president of the commission as such and not in the civil governor. The
latter was authorized merely to exercise the power to appoint, which had
been vested in the commission and the military governor.
19The office of vice-governor was created by an executive order dated
October 29, 1901. Subsequently Congress changed the title of the chief
executive from civil governor to governor-general, but evidently by oversight left the title of vice-governor unchanged. Act of February 6, 1905,
Sec. 8. Mr. Wright was the first to bear the title of governor-general. Mr.
Taft was civil governor.
20 By ratifying the act of the commission creating the four executive departments, Congress conferred general supervision over the heads of those
departments on the governor-general and approved the powers which had
already been conferred on the governor-general by the various acts of the
commission.




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THE PHILIPPINES


passed the Philippine Government Law of 1916. His authority
had therefore to be exercised in conformity with certain specific
instructions of the president and subject to the approval and control of the secretary of war who, however, could confer no new
powers.
The powers and duties which have been imposed by the local
legislative bodies are exceedingly numerous and often inconsequential. His express approval is required of innumerable acts,
ranging from those of the greatest importance to matters of pettiest detail. It became the common practise to insert in a proposed law to which there was reason to expect opposition in the
assembly, a provision that it should not go into effect, or that
something authorized thereby should not be done, without the
express approval of the governor-general. Masses of unimportant details were thrown into the executive office where the
approval of His Excellency was generally expressed by his secretary or a clerk.
Another practise which, while plausible on its face, was violative of the foundation principles of legislative law and procedure grew up in the legislature and produced unfortunate results in connection with the finances. Appropriations can only
be legally made by the legislature, and the Organic Law provides
that no money shall be expended except in pursuance of an ap
propriation previously made. When the Payne Tariff Law went
into effect in 1909, it was feared that it might temporarily reduce the revenues of the Philippine government and thus interfere with the policy of internal improvement which was just being
launched. If the revenues should fall off it would be necessary
to retrench; if not, the work could proceed as planned. As a
precautionary measure, there was attached to the Public Works
Appropriation Bill a provision that certain money appropriated
should not be expended until "released" by the governor-general.
Fortunately, the tariff law did not appreciably reduce the revenues
and the money thus appropriated was made available and expended. It was a proper enough thing to do in the face of an
emergency, but thereafter the legislature continued to make all




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113


sorts of appropriations with the proviso that the money should
not be expended until released by the governor-general, thus
transferring to the executive the power to appropriate as well as
expend the public funds. The expenditure of an appropriation
was already under the control of the executive. The money was
in law appropriated regardless of the proviso and was no longer
in the treasury and "not otherwise appropriated." The result was
to confuse the legislature and the public and lead to the making
of appropriations which would not otherwise have been made.
One result of this method of making appropriations was described by Mr. Warwick Greene, the director of public works:
"We have been left in doubt even after the permanent improvements appropriations have been made because of the proviso that
they were subject to release by the governor-general. These appropriations, in accordance with the intent of this provision, have
been released only after it was fully assured that the revenues
would provide ample funds. As a consequence the bureau is
kept in doubt from month to month in any given year as to the
exact funds that will be available for expenditure. It results that
at times the organization of the bureau is too large for the work
in hand, and at other times the work crowds on the bureau too
fast and we find the organization too small to handle it to advantage. Our technical personnel are largely civil service employes, who can not be laid off when the work is slack, nor would
it be desirable to do so. On the other hand, it is absolutely impossible to increase our technical personnel at short notice, as for
the most part they must be secured from the United States, and
are generally of little service to us until they have had at least
six months' experience in the islands. Often, too, the bureau is
comparatively idle during the part of the dry season when work
can be most economically carried on; later, funds are made
available and strong pressure is brought to bear on the bureau
to start work at once, with the consequence that construction is
often prolonged into the rainy season, and as a result the cost is
increased."
It was desirable that the office of governor-general should




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loom very large in the eyes of the public and that the prestige of
the office should be maintained. But it was not necessary that
the governor-general of the Philippines should be made more
powerful and independent than the governor-general of India,
who is required to exercise his power in connection with an executive council. In the beginning under military government the
governor was in a very real sense the representative of the
president of the United States and wielded an indefinite and
almost despotic power. Mr. Taft, as civil governor and subsequently as secretary of war and president, gradually magnified
the office and minimized the importance of the commission. He
also seems in practise to have allowed the governor-general to
appoint and remove the other members of the commission,21 on
the entirely erroneous theory, it is respectfully submitted, that
the commissioners, although holding under independent appointments by the president, constituted the cabinet of the governorgeneral, thus delegating to the governor-general the power of
appointment which Congress declared should be exercised by the
president himself with the advice and consent of the Senate. A
governor-general was thus in practise able to secure the removal
from office, without notice and an opportunity to be heard, of
members of the commission and heads of departments, on his
mere representation that they differed from him on matters of
public policy.22 Had it been the intention of the law to vest this
power in a governor-general it is probable that he would have
been authorized to appoint the commissioners or at least the heads
of the departments who served in an executive capacity under
21 It seems that there was a good precedent for this, as President McKinley permitted Mr. Taft to select the other members of the first commission.
Olcott's Life of McKinley, II, p. 178.
22 There are certain things which inhere in our conceptions of justice, and
one is that no man shall be condemned unheard. In a celebrated case Mr.
Justice Fortesque, whose sense of justice seems to have been more highly
developed than that of the president, said: "The laws of God and man both
give a party an opportunity to make defense if he has any. I remember to
have heard it observed by a very learned man upon such an action that even
God himself did not pass sentence upon Adam before he was called on to
make his defense. 'Adam,' says God, 'Where art thou? Hast thou not eaten
of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou should not eat?' And the
same question was put to Eve also." Bentleys Case, 2 Ld. Raymond 1334.




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115


him, and constituted his actual cabinet, as the president does at
Washington. A commissioner with a portfolio received a salary
in excess of that paid a member of the president's cabinet and it
would seem to have been the intention that the president should
select for the office a man of a type who would be expected and
entitled to form and express an independent judgment upon public questions without fear of losing his position through secret
representations conveyed to the ear of the president, that he was
not working harmoniously with the governor-general. The president's theory of the relation between the commissioners and the
governor-general tended to cultivate subserviency and to convert the holders of great offices into timid clerks. The secretary
of a department and member of the cabinet was of course entirely subject to the orders of the governor-general as the chief
executive, but as a commissioner with legislative duties only to
perform he should have been regarded as entitled to exercise an
independent judgment and act accordingly.
The prestige of office is an important factor in the East where
the people are accustomed to see high officials vested with real
personal power. It was necessary to vest great power in and impose great responsibility upon the governor-general but it was
neither safe nor consistent with American theories of government to make an autocrat of him. And it was at least questionable policy to trust the success of the American experiment
in colonial government to one man and then deprive him of the
disinterested and independent advice of his associates.
Nevertheless, there were comparatively few instances in which
the governors-general appointed by McKinley, Roosevelt and
Taft abused their great powers to the injury of individuals.
Under the commission government the governor-general had
no veto power but he was an active working member of both legislative bodies. Naturally his influence there was great and farreaching. But it is probable that it was seriously damaged by
the hand-to-hand contests with the politicians of the assembly
with whom he was brought into close personal relations. The
trading, dickering and dealing, which was rendered necessary




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by the hostile or passive attitude of the assembly, might better
have been left to any one other than the governor-general. Possibly such experiences in securing desirable legislation tended to
cultivate a lack of reverence for the laws and a willingness to
ignore them whenever possible.
The disposition of all executive officers to minimize the force
of legislative restrictions on the expenditure of money was well
illustrated in the Philippines where the executive has felt responsible for the making as well as the execution of the laws.
It was always possible that there might be an energetic governorgeneral, with no knowledge of the law, little appreciation of government as a science, and a vaguely concealed contempt for an
amateur legislative body which had the power and disposition
to obstruct, who would be inclined to treat such restrictions with
slight respect. Where there was room for the construction of
a statute such an executive would jump at any theory, however
attenuated, which would give him the greatest liberty of action.
The appropriation of money is the most important of all legislative powers, and Congress provided that in the Philippines no
money should be expended except in pursuance of a legal appropriation. So long as the Philippine Commission was the sole
legislative body, and the governor-general and the heads of the
executive departments under him were members of and constituted a majority of that body, there was no difficulty in
apportioning the revenues in a satisfactory manner. But the
institution of the assembly injected a disturbing element into the
situation. Congress realized that this body would be composed
entirely of Filipinos who might attempt to enforce their wishes
by refusing to make the appropriations necessary for the support
of the government. To guard against such a contingency it
provided that:
"If at the termination of any session the appropriations necessary for the support of government shall not have been made,
an amount equal to the sums appropriated in the last appropriation bills for such purposes, shall be deemed to be appropriated;
and until the legislature shall act in such behalf the treasurer may,




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117


with the advice of the governor-general, make the payments necessary for the purposes aforesaid."
By the year 1911 the antagonism between the assembly and the
commission had become so great that the former refused to concur in the appropriation bills and as the commission felt it necessary to adhere to its position, the current appropriation bill
failed to pass. The effect was to continue automatically the appropriations which had been passed for the fiscal year ending
June 30, 1911.
It would seem that the above quoted language of the Act of
Congress could not well be misunderstood. In his speech at
the opening of the first session of the Philippine Legislature in
1907, Secretary Taft said: "If there is not an agreement as to
appropriations between the commission and the assembly, then
the appropriations of the previous year will be continued."23
As Secretary Root24 has said:
"The intention was to continue the former appropriation just
as if the former appropriation bill had been re-enacted and there
was no intention to put into the hands of the executive a gross
sum equal to the gross appropriation, leaving him to appropriate
it as he saw fit."
However, Governor-General Forbes had other views and assumed control over a sum of money equal to the gross amount
23 Address at the opening of the first Philippine legislature. Rept. Phil.
Cor., 1907, Pt. I, p. 224.
24 On November 6, 1913, Senator Root wrote with reference to an opinion
I prepared for the Insular-Auditor (printed in Congressional Record, February, 1913), "I have examined carefully the opinion which you rendered
regarding the meaning and effect of the provision in the Philippine Act... I can not very well dispossess myself of the intention that we
had when the bill was drafted as I knew it. The intention was to continue
the former appropriation just as if the former appropriation bill had been
re-enacted and there was no intention to put into the hands of the executive
a gross sum equal to the gross amount of the former appropriation, leaving
him to appropriate it as he saw fit. I do not myself think that the language
of the act expresses such an idea and I agree with the view which you state
in your very clear and comprehensive opinion."
If there ever was any question as to this being the correct construction of
the statute, it has been resolved by the Philippine Government Act of August
29, 1916. See infra, p. 439.




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appropriated by the former appropriation bill and reapportioned
and distributed it for the support of the government in such
manner as he thought proper. As he subsequently stated, "I exercised my will and judgment in the application of the $8,713,894."
Incidentally he took advantage of the occasion to create over a
hundred new offices to which he affixed such salaries as he
thought proper.25 It was without doubt a gross usurpation of
legislative power. A complacent nisi prius judge in Porto Rico,
after holding that his court had no jurisdiction, had expressed the
opinion that the governor of Porto Rico had such power under a
similar provision of the Act of Congress relating to that island.
This was seized on as authority. The idea appealed to the governor-general because it enabled him to apportion the money free
from legislative restriction. It also impressed certain of his subordinates who felt confident that their departments or bureaus
would receive more favorable consideration by the governor-general than they had received by the legislature. Refusing to ask
for the opinion of his constitutional legal adviser, the attorneygeneral, and with the approval of certain subordinates in the
War Department, although against the advice of lawyers in his
cabinet, the governor-general proceeded to rewrite the former appropriation bill into what he called his "Advice" to the treasurer,
thus practically enacting a new appropriation bill according to his
own ideas.
The motives which actuated the governor-general in this matter need not be questioned. He undoubtedly believed that he
could take the $8,713,894 and use it to better advantage than
could the legislature. But the result was very unfortunate for
him and for his administration. The assembly passed a resolution of censure practically charging the misuse of public funds,
25 After his action had been criticized the governor-general appointed a
committee of three, of which the executive secretary was one, to study the
legal question. This committee made the interesting discovery that the new
jobs were employments, not offices, because offices could be created by the
legislature only. Having been created, they must be something. The legislature only could create offices. They had not been created by the legislature; they must therefore be employments. Hence as they were merely employments they could be legally created by the governor-general.




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119


which it cabled to Washington, thus further complicating the
relations of the executive with the Filipino delegates. It was all
important that the American officials who were assuming to train
an undeveloped people in the art of government, should act in a
spirit of strict legality. A strained construction of the law which
resulted in the transfer of such important power of a legislative
nature from the legislature to the chief executive, in violation of
established principles of constitutional government, was certain
to, and certainly did, leave a very bad impression.
In 1912 the legislature again failed to pass the appropriation
bill for current expenses. The governor-general was then on
leave of absence and acting Governor-General Gilbert prepared
another appropriation bill under the title of "Advice" on the principles which had been applied by Governor-General Forbes.
There never was any justification for these rather high-handed
proceedings. They were unnecessary and did much to injure the
administration and to induce Governor-General Forbes' rather
peremptory removal from office by President Wilson.26 Soon
after Harrison became governor-general the legislature passed an
26 Mr. Forbes was seriously ill for several months before he left the
islands on leave and it is charitable to assume that his naturally good judgment was somewhat affected by his troubles. Shortly before retiring from
office he issued and circulated an ill-advised pamphlet in defense of his administration. In it he attempted to throw the responsibility for his misconstruction of the Act of Congress relating to appropriations upon Secretary of
War Dickinson.
The records show that on October 11, 1911, Governor-General Forbes
called Secretaries Gilbert, Worcester, Araneta and Elliott together and requested their opinions as to whether he had the power to redistribute the
amount of the previous appropriation bill. Had a ruling been made before
that time by the secretary of war the question would have been closed. Mr.
Forbes then produced the letter from the auditor written in response to his
own request, to which he refers in his pamphlet. There was a difference of
opinion among the secretaries and the question of asking for instructions
from the secretary of war was fully considered. Mr. Forbes was then requested to ask for the opinion of the attorney-general, which he declined to
do. On the following day the matter was submitted to Washington by cable
and the chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs (a general, not a lawyer)
Promptly replied that "the Porto Rico case governs." Judge Dickinson informs me that he has no recollection of advising the governor-general with
reference to the construction of the provision, and as he ceased to be secretary of war several months before the question was raised at the consultation
of October 11, it is reasonably certain that Mr. Forbes was mistaken.




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appropriation bill appropriating $7,351,662.88 "in compensation
for the services of the insular government" for the fiscal year
ending December 31, 1914.27 The inference from the peculiar
language is that the assembly had by that time convinced itself
that the insular government was its employee and that the laborer
was worthy of his hire.
Very close relations existed between the office of the governorgeneral in charge of the private secretary, and later of the secretary to the governor-general, and the executive bureau. During
the latter years of the commission regime the distinction between
the two offices seems almost to have disappeared. The executive
bureau had jurisdiction over matters relating to patents, copyrights and trade-marks and was charged with the care of the
archives and records of the government, the custody of the Great
Seal and, most important of all, with the general supervision of
the provincial and municipal governments and their officers.
He also does the work which, in an independent government,
falls to a foreign office. He conducts the correspondence with the
secretary of war, and with foreign governments and foreign officers in connection with extradition and other matters in which
the Philippine government is interested. Subject to the civil service law and the supervising power of the governor-general, the
executive secretary controls the personnel of the government
other than such as are appointed by the president of the United
States. Because of his close relations with the governor-general
the executive secretary is always one of the most important subordinate officers of the government. He is also in closer personal
touch with the Filipino officials and employees than any other insular officer and during the decade preceding the advent of the
Harrison administration the executive secretary was largely responsible for the nature of the relations which existed between
the Filipinos and the administration. He was the faithful, efficient eliminator of friction and adjuster of difficulties of a
personal nature. It is very probable that but for the tact and
knowledge of native character possessed by Executive Secretary
27 Act No. 2319.




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121


Carpenter the assembly and the commission would more frequently have been in a condition of deadlock.
The insular auditor and the insular treasurer were appointed by
the president with the approval of the commission and through
these officers the secretary of war was supposed to exercise an
independent control over the finances. In the case of the treasurer it amounted to little, as his powers were mostly ministerial
and were exercised under the direction of the secretary of finance
and justice who was responsible to the governor-general. The
office of treasurer has been well administered.
The insular auditor was, by the Act of Congress, given final
jurisdiction over all matters of accounting and his decisions
thereon were made final and conclusive. He corresponded freely
with the secretary of war to whom he was required to make frequent reports on financial conditions. In addition to control over
the accounting system the auditor had the power of a comptroller
of the treasury. However, the independence of the auditor was
in practise largely a matter of theory. As the head of the Bureau of Audits he was subject to the general control of the
governor-general and when any serious controversy arose between the auditor and the governor-general Washington generally sustained the latter. One auditor who clashed with the
chief executive was removed from office and his successor who
criticized the financial policy of Governor-General Forbes was
effectively suppressed by the action of the president in practically
delegating the power of removal to the governor-general, upon
whose actions the auditor was by law required to exercise a
check. It is needless to say that thereafter the particular auditor
felt no independent responsibility for the financial conditions.
Of course the auditor was generally unpopular with the other officers of the government with whose operations his duties required
him frequently to interfere.
It has been said that "the mysteries of accounting, like the
mysteries of religion, must be handled by the uninitiated with
reverence."  With all due and proper reverence it may be recorded that while the accounting system of the Bureau of Audits




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was praised by the experts it was frequently damned by those
who were seeking accurate information as to the condition of appropriations in which they were interested. The system was so
scientifically perfect that at one time accounting threatened to
become the principal occupation of the government.
It was entirely proper for Congress to provide for Filipino
resident commissioners at Washington. It is doubtful, however,
whether it fully realized that it was establishing quite so efficient
an agency through which the assembly and the anti-expansionists
in the United States could accelerate the independence movement
and throw the insular government machine out of gear. The politically disaffected Filipinos were thus enabled to maintain their
own agents at Washington. As it has worked out, Aguinaldo
might as well have been accorded the right to maintain diplomatic
representatives near the American government. The delegates
were accepted as quasi members of the House of Representatives
and from that position were able to set fires in the rear of the
Americans and Filipinos whom the president and Senate had
selected and made responsible for the success of the local administration. Although elected by the Philippine Legislature they had
little if any real connection with the insular government. They
represented the dominant party in the assembly, which was always
antagonistic to the commission and to the American government,
the opposition in the Philippines and the anti-imperialist element
in the United States. It is probable that Mr. Quezon had as many
articulate constituents in New England as in the Philippines and
he represented them all with great skill and ability. The Organic
Law required that each house of the legislature should designate
a resident commissioner but that both commissioners should be
elected by the two houses. With the growing confidence in its
power which came to' the assembly, it soon claimed the right to
select both commissioners on the theory that they were to represent not the insular government but the Filipino people and that
the assembly was the special guardian of the interests of the people. But for the intervention of President Taft it is probable that
this claim would have been conceded by the commission, and




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123


Seficr Legarda, one of the sincerest friends the Americans ever
had, sacrificed to the exigencies of some imaginary political necessity. The deadlock which resulted was broken by Congress by
a joint resolution extending the terms of the incumbents until
their successors should be elected.28
The institution of the assembly and the division of the legislative power greatly increased the difficulties of administration.
Nevertheless, for a time the commission and the assembly managed to get along together fairly well. While the delegates to the
assembly were familiarizing themselves with their duties the two
bodies worked in harmony, but as the assembly gained confidence
in its own powers it began to assert itself until it finally claimed
the right to the final word on all matters which were supposed to
affect the Filipino people.
The laws enacted by the Philippine Legislature compare very
favorably with those of the average state legislature, but the encomiums which have been so freely passed on it take no account
of the existence of an upper house or of the influence and work of
the American members of the commission. The legislative work
of the assembly was subject to constant supervision and direction
without which many foolish bills would have become laws. Some
at least of the best statutes for which the assembly has been
given credit were prepared for introduction into the assembly by
the American commissioners or by American lawyers in the attorney-general's office. It must not be forgotten that, regardless of
the forms, the assembly, like the entire Filipino element, was in a
state of pupilage. It was in training.
Although the commission was one of the independent chambers
of the legislature it really acted as a sort of advisory body shaping
legislation and as far as possible keeping the legislature out of
trouble. The assembly held its public sessions in the marble hall
of the Ayuntamiento and devoted much time to speech-making
and the other ornamental parts of legislative work. The commis28 The assembly published a pamphlet in which the arguments in favor of
its views were elaborated. See Eleccion de Comisionados Residentes en los
Estados Unidos, etc. (Manila, 1911).




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sion met behind closed doors in the office of the governor-general
and the public was admitted only when hearings were had on certain proposed measures. Although laws were passed according
to the usual legislative procedure, its sessions were rather consultative than deliberative. No speeches were ever made in the
commission. The Diario de Sesiones contained the proceedings
of the assembly only. It was as though the Congressional Record
should contain nothing of what occurred in the Senate.29 The
legislative meetings of the commission were very informal. Prior
to 1911, when a large table was installed, the commissioners occupied primitive rocking chairs which were drawn up in an intimate
fashion about the governor-general's desk.
Great deference was always shown the assembly and all its
constituent elements. It was part of the general policy. The
office of speaker was magnified out of all proportion to the importance of its functions. Mr. Taft when secretary of war described the speaker as the second person in rank in the islands
to the great disgust of the vice-governor and the major-general
commanding the army, and their respective ladies. The speaker
was given the permanent use of the spacious and ornate room in
the Ayuntamiento formerly occupied by the Spanish governorsgeneral while the American governor-general occupied modest
offices elsewhere in the crowded building. For presiding over
the lower house of the legislature during ninety days in each year
the speaker was paid an annual salary of eight thousand dollars
and given control of a large contingent fund which he might use
for purely political purposes. The appropriations asked by the
assembly for its own use were freely passed by the commission.
A committee of the legislature, the members of which were appointed by the speaker and who received fifteen dollars per day,
were authorized to sit while the legislature was not in session, for
the purpose of considering desirable legislation. Although it was
a form of graft, the commission joined in appropriating the
money because the situation was beyond its control and it did not
deem it policy to quarrel with the assembly.
29 An outline of the proceedings of the commission was published annually
under the name of The Journal of the Commission.




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125


After an equal power in legislation had been granted to the Filipinos it was absolutely necessary to get along with them and the
only way to get legislation and keep the governmental machine
going was to cater to their wishes. During the later years of
the Forbes administration legislation became largely a matter of
private arrangement between the governor-general and the
speaker. The governor-general was, of course, anxious to secure
the passage of necessary laws. Mr. Osmefia, the speaker and
leader of his political party, was greatly interested in his party
and his own position and in legislation which would bring nearer
the day of independence. He generally maneuvered so that every
important law, or the conditions of its enactment, was in some
subtle way made to strengthen native influence in the government.
The influence exercised by Osmenia was often insidious but none
the less real and effective. The Filipinos regarded him as the real
head of the government. The situation was very difficult and
probably the governor-general can not properly be criticized for
showing excessive deference to the speaker and his party. It
was necessary in order to secure legislation which was required
to carry out the policy of the administration.
It will be apparent to the most casual reader that after the
institution of the assembly the government was not an easy one
to administer. It was complicated by conflicting legal theories
and impeded by diverse racial interests. The American administrators were charged with the duty of satisfying the political
aspirations of the Filipinos to a certain indefinite point only. It
was an impossible task; the balance was too delicately adjusted.
The grant of either more or less power to the Filipinos would
have made the work easier. After giving due consideration to
the peculiar conditions which existed from the institution of the
assembly to the end of the Forbes administration the student of
Philippine affairs must admit that the government was administered with sincere regard for the interests of the Filipinos and
the credit of the United States. The results, other than possibly
the political ones, were all to the credit of the American government and the Filipinos who worked in harmony with it.




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The administrative organism never hardened into a bureaucracy although it had some of the faults and also the virtues of a
bureaucratic government. The civil service lacked the education,
special training and esprit de corps which makes that of India so
remarkably efficient. The policy which required the constant
weeding out of Americans after they had been trained for the
service to make places for qualified or potentially qualified Filipinos necessarily affected the efficiency of the service. It was
the price paid for the popular government which is supposed to
furnish compensation in other forms.
The fifteen years of commission government were experimental
but constructive. The officials, from the governor-general to the
lowest clerk had to be trained for the special work in hand. Certain tendencies very soon became apparent and persistent throughout the period under consideration. It was inevitable that the
power of the executive should steadily grow. The commission
gradually declined in importance until during the years immediately preceding its abolition by Congress it was without any real
authority. Filipino influence in the legislature increased steadily
until during the latter part of the Forbes administration the assembly was boldly withholding the necessary appropriations for
the support of the government and asserting the overlordship in
the government which was finally conceded to it by the administration of Governor-General Harrison.




CHAPTER VII


Finance, Taxation and Trade
The General Financial Policy-Control by Local Government-Taxation Reasonable-Financial Embarrassment-Caused by Public Improvements-Present Conditions-Bonded Indebtedness-Income and Expenditure-The Currency and Coinage-The Gold Standard-The Fund to Maintain ParitySources of Revenue-The Customs-Illustration of Duties-The Internal
Revenue-Sources of-The Cedula, Stamp and Privilege Taxes-Business and
Occupation Taxes-Specific Taxes-Revenues of Provinces and Municipalities-The City of Manila-Gross Earnings and Franchise Taxes-Trade
Development.
The financial policy of the Philippine government has been a
very simple one. The country was taken over from Spain free
from debt. There was no occasion for complicated refunding
operations or for heavy taxes to pay for the extravagance of
former rulers. The United States imposes no taxes for its benefit on the Filipinos and receives no financial return for the services
rendered in supervising the government and protecting the country. Subject to the reserve power of Congress to annul laws, and
the approval of the president of tariff legislation, the local government is free to impose taxes other than that on incomes, and
to expend the proceeds thereof in the ways deemed by it most for
the advantage of the people of the islands. During its time the
commission was required to report annually to the secretary of
war who thus, and through the reports of the auditor, was able
to keep informed as to the condition of the finances.'
Congress has legislated directly with reference to certain matters, such as export and import duties and the coinage and cur1The statement in Hepburn's History of the Currency of the United
States, p. 471, that the fiscal affairs of the Philippines are administered by the
United States is true only in a very general sense. They are administered by
the government of the Philippines under the authority of Congress, the executive only being subject to the direct supervision of the secretary of war as
the representative of the president.
127




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THE PHILIPPINES


rency, but ordinarily it has in general terms simply authorized the
government of the Philippines to exercise certain powers subject
in some cases to definite limitations but generally in the manner
deemed by it proper and advisable. With these exceptions the
local government has been left practically free to determine its
financial policy.
Congress has refused to authorize the issue of bonds on a large
scale for public works, as recommended by the commission and
in this it has probably shown a wise although extreme conservatism. In a financial sense the United States has not been so liberal with the Philippines as other countries have been with'their
colonies,2 and by refusing to trust the judgment of the men on the
ground it has imposed the entire burden of constructing necessary
public works upon the present generation.3
The revenues of the central and local governments have been
raised without unreasonable taxation and the money has been expended honestly and for purposes deemed necessary and proper.
Whether the finances have always been handled with skill as well
as honesty is a question on which there may be a difference of
opinion.
The controlling idea has been to raise as much money as possible without imposing an excessive burden of taxation, to
conduct the government as economically as is consistent with
reasonable efficiency, to maintain the necessary sinking funds and
expend the annual balance on education and public works. In the
absence of extensive borrowing the development of the country
has necessarily been measured by the amount of its current income and that income is determined by the business of the islands.
2 As, for instance, Great Britain in South Africa.
3 The Philippine Government Law of 1916 authorized the issue of additional bonds. General McIntyre's suggestion (Special Report, Dec. 1, 1915)
that, had the local government possessed greater borrowing powers, it could
not have withstood the temptation to contract excessive debts for public
works, ignores the fact that it could issue no bonds without the approval of
the secretary of war, who represents the president, and under legislation
which may be annulled by Congress. It should not be forgotten that every
important action of the Philippine government is approved by Washington.
The daily cablegram from Washington arrives as regularly at Manila as the
morning paper.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


129


The government has therefore striven by every means under its
control to increase the volume of trade and business.
Tariff duties have been imposed for the purpose of revenue
without much reference to protection for infant industries, and
the skill or want of skill of the administrators has been shown
principally in the methods and purposes of expenditure. Naturally in this respect there have been illustrations of extreme conservatism and iridescent optimism-the personal equation. During recent years there has been criticism, much of it of a partisan
character, of the way in which the finances were handled during
the latter years of the Taft regime. Undoubtedly mistakes have
been made in the Philippines as well as at Washington and in the
states, and some money has been wasted, but the most serious mistakes were recognized and the remedy applied during the closing
years of the administration of Governor-General Forbes. If
there ever was a "headlong rush of the insular government toward bankruptcy" as was alleged by Governor-General Harrison,4 it was checked during the spring of 1912, a year before Mr.
Harrison assumed office, when effective measures were taken to
place the government again in sound financial condition.
It is a fact that from 1909 to 1913 there was an annual excess
of expenditure over income. As the chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs very justly says: "Unless one has clearly in mind the
very large portion of expenditure... that has been made for
permanent public improvements one would get the impression
that since the end of the fiscal year 1910 the financial condition
of the Philippine government had grown steadily worse." However, he adds: "If one gives proper value to the public works
constructed and now in beneficial use, the resulting condition becomes one of only temporary difficulty, to be justified or not according to one's judgment of the timeliness or value of the work
accomplished."5
Governor-General Forbes and the commission came to a real4Message of Oct. 16, 1915. Cong. Rec., June 4, 1916.
5 Special Report of Brig.-Gen. Frank Mclntyre to the Secretary of War,
Dec. 1, 1915.




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izing sense of the fact that in their zeal for the development of
the country they were traveling more rapidly than conditions
justified and a halt was called. Fully a year before the change of
administration numerous economies were instituted, construction
work was largely suspended, and the government entered upon a
period of waiting which was to continue until the accumulating
revenues would justify further expenditure. The policy thus
instituted was continued by Governor-General Harrison and as
a result he was able to inform the legislature at the opening of
the October, 1915, session, that by the exercise of patience and
self-denial the treasury had been placed on a sound financial
basis and that at the end of the year there would be an actual
cash balance on hand. His reference to the "overwhelming burden of expenditure raised by carelessness and extravagance" during the administration of Mr. Forbes may be attributed to the
spirit of partisanship which had been injected into the Philippine
situation.
Whatever one may think of Governor-General Forbes' administration of Philippine finances, it is absurd to charge that its
effect was to impose an "overwhelming burden of expenditure"
on the country. Taxation was not increased during his administration and no floating debt was created. The mere suspension
for a time of the operations of the Bureau of Public Works while
funds to cover the over appropriations accumulated in the treasury, was sufficient to restore normal conditions.
In the meantime the roads, bridges, harbors and markets were
in beneficial use. At most, as General McIntyre says, if the work
was valuable, and as to that there can be no serious question, the
only question is as to the timeliness of the construction and as to
that men may entertain different opinions.
A great deal more money was wasted on ill-advised public
works during the first few years of American occupation than
during the Forbes administration. But Governors-General Taft,
Wright, Ide and Smith were careful to see that there was a reasonable surplus in the treasury at the end of each fiscal year. Mr.
Forbes was a financier of a well-known type rather than a states



FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


131


man, and large figures, even in the form of threatened deficits,
seemed to have no terror for him. He had the entire confidence
of the president, who apparently closed his ears to all suggestions
that the financial machinery was being operated at too great a
speed, and the policy was continued until the administration
found itself facing a crisis.
Mr. Forbes became acting governor-general May 7, 1909, and
in his report to the commission for the fiscal year ending June 30,
1909, he said: "The insular government began the year with
$1,745,500 available for appropriation. There was an additional
surplus of $4,368,000, which had been appropriated but not yet
spent."6
On June 30, 1910, the surplus stood at $1,935,229.26, and in his
report for that year the governor-general, after noting the fact,
said: "As $2,000,000 is the reserve which it is estimated should
be held in the insular treasury against contingencies, it will be
seen that the present figures are eminently satisfactory and prove
that the treasury is in a safe financial condition."7 Although
there was no decrease in revenue and the proceeds of the sale of
$1,500,000 of bonds had been paid into the treasury, the surplus
on June 30, 1911, had fallen to $223,666.18, and on June 30,
1912, there would have been a deficit of nearly $2,000,000 had
not certain appropriations been reverted and $1,698,513.82 been
taken from the gold standard fund and placed in the general fund
available for appropriations. But it must be remembered that this
situation had been created solely by the large appropriations for
public works and that a large part of the money had been appropriated by the legislature with a proviso that it should not be expended until released by the governor-general. This very objectionable method of making appropriations which originated at the
time of the passage of the Payne Tariff Law was found so convenient for executive purposes that it was continued in all future
public works bills with the evil result that the legislature became
willing to appropriate almost any amount asked for on thus being
6Rept. Phil. Corn., 1909, p. 57.
7 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1910, p. 24.




132


THE PHILIPPINES


assured that the money would not be spent unless it was there to
spend. The appropriations became excessive and the surplus and
a part of the gold standard fund was used up but no indebtedness
in excess of the money in the treasury was ever actually contracted. These financial methods which might have been perfectly proper in dealing with a private business were dubious
ones for a government and would have led to serious trouble had
not a halt been called. What criticism is due must be shared by
the secretary of war and the president, who were fully informed
and approved all that was done and also by Congress which approved the legislation by not annulling it when submitted for its
action.8
The Philippine government seems to have been placed again in
sound financial condition by the simple expedient of increasing
direct taxation. Mr. Harrison became governor-general, with a
majority of Filipino members in both houses of the legislature, in
September, 1913. The net income of the insular government for
the fiscal year ending June 30, 1914, was approximately $10,400,000 and it received from the liquidation of assets an additional
$1,000,000, making a total of $11,400,000. The expenses of
operation for that year were approximately $8,000,000 which,
with the $800,000 fixed charges, makes a total of $8,800,000
expended for the operation and support of the government. On
the face of these figures there was an excess of revenue of $2,700,000. But during the year $1,300,000 was expended for permanent improvements and $2,700,000 was given in aid to the provincial and municipal governments, with the result of a deficit of
$1,400,000.
The revenue from customs dues fell from $8,908,123.64 for
the fiscal year ending June 30, 1912, to $7,774,944.74 for the
year ending June 30, 1913. This was the last year of the Forbes
8 In the report of the secretary of war for 1913 Secretary Garrison said
that the plan of public works pursued contemplated a grant of authority to
issue additional bonds and the receipt of funds as a consequence thereof, and
that "very largely as a result of this the available cash balance for general
purposes in the Philippine treasury was, at the end of the fiscal year 1913,
somewhat lower than it had been in any year since 1905." It is a mistake to
assume that the expectation of a bond issue had any influence on the appropriations.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


133


administration and a year before the European war commenced.
The fixed charges had been reduced from $1,389,931.47 during
1912 to $654,473.93 in 1913. Governor-General Harrison saved
a few thousand dollars by reducing the salaries and discharging
American employees but the difference between the receipts and
demands was too great to be met by such methods. It was a
choice between restricting the construction of public work, stopping the constant flow of money from the insular to the provincial and municipal treasuries, or increasing direct taxation.
The pressure from the local governments for financial aid is
very great and rather than withstand it the administration elected
to impose additional taxes. During the session of 1914-15 the
legislature passed a new internal revenue bill which greatly increased the burden of direct taxation. By its terms this law was
to continue in force only until the end of the calendar year 1915,
but the policy thus adopted required that the increase should be
made permanent, and this was done by a revised internal revenue
law which was passed early in the year 1916.
So far as bonded indebtedness is concerned, the islands are in
good condition. At the present time the insular government has
outstanding the following bonds:
Amount   Redeemable  Due
Land-purchase bonds, 4%.................... $7,000,000  1914  1934
Public works and improvement bonds, 4%.... 2,500,000  1915  1935
Public works and improvement bonds, 4%.... 1,000,000  1916  1936
Public works and improvement bonds, 4%... 1,500,000  1919  1939
Total................................$12,000,0009
An additional four million dollars of bonds are now being
offered for sale under authority given by the Philippine Government Law of 1916, to provide funds to pay for the stock of a
railway company-which needs the money.
The friar land bonds are supposed to be provided for by the
sale of the land upon which they are in effect a lien.
9 There is also the contingent liability for the interest on the bonds issued
by the Philippine Railway Company and the Manila Railroad Company and
the practical assumption of about $10,000,000 of the bonds of the latter company involved in the proposed purchase of the road.




134


THE PHILIPPINES


The provinces and municipalities, other than Manila and Cebu,
have no bonded indebtedness. Manila has outstanding four per
cent. sewer and water-works bonds amounting to $3,000,000;
Cebu, $125,000 of bonds of the same character. All other debts
of provinces and municipalities are owing to the insular government. The total debts of the provincial governments of this
character amount to approximately $2,000,000. The total provincial revenues are about $2,500,000 and those of the municipalities, including townships and settlements, $3,755,000. The
revenues of the city of Manila amount to approximately $1,500,000, which is supplemented by contributions from the insular
government which may not exceed $625,000 a year. The total
amount of taxes collected in the islands is approximately
$18,000,000.10
The table on the opposite page shows the receipts and disbursements of the insular government for each year since 1906.
The condition of the circulating medium for some time after
the occupation probably justified the statement that
"all the artificial eccentricities of the place and people are concentrated in the currency. It was bad enough in the old days, and
it seemed that it could not be worse, but now, for our sins, we are
given practical proof that it could be worse, for it is. Under the
Spanish rule Philippine currency was an extremely mixed-up
affair, so mixed up that it constituted the study of a lifetime, and
various people who devoted their lives to the study of it used to
make money out of it at the expense of the people whose time
was otherwise occupied. Sometimes a peso was a peso, and sometimes it was a problem in fractional equations; sometimes a Filipino dollar was a Mexican, and sometimes a Spanish dollar was
a Filipino; sometimes there was a gold currency without any
gold, but at all times and under all circumstances the banks, exchange brokers, and a few clever Chinese and others, managed
to juggle with the fluctuations in change and currency legislation so as to score always.""
10 For the amounts collected and expended during the latter years of the
Spanish rule, see Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military
Regime, pp. 266-269.
11 From an article in the Manila Times, sent by Secretary Gage to Secretary Root, July 27, 1899. Extracts from this article and correspondence




INSULAR RECEIPTS AND DISBURSEMENTS-PHILIPPINE ISLANDS
Expressed in United States Currency-Value


FiscalYear   FiscalYear   Fiscal Year  FiscalYear  FiscaYear    Fiscal Year  Fiscal Year  Fiscal Year  Six Months   Fiscal Year  Fiscal Year
Ending       Ending       Ending       Ending      Ending       Ending       Ending       Ending       Ending       Ending      Ending
June 30,1906 June 30,1907 June30,1908 June30,1909 June30,1910 June30,1911 June30,1912 June30,1913 Dec. 31,1913 Dec. 31,1914 Dec. 31,1915....... -.......


CREDITS
Balance from prior years*.............. $1,764,246.89 $3,035,002.4'


$6,394,793.56


$7,115,110.11


$5,578,023.451 $6,114,842.581 $5,857,642.06


$8,239,312.931 $8,343,240.69


$4,982,994.90 $4,259,027.92


Revenues:
Customs...........................
Internal.........................
Miscellaneous......................
Surplus, Gold Standard Fund........
Total Revenues.................
Other Receipts.....................
Transfers from Sinking Funds...........
Supplies Brought Into Account..........
Total Credits...................
DEBITS
Expenditures:
Bureaus and Offices.................
Miscellaneous.....................
Fixed Charges.....................
Aid to Provinces and Municipalities..
Equipment and Supplies............
Public Works.....................
Loans and Investments..........
All Other.........................
Total Expenditures.............
Supplies Transferred and Dropped......
Surplus:..............................
Cash..............................
Supplies..........................
Other............................
Total Debits....................


$7,419,826.93 $8,296,223.64 $8,017,891.80 $8,569,507.37 $7,854,887.83 $8,272,397.78 $8,908,123.64 $7,774,944.74 $3,166,754.55 $5,422,481.79 $6,072,544.58
2,565,395.36  2,684,574.62  2,458,915.94  2,372,333.33  3,603,705.93  4,134,876.06  4,729,710.67  5,044,231.47  2,240,491.06  4,881,904.40  6,926,367.67
264,417.09   411,459.02   422,453.70   427,892.87  431,952.86   315,486.38   287,488.56   225,755.09    91,616.35   245,665.64   481,436.40........................................................   1................. 1,698,513.82  444,769.02  285077.18  430,619.19  425,594.69
$10,249,639.38 $11,392,257.28 10,899,261.44 $11,369,733.57 $11,890,546.62 $12,722,760.22 $15,623,836.69 $13,489,700.32 $5783.939.14 $10,980,671.02 $13,905,943.34.............    246,568.95  758,537.33   239,126.44   620,039.79    54,887.62...............................................................................................................................................................................  791376.29  370020.41..............................................................  2,755,431.08.............  27370.10      2042.39     34,612.64    64,451.07
$12,013,886.27 $14,673,828.65 $17,235,822.22 $17,723,702.59 $18,368,228.49 $21,927,872.48 $23,863,149.62 $21,860,311.11 $12,901,091.64 $16,789,654.85 $18,599,442.74
$6,173,728.47 $5,523,257.96 $7,553,883.39 $7,092,642.08 $8,279,943.22 $8,318,051.56 $9,638,369.80  $9,576,538.83 $5,361,823.46 $8,612,162.79 $8,229,174.51.................................................  899,334.37  718,232.32  381,496.15   487,015.72   195,553.62   507,909.09  468,736.14
1,027,312.87  1,065,059.97  1,105,222.76  1,067,078.93  1,278,469.06  1,609,399.01  1,389,931.47  654,373.93  383,567.16  829,550.71  856,188.49
789,408.07  1,064,874.50  849,986.22   108,712.07  109,926.12   143,299.50   144,655.00   842,436.72   414,961.36  1,050,375.21  1,487,712.08
806,353.77   882,792.79   539,784.57  1,087,051.34............................................................................
182,080.67   302,215.32   634,182.24  2,110,917.97  1,405,762.16  2,899,577.16  3,338,963.85  3,184,835.80  1,562,191.14  1,530,629.13  2,440,573.14..........  89,250.00    74,095.00        0 89,407.50.........................................................................................  68,354.66  363,825.46  310,250.62......................................................................................
$8,978,883.85 $9,095,805.20 $11,120,979.64 $11,866,060.51 $11,973,434.93 $13,688,559.55 $14,893,416.27 $14,745,201.00 $7,918,096.74 $12,530,626.93 $13,482,384.36.....................................            626,492.66......................................  
3,035,002.42  5,578,023.45  6,114,842.58  5,857.642.08.................................................................................................................................  5,224,149.68  3,933,338.69  3,793,632.00  3,178,198.84  1,699,760.53  308,491.40  1,249,688.02..................................    2,755,431.08  2,657,344.03  2,611,476.19  2,787,760.94  2,603,246.27  2,762,054.70......................................     1,170,643.   1,550,543.16  1,892,264.66  1,325,435.08  495,473.43  1,347,290.25  1,105,315.66


$12,013,886.27 $14,673,828.65 $17,235,822.22 $17,723,702.59 $18,368,228.491 $21,927,872.481 $23,863,149.62 $21,860,311.11


$12,901,091.64 $16,789,654.851


$18,599,442.74


*It should be noted that these credit balances do not mean money available for appropriation.




136


THE PHILIPPINES


The task of finding a remedy was rendered peculiarly difficult
by the proximity of the islands to China and the other Oriental
countries which were on a silver basis.
Prior to 1857 the Philippine government had no currency of
its own; that in use being brought from Spain, Mexico, the South
American republics and the near-by countries of Asia. All sorts
of coins were in use. The official accounts were kept in pesos,
reales, quartos, ounces, grams or maravades, at the will of the
accountants. In 1861 a mint was established at Manila and for a
time gold and silver coins were abundant, but under the law of
1876 it soon became profitable to exchange Mexican dollars for
gold, and by 1884 the latter had all disappeared.
At the time of the American occupation the money in use was
principally the Mexican silver dollar supplemented by the Spanish-Filipino peso, silver and paper, and fractional silver and
copper coins. As the local banks, Spanish and English, were inclined to adopt an extremely selfish policy, both the Schurman
and Taft Commissions recommended the establishment of American banks, which would be more in sympathy with American
ways of doing business.'2
For some years the importing of Mexican currency had been
unlawful, although it had constantly been done with the connivance of the officials. The influx of American money and the
presentation of sterling letters of exchange for which Mexican
dollars were demanded, required more of this currency and on
August 19, 1898, the request of the banks for permission to import Mexican dollars was granted by the military governor on
their specific agreement to maintain a rate of exchange of not
less than two Mexican dollars for one gold dollar.
between the officials in Manila and Washington are printed in a pamphlet
entitled Memorandum on Currency and Exchange in the Philippines, by
Lieutenant-Colonel Clarence R. Edwards, Washington, 1900.
12 "It is the opinion of the commission that the banks have not co-operated
to the extent that they legally and morally ought to have done in maintaining
a ratio of 2 to 1, in pursuance of the guaranty of August 19, 1898, and that
their refusal to receive deposits in United States money subject to check is a
direct discrimination against United States money and has been one of the
effective causes of the difficulty of the situation." Rept. Phil. Corn., 1901,
p. 106.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


137


Under this agreement the banks imported Mexican currency
and exchanged it for American money, or the reverse, with a good
profit for each exchange. Until some time in July of that year
the market price of silver had been such that the banks could
maintain their guaranty and make a profit on the transactions,
but a rise in the price of silver in the markets of the world and
the increased demand for Mexican dollars for the payment of
troops and the purchase of supplies due to the military operations
in northern China, rendered these banking operations unprofitable. Thereupon the banks, regardless of their agreement, established a rate of one dollar and ninety-eight cents Mexican for
one dollar American money. Learning thus that it was possible
for American money to fall in value the small traders cut it as
low as one dollar and fifty cents Mexican and business was
greatly disturbed.
The banks now proposed to introduce the Straits dollar, but
fortunately this was forbidden by the government, as the effect
would have been to allow them to deposit it in their vaults in place
of the four million dollars Mexican they held for the government,
and export the latter to China at a large profit to themselves.
To relieve the situation the military governor directed the col
lectors of the customs and internal revenue to receive United
States currency in payment of customs dues and taxes at the rate
of two to one. An agreement was also made with the banks in
which the government deposits were kept by which they were to
purchase from the public over the counter United States gold,
silver and notes at the rate of two for one, and upon their rendering weekly to the treasurer a statement of the amount of such
transactions, the later would transfer an equivalent amount from
the insular currency to the balance held by the United States
treasurer in his gold deposit account, at the same rate. This arrangement enabled the public to obtain at the banks two Mexican
dollars for one American dollar and as a result American money
was freely accepted in business transactions. However, this was
merely a temporary expedient, as the government's balance in
Mexican money was certain soon to be exhausted and it could be




138


THE PHILIPPINES


maintained only by purchasing and importing Mexican dollars
at a loss.
In order to increase its use the appropriations were made in
and all salaries were made payable in American money, and an
export tax of ten per cent. imposed on Mexican silver effectually
prevented the banks from sending the government silver to
China.
The policy of the local banks is illustrated by their requirement
that all deposits should be made and all checks drawn on them in
Mexican currency. When a large check was drawn by a government official on a government gold deposit the person receiving the check had first to exchange it for Mexican money at the
market price, or exchange the gold realized upon the check for
Mexican money from the government's deposit. In practise, of
course, the holder of a check would obtain the silver from the
government deposit and then deposit it in the bank to his individual credit and the Mexican money would thus never leave the
bank.
Soon after the legislative power was vested in the commission
a law was passed which required the local banks to receive deposits in United States money subject to check, on the same terms
as those accorded to deposits of Mexican money."3
These various expedients and the fall in the price of silver due
to the decreased demand in China, resulted in a large accumulation of silver and Mexican currency in the government deposit.
As there was now no inducement to export silver, the ten per
cent. export tax was repealed. After August, 1900, Mexican
and United States money was maintained at two to one, although
the government continued to sustain a loss by receiving the taxes
in local currency at that rate when intrinsically the Mexican
money was worth 2.02 or 2.04 to 1.
As long as the principal currency of the islands was Mexican
13 The banks protested against this law to the secretary of war, but the
action of the commission was approved as a proper regulation of banking
institutions. It simply deprived them of a kind of profit which it was unjust
for them to reap, in view of the fact that they were getting it by a discrimination against the money of the sovereign power in the islands.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


139


money the ratio of exchange would be subject to constant fluctuation due to the changing market value of silver and the demands
of the near-by Chinese markets. An entire new currency for the
country was necessary. In 1902 Congress authorized the Philippine government to establish a mint and to issue a coin of the denomination of fifty centavos of a weight of 192.9 grains, a coin
of the denomination of twenty centavos and weight of 77.16
grains and a coin of the denomination of ten centavos and weight
of 38.58 grains, the standard to be such that of 1,000 parts by
weight 900 would be pure metal and 100 of copper alloy.14
The amount of this subsidiary silver currency to be coined
from silver bullion to be purchased was left to the discretion of
the government subject to the approval of the secretary of war.
The Spanish-Filipino dollars and, subsidiary silver coins might be
re-coined at discretion. Authority was also given to issue minor
coins of denomination of one-half centavo, one centavo and five
centavos of designated weight and alloy.15
It was generally agreed that the introduction of American
gold currency as the exclusive money of the Philippines would
produce serious disturbances in prices and wages, and the experts
and almost all the local business men concurred in the opinion
that it would be injurious to business to place the country immediately upon a gold basis. After a careful study of the situation the commission recommended that a definite relation should
be fixed by law between the standard silver coins of the country
and the United States gold dollar. The plan, which was similar to that which had been successful in Japan, and India, involved the adoption as the standard of value of a theoretical gold
peso of the value of a half United States dollar, and the coinage
of a silver Philippine peso containing a smaller percentage of
silver than the Mexican dollar, which would pass as the equivalent
of fifty cents United States money. The shortage of silver in the
peso would not be sufficient to encourage its export, and its con14 The Act of March 2, 1903, changed the weight of the 50 centavo coin to
208 grains, the 20 centavo coin to 83.1 grains and the 10 centavo coin to 41.55
grains.
15 Act of July 1, 1902, 32 Stat. L., 710.




140


THE PHILIPPINES


vertibility into American money at uniform fixed rates would
insure its becoming the ordinary currency for business purposes.
It was believed that all the benefits of a gold standard could thus
be secured without any sudden shock to business.16
The Act of Congress which authorized the coinage of subsidiary and minor coins for the use of the Philippines provided no
standard unit and did not make it clear whether such coins should
be legal tender in large amounts."7 If after the new authorized
coins were issued Congress should make the Philippine peso equal
in value to fifty cents gold, they would have greater value than
if Congress should declare them to be only fractional parts of a
free silver peso coined under free coinage principles, or of the
Mexican peso in general circulation. The Manila banks were of
the opinion that the coins would be fractional parts of a peso
worth fifty cents gold and were ready to accept and hoard them.
In view of the uncertainty the commission decided to coin no
money until Congress should establish a unit of value.
This was done by the Act of March 3, 1903,18 which provided
that the unit of value in the Philippines should be a gold peso
consisting of 12.90 grains of gold,.90 fine and that this peso
should become the unit of value when the government of the
Philippines had coined and had ready for use five million dollars
of the new pesos.
In addition to the coinage authorized by the Act of July 1,
1902, authority was now given to coin in an amount not exceeding seventy-five million pesos a silver coin of the denomination
of one peso and of the weight of four hundred sixteen grains, the
standard being such that of one thousand parts by weight nine
hundred should be pure metal and one hundred copper alloy. The
gold coins of the United States, at the rate of one dollar for two
pesos, were made legal tender for all debts, public and private,
and the silver coins legal tender for all debts contracted after
16 See the Special Report on Coinage and Banking, by Charles A. Conant,
November 25, 1901, and the Repts. of the Secretary of Finance and Justice,
in Repts. Phil. Corn.. 1900-1903.
17 Act of July 1, 1902, 32 Stat. L., 691.
18 Chap. 1903, 33 Stat. L., 952.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


141


December 31, 1903, unless otherwise specifically provided by
contract. The subsidiary coins were made legal tender to the
amount of ten dollars.
But the price of silver continued to rise and at the end of 1905
the Philippine peso was worth more as bullion than as coin. The
commission again prohibited the exportation from the islands
of Philippine silver coins or bullion but, notwithstanding the
heavy penalties, large quantities were surreptitiously exported
and it became clear that the value of the coins would have to be
reduced.l9 Accordingly, on June 23, 1906, Congress authorized
the insular government to reduce the weight and fineness of the
Philippine peso to not less than 700 parts of pure silver and
300 parts of alloy, and the weight and fineness of subsidiary
coins in proportion. Under this authority the commission, in
December, 1906, provided for the present silver coinage as follows: one peso of 20 grams of silver.800; a fifty-centavo piece
of 10 grams of silver.750; a twenty-centavo piece of 4 grams of
silver.750, and a ten-centavo piece of 2 grams of silver.750
fine. The silver coins then in circulation were to be recoined at
the new weight and fineness and this was immediately commenced.20 The alloy must be copper.
Having fixed the standard, Congress authorized the Philippine
government to adopt such measures as it deemed proper to protect its currency.' For that purpose it was authorized to issue
and sell short-time certificates of indebtedness to create a fund
to be used solely for the purpose of maintaining the parity of the
gold and silver pesos. Under this authorization the Philippine
government provided for the creation of what is now known as
the Gold Standard Fund. Mr. C. A. Conant, the expert employed by the government, had expressed the opinion that if the
new peso contained 83.10 grains of silver, the seigniorage derived from the coinage would soon provide a fund sufficient for
the purpose. But the commission added to the profits of seignior19 See Report of Secretary H. C. Ide, Rept. Phil. Corn., 1905, Pt. I,
pp, 68-70.
20 See Administrative Code of 1916, Sec. 1769.




142


THE PHILIPPINES


age, the proceeds of the sale of the certificates, the profits resulting from the issue of the silver pesos and subsidiary and
minor coins, the sale of exchange by the government between
the Philippines and the United States, and all other receipts
which might inure to the government in the exercise of its function of furnishing a convenient currency. To this was subsequently added the interest or other profits from investments
or loans made from the Gold Standard Fund and premiums from
the sale of inter-island telegraphic transfers and demand drafts
sold in Manila on provincial treasurers.21 The trust fund thus
created should be used "for the purpose of maintaining the
parity of the silver Philippine peso with the gold standard peso
provided in the Act of Congress."
For that purpose and also to keep the currency equal in volume only to the demands of trade, the insular treasurer was
authorized, among other things, (a) to exchange on demand at
the treasury for Philippine currency offered in sums of not less
than five thousand dollars, drafts on the Gold Standard Fund deposited in the United States or elsewhere, charging for the same
a premium of three-fourths of one per cent. for demand drafts
and one and one-eighths per cent. for telegraphic transfers, and
required to direct the depositories of the funds of the Philippine
government in the United States to sell exchange against the
Gold Standard Fund in the Philippine Islands at fixed rates, (b)
to exchange at par United States money for Philippine currency
and Philippine currency for United States money, and (c) to
exchange in sums of not less than five thousand dollars United
States gold for Philippine currency, and (d) to withdraw the
United States money or the Philippine currency thus received
from circulation.
The operations under this law have been profitable as well as
successful. The certificates, from the sale of which the original
fund was established, were soon retired. By the end of 1911
the fund had become unnecessarily large and it was determined
that it should thereafter be maintained at thirty-five per cent.
21 Administrative Code, Art. II, Sec. 1781.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


143


of the money of the government of the Philippines in circulation
and available for circulation, exclusive of the silver certificates
in circulation protected by a gold reserve, and that the excess
should be turned into the treasury and become available for
appropriation.22
On June 30, 1912, after the sum of $1,698,513.82 had been
transferred to the general fund, the Gold Standard Fund stood
at $9,135,470.38.
The amount at that time reverted aided materially in relieving the financial situation which was then threatening to become
acute. Experience seemed to show that there was no necessity
for holding all this money in the treasury, or in depositories where
it drew but a low rate of interest, and after consulting with financial experts and with the approval of the secretary of war, the
legislature authorized the loaning of fifty per cent. of the fund to
provinces and municipalities for investment in productive public
works, and temporarily, that one-half of such fifty per cent.
might be loaned to the Manila Railroad Company to assist it in
extending its authorized lines.
The loanable proportion was subsequently increased to eighty
per cent. of the fund and the purposes for which it might be
loaned were extended so as to include ordinary real estate mortgages as well as (1) the provincial and municipal share of the
cost of cadastral surveys, (2) the construction of insular buildings "or other realizable public works and improvements in the
form and under the terms and conditions that the legislature
might authorize and impose by law," (3) the mortgage bonds of
corporations organized to erect and operate sugar centrals, manufacturing copra and cocoanut oil, manufacturing hemp and products derived therefrom, (4) "or any and all of these products under such terms and conditions as may be authorized or required by
law," under regulations prescribed by the auditor, for the establishing of agricultural colonies, (5) to corporations organized for
the purpose of building, maintaining and improving irrigation
22 Act 2083, Dec. 8, 1911. See Rept. Phil. Corn., 1912, pp. 9, 207, and Adm.
Code, Secs. 1781-1785.




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THE PHILIPPINES


systems, (6) in loans to the Manila Railroad Company not to exceed $2,313,500.00, (7) in the opening of a credit for the Manila
Railroad Company in the sum of $1,250,000.00 to be used in
equipment and construction work, such credit to be opened with
the prior approval of the governor-general and upon such terms
as he may fix and with such security as he may require, and (8)
temporarily to purchase fifty-one per cent. of the outstanding
stock of the Manila Railroad Company.23
The phraseology of this law as well as some of the purposes
for which the money is to be used, suggests that it originated in
the assembly. The investment of such a large proportion of the
money in loans to commercial and manufacturing enterprises, is
of doubtful propriety. Its investment in the stock of an embarrassed railroad corporation was dangerous and unjustifiable.
The total silver coinage of the original issue amounted to
$16,389,640.90. Of this amount, on January 1, 1915, all but
$1,209,339.20 had been withdrawn from circulation and recoined. On that date there had been received from the mint
silver coinage of the present weight and fineness amounting to
$25,157,560.03.
Until recently the Bank of the Philippines, the former SpanishFilipino Bank, was the only institution in the islands authorized
to issue notes. To July 1, 1915, $2,663,746.25 of its notes had
been issued.
The Act of March 2, 1903, authorized the insular treasurer
to receive deposits of the standard silver peso in sums of not less
than twenty pesos and to issue silver certificates therefor in denominations of not less than two or more than five hundred
pesos, the coin to be held for the redemption of this paper currency on demand. These silver certificates were made receivable
for customs, taxes and all public dues in the Philippines. On January 1, 1914, $15,022,785.00 of these certificates were in circulation. Originally only silver was receivable; but Congress later
authorized the acceptance of gold as a reserve and the issue of
certificates against that also. This gold reserve is gradually be23 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1914, p. 246.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


145


ing increased and will probably in time render the gold standard
fund unnecessary.
The total money in actual circulation in the islands on January
1, 1915, was $26,287,553.87, which on the basis of population
shown by the census of 1903, makes a per capita circulation of
$3.44.
An institution known as the Philippine National Bank has recently been organized, with a capital of ten million dollars, of
which the government is to own a majority of the shares.24 It is
to be a government institution with a minority of the shares of
stock held by individuals. This bank is authorized to issue its
circulating notes in an amount not exceeding seventy-five per
cent. of the securities held by it, subject to the limitation that the
total amount of notes outstanding shall not at any time exceed sixty per cent. of its capital and surplus. In addition thereto
it may issue notes against gold coin of the United States to the
full value thereof. All these notes are made receivable for taxes
and other dues of the government.
The income of the insular government is derived from customs dues and certain impositions, fees and charges which are
known as internal revenue taxes, including charges for forest
products and the part of the United States income tax collected
in the Philippines.25 The interest arising from special funds and
certain treasury operations now constitutes a material addition
to the income of the government.
The proceeds of the land tax go into the provincial and municipal treasuries, certain of which also share in the taxes paid
on the gross earnings by railway and other corporations operating under franchise. The municipalities raise their revenue by
24 Act 2612, February 4, 1916.
25 "The administration of the law and the collection of the taxes imposed
in Porto Rico and the Philippine Islands shall be by the appropriate internal
revenue officers of those governments, and all revenues collected in Porto
Rico and the Philippine Islands thereunder shall accrue intact to the general
governments thereof, respectively." Federal Income Law of October 3, 1913,
Sec. 3176 M. This is the only tax imposed in the Philippines by the direct
action of Congress.




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THE PHILIPPINES


taxation and license fee imposed under the authority of the general government about as do similar public corporations in the
United States. The provincial and municipal governments have
never been entirely self-supporting, as they should be, and have
contracted the chronic habit of relying upon the central government for assistance, particularly for loans which they hope never
to be called on to repay. The only requirement imposed by the
Organic Law is that taxation shall be uniform.
For purposes of tariff legislation the Philippines have been
treated very much as foreign territory. The laws imposing duties on goods imported into the United States never applied to
importations from foreign countries into the islands. For a
time, under military occupation, the duties imposed by the old
Spanish customs laws were collected. These duties were modified and new rates fixed by the executive order of the president,
of July 12, 1898, which was confirmed by the Act of July 1,
1902. But the way in which the duties were imposed was not
satisfactory and on September 17, 1901, the commission passed
an act to amend and revise the tariff laws and Congress, by the
Act of March 8, 1902,26 re-enacted the commission law, thus making it a federal statute. After much discussion and consideration the entire tariff was again revised by the congressional act
of March 3, 1905, which, as amended in minor respects in 1906,
continued in force until the passage of the Colton Law of August 5, 1909. The rates collected under the Dingley Act on
Philippine products entering the United States were practically
prohibitive and not until 1909 was any material concession made
to the islands. The Payne Act, passed the same day as the
Colton Act, provided for free trade between the United States
and the Philippines, subject to certain restrictions which were
finally removed by the Underwood Tariff Law of October 3,
1913. At the present time there is complete free trade between
the United States and the Philippines.27
26 Chap. 140, 32 Stat. L., 54.
27 The Underwood Tariff Law (Sec. IV C, 38 Stat. L., 114, Ann. Stat. Sup.




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147


It was anticipated that for a few years the Colton Law would
greatly reduce the revenue of the Philippine government but it
was hoped that the development of new markets in the United
States would more than compensate the islands for such loss. In
fact, however, it did not have that effect, as there were increased
importations from other countries and the net revenue from the
customs during the fiscal year following the passage of the law
amounted to $7,809,659.06, as against $7,652,054.57 for the previous year.
The effect of the Payne tariff on trade with the United States
was instantaneous and the importations from the Philippines into
the United States during that year amounted to $10,776,128.00
as against $4,693,831.00 for the previous year.
The duties imposed by the existing law upon importations
are very moderate and there is a very liberal free list. It is, with
very few exceptions, a tariff for revenue only. The average duty
imposed is about twenty-five per cent. ad valorem. For illustration the ad valorem rate is, on porcelain and earthenware, from
ten to fifty per cent.; precious stones and imitations thereof,
fifteen per cent. to seventy per cent.; cutlery, twenty per cent.
to thirty per cent.; fire arms, forty per cent.; copper and alloys
and other metals, ten per cent. to twenty-five per cent.; drugs
and chemicals in some cases specific, but not less than twenty-five
per cent.; paints, dyes and varnish, ten per cent. to twenty per
cent.; opium for medical use, thirty-five per cent.; proprietary
medicines, fifty per cent. to seventy per cent.; vegetable oils,
1914, p. 125) provides that "all articles, the growth or product of or manufactured in the Philippine Islands from material the growth or product of
the Philippine Islands, or of the United States, of or both, or which do not
contain foreign materials of the value of more than 20% of their total value,
upon which no drawback of customs duties has been allowed therein, coming
into the United States from the Philippine Islands, shall hereafter be admitted free of duty... and all articles the growth, product or manufacture of the United States, upon which no drawback of customs duties has
been allowed therein, shall be admitted to the Philippine Islands from the
United States free of duty." Such free admission is conditioned upon the
shipments being direct, under a through bill of lading from the country of
origin to the country of destination and the payment in each country of a tax
equal to the internal revenue there imposed on like articles of domestic
manufacture. For the present powers of the Philippine Legislature to change
the tariff laws, see infra, p. 439.




148


THE PHILIPPINES


fifteen per cent. to twenty-five per cent.; perfumery, etc., forty per
cent.; cotton waste, ten per cent.; yarns, threads and cordage,
ten per cent. to forty per cent.; textiles specific by weight, but not
less than the equivalent of from twenty-five per cent. to forty
per cent.; printing paper, ten per cent.; books, etchings and other
such things not classed as works of art, which are free, thirty per
cent.; common wood logs, $1.00 each, when cut to size, fifteen per
cent.; fine woods, twenty per cent. to twenty-five per cent; live
animals, horses and mules, $10.00 each; bovine animals, $2.00
each; swine, $1.00 each; birds, including poultry, ten cents each;
undercloths, forty per cent.; other cloths, twenty-five per cent;
boots and shoes, fifteen per cent. to twenty per cent.; musical instruments, twenty-five to thirty per cent.; typewriters, fifteen per
cent.; electrical machinery, ten per cent.; engines, fifteen per cent.
to twenty per cent.; wagons and carts, fifteen per cent.; automobiles, fifteen per cent. to twenty-five per cent.; boats, including
cost of repair in foreign ports, for which adequate facilities are
not afforded in the Philippines, fifty per cent.; rice, prior to May
1, 1910, unhusked, fifty per cent, and husked, $1.00 per hundred kilos; rice flour, $2.00 per hundred kilos, after that date,
unhusked eighty cents, and husked $1.20 per hundred kilos;28
spirits, wines, malt and other beverages pay specific rates, not less
than the equivalent of forty per cent. ad valorem. In a number
of instances specific rates are fixed with a proviso that it must
be the equivalent of a named ad valorem rate. Thus gold and
silver wares pay a specific duty, not less, however, than twentyfive per cent. ad valorem; wrought iron and steel, a specific rate
not less than fifteen per cent. ad valorem.
This will give a fair idea of the rates imposed on imports. The
Colton Law imposed an export tax upon abaca (hemp), sugar,
copra and tobacco when exported to any country other than the
United States, and from this source the government secured a
28 Provided that the governor-general with the consent of the commission
may keep the higher rate in force until, in his judgment, conditions in the
islands warrant the imposition of the lower rate and provided further that
the governor-general, with the consent of the commission, may suspend all
duties on rice when local conditions so require.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


149


much needed addition to the income of about five hundred thousand dollars per year, but in 1913 the provision was repealed by
the Underwood Tariff Law and at present there are no export
duties.
With certain changes the Spanish revenue laws were continued
in force for about five years after the American occupation.29
The changes which were made from time to time resulted in decreasing the income of the insular government. The lottery, the
mint charges and the contract for the sale of opium were suspended. The tax on rentals of urban property was repealed and
a tax imposed on the market value of real estate. The personal
cedula was reduced from an average of five pesos to one peso on
each adult male, thus reducing the revenue from that source,
by about five million pesos. The various changes made in the
documentary stamp tax alone reduced the revenue from approximately eight hundred seventy thousand pesos in 1896-7 to
about two hundred forty thousand pesos for the fiscal year
1902-3. There was a slight increase in collections from the
industria taxes and the royalties on forestry products, but the
loss resulting from the decrease of cedula taxes greatly exceeded
the increase from other sources.
During the fiscal year 1896-7 the Spaniards collected yearly
twelve million pesos from the internal tax sources, which in
1902-3 produced a trifle less than four and one-half million pesos.
Under the Spanish system the internal taxes accrued to the
insular and the surtaxes to the provincial and municipal treasuries. As our government abolished the surtaxes and appropriated the internal taxes, as well as the new land taxes, to the uses
of the provincial and municipal governments, the central government was left dependent for support on the customs dues. The
Dingley Tariff Law rates against imports from the Philippines
29 See Rept. Phil. Cor., 1900-1903, pp. 116, 120; Internal Taxation in the
Philippines, by John S. Hord, J. H. Univ. Studies, Series XXV, No. 1 (1907).
This is a very valuable paper by the Collector of Internal Revenue, who, with
Secretary Ide, prepared the law of 1904.




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THE PHILIPPINES


practically closed the American markets30 to the leading Philippine products, and it was necessary to find other sources of revenue for the insular government. The Spanish law had many
good features but it imposed no proper tax on objects generally
regarded as luxuries, such as tobacco and alcohol. The subject
of excise taxation was given careful study. It seemed, as Secretary H. C. Ide said, that "a reasonable system of internal revenue taxes by which large industries, corporations and the manufacturers of liquors, tobaccos and cigars contribute a reasonable
sum for the protection which they receive from the government
and for the franchises that are secured to them, ought to provide
a material addition to the available resources and to prevent further deficits."
The original draft of what became the Internal Revenue Law
of 1904 was prepared by Secretary Ide and Mr. John S. Hord.
For several months it was subjected to much general as well as
technical criticism.31 After most of the proposed rates had been
materially reduced and the provisions for taxing corporations,
30 The Act of March 8, 1902, even required the Philippine government to
refund all export duties imposed on articles exported from the islands and
consumed in the United States. By 1904 $1,060,460 had been thus collected in
the Philippines for the benefit principally of American manufacturers of
hemp products. It was simply a bounty paid to American manufacturers out
of the Philippine treasury.
31 "During several days, at morning and afternoon sessions, the Philippine
Commission heard debates in which no one had a good word to say for the
bill. The tenor of the remarks was that the measure was in principle rank
economic heresy and if enacted would in practice result in an iniquitous confiscation of vested rights.... It was recommended that the imposition
of internal taxes be postponed indefinitely because the burden would be more
than the already languishing liquor industry could survive, and that neither
could such taxes be imposed on the tobacco industry because that would mean
the ruination of the only thriving industry in the islands.
"The internal taxes to which the people of the Philippine Islands had become accustomed in the past had nearly all been taxes of direct payment. It
was not therefore a matter for surprise that they should fail to grasp the
meaning of indirect taxes such as were contained in the proposed law. The
shifting of tax payments they could not understand,-it was to their way of
reasoning anew and dangerous departure. 
"The few who came to understand that the consumers were the ones who
really paid the tax, still remained hostile. They claimed that the increase in
price, due to the tax, would put the poor man's cigarette and vino-a popular
native liquor-entirely beyond his reach. Cigarettes and vino, they claimed,
were in the Philippines not luxuries but, on the contrary, absolute necessities." Hord, Internal Taxation of the Philippines, pp. 21, 22.




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


151


legacies and inheritances omitted, the bill was passed and went
into effect January 1, 1905. For some time the business men,
almost without exception, continued antagonistic to the law.
They were unanimous in condemning many features of the old
law, but they preferred its known evils to the uncertainties of the
new system which they could not understand. In time, however,
they learned that their fears were groundless and became well
satisfied with the new system.
The Internal Revenue Law of 1904 was revised in 1914,32
amended in 1915,33 and incorporated in the new Administrative
Code of 1916, which is now in force.34
At present the sources of internal revenue for the insular government are (a) the cedula tax, (b) the documentary tax, (c)
the privilege tax on business or occupation and on signs, (d)
specific taxes on manufactured products, (e) taxes on resources
of banks, receipts of insurance companies and receipts of corporations paying a franchise tax; (f) charges for forest products, (g) fees for testing and sealing weights and measures, (h)
internal revenue, including the income tax collected in the Philippine Islands under laws enacted by the Congress of the United
States, and (i) ad valorem tax on the output of mines.
The cedula, which is simply a poll tax of one peso, must be paid
each year by all male inhabitants over eighteen and under sixty
years of age, except commissioned officers and enlisted soldiers,
sailors and marines of the army and navy, civilian employees of
the military or naval branches of the United States government
who have come to the Philippine Islands under orders of the government of the United States, diplomatic and consular representatives and officials of foreign powers, paupers, insane persons, imbeciles and persons serving a sentence of more than one
year in a public prison.35 Delinquents must pay a surtax of from
32 Act No. 2339, February 26, 1914.
33 Act No. 2541, December 21, 1915. This was a temporary act declared to
be in force only from January 1, 1916, to December 31, 1917.
34 Enacted February 24, 1916. This Code repeals Act No. 2339, subject to
certain qualifications stated in Sec. 1744.
35 Non-Christians residing elsewhere than in the Provinces of Mindanao
and Sulu may be exempted by resolution of the provincial board.




152


THE PHILIPPINES


fifty per cent. to one hundred per cent., but liberal provision is
made for the extension of time for payment of the cedulas. In
the city of Manila and in the provinces other than the Mountain
Province and Nueva Vizcaya, the cedula may be doubled by
resolution of the provincial or municipal board and a resolution
when passed remains in force until the governor-general agrees
to its revocation. The extra amount thus raised goes into the
road and bridge fund.
A certificate showing payment of the cedula tax must be exhibited when any official business is transacted, such as taking an
oath of office, registration as a voter, acknowledging a document
before a notary, or executing any instrument which is required to
be recorded.
The stamp tax must be paid by affixing and canceling the stamp
upon documents, instruments and papers and upon acceptances,
assignments, sales and transfers of the obligation, right, or property incident thereto, by the person making, signing, issuing or
transferring the same. The tax is very moderate, but produces
a substantial income for the government. For illustration, bank
checks, drafts and certificates of deposit not drawing interest,
require a two-centavo stamp; promissory notes, bills of exchange, and certificates of deposit drawing interest require a twocentavo stamp for each two hundred pesos or fractional part
thereof of their face value. Insurance policies require ten centavos for each two hundred pesos of the amount insured; indemnity bonds, one centavo for each four pesos of premium charged;
warehouse receipts, twenty centavos; bills of lading for goods to
be exported, ten centavos; for goods to be shipped to another local
port, four centavos; each passenger ticket for travel on other than
a government vessel, from one to three pesos, depending on the
cost of the ticket. A mortgage on real or personal property and
an assignment or renewal thereof requires a fifty-centavo stamp
where the amount is from one thousand to three thousand pesos,
and fifty centavos extra on each additional three thousand pesos
or fractional part thereof. A charter party, contract, or agreement for the charter of a ship requires from six to twenty pesos




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


153


in stamps according to the tonnage of the ship. Bonds and certificates of indebtedness of the insular or any provincial or municipal government, checks, drafts, warrants and bills of exchange
drawn by the United States on the insular or local government,
policies of insurance issued by fraternal and beneficial societies
operated on the lodge system or local cooperative plan and all
certificates, acknowledgments and other papers required from the
government officials in the exercise of their official duties are
exempt from the documentary tax.
A privilege tax on businesses and occupations is imposed in
addition to the percentage tax on the volume of sales by a merchant. The privilege tax must be paid before any designated
business or occupation can be lawfully begun or pursued and the
tax is payable on each separate or distinct establishment or place
where the business is conducted and for each occupation or line
of business although combined with some other for which a tax
has been paid. The occupation tax must be paid by each individual engaged in a calling subject thereto and the tax on a business
by the person, firm or company conducting the same.
Every person-except pedlers, fruit-stand keepers and those
engaged in certain minor occupations, in which the volume of
business is very small-engaged in a business on which a percentage tax is imposed must pay an annual tax of two pesos;
but if his receipts do not reach the minimum established for the
percentage tax, he pays only the two pesos for that year.
A distinction is thus made between a business and an occupation tax. Fixed taxes on business are imposed as follows: (a)
distillers of spirits, two hundred pesos; (b) brewers, two hundred
pesos; (c) rectifiers of distilled spirits, two hundred pesos; (d)
manufacturers of tobacco, twenty pesos; (e) manufacturers of
cigars, twenty pesos; (f) wholesale liquor dealers in the city of
Manila, two hundred pesos, and in any other place, sixty pesos;
(g) retail liquor dealers, forty-eight pesos; (h) retail vino dealers, eight pesos; (i) wholesale dealers in fermented liquors, sixty
pesos; (j) retail dealers in fermented liquors, twenty pesos; (k)
retail dealers in tuba, basi, and tapuy, ten pesos; (1) tobacco deal



154


THE PHILIPPINES


ers, eight pesos; (m) retail leaf tobacco dealers, twenty pesos;
(n) wholesale pedlers of manufactured tobacco, or of distilled,
manufactured, or fermented liquor, or both, eighty pesos; (o)
retail pedlers of manufactured tobacco, or of distilled manufactured, or fermented liquor, or both, sixteen pesos; (p)
pedlers of merchandise traveling from place to place, except
pedlers of foodstuffs and those whose stock in trade amounts
to less than fifty pesos in value, eight pesos, to be refunded if
thereafter they shall pay the merchants' tax for the quarter in
a sum in excess of eight pesos; (q) proprietors of cockpits, two
hundred pesos, and for each cock-fight (soltada), a tax of twentyfive centavos; (r) proprietors of theaters, museums, cinematographs and concert halls, in the city of Manila, two hundred
pesos, and in any other place, one hundred pesos, or in this case,
by the month, ten pesos; (s) proprietors of circuses giving exhibitions in one or more places or provinces, two hundred pesos;
(t) proprietors of billiard rooms, for each table, ten pesos; (u)
owners of race tracks, for each day on which races are run on
any track, sixty pesos; (v) pawnbrokers, four hundred pesos;
(w) stockbrokers, eighty pesos; (x) money lenders, eighty pesos;
(y) real estate brokers, eighty pesos; (z) merchandise brokers,
eighty pesos.
On occupations the following privilege taxes must be paid annually: (a) customs and emigration brokers, eighty pesos; (b)
lawyers, medical practitioners, land surveyors, architects, public
accountants, and civil, electrical, mechanical or mining engineers,
fifty pesos; (c) dental surgeons, opticians, photographers, lithographers, engravers and professional appraisers or connoisseurs
of tobacco and other domestic or foreign products, forty pesos;
(d) procuradors judicales, agents de negocios, insurance agents
and sub-agents, and veterinarians, forty pesos; (e) pharmacists,
farriers, chiropodists, manicurists, tattooers and masseurs, twenty
pesos; (f) mid-wives and cirujanos ministrantes in medicine or
dentistry, ten pesos.
For the privilege of maintaining outdoor signs and bill-boards




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


155


a privilege tax of from one to two pesos per square meter or fraction thereof, must be paid.
All merchants not specifically exempted because of the insignificance of their business, must pay a tax of one per cent. on the
gross value in money of the commodities, goods, wares and merchandise sold, bartered, exchanged or consigned abroad by them,
such tax being based on the actual selling price or value at which
the goods in question are disposed of or consigned, whether consisting of raw material or of manufactured or partially manufactured products, and whether of domestic or foreign origin.36
Things subject to a specific tax and agricultural products when
sold by the producer or owner of the land where grown or by any
other person than a merchant or commission merchant, are excluded from this percentage tax on merchants' sales.
The specific internal revenue taxes apply to goods manufactured or produced in the Philippine Islands for domestic sale or
consumption and the things imported from the United States or
foreign countries, but not to anything produced or manufactured
in the islands which shall be removed for exportation and which
is actually exported without returning to the islands, whether so
exported in its original state or as an ingredient or part of any
manufactured article or product. In case of importations the
internal revenue tax is added to the customs duties. No specific
tax is collected on any articles sold and delivered directly to the
United States Army or Navy for actual use or issue by the army
or navy, or on any article sold to the Bureau of Coast and Geodetic Survey purchased with funds furnished by the government
of the United States.
Specific taxes on domestic products must be paid by the manufacturer, purchaser, owner or person having possession of the
36 "Merchants" as here used means a person engaged in the sale, barter or
exchange of personal property of whatever character. It includes manufacturers who sell articles of their own production and commission merchants
having establishments of their own for the keeping and disposal of goods of
which sales and exchanges are effected, but does not include merchandise
brokers, who are required to pay a percentage tax equivalent to 4% of the
gross compensation received by them in excess of 500 pesos per quarter.




156


THE PHILIPPINES


same, and, except as otherwise specifically allowed, such taxes
must be paid immediately before removal from the place of production.
The principal specific taxes are those imposed on liquors and
cigars. Upon distilled spirits there is collected, with certain exceptions, specific taxes as follows: (a) if produced from sap
of the nipa, cocoanut or buri palm or from the juice or sirup or
sugar of the cane, per proof liter, twenty-five centavos; (b) if
produced from any other material, per proof liter, seventy centavos. Medicinal and toilet preparations, flavoring extracts and
all other preparations of which, excluding the water, distilled
spirits form the chief ingredient, are subject to the same tax as
such chief ingredient.
Domestic alcohol of not less than one hundred eighty degrees
proof when denatured, is exempt from a specific tax, when withdrawn for use for fuel, light, power, or in the arts and industries.
On wines and imitation wines there is collected per liter of
volume capacity, regardless of proof, the following tax: (a)
sparkling wines, one peso; (b) still wines containing fourteen
per cent. of alcohol or less, eight centavos; (c) still wines containing more than fourteen per cent. of alcohol, fifteen centavos.
Imitation wines containing more than twenty-five per cent. of
alcohol are taxed as distilled spirits. Beer, ale, porter and other
fermented liquors pay four centavos per liter of volume capacity.
Manufactured products of tobacco, except cigars, cigarettes
and tobacco specially prepared for chewing so as to be unsuitable
for consumption in any other manner, but including all other
tobacco twisted by hand or reduced into condition to be consumed
in any manner other than the ordinary method of drying and
curing, and all tobacco prepared or apparently prepared for sale
or consumption, and all fine cut shorts, and refuse, scraps, cuttings, clippings and sweepings of tobacco, pay forty-eight centavos on each kilogram. Tobacco products intended for industrial use are exempt from the tax.
Cigars and cigarettes, except hand-made cigars and cigarettes




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


157


prepared by a consumer for his own consumption and so used,
pay the full tax: (a) when a manufacturer's usual wholesale
value, less the amount of the tax, is twenty pesos per thousand
or less, on each thousand, two pesos; when it is more than twenty
pesos but not more than fifty pesos per thousand, on each thousand, four pesos; when it exceeds fifty pesos per thousand, on
each thousand, six pesos; (b) cigarettes, weighing not more than
two kilograms per thousand, on each thousand, one peso; weighing more than two kilograms, two pesos per thousand. Matches
pay on each gross of boxes containing not more than one hundred
twenty sticks to the box, forty centavos; when containing more,
a proportionate additional tax.
Condensed skimmed milk, and all skimmed milk, in whatever
form, sold in the islands, pays twenty centavos for each kilogram
of gross weight of the milk containers. Refined and manufactured mineral oils pay (1) naphtha, gasoline and all other later
products of distillation, three centavos; (2) kerosene or petroleum, one and one-half centavos; (3) and lubricating oils, two
centavos, per liter of volume capacity.
Coal and coke pay fifty centavos per meter ton. Cinematographic films imported or manufactured in the islands pay three
centavos per lineal meter. Playing cards, containing not more
than fifty-eight cards per pack, pay each twenty centavos.
Banks pay a tax of one twenty-fourth of one per cent. upon the
capital employed (not including money borrowed in the usual
course of business from persons not interested in the bank) for
each month, one-eighteenth of one per cent. for each month upon
the average deposits subject to check or represented by certificates of deposit, one-twelfth of one per cent. on the average actual circulation, and one per cent. for each month additional on
the average amount of such circulation in excess of the amount
of the paid-in capital. Foreign banks pay on the proportion of
their total capital that the net earnings from business in the
Philippines bears to the total net earnings of the institution.
Savings institutions are exempt from the tax on all deposits not
exceeding four thousand pesos made in the name of one person,




158


THE PHILIPPINES


and on all their deposits which are invested in securities satisfactory to the insular treasurer.
Persons and corporations transacting an insurance business
(except purely cooperative associations) pay one per cent. on the
total premiums collected each year. Gross earnings taxes are
provided for in the charters of all railroad and other corporations
to which franchises are granted.
Fixed charges are made for each cubic meter of lumber, firewood, stone and earth, cut or taken from any public forest or
forest reserve. The fees charged for inspecting and sealing
weights and measures are classed as internal revenue. An ad
valorem tax equal to one and one-half per cent. of the market
value is collected on the gross output of each mine.
The provincial and municipal governments also exercise the
taxing power under grants of authority from the legislature. A
land tax levied by the provincial board, furnishes the chief revenue of the provinces, which, however, share in the internal
revenue receipts of the central government. In addition to a land
tax levied for school purposes, the municipalities exact license
fees for privileges, occupations, and grants of fishery rights, and
receive profits from certain business enterprises such as public
markets in which they are authorized to engage. Like the provinces, they receive a substantial portion of the internal revenue.
The city of Manila is practically a province as well as a municipality. Its principal revenues are derived from the land tax,
licenses, and other impositions such as are ordinarily collected by
municipal governments. Real estate is assessed by the city assessor and collector, subject to an appeal to a board of tax appeals
composed of seven members appointed annually by the governorgeneral, and on the valuation thus fixed an annual tax of one and
one-half per cent. is levied.
Machines, mechanical contrivances, and appliances used for
industrial, agricultural or manufacturing purposes, whether or
not technically fixtures, are excluded from the value of the land.
Lands owned by government, burial grounds, churches and their
adjacent parsonages and conventos, and lands and buildings used




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


159


exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific and educational
purposes, and not for profit, are exempt; but the exemption does
not include lands or buildings held for investment, the income of
which is devoted to religious, charitable, scientific, or educational
purposes. The exemptions are excessive.
In the face of strong opposition, and after years of urging,
the legislature recently authorized the city of Manila to levy special assessments for benefits on real estate to the extent of sixty
per cent. of the cost of contemplated public improvement. Only
land owned by the United States or the government of the Philippines is exempt from this special assessment tax.
The provinces and municipalities receive forty per centum of
the proceeds of the internal revenue tax levied and collected by
the insular government, ten per cent. being set aside as a provincial, ten per cent. as a road and bridge, and twenty per cent.
as a municipal allotment.37 For purposes of allotment, which are
made on the basis of population, a chartered city, township, or
other local governmental division not constituting a part of a
municipality proper, is deemed a municipality. The city of Manila receives the share which it would receive both as a municipality and a regularly organized province. The cedula tax all
goes into the provincial treasuries although in provinces where
the regular one.peso charge is doubled the extra peso goes into
the road and bridge fund or the road and public works funds.
The proceeds of fees for sealing weights and measures and all
license taxes on theaters, museums, cockpits, concert halls, bond
brokers, billiard rooms, and retail dealers in tuba, basi, tapuy,
or like domestic liquors, go to the municipality where collected.
Franchise taxes paid by a grantee which has outstanding bonds
the interest on which is guaranteed by the government, and by
37 These allotments, however, can not exceed the amount allotted for the
same purpose during the fiscal year 1909. The provincial allotment is apportioned to the treasuries of the provinces and accrues to their general funds.
The road and bridge allotments are apportioned among the provinces wherein
the road tax continues in force and other provinces wherein the annual cedula
tax is maintained at two pesos. The municipal allotments, the Administrative
Code declares, "shall be for the benefit of the inhabitants of the islands, in
the purview of their community requirements," being available for municipal
or other designated uses.




160                   THE    PHILItPINES                 ' 
the grantee of a submarine telegraph cable, go in their entirety
to the insular treasury.  Where the franchise is for a steam railroad, a marine railroad, an electric or tramway line, or a public
service plant, the proceeds of the tax are divided in fixed proportion between the insular government and the provinces and municipalities interested-the insular government receiving from
one-half, in the case of an ordinary r     'bad,, to one-fifth in the
case of a public service plant.
The foregoing summary statement will give the reader a fair
idea of the system of taxation and the extot4 of the burden imposed on the people. The burden is cast upon those members of
the community who are, presumptively, at least, most able to
bear it. There is no personal property tax and the documentary
stamp tax only is imposed on mortgages and such securities for
debt. The administrative machinery by which the revenues are
collected now seems to be working with very little friction.
Under this system the revenues of the government, other than
from  the cedula and a few     other items, are determined by the
volume of business transacted in the islands and with foreign
countries. The table which shows the annual income of the government shows also that there has been a steady improvement of
business conditions. The foreign commerce of the country, as
shown by the following tables, continued to grow steadily until
interfered with by the European war.
The imports for the years 1906-1914, exclusive of gold and
silver, were as follows:
FromTwelve months ending December-                             Total
United      Other
States    countries
1906..............................  $4,477,886  $21,925,882  $26,403,768
1907................................  5,067,538  25,386,272  30,453,810
1908.................................  5,101,836  24,084,284  29,186,120
1909.................................  6,445,331  24,639,088  31,084,419
1910. 20,068,542                                 29,650,819  49,719,361
1911.............................  19,156,987  28,867,420  48,024,407
1912...........................  24,309,010  37,358,941  61,667,951
1913.................................  26,676,261  26,636,525  53,312,786
1914............................    24,020,395  24,568,258  48,588,653




FINANCE, TAXATION AND TRADE


161


The exports for the years 1906-1914, exclusive of gold and
silver, were as follows:


ToTwelve months ending December-       United                  Total
United       Other
States     countries
1906................................  $11,869,289  $20,773,603  $32,642,892
1907................................  10,329,387  22,768,480  33,097,867
1908................................  10,450,755  22,150,317  32,601,072
1909................................  14,726,513  20,197,824  34,924,337
1910................................  17,241,725  23,386,738  40,628,463
1911...............................  19,827,030  24,760,261  44,587,291
1912................................  22,814,238  31,970,500  54,784,738
1913................................  16,434,018  31,338,938  47,772,956
1914................................  24,427,710  24,261,924  48,689,634


The total foreign trade for the year 1915 was larger than in
any previous year in the history of the islands.38 The imports
amounted to $49,312,188, and the exports to $53,863,004, making a total of $102,675,292. The exports to the United States
amounted to $50,034,560.
38 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1915, p. 192 (Rept. Secretary of Finance and Justice,
dated May 2, 1916),


Ad:




CHAPTER VIII


Defense and Public Safety-The Army and Navy
Cooperation of Civil and Military Authorities-The Navy-Status of Army
-Gradual Reduction-Cost of Military Establishment-Defense from External Enemies-Moral Effect of Army Presence-Relation with Civil Government-Detailed Army Officers-Organization of Native Troops-The
Scouts-The Constabulary-The Municipal Police-Seditious Movements.
At a dinner in Cairo the talk was of what had been accomplished under British rule for the regeneration of Egypt. After
generous praise had been given to the diplomats, army officers
and engineers, an elderly civilian remarked, "But do not forget,
gentlemen, that this all rests on the work of one man, Mr.
Tommy Atkins." After the excitement of war times has subsided and men are absorbed with commerce, trade and the multifarious problems of civil government and administration, it is
very easy to forget the work of the soldier and sailor who made
it all possible.
Since the fall of Manila the navy has had no direct connection with the government of the Philippines, but the constant
presence of some part of the Asiatic fleet in Manila Bay and the
location of the naval stations at Cavite and Olongapo have required the careful coordination of the work of the civil, military
and naval authorities. Admiral Dewey stands out as the conspicuous figure of the first few months of American control, but
from the nature of their duties naval officers have had little connection with the administrative work of the insular government.
The control of the army ceased in 1902, and since that time
it has borne the same relation legally to the insular government
that it does to a state government when occupying a military
reservation in the United States. The commanding general of
the department of the Philippines has had no more control over
the civil government than, for instance, the commander of the
department of the East has over the government of the state of
162




DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


163


New York. Nevertheless, the peculiar local conditions and the
direct control of the secretary of war over the military and civil
authorities have necessitated active, and in recent years, very cordial cooperation. The governor-general is the ranking official
in the islands,l and his relation with the administration at Washington is always such that on questions of general policy his
word is usually final, with the result that on matters not purely
military the commanding general must work in harmony with
the governor-general.
In 1901, when Taft became civil governor, there were approximately 23,000 United States troops scattered throughout the
Archipelago from Jolo to northern Luzon.2 As the country became quiet and the ability of the constabulary to maintain order
in most localities was demonstrated, the number of regular troops
was reduced and concentrated in posts near the larger cities
like Manila, Batangas, Iloilo, Cebu-and Zamboanga, and at danger points like Jolo and Camp Keithley. In 1912 the number
had been reduced to 16,702, of which 5,732 were scouts. The
withdrawal of the regulars continued until at present3 there are
11,884. All but the scouts are now stationed in the vicinity of
Manila or near by in the island of Luzon. As now organized,
these units constitute a colonial army with permanent stations
in the Far East, the officers and men being relieved after completing fixed tours and replaced by others transferred from the
United States.
The cost of maintaining the army in the Philippines since the
close of the insurrection has often been greatly exaggerated.
Nevertheless, it is considerable. Including the scouts, it has averaged about $9,000,000 per annum.4 The scouts alone cost
1A governor-general is entitled to 17 guns, a vice-governor to 15 guns,
and a major-general to 13 guns. In the British Crown colonies the governor
is also commander of the military forces, but in recent years the position is
merely nominal.
2 The United States Volunteers enlisted under the Act of March 2, 1899,
were returned to San Francisco between January and June, 1901, and mustered out.
3 June 3, 1916.
4 There have been various estimates of the expenses properly chargeable
to the Philippine situation. The above figures are from the statement prepared by the War Department, Appendix J, p. 523, infra.




164


THE PHILIPPINES


about $1,000,000 a year and they exist only because of the
American occupation of the islands. But the remainder of the
army must be maintained somewhere, and only the excess cost
of keeping them in the islands is properly chargeable to the Philippine situation. This was made up principally of transportation charges, increased cost of supplies and extra pay for foreign
service.5
To the credit side should be placed the creation of an efficient
transport system, the improvement of the quartermaster and
commissary departments, and the greatly increased effectiveness
of both officers and men.
Why are these troops kept in the Philippines at the expense
of the United States instead of being made a charge on the insular government? The Philippines are American territory, and
the duty to defend its territory from external aggression rests
upon the nation. For that purpose, at the national expense, modern fortifications have been erected on Corregidor and other small
islands which guard the entrance to Manila Bay and on Isle
Grande in Subig Bay, behind which lies the Olongapo Naval Station. There has always been a difference of opinion among experts as to the value of these expensive works. Corregidor is
probably impregnable from naval attack, but it could easily be
reduced by great guns placed in the mountains back of Marivales.
The placing of such guns there could be prevented only by a
mobile army such as the United States will never be willing to
maintain in the Philippines. Manila, which lies at the foot of
the bay twenty-five miles from Corregidor, could easily be captured by a large army which could, in the absence of naval pro5 In ordinary times the Spaniards maintained about 15,000 soldiers in the
islands. The budget of 1888 provided for 9,470 infantry, artillery and engineers, 407 cavalry, 630 disciplinary troops (convicts), 3,342 civil guards (constabulary), and 400 civil guards corps. This establishment cost approximately
$2,000,000 (gold) per year. The civil guards were very unpopular with the
people. See Appendix J.
Some of the towns maintained at their own expense guards called Quarilleros. They were enlisted from the worst element of the population and
not infrequently were closely identified with the bandits against whom they
were supposed to protect the public.




DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


165


tection, be landed on the shores of Lingayen Bay about one hundred miles to the north. The march south would be over
perfectly level country, but a comparatively small army, in even
hastily constructed trenches, could at least delay it very considerably. The city itself has no defensive works. But after
capturing the city the invading army would find itself bottled up in Manila. The victory would be a barren one so long
as Corregidor controlled the entrance from the sea; and before
the forts could be reduced the issue would be determined on the
high seas or on the coasts of continental America.
It is often said that the Philippines are a source of military
weakness, but it is true only in the sense that any remote valuable
possession offers attractions to the predatory. If made the main
object of attack by a first-class near-by power the islands could
not, of course, be successfully defended. But the Philippine
Islands will never be the cause of a war between the United
States and any other power; nor even in the event of such a war
would their temporary possession be of much importance to
either contestant.
The American naval base is now at Hawaii, and in the event
of a war with Japan the Philippines would doubtless be blockaded
and the small American force there neutralized while the issue
was being determined elsewhere. The islands would remain with
or go to the victor, and the determining battles would be fought
far from their shores.
While the nation has been at peace the army has been the
power in reserve back of the civil government-the guaranty
of internal quiet and order. The sight of its marching columns
has dampened the enthusiasm of many a would-be insurgent.
For several years there was considerable friction between the
military and the civil authorities, but the old feeling of antagonism has long since disappeared. The dissatisfaction which
existed in the early days is easily understood and was to some
extent justified by facts. After the installation of civil government many of the ex-generals of the insurrecto armies were
elected provincial governors or held other important civil posts.




166


THE PHILIPPINES


As some of them with whom the army was brought into close
official relations had acquired unenviable military reputations
during the war for deeds of cruelty and barbarism, and as they
openly boasted of the numbers of American soldiers they had
killed, their occupancy of high civil posts did nothing to decrease
the bitterness of the army.
A writer who assumes to express the army view asserts that
"from the beginning there was a systematic belittling, on the part
of the Taft Commission, of the work of the army, incidentally,
too, belittling the reality and unanimity of the opposition which
was daily calling it forth."6
Such statements are entirely without justification. Certainly
the president and the secretary of war gave the army full credit
for its admirable work. In his general amnesty proclamation
of July 4, 1902, President Roosevelt spoke words of generous
praise. When the army was accused of wholesale cruelty in retaliation against a treacherous and barbarous people and maligned
and lied about in the press and on the floors of Congress,7 Secretary Root, in a public address, said:
"In the Philippines... the army has put down an insurrection of seven millions of people.... And with the sword
it has carried the school-book, the blessings of peace and selfgovernment and individual liberty.... Our soldiers have
been criticized, and some of them have been accused, but however
ready men at ease here may be to believe, to repeat, to rejoice
in accusations against their brethren who are fighting under the
American flag in support of American sovereignty, let me tell
you that... these men shall not be condemned unheard.... When the record comes to be made up in the cool judgment of the American people and of mankind, after Cuba with
its brilliant page, after China with its glorious achievement, will
6 Blount, The American Occupation of the Philippines, p. 299.
7 See Sen. Doc. 205, 57th Cong. Ist Sess.
A senator from Tennessee stigmatized the lamented Funston as a "blatherskite brigadier." A senator from Idaho said: "I do not know who
General Wheaton is, but I imagine he is a charity boy who was appointed to
West Point by some representative or senator and who was educated by the
government." These are but samples of the abuse showered on distinguished
officers by senators who were unworthy to stand in their presence.
8 Address at West Point, June 11, 1902.




DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


167


be written another page, equally glorious, on which will be recorded the achievements in war and in peace of the American
army in the Philippines."
And so the record has been made up and the judgment entered.
Under the circumstances misunderstandings between the civil
and military officials were inevitable. The army expected not
only to conquer the country, but in the natural course of events
to govern it for a good many years. This could not be permitted. The policy of the Washington administration was based
on principles which are the very antithesis of those which influence military men when dealing with matters within the scope
of their profession. These antagonistic theories and methods
of administration caused much trouble, dissatisfaction and soreness, but by the judicious adjusting of conflicting forces an
equilibrium was finally established and time and loyalty did the
rest.
The volunteer soldier is a citizen of the republic who for a
time is released from the common restraints of every-day life
and subjected to a new set of restrictions which greatly gall his
somewhat exaggerated ego. The regular soldier is simply a volunteer who has found himself and recognizes the wisdom of
surrendering a little of his individualism for the common good.
Both retain what they regard as the natural right to form their
own opinions on questions of public policy. Each has his own
independent and breezy methods.
"....illogical, elate,
He greets th' embarrassed Gods, nor fears
To shake the iron hand of Fate
Or match with Destiny for beers."
The military theory was "that the army was there to put down
an insurrection, not to have a symposium with its leaders on the
rights of men." It did not at all approve President McKinley's
policy of benevolence. In a general way the soldier accepted the
theory of the old army, that the only good Indian was a dead
Indian, and he embodied the idea in a marching song which was




168


THE PHILIPPINES


once as well known in the Philippines as was Tipperary somewhere in northern France:
"Underneath the starry flag
Civilize him with a Krag
And return us to our own beloved homes."
He already had a superabundance of black brothers at home
and objected to adopting a few millions more of the brown sort.
As to the Filipino, he was willing to admit that
"He may be a brother of William H. Taft"
but felt certain that
"He ain't no brother of mine."
The undeniable fact is that the soldiers, almost without exception, from commanding general to private, were out of sympathy with the altruistic policy of the McKinley administration.
A few indeed had vision and could grasp the meaning of the
great experiment, but even they believed that the work of Filipinization was pushed forward too rapidly.
While it is true, as John Hay said, that there never was an
army that could be trusted as an army to govern a conquered
country, it is certain that army officers when detached and assigned to civil work make highly efficient and faithful administrators. Some of the very best service rendered in the Philippines has been by officers who were detailed and appointed to
civil office, and it is to be regretted that more of them were not
utilized for such work. Leonard Wood, Tasker H. Bliss and
John J. Pershing did remarkable work as civil governors of the
Moro Province while performing also their military duties as
department commanders. Allen, Bandholtz, Baker, Rivers,
Hershey, Hall, Bennett, Nolan, Kilbourne and other officers detailed from the regular army were largely responsible for making the Philippine Constabulary one of the most efficient bodies
of native military police in the world. The army trains admin



DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


169


istrators, and colonial administrative work develops soldiers.
Lord Cromer was a major of artillery when detailed for civil
service in India and later in Egypt. Sir Reginald Wingate, the
governor-general of the Soudan, is a general in the army. Most
of the great leaders of the French and British armies of to-day
were trained in civil colonial administration. Lord Kitchener
spent a great part of his life in colonial civil and military administrative work. Joffre built railroads on the West African coast
and organized and managed an Industrial Exposition in Tonkin.
Gallieni was a successful civil administrator in West Africa,
Tonkin and Madagascar. Roque and Lyautey, his successor at
the French War Office, had many years of such service.
All colonial powers maintained native troops as auxiliary to
their regular military establishments, and the organization of
Filipino regiments, which would permit the withdrawal of many
of the American troops and thus reduce expenses, was given
early consideration by both the military and civil authorities.
There seems to have been a general consensus of opinion that
native regiments to serve with the regular army and also a
native constabulary to serve under the civil governor should
be organized. It was believed that they would be faithful, efficient and loyal if properly commanded, and the belief has been
justified by experience. In its first report the commission advised the organization of ten regiments of native troops of infantry and cavalry, the field officers and company commanders
to be Americans and the lieutenants to be Filipinos.9
"Much thought," said Secretary Root, "has been given both
by the War Department and by the commanding officers in the
Philippines to the question of organizing native troops for the
performance of this duty. I have no doubt that this is practicable. The experiments which we have already made demonstrate
its practicability. We have already organized several different
bodies of native scouts under American officers.'~... All
9Rept. Phil. Corn. 1900, p. 93.
0 At that time there was one company under Lieutenant Batson, corn



170


THE PHILIPPINES


these have proved faithful, courageous and responsive to discipline when under the immediate control of American officers.
The main trouble has been to restrain them to the usages of
civilized warfare."
It would be economical as well as safe. Secretary Root said:
"There would be no difficulty in securing from among the
natives the entire number of troops necessary for the Philippines
if we wish to do so. Neither the needs of the native troops nor
the customary wages in the islands would justify giving them
the same pay, allowances and subsistence which we give to our
American soldiers. One-half the cost of the American soldiers
in all these respects will be ample and satisfactory.... It can
properly proceed only so rapidly as the officers available for the
purpose are able not only to organize and train the new soldiers,
but to cultivate in them the habit of subordination, respect for
authority, self-control and regard for the usages of civilized
warfare. The military requirements of the Philippines may
accordingly be summed up as follows: We need there for the
immediate future about sixty thousand men. We may expect
this number to be progressively decreased...  "
It was then contemplated that a portion of the expense of the
scouts should be paid out of the income of the insular government as "the great wealth and rapidly increasing revenues of
the islands make it evident that at no distant day the islands
themselves will be able to pay whatever they justly should for
the support of their own police protection."'2
In 1901 Congress authorized the president to enlist a body of
scouts which in due time should become a part of the regular
army of the United States. The original organizations were
mustered out as employees of the insular government and reenlisted and organized as companies constituting a part of the
posed of Macabebes; one under Lieutenant Castner, composed of Tagalogs;
others of Visayans in Samar and Negros; and a squadron of Filipino cavalry
under the command of Lieutenant Batson as Major of Volunteers.
11 Rept. Secretary of War, 1902, p. 249.
12Rept. Secretary of War, 1900 (Annual Repts. of the Secretary of War,
1900-1903, p. 136).




DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


171


regular establishment. The experience of the year was encouraging and the secretary advised that:'
"The Philippine scouts should be continued. They enable us
to reduce the force of American troops in the Philippines more
rapidly than we could without them, and their knowledge of the
country, language and the ways of the people make them especially valuable in hunting down ladrones, which for a good while
to come will be an urgent business."
The relation between the scouts maintained at the expense of
the United States and the constabulary, which has been created
and was being maintained by the insular government, was left
to be worked out in the light of future experience.
The scouts are excellent soldiers. In 1907 Brigadier-General
A. L. Mills said:
"The discipline of these companies is very good, and hard
work in the field has shown these soldiers to be loyal, patient and
efficient.... They are good material of which to form an
insular army to be used in maintaining peace and order in the
archipelago, and in time of war, when associated with American
troops, in repelling hostile attacks from without."
"After serving nearly two years with the Philippine scouts,"
wrote Major C. R. Elliott, "it is my honest opinion that they
are the best soldiers in the islands to-day. I do not bar any
regiment over here. You understand, I mean for service in this
country. They are more willing to work, can outmarch either
the infantry or cavalry, will work day and night if necessary
without growling, can work in the mud and water better than
white troops, and if necessary can construct their own quarters
from native material where white troops could or would not.
They are more contented in the field or outlying stations, can
shoot as well as the average white troops, are far more amenable
to discipline, and are not so liable to tropical sickness.
13 Rept. Secretary of War, 1901, p. 176.
Various plans have been proposed for consolidating the scouts and constabulary into one native force under the control of the Philippine government, but it has so far been found impossible to adjust the conflicting
Interests.




172


THE PHILIPPINES


But they would be of little value under Filipino officers, whom
they obey with ill grace."'4
I believe this expresses the general feeling of regular army
officers who have commanded the scouts. They are good soldiers
when under American officers. There is not much question as
to their loyalty to such officers.
During recent years the scouts have numbered about 6,000.
In 1903 there were 99 officers and 4,805 men. In 1916 there
were 182 officers and 5,733 enlisted men, not including thirteen
captains of the line detailed with the scouts as majors of battalions.15 At present six of the officers are natives of the Philippines, and of these three are graduates of West Point.16
But there was work to be done for which the American
soldiers were not particularly well qualified. As they were to
be withdrawn from the small stations and concentrated in larger
garrisons, it was necessary for the civil government to provide
for the maintenance of order in the scattered towns and villages
of the provinces. The charter of the city of Manila provided
for a regular police force and the municipal code required each
municipality to establish and maintain a police force, but the municipal police were notoriously unreliable and inefficient. It was
therefore necessary to organize a body of police on military
lines which would be under the control of the insular government and available for use in all parts of the islands. Policy as
well as economy required that it be composed of natives.17 The
14The method of selecting company officers from old non-commissioned
officers is bad. They should be selected as constabulary officers are, from
young college graduates.
15 The scouts have no regimental organization.
16 The Philippine government is allowed to keep two Filipino cadets at the
Military Academy.
17 Secretary Root, in his Report for 1903, said:
"In the beginning the employment of natives for such a purpose was regarded as a dubious experiment. There were prophets of evil who did not
hesitate to foretell disaster as the result of such a course of procedure. It
was asserted both by friendly and unfriendly critics that the natives would
prove cruel, inefficient, and disloyal. A careful study, however, of oriental
peoples and especially of the Filipino people, caused the commission to conclude that these fears were groundless and that under American direction and
leadership they would not only prove reliable but in addition could be made




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experience of the military authorities had already demonstrated
that Filipino soldiers, when properly commanded, could be
trusted, and this "put at rest the only practical question that
ever arose as to their availability."
On July 18, 1901,18 the commission provided for an armed,
equipped and disciplined force, to be called the Philippine Constabulary, to consist of not exceeding one hundred and fifty men
for each province, the whole to be under a chief and four assistant chiefs. For administrative purposes the islands were divided
into four departments with an assistant chief in charge of each.
The constabulary were declared to be peace officers and were
charged particularly with the duty to prevent and suppress brigandage, insurrection, unlawful assemblies and breach of peace.
The plan contemplated:
1. That Americans should, as a general rule, be in command
of the forces to be organized in the provinces and that the noncommissioned officers and privates should be Filipinos.
2. That each province should furnish its quota of men, whose
operations ordinarily were to be confined to their own province.
The policy of the British and Spanish had been to utilize native troops as constabulary in districts other than that from
which they were drawn, thereby taking advantage of tribal antagonism and avoiding the embarrassment incident to dealing
with their immediate friends and neighbors. But the commission thought that as against the disadvantages there were substantial benefits to be derived from pursuing the opposite course.
It was believed that if properly officered and trained there need
be no fear of treachery, and that there were in fact many adfar more effective for service to be performed than even a greater number of
American soldiers. It seemed plain to the commission that the American
people would be adverse to a policy which eliminated the native Filipinos as
a factor in maintaining order. Not only did the consideration of expense cut
a most important figure but in addition continued occupancy of the islands
under a purely military regime in which the Filipinos were to have no part
seemed wholly opposed to American ideas. In short, it was believed that
unless the Filipinos thus could be largely utilized in this and other branches
of the government,. American administration must prove an expensive and
mortifying failure."
18 Act No. 175.




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vantages in having the police familiar with the terrain and the
people of the province in which they were operating.
The constabulary was organized in 1901 with Captain Henry
T. Allen as chief and Captain D. J. Baker as first assistant chief.
The other assistant chiefs were selected from non-commissioned
officers and soldiers then serving in the Philippines. Subsequently Congress provided that officers of the United States
Army might be detailed for service as chiefs and assistant chiefs
of constabulary, and that during the continuance of such details the officer serving as chief should have the rank and allowance of a brigadier-general, and an officer serving as assistant chief that of colonel.'9
The Philippine government was required to pay the difference
in salaries due to such increase in rank. It was customary to
detail regular army officers as inspectors of constabulary and
thus place them in training for appointment as assistant chiefs.
It was far from easy to secure qualified officers and trustworthy
enlisted men, but by the end of the year 1901 about one thousand had been secured, and the commission reported that the
constabulary had rendered good service in breaking up bands
of ladrones and eliminating notorious criminals. It was inevitable that there would be friction with the native authorities,
and there was much criticism of the work of the constabulary.
That there were abuses of power on the part of both officers
and men is certain, but they were frequently exaggerated for
political effect.20
19 Act of January 30, 1903.
20 "Of course," said Governor Taft, "the abuses of the Constabulary are
very grossly exaggerated by deliberate misrepresentations by persons whose
sympathy and profit are with the Ladrones and who do not welcome the
presence of the Constabulary on any ground. Another difficulty has been the
lack of tact on the part of some of the American inspectors engaged in
the provinces. The authority which they exercise over the constabulary of the
province, which generally is the only effective police body, is apt to make
them feel independent of the government of the province, especially if they
are young and inexperienced; and when they think that they do not find in the
native governor the active, energetic assistance to which they are entitled, they
conduct themselves in a manner not calculated to conciliate the governor or
to secure any useful cooperation with him. It has been my steady effort to
convince these inspectors that next to dishonesty and cruelty a failure to
show proper respect to the governor of the province and to accord him the




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The constabulary exists to-day about as it was originally organized.21 It has averaged about five thousand enlisted men.
The unit is the company, there being neither battalions nor regiments. The company is frequently broken into smaller bodies,
which, under non-commissioned officers, are scattered throughout the remotest parts of the country. The nature of their work
and the conditions under which it is done render it impossible
to train and discipline them like regular soldiers.22 Nor is it
necessary or desirable. They are trained for their special duties. The men are enlisted from all the provinces from among
the civilized people and the uncivilized tribes. There are fifteen
or twenty companies of Moros from the South and several of
wild men from the Mountain Province. The former are fighting men by virtue of their religion and take readily to military
life, but it is doubtful whether in endurance, skill and discipline
they are superior to the non-Mohammedans and Filipinos.
The companies of mountain men, the head-hunters of former
days, are remarkably efficient in dealing with their own people
in their native habitats. They follow the criminal through the
mountain fastnesses with marvelous skill and persistence. Cleareyed and without nerves, they, like the Moros, are unsurpassed
as marksmen.
There is no better way of civilizing the wild man than enlisting him in the constabulary, and pictures of the Igorot before
and after taking the constabulary treatment are always produced
when proof of progress in the Philippines is called for.
As was to be expected, many of the officers first appointed
proved unsatisfactory and it was necessary to replace them by
others of better quality. For several years past the selections
have been made from graduates of colleges and military schools
in the United States, and as a class they are equal to the average
courtesy which the dignity of his office requires will be considered the greatest dereliction of duty of which they can be guilty and will be cause for instant dismissal." Rept. Civil Governor, Nov. 1, 1902.
21 See Adm. Code, Secs. 1038-1119.
22 The companies at the larger stations are well drilled and make a very
soldierly appearance.




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young men who receive commissions as lieutenants in the regular
army. After reaching the islands they are sent to the constabulary school at Baguio for three months' intensive training in the
work of a constabulary officer. After graduation they are appointed third lieutenants and sent out to work. This excellent
school was maintained by the constabulary out of its general
appropriations, but recently it has been enlarged and now exists
as the "Academy for Officers of the Philippine Constabulary."
The purpose of the enlarged institution is to educate and train
officers for the constabulary or any other similar institution which
may be created. Of course, this law23 is designed to provide a
sort of West Point for the training of officers for the armies
of the independent republic of the Philippines when it shall
materialize.
The institution is under the charge of a superintendent, who
must be a constabulary officer, and other officers and instructors
appointed by the chief of constabulary with the approval of the
secretary of commerce and police. There is to be appointed
annually not to exceed sixty cadets, to be selected after an examination, from among nominees, three by the governor-general,
three by the speaker of the Philippine Assembly, two by each
member of the upper house of the Philippine Legislature, and one
by each member of the Philippine Assembly.24 The cadets must
for a period of two years pursue a course of study determined
by the chief of constabulary with the approval of the secretary
of commerce and police. The course must include military art,
the constabulary manual, the criminal law of the Philippines,
military law, international law, topography, equitation, athletics
and the municipal, provincial and insular governments. Upon
the completion of the course cadets will be appointed to fill vacancies in the grade of third lieutenant of the constabulary or
in the same grade in any similar organization which may hereafter be created.25
23 Act No. 2605, February 4, 1916.
24 This law was passed before the reorganization of the legislative department under the act of August 29, 1916.
25 This provision looks to the future national guard.




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177


The constabulary school, as maintained for a number of years,
was an excellent institution and prepared constabulary officers
very well for their duties. The new academy which is its successor is a much more ambitious institution.
The duties imposed upon the constabulary are multifarious and
onerous. The scouts live in comfortable quarters, receive good
pay, are equipped like regular United States soldiers; and during recent years, except when detailed to assist the constabulary
in rinderpest quarantine work, they have had nothing much to do
but to keep fit. Among his own people the scout is a sort of
military aristocrat who is believed to keep his own muchacho.
The constabulary soldier is a military working man who is busy
every day of the year. His pay is less than that of a scout. For
him there are few fine barracks-he is generally moving, chasing
criminals, enforcing quarantine regulations and performing other
duties too numerous to be mentioned in detail.26 He looks upon
the scout as a favored individual, and occasionally when his enlistment expires takes on with the scouts in the hope of thereafter enjoying peace, quiet and plenty.27
The military authorities were slow to recognize the real value
of the constabulary. At first there was a disposition to regard
the officers as policemen-of a sublimated sort, possibly, but policemen nevertheless-and entitled to official and social recognition as such only. The fact that the chief and assistant chiefs
were regular army officers made the situation a trifle difficult,
and when Congress made the chief a brigadier-general and his
assistants colonels it became even more complicated. Their rank
was real, not "Mex"; regular, not constabulary. Allen and his
successor, Bandholtz,28 were chiefs of constabulary in the civil
government-itself a sort of a war department agency-and
therefore, under the Act of Congress, brigadier-generals in the
26 In the early days the constabulary controlled the telegraph lines and
maintained a commissary for the convenience of civil government employees.
See Rept. of Gen. Allen, Rept. Phil. Corn. 1902, Exhibit G.
27This is not so common as formerly. The seven-year period of enlistment in the scouts has made the constabulary service with its three-year
period somewhat more attractive.
28 The present chief is Brigadier-General Herman Hall.




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United States Army. The fact that the higher rank was temporary did not affect its reality.
There was at first some difficulty about the constabulary uniform, and great pains were taken to prevent a constabulary officer
from being mistaken by the uninitiated for an army officer. But
the constabulary officers soon proved their metal in the field and
their right to recognition as officers and gentlemen, and they were
accepted as such personally and officially. The rather fantastic
collar and shoulder strap insignia which was understandable by
the initiated only was, with the approval of the commanding
general, made to conform to those of officers of the same rank
in the army.29 Finally a constabulary officer was made aide to
the governor-general in the place of a captain of regulars. The
recognition of the constabulary was due to the positive merits
of the organization, the personal qualities of the officers, and
the fact that the majority of the higher officers also held commissions in the regular army.
The arrangement under which these details were made from
the army was not entirely satisfactory to the constabulary officers,
who felt that they were thereby excluded from the higher commands. There was some slight justification for the feeling, but
Taylor, Mair, White, Griffith and others who had been appointed
from the volunteers or from civil life reached the rank of assistant chief on their merits. The army men brought into the constabulary an element essential for its highest efficiency, and the
results obtained fully justified the policy.
In the early days scout officers objected to serving under constabulary officers of higher rank. Regardless of theories and
names, the constabulary was and still is a military organization,
created to relieve the American soldiers and scouts from the
performance of a portion of their regular duties. There was a
common reason for the existence of both organizations. The
scouts were subject to the orders of the department commander,
29The initials "I. C." (insular constabulary) at first worn on the collar,
had to be changed to "P. C." It was found that the former among the regulars stood for "inspected and condemned." This would never do.




DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


179


the constabulary to those of the governor-general; but both the
commanding general and the governor-general received their
orders from the president through the secretary of war, who was
immediately responsible for the management of the entire Philippine situation.
It was inevitable that two such bodies of natives serving in
the same territory under such conditions would occasionally be
required to act together.  Congress therefore authorized the
placing of the scouts under the command of the regular army
officers who were serving as chief and assistant chiefs of constabulary. During the year 1903 from three to five thousand
scouts were thus detailed for service under the civil government
and the practise has been continued down to the present time.
Governor Taft reported that General Wood and General Davis
had responded promptly to the calls for scouts and that the arrangement had worked very well, as it enabled the civil government to suppress disorder with native troops.30 But it presented
some anomalies which seemed serious to those trained in the
niceties of military administration. "It is greatly regretted,"
wrote General Davis, "that political considerations seem to require the captains, field officers and generals of the forces here
to occupy the mortifying position which the execution of the
law involves; viz., to be forbidden to lead into action the troops
of their command whom they have organized, instructed for
years, and whose material wants under other leadership they
must still supply."
Such views and feelings evidenced a complete failure to understand the situation or to appreciate the purpose for which
the scouts existed. As Governor Taft said: "Nothing could
be further from the truth, nothing could be more unfounded or
unfair than the inference that the use of the scouts in association with the constabulary for the suppression of disorder is a
reflection upon the military establishment or upon those who are
in command thereof."
The chief and assistant chiefs of constabulary were regular
30 Report, November 15, 1903.




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THE PHILIPPINES


army officers of mature age and much senior in rank to the officers immediately in command of the scout companies. It was
in fact merely the temporary transfer of command from one
regular officer to another.
The local municipal police had always been the source of much
trouble. They were appointed by the presidentes and were generally little more than his personal servants. In the early days
the municipal elections were very lively affairs. There was little
violence, but the political workers could have given an old-time
American caucus manipulator cards and spades and beaten him
at his own game. The police represented the presidente's patronage and after their appointment they were his henchmen,
ready to fetch and carry for their boss. As guardians of the
peace they were practically useless. Discipline was unknown.
Without arms, they were useless against the ladrones who infested the surrounding country. In the small towns, with arms,
they were merely a tempting bait-an invitation for the raiders,
who came, tied up the frightened policemen, and carried away
the coveted firearms. When the constabulary was first organized it was contemplated that the provincial inspectors should
devote much of their time to getting the municipal police into
some sort of shape; but for several years they were kept so busy
with ladrones that little was done. As the country quieted down
more attention was given the matter and some improvement
was effected. The root of the trouble was in the method of appointment, control and removal of the policemen. Finally, early
in 1912, an act was passed which provided for their reorganization. The chief of the constabulary, with the approval of the
secretary of commerce and police, was required to prepare regulations for their government, discipline and. inspection which
should be binding on all the municipalities. A board, composed
of the senior inspector of constabulary, the third member of the
provincial board, and a presidente named by the provincial board,
was created in each province and charged with the duty of determining the qualifications of those who would be policemen.
Examinations were directed to be held each year. In order to




DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


181


be eligible a candidate was required to be a native of the Philippines, from twenty-one to forty years of age, of good habits,
in good condition physically, have no criminal record, be able
to read and write English or Spanish, have a perfect reading
and writing knowledge of the vernacular, and not have been dishonorably discharged from any civil or military organization.
A different examination was required for those who aspired to
the office of chief of police. The list of residents of a municipality deemed by this board to be qualified was furnished to the
municipal authorities and from it only appointments could be
made. The police force was appointed from this list by the
presidente with the consent of the municipal council. The chief
of police was appointed by the provincial governor upon the recommendation of the presidente by and with the consent of the
municipal council.
Enlistments in the local police are for four years and removals
can be made only after a public hearing and for the causes stated
in the statute. The chief of constabulary prescribes the uniform
insignia and equipment of the municipal police, but it must not
resemble that of the army or constabulary. The arms are furnished by the municipality. A policeman can not act as an election officer, be a candidate for office or solicit votes for any candidate.
It was always a question whether it was necessary or advisable
to keep so large a force of American soldiers in the islands. Ten
or fifteen thousand men would be of no particular use in the
event of war with Japan. As many scouts and constabulary
additional, assuming that they were all loyal, would have constituted merely an invitation to the Japanese-as the armed municipal police were to the ladrones-to come and get their equipment. It was convenient, in view of our treaty obligations, to
have troops near in the event of disturbances in China, as was
demonstrated at the time of the attack on the legations. Unquestionably the primary reason for maintaining United States troops
in the Philippines was to guard against another uprising of the
natives. Just how serious the danger was can never be known.




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THE PHILIPPINES


The military always exaggerated and the civil authorities minimized it; neither neglected to take reasonable precautions. The
Intelligence Department of the Army and the Secret Service Division of the Constabulary kept in close touch with what was going
on under the surface. Conditions occasionally became sufficiently serious to justify conveying to the leaders some of the
information in the possession of the government. On one occasion a certain party was quietly handed a list of the men who
were said to be marked to stand against the wall. Nothing insurrectionary occurred. On another occasion eight thousand
troops marched through the streets of Manila a few days before
the reported date set for an uprising. A review at that particular time may have been a mere coincidence, but Sefior Juan de la
Cruz, who had somewhere among his possessions a fine new commission as colonel in the "Army of Liberation," could never feel
absolutely certain about it.
It must be remembered that the Filipinos are a conquered people. Practically all of them acquiesced in, if they did not at
heart accept, American sovereignty; but a few irreconcilables,
from a position of safety in Hong Kong, continued to plot sedition and insurrection. These men kept up a connection with
a remnant of the old insurrectos, who remained in the islands,
took the oath of allegiance and maintained outwardly the attitude
of loyalty to the government. Certain seditiously inclined journalists also were constantly striving to excite the people against
the Americans, and there was always danger that they might induce them to engage in some mad attempt to start another revolt.
Aside from the serious efforts of some of our friends in Hong
Kong and Japan, paper organizations were occasionally effected
by knaves who, by false promises or threats, induced their dupes
to contribute small amounts to pay the expenses of a proposed
insurrection. Of course the money always went into the pockets
of the organizers. In one province the people were told that
there was war between the United States and Japan and that
Japan was soon to land an army which would drive out the
Americans and aid the Filipinos in setting up their own gov



DEFENSE AND PUBLIC SAFETY


183


ernment. Many ignorant people were induced to pay fifteen
cents each for a duly signed paper which certified that the bearer
was a friend of Japan and should not be molested. In many
instances commissions as officers in an imaginary insurrectionary
army were sold for cash to aspirants for fame and glory. It
is needless to say that the money went no farther than the pockets of the leaders. For a number of years a few men earned a
dishonest living by such methods.
Manila finally became accustomed to uprisings which never
arose and refused to take the rumors seriously. Acts merely
criminal were often magnified into insurrections by the papers in
the United States. In 1911 a Filipino provincial governor who
had killed a prisoner confined in the provincial jail was convicted
of the offense. Pending an appeal, he jumped his bail and
induced his friends in a small village in the foothills to aid him
in robbing a provincial treasurer, and then, following the good
old ladrone custom, escaped to the mountains. He was soon
captured by a detachment of the constabulary and was ultimately
hanged for the murder. The newspapers in the United States,
in glaring head-lines, described the incident as a serious uprising
on the part of the Filipinos. Disturbances in the winter of 1913,
which the Harrison administration reported as local riots originating with a band of Christmas enthusiasts, were claimed by
military and non-official observers to have been serious attempts
at a new insurrection.
After making due allowance for false alarms, exaggerations
and the reports of those who were prone to see spooks, it is reasonably certain that but for the presence in the islands of a considerable body of American troops on several occasions formidable movements would have been started, with results serious to
Americans residing in the islands, and even more serious to the
ignorant and easily misled people. Native troops alone, even
under American officers, could not have been relied upon.




CHAPTER IX


Sanitation and Health
Interest in Tropical Medicine-Sanitation in the East-Early Conditions in
Philippines-Enormous Death Rate-Superstitution and Fatalism-Spanish
and Filipino Doctors-Clean-up by American Army-New Health Regulations-First Board of Health-The Civil and Military Hospitals-Functions
of Health Officers-Causes of Communicable Diseases-Public Health Purchasable-Small Expenditure in Philippines-Attitude of Natives-Education
in Sanitation-Disposal of Garbage and Waste-The New Sewer SystemPublic Laundries-Cemeteries-The Modern Markets-The Drug and Food
Law-The Milk Supply-The Water Supply-Manila and Cebu WaterWorks-Artesian Wells-The Bubonic Plague-Cholera-The SmallpoxResults of Vaccination-Leprosy and Its Treatment-Beriberi-Infant Mortality-Tuberculosis-Malaria and Dysentery-Mosquitoes and Rats-An Unfinished Work-The Moro Hospital Ship-Present Organization.
The American occupation of the Philippines, Cuba and Porto
Rico came at a time when the study of the diseases peculiar to
the tropics was engaging the serious attention of governments as
well as the medical profession. Recent discoveries had suggested
the possibility that cholera, plague, yellow fever and malaria
might not only be controlled, but almost, if not entirely, prevented
and the tropics made safe places of residence for white men.
The possibility of saving the thousands of lives which were being
destroyed annually by these dread diseases appealed strongly to
the humanitarian instincts of the world.
The governments which were engaged in the development of
tropical countries had purely business reasons also for desiring
the reduction of the ravages of disease. They were to some extent directly responsible for the manner in which contagious and
infectious diseases had spread throughout the Orient and for the
economic losses incident thereto. The frequent destructive epidemics were closely connected with the efforts to equalize the
184




SANITATION AND HEALTH


185


labor supply of the world by the transfer of laborers from congested to poorly supplied regions. Wherever these migratory
workers went they carried the diseases peculiar to their native
lands. The interchange of products between countries is always
a distinct source of danger, necessitating the strictest quarantine
and inspection laws. The bubonic plague is supposed to have
been carried into the Philippines by rats concealed in shipments
of merchandise imported from China. Breaking the virgin soil
in connection with railroad construction or for agriculture always
causes an increase of malaria. Other less definitely understood
factors enter into the situation and the opening up of a new
country is invariably followed by an increase in disease and a
higher death rate even among the natives.
Imported labor is expensive and an epidemic of cholera or
plague among workmen brought from a distant country means
heavy financial loss to their employers and sometimes the failure
of great commercial enterprises. It is possible that the realization of the economic facts tended even more effectively to arouse
interest in the study of tropical medicine than the humanitarian
desire to preserve the lives of the natives of the tropics for their
own sakes.
Long before the days of Lister and the bacilli, Lord Beaconsfield told the colonists that sanitas sanitatum  omnia sanitas
should be their guiding principle. It was a good principle but
more was required than a formula.    The moder   campaign
against tropical diseases was initiated in England in 1897 by Sir
Patrick Manson in an address delivered at St. George's Hospital, in which he urged the importance of the special training of
students in the science of tropical medicine. Fortunately this
address attracted the attention of Joseph Chamberlain, then
secretary of state for the colonies, and through his influence
schools of tropical medicine were soon thereafter established
in London and Liverpool. Major Ross, who had discovered the
part played by the mosquito in the carriage of malaria, was sent
by the Liverpool school to Africa to continue his investigations.
Shortly thereafter the American investigators in Cuba identified




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THE PHILIPPINES


the mosquito which carries the yellow fever parasite. The campaign against the diseases of the tropics was thus well under way
when Manila was taken over from the Spaniards.
There seems to exist between the Oriental and the earth a
natural affinity, which renders him partial to dirt and indifferent
to squalor. The traveler who visits the interior of China or
views Canton on his way to the Five Towered Pagoda will be
able to form an excellent idea of sanitary conditions as they were
in the Philippines before and at the time of the American occupation.
The Filipinos realized nothing of the importance of sanitation
and the Spanish officials paid little attention to such matters.
There was one notable exception. General Juan Arolas seems
to have been gazetted governor of the plague-infected city of Jolo
with the implied understanding that he would show his appreciation of the honor by personally utilizing the unusual facilities
offered by the place for the contraction of deadly diseases. But
Arolas cheated his superiors by renovating Jolo and making it
one of the healthiest towns in the Archipelago. He is said to
have taken so much pride in the work that he bore a lasting
grudge against any unfortunate who should inconsiderately die
at Jolo through any other agency than the bolo or kampilan.
Superstition had much to do with the way in which both Spaniards and Filipinos lived. The belief that the night air contained
some poisonous miasma productive of malarial fever prevailed
generally and the natives closed both doors and windows to exclude the asuang, the devil spirits which flew abroad only at
night. The climate and the physical environment were unfavorable to the maintenance of health. That efficient ally of the sanitarian, cold weather, was unknown. Bacteria and parasites flourished throughout the entire year. The alternating heat and
moisture bred mosquitoes and other insects innumerable. Where
science, skill and well directed energy were so badly needed they
were all unknown.
For many years the death rate in the Philippines had been so
high that the population was at a standstill. There are no complete records of deaths but it is estimated that the rate must have




SANITATION, AND HEALTH


187


been at least fifty in the thousand. Probably forty thousand people died each year of smallpox and even a greater number from
tuberculosis. Cholera, the plague, malaria, beriberi and other
diseases killed vast numbers and the people in their ignorance
and blindness continued to do the very things which were most
certain to bring death. They drank the water from the streams
in which they and their work animals bathed and from shallow
open wells into which streets and cemeteries drained. Artesian
wells were unknown. The water supply for the city of Manila,
with its quarter of a million inhabitants, was drawn from the
Maraquina River at a point below where it was used by at least
ten thousand people for every purpose for which a water supply
should not be used.
The city, situated on Manila Bay and along the low banks of
the often-overflowing Pasig River, was always partially submerged at high tide. There was no sewer system. All garbage,
household waste and night-soil, when not simply thrown into the
streets and alleys with the hope that it would be disposed of by
hogs and other animals, was handled in the crudest possible manner. The twenty-five miles of esteros, the narrow tidal canals
which intersected the city, were open, sluggish, filthy water
courses into which all sorts of refuse found its way to be stirred
up at intervals by lighters and other craft. The moats without
the ancient city walls were festering masses of disease-breeding
corruption. Quinine was in great demand but it was scarce and
imitation pills of the precious drug were sold at exhorbitant
prices to the people in the provinces. The part played by the
mosquito in carrying malaria was unknown.
There were no food laws, no animal inspection, no proper
slaughter-houses, and the numerous markets were filthy beyond
description. Fruit and provisions were commonly sold from
the ground and, covered with dust and dirt, were eaten without
being washed or cooked.
There were no building restrictions and in sections of Manila
inhabited by from ten to twenty thousand people there were
neither streets nor alleys and the people reached their habitations,
which were built on posts, by passing under those of their neigh



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THE PHILIPPINES


bors. It was not uncommon for half a dozen persons to sleep in a
room measuring six by eight feet, with all the doors and windows
securely closed against the imaginary night-flying spirits, in blissful disregard of the millions of very real microbes in their midst.
As suitable ground for burial places was limited, a single grave
would often be used several times. What remained of the dispossessed tenants was scattered about or thrown ignominiously
on a pile at the foot of a cross erected in the center of the cemetery.
Leprosy was common and sufferers wandered almost at will
about the country. The insane were ignored or at times chained
to posts under the houses and often burned during the conflagrations which so frequently swept away the flimsy bamboo and nipa
structures. A thousand deaths a day in the city of Manila from
epidemic diseases was not unusual during one of the frequent
pestilential visitations.  In the provinces entire villages were
sometimes depopulated. Bubonic plague had found its way into
the islands. The dreaded amoebic dysentery, for which no remedy was known, destroyed its hundreds each year.
The maritime quarantine was entirely inadequate, being merely
an instrument of graft, and dangerous communicable diseases
were constantly being introduced from the cities of the China
coast, where no attempts whatever were made to control epidemics. The Chinese Emperor Tung Chin once issued a decree
informing his people that, "We have had the good fortune this
month to contract smallpox."1 Although the Filipinos may not
have regarded a case of smallpox as a stroke of good fortune,
they did consider the disease as one of the common incidents
of life, as we regard measles and whooping-cough. The statue
of Charles ItI)which stands in front of the Ayuntamiento in
Manila was erected in honor of the introduction of vaccination
into the Philippines, but only an infinitesimal portion of the populace had ever been vaccinated. Through ignorance and indifference little effort was made to avoid contagion.2 Persons cov1 Bland & Blackhouse, China Under the Empress Dowager, p. 120.
2 Parents often intentionally exposed their children to smallpox on the




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ered with the eruptions went freely about the streets and rode
in public conveyances. The clothing of those who died was
passed on without disinfection for use by other members of the
family.
Because of infection at birth, improper food and lack of care,
it is said that more than one-half of the children born in the
islands never lived to see the second anniversary of their birthdays.
The common people applied their remedies with due regard
to theological considerations. A good wife explained to the friar
that she had done everything reasonable to cure her husband of
congestion of the lungs. She had "prepared and applied a poultice of three heads of garlic in honor of the Three Persons of the
Blessed Trinity; this not producing the desired effect, she then
made a poultice of five heads of garlic in honor of the Five
Wounds of our Blessed Savior, and successively of seven heads
in honor of the Seven Pains of the Blessed Virgin; twelve in
honor of the Twelve Apostles, and last of all a poultice of thirtythree heads of garlic in honor of the thirty-three years our
Blessed Savior remained on earth." The priest nodded approval
as she went on, but as she stopped he asked, "And then?" to
which the lady replied, "Well, then he died."
Many died each year from ills which would have been cured
in any western country. The hospitals were inadequate and
badly equipped. The members of the medical profession, including the Spanish, were, to state it mildly, behind the times. Most
of them were ignorant, indifferent and little more efficient than
the herb-brewers and witch-doctors of the lower classes. Like
the ancient practitioner of the poem, their philosophy was simple:
"I physicks, bleeds and sweats 'em,
If after that they choose to die, why-I lets 'em."
A French surgeon named Paul de la Gironiere,3 when urged by
theory that as they would certainly have it at some time the sooner it was
over the better.
A medical practitioner in the Philippines from 1814 to 1834. See his
Vingt Annees aux Philippines, Paris, 1853. An English translation of this
book was published in New York in 1854.




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a Spanish doctor to establish himself in Manila, pleaded lack of
the necessary professional outfit. "That is of no consequence,"
replied the Spaniard, "I have all that you would require, a coat
almost new, and six capital lancets!" It is said that as late as
1892 there was not a surgeon in the Philippines who would venture to open the human abdomen.4
The physicians and surgeons, with their modern hospital equipment, who came with the American Army in 1898, found an ample
field for their energies and they were in immediate demand, as,
"the soldiers promptly contracted about all the different ailments
to be found in the islands." Prompt and efficient work was necessary for their protection and within a short time Manila had received such a scrubbing and cleaning as had never before been
experienced by any city east of Suez.
The work of sanitation fell naturally to the medical corps of
the army. A provisional board of health was immediately organized, and rules and regulations published. The city was divided
into districts and a municipal physician appointed for each. This
board continued in existence until August 26, 1899, when it was
reorganized with Doctor Guy L. Edie as commissioner of public
health. A bacteriological department was added to the Municipal Laboratory, a Municipal Dispensary organized, a Plague
Hospital established and provision made for the registration of
births, marriages and deaths, which previously had been in charge
of the parochial priests.
After the legislative power was vested in the commission the
provost marshal-general was authorized to promulgate health
ordinances for the city and the rules and regulations were
embodied in an ordinance which was enforced by the military
authorities. This ordinance covered nearly every phase of municipal sanitation and was the foundation of the sanitary codes
which were subsequently enacted. It provided among other
4 Harvey, P. F., "Native Medical Practice," New York Medical Journal,
LXXIV, p. 203, August 3, 1901; Doherty, "Medicine and Disease in Philippines," Journal American Medical Association, June 16, 1900; Flexner and
Barker, "Report Special Committee for Johns Hopkins University," in Journal Military Service Institution, XXVI (May, 1900), pp. 421-433.




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things that a physician who visited or examined any case of infectious or contagious disease should immediately cause such
patient to be isolated and notice given to the health authorities.
The term "infectious and contagious disease" as defined in the
ordinance included not only the well-known diseases of that character, but all diseases declared by the board to be dangerous to
the public health. It was made the duty of every person in
Manila to be successfully vaccinated at intervals of one year and
a person who had been exposed to smallpox was required to be
successfully vaccinated or revaccinated a sufficient number of
times, at intervals of two weeks, to render it evident that successful vaccination was impossible.5
This code has been frequently amended and many special ordinances relating to sanitation have been enacted. In the provinces
reliance had to be placed on local municipal ordinances and rules
and regulations made by the Bureau of Health and as a result
there was much diversity and dissatisfaction. The legislature
could not be induced to pass a sanitary code for the entire islands.
After the civil government was fully organized the subject of
health and sanitation was transferred from the Board of Health
for the City of Manila, to the Board of Health for the Philippine
Islands which, in 1905, became the Bureau of Health in the Department of the Interior. It was required to act also as a board
of health for the city of Manila. The service was finally reorganized in the present form by the Health Service Reorganization
Act which became effective July 1, 1915.6
The first commissioner of health under the new organization
was Major Louis L. Maus, M. C., U. S. A., who in August, 1902,
was succeeded by Major E. L. Carter, M. C., U. S. A., who
served until April, 1905, when, upon the reorganization of the
government bureaus Doctor Victor G. Heiser of the United
States Public Health and Quarantine Hospital Service7 became
director of the new bureau. Doctor Heiser remained in charge
5 Act No. 62.
6 Act No. 2468.
7 Now called the United States Public Health Service.




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until February, 1915, when he resigned and was succeeded by
Doctor John D. Long of the same service.
After the organization of the Bureau of Health, the army
continued to maintain its own hospitals for the care of the soldiers and its medical corps has worked in harmonious relation
with the civil health authorities. The War Department created
and has maintained a board for the study of tropical diseases as
they exist in the Philippines, and some of the most elaborate
special studies of diseases and local conditions have been made
by members of this board working often in connection with the
civil health authorities with the facilities afforded by the Bureau
of Science and the Bureau of Health.8
In addition to a good administrative organization a successful
fight against the diseases which prevailed in the Philippines required expert physicians, scientific students and the best possible
hospital accommodations. None of these was at first available.9
The necessary physicians and surgeons were supplied by importations from the United States and Europe and by the slow process of educating young Filipinos. A College of Medicine and Surgery with a modern laboratory and the latest equipment for
teaching by instructors who are specialists in their respective
branches, was established in 1906 and is now graduating doctors
after a five-year course of study. The entrance requirements,
courses of study and practical hospital training, are claimed to be
higher than the average in the United States. Second only to
that for physicians and surgeons was the demand for trained
nurses, and this want is being supplied as rapidly as possible by
the Nurses' School, which has at present about three hundred
young women students. It is universally conceded that the graduates of this school make excellent nurses.
The hospital facilities are now far superior to those of any
other far-eastern country. The -Philippine General Hospital,
8 See Woodruff, The Effect of Tropical Light on White Men and same
author's Expansion of Races, New York, 1909.
9The Spaniards established hospitals soon after their occupation of the
country, but they had never been modernized.




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193


with a capacity of three hundred and fifty beds, costing threefourths of a million dollars, was opened in 1910, and is unquestionably the most modem and best equipped hospital in the Far
East, and compares favorably with the leading hospitals in
Europe and America. In the outpatient clinic more than eighty
thousand persons are treated each year, which means "that thousands upon thousands are receiving relief and are free from pain,
amongst whom agony and distress existed before."'~ The present policy of elimination has resulted in placing a Filipino at the
head of this great hospital.
Smaller hospitals are now maintained by the government at
Cebu and in the mountains at Baguio and Bontoc, the latter in
the center of the wild man's country. The reformed head hunters who formerly sacrificed their domestic animals and their
neighbors to propitiate the evil spirits, now put their trust in the
surgeon who by the use of anesthetics can, as they understand it,
kill men painlessly and bring them to life again.
Communicable diseases and a few insane are cared for at the
San Lazaro Hospital in Manila, and lepers are sent to Culion.
The University Hospital, St. Paul's Hospital and the Mary J.
Johnson Hospital, are modern private institutions supported respectively by the Protestant Episcopal, Catholic and Methodist
churches. The old San Juan de Dios Hospital, which was established centuries ago, has been modernized and is fairly well
equipped. Notwithstanding these modern facilities there are still
great sections of the islands which are entirely without hospitals
and their necessities can not be supplied until the government can
find the necessary funds from its always inadequate income. Arrangements are now being made to send a hospital ship to cruise
among the islands of the Sulu Archipelago, which will bring relief to the suffering Moros.
It has been said that the three main functions of a hospital are
10 For a full description, see History and Description of the Philippine
General Hospital, by Dr. John E. Snodgrass, Manila, 1911. The hospital has
recently been placed under the control of a Filipino physician. See infra,
p. 420.




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the care of the sick, the education of the people and the advancement of science, and that those of the health officials are the care
for the well, the education of the people with regard to conditions
of health, and the advancement of life through sanitary science.
The preservation of public health is almost entirely a matter of education and finance. If people were as much afraid of
the concealed but well-known dangers to health as they are of
the mechanical dangers by which they are threatened, the problem
of the health officer would be greatly simplified. But timid persons who make every effort to avoid the dangers of the street,
and always lock their doors against thieves, live bravely in the
same house with a tubercular patient and take no precaution
against the germs of malaria, dysentery and other diseases.
It is now known that all dangerous communicable diseases
are due, not to climate or bad odors, but to definite preventable
causes, and that they are caused by agents that attack from without and against which defense is possible. The public health
official is charged with the duty to wage war against these causes
and educate the public in ways and means of self-defense. Assuming intelligence and activity, his success will be measured by
the funds available for the work. In other words, public health is
a purchasable commodity and obtainable by any community that
is willing to pay the price. This has been demonstrated in the
Philippines, where a reduction of sixty thousand deaths per year
has been effected by an expenditure of about ten cents per capita
of the population, under a civil regime where administration
has been expensive because the many obstacles have had to be
overcome by persuasion or fought through the courts. It is unquestionably true that if the government would spend as much
money for health purposes as for public works and public protection the lives of many thousands now sacrificed through ignorance and poverty could be saved. A committee appointed to
study the cause of the excessive infant mortality reported to the
Philippine Legislature that an additional one-centavo (half-cent)
stamp placed upon every letter mailed in the Philippines would




SANITATION AND HEALTH


195


furnish money to save the lives of twenty-five thousand babies a
year and increase enormously the health efficiency and earning
capacity of the community."
The early institution of civil governments in some ways interfered with the work of the health officers. In judging of what
has been accomplished it should be remembered that they are
civil officials, subject to the restraints of the civil law and not
possessed of the arbitrary power and unlimited funds which enabled the military authorities on the Isthmus of Panama and in
Cuba to effect so much in so short a space of time. Conditions
were entirely different. It is difficult enough to enforce stringent
health ordinances in the cities of the United States where the
people do not ordinarily regard health inspectors as their natural
enemies; it was more than difficult in the Philippines. Nevertheless the results in the Philippines compare favorably with those
in Panama. In the Philippines there was spent less than twenty
cents per capita for health purposes; in Panama, about three dollars and fifty cents. The death rate in Manila, Colon and Panama cities was approximately forty-three per thousand. This
was reduced to about twenty-five in Panama. In Manila in 1914
it reached twenty-three and a fraction per thousand. The death
rate among ten thousand employees in Panama and the same number in the Philippine Civil Service was about the same; usually
less than five per cent, per thousand.
The natives seemed satisfied with conditions as they were and
objected strenuously to having their families and personal lives
supervised by any one. Rather than be put to so much trouble
they preferred to take the chances of life and death under the
conditions to which they were accustomed. If half of their
children died it must be the will of the good God or it would not
have happened. The resistance which was offered to the health
11 There has, of course, been a difference of opinion between the engineers
and the doctors as to the proper apportionment of the always inadequate
funds between public works and public health. By using the money for the
protection of the latter the population is increased, but left in unsatisfactory
economic conditions.




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THE PHILIPPINES


authorities was seldom active; it was generally of that passive
and subtle nature which is more difficult to overcome than active
opposition.
It must be remembered that the American government was
attempting to do much more than had been customary in tropical
colonies. The movement to include the natives within the scope
of sanitary and health regulations was in its infancy. The ordinary plan was to protect the white officers and residents and
permit the natives to live as they had been accustomed. The attempt to clean up the Orient for the benefit of its own people
was regarded by most medical men in the East as additional evidence of the Quixotic impracticability of the Americans as colonizers.
A great deal has been written about the opposition of the Filipinos to the sanitary and health measures established by the
Americans. It is true that they were often unreasonable, but
when their ignorance and experience with such matters are considered, they should not be too severely condemned. Under civil
government, the education of the people is the most important
function of the sanitary officer and the first principle for his guidance should be that public sanitation, to be effective, must rest
upon public sentiment. In the Philippines this sentiment had to
be created. As Doctor Heiser says: "It was but natural that a
people should resist measures which they in their inmost hearts
believed were being enforced by the governing power for the express purpose of making them miserable, unhappy and uncomfortable. As soon as the better class of Filipinos observed, however, that no cases of cholera occurred among the Americans
who drank water that had been boiled and ate only food that
had been cooked and was served hot, this simple plan had many
imitators and much of the success that was obtained in later cholera campaigns may be attributed to the measures that the Filipino
people invoked." With reference to the fight against cholera, he
says: "On the whole it may be said that the campaign waged
against cholera in the begining was not as successful as could
have been hoped for, but the experience gained paved the way for




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197


attacking future outbreaks with considerable more success. It
was soon learned that there was nothing to be gained by using actual force. The opposition which was engendered caused far
more difficulty than the good which was accomplished in an individual case in which it was used. The early efforts to combat
plague resulted in a similar lack of success.... The lack
of success in these efforts soon made it apparent that before much
could be accomplished in the islands a set of laws would have to
be prepared in which considerable deference should be given to
local prejudices....      In other words, it became apparent
that the sanitary regeneration of the Philippine Islands had to be
brought about not in spite of the Filipino people, but with their
assistance."12
The defense against microbes has been compared to a trident
with the three points of (1) the extermination of vermin, (2)
pure food and drink and (3) vaccination. Now dirt, in what we
12 "Sanitation in the Philippine Islands," Journal of Race Development,
Oct., 1912, reprinted in Cong. Rcc. for July, 1913. The general attitude of
the radical element of the Filipino public is very well shown by an editorial
in a leading Manila paper, El Ideal, Feb. 4, 1915, when Doctor Heiser resigned from the service.
"Men may differ in their opinions as to the methods used by Doctor
Heiser in the fulfilment of his duty to look after and improve the public
health, and they are indeed conflicting; there are many who sincerely believe
that Doctor Heiser's success would have been greater had he been able to win
the support and confidence of the people, and there is no mistaking the fact
that they are right; there may be others who, not without reason, criticize
Doctor Heiser for his conspicuous proneness to forget the native element and
to minimize the merits deserved by his Filipino assistants; but when his work
is reviewed as a whole, when results are taken together, when we overlook
the serious shortcomings of his temperament, and see naught but the immovable, severe executive officer, one who is constitutionally unadaptable to
our local surroundings and who is even tyrannical, then we must perforce
own that Doctor Heiser is and has been a valuable factor of progress and of
the material development of these islands.
"In the name of the people it represents, El Ideal-which has many times
criticized him sharply, but with conviction and honesty-is glad to express to
him its highest tribute and its most cordial esteem. Let us all wish that in
his future enterprises he may not be forsaken by the courage, the industry
and the spirit of loyalty to duty which have marked his long and brilliant
administrative career as Director of Health."
I am inclined to believe that the ingrained antagonism of the native papers
toward the secretary of the interior accounted for many of the attacks on the
director of the Bureau of Health, which was in the Department of the Interior. A side light is thrown on Filipino political methods by the custom of
the editors to warn Doctor Heiser of an impending onslaught and assure him
that nothing personal was intended.




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THE PHILIPPINES


may call the natural state, is not in itself unhealthy, but it is the
home of the bacilli and of the vermin-bearing animals. Cleanliness is therefore the primary object of the sanitarian. Manila
is to-day the cleanest city in the Far East, but this result has not
been reached without many heart-breaking experiences. Great
progress has been made in teaching the people how to dispose of
and care for human waste."3 The collection and disposition of
garbage and waste is a difficult problem in any city, one requiring
much scientific consideration; in the tropics it is peculiarly troublesome. Until recently in Manila each householder was required
to provide himself with a garbage can of approved design and
construction and the collection was made by the city. But many
of the people were too poor to purchase the receptacles and either
appropriated those of their prosperous neighbors or used such
boxes, cans and baskets as were available. The system was so
unsatisfactory that the city finally adopted the plan of furnishing
the receptacle at a small yearly rental and letting the contract
to collect and dispose of the garbage to a private concern which
uses modem appliances and converts the refuse into something
of value.
At a cost of approximately two million dollars a modern sanitary sewer system has been installed in Manila, but prior to 1914
its general use was delayed by short-sighted householders who
contested the right of the government to compel them to make the
necessary connections.14  Supplemented by a pail system, the
new sewer has solved the difficult problem of the disposal of
human waste. The filthy latrines and cesspools have been replaced by modern flush closets and public rest and comfort stations are being installed as rapidly as possible. The public dance
halls which have been important factors in the spread of communicable diseases are now subject to the control and inspection
of the health officers.
13 The objectionable custom of using human waste as a surface fertilizer
for vegetables, resulting formerly in the increase of the death rate by several
thousand each year, has been made illegal.
14 The system was completed in 1909. The injunction obtained in 1910
was finally dissolved by the Supreme Court in 1913.




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The private washerwoman has always been a prolific carrier of
germs and many a case of troublesome dobe itch and even worse
disease has been due to the picturesque but unsanitary custom of
using the river shore for a laundry as well as a swimming place
for men and beasts.15 Public laundries are now being established.
The jails and prisons which, under the old regime, were vile
beyond description have been cleaned up, sanitary equipment
installed, and the loathsome skin diseases formerly prevalent
among prisoners have disappeared. Most of the jails in the
provinces are now inspected a number of times each year by the
director of health. Systematic exercise by the prisoners is enforced in all provincial jails as well as in the central Bilibid
prison. The death rate among the Bilibid prisoners has been
reduced from seventy-eight to thirteen per thousand. In July,
1910, the old cemeteries of Manila were closed and all bodies
not cremated must be buried in the modem Del Norte Cemetery
or in the adjoining new Catholic cemetery of Lalomboy. Streets
and alleys have been cut through the congested sections of the
city so that all houses may be approached from the front and the
low-lying poorer sections of the city are slowly being filled to
an established level and rebuilt with small model houses. Thousands of small houses have been removed from low diseaseinfected to sanitary sites. In the sections of the city where
housing conditions have been improved there has been a marked
improvement in the general health of the people.
The old markets were an abomination. Constructed generally
of wood and bamboo with thatched roofs and dirt floors, they
were prolific breeding places of vermin and insects. Under such
conditions it was impossible to enforce sanitary rules. In most
of the larger towns reinforced concrete public market buildings
with concrete floors and stands have now been constructed. Early
in 1912 the legislature authorized the loaning of a certain portion of the Gold Standard Fund to provinces and municipalities
15 Private steam laundries have been established in Manila, but most
American families maintain a lavendara, among the other numerous household servants.




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THE PHILIPPINES


for the construction of public works of a remunerative character
and the markets built with the proceeds of these loans have proved
extremely profitable, in some instances earning four hundred per
cent. per annum without any increase in the unit space rental
price. In order to secure such a loan standard conditions as to
location and construction must be complied with. The market
site must contain not less than two and one-half acres of land
with distinct boundaries and be convenient of access. The main
central building must be from thirty-six to ninety feet in width
with length in proportion, with the required stores and stalls so
arranged that they can be securely closed and locked. The tables
from which foodstuffs are sold must be of concrete and the contents always visible to inspectors. Most of the new buildings
are roofed with tiling and present an attractive appearance.
In Manila all the markets have been modernized. Only fresh
meat, fish, poultry and green stuff may be sold. The meat must
be kept in screened cages made of copper wire to which only the
vender has access.
The public markets are vastly important factors in the lives of
the people and their maintenance in a cleanly sanitary condition
is of vital importance to the health of the community.
The esteros have been cleaned and put in reasonably good
condition. The ancient moats of unsavory memory have been
converted into beautiful parks and attractive playgrounds for
school children.
The extent to which adulterated drugs and articles of food
were formerly sold to the Filipinos is almost inconceivable'6 and
it is certain that much of the illness that has commonly been attributed to the climate was caused by the chemicals in the food
products prepared by foreign manufacturers for the use of the
residents of tropical countries. Conditions are being revolutionized under the Pure Food and Drugs Law which is now strictly
enforced. The Act of Congress of June 30, 1906,17 which is in
16 See an article by Doctor E. C. Hill on "Colorado Medicine," quoted in
Rept. Bureau of Health, 1908.
17 34 Stat. L. 768, Fed. Stat. Ann., Supp., 1909, p. 136.




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201


force in the insular possessions, makes it a crime to manufacture
within any state or territory any article of food or drug which is
adulterated or misbranded, or to introduce the same from any
foreign country or to ship or receive the same from any state or
territory. As the act did not provide all the machinery necessary
for its proper enforcement in the Philippines, the commission
enacted a law which embodies all the provisions of the congressional statute, with such additions as were required by the local
situations."8 This law is administered by the director of health
with the advice of a Board of Food and Drug Inspection, the
members of which are selected from other interested bureaus.
Probably nowhere else has so much injury been done by the
sale of fake nostrums as in the Orient, where the people are very
credulous and susceptible to the influence of advertising.
It has so far been found impossible to provide an adequate
safe milk supply for Manila. The natives ordinarily use the milk
of the goat and caraballa, the water buffalo, and the cows from
which milk is furnished to Americans and Europeans are generally kept beyond the city limits under conditions which make
proper inspection almost impossible. The Jersey cows kept and
petted by the fortunate few are great luxuries. Americans use
the various brands of canned milk which is imported in vast
quantities. But it is the poorer class of Filipinos, particularly
the children, who suffer from unhealthy milk. The milk of the
caraballa is rich in fats and is often diluted with bad water, the
proportion of proteids being secured by the addition of rice,
flour and cocoanut oil, resulting in a most unsanitary mixture.
One specimen examined contained 62,391,600 bacteria per cubic
centimeter. In 1906 a voluntary society of ladies, organized to
supply pure milk for infants, known as the Gota de Leche, which
had existed for several years, was, at the instance of the Woman's
Association of Manila, incorporated as La Proteccion de la Infancia and it now receives some financial aid from the government.
But such organizations can affect conditions but little and until
the situation is such as to justify the government in forbidding
18 Act No. 1651.




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THE PHILIPPINES


absolutely the sale of any but sterilized milk it is certain that
many hundreds of the people of Manila will find the seeds of
disease in the milk supply.
Recently Mr. Nathan Straus of New York donated a milk sterilizing outfit to the Gota de Leche and the legislature appropriated
the money necessary for its installation. Here again we find
an illustration of the rule that public health is a purchasable commodity. By the expenditure of a definite sum of money a definite
lowering of the death rate can be produced.
The drinking of bad water has caused more illness in the Philippines than all other acts combined. The natives, rendered
measurably immune by generations of experience, drink what is
called unpolluted water with comparative safety, but very few
wells and streams are unpolluted. There is no water in the
islands that an American can drink with safety in its natural
state. Even the cool gushing mountain springs are liable to contain the germs of the amcebic dysentery which, probably more
than any other disease, has been the greatest obstacle in the path
of the white man in the tropics.
The Americans soon learned to drink only distilled or boiled
water, but a long and strenuous campaign of education was necessary to convince the common Filipino people that most of the
diseases from which they suffered were due to drinking bad
water. In the provinces good water could seldom be secured,
but it could always be boiled. Manila had a fairly good but inadequate and unsafe water system. In the eighteenth century
a Spanish philanthropist named Carriedo left a sum of money
with directions that it should be allowed to accumulate until it
was sufficient to provide a system of water-works for the city of
Manila. The system was installed in 1884 and thereafter the
city was supplied with water taken from the Mariquina River
at Santolan. But as the supply was insufficient for the new city
and the source was subject to pollution, an entirely new system
was installed by the American government and opened in 1908.
The water is now taken from the Mariquina River at a point
sixteen miles above Santolan and about twenty-five miles from




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Manila, where, at an elevation of two hundred and twelve feet
above sea level, the river has been dammed and a reservoir
with a capacity of two billion gallons created. From there
the water is carried by gravity into a distributing reservoir
from which it flows by means of the old system and its
extensions throughout the city. The old reservoir, the San
Juan Deposito, with a capacity of sixteen million gallons,
has been retained as a reserve. The first year after the
water from the new reservoir was used the deaths in Manila
from gastro-intestinal diseases were reduced by about one thousand. In the spring of 1912 a break in the dam necessitated the
temporary use of the water from the old deposito (which had
been taken from the river at the old intake near Santolan) and
the deaths from such diseases immediately increased but decreased at once when the new system was again in operation.
But unfortunately, owing to hasty construction, the new system
has proved inadequate and every year Manila is threatened with
a shortage of water which makes it necessary to use the auxiliary
Santolan pumping station, with a resulting increase of the death
rate varying from one hundred and fifty to two hundred per
month. It appears that there are fissures in the bottom and in
the cliffs which form the sides of the new reservoir, which should
have been discovered by the construction engineers, through which
probably one-half of the accumulated water escapes.19 This has
been partially remedied by the construction of a flume which carries the water from a point above the leaks to the main pipe
below.
A modern system of water supply has also been installed in
the city of Cebu and less elaborate systems in other places. In
some towns good water is now brought down from the mountains
through simple bamboo pipes.
But the great and future supply of pure water is the artesian
wells which are being opened in all parts of the islands. These
19 The Spanish engineers were always too slow, the American too anxious
to complete their work. If proper preliminary investigation had been made
the cracks and fissures would have been discovered.




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wells have been probably the most efficient single agency in the
health campaign. Fortunately it is possible at a reasonable cost
to find pure artesian water almost anywhere in the lowlands by
sinking a well to a moderate depth. Some are flowing wells, others
require pumping. In 1905 two artesian wells were in use; now
more than one thousand are in operation and the work of construction continues as rapidly as money for the purpose can be
obtained. Wherever an artesian well is installed the death rate
is immediately reduced.20
Any water can be rendered safe by boiling, and as fire and a
kettle are always available, there is no excuse for illness contracted by drinking polluted water. The utmost care has been
taken to teach the native this simple method, but the effect of
boiling is frequently nullified by some such act of stupidity as
cooling the sterilized water with additions from the well. It has
been found very difficult to enforce the ordinance which requires
the use of sterilized water only in restaurants, soft drink establishments and other public places. At present licenses are granted
only to places that have apparatus for boiling water, or use water
obtained from the government ice plant.
Until recently the government has sold distilled water for
drinking to the public and those using it have been free from
amoebic dysentery. But owing to the fact that distilled water
does not contain the salts found in ordinary water its continuous
use was found inadvisable and artesian well water has been substituted.
By the most strenuous efforts the ravages of cholera, smallpox
and plague have been reduced to a minimum, but all except possibly the plague are endemic in the islands. The bubonic plague
appeared in Manila in 1899 and between that time and 1906 there
were 744 deaths. There were fifty-nine deaths in Manila in 1913.
Since that time sporadic cases have appeared, but no cases have
20 In 1911 it was found that some of these wells were infected with
amoebae. It was probably due to the pump having been carelessly primed
with contaminated water, thus again illustrating the fact that in the East
eternal vigilance is the price of safety.




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205


appeared anywhere in the islands since 1914. It is believed that
the disease has been completely obliterated, although it is liable to
reappear at any time.21 Epidemics of cholera had been frequent
before the arrival of the Americans.22  Between 1902 and 1904 a
serious epidemic taxed all the resources of the government, the
deaths between March, 1902, and April, 1904, amounting to
4,386 in Manila and 105,075 in the provinces. It was only by the
strictest enforcement of quarantine and sanitary regulations in
the face of much opposition that the epidemic was finally suppressed.23 About a year later it broke out anew. It was impossible to determine whether it had been reintroduced from Asia
or whether it had remained latent in some form during the year
and a half in which no cases were detected. During the outbreak
of 1902 the natives showed a fatalistic indifference to the measures taken for their protection, preferring to rely on nightly religious processions. But the campaign of education then conducted convinced the more intelligent that they could avoid the
disease by cleaning their habitations, eating only hot food and
drinking water that had been boiled. They learned that the
germs could be taken into the system through the mouth only
and that they were easily killed. By the time of the second epidemic the health authorities as well as the people had been educated in methods of attack and defense and it was finally suppressed, after there had been 22,938 deaths out of 34,238 cases.
Again, in 1908, there were 18,811; in 1909, 7,306; in 1910.
6,940; and in 1911, 203 deaths. From 1911 until 1913 there
seems to have been no cholera in the islands. In the latter year it
reappeared and in 1914 and 1915 there were many cases. The
fact is that cholera is generally, if not always, present in the
21 For a description of plague in the Philippines, see an article by Doctor
Heiser in the Philippine Journal of Science, Feb., 1914. See also Rept. Bureau of Health, 1906, p. 30; Rept. Bureau of Health, 1912, pp. 68-71.
22 The Spaniards and Filipinos accepted the dangerous theory that cholera
is an air-born disease. A circular of instructions issued by the Spanish government in 1888 will be found in the Annual Report of the Commission of
Public Health, Sept. 15, 1904.
23 Rept. Corn. Pub. Health, Sept. 15, 1904, pp. 44-69. For a history of this
outbreak and the methods used by the health authorities, see Worcester, History of Asiatic Cholera in the Philippine Islands (1908).




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THE PHILIPPINES


islands and it is only by the exercise of the utmost vigilance that
it can be prevented from becoming epidemic.24
Smallpox has been practically eradicated by the thorough and
systematic vaccination of the entire population. "It seems almost
incredible," says Doctor Heiser, "that in spite of the absolute
proof that effective vaccination practically makes smallpox impossible, there should still be dissenters." An idea of the magnitude of the work of vaccination is conveyed by the fact that during the year 1908, 1,686,767 persons were vaccinated. During
the first nine months of 1914, 1,540,913 persons were vaccinated
in the provinces and 79,640 in Manila. Since 1898 a total of
20,000,000 vaccinations have been performed. At first much
of the work was done by local native health officers, but satisfactory results were not obtained until it was placed under the
direct control of the director of health. The disease still occurs
among unvaccinated children and other unprotected persons, due
generally to neglect to carry out the regulations of the health
authorities. Before the American occupation the deaths from
smallpox averaged forty thousand a year. Six thousand were
dying annually in the provinces near Manila! The year after the
inhabitants were vaccinated there were no deaths from smallpox.
No case has occurred in Manila since 1910, and but few in the
provinces.25
The manner in which leprosy has been handled in the Philippines is of special interest.
The first international conference on leprosy, which was held
at Berne in 1897, reported that the system of isolation which had
been introduced in Norway was the only known method of checking its spread. The second conference, held at Bergen two
years later, admitted that none of the numerous remedies and
methods of treatment which had been tried had been successful, and again approved the policy of isolation which then had
24 The Report of the Philippine Health Service for the third quarter, 1915,
shows 2,391 deaths from cholera in the islands during the previous year.
25 See "Smallpox and Vaccination in the Philippine Islands," Public
Health Reports, XXVI, No. 10 (1911); "Notes on Smallpox and Vaccination
in the Philippines," Public Health Reports, XXVI, No. 15 (1911).




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207


been introduced into Germany, Sweden and Iceland, as well as
Norway. The resolutions which were adopted made no reference to what had been done in the Philippines, although Sir
Allan Perry, the principal medical officer of Ceylon, stated in an
address delivered in Manila in 1910 that it had been his privilege
two years before, "to see some of Dr. Heiser's work in the management of leprosy in the Philippine Islands, and after attending
the Bergen Conference last year I was impressed by the fact
that the government of the Philippines had anticipated the measures recommended by the members of that conference by some
years."2
The disease is said to have been introduced into the Philippines by a sort of Trojan horse performance which has its amusing as well as tragic elements. The Spanish missionaries were
endeavoring to extend their work into Japan and the shogun
either out of good will or with malice aforethought loaded a ship
with lepers who could well be spared from his abundance and
sent them with his compliments to the friars at Manila. They
were of course accepted and cared for, but as no precautions were
taken to prevent the disease from spreading, it was soon common
in all parts of the Archipelago. The new field thus created for
charitable work was assigned to the Franciscans and during the
entire Spanish period they were in charge of the work of caring for the lepers. For a time the afflicted were admitted to a
hospital in Manila, but upon the expulsion of the Jesuits after the
departure of the British in 1763, their estate at San Lazaro was
sequestrated and turned over to the Franciscans with the understanding that they should maintain thereon a leper hospital. In
addition to the San Lazaro Hospital the Franciscans in later
times maintained smaller establishments of a similar nature in
Cebu and Nueva Caceres. Some of the larger municipalities also
established leper camps in their suburbs. All of this work was
charitable in character and the effect of the partial segregation
on the public health was merely incidental. The friars were car26 Philippine Journal of Science, section B, Aug., 1910.




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THE PHILIPPINES


ing for the lepers merely as unfortunates who were entitled to
their kindly ministrations.27
Leprosy spreads by contact, and by the time of the American
occupation it had become common in all parts of the islands.
San Lazaro is near Manila and during the exciting times just
prior to the capture of the city the friars abandoned their charges,
who wandered away and concealed themselves in various places
throughout the city. The provost-marshal placed an official in
charge of the hospital and most of the lepers were soon gathered
up and returned to their quarters.
It was recognized that better means must be provided for isolating these unhappy people. Although the number of lepers
in the country was indeed greatly exaggerated, the disease constituted a serious menace to public health. The idea of a colony was entertained from the beginning. In the first report of
the Board of Health it was said: "The desirability of establishing
a colony where persons in the early stages of leprosy can have
a home, cultivate the soil and in general lead a free out-of-doors
life instead of being practically in prisons and compelled to pass
their days in company with fellow-unfortunates in the last stages
of this horrible disease, has long been appreciated by both military and civil authorities." The search for an island suitable for
such a colony resulted in the recommendation by a military board
of Caygayan de Sulu, but it was soon evident that the estimates
submitted of the number of Moro inhabitants on the island was
erroneous and also that the water supply was inadequate. A
new board appointed by the commission after a careful examination recommended the island of Culion in the Calimianes group,
about two hundred miles southwest of Manila, "on account of
its healthful climate, rich soil, extensive cattle ranges, abundance
of water supply, good harbors and small population." This report was approved and fifty thousand dollars were appropriated
by the commission for the purpose of erecting warehouses and
suitable buildings for hospital purposes at a place called Halsey
Harbor.
27 Manuel Rogel Lebras, Lepra en Bisayas, Manila, 1897.




SANITATION AND HEALTH


' 209


Because of the prevalence of plague and cholera in the islands
it was found impossible to commence construction work until
late in the following year and then, after several thousand dollars
had been expended, it was found necessary to abandon the Halsey Harbor site because of the inadequate water supply, and to
locate the colony on the site of the old town of Culion.28 The
property of the few inhabitants of the town was then purchased
and a new town site was laid out. By May, 1906, accommodations
had been provided for six hundred persons. It was estimated
that there were then five thousand lepers in the island and
to maintain that number at Culion would cost the government
about four hundred thousand dollars annually. Funds for such
an elaborate project were not available and the work of collecting the colonists progressed slowly.
As the work, to be effective, required the arbitrary disregard
of ordinary personal rights, the commission enacted a law which
authorized the apprehension, detention, segregation and compulsory treatment of lepers and made it the duty of insular, provincial and municipal officers to cause any person believed to
be a leper to be arrested and turned over to the health officers.
To conceal a leper was made a crime. As there was great danger
that such a law would be abused, it was provided that mere suspects should not be taken away from their homes until their
cases had been carefully considered and the diagnosis confirmed
by bacteriological methods. It was found that in some instances
individuals and communities were inclined to take advantage of
the facilities thus afforded to dispose of their insane, blind, crippled and other incurable dependents, as well as lepers.29
As the work of collection progressed it appeared that the number of lepers in the islands had been greatly overestimated, as
not more than one-half of those reported as lepers were found to
28 Doctor Mercado, one of the leading Filipino officers of the Bureau of
Health, has recently asserted that after all that has been done, Culion is
unsuited to the purposes of a leper colony. El Ideal, June 14, 1916.
29 Ex-Secretary Worcester says that the natives were inclined to fear the
Filipino examiners and to ask for the services of Americans. It is sometimes
impossible to determine whether a suspected person is a leper. See Doctor
Heiser's article in The World's Work, Jan., 1916.




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THE PHILIPPINES


be suffering from the disease. Notwithstanding the inadequacy
of funds available, by 1910 Doctor Heiser was able to report that
with the exception of a few isolated cases practically all the lepers
outside of the Moro country had been segregated, but that new
cases must be expected to develop for some years to come. As
795 lepers were admitted in 1913, and 837 in 1914, it seems that
the new cases developed more rapidly even than was expected.
In 1914 the records of the colony showed that 8,502 persons had
been admitted, that 5,204 had died, and that 3,298 remained.30
This leper colony is the largest of its kind in the world and
is interesting as a sociological as well as a medical experiment.
The town is laid out with regular streets, blocks and squares, and
is organized with a simple municipal form of government in
which the colonists have as large a part as possible. It is situated
on high ground and looks out over the sea. Good water is supplied from a reservoir into which it is pumped from a spring and
from which it is carried by pipes to all parts of the town. Ample
bathrooms and modern flush closets are supplied. A complete
sewerage system carries all waste through septic tanks to the
sea. The buildings, many being of reinforced concrete construction, are substantial and comfortable and adapted to the climatic
conditions. There is a good church building, town hall and suitable residences for the presidente and councilmen.  A police
force selected by the presidente from among the colonists maintains order and sees that the ordinances and sanitary regulations
are obeyed. The American superintendent has the powers of a
justice of the peace. The colonists elect their principal officers
and thus practically govern themselves.
It was at first thought that some form of industry could be developed which would provide the colonists with occupation and
make them at least partially self-supporting, but this idea had
to be abandoned. The most that the people are able to do is to
raise a few chickens and pigs and cultivate small gardens. They
traffic among themselves and for their accommodation a special
coinage of aluminum has been struck which represents actual
30 A few had been discharged as apparently cured.




SANITATION AND HEALTH


211


value, being redeemable in real money. Everything possible is
done to make life pleasant for the people who seem marked by
fate for death. They have their social amusements and live the
life of an ordinary Filipino community. A brass band composed entirely of lepers furnishes the musical element so necessary to the happiness of the Filipino.
The segregation of lepers protects the general community
from contagion and instead of living as beggars and outcasts the
unfortunates are protected and cared for by the state. The continuance of the present policy for another decade should free
the Philippines from one of its ancient scourges. But it will take
longer than was expected, as the new cases continue to develop
in surprising numbers. No certain remedy for leprosy has been
discovered, but the treatment by a hypodermic injection of a mixture of chaulmoogra oil has given encouraging results, and experiments with it are being conducted at Manila and by the United
States Leprosy Investigation Commission in Hawaii.31
The present stage of the chaulmoogra oil treatment "does not
warrant the belief that anything like a specific for leprosy has
been found, but experience does show that it gives more consistently favorable results than any other that has come to our
attention and it holds out the hope of further improvement. The
situation may be summed up as follows: it produces apparent
cures in some cases, causes great improvement in others, and arrests the progress of the disease in every instance in which we
have tried it."32
31 In 1908 the Bureau of Science succeeded in cultivating the leper bacilli
in artificial media and it was hoped that it would lead to the discovery of a
serum or vaccine. See "Experiment in the Cultivation of Bacilli Leprae," by
M. C. Clegg, Philippine Journal of Science, Section B, April, 1909, and Dec.,
1909, and Reports Bureau of Health, 1910 and 1913. It was thought for a
time that the X-ray treatment would be effective, but this, too, proved to be
a disappointment. Chaulmoogra oil is obtained from a tree which is indigenous to India. The people of the East have always claimed that this oil
would cure leprosy. The difficulty was that after a time it produced nausea
to such an extent that the patient could not take it. It is now mixed with
camphorated oil and resorcin and given hypodermically, and all the progress
is due to this change of method. See United States Public Health Reports,
Supp. No. 20, Oct. 16, 1914; American Journal of Tropical Diseases for Nov.,
1914; The World's Work, Jan., 1916, p. 310.
32Doctor V. G. Heiser, "Fighting Leprosy in the Philippines," The
World's Work for Jan., 1916.




212


THE PHILIPPINES


Recent investigations show that beriberi, which has been one
of the worst diseases of the East, is caused by the excessive use
of polished rice, and little else, as food. It has been thought that
the disease is peculiar to the tropics, but it now appears that it
prevails there simply because the people live almost exclusively
on rice from which certain elements essential to health have been
removed. Europeans who use a diversified diet, of which polished
rice forms a reasonable part, never suffer from beriberi. The
disease has prevailed in the rice-eating East for centuries. During the Chino-Japanese war of 1894, nearly one-half of the Japanese soldiers had beriberi, and in the Russo-Japanese war
eighty-five thousand cases were reported.
The experiments of Fraser and Stanton in the Straits Settlements, and Arons and others in the Philippines, demonstrate that
beriberi may be prevented by the substitution of unpolished for
polished rice,33 or by a diversified diet which supplies the element
which is absent in polished rice. The people are slow to recognize
this fact, but they are being educated to the use of the more nutritious article. Before the unpolished rice was issued, and the
government now issues no other, there were nearly a thousand
cases of beriberi each year among the United States Scouts, and
from sixty to eighty deaths per month at the Culion Leper Colony. Now beriberi has disappeared from Culion and the army
is free from it. The practical eradication of this disease is one
of the greatest triumphs of medical science in the Orient.
The appalling mortality of children under five years of age
is not peculiar to the Philippines. Conditions there are not much
worse relatively than in many other parts of the world. Nevertheless at present more infants die out of every hundred born in
the Philippines than out of a thousand born in Australia. The lives
of a large proportion of these children could be saved if the necessary money was available. There is at present an active world33 Rept. Bureau of Health, 1913, pp. 105-110. The government at one time
contemplated legislation regulating the importation of polished rice, but this
will probably be unnecessary. It is not the polished rice, but its excessive
use, to the exclusion of other articles, that causes the disease. See Graham
Lusk, The Fundamental Basis of Nutrition, New Haven, 1915.




SANITATION AND HEALTH


2'13


wide movement for the protection of children, and the government
of the Philippines is doing all it can with the money at its disposal.
Some progress has been made and the mortality has been greatly
decreased. The recent rather discouraging report to the legislature by a special committee, composed of some of the most experienced medical men in the Orient, shows that not until the
conditions of life among the poor are materially improved can
the evil be remedied. According to this committee, "seventy-five
thousand babies are to-day nursing poor quality of milk from
under-nourished and sick mothers, and another fifty thousand
are eating dangerous and poisonous mixtures given in the name
of food. Many of these babies, even in the city of Manila, are
being fed mixtures so badly contaminated that ten drops of the
food injected into a Guinea pig causes the death of the animal
from blood poisoning within forty-eight hours."34
It is evident that the work of the American health authorities
in the Philippines is not yet completed.
Notwithstanding all that has been done, health conditions
among the Filipinos, when compared with what they should be,
are far from satisfactory. But little has been done to eradicate
the hook-worm, with which great numbers of the natives are affected and which is doubtless the cause of much of their indolence
and lack of ambition.35 Tuberculosis, malaria, beriberi and intestinal diseases are still responsible for many deaths annually.
Americans suffer much from dengue fever.36 Recent outbreaks
of bacillary dysentery are due entirely to the use of bad water,
uncooked vegetables and uncleanliness in the preparation of food.
The dread amoebic dysentery is now being treated successfully.
Very little provision has been made for the care of the insane.
The fight against tuberculosis has been begun by private organ34This committee was composed of Doctor W. E. Musgrave, chairman;
Doctor Luis Guerro; Doctor Proceso Gabriel; Doctor Joaquin Quintos and
Doctor Jose Albert. For the report, see Rept. Bureau of Health, 1914, p. 10.
35 For a description of this disease, see Rept. Bureau of Health, 1908, pp.
60-69.
36 A very troublesome but not deadly fever. See Phil. Journal of Science,
Sec. B, May, 1907, p. 93. For an account of dengue fever in Indo-China, see
Phil. Journal of Science, Sec. B, Feb., 1909.




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THE PHILIPPINES


izations with some government aid, but little can be accomplished
without the expenditure of much money. This is also true of
typhoid. The suppression of malaria is merely a matter of killing mosquitoes, and the campaign against them and the almost
equally dangerous house fly is being energetically conducted.37
The death rate in Manila has been greatly reduced by draining
the lowlands, spraying the places where mosquitoes breed, and
supplying the people with quinine. Towns formerly notorious
for malaria are now almost entirely free from it. By lectures,
pictures and circulars the public is slowly being made to understand the deadly character of these pests and the necessity for
sleeping under mosquito nets. To the best of their ability they
are cooperating with the authorities in the work of destroying
the breeding places of the mosquitoes. But constant pressure is
necessary to keep the people from neglecting the most ordinary
precautions. By systematic work myriads of plague-bearing rats
have been destroyed,38 and the construction of rat-proof buildings only is now permitted in Manila. The discovery by Doctor
Richard P. Strong that salvarsan is a specific for the yaws, a
disease resembling syphilis which has been very prevalent among
the mountain people, has relieved many sufferers.39
The Filipinos are an underfed and insufficiently nourished
race. It was found in Manila that thousands of children came to
school without breakfast. A system of school lunches was provided in connection with the teaching of hygiene and domestic
science, and for two cents a child was given a bowl of hot soup
or stew, a buttered sandwich and a piece of cake or a dish of icecream. For the most of them it was the most wholesome meal
of the day. During 1912, twelve thousand of these lunches were
served daily in the primary and intermediate schools, and at the
end of the year the medical inspector reported an improvement of
37 The yellow fever has never appeared in the Philippines, although the
mosquito which carried it is present. It has been feared that the opening of
the Panama Canal might bring the disease to Manila.
38 In Manila during the fourth quarter, 1914, 21,772 rats were caught by
traps and poison. The third quarter, 1915, yielded 171,184. After years of
active work the rats still seem to be numerous.
39 See Phil. Journal of Science, Sec. B, Oct., 1907.




SANITATION AND HEALTH


215


ninety per cent. in the health of the children. Improved material
conditions, physical exercise and a diversified diet have already
produced an improvement in the physique of the new generation.
The death rate has been very materially reduced, that among
white men in Manila being about the same as in such cities as
Minneapolis.
What has been accomplished has been in the face of many
serious difficulties. We have noted the health and sanitary situation which existed at the time of the American occupation, due
to ignorance, indifference and conditions inherent in a tropical
environment. The prejudices, superstitions and ignorance of
the people were formidable obstacles to the introduction of modern methods. It was a fertile field for the medicine man, the
fake healer and the vender of nostrums.
Sanitary rules are useless unless backed by the power and will to
compel their enforcement, and punish their breach, which means
infringement on the assumed rights of men to do as they please
on their own premises. A health officer is necessarily something
of an autocrat if not even a tyrant. He sometimes abuses the
power with which it is necessary to invest him. The temptation
to do so is peculiarly strong when white men are dealing with an
inferior and less informed race of people. The mere fact of the
superiority of the governors is irritating to the governed and
when arbitrary power is absent infinite tact and judgment are
necessary to secure results.
The Filipinos regarded many of the strict rules established by
the health officers as unnecessary and devised merely to render
them unhappy. The native papers took the same attitude and demanded that the enforcement of health regulations should be
left more to the local native officials. Whenever that was done
the rules were not enforced. It was of course necessary, under
the circumstances, to use native officials, particularly in the provinces, and some of them proved willing and efficient. Generally,
however, they could not, and can not at present, be trusted to
brave public sentiment at the expense of personal unpopularity.
It requires more nerve than the average native officer possesses




216


THE PHILIPPINES


to order a Filipino provincial governor to clean up his premises.
A number of skilful Filipino health officers have been trained, but
the experience of nearly two decades has shown that only with
strict American supervision can what has been gained be held
and further advance be made.
The Moros have been even more difficult to reach than the
head-hunting tribes of northern Luzon. They suffer from malnutrition and the diseases which are fostered by filth and negligence. Malaria, hook-worm, dysentery and various skin diseases
are very common. Dispensaries have been established in Mindanao and Jolo, but the people who are scattered over the small
islands of the Sulu Archipelago can only be reached by a hospital ship. Through the influence of Doctor Heiser, who is now
director for the Far East of the International Health Board of
the Rockefeller Foundation, funds were obtained to provide such
a ship, and arrangements have been made for its equipment and
operation at the joint expense of the board and the Philippine
government. The ship will visit the principal towns at regular
intervals, give out patient treatment and general instructions to
the people. The seriously affected will be transferred to the base
hospitals at Zamboanga and Jolo.40 This work will undoubtedly
greatly influence the attitude of the Moros toward the Americans.
The new Public Health Law,4' under which the service has
40 Annual Report, The Rockefeller Foundation, 1915, p. 77.
In commenting on this project the American press has shown a disposition
to underestimate the work done for the Moros by the civil and military authorities. For the last ten years the majority of the Moros in the great
island of Mindanao have been peaceful and orderly. They should be distinguished from the Moros of Jolo (which is a small island) and the islands to
the southward.
In a private letter of December 2, 1916, Dr. Heiser says: "The effort
which it is proposed to make is in the nature of a new departure in dealing
with the Moro situation. Several years ago dispensaries were established
throughout the main island of Mindanao and their success was so very great
that it was deemed desirable to come in more direct touch with the 300 or
more islands which make up the Sulu Archipelago. As you know, these
islands have had practically no contact with the outside world and they are
inhabited largely by Moros who are more or less of a piratical character. It
was thought that by the hospital ship... a point of contact might be
established with these people which would eventually lead to the opening of
schools and thus bring them gradually to the ways of peace and civilization."
41 Administrative Code, Title VII, Sections 746-942 (1916).




SANITATION AND HEALTH


217


been reorganized, has many good features, but it has some provisions of doubtful value. Under it the chief, who is now called
the director of health, may be invested with emergency powers in
localities threatened with an epidemic, by an order of the governor-general, and authorized to prescribe such regulations as are
necessary, which shall have the force of law.
The service is administered by the director under the supervision of the secretary of the interior and with the advice and
assistance of a council of hygiene composed of a professor of the
College of Medicine and Surgery of the University, a professor
of the medical faculty of the University of Santo Tomas, a member of the Colegio Medico-Farmaceutico, a senior officer of the
Philippine Health Service, one attorney-at-law and one other
person who shall be an owner of real estate in the islands,-all
appointed by the governor-general on the nomination of the secretary of the interior. The president of this body receives a
salary and the appointed members who are not government employees receive ten dollars for each meeting attended.
This formidable body, so suggestive of Spanish times, is authorized to conduct investigations, prepare drafts of laws, measures relating to a long list of subjects, and perform certain services with the approval of the director of health. It is merely
an advising body with no real authority.42
The Public Health Service, as it is called, is given a sort of
military form, and all the officers whose duties require professional skill in medical science, are graded in a commissioned and
uniformed service, as senior medical inspectors, medical inspectors, senior surgeons and surgeons.
The islands are divided into health districts designed each to
include a province, in each of which there is a health officer who
represents the service, under whom such additional officers as
are necessary may be assigned. Provision is made for a munici42 This council is intended to operate as a check on the director of health,
and his efficiency will be impaired exactly in proportion to his fear of adverse
local sentiment as expressed by that body. The statement by the director
in the report for the first quarter of 1916, that he devotes a paragraph to its
Work "with the previous consent of the president of the council" suggests a
degree of deference which is not reassuring.




218


THE PHILIPPINES


pal board of health in each municipality, composed of a registered physician as president, a school-teacher appointed by the
division superintendent of public instruction, the municipal secretary, and a member chosen by the municipal council. If there
is a resident pharmacist, he must be appointed an honorary member by the president, but without a vote.
Municipalities may be combined into sanitary divisions with
a president appointed by the director of health, who exercises
general supervision over the hygienic and sanitary conditions
of the division. Each district shall have one or more sanitary
inspectors appointed by the provincial board.
Each provincial board and each municipality embraced in a
sanitary division is required to set aside from five to ten per cent.
of its general funds for a "health fund," which shall be deposited with the provincial treasurer and used to pay the salaries and expenses of officers and employees of the sanitary districts, the purchase of medicines and supplies, and other expenses
incurred in carrying out the law.
The director of health is required to draft health ordinances
on subjects designated in the law, for the city of Manila, which
the Municipal Board is required to enact voluntarily or when directed to do so by the governor-general.
The organization is an excellent one, but its effectiveness will
depend upon the firmness of the men by whom it is administered.




CHAPTER X


The Philippine Schools
American Educational Theories-Belief in Education of Masses-Training a
Governing Class Only-Spanish Theories-Filipino Social OrganizationEducation for the Select Few-The Attempt to Establish Public SchoolsIts Partial Success-Ecclesiastical Control-Introduction of Popular Government-Choice between Evils-Educational Work of the Army-The Commission Takes Charge-Department of Public Instruction-The General Policy-Secularization of Schools-Religious Instruction-Adoption of the English Language in the Schools-Its Justification-American Teachers-Training Native Teachers-Classification of Schools-Secondary Schools in Provinces-Local Enthusiasm for Education-Division of School Funds-New
Text-Books-Stress on Industrial Training-Difficulties Encountered-Prejudice Against Manual Labor-Results-Teaching Athletics-The Pensionados
-Housing the Schools-The Courses of Study-Special Insular SchoolsThe University-Bureau Schools-The Cost of Education-Number of
Pupils-Schools for the Wild Men-Education of the Moros-Demand for
Compulsory Education-Dangers Ahead-Comparisons.
There were many scoffers in Iolcus when the Argo, with Jason
and his fifty heroes, sailed for Colchos in search of the Golden
Fleece; so the cynics smiled when the United States Transport
Thomas, with its load of school-teachers, passed through the
Golden Gate and sailed for Manila. Soldiers, sailors, colonists,
convicts, adventurers, merchandise, arms, rum and missionaries
had often been sent to colonies; never before a full cargo of
school-teachers. But the Argonauts brought back the fleece in
spite of the fire-breathing bulls and the crop of armed men, and
the teachers, under conditions as difficult though less romantic,
bid fair to destroy the dragons of ignorance and superstition
which for so long have flourished in the East.
A country reflects its national ideals in its methods of colonization. The American policy rests on the principle that the
solution of economic and political problems will be found in the
general education of the mass of the people. We have out219




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lived the conviction that a republican form of government is
necessarily the best for all people at all times, without reference
to their experience, characteristics and intelligence. It may be
something to be labored for, an inspiration, a goal. But an
ignorant people will always be an incapable, inefficient and
an oppressed people. The higher education of the select few
will never save a democracy. The history of all the republics
founded on the old Spanish colonies proves conclusively that the
education of the masses iS essential for a self-governing people.
In dealing with dependent and backward people the liberal
monarchial states in which representative government exists assume that the primary object of public education is to train the
men who are to govern the masses. This idea has dominated the
educational work of England in India, Egypt, and in the Crown
colonies. Writing of education in Egypt, Lord Milner said:1
"The Government is still far from being in a position to offer
a decent education to the majority of the inhabitants..
Egypt has yet to create a native professional class. She has yet
to educate the men who are destined to fill the government service.
When these urgent needs have been supplied, it will be time
enough to think of general public instruction."2 The stress is thus
placed on higher education for the few and primary education
for the masses is either neglected or postponed until law, order
and material prosperity have been established.
The Spanish ecclesiastical methods accentuated the worst
feature of an aristocratic as distinguished from a democratic
system of education. The friars regarded the education of the
common people as not only unnecessary for their salvation, but
as positively dangerous to the established order of things. The
England in Egypt (1892), p. 333.
2 The importance of elementary education is beginning to be appreciated.
In a resolution by the governor-general (Lord Curzon) in council it is said:
"The Government of India fully accepts the proposition that active extension
of primary education is one of the most important duties of the state."
Indian Educational Policy, p. 15 (Calcutta, 1904). It is, however, a question
of priority. The same resolution states that "there are more than 18,000,000
boys who ought now to be in school, but of these only a little more than onesixth are actually receiving primary instruction."




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221


course of events in the Philippines was such as to render the
condition of the lower orders almost hopeless. The economic
improvement which followed the opening of the country to commerce increased the wealth and the power of the native aristocracy at the expense of the common people. The efforts of the
Spanish Liberal party to introduce reforms in the Philippines
encouraged ideas which were certain to result in reforms or
revolution. But the Spanish Republic fell and the efforts of the
friars and the reactionary party to suppress the spirit of modernism, led to insurrection, war and the downfall of Spanish
power.
There is no doubt but that there had grown up a strong demand on the part of certain native leaders, such as Rizal, for popular education; but very few if any of the gentes illustradas ever
sympathized with it. The social and economic system was
aristocratic and feudal. In a district with twenty-five thousand
inhabitants there were ordinarily about a dozen families of
wealthy educated people who spoke Spanish, lived in beautiful
houses and possessed the charm and cultivation of Spanish
civilization. They sent their daughters to be educated in convents and their sons to the university at Manila, or to Europe.
There was no middle class. The rest of the people were petty
tradesmen, servants or agricultural laborers, taos, dependent
upon their rather contemptuous lords and masters, and submissive and subservient to their commands. Occasionally, as
elsewhere, an individual of unusual capacity and energy secured an education and forced his way into the upper class, but
the great mass of the people remained grossly ignorant and superstitious.
The ability to read and write a native dialect was not unusual;
it was, in fact, very common; but there was little in the dialect
worth reading and no particular object in writing it. The Spanish collegiate institutions in the Philippines were designed to
educate the children of Spaniards and the mestizos. Occasionally a few Indians, as they were called, were received as




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pupils.3 Such institutions as the College of San Jose, the Ateneo
de Manila, and the University of Santo Tomas, furnished an
education of a scholastic character to the members of the Spanish
community and the Filipino aristocracy. What passed for education in the parishes was left to the village friar, who taught the
children of the poor the catechism and the duties of humility and
obedience to superiors.
In 1863, by royal decree, a system of public primary education
was established in the Philippines under the supervision of a Superior Council of Education composed of the governor-general,
the archbishop and seven members appointed by the governorgeneral.4 This very liberal law required the maintenance of a
primary school for boys and one for girls in every pueblo, in
which the instruction was to be given in the Spanish language.
The regulations issued by the minister for the colonies show the
character of the instruction to be given and the means provided
for making the law effective.5
The plan was put into effect very slowly, but by the end of
the Spanish regime practically every pueblo in the Philippines
had its two public schools with Filipino teachers who could speak
Spanish and teach elementary subjects. In every little plaza or
town square there stood, along with the tribunal, the jail and the
more pretentious church and convent, a public building of some
sort for the use of the school.
3 There has been much discussion of the question whether the Spaniards
made any serious effort to educate the natives. In 1634 Philip IV directed the
ecclesiastical authorities to provide for the education of the Indians in the
Spanish language and the principles of religion. In 1686 he directed that
this decree must be observed. In 1792 provision was made for Spanish
schools for Filipinos. One of the rules of the College of San Filipe, founded
in 1641, provided: "The college students shall be of influential Pampango
families, and they shall be taught to read and write in the Spanish language,
and shall be given clerkships if they show aptitude therefor." Blair and Robinson, The Philippines, XLV, p. 175. See also Census of Phil. (1905), III,
p. 576, and Rept. Commission of Education (U. S.) for 1897-98.
4 For the decree, see Census of Phil. (1905), III, p. 578. For a description
of the Spanish educational system, see the Report of the Schurman Commission (1900), II, Pt. III.
5 Printed in Census of Philippines (1905), III, pp. 583-590, as a part of
Judge Rosario's article on Education Under Spanish Rule. Although the
law required instruction in Spanish, it was seldom given in the primary
schools. This was one of the serious grounds for complaint against the
friars.




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223


However, it is easy to infer too much from these facts. A
pueblo was a district sometimes many square miles in extent and
containing numerous villages, scattered at considerable distance
from the center of population. The school buildings were small
and, as the attendance did not average over sixty in pueblos of
from eight thousand to twenty thousand people, it is evident that
only children of the rich and the dwellers in the large towns had
the opportunity for even elementary instruction.
Although supported by the government, the school system
was never secular. The friars were always the inspectors of
schools and they determined the subjects included in the narrow
and exclusive curriculum. The pupils, ordinarily from seven
to ten years of age, were taught reading, writing, sacred history and the catechism. The girls studied needlework and embroidery. Occasionally a book on geography was used as a
reader, and in the typical provincial school a religious primer
was read in the native dialect. The methods of teaching were
very primitive. The compensation of the teachers was so small
that they were without standing or social importance.6 The language of the text-books had to be learned by heart and the pupil
recited to the teacher while his companions memorized their lessons aloud. The bright ones became perfect little phonographs,
repeating exactly what had been talked into them.
During the insurrectionary period the most of these schools
were broken up and abandoned. The new government under
American direction had thus a clean slate on which to write its
educational history. Church and State were now separated. The
scholasticism of the Middle Ages which had dominated the Span6 "What contributed greatly, also, to the general backwardness of primary
instruction was the very small salary paid teachers, as it was impossible for
them to live on what was paid them.... The small salary paralyzed any
good will and ambition to work." Rosario, Census of Phil., III, p. 595 (1905).
Jagor (Reisen in den Philippinen, 1873), says: "The teacher receives a
salary from the Government averaging $2 per month without board. In large
towns the salary is as much as $2.50 per month, but an assistant must be
paid. The schools are under the supervision of the parish priest. Reading
and writing are taught therein, the text being in Spanish. It is true that the
teacher is required to teach Spanish to his pupils, but he himself does not
understand it.... Indians who have been in the service of Europeans
are the only ones who speak Spanish." Quoted by Rosario.




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ish educational system had no longer any defenders. Obscurantism was dead and a new spirit was born in the land of Rizal.
Many, although far from all, of the Philippine people were in
sympathy with American educational theories and anxious for
instruction.
Having decided to establish a popular form of government in
the Philippines, with a free and independent democratic state as
the ultimate goal, America was, by all her political traditions and
theories, committed to the task of educating, not a few leaders,
but the entire mass of common people. Such a thing had never
been attempted in the Orient. Almost without exception the men
of widest experience in eastern affairs predicted that education
would unfit the Filipinos for agricultural and other practical pursuits and inspire them with the ambition to be clerks, officials and
professional men. There was force in the assertion. It was,
in fact, a serious question whether, in view of their history,
training and racial qualities, the Filipinos possessed the moral
fiber necessary for the proper use of the conventional education.
The experience of England with the youth of India and Egypt
had convinced many well-disposed persons that western education
was detrimental to the Oriental.
That harm might result from a little or from too much of that
sort of education could not be denied. Either often induces discontent in the West as well as in the East. But this possible evil
was insignificant when compared with the certain dangers resulting from the presence in the country of a mass of ignorant people
of an excitable disposition and easily misled into lawless violence
by unscrupulous leaders.7 On political grounds alone, without reference to general humanitarian considerations, the new government felt justified in taking the chances involved in giving the
Filipino people a common-school education which would render
7 "It is neither wise nor just that the people should be left intellectually
defenseless in the presence of the hare-brained and empirical projects which
the political charlatan, himself but half educated, will not fail to pour into
their credulous ears." Cromer, Modern Egypt, II, p. 534. In 1868 Lord
Lawrence said that "among all the sources of difficulty in our administration
and of possible danger to the stability of our government there are few so
serious as the ignorance of the people." Indian Educational Policy, p. 15.




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225


them less liable to be led by political leaders into insurrectionary
schemes.
The work of teaching was commenced by the military authorities, and schools were opened wherever possible, with officers and
soldiers as voluntary teachers.8 When possible, the old Filipino
teachers were encouraged to return to their work, but most of
the pueblos were too poor to pay even their petty salaries. General Otis did everything within his power, but necessarily, under
the circumstances, the work was unsystematic, and little was accomplished other than to arouse an interest in the study of the
English language and convince some of the Filipinos of the good
will of the Americans. It was difficult for them to retain bitter
resentful feelings against soldiers who, without pay, were teaching their little children. It was an object lesson in the policy of
attraction.
Prior to September 1, 1900, when the legislative power passed
to the Philippine Commission, forty-one thousand dollars had
been expended for American text-books translated into Spanish,
and for stationery for the schools. The commission immediately
established a Department of Public Instruction in charge of a general superintendent, eighteen division superintendents, a superior
advisory board, and local school boards in the municipalities.9
Doctor Fred W. Atkinson was made general superintendent,
and the work of organization was commenced. The general
8 President McKinley, in his Instructions to the commission, said: "It will
be the duty of the commission to promote and extend and, as they find occasion, to improve the system of education already inaugurated by the military
authorities. In doing this they should regard as of first importance the extension of a system of primary education which shall be free to all, and which
shall tend to fit the people for the duties of citizenship and for the ordinary
avocations of a civilized community." A few schools were opened in Manila
immediately after the occupation of the city, under the direction of Chaplain
W. D. McKinnon. June 1, 1899, Lieutenant George P. Anderson, a volunteer
officer, became superintendent of Manila schools, and within a month twentyfour English teachers were at work with four thousand five hundred pupils.
About one thousand schools were opened by the military government. On
March 30, 1900, Captain Albert Todd, Sixth U. S. Artillery, was placed in
temporary charge of public school instruction. In a report made Aug. 17,
1900, he recommended a system of education substantially such as was afterward adopted by the commission. Census of Phil., III, p. 690 (1905).
9Act No. 74, Jan. 21, 1901. This law authorized the superintendent to
secure one thousand teachers from the United States.




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policy was a very simple one. Common schools were to be
established everywhere and every child was to be taught arithmetic and to read and write the English language. The schools were
to be public and secular, adequate for the population, and open to
all on a purely democratic basis. Secondary and higher education was to follow in due course.
It is remarkable that so little difficulty was experienced in
secularizing the schools in the Philippines. The great majority
of the people were Roman Catholics and the Church deemed the
control by it of education, particularly when dealing with a backward people, as of vital importance. That there was general
acquiescence in the new order of things is probably due to the
fact that the Vatican put in charge American trained bishops
who were familiar with the American school system. The socalled Faribault plan for the teaching of religion in the schools
was adopted. The law provided that:
"No teacher or other person shall teach or criticise the doc-.trines of any church, religious sect or denomination, or shall attempt to influence the pupils for or against any church or religious sect in any public school established under this act. If
any teacher shall intentionally violate this section, he or she shall,
after due hearing, be dismissed from public service."
No public-school teacher was permitted to conduct religious
services or teach religion in a school building or to require any
pupil to attend and receive religious instruction. But the priest,or minister of any church established in the pueblo might in person or by a representative teach religion in an orderly manner in
the school building for one-half hour three times a week to those
pupils whose parents in writing requested it.10 It was found necessary to discipline a few teachers under this act, but the agitation soon subsided and the plan has been accepted as a satisfactory solution of what might have been a very serious difficulty.
The proposed adoption of the English language as a medium
10 Act No. 74. See Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-3, p. 258. Very few priests or
ministers ever availed themselves of this opportunity.




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227


of instruction in the public schools raised a question worthy of
the most serious consideration." To most Americans it seemed
absurd to propose that any other language than English should
be used in schools over which their flag floated. But in the schools
of India and other British dependencies and colonies and, generally, in all colonies, it was and still is customary to use the vernacular in the elementary schools, and the immediate adoption
of English in the Philippine schools subjected America to the
charge of forcing the language of the conquerors upon a defenseless people.
There would have been some justification for the charge had
the Filipinos possessed a common language. Various dialects
were in use in the civilized parts of the Archipelago, but there
was no vernacular tongue common to the country or to the whole
of any one of the large islands. The Visayans of the central
islands, and the Tagalogs and Ilocanos of central and northern
Luzon possessed fairly well developed dialects in which there
were a few printed books and newspapers which circulated in restricted districts. Manifestly it was impracticable to conduct the
schools of each district in the dialect there prevalent, and no
dialect was sufficiently dominant over its rivals to justify its
adoption as a national language. William von Humboldt wrote
that the Tagalog dialect was the richest and most perfect language of the Malayo-Polynesean -family, but it was spoken by
only about one-fourth of the Christian inhabitants of the islands
and it had shown no capacity for growth. After being used for
hundreds of years in the same locality, it remained thin and lifeless. It had shown no disposition to expand by absorbing its
neighbors nor were the Tagalogs, like the Visayans and Ilocanos, disposed to spread into the surrounding islands. It had
no vitality and little literature worthy of the name. Short-sighted
Tagalog writers, with Chauvinistic tendencies in their efforts
11 In his Instructions to the commission President McKinley directed that
instruction should be given in the first instance "in the language of the
people," but that if possible English be established as "a common medium of
communication." That the question is still an open one, see General McIntyre's Special Report of Dec. 1, 1915, p. 9.




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to "purify" the language, had tried to eliminate from it all
words of foreign origin, thus destroying the sources of growth.
Some of them, such as the Tagalog poet, Baltazar, resorted to
all manner of awkward forms to avoid using words of other
than pure Tagalog origin. Any attempt to impose the Tagalog
dialect upon the other races to the exclusion of their own would
have met with violent opposition.
But a common language was a necessity, not only for social
and business purposes but for the growth of national feeling and
the creation of a homogeneous people. Spanish had been the
official language of the government and was used in the colleges
and by the upper classes, but it was unknown to the mass of the
people. Probably not more than ten per cent. of the inhabitants
of the Philippines were ever able to speak and write it. Prior to
the introduction of the public school system in the years following 1863, no serious attempt had been made to teach Spanish to
the common people. In fact, it had, like Dutch in Java, been reserved as the language of the governing class. There certainly
was no reason why the American government should adopt Spanish as the official language or as the medium of instruction in
the public schools. Although elegant and beautiful, it was, in a
commercial sense, a decadent language, while English had already become the lingua franca of the Far East. It was spoken
in every port from Japan to Australia and was rapidly becoming the common language of commerce, science and diplomacy.
The intelligent Filipinos realized this and the adoption of English as the medium of instruction in the schools met with general
approval.12
Of course, such a system of education as the Americans contemplated establishing could be successful only under the direction of American teachers, as the Filipino teachers who had
been trained in Spanish methods were ignorant of the English
language and were generally without the necessary knowledge
of the subjects to be taught.
Arrangements were promptly made for enlisting a small army
12 The future of the English language in the Philippines is still uncertain.




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229


of teachers in the United States. At first they came in companies, but soon in battalions. The transport Thomas was fitted
up for their accommodation and -in July, 1901, it sailed from
San Francisco with six hundred teachers-a second army of
occupation-surely the most remarkable cargo ever carried to an
Oriental colony.
On August twenty-third the Thomas discharged its passengers
at the foot of the Anda monument. The hotels and boardinghouses of Manila were inadequate for their accommodation, and
it was found necessary to quarter them in the public buildings on
the Exposition grounds. Here they were cared for until such
time as it was possible to send them to their various stations
throughout the islands.
These American teachers were mostly young, vigorous and full
of enthusiasm for the work. They had been gathered hurriedly
from all walks of American life. A fair proportion were college
graduates and most of them had had some experience irt teaching. Many were young women; a few were middle-aged men
who had brought their families with them. One unfortunate man
died soon after reaching Manila, leaving a wife and five small
children. There were some among them who had not realized
their anticipations of fame and fortune in the home land and who
were seeking a new start in life. A few were mere adventurers
attracted by the good pay, and the opportunity to see the world
under novel conditions. The undesirables were soon eliminated.
There were also many who had neither the physical nor the
mental strength to endure the climate and the strain of the life,
and their places were taken by others selected with more deliberation.
Great care was exercised in assigning the new teachers to
their stations. Where husband and wife were both teachers,
they were sent to the same town, and friends and acquaintances
were kept together when practicable, thus guarding as much as
possible against the home-sickness and discontent which the future would inevitably bring. The fortunate few who were connected with the administrative work or were stationed in the




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THE PHILIPPINES


large cities found life pleasant and interesting, but the most of
the young men and women who were sent to the provinces and
scattered among the villages had to live practically alone with
the Filipinos. Except in the larger towns the conditions of life
were rarely suitable for single women. To the larger places,
such as the provincial capitals, where several teachers were required, both men and women were sent, and the presence of the
American engineer, a constabulary officer and an American treasurer made the life endurable and generally pleasant and interesting.
Not the least of the troubles of the teachers was the difficulty
in getting proper food and good water. The latter was never
possible until artesian wells were dug, and reliance had to be
placed on boiled water and bottled mineral waters. As it was
impossible for Americans to live on the food procurable in the
ordinary small town, the government established stores in Manila
and in the provinces, from which the teachers could order their
supplies.
In the distant barrios it was not uncommon for an American
teacher to pass many months without seeing a white face. More
than any other Americans, they reached the hearts of the humble
people and convinced them of the disinterestedness of the American policy. They soon became the centers of the community life,
respected by every one and loved by the children with an abounding love. When the cholera was raging, they stood to their posts,
did what they could to help their stricken people, and in many
instances died with them. They were the advisers and the friends
of the common people, and during the entire insurrectionary
period there was not a single instance of intentional injury to an
American school-teacher.13
It was neither possible nor desirable that all the teachers should
be Americans. The task of providing Filipino instructors was
one of great difficulty. It was necessary to educate and train a
13 For an interesting description of the life of an American teacher, see
A Woman's Impressions of the Philippines, by Mary H. Fee (1910).
Freer's Philippine Experiences of an American Teacher (1906) gives a
very full account of the life of a teacher during the early years.




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231


new generation of teachers from the pupils of the new schools.
A few of the younger Spanish trained teachers could be utilized
as soon as they acquired the English language and the elements
of the new knowledge which was to be taught in the primary
schools."4 Immediate steps were taken to gather together for instruction those who desired to become teachers.
Early in 1901 a normal school was established in Manila, and
the announcement of a preliminary session was sent broadcast
throughout the islands. The transportation companies generously furnished free transportation for teachers, and on the
opening day four hundred and fifty Filipino young men and
women were present, of whom about ten per cent. could speak
some English. The attendance increased and five hundred and
seventy completed a short course and received their certificates.
The first regular session of the normal school opened September 1, 1901, with two hundred and fifty pupils in attendance.
But the expense and the difficulties of transportation made attendance at Manila impossible for many who aspired to become
teachers, and special normal sessions were arranged for in the
various school divisions. During the long vacations many of
the teachers, American and Filipino, were brought together at
Manila for instruction and social intercourse, and finally these
meetings developed into the regular teachers' assembly, which is
held every year at Manila. Since 1908 an assembly for American
and high-class Filipino teachers has been held each year at
Baguio."5
Teachers were also developed in the primary schools by training the brighter pupils to teach their less advanced companions.
This work was so successful that in 1910 there were seven thousand six hundred and ninety-five Filipino teachers on duty, the
14 A normal school for the training of male "teachers for primary instruction" had been established in Manila in 1863 under the charge of the
Jesuits. From 1865 to 1882 the number of pupils enrolled in the school was
3,102, of which 28.5% completed the course. For the Regulations of the
Normal School, see Census of Phil., III (1905), p. 605.
15 Beautiful grounds and buildings have been provided for the teachers'
meetings at Baguio. Distinguished educators from the United States give
courses of lectures. A daily paper is published.




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most of whom were giving general satisfaction. Almost all the
primary and, to a considerable extent, the secondary instruction,
was by that time being given by native teachers under the general supervision of Americans. At present about two-thirds of
the intermediate teaching force are Filipinos. As Filipino teachers were thus developed, the number of American teachers was
gradually reduced until in 1910 there were but six hundred and
fifty in the service, the greater number of whom were in the
higher schools or acting as inspectors or supervisors.16
The system as originally adopted contemplated primary schools
supported by the municipalities, secondary schools by the provincial authority, and special schools and a university supported
and controlled by the insular government.
16 "It has been the policy of the Bureau of Education to lay an increasing
amount of responsibility upon the Filipino teacher. As a result, where seven
years ago there were 70 Filipino and 380 American supervising teachers,
there are to-day 102 Filipino and 138 American supervising teachers....
There are now 9 Filipino provincial industrial supervisors and 194 intermediate schools with Filipino principals. In 1908-9 there were 252 Filipino
and 366 American teachers engaged in intermediate instruction. At the present time there are 841 Filipinos and 105 Americans. Primary instruction,
except in a very few classes where special work is being carried on, is entirely
in the hands of Filipinos."
Rept. Dir. of Education (1914), pp. 23-26. At present about 15% of the
positions open for American teachers become vacant each year. Their successors are selected in the United States by a representative of the Bureau of
Education. After their arrival at Manila, they are given a special short
course of instruction before being assigned to duty.
It must not be inferred that the training of native teachers was a simple
operation. An American teacher in Panay thus described what happened to
his school during a few days of enforced absence. "When I returned on
Wednesday morning," he wrote, "only two of my six teachers were present
and my attendance had dropped from 140, when I left, to 25 when I returned.
During my six days' absence scarcely any work had been done. Thursday
and Friday there was a big fiesta here, and consequently it was impossible to
hold school. This morning I attempted to collect the pupils and get started
once more. I find my teachers are fully as badly demoralized as I expected
they would be. Maria Garingales was the only one that came on time; Maria
Girago came half an hour late and then wanted to get excused for the day.
Francisco Girado came in an hour and a half late, and then only because I
sent for him. Norberto Girado was at his home asleep and would not come
at all, although I sent for him twice. He did not come to the school, but
went to the cock fight instead, and as there is another cock fight to-morrow
I have no reason to expect him at that time. All of my teachers, with the
exception of Maria Garingales, who is always on time, have of late grown
very slack in regard to their attendance. Norberto is an old offender and
does not seem to improve. I have done everything in my power to impress
upon him some sense of his obligation as a teacher, but during this month
it is safe to say that he has been absent half the time." (Rept. Phil. Corn.,
1900-3, p. 404.)




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233


At first the time and money were devoted to creating an organization, training teachers and establishing primary schools in
which the elements of an English education could be obtained.l7
But many of the pupils made rapid progress and were soon looking forward to a higher education. They were learning English
but no Spanish in the public schools, and instruction in the private colleges and universities was conducted entirely in the latter language. Unless higher American schools were established
at once these ambitious pupils would have to return to the private
church schools where only they could prepare for college. It
was thus necessary to meet the demand for schools to which children could be advanced on the completion of their primary education, and in the spring of 1902 the organization of secondary,
or high, schools was authorized. As these provincial secondary
schools were to be the peoples' colleges and the final sources of
education for all but the favored few who might be able to go to
the university at Manila, it was deemed advisable to make the
course of study as broad as possible. Hence, in addition to the
ordinary academic and commercial high-school studies, provision
was made for teaching manual training and agriculture and for
a preliminary two years' course for teachers to be completed in
the normal school at Manila. The Spanish language was to be
taught simply as any other subject.
During that year secondary schools were established in twentythree of the provinces.  The insular government was already
conducting, at its own expense, a normal school, trade school, and
nautical schooll8 at Manila, and planning for an agricultural
school in Negros.
Authority was given the provincial boards and municipal councils to levy taxes for school purposes, but neither body was able,
at the time, to provide the necessary funds, and a large part of
17 Night schools were opened in Manila and elsewhere that were attended
by many people of all classes and ages. So great was the demand for instruction in English that at one time there were about ten thousand adults in
these schools.
18 A nautical school had been established in 1820. In 1899 it was reorganized and placed under an American naval officer. After a short and unprofitable career it was closed until recently, when it was reopened.




234


THE PHILIPPINES


their school expenses have always been paid from the general appropriation of the Bureau of Education. The provincial boards
did very well and showed a good spirit, but so much can not be
said for the municipal authorities. While fully ninety per cent.
of the municipalities, wrote Secretary Smith,19 "take a deep and
abiding interest in education, their lively sympathy does not always go to the extent of providing necessary means to pay the
expenses." The Filipino teacher who looked to the municipal
treasury for his small salary sometimes found it empty. "By
law," wrote Governor Taft, "the council of a municipality is
obliged to devote a certain part of the income of the town to
schools, but in too many instances it has developed that, in the
anxiety to secure his own salary, a presidente has induced the
council and the municipal treasurer to appropriate from what are
properly school funds to pay the salaries of municipal officials."20
The educational work would have progressed more rapidly
had the insular government used more freely the forces and
money at its disposal. But the policy of throwing the burden
along with the privileges of local government upon the smaller
units was strictly adhered to and, in the end, may justify itself.
The success of the Bureau of Education in dealing with industrial education is remarkable in view of the conditions under
which the work was commenced. As originally planned, the
course of study provided for industrial instruction in the primary
and secondary schools and in the special trade and agricultural
schools. For several years there was much uninformed and illnatured criticism of the authorities for their alleged failure to
develop vocational work in the schools, and it is commonly
asserted that this resulted in a change of policy. The fact is
that great stress was placed on manual training and industrial
19 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903, Pt. III, p. 677.
20 "The truth is that the municipal governments have not been as satisfactory in their operations as could be wished. By the misuse of the school
fund already referred to, the native school teachers have been compelled to
go without their salaries. The municipal police have also gone unpaid and
in many instances have not been made efficient because they were used as the
personal servants of the municipal presidentes." Report Civil Governor,
Nov. 15, 1903; (Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903, Pt. I, p. 84).




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235


education from the beginning, and that it was developed as rapidly as possible under the circumstances.21 The original course
of study in the primary schools included manual training for
boys and girls. The Manila Trade School was established in
1901. The commission in its report for that year commented on
the demand from the provinces for teachers capable of giving instruction in manual training and the trades, and remarked that
trade schools "if established in sufficient numbers and properly
organized and conducted, will do more than almost any other
agency to put them in the possession of those qualities or powers
which tend most directly to modernize them and raising their
standard of civilization." Secretary Moses, in his first report,
discussed very fully the necessity for industrial education. In
1903, Secretary Smith said: "Next in importance after the creation of a supply of native teachers comes instruction in useful
trades and the mechanical arts and sciences necessary for the
industrial development of the country.... This branch of
instruction is, as has been already stated, in its infancy, and while
no great progress has been made, it is confidently believed that
besides giving to the islands a supply of educated Filipino artisans
and mechanics, it will compel a due regard and respect for the
dignity of labor." In his report for 1907, Secretary Shuster said:
"During the past year the dominant note of the policy of this
department has been the expansion throughout the islands of
facilities for giving education along the most practical lines of
industrial, agricultural, and domestic science training. A large
proportion of the funds appropriated from the Insular treasury
for school construction has been expended for schools of arts
and trades, and the proportion so expended in future will be even
greater."22 This policy was continued by the succeeding secretaries of public instruction.
21 The recommendations submitted by Captain Todd in Aug., 1900, included industrial schools for manual training.
22 "The spectacle of the pupils of a school of arts and trades at work,
under the direction of their American teacher, in constructing a permanent
and substantial industrial school of cement blocks, molded and laid by the
Pupils themselves, all without cost to the Government other than for the
necessary materials, is to some extent a refutation of the ill-founded state



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THE PHILIPPINES


A good many Americans in Manila were not in favor of educating the natives for anything higher than servants and common
laborers.23 Most of the criticism, however, was due to ignorance
of what was being done and the failure to recognize difficulties
inherent in the situation. At that time industrial teaching in the
public schools of the United States was largely experimental,
and even at present competent critics are not satisfied with the
methods of teaching or the results obtained.24 There can be no
question of the sincerity of the effort made by the government
of the Philippines to train the Filipinos for industrial occupations.
Mr. Barrows, who was director of the Bureau of Education
from 1903 to 1910, was an earnest supporter of the policy, although he was not in favor of permitting manual-training work
to supersede instruction in the ordinary branches of an elementary English education.25
ment which has not infrequently been heard to the effect that the educational
work in these islands is of an impractical and visionary character. The frequent suggestions which have appeared in the public press to the effect that
manual training should be installed in the schools seems to take no account
of the fact that this practical form of education has been one of the keynotes
of the Government's policy since the establishment of the public school system." Rept. Phil. Cor., 1907, Pt. III, p. 162. Ibid., p. 163.
23 "It is unfortunate that the attitude of much of the American community
and of the American press is outspokenly hostile to public instruction. The
cry is the common one, that the public schools interfere with the availability
of labor, train boys away from the fields, and expend large sums of money
which would better be devoted to industrial and commercial development.
The Manila Times in recent months has engaged in a vigorous campaign with
the professed object of beating down the insular appropriations for education. It was also represented that the present educational policy neglects the
practical training for life or industrial efficiency; that the money devoted to
public instruction is in large part wasted; and that a radical change in the
amount and character of instruction should be made...   So far as
opposition to Philippine education is a reflection of that ungenerous and
illiberal opposition to native enlightenment which too often takes possession
of Americans domiciled in these islands, I believe it to be recreant to every
principle of our national policy and to a due regard for justice." Rept.
Director of Education, Aug. 1, 1908 (Rept. Phil. Cor., 1908, Pt. II, p. 805).
24 "The manual training high schools are too elaborate," says Doctor
Draper (Our Children, Our Schools, and Our Industries, 1908, p., 7), "too expensive, in a way too dilettante to lead to anything other than one of the
industrial professions; often they do not even prepare for training in one of
these. They are much more like schools than shops, where they should be
more like shops than schools... They are managed by men who are
more teachers than workmen, when they should be managed by men who are
at least quite as much workmen as teachers."
25 See Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences,
XXX, No. 1, July, 1907.
In his report for 1908, Mr. Barrows said: "The main purpose of the pri



THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


237


Industrial training, to be of any value, requires shops, machinery and suitable apparatus, as well as specially trained teachers. It is much more complicated and difficult than ordinary
academic instruction which requires only the teacher, a few textbooks and a blackboard.
It must also be remembered that the Filipinos had not been
taught to look upon manual labor as dignified and honorable.
In some respects the society resembled that of the South during
slavery days. There was no place for the theory of the dignity
of labor in the political and social system developed under Spanish rule. No one labored with his hands unless compelled thereto
by dire necessity. Education was regarded as a means for escaping from manual labor, of becoming a clerk, lawyer, doctor,
priest or government employee. The last thing a Filipino boy or
girl desired to be taught was how to perform manual labor,
skilfully or in any other way. Such work was supposed to be for
the tao and the muchacho. This ancient prejudice against manual labor had to be broken down before any real progress could
be made in industrial education.
It is remarkable that so many young men and women were
able to rise above this popular feeling against manual labor.
When the Manila Trade School was opened in 1901 it was very
difficult to find students.  They had to be coaxed to enter the
trade school and after being there were retained with difficulty.
When Mehemet Ali established his European schools in Egypt
he sent press gangs out to secure pupils, as sailors were formerly
mary schools is to give children a knowledge of letters; it is to make the
common people literate in the English tongue. To those who advocate 'practical instruction,' I reply that the most practical thing obtainable for men is
a civilized community, and their most desirable acquisition is literacy. In
civilized communities an illiterate class suffers a grievous handicap in the
social competition. Civilized communities are civilized because they are
literate. The achievement of letters marks the transition from barbarism to
civilization.... However numerous may become the other duties placed
upon the schools, the duty of caring for the physical development of the
children, the duty of providing for their moral training, the duty of contributing to their industrial efficiency, however much these may come to be
accepted as necessary functions of the school, the training in letters must
always remain its first and fundamental office." (Rept. Phil. Corn., 1908,
Pt. 11, p. 807). See the interesting remarks of Mr. Lecky on primary education (Democracy and Liberty, II, p. 6).




238


THE PHILIPPINES


secured for His Majesty's navy.26 This rather crude but effective method of securing a large enrollment was not available in
the Philippines. Nevertheless, in 1904, instruction was being
given in the trade school to two hundred and seventy pupils, and
there was a large waiting list. The old prejudice against manual labor has been weakened, but it is still strong and is a formidable obstacle in the way of the industrial development of the
country. Ambitious Filipino youth crowd into the learned professions just as they do in the United States.27 The great educational problem is to induce all but the select few to believe that
business, industrial and especially agricultural life offers careers
as honorable, as dignified and as profitable as the learned professions.28
At present very great stress is being laid on the utilitarian idea
in education. Industrial training is commenced in the primary
and continued throughout the intermediate grades. The highschool course is more conventional and is designed to prepare
students for collegiate work and three-fourths of the graduates
proceed to a college or university. The course of study now requires eleven years for completion, four in the primary, three in
the intermediate, and four in the high-school grades. In the intermediate grade six courses are given: a general course, a course
for teachers, a course in farming, a trade course, a course in
housekeeping and household arts, and a business course. All the
intermediate schools are not yet equipped to teach, all these
courses. In some only one, in others, two, three or all six are
26 So unpopular was education that mothers actually blinded their children
to keep them from school. Senior, Conversations, etc., p. 130. Small boys
were taken to school in chains, others were paid to go. Fyfe's The New
Spirit in Egypt, p. 94.
27 Americans are not unfamiliar with similar aspirations. "No boy in an
American school looks forward to digging and delving for hire as a means
of a livelihood nor does any girl contemplate domestic service as her future
work in life." Mosley, Educational Commission Reports, p. 102.
28 Some industrial instruction is given in the private schools, but they are
generally without proper equipment. There are some exceptions to this statement. The Silliman Institute, at Dumaguete, and the Industrial School Republic at Jaro give excellent courses in agriculture and wood-working, and
the schools of the Belgian Sisters in Manila, Tagudin, Bontoc and Baguio
give excellent instruction in lace-making.




THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


239


given. The high-school course is similar to that of the same
type of school in the United States.29
On entering a primary school the pupil must take as a part of
each day's work certain manual-training exercises beginning as
play but leading to the regular courses provided in the advanced
primary and intermediate grades. In 1912, 216,218 boys and
125,203 girls, representing ninety-one per cent. of the enrollment,
were engaged in industrial work such as regular manual-training
and trade work, school gardening and farming, housekeeping, the
making of hats and mats and the study of basketry. Close touch
is kept on the work by means of provincial industrial supervisors
who frequently visit the schools in their territory, and inspectors
and instructors attached to the general office are constantly traveling throughout the islands. The articles made by the children
of the public schools are remarkable both for their quality and
diversity. The exhibit made by the Bureau of Education in connection with the Philippine Industrial Exhibition in 1912 was a
very interesting one, and great quantities of dainty laces and embroideries, beautiful baskets, hats, pottery, furniture and other
articles were sold to the public. In 1911 the schoolboys in one
hundred towns were wearing hats made by themselves. In that
year the Philippines exported 621,475 hats; in 1912, 1,025,596,
and the increase was due very largely to school influence. More
than half of the desks and tables in use in the primary schools of
the Philippines were made by the pupils. The primary schools of
Albay are able to deliver one thousand salable baskets on a
month's notice.
The Igorot girls weave the cloth and make the clothing which
they wear in school. The industrial school at Capiz has developed
the slipper-making industry in that community so that two thousand dollars' worth of slippers were sold in one year. Through
school influence 1,072 gardens were established during the year
1911 at the homes of pupils in La Union Province. In the province of Albay 470 school and home gardens were developed in
29 For the course of study, see the Report Director of Education for
1914, pp. 58-64.




240


THE PHILIPPINES


one year and many vegetables introduced which formerly were
unknown in the community. In the non-Christian province of
Bukidnon each school has ten acres of land enclosed and under
cultivation. The provincial schools of Pampanga exhibited at
the 1912 carnival six hundred samples of jellies, jams and preserves made from Philippine fruits. Many other illustrations
might be given of the results of the extremely practical training
being given in the public schools.
The remarkable showing made by the Philippine school system at the Panama-Pacific Exposition of 1914 is evidenced by
the four grand and seventy-three other prizes awarded it.
The new system of education required text-books prepared
specially for the Philippines. Few of those in use in the primary
schools in the United States were suitable. Nothing better illustrates the isolated condition in which the people of the country
had lived. The primers and readers brought from the United
States had much to say of the change of seasons which were unknown, and of fruits and flowers and birds which had never been
seen or heard of in the Philippines; of a home life and social
customs which were beyond the experience and comprehension
of the children of the tropics. The arithmetic texts dealt with
weights and measures unknown in the Orient; the problems were
based on the buying and selling of products of which the Filipino
children had never heard; the geographies contained descriptions
of Europe, North America and the states of the Union; they ignored the home of the Filipinos and gave scant treatment to the
Orient in general. The histories dealt with America and Europe,
making no mention of the Philippines and little of China, Japan
and Malaysia. The texts on nature study and plant and animal
life told the children of vegetation and fauna as strange to the
Filipino as is German script to a boy or girl in an American primary school.30
To meet the requirements new text-books were prepared from
local material by teachers and others familiar with conditions
30Report of the Director of the Bureau of Education (Rept. Phil. Con.,
1910, p. 173).




THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


241


and published by the government or by private concerns. The
books on ordinary topics such as arithmetic required but slight
changes. Special texts were prepared, such as a Short History of
the Philippines, the Civil Government of the Philippines, Philippine Geography, Philippine Folk Lore, A Nature Study Reader,
Lessons on Familiar Philippine Animals, School and Home Gardening, Housekeeping, Economic Conditions in the Philippines,
Embroidery and Lace Making, Materials for Commerce for the
Philippines, Commercial Geography, An Athletic Handbook, and
Introduction to the Study of Colonial History. Ninety per cent.
of the texts now in use were prepared especially for the Philippines. Many of the bulletins published by the Bureau of Education contain material which is used as the basis of instruction. A
monthly magazine, called The Philippine Craftsman, is devoted
entirely to the advancement of industrial instruction.
During recent years athletic instruction has constituted an important part of the school work. In the olden times the most violent exercise ever taken by a Filipino boy or girl was by participation in a solemn processional march under the chaperonage of
a dignified teacher. The sporting instinct found its gratification
at the cockpit. Physical activity was considered not only unpleasant but very undignified. All that has been changed. To-day the
boys are as devoted to baseball and track as their contemporaries
in America and the girls are skilful at tennis and basket-ball. A
very large proportion of the public-school pupils participate,
under careful instruction, in some form of organized athletics
and the beneficial effects, both mental and physical, are already
very evident. It may be that when the final account is made up
it will be found that baseball has had a more beneficial effect
upon the new generation than even the more orthodox subjects of
the school course.31
31Governor-General Forbes was greatly interested in athletics and did
more than any other American official to encourage the Filipinos to train
their bodies as well as their minds. A regular interprovincial athletic-school
league is maintained. In connection with the Philippine Carnival in Feb.,
1913, the far eastern Olympiad was held in Manila. Both China and Japan
sent a number of young men, and the athletic contests lasted for several days.
Almost all the contestants representing the Philippines were schoolboys.




242


THE PHILIPPINES


Prior to 1910 the government encouraged young men and
women to secure, whenever possible, a higher education in American colleges.  Immediately after the American occupation
wealthy Filipinos commenced sending their sons to the United
States to be educated, and provinces and towns arranged to maintain boys abroad at public expense. In 1903 the commission decided to send to the United States for education one hundred
boys and girls of high-school age and educate them to become
teachers, engineers, doctors and lawyers, on condition that for
five years after their return they should be at the call of the
government for public service. One-third of these pensionados
were selected at large by the governor-general and the others by
the provincial authorities. Between 1903 and 1912, 209 young
men and women were educated in American institutions at a total
expense of $479,940. As a whole it is probable that the money
was well expended, but many people believe that the effect of
sending immature boys abroad for their education under conditions so different from that of their native land is generally detrimental to their characters. Most of these pensionados are now
useful citizens of the Philippines, and a few are serving the government as teachers, engineers and officials. However, it is
doubtful whether many of them acquired any affection for America or admiration for her institutions by reason of the years spent
at her colleges and universities, and it is certain that some of them
returned with a feeling of restlessness and dissatisfaction which
threw them into the ranks of the agitators. After the University
of the Philippines was established there was no necessity for
sending boys out of the country for a higher education and at
present only a few graduates who have shown unusual ability
are sent abroad for special work of a scientific character.
The university, the normal school, and most of the other
schools supported by direct appropriations are now well housed in.Japan won the baseball championship, but in track, field and general sports
the Filiiiios-were victors.
The various private schools are beginning to realize the importance of
physical training, and even the schools under the control of the religious
orders maintain baseball, football and basket-ball teams. But few of the private schools have specially trained teachers for athletics, or suitable grounds.




THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


243


modern buildings and fairly well supplied with facilities for instruction.32 Many of the elementary schools still occupy rented
buildings or temporary bamboo structures. Prior to 1907, although by law the burden of providing buildings for elementary
and secondary schools was imposed on the provinces and municipalities, the commission had assisted them to the extent of
$500,000, of which $175,000 came from the congressional relief
fund. In that year the legislature appropriated $500,000, of
which $125,000 was to be available each year for the purpose of
paying not to exceed two-thirds of the cost of the construction of
school buildings in barrios where not less than sixty pupils were
in daily attendance. At its expiration this law was renewed upon
the same conditions, and three other appropriations of approximately one hundred thousand dollars each have been made to aid
municipalities to construct buildings on such conditions as should
be prescribed by the secretary of public instruction. Substantial
school buildings of reinforced concrete, built according to standard plans, are slowly replacing the old structures, and if the
policy is adhered to it is only a question of time until all the
schools will be properly housed.
The University of the Philippines, with colleges of liberal arts,
engineering, medicine and surgery, veterinary science, schools of
fine arts, pharmacy, dentistry, education, agriculture and law, and
now organized like an American state university, was established
in 1911 with a former American Episcopalian minister as president and the Roman Catholic archbishop a member of the board
of regents. Certain of the colleges had been in operation for
several years as separate schools.
At the present time more than two thousand students are enrolled in the university. The College of Medicine and Surgery,
which offers special facilities for the study of tropical medicine,
graduated its first class in 1912. At present the president of the
university and a large proportion of the faculty are Filipinos, and
32 Expensive buildings have been constructed in Manila for the university,
the normal school, the girls' dormitory, and the School of Arts and Trades.




244                THE   PHILIPPINES
their number will undoubtedly increase as the graduates who are
pursuing advanced courses in American and European universities return to the islands. There is reason to believe that if the
standard is maintained the University of the Philippines will in
time draw many students from China and other parts of the Far
East.33
In 1914 the insular government was maintaining also a normal school with nearly 1,500 students, a school of arts and trades
with 762 students, a school of commerce with 411 students, a
school for the deaf and blind with 53 students, a school for household industries with 179 students, and a nautical school with
30 students. The school of household industries was established
in 1912 for the purpose of teaching adult women to make lace,
embroidery and other household products. The students of this
school are brought to Manila from the provinces and maintained
at government expense under an agreement to return to their
homes and establish centers for instruction in the various household crafts.
The Philippine Nurses' Training School, which originated several years ago at the normal school, is now conducted at the Philippine General Hospital under the supervision of the Public
Health Service. The students, to the maximum number of 106,
are supported by the government. The Filipino young women
seem to possess in a high degree the qualities which fit them for
professional nurses and they have won the unqualified approval
of their instructors and the gratitude and appreciation of the patients for whom they have rendered such faithful and skilful
service.
A number of the government bureaus conduct special schools
for the training of their employees and educational work is carried on in all the prisons. The Bureau of Printing has been particularly successful in training printers and bookbinders. The
convicts at Bilidid prison conduct a school and receive practical
instruction in manual training. The Iwahig penal colony is
33 It was a mistake to place a Filipino at the head of the university, and
there is at present a regrettable tendency toward lowering the standard originally established.




THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


245


simply a school for the reformation of prisoners where they are
given instruction in agriculture and other kinds of manual training which will fit them to become useful and self-supporting
members of society after their discharge. The excellent school
at Baguio, conducted by the constabulary for the training of officers, has recently been expanded into a sort of Filipino West
Point.
The educational work is gradually being extended among the
inhabitants of the non-Christian provinces which until 1916
were under the exclusive control of the Philippine Commission.
Prior to January 1, 1914, all the funds available for educational
work in the non-Christian provinces were appropriated by the
commission, but since that date the schools have been supported
from the regular appropriations for the Bureau of Education.
In 1913, $126,850 was expended for school work among the wild
tribes, exclusive of the amount expended for buildings. During
1913-1914, fifty schools were conducted for non-Christians in
the Christian provinces, with an attendance of 1,640, and eightynine in the non-Christian provinces, with an attendance of 3,506
students. The instruction is necessarily of a very simple character. The people are being taught how to live decently and
honestly and earn a living by the cultivation of the soil and the
manufacture of simple, characteristic articles for which there is
a demand. Particular attention is given to industrial instruction.
A trade school has been established at Baguio and the cabinet
work there done by the Igorot boys is of a high quality. In Quiangan the schoolboys erected a beautiful school building out of
stone found in the immediate neighborhood.
Until January, 1915, the Moro Province was treated as a separate unit for educational as well as for governmental purposes.
The province received no financial assistance for its schools from
the Philippine Legislature or the commission and yet under very
adverse conditions considerable progress was made in the education of the natives. In addition to the ordinary elementary schools
it maintained a summer normal school, agricultural and industrial
schools and a school for Moro girls where they were taught per



246


THE PHILIPPINES


sonal cleanliness, housekeeping, sewing, cooking, embroidery and
reading and writing English. In 1913 there were fifteen American teachers on duty in the province and 101 native teachers, of
whom 33 were women-83 being Christian Filipinos, 17 Moros,
and one a Babogo girl. In that year the province spent $52,255
for educational work. The total enrollment in the schools was
7,568, of which 68 per cent. were boys. The average daily attendance was 4,535.     In parts of the province private Moro
schools are conducted by Moro priests who teach the Koran and
writing the native dialects in Arabic characters. But the more
intelligent Moros are calling for American teachers and as rapidly as money will permit the pandita schools are being superseded by public schools.34 Soon after the Department of Mindanao and Sulu was created the schools were placed under the
control of the Bureau of Education of the insular government.
In 1914 a total of $235,088 was provided for educational work
in that department.
In view of the fact that with the money available it is still
impossible properly to house and teach all of the Filipino children,
it has been deemed inadvisable to enact a compulsory education
law. There are in the Philippines approximately one million
two hundred thousand children of school age, of which less than
one-half are receiving instruction at any one time. The frequent
appeals to Congress for financial assistance for the educational
work have fallen upon deaf ears and the Filipinos have been left
to pay all the bills for the education of their children.35 For that
34 "The Moros or Pagans who have come in close contact with our civilization, in the public schools or otherwise, are frequently found to be anxious
to improve their standards of living and, to a certain extent, are inclined also
to adopt our manners and customs.... On this fact may justly be based
the belief that through our common schools an impetus may be given which,
if followed up by other civilizing forces, may lead eventually to the social
evolution of these wards." Annual Rept. Gov. of the Moro Province, 1913,
p. 33.
35 A distinguished American educator began an address at the Lake Mohawk Conference, Oct., 1911, with the statement that "Our Government in
Washington is caring for schools in the Philippines." In fact, the government at Washington has done nothing for education in the Philippines other
than permit certain Americans to labor there in the service of the insular
government and spend the money which the Filipinos and residents are able
to furnish.




THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


247


purpose the government of the Philippines had, to July 1, 1913,
expended $21,376,000. The following table shows the annual
expenditures for schools, exclusive of buildings:36
Fiscal year.       Insular.    Provincial.  Municipal.      Total.
1899.............  No figures available. Expenditures from military sources.
1901.............   P466,822.00         No record.           P466,822.00
1902.............   2,388,762.00        No record.           2,388,762.00
1903.............   2,801,126.00        P633,840.97.         3,434,966.97
1904.............   2,488,192.00  Small sums. P1,016,303.00  3,504,495.00
1905.............   2,402,733.46  P79,918.40   1,797,547.67  4,280,199.53
1906.............   2,880,047.68   225,159.44  1,364,130.40  4,469,337.52
1907.............   3,112,540.24   307,779.86  1,359,702.05  4,780,022.15
1908.............   3,402,119.59  216,955.80   1,508,041.80  5,127,117.19
1909.............   3,926,827.92  228,691.23   1,672,148.50  5,827,667.65
1910.............   4,094,098.61  285,159.97   2,133,577.91  6,512,836.49
1911.............   3,792,182.15  209,286.64   2,516,460.12  6,517,928.91


During the year 1912, 529,655 pupils were enrolled in the
3,367 primary, 208 intermediate and 38 secondary schools.37 At
present as nearly as can be learned there are 4,400 schools, 10,250
teachers, of whom 500 are Americans, and an enrollment of about
625,000.38
In 1913 the enrollment fell to 440,050 and the number of primary schools to 2,595. It was conceded that there had also been a
falling off in the efficiency of the schools and that it was due to the
36 It will be remembered that a peso is worth fifty cents gold.
37 In his report for 1914 the director of the Bureau of Education said: "In
practically every line of work substantial progress is to be reported. The
attendance during the school year 1913-14 and during the present school year
1914-15 has reached the highest figure in the history of this bureau. The
annual enrollment for 1913-14 was 621,030 as compared with 440,050 for the
previous school year. The average monthly enrollment for 1913-14 was
489,070, as compared with 329,756 for the previous school year. The average
daily attendance was 428,552 as compared with 287,995 for 1912-13. The
percentage of attendance was 88. The high percentage of attendance is particularly significant, since regularity of attendance is one of the chief factors
of efficiency in instruction. The number of schools for the school year
1913-14 was 4,235, as compared with 2,934 for 1912-13. The number of
schools for the present school year remains practically the same. The number of teachers for 1913-14 was 9,462, as compared with 7,671 for 1912-13.
38 November 1, 1916. The figures are furnished me by Mr. Crone, Director
of the Bureau of Education.




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THE PHILIPPINES


attempt to accomplish more than was justified by the amount of
money available. In view of the general decrease of the income
of the government it was certain that the appropriations for educational work could not be increased, and it became necessary
either to abandon the building program, restrict industrial education, reduce salaries or the number of American teachers, or
close many of the schools. The director of education reached the
surprising conclusion that it was best to limit the amount of primary education by closing many of the barrio schools.39 This
was a yielding of the sound principle upon which the educational
structure had been erected, to the pressure of the Filipinos for
higher education for the few at the expense of a common-school
education for the many. But Secretary Gilbert was not willing
to abandon the theory that the first duty of a government is to
give all children a primary education; that while advanced education is desirable for some, it is not essential for all.40 It is to
be hoped that the educational authorities will not yield to this
pressure. The salvation of the Philippines is in a system of education which rests securely upon a broad foundation of common
schools for the masses.
While no religious instruction is given in the public schools
by the teachers, education has not been divorced from religion
and morals. It has been recognized that the mere possession of
39 The reason given was that "the country needed a large number of welltrained young men and women as teachers and workers along similar lines.
The schools to date have not been able to produce a sufficient number of this
class. Moreover, the people who have had a voice in affairs have always
been much more interested in intermediate and secondary instruction than in
the extension of primary schools to the barrios. The Director of Education
and his official superiors are constantly in receipt of letters protesting against
the closing or demanding the opening of intermediate schools. During the
past three years this Bureau has received more than six times as many communications asking for extension of intermediate instruction as for an extension of primary instruction.... Their attention is very rarely, indeed,
called to the desirability of extending primary instruction." Rept. Phil. Com.,
1915.
I am assured that this recommendation was designed merely to force the
hand of the governor-general and compel him to find the money to continue
the primary work and that it was successful. The educational authorities
always claimed that Governor-General Forbes was securing funds for unnecessary public work that should have been devoted to education.
40 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1913, p. 246.




THE PHILIPPINE SCHOOLS


249


knowledge without moral principles to guide its use may be worse
than ignorance. The teachers by example and precept have
sought to instil into the minds of the pupils those principles of
right conduct which make for character building. The degree
of success obtained will determine the value of the education imparted to the Filipinos.
The results of the educational work are undoubtedly to the
credit of the government and the people. Everywhere in the
Far East, from Egypt and India to the Philippines, special attention is being given to the education of the native people. We
have no monopoly of this altruistic work and our methods differ
from those of England only in the special attention given to elementary instruction and possibly the spirit in which the work is
being done.
From India, particularly, we may learn what to avoid. As
Lord Cromer has said:4 "The intellectual phase through which
India is now passing stands before the world as a warning that it
is unwise, even if it be not dangerous, to create too wide a gap between the state of education in the higher and the lower classes in
an Oriental country governed under the inspiration of a western
democracy." It is conceded by most disinterested observers that
the comparative failure of the educational system of India has
been due to the character of the instruction given and the stress
laid on higher education, academic and technical. In both India
and Egypt primary education is left largely to the private schools
where the instruction is in the vernacular and under the control
of the native religious teachers.42
The religion of Islam closes the door to western education for
41 Modern Egypt, II, p. 534. "Signs of the Times in India," Edinburgh
Review, Oct., 1907.
42 Many of these private schools receive grants in aid from the government. The policy of the Egyptian government has been to develop higher
institutions of learning to the point where they will become self-sustaining
and then devote the government money to primary education. Lord Cromer's
Report, Egypt, No. 1 (1906), pp. 82-89; Sir Elden Gorst's Report, Egypt,
No. 1 (1908), p. 31.
For a review of the educational work in Egypt, see Sir Elden Gorst's
Report, Egypt, No. 1 (1909), pp. 38 et seq.




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THE PHILIPPINES


children,43 particularly girls, and the caste system of India presents almost insuperable difficulties to the educator. There are
to-day in British India alone more than six million wives, many
of them mothers, who are under sixteen years of age. The education of girls in a country where such customs exist seems almost a hopeless task. However, the conditions differ so radically that comparisons between the educational work in the Philippines, India, Egypt and Japan are of very little value.
The work of the missionaries of the Protestant churches is so
closely identified with education that it may well be referred to
in this connection.4 Some of them maintain secondary schools
such as the Silliman Institute at Dumaguete, for the training of
young Filipinos for work among their own people. The Protestant Episcopal Church, under the direction of the famous missionary bishop, Charles H. Brent, has worked principally among
the non-Christians-that is, the non-Catholic element of the
population. Several years ago Bishop Brent established endowed
schools at Baguio where American boys and girls can prepare for
college. There are also certain private schools which receive
some government aid such as Miss Kelley's School at Baguio,
where Igorot girls are taught household industries and the rules
of civilized life. These various schools supplement the work of
the public schools.
Our educational problems in the Philippines are comparatively
simple; in fact, they are mostly financial. There is still much to
do and little to do it with. If the educational authorities are able
to resist the pressure from a certain element for higher education at the expense of elementary and industrial instruction the
Filipinos will in due time be in possession of all that education
can do for any people.
43 See Hughes' Dictionary of Islam, p. 106; Roy, Century Magazine, Sept.,
1915.
44 For a description of the work of the missionaries, see particularly, The
Progressing Philippines, by Charles W. Briggs, a missionary in Panay and
Negros (1913), and The Philippines and the Far East, by Homer C. Stuntz
(1904).




CHAPTER XI


The Labor Problem
Climate and Labor-The Normal Labor Conditions-Customs of the Country
-Problems Confronting the Americans-Exclusion of the Chinese-Elect to
Develop Filipino Labor-Encouraging Results-Methods Used in Other Colonies-Penalties for Breach of Labor Contracts-Advances Obtained with
Fraudulent Intent-The Bureau of Labor-Increase in Wages.
It has been said that an atom more or less added to or taken
from the atmosphere which envelops us might change the course
of history. With an excess of nitrogen we might become very
torpid and gravitate toward final extinction. A different proportion of oxygen might mean a continuous debauch of violence.
After making due allowance for ordinary racial characteristics,
it is certain that the degree of heat and humidity in which men
live affect appreciably their physical characteristics, ambitions,
desires, and their outlook on life. Things which in temperate
climes seem sufficiently desirable to induce men to strive mightily
and wrestle with their limitations, have little attraction for the
dwellers in the tropics. Great physical exertion seems to them
too high a price to pay for any rewards it will bring. The doctrine of the strenuous life makes no appeal. To them the one
blighting curse which rests on humanity is the apparent necessity for labor; their ideal life is one long siesta.
In what we may call its normal state, the tropics knows no real
labor question. It is only when the white man comes and undertakes to "hustle the Aryan brown" and make the land produce
more than is necessary for bare existence according to the local
standard, that the indisposition of the native to work seriously
becomes a matter of consequence.
Before the American occupation of the Philippines, the native
employers of labor handled the situation in their own crude
way, usually tying their laborers to the soil under a system of
251




252


THE PHILIPPINES


peonage. The plans of the Americans for the development of
the natural resources of the country required a different type of
laborer. We were confronted with the usual problems which
have caused so much trouble in other Oriental colonies. The English, Dutch, French and Germans in their colonies deal with people who differ greatly from the Filipinos, but the difficulties of
the labor problem are to some extent the same in all tropical
countries. The dominant factors are a great body of fertile land,
capable of producing an almost unlimited supply of products, and
an abundance of able-bodied men with some capacity but no inclination to perform the labor necessary to translate possibilities
into realities. There is always plenty of man power but it is of
low quality. Those who desired quick returns urged the American government to adopt the methods for securing and regulating
a supply of labor which prevailed in neighboring tropical countries.
The Chinese exclusion laws had been extended to the Philippines, and the first demand of the contractors and large employers
of labor was that it be so changed as to allow them to import at
least a limited number of laborers from China. A delegation of
business men visited Washington and urged the suspension of the
law, but Filipino sentiment was overwhelmingly opposed to such
a course and the commission finally reached the conclusion that,
while it would be temporarily advantageous, it would in the end
prove prejudicial to all concerned. If the country was to be developed it would have to be by its own people, under the direction
and supervision of Americans.
There were serious questions of large public policy connected
with the matter. The administration was urging Congress to
open the markets of the United States to the Philippines and if
the Chinese exclusion laws were modified the cry of competition
with cheap Asiatic labor would be raised in the United States and
the political influence of the labor organizations be added to that
of the home manufacturers. Experience had demonstrated that
the Filipinos were not able to compete successfully with the Chi



THE LABOR PROBLEM


253


nese,1 and it did not seem to be a proper occasion for the application of the law of the survival of the fittest.2
The early experiences of American employers with Filipino
workmen were rather discouraging. Labor was difficult to secure
and when secured it was expensive and, when measured by American standards, of very poor quality. But as conditions became
more settled, the labor situation improved and many employers
became convinced that with patience and tact they could develop
Filipinos into efficient laborers. The construction of extensive
public works and railways required thousands of laborers who
had first to be induced to work and then taught how to work.
After considerable experience, the contractor engaged in building
the Manila port works, wrote thus to Governor Taft:3
"We believe that Filipino labor can successfully be used. We
are employing about one thousand Filipinos, which is a practical
demonstration that this statement is not a theory.
"To successfully employ Filipino labor is, to the American
employer of labor, a new business, which has to be learned. If
he can not learn it he can not do business in the Philippine
Islands.
"In general, the Filipinos have to be taught how to work. This
requires a considerable proportion of intelligent high-grade
American foremen and mechanics.
"The way to keep the Filipino laborer permanently in one's
employ is to so arrange his surroundings that he is better off and
more contented there than anywhere else. This we have attained
by means of providing homes for the Filipinos and their families;
also amusements, including Sunday fiestas, and schools where
their children may be educated.
"We are opposed to the introduction of the Chinese. The only
argument that we can see in its favor is that it may somewhat
expedite the development of the resources of the islands. This
temporary advantage is, we believe, overbalanced and overwhelmed by the ultimate injury to both the Americans and natives in the islands."
'For the Chinese as laborers in the Philippines, see Elliott, The PhilipPines: To the End of the Military Regime, pp. 281-284.
2Rept. Phil. Cor., Dec. 23, 1900 (Repts. Phil. Cor. 1900-1903, p. 512).
3The Atlantic Gulf & Pacific Company. Repts. Phil. Cor. 1903, p. 55.
For the early experiences of other employers, see ibid, Exhibits N, 0, and P.




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THE PHILIPPINES


With such encouraging reports of actual results the government, against the protest of many employers, decided to adhere
to the policy of developing the capacity of the native workmen.4
It was a wise policy. The ancient theory that if you desire
any one to become rich you must decrease his wants, is no longer
accepted; it would destroy the civilization which rests upon the
assumption that men should want many things. As the Philippine government could not adopt the arbitrary methods which had
prevailed in many tropical colonies, it determined to educate and
train the Filipino laborers and trust to time for results. The
experience of less than two decades encourages the belief that
when the Filipino working man has acquired a knowledge of and
a desire for the things that make life worth while to an American
or European, he will perform the labor necessary to enable him
to obtain them. With proper and reasonable regulations, it is
believed that an ample supply of efficient free labor may be developed.
But this result will require time and many people in the Philippines are not content to wait for the development of the instinct
and capacity for sustained labor. Many bills designed to compel
Filipino laborers to work whether they wish to or not have been
introduced into the legislature at the request of the native planters. It must, however, be conceded that the time has passed when
a native who has committed no crime can be compelled by law to
work for some other man or even for himself. That being true,
the solution of the labor problems of the Philippines must be
found in education and training under regulations which indirectly put an amount of pressure on the individual workman
sufficient to overcome his natural or acquired indolence.
4 As a distinguished publicist has said: "There are two ways of making a
man work,-by pressure from above, disguised slavery,-and by stimulus
from within, the higher wages of a highly organized, free, industrial system.
The last the tropics have never yet had.... Give the stimulus of a market
and of higher wages and all men will work. Deprive them of either and contract labor laws are needed. The American may yet solve the tropical industrial problem as he has quadrupled the cotton crop in the face of all the arguments marshalled by Mr. Ireland, all made thirty-three years ago, not by laws
making it harder for a man to be idle, but by an industrial system making it
more profitable for a man to labor." Talcott Williams, Annals Am. Academy of Pol. and Soc. Sci. (1899) Supp., p. 68.




THE LABOR PROBLEM


255


The problem is as old as the attempts of the active Occident
to develop the languid Orient, the land where nature has been so
prolific of raw material, and niggardly of men with the desire or
capacity to utilize her gifts. Slavery, corvee, indented labor,
deportation of criminals, assisted immigration, irregular taxation, vagrancy laws, imported contract labor, forced labor, and
insidiously-framed labor contracts, have all been tried by different countries with indifferent success or complete failure.
The indirect methods designed to make men work who are
free not to work and desire not to work have been numerous and
ingenious.5 Slavery in its crude forms is no longer advocated,
but numerous devices which in their essence are little, if any,
short of slavery, have been and still are in force in many countries. They are very interesting and instructive. In Rhodesia
and Natal a hut or poll tax is levied on the natives, which must be
paid in money or in working for some white employer. This socalled tax of from ten dollars a head upward is merely an indirect
way of compelling labor under the guise of taxation. In South
Africa adults who are not landowners are required to pay a tax
of ten dollars a year unless they have spent three months outside of their reservations engaged in regular service or employment. This imposition continues until thirty-six months' work
has been performed when the laborer may retire and be henceforth exempt. Another indirect way of forcing the slothful
to work has been by the application of a misnamed vagrancy law.
After slavery was abolished in the French colonies, the supply
of labor almost entirely failed. The new freedmen, after their
years of enforced toil, wished apparently to get thoroughly rested
before engaging in voluntary labor. A law was passed which declared all persons vagrants who were not landowners or artisans
regularly employed at their trades, unless they could prove that
they were engaged on a labor contract for at least a year or carried a book showing a continuous labor engagement.
The Germans introduced similar vagrancy laws in some of
5 See generally Reinsch, Colonial Administration, p. 376, et seq.; Edgerton,
Origin and Growth of English Colonies, Chap. VII; Ireland, Tropical Colonis
zation, pp. 128-216; Bruce, The Broad Stone of Empire, I, Chap. X.




256


THE PHILIPPINES


their East African colonies. In both instances the attempt was
unsuccessful. In the French Antilles the people dodged the law
by securing diminutive tracts of land and thereafter raising only
what was necessary for their modest livelihood. In the Dutch
colony of Surinam this reversion to what Reinsch calls "a bananapatch civilization," was foreseen and guarded against. Emancipated slaves were forbidden to cultivate banana trees and the existing trees were destroyed in large numbers. In German East
Africa a heavy tax was imposed upon the transportation of goods
by wagon or pack animal. By thus placing the carrier at a disadvantage, it was hoped to force him to seek employment in agriculture.
The importation of contract labor has been resorted to in many
countries. China and India have been the principal sources for
this kind of labor. Laborers have been sent from India to English and French colonies ever since the abolition of slavery. East
Indians have also been sent into parts of Africa. The system
has proved advantageous to the colonies and the contract employees have carried back to their native countries large sums
of money. In the year 1900 it is said that laborers returning
to India from British Guiana carried with them a hundred and
fifty thousand rupees. The recruiting of Indian coolies is conducted under the supervision of the government of India. Emigration is permitted from the ports of Calcutta, Madras, Bombay, and such others as may be specifically designated, to certain
designated and authorized colonies which are required to have
immigration agents to act as protectors of the laborers and generally look after their interests. It is claimed that under this
legislation the laborers have been well cared for, but the system
is not regarded as an unqualified success.
The exportation of Chinese coolies is by treaty made subject
to the supervision of consular officials at the various ports of
China and the colonies are required to provide a protective service for the Chinese. It has been applied chiefly in the Straits
Settlements, in Sumatra, British Guiana and South Africa. The
Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States have through




THE LABOR PROBLEM


257


this means been rapidly developed. The government there has
established a very interesting method of dealing with the imported laborers, a sort of protectorate, the protector being an individual through whom the government deals in all matters referring to the Chinese laborers. The attempt to introduce Chinese
contract labor into the Transvaal States invoked great opposition
from a section of the British public and after the system had been
tried for a short time it was abandoned. It can not of course
be applied in countries in which there exists already a high class
of intelligent laborers. "In general," says Reinsch,6 "it may be
said that though the administrative control of imported contract labor in the British colonies has been very careful and efficient, the system has a number of very great defects. The importation of coolies constitutes a serious discouragement to the
immigration of free labor. It is therefore inadvisable in countries which can be peopled by European working men, as it is impossible for the latter to compete with the cheap Oriental labor
supply, and they are consequently kept from the regions invaded
by it. The moral effects of the system, too, are undesirable.... The system has therefore not always been found economically profitable. Nevertheless, its temporary use will in
certain cases be advisable in colonies with very large natural resources which the native population can not be induced to develop. It is, however, not a system that commends itself as a
normal and final method of solving the labor question in the
tropics, and it certainly calls for the strictest safeguards for the
protection both of the contract laborers and the local native population."
White labor will never be used to any great extent in the Philippines, and conditions are such that were the country under the
control of any of the colonizing powers other than the United
States, the system would undoubtedly be as applicable there as
in Netherlands Indies or South Africa. At present the importation of contract labor is forbidden by the Act of Congress, and
6 Colonial Administration, p. 374.




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THE PHILIPPINES


even if that law were repealed or modified it is very doubtful
whether it would be wise to introduce it even in a modified form.
In fact, the very reverse of the system is now in operation in
the Philippines where laborers are being recruited under government supervision for service under contracts in Hawaii.
Many countries, in order to preserve their own labor supply,
have forbidden the exportation of laborers except under very
special conditions. In the Congo Free State and the French
colonies of West Africa the recruiting of native laborers requires
a special permit from the government and if they are to be exported from the colony the license is temporary only. In the
Ivory Coast colony a tax of twenty-five francs a head is levied
upon each laborer exported and in the French Congo the government imposes a passport tax of one hundred francs a head. In the
British African colonies no native laborer can be engaged for
service out of the British Dominions without the express consent
of a designated government official.
For a time no restrictions were imposed upon the exportation
of contract laborers from the Philippines, the government proceeding on the theory that the men were free to go and return
at their pleasure. It is claimed that a term of voluntary service
in Hawaii, under the strict supervision and discipline imposed
by the contract system, will train the laborers in habits of work
and upon their return to the Philippines at the termination of
their period of contract service the training will be of service in
the local field. Whether this will be the result is more than doubtful. There is no reason to believe that the privilege of enlisting
laborers in the Philippines has been abused to any considerable
extent. After the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Association had sent
more than nineteen thousand persons to the Hawaiian Island the
legislature decided to discourage the system and imposed an annual tax of three thousand dollars on every person engaged in
recruiting laborers for service abroad and in addition a tax of
two hundred and fifty dollars on each province in which such
person operates.7
7 Act No. 2486, February 5, 1915.




THE LABOR PROBLEM


259


The reader will understand that the labor problem as understood in the Far East relates primarily to the common workmen
-the taos and the class known in China as coolies. Those of a
little higher position in life, house servants and office employees,
are reasonably efficient and require no special consideration. The
common workmen under consideration range from those of considerable intelligence employed on plantations, to the ignorant
mountain people who are brought down to the lowlands for
temporary work during the harvest season; also, the men employed on public works, including railway construction, and those
employed in various capacities by street railway and other public
franchise concerns.
The Filipino is not normally a hard-working person, and yet he
has been much maligned. Like many persons of wider experience
and judgment, he will work only when he must or when he can
see that it is clearly to his advantage. He knows nothing of the
restlessness which keeps the American active for the sake of the
activity. In India the natives say that "only the devils and the
Englishmen walk to and fro without reason," and I presume the
same thought has entered the minds of some of the natives of
the Philippines.
Experience has already shown that when properly handled and
fairly treated the Filipino will work very well. However, the
rough and ready methods of the American foreman with his gang
of European laborers will not do. When illy treated or bullied,
the Filipino quits. He knows that he really does not have to work
very hard. Nature has provided him and his family with the
real necessities of life and he feels that he works for the luxuries only and that they are not indispensable to him. In a land
where it is always summer, where no clothing in particular is
necessary, where a few banana and cocoanut trees which grow by
nature will support a family, the native easily accepts the orthodox doctrine that labor is a curse imposed upon men for their
sins. Humboldt, when traveling in South America, found the
opinion prevalent that the people there would not amount to anything until all the banana trees were destroyed. This was merely




260


THE PHILIPPINES


a graphic way of stating that where the means of subsistence
is too easy, it is almost useless to expect much energy from the
people.
Under such conditions, it requires other arguments than that
of necessity to induce the dweller in the tropics to engage in hard
and strenuous labor. If his scale of expenditure is established
at two dollars a week and he has employment at fifty cents a day
he can see no good reason why he should not stop work on Thursday evening and begin again Monday morning.
The Filipino laborer must be treated gently and taught the art
of working. Like most problems in the Philippines, this is merely
one of education and training. He must be treated kindly and
patiently and due allowance must be made for his physical weakness, his ignorance and his racial characteristics. When properly
treated, he in time becomes a good laborer of moderate efficiency,
earning fully the wages paid him. The broad statement so frequently heard that the Filipino is lazy and will not work is unjust, and has already been refuted by experience. In Manila a
modem electric railway was constructed and is being successfully
operated by Filipino labor under the direction of white superintendents. Under the same kind of direction Filipino laborers
have built the commercial railways, harbors, docks, lighthouses,
bridges and highways. Much has been done within the past few
years by Filipino labor and it is confidently asserted that no business enterprise need fail for lack of labor if the employers use
a little common sense and patience in the beginning and handle
their employees intelligently and carefully. One of the largest
employers of labor in the Philippines recently said:
"We have completed for the various branches of the insular
government during the period intervening between 1901 and 1911
many contracts, varied in character, all of which we have accomplished with Filipino labor under intelligent American supervision. Never at any time since we have been in the Islands have
we had quite such satisfactory results from Filipino labor as at
the present time, due unquestionably to the fact that the natives
who are now serving us best, and giving good account of themselves, have been going to school with us for the last ten years."




THE LABOR PROBLEM


261


While not yet the equal of the Chinese or Japanese, as he lacks
the strong physical and mental fiber of either, the Filipino is as
a laborer the equal of the Javanese and the superior of any other
of the Malay races.
The Moros and mountain people are required to work on the
roads and trails for a fixed number of days each year. No other
kind of forced labor is required.8 There is a strong sentiment
among both Filipino and American employers of labor in favor
of legislation which will compel the laborers to perform contracts
8 Some form of forced labor, particularly for the public, has existed in all
countries. Solomon builded with the bond service of his people. In the seventeenth century every English parish was bound to repair the highways
which passed through it, and the peasantry were forced to give their gratuitous labor therefore. A Scotch law to a similar effect was passed in 1719, and
corvee (assistance compulsorily rendered) is still used in France for the
maintenance of rural roads and in Egypt, for the care of the canals. It is a
form of taxation. Cromer, Modern Egypt II, p. 407. The best known application of the claim that it is proper to make a man work for his own good
and that of his employer and the country generally, was by the Dutch in Java
during the middle part of the last century. The famous culture system pulled
the country out of a financial slough, cleared up the land, built highways, and
put much money into the pockets of-the Dutch. The Spanish government
established the system of forced culture in the Philippines in 1780. It was
at first applied to tobacco, indigo, and silk, but was finally restricted to tobacco. The natives were forced under penalty of severe punishment to grow
tobacco and deliver it to the government at an arbitrary and inadequate price.
As in Java, it resulted in the abuse of the natives, the discouragement of private enterprise, and such a deterioration in the quality of the product that
much of it was unsalable at any price. The people of the rich Cagayan valley
were reduced to misery, and in the end the system proved an economic as
well as a social failure. It was based on selfishness alone. It ignored the
human element, and sacrificed ruthlessly the permanent interests of the people and country for present financial gain. Elliott, The Philippines: To the
End of the Military Rigime, pp. 264, 265.
Nevertheless, it may be contended with reason that while it may be contrary to the abstract theory of a man's natural right to loaf, it is for the good
of society and the laborer that he be forced to do his share. Vagabondage is
a disease in the body politic, and drones, whether white or black, should not
be tolerated. Labor is the basis of all advanced civilization; its absence, the
sign of backwardness or decadence. Only by forcing in the thin edge of the
wedge can the way to a higher civilization be opened. The most valuable
service you can render an undeveloped people is to force them as children
are forced and by similar means to meet the requirements of the next stage of
their growth. But this argument does not appeal to the conscience of the
modern world. Those who have no compunction about forcing up industry
at home raise a great cry when a hand is raised to compel the languid natives
of some distant colony to perform their fair share of the world's work. The
reason is not far to see. While the theory is sound, it is necessarily applied in
the colonies under conditions which present temptations for abuse, which experience shows that men removed from the restraints which ordinarily surround them, and free from the control of public opinion, are not able to resist.




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THE PHILIPPINES


voluntarily entered into. An act was passed by the legislative
council of the Moro Province which imposed a penalty for the
violation of a labor contract and it was approved by the commission as an experimental project.
Under American law the courts can not compel the specific
performance of a labor contract or imprison one for a breach of
such a contract. Nevertheless, regulations which might not be
considered necessary or even constitutional in the United States
may, with perfect propriety and fairness, be provided and enforced where peculiar conditions exist, without depriving
any one of his constitutional rights. The recognition of
the binding obligation of a contract is not inconsistent with
individual liberty. Whenever the laborer is permitted freely to
choose his employer and contract with reference to wages, time
of service and kind of work to be performed, the state may properly attach a reasonable penalty of some sort for a breach of the
contract. Nor need the penalty be the same in all countries or
applicable equally to all sorts of people. A thousand Igorot
workmen brought down from the mountains and employed in
the construction of a railroad require different regulations and
rules than an equal number of workmen of an entirely different
class.
In western countries it has long been settled that the only penalty which can be imposed for a breach of a civil contract is
civil liability for damages. In nearly all cases this is an inadequate remedy from the standpoint of the employer, as the laborer
is unable to respond in damages. To the laborer who is discharged in violation of his contract of employment, his remedy
in damages is generally adequate, as a judgment against the employer can usually be collected. Some states of the Union make
it a crime punishable by a fine and imprisonment for an employer
to fail, without cause, to pay wages due laborers; and in one state
it is now a criminal offense for a contractor to fail to pay for
material purchased and used in a building. These laws show the
tendency to break away from the old rule which limits the remedy
for breach of contract to civil damages.




THE LABOR PROBLEM


263


In the United States this rule works fairly well because there
is a developed moral sense in the better class of workmen which
prevents them from wantonly breaking their contracts. Economic conditions also make it inadvisable for a workman so to
conduct himself as to render it difficult to obtain new employment. But in the tropics the ordinary laboring man has not developed that sense which will make him keep his contracts and
he does not feel any compelling necessity for continuous labor.
Employment sufficient to enable him to gain the minimum necessary to sustain existence is always at hand. Under such conditions the employer's remedy in damages for a breach of the contract is farcical and the employers have demanded protection
by some sort of penal sanction. In nearly all tropical colonies
they have obtained legislation which provides that if a laborer
fails to perform his part of a contract or performs it in a careless or inefficient manner, he may be punished as for the commission of a misdemeanor or crime.
The pernicious custom of advances prevails in the Philippines
as in nearly every eastern country. It is as old as the original
native organizations. The Dutch found it in Java and still maintain it in a modified way. There, as in almost all eastern colonies
other than the Philippines, so long as the native laborer is in debt
to the employer, he can not break his contract and depart without
subjecting himself to liability for imprisonment. When local
conditions are taken into consideration, the system seems on the
surface to be fair and reasonable, but in practise it has resulted in
a kind of bondage little better than slavery. The workman is
never permitted to get out of debt, the employer being diligent to
see that as one debt is paid another is incurred. However, it is
almost impossible to secure laborers on the plantations without
advancing a sum of money at the time of the employment.
The custom is a bad one, but it is so well established that it is
almost hopeless to attempt to destroy it. It is as prevalent in the
Philippines as in Java. The unregulated workman who can
always secure work from some labor-starved planter, regards




264


THE PHILIPPINES


these advances as heaven-sent contributions to the worthy to be
gathered as frequently as possible. The penalty of a judgment in
civil damages does not seem very terrifying to him, so he makes a
contract to labor for a definite period, receives his advance of
five or ten pesos, and at the first convenient time disappears, to
repeat the safe and profitable transaction on a neighboring hacienda. The planters employ all applicants, regardless of their
shady contractual history. Inevitably in a country where such
customs prevail and the laborers are unorganized the conditions
are very unsatisfactory.
It is apparent that some method ought to be devised by which
either such advances should be forbidden or persons receiving
them punished effectually for failure to perform the contract
or return the money advanced.
Where the mere breach of the contract is made a penal offense,
the question of intention does not enter into the matter. The
punishment is imposed for the breach of the contract, regardless
of the intention at the time the contract was made.
There is no reason why a Filipino laborer should be exempt
from liability for his fraudulent acts. Obtaining money under
false pretenses is a crime in all countries. The situation would
be very much improved by the enactment and enforcement of a
law making it a crime to secure an advance on a labor contract
with the intention not to render the service. The Supreme Court
of the United States held9 that a statute which made the refusal
to perform a labor contract or return the money advanced prima
facie evidence of intent to defraud was in violation of the Thirteenth Amendment and the Acts of Congress authorized thereby,
and therefore unconstitutional, because the natural and inevitable
effect of the particular statute was to expose to conviction for
crime those who simply fail or refuse to perform contracts for
personal service. It was held that the statutory presumption established by the statute would operate to subject the accused to
punishment for conduct which the legislature was powerless to
make a crime.
9 Bailey vs. Alabama, 219 U. S. 219.




THE LABOR PROBLEM


265


This decision does not prevent a legislature from providing
for the punishment of a person who obtains an advance of money
upon an agreement to render services with the intention then
entertained of not rendering the services, leaving the fact of
intent to be established by competent evidence. The obtaining
of money in this manner clearly comes within the definition of
the ordinary crime of obtaining money under false pretenses.
The debt is merged in the crime, and imprisonment for the crime
of obtaining money by inducing the employer to consent to the
creation of the debt is no more imprisonment for debt than where
one is imprisoned for obtaining money on a forged check. In
1911 the Philippine Legislature passed such a statute, but it was
repealed after the Harrison administration came into power,
evidently because it was not understood.
The Philippine government should provide for the punishment
criminally of any one who with fraudulent intent then had, secures an advance of money as wages on a labor contract, or as a
gift by way of inducement to enter into the contract, and breaks
such contract without restoring the money thus received. The
intent to defraud would be deducible from the circumstances,
and the court should take the previous conduct of the offender
into consideration in reaching a conclusion. It would not be possible under such a law to secure convictions in all cases, but it
would reach the most flagrant cases, and exercise a general restraining effect.
There should also be legislation regulating the manner of entering into labor contracts, and determining the rights and duties
of parties thereunder. The form of the contract should be prescribed by law, and it should be executed before some public official, and a copy recorded with the Bureau of Labor. The contract should be in writing, and determine the number of hours'
work per day, the wages, pay for overtime work, place where the
labor is to be performed, and possibly other such matters. The
employer should be required to furnish proper food, medicines
and medical attendance in case of serious illness of laborers. A




266


THE PHILIPPINES


register of laborers should be kept by every employer and changes
therein reported to the Bureau of Labor.'0
The Bureau of Labor, which was established in 1909, is required to see that laws relating to labor are enforced and generally look after the interests of working men. It is doing good
work in collecting data relating to labor conditions, and particularly in adjusting controversies between employers and employees and in colonizing laborers from congested districts in
other islands and communities where they are badly needed."
Liberal appropriations have been made to aid this work.
The attempt to unionize labor has not been very successful. In
the beginning it was in the hands of agitators who were not laborers, but they seem to have been eliminated and certain trades
and employments are now fairly well organized.
Wages have greatly increased during recent years. The prevailing rate for common labor is from forty to fifty cents gold per
day as against about eight cents gold and a small ration of rice
worth three or four cents during Spanish times. House servants
then received from one dollar and fifty cents to two dollars per
month. They now receive from eight to fifteen dollars per month.
Skilled labor is much better paid.'2 The cost of living has greatly
increased, but the Filipino laboring man was never so well off as
at present.13
10 It is possible that some of these matters are covered by recent legislation.
" Adm. Code of 1916, Secs. 1272-1275.
12 The wages paid by the Manila Electric Railroad and Lighting Corporation, and by its predecessor prior to 1901, appear by the following table:
Former Present
rate.  rate.
Conductors...........................................per month  $8.00  $25.00
Front platform men........................................  do  6.60  25.00
Inspectors.....................................................  do  9.00  30.60
Cleaners and assistant cleaners................................  do  3.00  13.75
Ordinary  laborers..................................................per day.20.50
Hearing Senate Committee, 1915, p. 600. Testimony of Charles M. Swift.
Other such corporations pay about the same wages.
13 In my report as secretary of commerce and police for 1911, it was said:
"The information at hand, however, indicates that a statement to the
effect that wages paid to-day for the following classes of labor average
throughout the islands 100 per cent. more than those paid prior to 1898 is




THE LABOR PROBLEM                                267
justified: Masons, boatmen, copra workers, caulkers, overseers, carriers, carpenters, teamsters, slipper makers, cigar makers, drivers, cooks, seamstresses,
saltmakers, blacksmiths, farm hands, gatherers of firewood, master carpenters,
seamen, nipa workers, day laborers, fishermen, tailor>, hatmakers, shoe
makers.
"During the same time there has been a considerable rise in the prices
of the necessities of life, but so far as ttl i:n-rease affects Filipino laborers
it is not at all proportionate to the increased wage paid. The Filipino laborer
to-day is better treated by his employers, receives more pay, lives better, and
is more contented than he ever was under Spanish rule. It is also true that
after thirteen years of contact with Americans he works better and is worthy
of the increased pay."




CHAPTER XII


The Policy 6f liaterial Development
A Land of "Projects"-Spanish Public Works-Backwardness of Industry
and Agriculture-Misdirected Energies-Public Works and Colonial Policy
-Material Development and Educational Work-Governor-General Wright's
Announcement-Policy Inaugurated by Governor-General Smith-Its Characteristics-"Hustling the East" with Its Own Consent-Education of the
People-Success of the Policy.
In one of his political novels Rizal satirizes that combination
of personal ambition, weakness of will and general impracticability, of which there are so many illustrations in Philippine
history. The worthy Don Custodio had held many offices, and
the records of the things which he hoped would keep his memory green had been preserved with the care characteristic of
Spanish officialdom.
Taking from an old desk a formidable bundle of note-books, the
first of which, fat, inflated and plethoric, bore the title "Projects
in Project," he murmured, "No, there are excellent things there,
but it would take a year to read them over." The second book,
also voluminous, was entitled, "Projects in Course of Study."
"Not that, either." Then came "Projects in Maturity," "Projects Presented," "Projects Rejected," "Projects Approved" and
"Projects Suspended." These contained very little, but the last
book of all, entitled "Projects Being Carried Out," contained the
very least.
Alas, there were no records of "Projects Completed."
Rizal understood the character of his countrymen and the
genius of the government under which they lived. While appreciating their virtues and potential powers, he had no illusions as
to their weaknesses and limitations. They were, by nature's
decree, citizens of the land of maiana, and their Spanish rulers
were, of all Europeans, the people least qualified to cultivate in
268




THE POLICY OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 269


them the qualities necessary for utilizing the natural resources of
a country. Initiative, energy, persistence-all were wanting in
Spaniards and Filipinos. The ambition of occasional individuals
flickered and died amidst uncongenial surroundings, exhausted
itself in the organization of societies with high-sounding names,
or in preparing, docketing and filing elaborate "projects."
The Spanish government constructed a few good public works
in the Philippines. They built some substantial roads, and then
permitted them to decay. They never grasped the fact that, in
the tropics particularly, maintenance is more important, although
possibly less interesting, than construction. Hence their highways
soon washed away and their ornate bridges became picturesque
ruins. Some of their lighthouses were well constructed and
equipped, but they were insufficient in number and the labyrinthine coasts were never properly lighted. The west coast was fairly
well charted, and a skipper who was aware of the fact that the
entire group of islands was some forty miles out of reckoning
could find his way about with reasonable safety. Nevertheless,
in Spanish times every marine insurance policy contained a clause
suspending its operation while the insured vessel was in Philippine waters.
The means of transportation and communication were painfully inadequate. There were few roads worthy of the name and
during the rainy months, from June to October, travel of any
kind was almost impossible. There were no harbors, merely open
roadways and short rivers guarded by shifting sandbars. Conmunication between the islands was uncertain, expensive and
often dangerous. The inter-island transportation system, controlled by the exporting mercantile houses of Manila, was inadequate and also an instrument of graft and extortion. There was
one railroad which extended from Manila to Dagupan, over
which diminutive asthmatic engines leisurely and at irregular
intervals dragged most remarkable trains. The postal and telegraph systems also were leisurely affairs.
Of manufacturing there was very little; of mining even less.
It was an agricultural country. The chief products were hemp,




270


THE PHILIPPINES


sugar and tobacco, the production of all of which was capable of
almost indefinite extension. Agriculture was carried on in a
primitive and wasteful manner without proper machinery or
tools and the output, when compared with the possibilities, was
insignificant.
The people had not been trained to meet new conditions.
When the synthetic indigo of Germany rendered the indigo industry of the Ilocos provinces unprofitable the people were helpless. The insects which destroyed the rich coffee fields of Batangas met with no opposition. It was the will of God! Instead of
the energy, skill and scientific knowledge which were required to
cope with such economic calamities, there were general ignorance
and shiftlessness.
The result was that the country, endowed by nature with great
natural wealth and possessing almost boundless possibilities of development, remained in a primitive condition. The mass of the
people, when measured by any modern standard, were miserably
poor in the midst of natural abundance, while the government
was a financial burden on the home country.
During the latter years of the Spanish regime the energies of
the new native leaders and most of the intelligent people were
directed to political ends. Then came war and the destruction of
much of the wealth of the country. The Americans thus took
charge of an unhappy land inhabited by a people who had never
shown much initiative or any great ambition for wealth, and who
were untrained in modern industrial methods. Their minds were
seething with political ideas and ambitions. They had no Franklin to teach the lesson that it is as hard for an individual or a nation with empty pockets to be truly independent as for an empty
bag to stand alone.
It is only within recent years that the construction of public
works has come to be recognized as one of the duties of colonial
administration. As late as 1830 Sir Charles Metcalfe, a very enlightened Indian statesman, maintained that India needed no
roads. Prior to the time of Lord Dalhousie the East India Company did not regard the building of public works as a necessary




THE POLICY OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 271


part of its policy. According to Sir George Chesney, "the construction of a road or canal was regarded by them, in their
earlier days, much in the same light that a war would be,-as an
unavoidable evil, to be undertaken only when it could not be
postponed any longer, and not, if possible, to be repeated."
But during the last decade of the East India Company's government a policy of public improvements was entered upon. Lord
Dalhousie inaugurated the railway system, the great Ganges
Canal was opened in 1854, and in certain provinces many metaled
roads and other public works of a permanent character were
built.l
It came to be the accepted theory among colonizing people that
a colony should be made materially prosperous before much attention was given to educating the people and preparing them for a
part in the government. But the conditions under which America
entered the Philippines seemed to require that stress should be
placed on education, and a shipload of school-teachers preceded
the railway material and the new agricultural machinery. Nevertheless, it was always clearly understood by the Americans that
nothing very substantial, other than the establishment of order
and justice, could be accomplished, until the country was made
economically prosperous and the common people were relieved
from the poverty in which they lived. Under such conditions, the
individualistic theories which prevailed in the United States were
inapplicable. The country was in the stage described by John
Stuart Mill, when there "is scarcely anything really important to
the general interest which it may not be desirable or even necessary that the government should take upon itself, not because
private individuals can not effectually perform it. but because
they will not."2
Strachey, India, Its Administration and Progress, p. 233.
2 "At some times and places there will be no roads, docks, harbors, canals,
works of irrigation, hospitals, schools, colleges, printing presses, unless the
government establishes them; the public being either too poor to command
the necessary resources or too little advanced in intelligence to appreciate the
need, or not sufficiently practised in conjoint action to be capable of the
means. This is true, more or less, of all countries inured to despotism, and
Particularly of those in which there is a wide distance in civilization between
the people and the Government, as in those which have been conquered and




272                 THE    PHILIPPINES
During Mr. Taft's administration the commission was busy
establishing order, organizing a government and enacting legislation rendered necessary by the change of sovereignty. Important public works were projected and commenced during that
period, but no definite plan for the systematic development of the
natural resources of the country was worked out and adopted.
Governor-General Wright, in his inaugural address struck a
new note when he announced that the preliminary work of clearing the ground had been completed and that henceforth the development of the natural resources of the islands would be the
first care of the government. "I do not," he said, "underestimate
the value of schools and other agencies of modern civilization
which lead the masses of the people to higher levels of thinking;
but to my mind, so far as concerns these people, nothing is of so
much moment to them as railroads."
Unfortunately during his administration there was a recrudescence of insurrection.  The institution of the assembly with
the attendant elections kept political issues uppermost in the
minds of the people, and the policy of internal improvement was
left to be formulated and inaugurated by Governor-General
Smith and carried into effect with great vigor during the first
years of the administration of Governor-General Forbes.
This policy was not designed to displace the educational work
which had been so much in the foreground. It did, however, aim
to subordinate it for a time to matters which were deemed of even
greater immediate importance.3 The appropriations for educational work were not to be reduced, but those for public works
were to be increased even though it meant an increase of taxation.
In his inaugural address Mr. Forbes said: "The resources of
are retained in subjection by a more energetic and more cultivated people."
Mill, Principles of Political Economy, II, p. 551.
3 On June 22, 1906, Mr. Taft, then secretary of war, wrote to Secretary
of State Root: "Your familiarity with conditions in the Philippines makes
you aware that no real prosperity can come to the islands, and no real improvement in the welfare and education and uplifting of the people unless
the means of intercommunication between the islands and between various
towns in each island shall be greatly increased." MSS. War Department.




THE POLICY OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 273


the islands have not developed to a point where I feel that we are
justified in largely increasing the appropriation for education.... The amount of education we shall be able to accomplish
in ten years will be very much greater if we devote our first
money to increasing the wealth of the people and later use the
resulting increase of revenue for extending our educational facilities."
It must be conceded that there was at that time no general
native sentiment in favor of such a policy. It required an amount
of energy and sacrifice of which the Filipinos were incapable
except under the pressure of extraneous forces. The manner in
which the policy was launched and carried forward illustrates
the principles which controlled the McKinley, Roosevelt and Taft
administrations. The intention was to "hustle the East" within
reasonable limits, but to do it with the least possible friction and
injury to native sensibilities. Their wishes and desires were to
receive due consideration, but the final determination of what
was for their best interests was to rest with the American government. It was the adoption in essence of the well-understood
British colonial policy expressed by Lord Cromer in the words:
"We need not always inquire too closely into what these people,
who are all nationally speaking in statu pupillari, themselves
think best for their own interests, although this is a point which
deserves serious consideration. It is essential that each special
issue should be decided mainly with reference to what by the
light of western knowledge and experience, tempered by local
considerations, we conscientiously think it best for the subject
race."4
It was upon such a theory only that the existence of an American government in the Philippines could be justified. If the
Filipinos were competent to determine such questions they were
entitled to manage their own affairs. The Harrison administration by conceding such capacity destroyed the reason for its
own existence. One of the new commissioners sent out by President Wilson, in a formal address delivered soon after his arrival,
4 Cromer's Political and Literary Essays, p. 12.




274


THE PHILIPPINES


asked: "Why should we insist upon hustling the East against
its will and at its expense if the East itself wishes to lie placid
murmuring 'maiana'?" He found no reason satisfactory to him
and therefore announced that: "In whatever part I have to play
in the administration of the affairs of this people I purpose to
consult their wishes to the utmost extent and to spend none of
their money in any way which they are not willing to vote that
it should be spent."5 His presence in the Orient seemed thereafter superfluous. The Taft government did intend to "hustle"
the Filipinos to a reasonable extent, but it made the task very
difficult by the early grant of important political powers to the
natives.
The people were not being heavily taxed under the American
government and it was believed that a reasonable increase would
be borne cheerfully if it was known that the money would be
honestly expended for good roads and other public works which
in time would return the money, increased many fold, into the
pockets of the taxpayers.
It was thought that increased production and higher prices
which would result from better harbors, transportation facilities
and means of communication would soon pay for the improvements. The proceeds of increased taxation expended for such
purposes would enhance the value of the taxable property, the exports, the imports, and increase the consuming power of the people. With peace, order and civil liberty, all this would mean a
prosperous and contented, instead of an unprosperous and discontented, community.
It was determined, therefore, that every dollar that could be
saved, after paying the current expenses of the government
and making liberal appropriations for education and health,
should be devoted to the construction of harbors, lighthouses,
roads, bridges, markets and other public works of a remunerative
character. Congress had authorized a limited issue of insular
and municipal bonds, but most of the proceeds of the bonds had
5 "Democracy's Mission in the Philippines," an address by Winfred T.
Denison, Secretary of the Interior, El Ideal, March 30, 1914.




THE POLICY OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 275


been expended for such special projects as the harbor, waterworks and sewer system of Manila. These enterprises were
purely American in their origin and execution and, except in the
most general sense, were not a part of a systematic plan such
as was now contemplated. But no more insular bonds could
be issued and Congress continued unresponsive to the appeals of
the commission for authority for further issues. As Congress
refused to appropriate any money for the support of the Philippine government, the education of its new wards, or the development of the country, it was necessary to rely on the income from
current taxation.
After the institution of the assembly in 1907 appropriations
for public works in other than the non-Christian provinces required the consent of the Filipino representatives and it was to
be inferred that their native constituents would be no more enamored of increased taxes than the citizens of more mature political
communities. A campaign of education was therefore inaugurated and everywhere throughout the islands the governor-general and commissioners told the people of the prosperity which
would come to them from good roads and other such public improvements. The members of the American business community
were enthusiastically in favor of a policy which meant better
business and promised the prosperity which seemed to have been
unduly deferred. Filipino political leaders accepted it with misgivings because any great material development involved the introduction of foreign capital, which they were quick to see would
prejudice the policy of early independence.6 But the gospel of
good roads, bridges, markets, artesian wells and the like appealed
to the common people and the delegates to the assembly soon discovered that their popularity with their constituents was in exact
proportion to the amount of public money they could induce the
secretary of commerce and police to allot for expenditure within
their respective districts. Thereafter there was no trouble in
6 After the Harrison administration came into power in 1913 all franchises
were granted on condition that the grantees would not obstruct the "policy
of the government" and the "aspirations of the Filipino people" with reference to independence. See Act No. 2384.




276


THE PHILIPPINES


securing appropriations; the difficulty was in finding the money
to appropriate.
Governor-General Forbes, who, as secretary of commerce and
police, had been an earnest advocate of public works, had many of
the characteristics necessary for the head of an administration
charged with the execution of such a policy, and the degree of
success which attended it was due very largely to his initiative
and energy. He had some capacity for constructive work and
a strong desire to build up the Philippines, but many of his
projects were as fanciful as those of Don Custodio, and in the
excess of his zeal he led the government into financial troubles
from which it has been with difficulty extricated.
There was some justification for the charge of extravagance
in the expenditure of money for public works. Some of the
projects were unwise and there were defects in the administrative
system which made its operation unnecessarily expensive.
Nevertheless, the public works constructed in the Philippines
during the latter years of the Taft regime are a monument to the
enterprise and skill of the American government and the capacity
of the Filipinos to appreciate new conditions and their willingness
to furnish the money necessary for modern improvements.
Really remarkable results were achieved without the imposition of any serious financial burdens upon the people. The proceeds of the five-million-dollar bond issue were practically all expended prior to the year 1908 on special projects, and thereafter
all public works were paid for out of the current income of the
government derived from customs duties, internal revenue and
other special taxes. Approximately ten per cent. of the total
receipts was saved and invested in public works of a permanent
and often of a highly productive nature. The following table
shows approximately the total expenditures of the government
of the Philippines during the decade following the year 1905 and
the portion thereof devoted to permanent public works.7
7 Hearings Before Senate Committee on Philippines, p. 168 (1915).




THE POLICY OF MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT 277


Public Works
Plic W s  For All Other     T
and                          Total.
Improvements.       poses
June 30 -1905.....................  P3,124,298.64  P18,800,670.08  P21,924,968.72
1906.....................    213,716.42   17,642,986.27  17,856,702.69
1907.....................   272,294.20    18,516,539.58  18,788,833.78
1908.....................   1,059,511.56   21,880,059.73  22,939,571.29
1909.....................   3,998,132.75   20,052,979.38  24,051,112.13
1910.....................  2,811,524.32   21,139,642.73  23,951,167.05
1911.....................  5,799,154.31   22,209,042.91  28,008,197.22
1912.....................   2,687,768.76   28,352,049.10  31,039,817.86
1913.....................   3,296,852.34   26,193,549.66  29,490,402.00
1914.....................   1,222,587.98   27,656,842.10  28,879,430.08
Total................ P24,485,841.28  P222,444,361.54  P246,930,202.82
Reduced to U. S. money..   $12,242,920.64  $111,222,180.77  $123,465,101.41


It should be noted that this money belonged to the Filipinos,
was appropriated by them and was expended with their consent,
in most instances, for things for which Oriental people have been
supposed not greatly to care.
This policy of material development included much more than
the building of public works. The markets of the world were
waiting for the timber, the sugar, the copra and particularly for
the kind of hemp that grows only in the Philippines. Of the
one hundred million acres of arable land, less than ten per cent.
was productive. The soil was to be awakened from its sleep of
centuries. The cultivation of more land, the cadastral survey
necessary to enable titles to be registered, the creation of an agricultural bank from which the small farmers could borrow money
at reasonable rates with which to purchase the work animals necessary for cultivating more land, the control of waters and the
irrigation of waste land, the opening of mines, the search for the
much-needed coal, the teaching of scientific agriculture and the
use of modem farm machinery, the establishment of a postal
savings-bank, the introduction of foreign capital, the organization of industry on modern lines, the construction of suitable
public buildings, hospitals and markets, water-works and sewers
necessary for the protection of the public health and comfort, and




278


THE PHILIPPINES


the highways and other appliances for communication by post and
wire and the transportation of persons and products-all were
but the means to an end, the relief of the people of the country
from the bondage of poverty in order that they might have a fair
opportunity to develop into an independent, self-respecting and
self-supporting community.
Sewer systems, water-works and artesian wells are designed
primarily to preserve health and administer to the comfort and
convenience of existence. But they are also intimately connected
with the economic and commercial development of a country,
as it is useless to expect an anemic race, subject to constant attacks of cholera, malaria, plague and other dire diseases, to perform much hard physical labor. The parks, public gardens,
boulevards and playgrounds of Manila and the new city of
Baguio, where the cool and invigorating mountains breezes could
be enjoyed, were all agencies for preserving the general health
and generating the physical strength which the native people so
badly needed.




CHAPTER XIII


Transportation and Communication
I
ROADS AND BRIDGES
Primitive Transportation Methods-Road-Building Difficulties-Early Failures-No Provision for Maintenance-Bad Legislation-Forced Labor and
Toll Roads-Failure of People to Adopt Laws-The Double Cedula Law
of 1907-Inducements to Adopt Rules and Regulations-Insular Appropriations-Conditions-The Road Committee-Classification of Roads-Apportionment of Insular Appropriations by Secretary of Commerce and Police-Encouragement of Local Efforts-Construction of Permanent Bridges
-Maintenance-The Caminero System-Pride in Good Roads-Road Material-Cost-Road Work in the Non-Christian Provinces-In the Moro Province-Permanency-The Benguet Road-Early Mistakes-Difficulties of Construction-Policy of Government-Purpose of the Road-Its Cost-Practical
Abandonment-Its Justification.
A traveler who visits every part of the Philippine Archipelago
will at some stages of his journey use about every instrumentality
of transportation known to primitive and civilized man. He will
find the ocean steamer, sailboat, railway train, automobile, carriage, carromata, carabao cart, raft, pack animal, cargador, 'rickshaw, sedan chair and hammock in use, and will, if of reasonable weight, ride from boat to dry land astride the neck of a
sturdy native. But the primitive is rapidly making way for the
modern as roads and railways replace the ancient paths and
trails.'
For transportation purposes the ordinary highways and bridges
must always be of primary importance, and the extent and condition of the roads is a fair index of the intelligence and enter1For an interesting account of transportation methods, see an article by
Mr. O. G. Jones in Far Eastern Review, April, 1915.
279




280


THE PHILIPPINES


prise of the people of a community. However, as Americans in
their own country are but just beginning to realize the money
value of good roads, it is not surprising that the Filipinos were
found somewhat indifferent to such matters. But they were, in
this respect, not much behind the average rural community in the
United States and they had much more to contend with in the
way of climate, poverty and tropical lethargy.
The problem of roads has always been one of great difficulty
in all tropical colonies. In temperate climates it is possible to
traverse even a bad road at all times of the year. In the tropics
it is an impossibility, not merely a difficulty. During the rainy
season the bottom of a road simply falls out.
The roads are difficult to construct and more difficult to maintain after they are built. Torrential rains wreck the most scientifically built highways and scatter the bridges over the country.
Slides and washouts are of constant occurrence. A puddle on
the surface soon becomes a sink and in an astonishingly short
time the weak spots in a road become bottomless pits. Vegetation encroaches with marvelous speed and unless constantly attacked soon smothers the road.
Every colonial government has struggled with the road question and each colony can show a few good highways. The Dutch
in Java, the French in Indo-China and elsewhere, and the English
in all their colonies, have built expensive highways, but they are
generally trunk lines without proper feeders penetrating the interior. In the Philippines we have worked out a comprehensive
scheme of road building in which every mile of road built forms
a part of a system which when completed will reach into every
part of the islands.
The work has been rendered more difficult than it would otherwise have been by the self-imposed necessity of securing the cooperation and consent of the natives as a condition precedent to
doing anything. This fact must never be lost sight of when considering what has been accomplished. A central government
such as that of India and Java, with unrestricted control and
ample funds, can easily build highways, railways and other




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 281


public works. The necessity for securing the cooperation of an
uneducated and uninstructed native population adds immeasurably to the difficulties.
The construction work done in the islands prior to 1908 was
sporadic and without system. Roads were built here and there as
required by military considerations or the necessity for providing
work for the inhabitants. Previous to that year insular appropriations were made for specific projects in various parts of the
islands and no conditions were attached whereby the provinces
were required to raise funds on their own account and to maintain the roads. About two million dollars were spent in this
haphazard way.2   The fact that nothing permanent was being
accomplished was fully realized. In his annual report for 1907
Secretary Forbes said that the construction done by the Americans had been allowed to deteriorate until, "with few exceptions,
the condition of the roads throughout the archipelago is lamentable and is growing worse from day to day. What were good
and passable roads three years ago are now quagmires in the
rainy season, and throughout the past year it has become evident
that to avoid a paralysis of industry in many districts a drastic
change of policy is needed in regard to road construction and
maintenance. Failure of the road law brought the commission
face to face with this serious problem..."3
The legislative part of the road work had been sadly muddled.
The commission seems to have left the preparation of the necessary laws to Commissioner Forbes,4 who as secretary of commerce and police was in charge of public works, but Mr. Forbes'
knowledge and experience in legislative matters were in inverse
proportion to his zeal for good roads. Although the importance
of maintenance was fully appreciated, no provision for insuring
it was embodied in the first laws.
2 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1908, Pt. II, p. 341.
3 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1907, Pt. II, p. 276. Governor-General Smith, in his
report as acting secretary of commerce and police for 1908 (Rept. Phil. Corn.,
1908, Pt. II, p. 340) said: "The disastrous effects of this policy are only too
evident in the present condition of most of these roads, many of which have
become impassable for lack of maintenance."
4 See an article on Mr. Forbes' "Remarkable Achievements" in the Boston
Transcript, June 6, 1912.




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THE PHILIPPINES


The proceeds of some special tax such as the export tax on
hemp, might well have been set aside for road work.5 It was
within the power of the commission to make direct appropriations for road construction and maintenance and to place both
under the control of the insular engineers. The provinces might
have been required to appropriate a reasonable amount for the
maintenance of the roads constructed with the proceeds of general taxation. Instead of adopting some such simple and effective
procedure, the commission resorted to the most antiquated and
objectionable of all devices, forced labor and toll roads.6
The original road law7 provided for five days' labor of eight
hours each per year or an optional equivalent cash payment for
such labor, computed at a rate of from twelve and one-half cents
to one dollar per day. This labor or money was to be expended
under the supervision of the municipal president, upon the public
highways, bridges, wharves and trails, within the municipality
where it was collected. But the act was not to be effective in any
province until adopted by a convention of municipal presidents and
councilmen. The law was subsequently amended8 to allow it to be
adopted by single municipalities.9 Not a single province or mu5 An export duty on some special product to raise a fund for road building has often been used by British colonies. See Bruce, The Broad Stone of
Empire, II, Chap. XXII.
The export duty on hemp was repealed by Congress in 1912, out of deference to abstract theory and uninstructed sentiment, and the Philippine government was deprived of five hundred thousand dollars per year without increasing the price received by the hemp producers. The building of a single
good highway into a hemp-producing district would have meant more to the
producers than did the repeal of the law.
6 The expectation that the Filipinos would voluntarily adopt the system of
forced labor suggests an inadequate knowledge of their history and a degree
of confidence hardly justified by its consideration. Of course it failed. As
Governor-General Smith said: "The deep distrust of the labor system is
attributable to many causes, among others the alleged great abuses which
arose out of the system in the latter part of the Spanish regime." (Rept.
Phil. Corn., 1908, Pt. II, p. 343.)
Foreman (The Philippine Islands, p. 218) says: "Every male adult inhabitant, with certain specific exceptions, had to give the State fifteen days'
labor per annum or redeem that labor by payment. Of course thousands of
the needy class preferred to give their fifteen days. This labor and redemption money was only theoretically employed in local improvements."
7 Act No. 1511, July 13, 1906.
8 Act No. 1617, March 20, 1907.
9 Act No. 1653, May 18, 1907.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 283


nicipality adopted the law. The commission also authorized any
province with the approval of the governor-general to declare certain roads toll roads for a period not to exceed five years and to
use the income for the maintenance of the roads. Apparently but
one province availed itself of this privilege. Toll roads were no
more popular in the Philippines than in the United States.10
Finally, in May, 1907, the commission passed what became
known as the Double Cedula Law,'1 on which a successful road
policy was founded. The forced labor system was abandoned.
It was recognized that while the people of the provinces desired
good roads, the longing was not strong enough to induce a voluntary imposition of the necessary financial burden. They preferred to have the insular government build and pay for the highways.
The general policy of the government required that the grant
of local self-government should include the assumption of local
burdens. It was determined, therefore, that the provinces should
bear their fair share of the cost of construction of the roads and
bridges, which would be their property. But the objectionable
local option provision was retained. The new law authorized the
provincial board of any province in its discretion annually to
double the cedula (poll tax), and add the extra sum thus raised
to its road and bridge fund. As an inducement to the boards to
act it was provided that ten per cent. of the total internal revenue receipts should be apportioned according to population and
added to the road funds of the provinces which doubled the
cedula. They were also given an additional five per cent. for
their local school fund.12
Appropriations for specific projects were thereafter to be conditioned on the adoption of the double cedula by the province in
which the money was to be expended.'3 In 1908, in addition to
the ten per cent. of the internal revenue, the legislature appro10Report Director of Public Works. (Report Phil. Corn., 1908, Pt. II,
P. 449.)
1 Act No. 1652, May 18, 1907.
12 Act No. 1695, Aug. 20, 1907.
13 This device, which was commonly called the "bale of hay" (suggested




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THE PHILIPPINES


priated three hundred and fifty thousand dollars for roads and
bridges to be apportioned among the provinces in the discretion
of the secretary of commerce and police. The insular government thus appropriated for roads and bridges for that year the
substantial sum of $1,046,605.11.
In 1909 no appropriations for specific projects were made, but
in addition to the ten per cent. of the internal revenue, seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars was appropriated for roads and
bridges in those provinces which should accept the provisions of
the general law and by resolution of the provincial board, guarantee, by continuing annual appropriations, the establishment on all
first-class roads thereafter constructed of a conservation system
approved by the director of public works. This fund was made
allottable in the discretion of the secretary of commerce and
police.
Secretary Forbes thereupon prepared rules and regulations for
carrying the law into effect, which provided:14
1. The order of importance in road work is maintenance of
existing roads and bridges, repair and reconstruction of existing
structures, and the application of the remaining funds to new
construction.
2. The allotment of funds only to provinces doubling the
cedula, in proportion to the population.
3. The adoption by the provincial board, prior to receiving
the funds, of a prescribed resolution providing that:
(1) The money should be expended on first-class roads selected by the provincial board with the approval of the director
of public works.
(2) Such roads should be maintained under a system of continuing maintenance prescribed by the director, which should include:
(a) The employment during the wet season of at least one
by the old scheme of fastening a bunch of hay permanently a few inches in
front of a lazy mule's nose), was the work of Governor-General Smith.
Without it the law, like its predecessors, would have been a failure.
14 See also a "Letter to the Provincial and Municipal Offices," dated June
16, 1908, Rept. Phil. Corn., 1908, Pt. II, pp. 478-484.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 285


caminero for each kilometer, and during the rest of the year "on
an average" of one caminero for each two kilometers of first-class
road.
(b) The deposit, in prescribed places along each first-class
road, of not less than fifty cubic meters of broken stone for each
kilometer of stone road, and not less than forty cubic meters for
each kilometer of gravel surface road. The receptacles were to
be kept constantly replenished.
(c) The making of a continuing annual appropriation by the
province of one hundred and seventy-five dollars for each kilometer of first-class road.
It was also required that the province should stipulate that
when any section of a first-class road was allowed to deteriorate
it might, after due notice, be taken over by the district engineer
and maintained at the expense of the province.
Soon after the enactment of the double cedula law a road committee was appointed to plan a system of roads for the islands.l5
This committee visited the provinces and, after consultation with
the provincial officials and others, recommended that, with reference to their importance, the highways be classified as insular,
provincial and municipal. The insular roads, which were to be
built by the central government, included the main highways necessary for interprovincial communication to which the provincial
roads were to be feeders. Roads and trails of mere local importance were classified as municipal. It was estimated that the
system could be completed within ten years.
Roads possessing substantial foundations and drainage, a durable and continuous surfacing, and permanent types of bridges and
culverts sufficient to accommodate heavy traffic throughout the
year were to be known as first class.
Those partially surfaced and surfaced roads of such width
and light grade as would permit the passage of light traffic
throughout their entire length were to be known as second class.
Those roads and trails over established routes varying from
15 Of course, for this purpose each island had to be treated as a unit.




286


THE PHILIPPINES


narrow roads passable with difficulty for light traffic to trails
passable only for ponies, were called third class.
By making the general appropriation for roads and bridges
allottable by the secretary of commerce and police, the government was able to adopt and pursue a systematic course of construction, while encouraging and assisting the local authorities
to bear a reasonable part of the financial burden. The system
also secured centralized control with the power to make it effective. Secretary Forbes adopted the plan of apportioning one-half
of the total insular appropriation among the provinces according to population and of allotting the balance to insular roads
and projects and the purchase of road machinery and equipment.
Some of the money was used very effectively for prizes to provinces for the best road work, and to individual camineros for the
best road maintenance. The expenses of administration, such
as the printing of manuals and circular instructions, the purchase
of books and maps, the salaries of special engineers and draftsmen, and the expenses of the road committee, were provided for
out of the same fund.
This policy was adhered to during my administration of the
department, and seems to be still in force, although the legislature, in 1914, made the allotment of the entire appropriation according to population compulsory.16 Under the influence of the
aggressive good roads propaganda all the provinces doubled the
cedula and were able to secure the benefits of the law.17
The new policy resulted in a tremendous improvement in conditions. Already, on June 20, 1908, two hundred and sixty miles
of first-class road were under the system of maintenance prescribed by the law. Very substantial'sums of money were found
for the work. During the fiscal year 1912 there was expended
16 Act No. 2378. The allotment of funds apportioned for the provinces,
organized under the Special Government Act, was left discretionary.
17 In 1910 the unsatisfactory provision which required the provincial
boards to renew their action each year was removed by an act which provided
that the action of the board should stand permanently unless repealed with
the approval of the governor-general. This public-spirited "joker" was carefully hidden in the law and was adopted by the assembly without appreciating
its importance.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 287


for the construction, maintenance and improvement of roads
and bridges, $2,193,523.21, of which $1,003,298.56 were insular
funds, $1,142,900.24 provincial funds, and $47,324.42 municipal
funds. At the close of the fiscal year 1912 there were in the
islands, exclusive of those in Manila and the Moro Province,
1,839.7 kilometers of first-class roads, 2,159.9 of second-class
roads, and 3,216.7 of third-class roads.18 During that and
the succeeding years there was a shortage of money, and it became necessary to stop work on many public projects, but the
road work was kept active by loans from the Gold Standard Fund
to the provinces and municipalities.
Torrential rains, which are so frequent in the country, make
the matter of culverts and bridges of prime importance. Early
in the campaign it was determined that no more money should be
expended on cheap bridge work. Until funds sufficient to build
permanent structures were available, the old temporary bamboo
bridges and rafts must do. The result of this wise policy was
that many of the creeks and rivers are now spanned by reinforced concrete structures of an unsurpassed type which nothing
short of a flood or earthquake can destroy.
The Philippine road policy has been successful. In no part
of the development work have better results been obtained for the
money expended. Since 1908 very little money has been wasted
on roads or bridges.19 The people had to be educated, coerced
and bribed into active cooperation in the work, but they soon
learned to appreciate the value of good roads. The building of
a first-class highway into a region meant easy access to markets
which before had been inaccessible. Products which had rotted
in the fields were transmuted into money. Land values often
doubled. The stupidest countryman could appreciate such elemental facts. The people were very naturally eager for allotments of insular funds in aid of local roads and other projects,
but they soon learned that the money could be obtained only
18 Report of Secretary of Commerce and Police, 1912, p. 148.
19 The Benguet road may be regarded as a possible exception.




288


THE PHILIPPINES


by those who were willing to bear a share of the burdens in proportion to their abilities. There was to be no manna falling
from a government heaven at Manila. It was a matter of assistance, not of bounty. The allotments rested with the secretary of
commerce and police, and under the law his judgment was final.
Delegations were constantly calling on the secretary soliciting
funds. If the project was one deserving encouragement they
were informed that it would be investigated. If the engineer
reported that it was desirable and the cost reasonable, the local
authorities were again consulted and the limit of their financial
capacity ascertained. Often they had little cash, but were willing to contribute material and labor. After stretching their resources in money, material and labor to the limit, and making
the regular provision for future maintenance, the balance of the
required amount was allotted to the locality and the road built.
When completed, it meant something to the locality. It was not
the result of the charity of a distant government. It represented
the sacrifices and labors of the citizens and they felt responsible
for its care and preservation. It is safe to say that nowhere in
the tropics are the highways so carefully guarded and maintained.
When a road was completed and delivered to the province for
maintenance it was thereafter regarded as property, and the provincial treasurer was required to account for it as such, and any
neglect which results in its loss or depreciation was followed by
swift punishment.
Provinces, municipalities and individual camineros were encouraged to compete in the race for good roads. Local pride was
cultivated and appealed to. Substantial prizes were offered for the
province doing the most construction work and showing the
best maintenance. A prize of five thousand dollars, awarded to
one province, was immediately invested in a much-needed bridge,
which was dedicated with a great display of local pride. The
camineros, the common workmen in charge of road maintenance, competed for the individual prizes. Ornamented with
suitable badges of authority, these lowly members of the hier



TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 289


archy often developed a pride in their work not always shown by
their more highly placed brother government officials.
As one passed through the country he saw the camineros
everywhere with wheelbarrow and shovel replacing the scattered
gravel, or with a pair of shears clipping the grassy lawns which
line the road. As his automobile rushed along a beautiful highway bordered with palms and feathery bamboo, the caminero
would often stand at attention and salute with military precision as he swelled with pride in his kilometer of highway.20
The cost of road construction alone has not been very high,
but the permanent type of bridges are expensive, and when they
are included the average cost per mile of the heavily surfaced
roads has been about $8,250. While labor is much cheaper than
in the United States, more of it is required to get the same results. In determining the type of road to be constructed the
government has not been bound by any abstract or theoretical
considerations. The finances, the climatic conditions, and the
available materials have been the determining factors. Concrete,
because of its cost, has been out of the question. Good rock for
macadam roads is difficult to find and to bring it from distant
quarries is very expensive. On certain roads various kinds of
asphalt and oil binders have been used with good success. Gravel
for surfacing is abundant and cheap, and, where the volume of
traffic is reasonable, a heavy gravel surface on a permanent
foundation makes a good road which can be maintained with a
reasonable expenditure. The rapid increase of automobile traffic,
particularly in the direction of auto-truck lines serving as feeders
to the railways, will necessitate the resurfacing of many of the
roads with broken rock. The expense, however, will not be great,
as the foundations, structures, drainage, etc., are already provided.
The system of road construction and maintenance which has
been described applied to the territory within the legislative jurisdiction of the Philippine Legislature. It will be remembered that
20 When the Duke of Edinburg visited Japan in 1868, prayers were offered
for his safety to the God of Roads. Lord Redesdale's Memories, II, p. 497.




290


THE PHILIPPINES


the country was, for legislative purposes, divided into two parts:
one under the Philippine Legislature, the other under the control
of the Philippine Commission, which included the non-Christian
provinces, the Moro Province, now known as the Department
of Mindanao and Sulu,2' and a third group, occupying an intermediate state, organized under the Special Provincial Government Acts. The Moro Province had its independent legislative
body, subordinate, however, to the Philippine Commission. The
provinces organized under the Special Provincial Acts were in
a sort of intermediate stage, control being divided between the
legislature and the commission.22
The general road law, which has been considered, did not
apply to the non-Christian provinces or the Moro Province. Recently the legislature authorized the distribution of a portion of
the general road fund to the special provinces and the nonChristian provinces which are governed by special road laws.
The latter provinces are mostly mountainous and inhabited by
the so-called wild people, and are not yet sufficiently advanced
to require first-class roads. The people are natural trail builders,
and, under the direction of American officials, many hundreds
of miles of good trails have been economically constructed.
Every part of their territory is now accessible.
The Moro Province, with its special form of local government,
levied its own taxes and built its roads without the assistance of
the insular government. In 1912 its legislative council enacted
a law similar to that in force in the northern non-Christian provinces, and it seems to be working very well. Every male nonChristian between the ages of eighteen and sixty years is required
to pay a cedula tax of three pesos annually, two for the road and
bridge fund and one for the general fund. Those who pay the
internal revenue cedula are required to pay only the two pesos
annual road tax. Delinquents must furnish fifteen days' labor.
General J. J. Pershing, the governor of the province, in his
21 Act No. 2309, Dec. 20, 1913.
22 The new Philippine Legislature has jurisdiction over the entire Archipelago.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 291


report for 1912 said: "Moros and other non-Christians have
learned the benefits of good roads, as is shown by the decreasing
difficulty of obtaining road labor. Hundreds of days of labor
have been given to the provinces during the year by Moros anxious to have roads through their part of the country."
Road building was commenced in the Moro Province about
1909 and by 1912 there had been completed 80 kilometers of
first-class road at a cost of $105,686.80, 153.6 kilometers of second-class roads costing $76,462.82, 106 kilometers of third-class
roads costing $4,844.87, and 453 kilometers of trails built by a
road tax or by free labor. When it is realized that the total income of the province for the fiscal year 1913 was only $367,654.09, the extent of the investment in goods roads will be appreciated.
In addition to the work thus done by the local authorities with
money furnished by the natives, the military authorities have
built a first-class road from Camp Overton, on Iligan Bay, to
Camp Keithley on Lake Lafiao in the interior, and a good road
beyond there to Malabang, on the south coast.
Of the highways constructed by the insular government without the assistance of the provinces, the famous Benguet road is
by far the most important. Such serious mistakes were made in
the designing and construction of this road that it became a fair
subject for criticism and the opportunity was taken advantage of
to the limit. It was in fact made a political issue and the policy
of the administration was so grossly misrepresented that it has
been difficult to secure consideration for the enterprise on its
merits.23
The highway was a by-product of the plan to construct a railroad into the mountains, to a point where a sanitarium had been
located. The Spaniards were familiar with the advantages oe
the region and appreciated its importance as a resort for Europeans who were suffering from the effects of the tropical climate.
23 For the grounds of the opposition as stated by Mr. Quezon, see Hearings Before House Corn. on Insular Affairs, on H. B. 20049, Feb., 1912, pp. 55
et seq.




292


THE PHILIPPINES


In 1892 Spanish engineers opened a trail into the country from
San Fernando, on the west coast, by way of Naguilian, and surveyed other possible road routes. Secretary Root seems to have
directed the Taft Commission to open up the Benguet country
if it was found practicable; and, early in 1900, the various routes
were investigated by members of the commission and its engineers.
The commission was then thinking of a railroad and Captain
C. W. Meade was directed to make a survey in order to ascertain
the most practicable route and the probable cost of such a road.
He reported that it was possible to build a railroad up the valley
of the Bued River, but recommended that the line be first opened
as a wagon road. Captain Meade thought that the road could be
constructed for the modest sum of seventy-five thousand dollars,
and on December 21, 1900, the commission, apparently without
having his estimate checked and verified, appropriated that
amount and authorized the building of a highway from Pozorubio, in the province of Pangasinan, to Baguio, "under the general supervision of the Military Governor and the immediate
direction of Captain Charles W. Meade, 36th Infantry, U. S.
Volunteers, who has been detailed by the Military Governor for
that purpose, along the general line of survey recently made by
Captain Meade for a railway between said towns."
The distance from Pozorubio to Baguio is thirty-eight kilometers, the first six of which are across a low level plain to a
point where the Bued River flows out of its canyon. From there
the road was to follow the river to its source on the mountain
plateau near Baguio. It was soon discovered that Captain Meade
had entirely underestimated the difficulties and that his survey
had been very superficial. It is surprising that the commission,
with the knowledge of the conditions which it then possessed,
should have proceeded without further investigation.24
It was really about as difficult a route for a railway as could
24 Mr. H. L. Higgins, an experienced railroad engineer who visited Baguio
with members of the commission, made an unsuccessful attempt to find his
way down the gorge, but expressed the opinion that, with proper equipment,
a party could get through.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 293


be imagined. From Baguio to where the river reached the plains,
a distance of about twenty miles, there is a descent of approximately five thousand feet. Most of the way the river flows between precipitous mountain walls that rise at some places to a
height of from three to four thousand feet, with occasional
peaks reaching six or seven thousand feet. At intervals the dark
and narrow canyon expanded into basins reeking with rank vegetation. The dense forests were festooned with vines and dank
mosses. On the upper waters of the river there is a fall of
almost a thousand feet in a distance of about a mile in a direct
line. Thereafter the narrow stream rushed and boiled its way
around and over huge boulders, some of which were as large as
a farm-house. Nevertheless, there was nothing in the general
outward appearance of the country to discourage absolutely an
enterprising engineer familiar with mountain railway construction. But the appearances were deceitful.
No adequate preliminary investigation was made as to the
nature of the rock and it proved impossible to find any solid
foundation for the road. Cuts in the mountain sides resulted in
innumerable landslides.25 All sorts of difficulties were encoun25 Mr. J. W. Beardsley, in his report in Dec., 1903, said: "The topographical and geological features of the Bued River Valley are remarkable. The
elevated peaks are generally connected by ridges too narrow for a roadway.
The slopes from these ridges to the peaks and the side slopes of both ridges
and peaks are too steep for practical use. Frequently the connecting ridge is
entirely washed away, and no feasible method of reaching the lower level
exists. The construction of an intermediate trail along the mountain sides is
impracticable on account of the remarkably steep slopes and the frequency of
slides, which can not be avoided. These slides suggest that nature has not
yet reached a state of equilibrium. Normal slopes for loose earth and rock
vary from 30 to 35~; slopes for similar material in this valley are occasionally
over 45~, and the material is held in place principally by its covering of vegetation. These slopes, with their resulting slides, are due to (a) seismic disturbances, (b) chemical formation of rock, and (c) climatic conditions.
*.. Slides frequently occur during the rainy season on portions of the
slopes apparently well protected by vegetation, and during the dry season
these slides are of occasional occurrence over portions not so protected. No
construction can withstand the effects of these large landslides. The material
is angular and disintegrated broken rock. The rock outcroppings show a
hard conglomerate in the lower portion of the valley, consisting of waterworn pebbles and boulders cemented together with volcanic rock...
Where the rock appears fairly solid it is not uncommon to have a slide of
several hundred tons occur after a cut has exposed the rock to weathering
effects for a few months." Rept. Phil. Corn., 1905, Pt. III, pp. 363-367.




294


THE PHILIPPINES


tered. Labor was scarce, unwilling and untrained. An amount
of money equal to the entire first appropriation was expended in
making a road-bed along the cliff at the entrance of the first
canyon.
Progress was very slow. In August, 1901, Captain Meade
was succeeded as engineer by Mr. N. M. Holmes. In October,
1901, the commission reported to Secretary Root that the construction had "been much delayed by the difficulty of procuring
the labor requisite for its early completion, and several months
will yet elapse before it is finished." It was finally borne in upon
the commission that there was a strong probability that the entire project would have to be abandoned, to the very great discredit of the government. In September, 1902, Mr. J. W.
Beardsley, the consulting engineer to the commission, was directed to visit the scene and make a thorough investigation. In
December he reported that it was possible to build the road, but
that it would cost an additional one million dollars.26
The commission was now facing a serious situation. The
Benguet road was not an ordinary highway project. The development of Baguio seemed to be required by political and social
as well as economic considerations. Governor Taft intended that
it should become the future political capital of the country. It
was deemed necessary for the health and happiness of American
soldiers and officials, and the white men who would in the future
come to live in the islands, and Baguio could not be made available unless the road was completed. It was then assumed that
any railroad which might be built would have to follow this
river road and the failure of the road meant that the entire
scheme of building a capital city on the healthy table-land would
have to be abandoned.
After thorough investigation and careful consideration of
every feature of the situation, it was determined to complete the
26 Rept. Secretary of Cor. and Pol. (Rept. Phil. Cor., 1903, Pt.,III,
p. 18).
Mr. Beardsley's report had evidently not been received when, on Nov. 1,
1902, Governor Taft wrote in his annual report that "it was doubtful whether
the total cost of the road would be less than three hundred thousand dollars."




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 295


road regardless of expense. Therefore on January 1, 1903, a
resolution was adopted which declared the policy of the commission to be to make the town of Baguio the summer capital of the
Archipelago and to provide suitable communication therewith.
In his report dated November 15, 1903, Governor Taft, after
referring to the serious engineering mistakes which had been
made and the unexpected cost of the work, said:2
"One of the things essential to progress in the islands is the
coming of more Americans and Europeans who shall make this
their business home. If there can be brought within twelve
hours' travel of Manila a place with a climate not unlike that of
the Adirondacks, or of Wyoming in summer, it will add greatly
to the possibility of living in Manila for ten months of the year
without risk. It will take away the necessity for long vacations
spent in America; will reduce the number who go invalided
home, and will be a saving to the Insular government of many
thousands of dollars a year. It will lengthen the period during
which the American soldiers who are stationed here may remain
without injury to their health and will thus reduce largely the
expense of transportation of troops between the islands and the
United States. More than this, Filipinos of the wealthier class
frequently visit Japan or China for the purpose of recuperating.
People of this class are much interested in the establishment of
Baguio as a summer capital, and when the road is completed a
town will spring up, made up of comfortable residences, of a
fine, extensive army post, and sanitariums for the relief of persons suffering from diseases prevalent in the lowlands..
It is the settled purpose of the commission to see this improvement through, no matter what the cost, because eventually the
expenditure must redound to the benefit of the government and
people of the islands."
In pursuance of this policy, arrangements were made for pushing the work to completion, and Major L. W. V. Kennon was
placed in charge as engineer. The one hundred and seventythree employees with which he commenced work were soon increased to four thousand. New surveys were made in order to
comply with the instructions of the commission that the road
27 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903, Pt. I, p. 58; Rept. Phil. Cor., 1900-1903, p. 516.




296


THE PHILIPPINES


should be of such a kind as to be later available for a railroad.
The surveys, plans and specifications were in part remade in order to provide for an electric railroad bed with a width of fourteen feet.28
Notwithstanding the natural obstacles and occasional tropical
rains which did great damage, the road was finally built and
opened for traffic on March 27, 1905. On November 1, thereafter, the total cost had been $1,966,874.05,29 but much of the
work was of a temporary nature which later had to be reenforced
or replaced. The numerous wooden and suspension bridges
which carried the road back and forth across the river had to be
replaced by steel constructions which also in time required
strengthening in order to carry the unexpected volume of heavy
freight. In fact, the road never was really completed.
The heartbreaking feature of the situation was that any part
of the work, however well done, was liable at any time to dis28 First Rept. of Major Kennon, Sept. 1, 1904 (Rept. Phil. Cor., 1904, Pt.
III, p. 160).
29 See Rept. Secretary Cor. and Police, Nov. 3, 1905 (Rept. Phil. Cor.,
1905, Pt. III, p. 25). The following table, prepared by the Bureau of Insular
Affairs, shows the expenditures and the sources from which the money came.
Hearings House Committee on Insular Affairs, on H. R. 20049, Feb., 1912,
p. 64:
Fiscal year1902. Construction from insular revenues...................... $142,113.01
1903. Construction from insular revenues.....................  152,800.56
1904. Construction from insular revenues....................  459,386.94
1904. Construction from Congressional relief fund.............  366,260.505
1905. Construction from insular revenues......................  376,367.99
1905. Construction from Congressional relief fund.............  228,310.73
1905. Construction from public works bonds...................  204,173.24
1906. Maintenance and repair from insular revenues............  45,025.695
1906. Sale of equipment (refund to revenues).................  53,621.69
1906. Construction from Congressional relief fund.............  55,246.765
1907. Maintenance and improvements from insular revenues....    9,620.37
1907. Improvements from Congressional relief fund............    102.52
1908. Maintenance and improvements from insular revenues....   15,887.095
1909. Maintenance and improvements from insular revenues....    2,894.645
1910. Maintenance and improvements from insular revenues....   47,718.26
1911. Maintenance and improvements from insular revenues....   26,848.46
Total............................................. $2,186,378.475
Cost of Benguet Road, 1901-1905.............................$1,929,412.975
Improvements and repairs thereto, 1906-1911...................  149,722.12




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 297


appear beneath a landslide or be swept away by a flood. The
mountains seemed to be quivering masses of shale rock eager to
disintegrate and slide on the slightest provocation. The rainfall in that region is phenomenal. Storms sweeping up from the
China Sea break against the mountains and are precipitated in
a concentrated mass about the head waters of the Bued River.
On June 30, 1905, seventeen inches of water fell within twentyfour hours. On October 17, 1906, within the same period of
time, there was a fall of twenty-six inches and the Bued River
rose fifty feet in its bed and carried away four of the largest
bridges. During the twenty-four hours following the noon of
July 14, 1911, there was a fall of 45.99 inches of water at Baguio.30 At one place the side of the mountain fell into the gorge
and covered the road to a depth of one hundred and fifty feet
with boulders, gravel and huge trees.
The engineers reported that it would cost five hundred thousand dollars to dig the road out and the money was not available.
It seemed that the problem of future maintenance of the Benguet
road was settled for all time. While matters were at a standstill, kind Providence brought another typhoon and the rushing
waters carried away much of the debris. It was now possible
to rebuild the road, but even if the necessary funds could be obtained, experience showed that it would be folly to continue the
unequal struggle with nature.31 The government now entered into
arrangements with the Manila Railroad Company which it was
hoped would result in the construction of a railroad over another route into Baguio within about three years.32 It was then
determined that the road should be put into condition for tem30 The average rainfall in the Philippines is 2.400mm. The extremes are
Zamboanga.900mm, Baguio 4.500mm.
31 On Feb. 22, 1912, General Edwards, Chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs, told the Committee on Insular Affairs that "The Benguet wagon road
has been washed out. They find, after thirty-six inches of rain in one day
which they got there, that it is not a practical road, and so I don't think they
would be wise in spending more money on the wagon road...." Herings on H. R. 20049, p. 43.
32The railway company, under its contract, was entitled to use the Benguet road for its line, but declined with thanks.




298


THE PHILIPPINES


porary use until the railroad was completed, and this was done
with an expenditure of fifty thousand dollars. At the same time
the Naguilian trail from the coast was improved to a point where
in good weather it could be used by small automobiles. Baguio
was thus saved from the danger of isolation, and the question of
the ultimate disposition of the Benguet road was postponed for
future consideration. The attempt to build the railroad was not
successful and the policy now seems to be to make the Naguilian
road a permanent one.33
By May 1, 1913, the Benguet road had cost, including improvements and maintenance, $2,754,281.05, an amount out of all proportion to its value as a highway.34 Nevertheless, the men responsible for its construction, while regretting the early mistakes,
have never doubted the wisdom of the final policy that was pursued. If the Philippines remain an American possession, the
future will show that they were right; otherwise their work will
be thrown away. The money invested should be charged to the
expense of building a capital city and resort in the health-giving
atmosphere of the mountains, where white men can live and
thrive, free from the debilitating effects of the heat of the lowlands.   It should become the great health resort of the Far
East. But the Filipinos have never liked Baguio and the political
element has always bitterly opposed its development. The Philippine Legislature could never be induced to appropriate money
for the city, or for the Benguet road, and funds for the construction of the road and the government buildings at Baguio, which
is in a non-Christian province, were appropriated by the commission or provided under a complicated system of transfers. From
1910 until the advent of the Harrison administration, the government moved over the Benguet road to Baguio for the months
of March, April and May of each year. But the new administration consented to the passage of a law which forbids the an38 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1914.
34 The average annual cost of the road for the five years prior to 1913 was
about one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. (Rept. Bu. of Pub. Works,
1912, p. 154.)




* TRANSPORTATION        AND COMMUNICATION          299
nual exodus of the government, to the great delight of the Filipino clerks, who detest being separated from the delights of life
in Manila and subjected to the isolation and cool weather of the
mountains. But the governor-general and commissioners soon
fell under the spell of the place and, like their predecessors, found
their way to the cool table-land in the mountains of Benguet.




CHAPTER XIV


Transportation and Communication
II
RAILWAYS-AUTOMOBILE LINES
The Railway Policy-Commission Governed by Conditions, Not TheoriesThe Cooper Law-Summary of Its Provisions-Manila Railway Company,
Limited, and Its Claims-New Concession to Manila Railroad CompanyTerms of Original Concessionary Contract-Supplementary Concession of
1909-Guarantee of Interest-Division into Northern and Southern LinesConcession to Visayan Syndicate-Progress of Constructions-Government
Loans to Manila Railroad Company-Purchase of the Manila Railroad Company-Street Railways-Automobile Lines-The Benguet Road Line.
The problem of railway construction occupied the attention
of the members of the commission almost from the day of their
arrival in the islands. They found that the Manila Railway
Company, Limited, an English corporation which had received a
concession from the Spanish government in 1887, had been,
since 1892, operating about one hundred and twenty miles of
"oriental gauge" railroad between Manila and Dagupan on Lingayen Bay. The line traversed a fertile, low-lying, densely populated country, but because of its excessive original cost and the
expense of maintenance, due to the constantly recurring floods,
its owners had not found it a profitable investment. The road
had been seriously damaged by the Filipinos during the insurrection and one of the most promising assets of the company
was a claim for a large sum against the United States based on
the Spanish government guaranty and the use of the road by the
military authorities.
Acting under instructions from Secretary Root, the commission formulated a policy for railway construction.1 It was an1Rept. Phil. Corn., 1901 (Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-1903, p. 184).
300




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 301


ticipated that American public opinion would require that the construction of railways in the Philippines should be left to private
persons or corporations, and that the necessary safeguards
would be provided to prevent them from absorbing the public
lands or otherwise gaining undue profit by the exploitation of
the country. The history of railroad building in the United
States had given the policy of land grants, railroad aid bonds and
subsidized projects generally, a bad name. The system of government aid had been discredited by the abuses which grew up
under it, and the public easily forgot the beneficial part the railroads have played in the rapid building up of the country.
But conditions in the Philippines were not such as to induce
capitalists to invest money there without some government encouragement. The islands were remote and Americans were
not, like the British, accustomed to investments in distant colonies. The political future of the country was and would remain
uncertain as long as one of the great political parties continued
to advocate the early withdrawal of American control. Under
the circumstances there was only one feasible plan to follow,
and that was to adopt the system under which Spain had encouraged railway construction in the Philippines and under which
Lord Dalhousie had constructed the original railroad system
in India.2 The commission therefore recommended that it be
vested with authority to designate the lines to be constructed and
to enter into arrangements with private persons or corporations
for their construction, equipment and operation, and to guarantee
the payment of interest on the investment.
The way was cleared for serious railway construction by the
2The three principal Indian lines, the East India Railway, Great Eastern
Peninsula Railway and the Madras Railway, were originally constructed by
private concerns with a government guarantee of five per cent. interest on
the capital expended. As railway prospects improved the rate of interest
guaranteed for other companies was reduced to four per cent. The Indian
government subsequently entered the railway field and built additional lines.
It now owns three-fourths of the entire system. Most of the guaranteed
lines were purchased by the government and are leased to operating companies under an arrangement by which the government guarantees the interest on their working capital. In 1913 India had 32,398 miles of railway, over
which were carried three hundred and thirty-eight million passengers and
eighty thousand tons of freight. Freight is carried for an average of two



302


THE PHILIPPINES


Cooper Law of February 6, 1905,3 by which Congress approved
the general policy recommended by the commission.4 Under this
law the rights of the public were guarded with extreme care.
The Philippine government was authorized to enter into contracts with American railroad corporations organized to construct and operate railroads in the Philippines and to guarantee
the interest, at not exceeding four per cent. per annum, upon
their first lien construction bonds secured by mortgage upon the
roads and other property of the corporations. Any such contract of guaranty was required to provide that the total amount
of bonds, the interest of which was guaranteed, should not exceed the amount actually invested in cash in the construction and
equipment of the road; that the bonds should be kept a first lien;
and that the road should be constructed within the time limited.
After operation was commenced the gross earnings of the railway should be applied (1) to the necessary operating expenses,
including the reasonable expenses of the corporation; (2) to the
necessary and ordinary repairs of the road and its equipment;
(3) to such betterments and extraordinary repairs as may be
first in writing authorized by the governor-general, and (4) to
the payment of the guaranteed interest on the bonds.
To enable the company to sell bonds as the work of construction progressed the guarantee contract might be executed on the
completion of the road in sections of not less than twenty continuous miles each and in such proportions, fixed from time to time
by the government, as the actual capital invested in completed
road and equipment should bear to the capital required for the
completion and equipment of the entire road. The guarantee was
limited to thirty years and in no event could the total annual confifths of a penny per mile, and one penny carries a third-class passenger five
miles. The Indian railways at present are all paying dividends. Fuller,
India, p. 315.
3 Chap. 453, 33 Stat. L. 689.
4 Several minor concessions for railway extensions had been made under
the authority conferred on the commission by the Organic Law of 1902 and the
Spooner Law. Both these laws were restrictive and limited the power to
grant franchises which the commission had possessed under the authorizations contained in President McKinley's Instructions.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 303


tingent liability of the government exceed one million two hundred thousand dollars.
The sum paid as interest by the government under its guaranty
was made a lien on the property of the company, second only to
that of the trust deed securing the bonds; and at the termination
of the guaranty period, the total sum of such interest advanced
became payable to the government on demand and the lien enforceable. The government was required to make rules for ascertaining the cash capital actually invested in the railroads and
the net income received on the capital so invested, and to provide
for the proper supervision of the conduct of the finances of the
road and of its location, construction, operation and maintenance. Two members of the board of directors of the undertaking company should be appointed by the government. Out of
deference to the lack of confidence felt by foreign investors in
the inferior judicial tribunals, the law conferred upon the Supreme Court of the Philippines original and exclusive jurisdiction in all actions or suits brought by the government against any
person or corporation involving the construction of this particular
statute or any contract made in pursuance of it.
Immediately after the passage of this law the secretary of war
attempted to interest American capital in the question of railway construction in the Philippines. The island of Luzon, as
the most densely populated and generally cultivated, presented the
most attractive field. The Manila Railway Company, Limited,
was already in possession of the most highly developed section of
the island, but the terms of its Spanish franchise were not entirely
clear. The validity of a claim for $1,515,000 gold against the
United States for the use of the road by the military authorities,
which the British ambassador had presented to the state department, was denied.5 It was within the power of the govern5 By the terms of the concession, the Spanish government guaranteed to
the English company net earnings equal to eight per cent. of the capital,
which was fixed in the concession at $4,964,473.65, but increased with the consent of the government to $5,556.700, Mexican. One-half of the gross earnings were to be taken as net earnings. The amount due under this guarantee
was payable quarterly by the government, which reserved the right to charge




304


THE PHILIPPINES


ment practically to destroy the railway company's property by
refusing the privilege of making further extensions and granting
a concession to a new company which would parallel the existing
line. The old company was British owned and managed and was
two-thirds of the amount to the provinces through which the road passed.
When one-half of the gross earnings exceeded eight per cent. of the fixed
capital, the excess was to be divided between the government and the concessionaire. Upon the expiration of ninety-nine years from Jan. 21, 1887, the
government was to become the owner of the property. Rates were subject to
regulation under a general law which was by reference incorporated into the
concession. The arrangement was, in legal effect, a partnership contract between the government of Spain and the concessionaire by which, in consideration of the guarantee by the government of eight per cent. on the fixed capital
of $5,553,700, Mexican, the government was to share equally in all earnings
over and above the eight per cent. guaranteed, and to become the owner of
the road at the expiration of the life of the franchise.
The Spanish government made the guaranteed payments until the American forces took possession of the road in 1898. An unsuccessful attempt was
made to have inserted in the Treaty of Paris a provision to the effect that the
new government should succeed to the rights and obligations of the Spanish
government under this and certain other concessions. In July, 1899, a claim
was presented to the secretary of war for the payment of the guaranteed
interest to that date, and was renewed from time to time until at the end of
the year 1900 it amounted to $421,000, Mexican. The law officer of the Bureau
of Insular Affairs and the attorney-general of the United States held that the
contract of guarantee was a personal contract between the government of
Spain and the concessionaire, the obligations of which did not pass to the
new government by the change of sovereignty and cession of the territory.
Opinions of Attorney-General, Vol. XXIII, p. 121. The attorney-general
conceded, however, that an obligation existed in favor of the railway company commensurate with the benefits received by the islands from the construction of the road, two-thirds of which was properly chargeable against
the provinces. No attempt was ever made to reduce this vague obligation to
figures. The railway company thereafter changed the nature of its claim to
one for damages, and Use and occupation of the property by the military authorities from Feb. 10, 1899, to April, 20, 1900.
The opinion of the attorney-general eliminated not only the obligation to
pay the guaranteed interest, but also the consideration therefor, the right of
the government to one-half of the profits over and above eight per cent. and
to acquire ownership of the road at the termination of the concession. As a
result the Manila Railway Company found itself with simply a franchise to
operate the road until 1906, subject to the regulative features of the concession.
In order to obtain money to rehabilitate the property it made a new mortgage for seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, which, with the consent
of the bondholders, was established as a lien prior to that of the original
bonds. With the money thus obtained and the earnings, amounting in all to
about twelve million dollars, the road was put in fairly good condition. With
the revival of business the company, somewhat to the surprise of all, became
suddenly prosperous, and had the personal contract of the concession been
assumed by the government of the United States it would, for the ten years
after 1901, have received an annual profit of more than one hundred thousand
dollars and ultimately become the owner of the road. For the circumstances
under which the road was acquired, see p. 310 et seq., infra.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 305


not known to be in entire sympathy with the methods of the new
regime. The terms of the Spanish concession were not such as
an American government would grant, and it was in every way
desirable that the slate should be cleaned and a new start made.6
This the government was able to accomplish on terms satisfactory to all parties.
A new corporation known as the Manila Railroad Company
was organized in the United States. The proposal of Speyer &
Company, of New York, to construct the proposed lines in Luzon was accepted on condition that the concession should at once
be transferred to the new corporation which would receive a perpetual franchise from the government of the Philippines on the
terms and conditions prescribed in the grant. No land grant or
government guarantee of interest was asked on these original
concessions. In consideration of the grant the old corporation
waived all claims against the United States, the government of
the Philippines and the provinces and municipalities, as well as
those growing out of the use of its line by the military authorities of the United States.
The concessionary contract between the government of the
Philippines and the Manila Railroad Company was thereupon
embodied in an Act of the Philippine Commission7 and subsequently duly executed by the parties. It was exceedingly favorable to the government and also advantageous to the grantee. All
pending controversies were settled and the government secured
the construction of new lines under proper supervision and control without assuming any financial obligations. The concession
included the existing line of the Manila Railway Company, Limited, and the construction of approximately four hundred and
6 "The change was really from the Spanish to the American system, that
is, from a business enterprise of the government for profit, to a project, the
sole motive of which is to furnish a great civilizing and prosperity-giving
instrumentality to the people and to increase and expand its benefits to the
public by offering a reasonable compensation to the private capital employed,
proportioned to the risk, and without hope or expectation of substantial profit
to the treasury." Secretary of War Taft to Secretary of State Root, June 22,
1906. MSS. letter.
7 Act No. 1510, July 7, 1906.




306


THE PHILIPPINES


twenty-eight miles of new road,8 of which one hundred and
fifty miles were to be ready for operation within two years.
Construction was to proceed at the rate of not less than
seventy-five miles each year thereafter until all were completed.  The gauge was to be three feet, six inches, subject to change with the approval of the governor-general. A
right of way one hundred feet in width was granted across the
public domain, together with the use of such additional land
therefrom for terminals, yards, shops and other necessary buildings, as the governor-general should approve. The grantee
might also, with the written approval of the governor-general,
take from the public lands gravel, earth, stone, timber and other
materials for use in the construction of the railway.9 The right
to cross and use streets and public squares, and to acquire title
to lands owned by provinces and municipalities was carefully
guarded against abuse. All material required for the construction and equipment of the road was to be admitted to the islands
free of duty.
The detailed provisions of this and the other railroad concession contracts are important because they show the policy of
the government and the great care taken to guard against exploitation and the over-issue of construction bonds. The plans,
surveys and specifications were required to be submitted to and
approved by the governor-general, who was authorized thereafter to fix the exact routes. Freight and passenger rates were
to be subject to regulation,'0 and the government was entitled to
certain preferences for military purposes. Preference was to be
given to laborers found along the lines. The grantee was entitled to maintain a telegraph and telephone system for its own
use and the use of the public, subject to the approval of the
8 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1906, Pt. II, p. 206.
9 This applied only to the public lands available for homestead settlement
and sale under the Public Lands Act, and timber lands of the Philippine
government. It did not include the friar lands, which were not part of the
public lands.
10A Board of Railroad Rate Regulation consisting of the governorgeneral, the secretary of commerce and police and one appointed member
was created by Act No. 1779, Oct. 12, 1907. In 1913 it was succeeded by the
Board of Public Utility Commissioners.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 307


secretary of war, on condition that space be reserved on the
poles for the government to place wires for its own use.
In lieu of all other taxes, the grantee should, during the first
thirty years, pay into the public treasury one-half of one per cent.
of its gross earnings, for the succeeding twenty years one and
one-half per cent., and after eighty years from the time of the
original grant, such rate as the government should determine.
No stocks or bonds should be issued except for cash or property
at a fair valuation, and no stock or bond dividends should be declared. All the provisions of the Acts of Congress of July 1,
1902, and of February 6, 1905, were, by reference, incorporated
into the contract, and the franchise, while perpetual in form, was
at all times subject to amendment, alteration, and repeal, by Congress.1i
This contract was executed on August 28, 1906, and work
thereunder was immediately commenced. Three years later the
Manila Railroad Company was granted a supplementary concessionary contract for additional lines which were to be constructed
under a government guarantee of interest.l2 The new construction thus provided for was designed to connect the existing line
which ended north of the Pasig River in Manila with the new
port works south of the river, secure connection with the new
capital city of Baguio in the Benguet Mountains to the north, and
south one hundred and thirty-five miles through Ambos Camarines, with the section already provided for in the province of
Albay.
Most of the provisions of the original concessionary contract
were made applicable to the new grant. Much of the new construction would be expensive and less likely to prove immediately
profitable than the original lines. The road through Ambos
Camarines would pass through very rough country. The extension to the port of Manila would require the construction of an
expensive bridge over the Pasig River, and the line to Baguio
11 In a message of Jan. 10, 1816, Governor-General Harrison refers to this
as "a gift to a private company of a perpetual franchise."
12 Act No. 1905, May 19, 1909.




308


THE PHILIPPINES


would have to reach an elevation of about five thousand feet and
would not be remunerative for some years. In order to secure
these extensions, it was deemed good policy to guarantee the interest on the construction bonds as authorized by the Cooper
Law.
This supplementary concessionary contract divided the Manila
Railroad Company's property into two separate and distinct systems, capable of separate maintenance and operation, one to be
known as the Northern Lines and the other as the Southern Lines.
Each was to have its separate and distinct books and accounts,
embracing construction, maintenance, operation, earnings and expenses, so that although owned by the same company the two
systems should be as distinct as though owned and operated by
separate and independent companies.
The lines covered by the original concession, with some exceptions, were to be known as the Northern Lines and those of the
supplementary concession as the Southern Lines.13 The main
terminal at Tondo and the shops at Caloocan, near Manila, were
to be maintained and operated jointly by the two systems and the
expenses distributed equitably between them.
The company was authorized to issue bonds for the amount of
the actual cost of construction and equipment of the railways of
the Southern Lines and also for the amounts which had already
been actually expended for the construction and equipment of
that part of the original lines which were to be included in the
Southern Lines, excluding the contractor's profits. These bonds,
which were authorized to be issued to ninety-five per cent. of
the total cost, constituted a first lien on all the property of the
Southern Lines. They were to mature in thirty years, and the
Philippine government guaranteed the payment of interest
thereon at four per cent. per annum. As the Act of Congress
limited the amount of annual contingent liability which the government could assume to one million two hundred thousand dollars, and a similar guarantee of the Philippine Railway Company
bonds had been made, the contract with the Manila Railroad
13 The line to Baguio, far north, was thus in the Southern Lines' system.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 309


Company provided that, unless this authority were extended, the
amount of the annual contingent liability should at no time exceed the amount available under the Act of Congress. That is,
the guarantee was to the amount of the difference between one
million two hundred thousand dollars and the amount which had
been guaranteed to the Philippine Railway Company. The company covenanted to pay the interest on the bonds to the extent
of the earnings of the Southern Lines after paying operating expenses, necessary repairs, and betterments, approved by the governor-general. The United States government assumed no liability and the government of the Philippines guaranteed only the
interest on the bonds.
The concession for the lines in the south central islands was
granted to the White Syndicate,14 and by it assigned to a corporation called the Philippine Railway Company. The contract,
signed July 10, 1906, required the construction of two hundred
and ninety-five miles of road on the islands of Panay, Cebu and
Negros. The conditions were substantially the same as those imposed on the Manila Railroad Company.l5
Construction work was commenced promptly by both the
Manila Railroad Company and the Philippine Railway Company,
and proceeded under government supervision as rapidly as conditions and money justified.6 The Manila Railroad Company
pushed forward the lines provided for under the first concession
and was progressing with its guaranteed lines as rapidly as re14 This syndicate was composed of William Salomon & Co., Cornelius
Vanderbilt, J. G. White & Co. of New York, and Charles M. Swift of Detroit, with whom were associated the International Banking Corporation,
H. R. Wilson and Heidelbach & Co. of New York. Mr. Swift was the moving spirit and the president of the Philippine Railway Company.
15 Act No. 1497. For a summary, see Rept. Phil. Corn., 1906, Pt. II, p. 198.
'6 Act No. 1507 provided for the appointment of a supervising railway
expert, and Mr. F. A. Molitor was appointed to the position. This officer was
attached to the office of Secretary of Commerce and Police, which had general supervision over corporations other than those engaged in banking. He
was in 1907 succeeded by Mr. L. F. Goodale, who was in office during the
period of active construction. However, the terms of the concessionary contract placed the responsibility for seeing that the roads were properly and
economically constructed upon the governor-general personally. In 1914 the
office of Supervising Railway Expert was abolished (Act No. 2320) and its
duties imposed upon the Public Utilities Commissioners.




310


THE PHILIPPINES


quired by the contract. Naturally it exercised its privilege of
determining the order of the extensions, and intended to leave
the line to Baguio, which was not expected to be immediately
profitable, for the last.
Circumstances, economic and political, made it seem desirable,
from the standpoint of the government, that railway communication be opened to Baguio, the mountain capital, at the earliest
possible date. With its available capital, the railway company
was able to work on but one twenty-mile section at a time. In
December, 1911, the legislature authorized the loaning of a certain per cent. of the Gold Standard Fund17 to provinces and
municipalities, and specifically to the Manila Railroad Company,
to aid in the construction of certain of its authorized extensions.
By this means the government expected to secure the construction
of the line to Baguio by loaning the company the money to enable
it to push the work on more than one section at the same time.18
The hastening of construction by the Manila Railroad Company under the government spur threatens to prove disastrous to
the government. The comparatively small loan from the Gold
Standard Fund, made by the Forbes administration, was a mistake, but it was expected to be temporary. For some unaccountable reason the Harrison administration increased the loan until
in January, 1916, it amounted to over three million dollars, for
which the government had no real security. By that time the
Manila Railroad Company seems to have become practically in17 Act No. 2083, Dec. 21, 1911.
18 This ill-advised and unfortunate act of the Philippine Legislature authorized the loaning of a certain percentage of the Gold Standard Fund to the
Manila Railroad Company to enable it to continue the work on certain designated extensions. The loan was intended to be temporary, and to be repaid
from the proceeds of the bonds issued on the particular twenty-mile section.
The commission, as the exclusive legislative body for the non-Christian
provinces, re-enacted that law in substance as Act No. 2088, but without designating the extensions by name. The legislature could not have been induced to authorize a loan to be used to build a road to Baguio, as the Filipino
members of the lower house were almost without exception opposed to the
entire Baguio proposition. However, by loaning the company money to work
on the designated extensions, it was able to use its own funds to build the
Baguio line. The way in which the matter was handled illustrates the
maneuvering which was rendered necessary by the Filipino control over
legislation.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 311


solvent, and Governor-General Harrison induced the legislature
to authorize the purchase by the government of all the stock of
the corporation. A measure more unjust to the Filipino people
and disastrous to the treasury could not have been conceived by
their worst enemies. Of all the schemes and projects devised
for the Philippines, this proposed purchase of the Manila Railroad Company and the assumption of ten million dollars of its
bonded indebtedness, is probably the only one which suggests
bad faith on the part of the men who urged it upon the Philippine Legislature. And it was done by the administration which
was posing as the special friend of the Filipinos while urging
upon Congress the passage of the bill granting independence to
the islands within the short period of four years.
At that time the total bonded debt of the insular government,
exclusive of the seven million dollars of friar-land bonds, the
payment of which is supposed to be secured by a sinking fund
created by the sale of the lands, amounted to but five million dollars.19 Extreme care had been exercised by Congress to prevent
the loading of the islands with a large bonded debt. The Philippine government had guaranteed only the interest on the bonds
issued, under its careful supervision, by the Manila Railroad Company. It had not guaranteed the principal of the bonds, and it
had been called upon to pay only $41,450 on its interest guarantee.20 The railroad company had outstanding bonds amounting
to $22,671,000, consisting of $4,330,000 six per cent: gold mortgage bonds, and $7,766,000 seven per cent. second mortgage gold
bonds, maturing in 1956, and $10,575,000 four per cent. first
mortgage gold bonds (Southern Lines), maturing in 1939. The
government had guaranteed the interest on these Southern Lines
bonds only. That was the extent of its obligation.
19 On December 31, 1914, there was $1,927,980.50 in the sinking fund for
the payment of these friar lands purchase bonds, and $855,832.58 in the public
works and improvement bonds sinking fund.
20 In the Special Report of General McIntyre, chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs, of Dec. 1, 1915, it is stated that to Dec. 31, 1914, on its contingent liability for the interest on railway bonds, the government had advanced "a total of $1,317,448.50, practically all of which was on account of the
Philippine Railway Company. The Manila Railroad Company has generally
earned the interest on its interest-guaranteed bonds."




312


THE PHILIPPINES


The entire capital stock of the Manila Railroad Company,
amounting to $5,783,500, was owned by an English corporation
known as the Manila Railway Company, Limited, and had been
pledged with the Merchants' Trust, Limited, of London. This
stock, under the conditions stated by Mr. Harrison, evidently
had no market value, and it is safe to say that it was worthless.
In his message to the legislature, of January 10, 1916, GovernorGeneral Harrison gave several disingenuous reasons why it was
in his opinion desirable for the government to purchase this stock
and pay therefor the sum of four million dollars gold. The only
one entitled to any serious consideration was that the situation
required "the Philippine government, for the protection of its
investments in the Manila Railroad Company, to assume the
ownership of the road." He therefore recommended that the
legislature authorize the payment of the sum of four million dollars gold (to be taken from the Gold Standard and other special
funds) to the English company for the worthless stock, that the
payment of the $10,575,000 issue of bonds on the Southern
Lines be assumed by the government, and that the road, after
being thus acquired, should be operated by government employees.21
The three million dollars owed by the railroad company to
the government was not even to be deducted from the amount to
be paid for the stock. On the contrary, the law provides that the
"time for payment of the loan made by the government to the
railroad company from the Gold Standard Fund of the Philippine
21 The assumption of the bonds was concealed from the public by providing that the government-owned corporation should be continued and that it
should establish a sinking fund "from funds available for such purposes, if
any," with which to retire the bonds. But included in the law and contract
was the provision that "the government by a continuing annual appropriation
or in any other lawful manner as may hereafter be agreed upon, will loan to
the railroad company [i. e., to itself] an amount sufficient to maintain the
sinking fund at the required figure." Paragraph 4 of Act No. 2574, passed
Feb. 4, 1916.
Immediately after the enactment of the Philippine Government Law of
Aug. 29, 1916, the government issued $4,000,000 of bond to secure money to
pay for this railway stock. Governor-General Harrison's message and the
contract of purchase are printed in the Report Phil. Corn., 1915, p. 49.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 313


Islands shall be extended for as long a time as the governor-general may lawfully extend the same."
The law authorizing the purchase of the entire stock of the corporation was rushed through the legislature as an administration
measure without consideration by any but a few of the leaders.22
Mr. Horace L. Higgins, an experienced engineer and railroad
manager, financially backed by the Speyer banking house of New
York and London, had been unable to make the Manila Railroad
Company pay expenses and interest, and the Harrison administration proposed to transfer their burden to the shoulders of the
Philippine government with the hope that under the management
of Filipino politicians the property would become profitable. It
was a pretty present, indeed, to hand to the Filipinos along with
immediate independence. The execution of the contract meant
22 The proposed purchase was condemned by the American and a portion
of the native press, including La Democracia. The Far Eastern Review for
Feb., 1916, quotes the following from an editorial in The Bulletin, one of the
leading papers of Manila:
"Some day the islands are going to need all their credit in order to borrow
money on their bonds to acquire these things, only to find that credit has
been exhausted to purchase a railroad, which the country needs about as much
as a cat needs two tails. The country will have the railroad, but will be unable to trade it for real needs. The only advantage that will accrue to the
people will be the privilege of raising several additional millions of pesos in
taxes to pay the interest on the indebtedness incurred by the purchase.
"The most essential factor in the future as well as present prosperity of
the islands is the coming of capital for the development of its natural resources, industries, and public utilities. The largest investment of capital in
the islands up to the present is that invested by the Manila railway. Is the
government to announce now to the financial world that the government is
to be the means of sending this capital out of the country? Will such action
encourage other capital to enter the country?
"We do not know what political benefit is to be derived by the purchase
of this railroad. One thing is certain; there will be no economic benefit derived from it. The only expert opinion available of the value of the road is
that of the government itself. In a decision by the public utilities board,
seven months ago, that body said: That the company's income is not sufficient to provide adequately for the protection of its property devoted to
public use, to pay its fixed charges, and to pay a reasonable return upon its
investment, is shown by the following comparative statement of its income
account for all lines for the years 1910 to 1914, inclusive. Is the credit of the
country to be mortgaged for generations, in order that the government may
acquire a property of this kind? Will government ownership and management get better result than experienced and competent railroad officials have
accomplished? If they are then the people should have some knowledge of
why and how it is to be done."




314


THE PHILIPPINES


handing over four million dollars gold to the owners of the stock
and an increase in the market value of the bonds of probably five
million dollars-all, in effect, a present to the London stock and
bond holders at the expense of the Filipinos.
It is difficult to understand why the Manila Railroad Company
has not, since 1912, been able to earn sufficient to pay its fixed
charges. It is located on the cultivated island of Luzon and
reaches the capital city and chief port of the country. It was in
the hands of experienced railroad men, and prior to that time
was operated successfully and economically. The extensions
were made into well-developed country. The alleged inability to
sell bonds for future construction does not explain the failure of
the road to continue earning money by the operation of the existing lines. The difficulties in which the road became involved
were undoubtedly due to the unfortunate attempt of the government to force the hasty construction of disconnected and unprofitable extensions.
It is a lamentable fact that the Filipinos have not shown much
energy in availing themselves of the opportunities offered by the
construction of railways and some other public improvements.
They delight to travel on the trains and, contrary to the rule in
the United States, more than half of the income of the roads
comes from passenger traffic. That fact alone discloses unsatisfactory conditions. The railroads will never pay until the people have energy enough to provide them with freight and the
ability to do that can only be developed after the lapse of considerable time. The immediate benefits anticipated by men like
Governor Taft and Governor Wright have not been realized.
Nevertheless, their theories were sound, although more time will
be required for securing results than was anticipated. Land
values have materially increased and the new country which has
been opened up is being slowly occupied and brought under cultivation, but it will take many years to produce the freight which
is essential for the profitable operation of the railways.
The Philippine Railway Company constructed its lines in
Panay and Cebu, but the prospects for remunerative business




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 315


were not such as to justify it in building on the island of Negros,
and the government was very willing to extend the time for the
construction of that line indefinitely.23
The Philippine Railway Company is a purely American concern, and its managers have worked according to American
methods. Its lines cost much more to construct than was expected, and there has been some criticism of the government for
failure to exercise its supervisory powers with sufficient vigor.
So far, the interest on its construction bonds has been paid by
the government, and the prospects for any relief within the thirtyyear period are not good. It is probable that neither the Cebu
nor the Panay lines can be made to pay under present conditions.
The former has not sufficient territory tributary to it, and probably will never pay. The Panay line, extending from the city
of Iloilo to Capiz, may become profitable after the country has
been developed. A system of short highways extending at right
angles to the railroad and into the rich valleys should double the
marketable products. Unless energetic measures are taken to
create freight and traffic, it is very probable that the bonds of
the company will ultimately have to be protected by the government.
The Spanish government granted a franchise for a tramway
line in the city of Manila and a dilapidated system was in operation at the time of the American occupation. A new franchise,
which included lighting for the city, was granted to Mr. Charles
M. Swift, who organized the Manila Electric Railroad and Light
Company, which purchased the property of the old concern and
installed a street railway system which is modern in all respects.24
A subsidiary company, the Manila Suburban Railways Company,
which also carried some freight, has extended the system to Fort
McKinley and Pasig.
The construction of good roads in various parts of the islands
has made possible the extensive use of automobiles for passen23 Resolution of March 13, 1912.
24 In 1912 this company owned 114 cars and carried 15,878,821 passengers.
See Rept. Phil. Corn., 1913.




316


THE PHILIPPINES


ger and freight traffic. In certain provinces passenger cars and
freight trucks make regular trips between the towns and villages and serve many communities which have not yet been
reached by the railways. The system is susceptible of almost indefinite expansion.
An automobile line from the terminus of the Manila Railroad
line at Camp One to Baguio, over the Benguet road, which has
been operated by the government since 1909, has carried thousands of travelers and vast quantities of freight to and from the
summer capital. This traffic was originally handled by mule
teams and ox carts, but these were gradually replaced by various
types of automobiles. The service was improved from time to
time until, in 1912, by means of specially constructed De Dion
Bouton passenger cars and freight trucks, the line, operated in
all respects like a railroad, with a regular block system of gates
and gate-keepers, and a telephone line, carried over 19,000 passengers and 5,161 tons of freight without accident or injury to
any one, at an expense of $109,500, and with total receipts of
$110,500. It will, of course, be discontinued when the railway
reaches Baguio.




CHAPTER XV


Transportation and Communication
III
THE POSTAL AND TELEGRAPH SERVICE
Its Importance-Early Methods-Gradual Expansion-An Independent Service-The Metric System-Money Orders-The Parcel-Post-Attempts to Improve the Foreign Service-Acquisition of Telegraph Lines from ArmyTraining of Telegraphers-The Cables-Wireless Stations Acquired-Plan
for Joint Wireless Service-Franchise Granted the Marconi Company-Summary of Results-Postal Savings Bank.
When John Stanhope was Master of the Posts for Queen
Elizabeth, his duties were confined to forwarding government
despatches. His official descendant not only forwards the correspondence of his government, but carries the farmers' eggs and
chickens to market and returns the required groceries and drygoods to the farm-house gate.
The social, as well as commercial, importance of the modern
post-office can not well be overestimated. Few, if any governmental activities exercise so wide and penetrating an influence
upon national life and character. The field of operation of the
postal service has been constantly expanding until it now carries
great quantities of goods, wares and merchandise, in competition
with the railway and express companies.
Nevertheless, the primary purpose of a department of posts
is the transmission of intelligence in the physical form of the
written word or in its sound equivalents.
In a country like the Philippines, where the people are isolated
on their several islands, separated by narrow dangerous seas or
inaccessible mountain ranges, an efficient postal service is very
desirable. It means the breaking down of intangible as well as
317




318


THE PHILIPPINES


physical barriers to intercourse, and a resultant birth of intellectual curiosity and interest in public affairs. The service which
the American government has given the Filipinos has already
had an appreciable influence upon their lives and characters.
For some time after the occupation of Manila the handling of
the soldiers' mail occupied most of the time of the clerks who had
been sent with the troops by the Post-Office Department. An enterprising representative of the mail service managed to enter
Manila ahead of schedule, and when the troops arrived they
found him in charge of the old Spanish post-office on the Escolta and ready for business. Thereafter, as rapidly as towns
were occupied by the army, post-offices were opened. Soldiers
were detailed for the clerical work, and many of them took their
discharges and entered the postal service as civilian employees.
The old Spanish regulations, which required all steamers authorized to engage in interisland traffic to carry the mails without
charge, were continued in force, and postal communication was
thus gradually resumed, along with the restoration of commerce.
No attempt was made to open post-offices in territory not occupied by the American troops. The Municipal Code authorized
newly-organized municipalities to reestablish the former Spanish
service and maintain postal communication with one another until
such time as the central government should assume control. The
extension of the service throughout the islands was thus gradually secured.
On May 1, 1900, the postal service was turned over to the government of the Philippines, which has ever since received the
revenues and borne all the expenses connected therewith. As a
matter of convenience, however, the United States postal laws
have been treated as in force in the islands, except when superseded by local legislation. The Philippine government became a
member of the International Postal Union, and the Bureau of
Posts is, in all respects, conducted as an independent service.
The antiquated system of weights and measures, to which the
United States government still adheres, made it difficult to extend
the use of the metric system to the Philippine postal service until




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 319


long after it was in use in all other bureaus of that government.
On July 1, 1901, the money-order service was also made independent of the United States government. The Spanish government had no such service and it was necessary to educate the
Filipinos in its use. They are not yet absolutely confident that
it is safer to transmit money by a post-office money order than to
send the currency or money by mail. In 1903 the postmastergeneral arranged that the parcels-post conventions between the
United States and other countries should include the Philippines,
but the arrangement was cumbersome and very little such business was done.
Upon assuming charge of the Department of Commerce and
Police, in February, 1910, I found a mass of correspondence
with the postmaster-general of the United States and with
the postal authorities of Japan, with reference to money-order and parcels-post arrangements between the Philippines and
the Empire of Japan. Although the correspondence had extended over ten years, nothing of importance had been accomplished. The money-order service between the United States and
the Philippines was satisfactory, but there was no direct service
to any other country. The Manila merchant who desired to send
a few dollars to Hong Kong, Singapore, Batavia or Japan, had
to buy an order on San Francisco and send it there, where it
would be reissued and a new one mailed to the country where
the remittance was to go. Soon after the American occupation
the Japanese postal department expressed a desire for direct
money-order communication with the Philippines. Its offer was
at first declined because of the unsettled condition of affairs. Subsequently renewed on the initiative of Japan, it resulted in the
preparation of a convention which was satisfactory to both governments. Governor-General Smith then became fearful that
he was assuming the powers of a ruler of an independent government and declined to sign, on the ground that the agreement
was in effect a treaty which the government of the Philippines
had no power to enter into. The War Department approved




320


THE PHILIPPINES


his action and the entire matter was referred back to the postmaster-general, who opened negotiations through the Japanese
ambassador at Washington. The matter dragged along until Mr.
Forbes became governor-general. He was a man who was not
afraid to assume authority when the result would be to accomplish something manifestly desirable for the islands. It was easy
to satisfy him that the Philippine government had authority to
enter into business contracts with the postal authorities of other
countries, and a reconsideration of the matter was secured, with
the result that Secretary of War Dickinson reversed the former
rulings of the department and authorized the Philippine government to make its own postal arrangements. Negotiations were
thereupon opened with Japan, China, Hong Kong, the Straits
Settlements, Australia, Netherlands, India and British India. A
convention was promptly signed with the colony of Hong Kong,
and matters were progressing as rapidly with the other countries
as tropical lethargy would permit, when in the spring of 1912
the department passed from under my control. Thereafter a
new policy seems to have been adopted.
During 1912 a parcels-post service was inaugurated within
the islands by executive action, before it was introduced into the
United States. For reasons of an extremely technical character,
the postmaster-general of the United States refused to sign an
agreement providing for parcels-post service between the United
States and the Philippines after the same had been prepared in
his office, and it was not established until 1913, when it was
specifically provided for by Congress.'
The Philippine government operates an interisland telegraph
and cable system in connection with the postal service. Originally it controlled also the telephone lines, but these were either
converted into telegraph lines or transferred to the various provincial governments. Prior to July, 1900, the signal corps of the
1 On March 29, 1912, nearly two years after the writer, under Secretary
Dickinson's ruling, was engaged in negotiating money-order and parcels-post
conventions with Japan and other countries, the attorney-general of the
United States rendered an opinion fully sustaining the power of the Philippine government. See Opinions Attorney-General, XXIX, p. 380.




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TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 321


army had constructed and operated 2,931 miles of joint telegraph
and telephone lines, and 210 miles of cable. Some further extensions of the telegraph service were made, but as order was
restored in the country the necessity for its control by the army
ceased, and the superfluous lines were transferred to the civil
government under an arrangement by which the military authorities received free service for official business. This was continued until the reorganization of the bureaus in 1905, after
which full payment for services rendered was made by the army
as well as the insular government bureaus and officials. Ultimately all the telegraph lines were transferred, and since 1909
the service has been controlled and supported entirely by the
government of the Philippines.2
The Bureau of Posts probably contains a greater percentage
of Filipino employees than any other large bureau. Filipinos
make good telegraph and postal employees. Nearly all the postoffices, which include the telegraph service, are under the direct
control of Filipinos who have been trained and prepared for the
work in a school maintained and conducted by the Bureau of
Posts at Manila.3
Most of the military telegraph lines and cables had been
hastily constructed with such material as was available. The
cables, particularly, were not always well located. During the
years 1910-1911 many of them were taken up and laid on more
economical and commercially advantageous routes. The currents
and the peculiar formation of the bottom of the ocean in that
part of the world make cable maintenance very expensive.4 The
lines were often out of order and an expensive cable ship had to
2 They were first administered by the telegraph division of the Bureau of
Constabulary, which was created by Act No. 461, Sept. 15, 1902, for the purpose.
The reorganization law of Oct. 26, 1905 (Act No. 1407), which became
effective Jan. 1, 1906, provided for the transfer of the telegraph business to
the Bureau of Posts of the Department of Commerce and Police. It took
over 2,574 miles of land telegraph wires, 199 miles of cable, 2,160 miles of
telegraph line, 96 telegraph offices, 450 telephone stations, and 307 district
inspectors.
3 January 1, 1916, there were 103 American and 2,231 Filipino employees in
the postal service.
4 It cost, on an average, one thousand dollars per mile to lay new cable.




322


THE PHILIPPINES


be maintained for the work of repair and reconstruction.' The
government was subject to constant criticism by the commercial
communities6 for its failure to maintain the cable service in good
condition. It seemed that a solution of the vexatious problem of
interisland telegraph communication could be found in the installation of wireless telegraphy, which had then reached the stage
of reasonable efficiency. It was comparatively cheap and was
capable of indefinite expansion..It was an opportunity to do for
the islands of the Archipelago what the author of the Penny Post
hoped to do for the British Empire-"make intercourse between
their severed coasts as easy as speech, as free as air."
"You would call a friend from half across the world?
If you'll let us have his name and town and state,
You shall see and hear your crackling questions hurled
Across the Arch of Heaven while you wait."
A system of wireless stations would provide not only communication between the islands, but also with the cities of the China
coast and Japan.
The subject had for several years engaged the attention of the
civil and military authorities and various sites had been reserved
for wireless stations. The army stations at Malabang and Zamboanga in Mindanao, and Jolo on the island of Jolo, had been transferred to the insular government along with the telegraph lines
and cables. In the light of experience in the United States it
was believed to be wise to reserve the entire wireless field for
the government, and until the policy was definitely determined,
deny to private persons the privilege of installing wireless plants.
In the spring of 1911 President Taft, at the request of the
governor-general, appointed a board to study and make recommendations relative to the construction, operation, maintenance
5 The Spanish ship Rita, which was captured by the Yale near Habana,
was made into a cable ship, and, under the name of the Burnside, laid the
cables in the southern islands. For an interesting account of the work, see
A Woman's Journey Through the Philippines, by F. K. Russell (1907). In
1910 the Philippine government acquired the cable ship Rizal and took over
the work.
6 See Cable News-American, July 23 and 24, 1910; Manila Times, July 20,
1910.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 323


and management of a system of wireless telegraphy for the joint
use of the civil government, the army and the navy. This board
consisted of Commissioner Charles B. Elliott, Secretary of Commerce and Police of the Philippine Islands; Lieutenant-Colonel
George P. Scriven, Signal Corps, U. S. Army, and Commander
Chester M. Knepper, U. S. Navy. The object was to secure a
single and economical system for the three services without
duplication. An exhaustive study of the subject was made and
in February, 1912, the board made a preliminary report to the
secretary of war7 in which it was recommended that a system of
fourteen stations be established in conjunction with the existing
land lines and cables for the administrative purposes of the government of the Philippines and the army and navy; the transmission of information as to weather conditions for the benefit of
the government, the merchant marine and exposed communities;
the requirements of the business interests in time of peace and
the strategic and technical interests of the army and navy in
time of war. The stations recommended for immediate construction were divided into two groups, the first consisting of six
high power stations, and the second of eight stations of intermediate power capable of maintaining communication with the
nearest high power station. A third group of twenty-eight low
power stations was recommended for construction in the future
as money for the purpose became available.
It was estimated that the fourteen stations could be constructed
for three hundred thousand dollars, and it was recommended that
the United States government, for the use by the army and
navy, should pay one hundred and sixty-five thousand dollars and
the government of the Philippines one hundred and thirty-five
thousand dollars.8  It was provided that in time of peace the
stations should be operated by the government of the Philippines
through the Bureau of Posts, and that all of its departments, and
the army and navy, should pay a reasonable charge for services
rendered. In time of war or threatened disturbance of the peace
7 Preliminary Report of the Joint Wireless Board (Manila, 1912).
8 The Reviewing Board at Washington recommended that the expense be
divided equally between the two governments.




324


THE PHILIPPINES


of the islands, the entire plant should be turned over to the
military authorities. A board appointed by President Taft to review the report of the joint board approved the same with a few
minor changes and recommended that Congress be asked to appropriate one-half of the amount necessary for construction and
that the sum, with an equal amount to be piovided by the insular
government, "should be placed to the credit of the executive head
of a Board of Control which shall be convened in the Philippines,
to consist of the Secretary of Commerce and Police of the Insular
government or his representative; the admiral commanding the
station or his representative; and the general commanding the
division or his representative; and that the executive head of the
Board shall be the Secretary of Commerce and Police of the
Philippine Islands." The money was to be expended by the executive head of this board under the direction of the board and
with the approval of the president of the United States.
President Taft, on February 8, 1912, sent these reports to
Congress with his approval and recommendation of the necessary
appropriation. The government of the Philippines set aside its
share of the money but owing to a change of party control in the
House of Representatives, no action was taken by Congress. The
committee on insular affairs refused to recommend an appropriation of money for expenditure in the islands apparently because
the Democratic party intended to withdraw the American control
and grant independence to the islands. The effect was to render
useless for the time being all the work that had been done on a
plan which met with the approval of all persons competent to
speak on the subject and which would have been of the greatest
value to the islands and the government of the United States.
The entire cost of construction of the wireless plants would not
have equaled the cost of repairs and maintenance of the cables
during a very few years; and the service rendered would have
been infinitely superior.
These special efforts made to improve the postal telegraph, and
other facilities for communication between the islands and with
foreign countries was a part of the general policy of material




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 325


and commercial development of the Taft regime, and although
but partially successful, they must be given due weight in determining the nature of the work of the American government.
The Harrison administration abandoned the policy of government control of wireless stations and granted a franchise to the
Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company, subject to the approval
of the secretary of war, with the absurd condition that the company should admit in writing information of a certain message
of President Wilson and the "reply message of the Philippine
Assembly of October 16, 1913," and agree "not to do anything
by means of contributions in cash or otherwise, against the policy
of the government of the United States and the aspirations of
the Filipino people set forth in said messages whether under the
pretext of vested interests or any other pretext." If the company
avails itself of this arrangement it will, of course, be necessary
for the army and navy to construct and maintain independent systems and the government of the Philippines and the commercial
interests will be deprived of the advantages which would accrue
from a single joint system. Even increased and improved means
of communication were thus subordinated to the exigencies of
party policy.
Statistics showing the number of letters and packages handled
by a postal department convey no clear idea of the extent and
importance of the service. It is sufficient to say that the Philippine service is very efficient, has been economically administered,
is constantly growing and has been already extended until it
reaches almost every barrio in the islands.
The Bureau of Posts has also handled the Postal SavingsBank, which has proved of very great value to the Philippine
people. On January 1, 1916, the deposits amounted to $1,601,794.66, and about eighty-six per cent. of the depositors were Filipinos.




CHAPTER XVI


Transportation and Communication
IV
WATER TRANSPORTATION-NAVIGATION
Importance of Water Transportation-The Coast Survey-Lights and Lighthouses-The Weather Bureau-The Absence of Harbors-Harbor Construction-Iloilo-Cebu-New Manila Harbor-Foreign Steamship Service-Effect
of War and Congressional Legislation-Interisland Transportation-Old
Spanish Methods-Necessity for Government Ships-The New Bureau-The
Coast Guard Steamers-Plan to Create New Merchant Marine-The Contract System-Subsidies-The Results-The Bureau of Navigation and Its
Troubles-Abolished in 1914-The Cable Ship-River Improvements.
For the Philippines, water transportation will always be of
even greater importance than land transportation. The Archipelago is separated from the American continents by the broad
Pacific and from the coasts of Asia by the turbulent waters of the
China Sea. It is a maritime country in the strictest sense of the
word. The straits and channels which separate its islands and
the rivers which penetrate its lands, are the arteries and veins
through which flow the lifeblood of its commerce. Their obstruction means commercial stagnation, isolation and death.
Under such conditions, the provisions for a merchant marine
and for the safety of navigation are of primary importance.
An inspection of the map suggests that the Philippine Archipelago is situated at the crossing of the natural ocean highways
and that Manila is one of the most accessible of the Far East
ports. In fact, however, the political and commercial development
of the world was such as to throw the Philippines far to one side
of the lines of trade. For many years prior to the American occupation ordinary communication with the outside world was by
326




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 327


means of two cable lines and a monthly steamer from Spain and
occasional small ships from Hong Kong. The Spanish mail boats
were slow, unsanitary and impossible from the standpoint of
the traveler. Those which traversed the monsoon-cursed sea
between Hong Kong and Manila were generally of draft shallow
enough to allow them to enter the Pasig River. The monsoons
blow for six months from the southwest and the rest of the year
from the northwest. From one direction or the other, they are
always coming, and the ship's route either way lies aslant the tossing seas. The narratives of travelers of that period are filled
with accounts of doleful experiences. One unhappy visitor to
the islands wrote that his ship developed such a corkscrew motion
on the way to Manila that he feared it would take a return trip
against the other monsoon, to untwist the feelings of her passengers. The inaccurate charts and insufficient lights on the coasts
rendered navigation very unsafe. The western coast and channels had been charted by the Spaniards and English, but, generally
speaking, the Philippine waters were unsafe for shipping.
Marine surveys are of general as well as local importance, and
it was only reasonable that the United States government should
bear a portion of the expense of a complete coast and geodetic
survey. An arrangement was therefore made under which the
coast waters were to be resurveyed and recharted. The work was
placed under the general control of the superintendent of the
Coast and Geodetic Survey at Washington, who detailed an officer to act as director of a bureau of the Philippine government.
Under this arrangement, which has proved very satisfactory, the
United States government has paid about fifty-five per cent. and
the Philippine government forty-five per cent. of the cost of the
work. At the present time approximately ninety per cent. of the
survey has been completed and if it proceeds without interruption the coast will soon be completely resurveyed and charted.
In addition to the new charts, which have no superior, the bureau
has issued several volumes of sailing instructions which are kept
up-to-date, and has furnished much other information of the
greatest value to the maritime world.




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THE PHILIPPINES


Ships avoid an unlighted coast as men avoid a pestilence.
When the insurrection broke out in 1896 the Spaniards had in
operation twenty-eight lights, one-half of which were flashing
and the other fixed minor lights. The American government
took over their uncompleted structures and carried the work forward with so much energy and skill that now few coasts are better protected by lights than those of the Philippines.
In the year 1902 there were fifty-seven lighthouses in operation
and these had, by the end of the year 1912, been increased to one
hundred and forty-five. This, of course, does not include the
innumerable small lights and thousands of buoys and other devices for the safety of navigation.
For many years the Jesuit Fathers maintained a weather service at Manila which was noted for its efficiency. Its forecasts
of weather conditions had been of great value to the shipping interests of the East. Special attention had been given to the
study of the destructive typhoons which, during certain seasons
of the year, frequent that part of the world. Father Jose Algue
had invented an instrument, a sort of barometer, which enables
navigators to receive warning of the approach and general direction of the storms. This service was taken over and Father
Algue was made director of a government weather bureau. It is
safe to say that many thousands of lives and millions of dollars'
worth of property have been saved by the timely warnings furnished by this bureau. In connection with the telegraph and
wireless service, it is now always possible to give two or three
days' notice of the approach of a typhoon, and this is generally
sufficient to enable ships to be safely in port or far enough out at
sea to be comparatively safe.
Attention has been called to the fact that the Filipinos and
Spaniards, in building their cities, located them as far as possible
from the natural harbors which were available to raiding Moro
pirates. Manila Bay is not a harbor, being twenty-five miles
across, and the city at the mouth of the Pasig River faces what is
really the open sea. Zamboanga also is located on an open roadstead, although there are good natural harbors within a few




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 329


miles of it. Capiz is within twenty miles of a splendid natural
harbor at Batan. Dagupan, located on a river behind shifting
sandbars, is but a few miles from Sual, where there is a perfectly
protected natural harbor. Batangas, Catbalogan, Legaspi, and
other towns, illustrate the same practise.
The absence of harbors, and suitable docks and wharves, was
not only a serious menace to the safety of shipping but a positive
restriction upon commercial development. Where there is a wellprotected harbor, as at Hong Kong, it is possible, under favorable
weather conditions, to handle and land passengers and freight by
means of launches, lighters, cascos and sampans, and this was
the universal custom in all eastern ports. In fact, Manila is the
only port, even now, where ocean steamers land passengers and
freight upon modern piers.
Prior to 1900 there was not a single good harbor in use in the
whole Philippine Archipelago. At present the ports of Manila,
Cebu and Iloilo are equal, if not superior, to any in the Orient,
and great improvement has been made in many of the less important ports. At the sugar shipping port of Bais, a stone causeway a mile and a half in length has been constructed on the end
of which there is a warehouse for the temporary storage of sugar.
The port of Pandan, in Ilocos Sur, has been materially improved.
At Paracale, in the mining district of Ambos Camarines, a reenforced concrete pier about five hundred feet in length reaches
fifteen feet of water. Channels have been blasted in the reefs
which surround certain of the islands of the Batanes group, which
has rendered their approach reasonably safe. An expensive selfdriving combination snag boat, pile driver and dredge has for
some time been maintained on the Cagayan River. Many surveys
of minor ports have been made and work of this character is being done as rapidly as money for the purpose can be obtained.
Considerable has been done in the way of river improvement for
the purpose of improving navigation and protecting the country
from the effects of inundations.
Cebu, the second city in size in the islands, is situated on an
open channel and the port works there consist of a sea wall nearly
I 




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THE PHILIPPINES


three thousand feet long on water dredged to depths averaging
about twenty feet at low water. A wharf eight hundred and
twelve feet in length is in process of construction and, as ships
of the largest size come to Cebu, it will be necessary ultimately to
dredge the harbor to a depth of at least thirty feet. In constructing the sea wall, the material dredged from the sea was used to
reclaim the adjoining lowlands, and about ten acres of land was
built up and is now occupied by streets and substantial buildings.
The city of Iloilo is located at the mouth of a river which has
been used for harbor purposes. Seven hundred and eighty feet
of river wall and thirteen hundred feet of reenforced concrete
wharf to accommodate vessels of eighteen feet draft at low
water have been built along the south bank of the river. The
lower part of the river has been dredged to twenty feet at low
water, a middle space to eighteen feet, and the upper part to fifteen feet.
Here, as at Cebu, the material taken from the river was utilized
to reclaim the adjacent lowland.
The development of the port of Manila has been on a scale of
great magnitude. As already stated, we found the city located
on an open roadstead with harbor facilities only for such small
steamers as were able to go up the Pasig River. The Spaniards
had made elaborate preliminary plans for the construction of a
breakwater, and the western part of the present breakwater was
about half completed but no dredging had been done.
The Spanish plans were considerably changed by the American
engineers. In 1905 contracts were let for the completion of
the breakwater, the excavation of the harbor, and the deposit
of the material taken therefrom behind a bulkhead so as to reclaim the land along the water front.' The work, including the
dredging of the Pasig River, which constitutes a sort of inner
harbor, was substantially completed by 1907 at a cost of approximately four million five hundred thousand dollars. The result
is a deep-water harbor enclosed by two breakwaters, having a
1 The valuable land thus created is owned by the insular government and
leased to parties who will construct suitable buildings for warehouses and
wholesale purposes.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 331


total length of almost twelve thousand feet, a great part of which
is dredged to a uniform depth of thirty feet. Two steel and concrete piers, one six hundred and fifty feet long and one hundred
and ten feet wide, the other six hundred feet long and seventy
feet wide, with a total covered area of ninety-two thousand
square feet, extend from the shore into the harbor. The largest
steamers in the Pacific unload their freight directly upon these
piers. Another pier, of similar character and dimensions, was
constructed by the military authorities for the use of the army
transports and other such vessels.
The business of the port has grown so rapidly that additional
piers are badly needed and within a few years the entire space
within the breakwater will have to be dredged to accommodate
large steamers.
During and for some time after the close of the war communication with the coasts of Asia and America was maintained
by vessels under the control of the United States. As soon as
possible after the return of peace, the government transports
were replaced by commercial vessels, but the War Department
continued to operate at least one transport per month each way
between San Francisco and Manila. Through the active efforts
of the Philippine government the service had been so greatly improved that when the European war commenced American, German, Spanish and Japanese ships were making regular trips to
Manila. Fine new steamers were making regular bi-weekly trips
between Manila and Hong Kong. The Pacific Mail Company had
for some time been running its great ships from Nagasaki to Hong
Kong by way of Manila, thus giving direct communication from
San Francisco by way of Honolulu and Japan to the Philippines
by ships flying the American flag. Easy connection at Hong Kong
was made with the British lines from Europe and Canada and
with the ships of the Great Northern Railway Company, sailing
from Seattle. So important had Manila become as a port that it
was not unusual to see, at one time, half a hundred ocean-going
passenger and freight steamers in the harbor. The European war
resulted in the elimination of the German ships and the with



332


THE PHILIPPINES


drawal for government use of many of the British vessels, thus
leaving the Philippines without adequate transportation to
Europe. About the same time Congress adopted the fatuous
Merchant Marine Law which forced all ships flying the American
flag out of the Pacific trade and placed the traffic in the hands
of the Japanese.
The war and insurrection had left the interisland transportation system greatly demoralized. In order to appreciate what was
finally accomplished it is necessary to bear in mind the conditions
prior to the war. The natives carried on their small interisland
trade by means of primitive sailing crafts and the Spaniards sent
their crazy little steamers wandering in and out among the
islands, picking up the products of the country as opportunity
offered and carrying them to Manila, Cebu and Iloilo, where they
were turned over to the exporting houses. Neither the ships nor
their methods of doing business were subject to any form of effective government inspection or control. They were tramps, going when and where they pleased, buying hemp, copra and other
products at their own prices. The abuses of the system were not
an unconsidered factor in arousing the spirit of resentment and
dissatisfaction which led to the insurrection. During the war,
many of these boats were utilized by the government for the
transport of troops and supplies, and the very high rates paid for
their charter or for carrying freight enabled their owners to gain
abnormal profits. Practically none of these earnings were used
for maintenance and when the brief period of prosperity ended
but few of the ships were in a seaworthy condition. Under the
new government the old business methods could no longer be resorted to. New ships, new men and new methods were required.
A new merchant marine had to be created.
It was necessary to keep in close touch with all the outlying
districts. The new local governments in the provinces and municipalities required the closest inspection and supervision. The
protection of the revenue necessitated the careful guarding of
the coasts against smugglers and dealers in contraband articles
such as opium and arms. The public safety, as well as the re



TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 333


quirements of the postal and revenue service, and the general administrative work of the insular government, required the government to maintain its own ships.
A new bureau was created and charged with the duty of
guarding the coasts, operating all government ships, the construction and maintenance of harbors, lighthouses, and the other agencies for securing the safety of navigation, and assisting the other
bureaus by carrying the mails, constabulary soldiers, revenue officers, officials and government freight.
For administrative purposes the coast was divided into twentyone circuits, each averaging about six hundred and fifty miles,
determined with reference to communication between the provincial capitals and the coast towns of the several provinces; and provision was made for the assigning of one government vessel to
each of the circuits. As suitable boats could not be purchased,
contracts were entered into with a shipbuilding concern at Shanghai for the construction of ten ocean-going coast guard vessels, and these were built in due time. A contract with a Japanese company at Yokohama for the construction of five boats of
substantially the same kind proved unfortunate and the government, after suffering a substantial loss, relet the contract to the
Shanghai company. The fifteen boats cost $1,570,000 and were
for some time thereafter operated at an annual expense of approximately half a million dollars. In 1903 Governor-General
Wright was able to report that all these vessels had been delivered
and were being operated along routes and upon schedules so arranged as to give regular service at short intervals, to all parts of
the Archipelago, and that "through their instrumentality, the
Insular government and the various bureaus thereof are able to
keep in fairly close touch with all points of the islands."
During the year 1904 these coast guard boats, operating on
eleven routes, traveled 350,000 miles, visited over 4,000 ports,
carried 5,000 passengers, and over 5,000 tons of freight.
Very naturally, the commercial ship owners complained of
the loss of the business which they had abused and appealed to
the government for assistance. Although the government had




334


THE PHILIPPINES


been forced to provide transportation for itself because of the inadequacy of the privately owned ships and the unscrupulous
methods of their owners, it had no desire to compete unnecessarily with private enterprise, if any such thing could be found.
It was more than willing to give way if any method could be
devised by which it and the general public could be assured of
regular and adequate service at reasonable and uniform rates. A
plan was finally worked out which seemed to assure this and embodied in a law which contemplated the withdrawal of the government ships from the trade routes and the substitution of commercial vessels operating under contracts with the government
which should fix the routes, the standard of shipping, the schedules of sailings, and the rates which should be charged for passengers and freight, which should be the same for the government
and the general public. The law also created a superintendent of
interisland transporatation who was charged with the duty of
seeing that the shipping concerns lived up to their contracts, maintained their vessels according to the required specifications, and
rendered good service to the government and the public.2
The law contemplated the payment of small subsidies varying
according to the commercial importance of the routes, in return
for which the contractees were required to carry the mails free,
arrange their ships to conform to designated plans and specifications, maintain them in sanitary condition and observe strictly
the established schedules of sailings to and from the named ports.
They were given a monopoly of all government transportation
business on the routes, at reasonable rates, to be agreed upon
subject to the approval of a board of rate regulation. Effective
government control was secured by a provision that violations of
the contract should be punished by a fine, to be deducted from
the monthly payments due on the subsidies.
The first difficulty was to find parties who were willing to
assume these obligations for a reasonable subsidy. Bids upon
twenty-one designated routes were advertised for in the United
States and the Philippines, and early in 1906 five-year contracts
2 Act No. 1310, March 23, 1905.




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 335


were let on thirteen of the most important routes, on terms which
required the payment of subsidies of from five to twenty thousand dollars per year on the different routes, making an aggregate
charge of $101,678 per year.
The government then retired from the transportation business
on the contracted routes, but continued to operate the coast guard
boats upon the commercially undesirable routes, for the purpose
of serving the isolated ports and developing the business to a
point where a commercial company could be induced to take it
over.
The plan worked very successfully. A number of new ships
were built and the old ones were greatly improved and maintained in what, to their owners, seemed an exaggerated sanitary
condition. After a few rather bitter experiences, they learned
that schedules of sailings must be adhered to,3 and the interisland
commerce was soon flowing peacefully along its natural channels.
When the contracts expired, in 1911, there was no money with
which to renew them as the legislature had failed to make the
necessary appropriation. To avoid the demoralizing effect of
a return to the old system, temporary contracts were made with
the steamship companies under which the old contracts, without
the provision for fines, were continued until such time as an appropriation should be secured. The companies thus assumed the
risk, should no appropriation be made, of operating for a time
without a subsidy. This temporary arrangement continued until
the spring of 1912 when an appropriation of one hundred thousand dollars a year for two years was made. The routes were
then rearranged to conform to existing conditions and contracts
entered into with five shipping companies for service over nine
routes, upon which subsidies aggregating $61,772 a year were
paid. By 1914 conditions had so improved that it was possible
to renew the contracts over a number of routes without payment
of any subsidies.
3 In one instance, a fine of two thousand five hundred dollars was imposed
Upon a ship as penalty for not stopping at the schedule ports. Thereafter it
never missed a port.




336


THE PHILIPPINES


Under the reorganization act of 1905 the Bureau of Coast
Guard and Transportation became the Bureau of Navigation,
and as such continued until 1914, when it was abolished and its
work distributed between the Bureaus of Public Works and Customs. The work of the Bureau of Navigation had been very farreaching in its effects, but its operation was always rather unsatisfactory. There was a tendency, at least during the latter
years of its life, to see large and spend more money than was necessary. The director was seldom able to live within the appropriations and was constantly being charged with extravagance.
The purchase of the twenty-seven-hundred-ton ship Rizal to serve
as a cable ship was a serious mistake in judgment for which
Secretary Forbes was probably more to blame than the director
of the bureau. The attempt to make a ship serve the dual purpose
of a cable ship and an official yacht was predestined to failure.
The uses conflicted. When a cable broke the Rizal was reasonably certain to be somewhere at sea on other duties and expensive
delays resulted. The expense of operating so large a boat was
out of proportion to the benefits, and the Rizal could always be
relied upon by the director as an excuse for his deficits. In 1912
an unsuccessful attempt was made to sell the boat. The last reports show her as partially earning a living by carrying rice and
cement from the China coast to Manila, and it may be assumed
that when the cable breaks the Rizal will be on the wrong side of
the China Sea. However, war freights may have redeemed her
reputation.
The organization of local unions among the sailors of Manila
and the consequent strikes caused uneasiness among the sailors
on the government boats. The coast guard boats each carried a
gatling gun, two one-pound Hotchkiss guns and a complement of
small arms, and the fleet constituted what Governor Taft called
a "civil navy." Finally the legislature provided for "a commissioned and enlisted service within the bureau," to be governed
under miltary law. The service was thereby greatly improved,
but it was never possible to raise it to the same plane as the constabulary, which performed somewhat similar services on land.
For some reason the director, although a former naval officer, was




TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION 337


never able to instil the proper spirit of discipline into his subordinates. The bureau was also unfortunate in being unpopular with
the Filipinos. The merchants regarded it as a formidable business competitor and the development of a large machine-shop at
Engineer's Island aroused bitter antagonism on the part of owners of private shipyards. For a while unpleasant rumors of graft
were floating about and at one time the director had to be placed
on trial on charges preferred by one of his assistants. While
these charges were not sustained, they were generally credited by
that part of the public which is always anxious to believe ill of
public officials. The native papers were constantly demanding
that the bureau should be abolished and this was finally done soon
after the departure of Governor-General Forbes.
Nevertheless, much of the work of the Bureau of Navigation
was essentially fine. The officers, with a few exceptions, were
efficient and devoted to the service. The sturdy coast guard
steamers penetrated into all kinds of waters and some of them
left their bones to bleach on the treacherous reefs with which
the waters abound. Their short history is illuminated by numerous acts of personal courage, daring and heroism on the part of
their commanders and seamen.
With the expenditure of a reasonable outlay, hundreds of the
rivers which meander across the Philippine lowlands can be made
navigable. The heavy rainfall in the mountains scours many of
these rivers to a great depth but forms bars at their mouths which
render access from the ocean difficult. In some instances, where
the obstruction is formed by coral reefs, they have been removed
and the rivers made accessible; but the shifting sandbars require
port works which are beyond the present financial ability of the
government. The time may come when the rivers of the Philippines will be of greater commercial importance than even the
railways.




CHAPTER XVII


Philippine Agriculture
Basis of the Country's Wealth-Undeveloped State of Agriculture-Inherent
Difficulties-Early Work of Bureau of Agriculture-Attempts to Introduce
New Plants and Vegetables-Improving the Domestic Animals-Horses and
Cattle-Farm Machinery-Animal Diseases-Rinderpest and Surra-Policy of
Isolation Adopted in 1910-Its Results-Corn Culture-Native Fruits-Coffee, Tea and Rubber-The Fiber Industry-Hemp, Method of CultivationExports of-Government Grading-The Tobacco Industry-Its Revival-Exports-Sugar, Condition of the Industry-Table of Exports-CocoanutsDevelopment of the Business-Table of Exports-Rice-Its ImportanceNecessity for New Methods-Irrigation-Comparative Failure of the Work
-The New Law of 1912-Farmers' Credits-The Agricultural Bank-Summary of Results.
The Spaniards and Filipinos made earnest efforts to develop
the agricultural resources of the Philippines. They organized
numerous societies and associations to advance the work and established several experimental farms. Some very substantial results were obtained in certain directions and whatever wealth the
country possessed had been produced by the agriculturists. As a
whole, however, Philippine agriculture was a very primitive affair.'
In the tropics the soil, the plants, the animal life, even the inhabitants, and the characteristics of each, are determined by
something over which even the energetic newcomers from temperate climates have little control. Nearness to the equator explains most things. Climate is a fixed and determining factor in
the situation. The soil consists mainly of decomposed rock enFor the conditions of agriculture at various periods, see Agriculture in
the Philippines, by Governor Joseph Basca y Vargas (1784), B. & R., L,
p. 292. For conditions in 1880, see Jagor's Risen, p. 300; B. & R., L, p.
302. For the work of the Economic Society of Friends of the Country, which
was founded in 1781 on the advice of Governor Basca y Vargas, and was
active after 1822, see B. & R., L, pp. 307-322.
338




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


339


riched with decayed organic matter, and when sufficiently watered
it is extremely fertile. It produces luxuriantly the trees, plants
and vegetables for which its elements provide food. The great
heat and excessive moisture stimulate rapid and abundant growth
and quick decay. The same conditions produce the characteristic
animal life of the tropics-abundant, diverse, increasing in variety and numbers as it approaches the lower forms. It is parasitic
and destructive to an almost incredible degree. But nature establishes a sort of equilibrium between the constructive and destructive forces, and both animal and vegetable life flourish in
abundance. But against an alien, whether man, animal, or plant,
all the destructive forces unite and only the most scientific weapons will serve for defense.
It is difficult for a visitor from temperate climes to realize that
a soil that produces so luxuriantly the vegetation of the jungle
will not necessarily produce all the desirable plants of his home
land.2 If the camote will grow, why not the reliable Irish potato;
if the mango, why not the peach; if the scraggy pony can find
sustenance in native grasses, why not the stalwart American
mule?
The American government entered upon the work of rehabilitating and stimulating agriculture with great enthusiasm but the
results of fifteen years' labor have not been very satisfactory.
The comparative failure has been due in part to bad administration, but principally to the inherent difficulties of the situation.
In the early days the Bureau of Agriculture misjudged the problem and by the time it learned that the natives must be taught to
produce more of the staple products of the country by the use
of modern machinery and better methods of cultivation and that
this can be accomplished only by actual demonstration on the
2 "Many exaggerated statements have been made about the inexhaustible
fertility and wonderful resources of the soils of the Philippines by persons
doubtless misled by the luxurious tropical vegetation. While it is true that
vast areas of fertile soils are found that will respond abundantly to modern
cultural methods, there are, also, many localities where agricultural advancement can only be made by considerable expenditure of time and money."
Dorsey, Soil Conditions in the Philippines (1903), Bu. of Agri., Bulletin No. 3.




340


THE PHILIPPINES


ground, it was engaged in a struggle with animal diseases which
absorbed much of its funds and energies.
In the autumn of 1901 Mr. F. Lamson-Scribner, who, on the
recommendation of the secretary of agriculture, had been appointed chief of the bureau which was to be created, was instructed "to secure agricultural machinery, farming tools, and
seeds of American vegetables and field crops, and to visit places
in the United States where practical information likely to be of
value to him in his future work could be obtained, before sailing
for the islands." Having thus qualified himself and been furnished by the Department of Agriculture "with a large and valuable consignment of seeds for experimentation and distribution,
together with a fine set of lantern slides, an extensive collection of
botanical specimens, and many important publications," the new
chief departed to conquer the dragons which, for generations, had
mutilated or destroyed tropical agriculture.
In the spring of 1902 a bureau of agriculture was organized
with an expert in animal industry, a botanist and assistant agrostologist, a soil expert, a tropical agriculturist, an expert in plant
culture and breeding, and an expert in farm machinery and farm
management, to which was soon added an expert in seed and
plant introduction and one on fiber investigation.3
The dominant idea then seemed to be that what the Philippines
really needed was garden seeds. Through the provincial governors and presidentes an extensive mailing list was obtained and
many circular letters were sent to the "more intelligent and progressive persons interested in agriculture." Eighteen thousand
two hundred and fifty packages of field and garden seeds (one
hundred and thirty-four varieties) were distributed to seven hundred and thirty persons, "many of whom have shown a lively
interest in the result of the experiments which they are thus
3 Report of the Secretary of the Interior, Nov. 1, 1902 (Rept. Phil. Corn.,
1900-1903, p. 359).
The Bureau of Agriculture was in the Department of the Interior until
May 12, 1910, when it was transferred to the Department of Public Instruction.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


341


enabled to make." The November 1, 1902, Report of the Secretary of the Interior was a sort of agricultural lyric:
"There seems little doubt," he wrote, "that great good can be
accomplished by this means and that a number of new and valuable plants can be successfully introduced. The better varieties
of tomatoes grow well throughout the Islands. Fairly good Irish
potatoes and peas have been grown in the lowlands near Manila
from American seed; and very fine potatoes, celery, and peas have
been raised from American seed in Benguet. Beets do well in
the lowlands, and radishes are ready for the table in from three
to four weeks after planting. Improved varieties of oranges and
lemons brought from California are flourishing both in the lowlands and in the mountains of Benguet, while pear, peach, apricot,
and plum trees have been successfully introduced in the latter
region."
A soil survey was commenced, designed particularly to ascertain the best localities for the growth of abaca. A botanist visited
the celebrated gardens at Buitenzorg for the purpose of identifying the material he had collected and studying rubber, guttapercha and other plants.4
The opportunity for experimental work with plants presented
by the climate and soil of Baguio in the Benguet Mountains was
believed to be unrivaled. "The climate," wrote the secretary of
the interior, "admits of the growing of a great variety of tropical,
subtropical and temperate zone plants. In the garden of the
governor one may see coffee bushes bearing heavily, fine tea
plants, hothouse gardenias, caladiums, dracaenas, frangipani and
mango trees, all characteristic of the tropics; alsophila tree ferns,
scarlet hibiscus, passion fruit, begonias, hydrangeas, and many
other plants of the subtropical regions; and side by side with these
potatoes, tomatoes, peas, beans, celery and other garden vegetables and monthly roses, all strictly temperate-zone products,
while the neighboring hillsides are covered with pine trees and
produce raspberries and huckleberries in considerable abundance.
A large botanical collection and a fine reference library which the Spanish had collected at Manila were burned in 1897.




342


THE PHILIPPINES... Cabbage, tomatoes, onions, leeks, carrots, turnips, parsnips, beans, peas, cucumbers, marrow, squashes, pumpkins, salsify, Irish potatoes, white oats, wheat, millet and alfalfa were
sown. All of them germinated quickly, and there was nothing
to show that the soil was deficient in plant food."5
A year later it became evident that the task of hustling tropical
agriculture was not going to be such a simple matter. Suspicions
were aroused as to whether the bulletins and even the fine collection of lantern slides which the director had brought out were
going to do the work.
In his annual report for 1903, the secretary of the interior announced that the work of the Bureau of Agriculture during the
last year had been highly satisfactory "so far as the preparation
and publication of bulletins embodying information likely to be
of value to agriculturists is concerned." But, "so far as concerns
the establishment and operation of experimental farms, the stock
farm, the school of agriculture, and the handling of draft animals
imported by the Insular government, it has in many respects
been highly unsatisfactory."
These scientific bulletins were highly interesting and valuable
to the prospective foreign and American investors in agricultural
lands and to the comparatively small number of Filipinos who
could read them, but they were not of much use to the average
native, who could only be reached by practical demonstration of
the advantages of improved methods and the use of modern agricultural machinery. The result had not been commensurate with
the opportunities presented and the funds appropriated.6
The outlook for growing temperate zone vegetables and plants
at Baguio also began to be a trifle cloudy. It was found, according to the secretary, that "the seeds planted... germinated
readily and grew well for a time, but just at the period when they
5 Report of the Secretary of the Interior, Nov. 1, 1902 (Rept. Phil. Corn.,
1900-1903, p. 361).
6 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1900-1903, p. 596. During the year 1907 the Agricultural Extension Work was started and placed in charge of ex-Governor
Pablo Tecson. (Rept. Phil. Corn., 1907, Pt. II, p. 47.) It has since been
actively carried on with good results.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


343


had to depend on the soil for nourishment, the young plants
with few exceptions sickened and died, showing that the soil had
some injurious element or lacked some essential one."7 Some
encouragement was found in the fact that "pumpkins, squashes,
and cucumbers flourished while other vegetables languished."
But the new civilization could not be founded on pumpkins,
squashes and cucumbers alone, and the soil experts were set to
work. It was now learned that Baguio had always had a bad
name among the natives as an agricultural region and the experimental station was transferred to the near-by Trinidad Valley.
In addition to the scientific investigation of conditions affecting
agriculture and the publication and dissemination of information
as to the best ways of increasing the production of the staple
products such as rice, sugar, tobacco and copra, the bureau directed its energies to the improvement of the draft and other
domestic animals, and the eradication of animal diseases. Unfortunately, the fight to preserve the lives of the animals soon
absorbed the greater part of the available funds and time of the
officials.
It is possible that an undue portion of time and money was devoted to the preparation and distribution of bulletins although,
as to this, there is ground for difference of opinion. Some of
these publications, particularly the Agricultural Review, which
was established in 1908, have been very useful and far-reaching in
their influence.
The attempt to introduce new plants and vegetables was not
very successful. As a whole, possibly because too much was expected, it has been disappointing. Nevertheless, some valuable
new food plants and vegetables have been acclimated and are now
in common use by the people. The gardens maintained in connection with the common schools have been the most efficient of all
the agencies for teaching the common people how to cultivate and
use new plants and vegetables.
7Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-1903, p. 600. Later experience showed that the
difficulty was due to improper cultivation. Rept. Phil. Corn., 1904, Pt. II,
p. 68.




344


THE PHILIPPINES


Very naturally, better results have attended the efforts to
improve the native plants. Maguey, a plant similar to what is
known as Yucatan sisal, grows wild in the islands. Its cultivation
has been encouraged and many thousands of the Hawaiian sisal
plant have been distributed and planted. California oranges and
lemons have been grafted on the native citrus trees with some
degree of success. The cultivation of the native tree-cotton,
known locally as kopak, has been encouraged. Attempts to introduce new varieties of sugar cane and rice have not been successful. Japanese rice proved a failure, as did several new varieties
of sugar cane. The government rice farm established in Tarlac
in 1904 was finally abandoned, having "served its purpose," principally in enabling the Filipinos to see rice threshed by machinery.8
In 1911 there were 756,290 acres planted in corn-an increase
of 489,318 acres since 1902. Corn is now the second grain crop
of the country. It will grow in any part of the islands and its
general use as food in connection with the universal rice diet
would vastly improve the physique of the Filipinos.9 The native
hogs, also, which are mostly of the razorback variety, would, if
fed on corn, experience a new birth. Pineapples and guavas grow
wild. The Philippine mango is the best in the world.~1 Bananas
of a good quality grow in almost every native's yard and wild in
unlimited quantities. There is no reasonable doubt but that in
time the coffee industry, once so important,. will be restored.l1
The tea plant grows well in northern Luzon. Para and other
8 In his report for 1906 the secretary of the interior announced that the
rice farm in Tarlac "having served its purpose in an experimental way and
not being suited to the raising of rice on a commercially profitable scale on
account of the soil and the nature of the land, had been discontinued, but not
before results of great importance to the rice growers between Manila and
Dagupan were obtained." The wisdom of the Filipinos in sowing rice first in
seed beds and transplanting it after it has attained considerable size has been
conclusively demonstrated. Rept. Phil. Corn., 1906, p. 46.
9 "There is a great future for corn in the islands and there is no good
reason why this cereal and its by-products should not be exported in large
quantities, after supplying the home demand." Shererd, Corn Culture in the
Philippines (Manila, 1912).
10 The Mango, by P. J. Wester (Manila, 1911).
11 For its history, see Philippine Census (1903), IV, pp. 76 et seq.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


345


rubber trees and plants thrive and prospects for rubber plantations are excellent.l2
It is an extraordinary fact that very few plants and grasses
suitable for food for horses and cattle grow in the Philippines
and it has been necessary to import nearly all the forage for the
use of the government and army from the United States. Attempts to construct "rations" for domestic animals have been
but partially successful.13
Guinea grass is by far the most important plant which has
been introduced and it furnishes an extraordinary amount of
nutritive food for horses, cattle and pigs.
The attempt to raise Irish potatoes in the islands on a large
scale has been a failure. Some success was had at the Trinidad
experimental farm. The military authorities, after elaborate
experiments on the highlands near Lake Laiiao in Mindanao,
finally abandoned the attempt. The plants grew well and there
was an abundance of potatoes, but for some unaccountable reason
they never reached much beyond the size of marbles.l4
A most serious problem has been the saving of the lives of the
draft and other domestic animals from death by diseases, and the
restocking of the country with animals to take the place of the
hundreds and thousands which had been wiped out by rinderpest
and surra.
There had been a shortage of draft animals in the Philippines
for many years. The native farmers were dependent almost entirely upon the carabao. There were no draft horses and the
comparatively few native ponies were seldom used for anything
but riding and drawing carriages and other such light vehicles,
as said in the Report of the Secretary of the Interior for I903.15
12 "Rubber-Producing Capacity of the Philippine Islands," Sen. Doc. 356,
59th Cong., 2nd Sess.
13 A fodder factory has been established near Manila, but the experiments
carried on have not been very encouraging. Report of Secretary of Public
Instruction, 1910.
In 1910 Secretary of War Dickinson appointed a board composed of army
officers and civilians to investigate the forage question.
14 Report Com. Gen. (War Dept., Ann. Repts., 1911, I, 387).
15 Rept. Phil. Corn., 1900-1903, p. 601.




346


THE PHILIPPINES


"No work which legitimately falls within the scope of the work
of the Bureau of Agriculture is at present more important than
that of animal industry. With the dreadful loss of horned cattle
due to rinderpest, the heavy call for native horses in Manila
which has resulted in draining the provinces of good animals,
*.. and the ravages of surra and glanders among the horses
of the archipelago, it has become increasingly important to restock the islands with the draft animals with which the Filipinos
are accustomed, as well as to introduce new draft animals and improve existing breeds."
The government tried importing high-class horses and cattle
from the United States, Australia, Arabia and India, for breeding purposes. Stock farms were established at Trinidad and
Alabang, and stallions, bulls and jacks were sold, loaned and
given to the provincial authorities. The result has been a decided
improvement in the native stock. For a time it was believed that
American and Australian horses would breed and thrive and that
the American mule would become as common as in the southern
states. Probably the plan has not had a fair trial because of the
presence of the diseases which destroyed so many of the imported
animals. However, it soon "became apparent that the raising of
American and Australian horses was not going to be an entire
success."16 Nevertheless it has not been exactly a failure, as there
are now many fine American and Australian horses in the islands
and the number seems to be slowly increasing, notwithstanding
the prevalence of the diseases to which they are so susceptible.
The introduction of dairy cattle has been moderately successful. High grade Jersey cows have done well when they have escaped the diseases, and good milk in limited quantities is now obtainable at Manila. But, as with the horses, the early promise
was not fulfilled and it became necessary to resort to India for
the Nellore cattle which had been accustomed to a similar climate.17 It may thus fairly be said that, on the whole, the attempt
16 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1909, p. 122.
17 "As efforts to introduce improved breeds of cattle from Australia and
America have, on the whole, proved very unsuccessful, it was therefore
deemed advisable to attempt to introduce from India improved breeds of




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


347


to introduce new breeds of horses and cattle from the temperate
climates has not been a great success.
Some progress has been made in the introduction of modern
farm machinery. On the large haciendas steam plows and threshers are in use, but the ordinary Filipino farmer is still plowing
his small tract of land with a wooden plow and a carabao and
threshing it by hand and foot. The traction plows in use are too
heavy and expensive and until a smaller machine, such as the
light farm tractor now in successful use in the United States, is
introduced, the old methods will have to be followed on all but the
great plantations.
It is safe to say that from the beginning of the American occupation at least fifty per cent. of the funds and energies of the
Bureau of Agriculture have been devoted to the work of fighting
pests, which range all the way from  insects to rats and wild
hogs, and animal diseases. Among the former, locusts hold a
bad preeminence. They come as did the grasshoppers in the
western states in former years. Every known device for their
destruction has been tried, but nothing other than killing them
en masse has been successful. Such methods are necessarily only
partially effective, and until the locusts can be exterminated by
some natural enemy such as the parasite that destroyed the
Kansas grasshoppers, they will continue to do great damage to
the crops.
Rinderpest was introduced into the Philippines from India
about 1888, and has, ever since, been present. During 1902-3 it
is probable that seventy-five per cent. of the horned cattle died,
and it became necessary for the government to come to the relief
of the people. Many thousands of these animals were bought
with government money in India and Indo-China and sold to
the farmers at cost, but such relief could be temporary only,
as long as the disease continued to rage. They died faster than
they could be imported.
cattle accustomed to a climate similar to that of the Philippines." Rept. Phil.
Cotn., 1909, p. 123.
The Nellore cattle, with humps, are beautiful animals and thrive in a hot
country.




348


THE PHILIPPINES


For years it was believed possible to render the animals immune by the use of serum. But it was found that after two or
three months the disease returned. Simultaneous injections of
the serum into one side, and the blood of a sick animal into the
other, was believed to be permanently effective. But after several years' experimentation, it became evident that no real progress was being made. As fast as the disease was exterminated
in one locality it appeared in another. In 1910 Doctor A. R.
Ward was appointed chief veterinary and a systematic campaign
against rinderpest was inaugurated under his direction. In his
report for 1911 Secretary Gilbert said:18
"After exhaustive investigation the conclusion was reached
that under the conditions existing in the Philippines, the use of
anti-rinderpest serum was impracticable and it was discontinued.
Following the discontinuance of the use of serum, the effort to
control rinderpest was centered upon the object of keeping animals separated from one another and thus segregating the diseased animals so that they might be placed under restraint in
corrals."
The isolation of the diseased animals necessitated an elaborate
and expensive system of quarantine. Public sentiment among
the natives was antagonistic, and many of the local officials were
not in sympathy with the policy.       Lord Salisbury once said
18 Rept. Phil. Cor., 1911, p. 170.
The government seems now to have abandoned the policy of isolation because of its unpopularity. In his report dated July 1, 1916, Governor-General
Harrison says: "Quarantine might solve the rinderpest problem, but it is difficult of application in a country without fences, where almost all the families
keep one or more carabaos. Moreover, the disease is supposed to be transmitted not only from one carabao to another but also by deer, by dogs and
cats, by pigs, and even by the birds which settle on the backs of the carabao
to relieve them of their insects. Quarantine can, and has reduced the rinderpest, but it is too much to expect that it can bring about the entire elimination of the disease. Simultaneous inoculation has proved very successful in
Iloilo and in Pampanga during the past year, and is being as vigorously pushed
as funds and personnel will permit. It may ultimately become necessary to
adopt the method of purchase and killing by the government of all animals
suspected of having the disease. This is the means by which rinderpest was
ultimately conquered in some near-by countries. The best that can be said in
the Philippines to-day is that the disease is not so prevalent, and deaths less
numerous than at some periods in the past"




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


349


that, "It is easier to combat with the rinderpest or with the
cholera than with public sentiment." Our government has had
to deal with a combination of the three. It was necessary to
maintain the quarantine very strictly in order to accomplish anything and at one time during 1911 a large part of the constabulary, and more than fourteen hundred of the scouts loaned by the
military authorities, were used on the work in the provinces north
of Manila. About the same time a strict quarantine was enforced
against animals coming in from foreign countries. The result
of this policy was that at the end of the year 1912 the disease
had been practically stamped out, and for once the secretary was
able to report that "animal disease is now a comparatively small
factor in the industrial economy of the islands, but potentially
it is a very large factor."19
But the Filipinos were irritated by the severity with which the
quarantine measures had been enforced, and soon after Mr. Harrison became governor-general the legislature took the management of the rinderpest campaign from the Bureau of Agriculture
and transferred it to the provincial governors,20 with very disastrous results. Apparently the disease can be eradicated if the
people are willing, for a time, to submit to the necessary quarantine measures, both internal and external, and in no other way.
The only products at present exported from the Philippines in
any considerable quantities are hemp, tobacco, sugar and copra.
Rice is imported. The fiber industry of the islands is capable of
almost indefinite expansion. Hemp, known locally as abaca and
by botanists as musi textilis, is a plant of which the Philippines
has a natural monopoly. For some reason, all attempts to grow it
elsewhere have failed. In appearance abaca closely resembles the
19 "In all provinces where local officials have cooperated earnestly with the
Bureau of Agriculture, the disease has been either entirely eliminated or very
largely reduced in amount; and of the many towns affected at the close of the
year a great proportion were in one province where cooperation had not been
had." Rept. Phil. Corn., 1913 (War Dept., Ann. Repts., 1913, Vol. IV, p. 256).
20 Act No. 2303, Dec. 13, 1913. This ill-advised law provided that the
director of agriculture should prescribe the measures but "that the provincial
governor of the province concerned shall have the direction of and be responsible for the enforcement of the measures so prescribed."




350


THE PHILIPPINES


edible banana plant which grows in great variety and profusion
throughout the islands. Albay, in the southern part of Luzon,
is at present the principal hemp producing district, although large
quantities grow elsewhere. Certain sections of Mindanao seem
peculiarly adapted for the growth of the plants.2'
Hemp land must be of high fertility and susceptible of good
drainage, moist, but not wet and swampy. As the plants require
shade and a humid atmosphere they grow normally on the mountain slopes and in the valleys where the drainage carries off the
surface water and the trees protect them from sun and wind.
They are not liable to injury to any serious extent by insects.
Much of the product is now gathered from the wild plants and
the industry may be greatly extended by systematic planting and
cultivation.
The small suckers which spring from the roots of the parent
plants are set out in rows from five to eight feet apart. During
the two and a half or three years which the plants require to
reach maturity they must be kept shaded and cultivated enough
to keep the weeds down. When the plants are ready for cutting
the entire stalk is cut as close to the ground as possible, and new
suckers spring up.
The fiber is in the leaf sheaths which surround the central
flower stem or stalk. Each sheath is cut into strips two or three
inches wide and their thick inner portions, which are mainly pulp,
are torn away to render easier the extraction of the long fiber.
The strips thus prepared are drawn by hand between the edge of
a knife blade and a wooden plane, and the watery pulp scraped
from the fiber. As each drawing makes the fiber cleaner and
finer and increases its value and quality, producing a high grade
of hemp is largely a matter of labor. But, as the quality increases,
the weight of the product decreases, and the native worker finds
it hard to sacrifice more pounds and extra labor for high grades.
21 In his story, From the Spanish, Mr. John Masefield says that "the
roping [of the galleon, the Spanish Rose] was of that precious hemp which
grows only on the Sacred Hill (in Igorroti, in Luzon), so that an ell of it was
worth a Florentine crown by the time it reached the Spanish riggers' hands.
It would be interesting to know whether this is all part of the romance.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


351


It is estimated that about one-fourth of the merchantable fiber
is wasted by this primitive method. After being thus prepared
the fiber is exposed in the sun for a few hours and then loosely
packed in bundles and carried to the nearest market where the
hemp buyers have their agents.
It is remarkable that no inventor has been able to devise a machine that will strip hemp economically without injury to the
fiber. As a result the hemp industry is about where the cotton
business was before the invention of the cotton gin. As early as
1843 we find the Economic Society of Friends offering prizes
for the invention of a machine for stripping abaca. The American
government also has offered substantial inducements to encourage
inventors.22 Several machines are now in use, but apparently
they do not give entire satisfaction.
The Bureau of Agriculture has given much attention to the
subject of commercial fiber, but its labors have not been productive of great results. For about ten years the quantity of hemp
exported increased very slowly, but the low prices and the competition with Yucatan sisal depressed and almost discouraged
the growers. Since 1914 the higher price has, to some extent,
made up for the small amount exported.
From 1850 to 1899 the export of hemp increased from 30,388
to 59,840 tons. After the insurrection it jumped to 112,215
tons in 1901. The following table shows the gradual increase in
quantity and value since the year 1899:
MANILA HEMP EXPORTS
Twelve                Totals                      United States
months ending 
December-    Long tons   Dollars   Dollars  Long tons   Dollars  Dllars
per ton                       per ton
1906.........   102,439  19,612,632    191      55,863  11,155,550     200
1907........   115,395  19,689,493    171      51,628  9,316,539      180
1908....129,313         16,501,956    128      60,344  7,797,926      129
1909 *......   165,299  16,896,000    102      99,928  10,434,041     104
1910......      160,595  16,475,311    103      74,335  8,397,310      113
1911........    146,209  14,520,127     99      62,924   6,802,790     108
1912.......    172,311  22,075,671     128     74,805  10,779,137     144
1913......    117,928  21,121,084    179      46,400  9,787,216      211
1914........    114,547  19,194,815    168      49,348   9,619,376     195
1915......... i i139,767  21,339,100    153     68,157  11,351,283     167
22 Rept. Bu. of Agr., April 1, 1905 (Rept. Phil. Cor., 1905, Pt. II, pp.
441-3).




352


THE PHILIPPINES


The hemp business suffers from bad methods of cultivation
and manufacture. The growers have complained of the system
of grading adopted by the buyers, and the exporters of the carelessness and indifference of the producers as to quality.23 It has
been very difficult to induce the producers to take the care which
is necessary to prepare the high grades in demand for making
fine cloths, which have no competition and always bring a good
price. The natives have a theory that the extra price does not
compensate them for the extra labor and reduced quantity. The
quantity of hemp produced can not be very materially increased
until a satisfactory hemp stripping machine is found and plantations are planted and cultivated under expert direction and
control.
Until recently the government has declined to assume any responsibility for the classification and grading of hemp.24 As the
result, apparently, of a systematic study of the subject commenced
in 1911, the legislature, in 1914, provided for government inspection, grading and baling of hemp, maguey, sisal and other
fibers,2 somewhat as wheat and other cereals are graded in the
western states of the Union. The law now imposes upon the director of agriculture the duty "to establish and designate standards for the commercial grading of abaca, maguey, and sisal,
which shall become the official standards of classification throughout the Philippine Islands." The actual grading is required to
be done at the ports of export by persons holding grade permits
from the bureau. If properly administered, this law should have
a very beneficial effect upon the fiber industry of the Philippines.
Tobacco was introduced from Mexico by the Spanish mission23 See Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903, Pt. II, p. 650; Official Gazette, I, pp. 168,
189; Report on Fiber Investigations, Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903, Pt. II, pp. 712 -720.
The export duty on hemp imposed by section 13 of the "Act to raise
revenue for the Philippine Islands of Aug. 5, 1909," was repealed by the
Tariff Law of Oct. 3, 1913. The duty on the hemp imported into the United
States had been remitted. The theory was that the hemp producers would
receive the amount of the duty in increased prices.
24 See the adverse report of Commissioner Wright (Rept. Phil. Corn., 1903,
pp. 351-2).
25 Act No. 2380, Feb. 28, 1914.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


353


aries. From 1781 until 1882 it was maintained as a profitable
government monopoly. The provinces of Cagayan and Isabela
produce most of the better qualities of tobacco, although considerable quantities are grown in other parts of Luzon. The land
suitable for tobacco growing is limited. There is an enormous
domestic consumption of cigars and cigarettes and vast quantities
of both are exported to Europe and the United States. The quality of the tobacco still suffers from careless and unscientific methods of production which have injured the product in the markets
of the world.26 Considerable quantities are produced by small
growers and in parts of Luzon many of the natives have small
tobacco patches in connection with their gardens. But the business is principally in the hands of a few Filipinos and the Conpania General de Tobaco de Filipinas, a Spanish company which
owns large tracts of the best tobacco lands. For a few years after
the American occupation the tobacco industry suffered greatly.
It had lost the markets of England, India and Australia, and
not gained that of the United States. In 1904 the exports
amounted to 705,827 kilograms. The previous year it was
1,235,257 kilograms. For the first half of the year 1905 it
amounted to but 149,828 kilograms. Sefior Rosales told the congressional party which visited Manila in 1905, that but ten per
cent. of the number of women and fifty per cent. of the number
of men formerly employed were then at work in the cigar factories.
The sense of justice latent in the American public finally forced
Congress to disregard the selfish importunities of the home tobacco interests and the Payne Tariff Law of 1909 opened the
markets of the United States to a fixed quantity of the Philippine
products free of duty. This restriction was removed by the
Underwbod Tariff Law of 1913 and the trade is now free, sub26 "Cultivation of Tobacco," by C. W. Dorsey, Farmers' Bulletin, No. 5
(1903), and the testimony of experts before the congressional party which
accompanied Secretary Taft to the Philippines in 1905, particularly that of
Mr. Mauro Prieto, pp. 117-136; Mr. P. Krafft, pp. 79-89, and Senor Jose
Rosales, pp. 106-117, of the pamphlet entitled Public Hearings (Manila,
1905).




354


THE PHILIPPINES


ject to reasonable treasury regulations and the payment of internal revenue tax.
The free entry into the American market of the Philippine tobacco products failed to confirm either the predictions of the
enemies or the anticipations of the friends of the measure. There
was a decided revival of the industry and in 1910, 61,526,000
cigars were exported to the United States. But the unfair trade
methods used against the Philippine cigars injured their reputation in the American market, and in 1914 the exports fell considerably.
The insular government has given every possible encouragement to the tobacco industry, and by a system of inspection and
certification, has neutralized to some extent the misrepresentations made by interested parties in the United States, but it seems
impossible to find good Philippine cigars in the United States
such as are common in Manila. The factories are subject to the
strictest supervision and nowhere in the world are tobacco
products manufactured under more favorable sanitary conditions. The workmen are almost without exception Filipinos.27
The following tables show       the extent and growth of the tobacco industry:
LEAF TOBACCO EXPORTS
Twelve                  Totals                    United States
months ending                          _
December-      Pounds     Dollars  Cents per  Pounds     Dollars  Cents per
Pounds_____________  Dollars_ _  _pound  P o unds D o llars  pound
1906.........  26,685,768  1,767,365    6.62     107,923    6,143      5.69
1907.........  23,587,247  1,576,874    6.69..................
1908.........  24,927,663  1,708,756    6.85....
1909.........  20,909,597  1,532,086    7.33      12,172    1,669     13.71
1910........  21,408,412  1,555,870    7.27      7,436     1,507     20.27
1911.........  26,935,055  1,810,639    6.72      5,611       744     13.26
1912.........  30,837,978  2,173,998    7.05     88,636     12,517    14.12
1913........   28,088,987  1,854,776    6.60      9,888     2,259     22.85
1914.........  28,848,165  1,757,824    6.09     45,598     4,612     10.11
1915.........  24,136,034  1,527,106   6.33     87,384     10,096    11.55
27 A recent Act (No. 2613) provides for the inspection, classification and
packing of tobacco for domestic sale or for export. The law resembles Act
No. 2380, which applied to the fiber industry.
In Kipling's story, The Man from Manila, a traveler, on being informed
that the Spaniards smoked only the cigars of the country, remarked: "Ah,
that accounts for the administration of the country being what it is."




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


355


CIGAR EXPORTS
Twelve                 Totals                     United States
months ending
December-    Thousand    Dollars   Dollars  Thousand    Dollars   Dla
per M   Thousand    Dollars    per M
1906.........    108,635  1,004,007    9.24      1,690     29,670    17.56
1907.........    114,665  1,063,382    9.27      1,526     24,200    15.86
1908.........    115,881  1,059,328    9.14      1,182     18,376    15.55
1909.........    151,457  1,754,529   11.58     37,076    737,396    19.89
1910.........   184,407   2,759,661   14.97     61,526   1,560,799   25.37
1911.........    134,830  1,901,863   14.11     38,112    902,378    23.68
1912.........   190,842   3,092,064   16.20     90,000   1,958,321   21.76
1913........     191,762  3,012,234   15.71     71,513   1,642,888   22.97
1914.........   154,753   2,315,159   14.96     56,205   1,200,126   21.35
1915.........    134,648  2,057,303   15.28     61,170   1,151,222,  18.82
It is possible that sugar will play a greater part in the future
economic life of the Philippines than any other of its agricultural
products. The cane seems to have been introduced into the
islands from Formosa by the Chinese. Until the year 1855 it
was cultivated on a small scale, the planters being inexperienced
and without proper machinery or facilities for marketing the
product. The phenomenal rise in the price of sugar at the time
of the Crimean war gave a great impetus to the business. The
planters were without adequate capital and in the absence of
proper banking facilities, certain commercial firms financed the
business and the production of sugar increased from six thousand tons in 1855 to thirty thousand in 1860, one hundred thousand in 1870, one hundred eighty thousand in 1880, and three
hundred thousand in 1893. Then came a slump due to a financial
crisis, competition with beet sugar and the devastation of war
and animal diseases.
After the restoration of peace the sugar industry was slow to
recuperate. Most of the haciendas outside of Negros were in
ruins. The cost of production had been doubled and what labor
was available was badly demoralized. The planters were in
debt. It was impossible to borrow money upon agricultural lands
at any reasonable rate of interest and prospects were not then
such as to justify the commercial houses or banks in advancing
money upon the security of the future crops.
The thirty years of prosperity had not taught the planters the
necessity for improving their methods of cultivation and manu



356


THE PHILIPPINES


facture. The land was never properly plowed and cultivated
and the machinery in use suggested that it also had come with
the original sugar plants from Formosa and never been repaired.
Irrigation and fertilization were unknown, and the mills never
extracted more than one-half of the sugar from the cane. The
other half and the by-products were thrown away.28
The American government did not at first seem inclined to encourage the industry on a large scale. Governor Taft expressed
himself as opposed to it. The sugar business in tropical countries
had, in fact, an invidious reputation. It was associated in the
public mind with slavery and the abuse of native laborers. The
word had a political, as well as saccharine flavor. It had been
embarrassing, if not fatal, to many governments. "It is strange
indeed," said Lord Beaconsfield in his life of Lord George Bentinck, "that a manufacture which charms infancy and soothes old
age should so    frequently occasion political disaster....
Singular article of produce! What is the reason of this influence? Is it that all considerations mingle in it; not merely
commercial, but imperial, philanthropic, religious; confounding
and crossing each other, and confusing the legislature and the
nation, lost in a maze of intersecting and contending emotions."
In other words, sugar had always been "in politics" and was
destined, for some time, to continue "confusing the Legislature
and the nation."
In addition to their local troubles, the sugar producers were
without a market, and they made a strong appeal to Congress
28 In 1905 Mr. W. C. Welborn, the chief of the Bureau of Agriculture, said:
"In Luzon there is nothing larger than a three-roller mill in use, and I do
not exaggerate when I say that at least half of the mills are driven by carabaos. In Negros there is one five-roller mill of a pattern of twenty-five years
ago; all the rest are three-roller mills, and perhaps average a loss in the total
juice of the cane of about 40 per cent. There is not a vacuum pan in the
whole archipelago, and not one pound of centrifugal sugar is made. The
cooking is done in the old Jamaica train in vogue in other sugar countries
forty years ago. The sugar, molasses and all are boiled down hard and
beaten up with spades and called sugar. It is a brown, lumpy, scorched
sugar, polarizing about 84 degrees and containing a large amount of glucose,
ash and other impurities that prevent much of the indicated 84 per cent. of
sugar from being recovered at the refinery." Public Hearings in the Philippines (1905), p. 49.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


357


for the removal of the duties on Philippine sugar. The original
small reduction of duties proved of no particular value to them
and the business continued to languish until 1909, when the
Payne Bill authorized the admission of two hundred thousand
tons of Philippine sugar into the United States free of duty.
The following table shows that Mr. Welborn was correct when
he told the visiting congressmen that "statistics show that cane
producing countries move slowly, especially tropical cane sugar
countries," and that the prediction of the Louisiana sugar growers that the removal of the duty "would suddenly stimulate production in the Philippines until one million three hundred thousand tons of sugar would be produced in three years" was,
unfortunately, not fulfilled.
SUGAR EXPORTS
Twelve                     Totals                          United States
months ending_ ___ —
December-      Long tons     Dollars    Cent             s per  Lng tons  D s 
pound                               pound
1906.........      127,408    4,554,092       1.60       11,670     422,111        1.61
1907.........      125,896    4,195,671       1.49       10,815     403,851        1.67
1908.........      142,448    5,703,641       1.79      45,969     1,966,166       1.91
1909........      127,284    5,608,287       1.97       52,234    2,649,604       2.26
1910.........     119,552    7,224,385       2.70      99,109     6,214,226      2.80
1911.........      205,392   11,040,673       2.40      184,345   10,067,103       2.44
1912.........      193,962    9,800,340       2.26      171,763    7,005,114      2.37
1913.........      154,848    7,032,889       2.03      30,232     1,564,036      2.31
1914.........      232,761   11,059,593       2.12      166,851    8,241,853      2.21
1915.........     207,679   11,310,215       2.43      81,532     5,141,580      2.82


The Underwood Bill of 1913 removed the restriction as to
quantity and any quantity of Philippine sugar may now enter the
American market free of duty. This result was secured against
the bitter opposition of the cane and beet sugar interests of the
United States.29 Although the quantity of sugar exported in 1915
was 25,082 tons less than in 1914, the prices were so much higher
that the amount realized was greater. In 1915, owing to the
29The Cuban, Hawaiian and beet sugar interests appeared before the
committees at Washington and proved to their own satisfaction that if Philippine sugar was admitted it would swamp their infant industry. For the Philippile side of the controversy, and the general condition of the sugar industry in 1905, see Hearings in Manila, Aug., 1905, statements of Sefior de la
Heras, pp. 7-11; Sefior de la Rama, pp. 22-48, and W. C. Welborn, pp. 48-78.




358


THE PHILIPPINES


high freights, but 81,532 tons were sent to the United States as
against 166,851 for the previous year.
The Philippine sugar business is still badly handicapped. The
raising and manufacture of sugar requires more capital than any
other agricultural industry and, in the face of the present world
competition, it can be made profitable only when carried on on
a large scale. A modern sugar mill such as is used in Cuba and
Hawaii costs about one million dollars, and can be operated only
in connection with a plantation large enough to supply it with
cane. Two such mills have been built in the Philippines with
American capital. But the Philippine laws do not allow a corporation to own more than twenty-five hundred acres of land and
this limitation has seriously embarrassed the efforts to develop the
business. It is claimed that at least five thousand acres are necessary for a successful sugar hacienda. A few large tracts have
been acquired and are being developed by individuals who are
identified with the new mills.
The sale of an isolated friar estate in Mindora to persons who
had been interested in the sugar business in the United States
was made the occasion for a bitter political attack upon the
government by persons who were believed to be acting in the
interest of the American beet-sugar industry. But it failed, and
the estate is being put under cultivation.30 A few small modem
mills have been built by Filipino planters on the large estates in
Negros.
But a large proportion of the Philippine sugar cane is raised
by small farmers who still use the most primitive methods. It is,
of course, impossible for them to construct modern mills and they
have not shown much capacity for cooperative work. For several years the government was urged to treat the sugar industry
as a public business and subsidize it to the extent of constructing
or aiding in the construction of central mills to which the cane
growers could bring their cane as the American farmers used
30 This estate on the island of Mindora has suffered by reason of its isolation and the difficulties in the way of securing labor. The large centrals in
Negros and on the Calamba Estate near Manila depend largely upon cane
brought to them by the surrounding planters.




h..


PHILIPPINE      AGRICULTURE                 359
to carry their wheat and corn to the grist mills. Recently the
government came to the assistance of the planters with loans of
money and it is probable that in the course of time it will construct or finance large mills.
During the last fifteen years the cocoanut trees have become
one of the leading sources of agricultural wealth. In 1902, the
dried fruit of the cocoanut, known as copra, ranked fourth in the
value of export commodities; in 1915 it was second. The chemists have discovered that the cocoanut is the source of various
new food products, and there is now a constantly increasing
demand for copra in Europe and America.
No particular advance has been made in the methods of production, which are still crude, and the Philippine copra, when
compared with that produced in the South Sea islands and elsewhere, is of an inferior grade. This is due, not to the quality
of the nuts, but to the lack of care in drying and handling the
meat.
The beautiful cocoanut palm trees grow luxuriantly on nearly
all of the islands and in some provinces they are cultivated with
reasonable care. Unlike the hemp plant, a cocoanut tree thrives
best when exposed to the strong winds. The trees grow from
the seed, bear in about seven years from the time of transplanting,
and live for about a hundred years. During the first four years
they must be carefully protected from wild hogs and other animals. The nuts are gathered throughout the year and each tree
produces from twenty to fifty nuts each year which net the
owner from fifty cents to one dollar. Cocoanut groves containing from ten thousand to fifty thousand bearing trees are
not uncommon. The size and number of the nuts may be greatly
increased by the irrigation and proper cultivation of the soil.
Excessive dry weather sometimes seriously reduces the crop and,
of course, the trees have their insect enemies.31 In certain sec31 "With the exception of Ceylon, no country in the world has a greater
cocoanut industry than the Philippines. It is therefore not very surprising
that almost every cocoanut disease known in the world occurs in these
islands. Of all these diseases the most dreadful, where it is found, is the bud
rot.     There are many fungi which live upon the cocoanut...
There are a great many insects which live on the cocoanut, but most of them




360               THE PHILIPPINES
tions typhoons occasionally blow down the nuts, but it is safe to
say that no other tree or plant is so little liable to serious injury
as the cocoanut palm. In fact, a good cocoanut plantation is
worth more than an ordinary gold mine.
The cocoanut produces copra, oil and milk. The latter makes
a pleasant, nutritious drink but is not an article of commerce.
The oil is used in making soap, toilet articles, and certain butter
and lard substitutes which do not, like ordinary butter, suffer
from heat and are therefore in great demand in the tropics.
Not much of the oil has heretofore been made in the islands,
but modern mills have recently been erected at Manila and Cebu
and the business should prove very profitable.
From the sap of the fruit-bearing stalk of the tree the natives
make a mild drink called tuba. The fiber of the nut husks is
utilized to some extent locally in the manufacture of a cloth
called sinimay and is a constituent of other fabrics.
A certain amount of copra had been exported for many years.
In 1892 it was exported to the value of $743,700, which constituted three and eight-tenths per cent. of the total value of the exports. In 1894 it constituted about seven per cent. of the value of
exports. There was then a falling off until after the American
occupation, since which there was a steady increase until the
year of the European war, as shown by the following table:
COPRA EXPORTS


Twelve       Totals               United States
Twelve
months ending                            -
December-  Long tons                              Dollars
Doecmbrs Ler ton LoDollars  ng tons  Dollars per ton
per ton                per ton


1906.........         59,628    4,373,702         73          372       35,100         94
1907.........       57,696     4,784,151         83        2,076      197,558         95
1908........         95,954     6,058,886         63        3,720      220,892         59
1909.........        107,310    7,672,865         72        5,850      422,178         72
1910.........       118,580   10,639,049         90        7,025      638,783         91
1911.........       139,901   13,019,562         93       14,969     1,378,345        92
1912.........        140,536   14,183,466        101       20,858     2,021,553        97
1913.........        80,920     9,545,724        118        9,879     1,199,083       121
1914.........         85,965    7,980,270         93       17,894     1,606,133        90
1915.........        136,895   11,111,555         81       20,882     1,760,046        84
_ _  _~~~~~~~~~~~~~8


do little harm....The cocoanut pests which do the greatest damage in
the Philippines and in other Eastern countries are the rhinoceros or black
beetle and the red beetle or palm weevil." Civic-Educational Lectures, No. 3,
Sec. 11, p. 9 (Manila, 1910).




PHILIPPINE     AGRICULTURE                361
As the demand for cocoanut products is constantly increasing
it will not be surprising if the cocoanut becomes the most valuable
of all Philippine products.
There are no statistics available to show the exact amount of
rice now raised in the Philippines, but judged by the imports
of rice from China it is probable that the quantity has not been
materially increased during the period of American occupation.
During the fiscal year 1911, when there were approximately
2,609,380 acres in rice, the yield was 882,794.13 metric tons of
rough rice, palay, valued at $30,897,744.50, as compared with
2,980,313 acres and 810,940.70 metric tons in 1910, and 2,890,362 acres and 747,942.69 metric tons in 1909. The area cultivated in rice in 1911 was 94.5 per cent. of the total areas cultivated in hemp, cocoanuts, sugar, corn and tobacco.32
It is commonly stated that the original falling off of the rice
crop was due to the destruction of the carabao and the general
disorganization of the insurrectionary period, and that in recent
years it has been found more profitable to raise sugar and some
other kinds of crops. It is certainly true that the production of
rice is influenced by the demand for labor in other lines and
that rice is neglected when hemp, sugar and copra bring high
prices. But the failure to increase the acreage is due primarily
to the primitive methods of planting and harvesting and the
slowness with which machinery has been adopted.
Rice is the staple food product of the Philippines. With a
little fish and a few vegetables, it constitutes practically the
entire food of a great majority of the people. Formerly, when
the rice crops failed the community faced famine; but this has
been to some extent remedied by the production of other kinds
of crops and the improved facilities for communication between
different localities.
The method of planting is that which for centuries has been
32Rice Culture in the Philippines, by C. M. Connor, assistant director of
the Bureau of Agriculture, Manila, 1912; "Modern Rice Culture," by W. J.
Boudreau, Farmers' Bulletin, No. 3 (1902).




362


2THE PHILIPPINES


in use in China and Japan.33    In the lowlands earthen walls
about three feet high are built so as to make enclosed plots of
ground of an acre or more in extent so that a large rice field
resembles a checker-board. After the rains commence and the
ground within these retaining walls is covered with water, it is
broken with a primitive sort of plow with a single iron point,
drawn by a carabao, and then puddled with a rake until it is a
bed of soft mud. Into this the small rice plants which have
been sprouted in seed beds are stuck by hand. This is often done
by organized bands working to the rhythm of music supplied
by some expert on the banjo who is perched on the retaining
wall. By the time the rains have ceased the plants are well
grown and able to carry on the battle with the weeds. When
the harvest time comes the heads are cut off one at a time with
knives or, if possible, with a sickle. The grain is threshed by
being trampled under the feet of men, horses, or cattle, and the
unhusked rice, called palay, is winnowed by a sort of fan, or by
being tossed into the air after being pounded in wooden mortars.
Threshing machines operated on a toll basis are now used
to some extent and there are a few rice mills with modem machinery in the heavy rice producing districts.
What is called upland or mountain rice is raised on the tablelands and where the ground is too rolling to be flooded. The
native methods of cultivation and harvesting are the same as on
the level lands except for the devices for holding the water. The
ground might be plowed, planted and cultivated exactly as wheat
is in the United States.
The Igorots and other mountain tribes terrace the hillsides
and raise their rice on the irrigated shelves thus artificially constructed.34
83 See F. H. King's Farmers of Forty Centuries, Chap. XII, pp. 270 et seq.
34 Of the Ifugaos, Worcester says ("Non-Christian Tribes of Northern
Luzon," Phil. Jour. of Science, Oct., 1906): "Their agriculture is little short
of wonderful, and no one who has seen their dry stone dams, their irrigating
ditches running for miles along precipitous hillsides, and their irrigated terraces extending for thousands of feet up the mountain sides can fail to be
impressed..   I know of no more impressive example of primitive engineering than the terraced mountain sides of Nueva Vizcaya."




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


363


Ever since the insurrection the Philippines have imported about
one-third of the rice required for food purposes.35
The experiments carried on by the government on its rice
farm show conclusively that there is no reason why the islands
should not raise at least all the rice required for food. By the
use of proper machinery and the expenditure of reasonable energy the crop may be increased almost indefinitely, and, with
irrigation, one, two or even three crops per year are assured.
It would seem to the uninitiated that irrigation would be unnecessary in a country with an average rainfall of 2,400 mm.
But it is not properly distributed with reference to time and
place. Excessive rains are liable to be followed by excessively
dry months.
Rice is usually planted and gets its early growth in standing
water, and during the droughts, which are not uncommon, much
of it perishes. With irrigation several crops could be raised each
year, and instead of importing rice from Saigon, the country
would soon be exporting it to China. The sugar crop and many
other of the agricultural products could also be greatly increased.
The irrigation work is designed exclusively for the improvement of agriculture. So far it has been very disappointing.
Because of the inexperience of the engineers and the adoption
of an unnecessarily complicated system, nothing very substantial
has been accomplished. In fact, the Igorots and their neighbors in the mountains appear to be the only real irrigation experts in the Philippines, and their terraced lands are among the
sights of the East.
In many parts of the lowlands the Spaniards and Filipinos
had, from time immemorial, maintained primitive irrigation systems, and the friars had extensive irrigation works on some of
the estates which were sold to the government which have been
repaired and maintained.
The greater part of the cultivated lands on the islands lies
35 Upon the outbreak of the European war in 1914 France prohibited the
exportation of rice from Saigon. The restriction was removed in favor of
the Philippine government, which imported large quantities and sold it in the
islands.




364


THE PHILIPPINES


between the coasts and the mountains, and during the heavy rains
the waters which rush out of the mountain gorges and flood the
plains soon disappear, leaving the ground to bake during the dry
season.
Irrigation in such a country seems very simple when compared
with that of India, Egypt and the western part of the United
States. Nevertheless, it has its own difficulties. Fifteen years
ago experienced irrigation engineers were not common, even in
the United States. Unlike England, we had nothing resembling
the India service to draw on, and they had to be developed as the
work progressed. Mr. J. W. Beardsley, the Director of Public
Works, was sent to investigate the irrigation systems of India,
Java and Egypt, but his elaborate report, while interesting, was
of little practical value.36
The first irrigation law enacted was unsound in principle and
proved unworkable in practise. Its principal features were the
reimbursable fund and the consent of the landowners to the institution of an irrigation system.37 Two hundred and fifty thousand
dollars was appropriated for work under this law.38 On June
13, 1908, the legislature passed the act39 under which the government attempted to work until the enactment of the elaborate
Irrigation Law of 1912, which is now in force.40
The law of June 13, 1908, provided a standing annual appropriation of three hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars to
create a "special permanent fund" for the promotion, establishment and maintenance of irrigation systems. The superintendent of irrigation was directed to report to the secretary of
commerce and police "a plan adequate for the establishment of
an economical and complete system of irrigation for all the Philippine Islands." If the plan was approved, the secretary should
order "that the works be begun at once."
36 Preliminary Report on Irrigation in Java (Manila, 1909).
37 Act No. 1688, Aug. 11, 1908.
38 Act No. 1837, May 29, 1908.
39 Act No. 1854, June 13, 1908. For a summary of this and the preceding
legislation, see Report Director Public Works (Rept. Phil. Cor., 1908, Pt.
II, p. 470).
4o Act No. 2152, Feb. 6, 1912.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


365


The weakest point of this very unsatisfactory law was the requirement that the initiative for systems effecting private property
should come from the landowners. The money was made allotable by the secretary. Upon receipt of a request from any provincial board, barrio, municipality, or any "group of neighborhoods" interested in obtaining a portion of this fund, together
with the promise to pay an equitable rate for the use of the
water in such quantity as would reimburse the government for
the cost of the irrigation work within a given number of years,
not to exceed twenty, the secretary, if satisfied with the conditions, was required to direct the preparation of plans and have
the probable costs determined and proceed with the construction
of the system. When completed it should be operated "for the
benefit of the landowners" under proper rules and regulations
which should fix the price of the water. Unpaid dues were
made a lien on the land of the users, collectible in the same manner as taxes. After the government had been reimbursed, the
charge for water was required to be reduced to an amount sufficient to pay operating expenses and maintenance.
The details for putting this law into operation were worked
out by a committee which was appointed by the secretary, and
on the recommendation of this committee considerable investigation was done of various projects.
Lessons drawn from the irrigation experiences of the British
in India and Egypt are liable to be misleading when applied to
the Philippines. The conditions are very dissimilar. The Philippine government was without the power to borrow money by a
bond issue and had to rely on what it could scrimp out of its current income.
The plan adopted proved unworkable. It probably would have
been better to have appropriated the money for the construction of irrigation systems and gone ahead slowly with the funds
available without reference to the consent of the landowners,
taxing the cost as a special assessment on the lands benefited
and selling the water to the landowners at a price which would
pay operating expenses and maintenance, and ultimately return




366


THE PHILIPPINES


the capital invested. This would have been practical, economical
and effective and by this time, if our engineers had not made
too many mistakes, the government would have had something
to show for the money expended.4"
But it was thought best not to impose even so desirable a burden upon the landowners without their consent. The reimbursable fund plan, while theoretically perfect, is so complicated that
it is difficult to work it out in a country such as the Philippines.
The method adopted did not meet with the approval of the
natives and it imposed innumerable administrative troubles upon
the ordinary engineering difficulties. As Sir Auckland Colvin
once said: "It is easier to lay out or correct a system of canal action than to deal with the spirit of froward men and with intricacies of law and procedure." Our administration has had to contend with the engineering difficulties, an unsatisfactory law and
the froward spirits of ignorant farmers and self-serving local
politicians, in combination.
Before any money could be spent for construction work, the
secretary of commerce and police was obliged to see that provision was made for the reimbursement of the government and
this could only be done by securing contracts with the landowners
to use the water. It was thought that if contracts were secured
with the owners of seventy-five per cent. of the land included in
the project, it would be safe to infer that the rest would take the
water when the opportunity was presented.
Early in 1909, acting under this law, the government entered
into a contract with the Compaiia General de Tabacos de Fili41The irrigation systems of Egypt and India were built with borrowed
money. "The main principle, that railways and irrigation works in India may
wisely and without financial danger be constructed with borrowed money,
has been consistently carried out." See Strachey's India, Its Administration
and Progress, p. 244. The India irrigation system has cost over thirty-five
million pounds and it is estimated that each year the value of the crops raised
by canal irrigation is equal to four-fifths of the total capital expenditure
which has been incurred upon the canals. Fuller, The Empire of India, p. 314
(1913). The policy of borrowing money with which to build irrigation systems has been equally successful in Egypt. Lord Cromer (Modern Egypt,
Vol. II, p. 464) says: "I have no hesitation in saying that the expenditure of
this one million eight hundred thousand pounds on irrigation and drainage
has contributed probably more than any one cause to the comparative prosperity that the country now enjoys."




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


367


pinas to construct a moder irrigation system on its rice lands
in the province of Tarlac. Unfortunately, within a few days of
the opening of this system, a flood washed away the main dam
and with it a goodly portion of the reimbursable fund. The engineers had acted hastily and constructed the dam without sufficient
knowledge of conditions and the plans had to be revised and a
new start made under another contract with the company.
In the meantime considerable progress had been made on a
large project in the province of Pangasinan. The Agno River
was to be dammed at the point where it flowed out of the mountain gorge and the water thus collected distributed over several
thousand acres of valuable and highly cultivated land. Probably
a dozen good-sized towns and several small private irrigation
systems were included in this area. At first the people accepted
the idea with enthusiasm and by the time the surveys, specifications and estimates were completed, the owners of about fifty
per cent. of the land had signed contracts to use and pay for the
water. Then there came a sudden loss of interest and no further
signatures could be secured. The engineers were in despair. Investigation disclosed that the people had been induced, by certain
local politicians, to believe that the project was a deep laid scheme
of the Americans to deprive them of their lands.
We had now to deal with the froward spirits of men. The
people had to be educated. As a preliminary move the governor
of the province, the presidentes and counselors of the towns, and
many of the leading citizens were induced to take an excursion
to San Maguil, Tarlac, and see what a modern irrigation system
looked like. The results were very satisfactory. The lukewarm
local officials, finding that the government was in earnest, became
the enthusiastic advocates of the scheme. Immediately thereafter
the writer, with a party of about a dozen officials, spent a week
in the province addressing public meetings and explaining what
the government was trying to do and what the irrigation system
would mean for the province. The people were ignorant, but
intelligent enough and wide awake to their own interests. They
wanted to know particularly what it would cost and what would




368


THE PHILIPPINES


become of the various privately owned little systems which were
already in operation. One old tao refused to sign a contract
to use the water until he learned whether his carabaos would be
allowed to swim in the big ditch. Others were interested in the
fishery rights which they supposed would be developed. When
told that with irrigation he could raise two and even three crops
of rice each year one weary farmer replied that it was work
enough to raise one crop.
That week spent in the dusty villages under the palms on the
great plains of Pangasinan, during the hot and dry season, will
not soon be forgotten. But it was worth the effort. The people
were converted, the froward spirits were laid, and then, in the
moment of triumph,-the San Maguil dam          was washed away
and the engineers reported that they were afraid to proceed with
the Agno dam without further investigation.42 There, according
to the last reports, the matter rests.
The defects of the law were recognized even by its authors
and a revised law was passed by the commission in the spring
of 1910, but rejected by the assembly. Two years later the entire subject of water rights and irrigation was provided for by
the elaborate statute which is now in force.43 It is a decided improvement on the prior law. The government was thoroughly
committed to the reimbursable fund theory and it had to be embodied in this law. But under the present law the initiative is
taken by the government and when the secretary of commerce
and police decides that the construction of a project is advisable,
he gives public notice, and unless the owners of one-half the
42 A certain well-known Manila character established a reputation by ending a speech at a public hearing before the commission with the remark that
"in the East just as you are about to put something over, some d — thing
always happens."
43 Act No. 2152, Feb. 6, 1912. The history of this statute illustrates methods of legislation in the Philippines. The original draft of the bill was prepared by the Irrigation Committee, but it was very considerably modified
before being passed by the commission at the special session in Baguio in
1910. After the legislature adjourned I selected three Filipino deputies, who
were also lawyers, and had them working on the bill for several months.
This bill, after being carefully revised by Mr. Forbes and myself, was introduced into the assembly by Mr. Mercado and thereafter known as an Assembly Bill and a product of native legislative capacity. Its passage was finally
secured with the greatest difficulty.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


369


irrigable lands or three-fourths of the owners of such land file
objections within ninety days, the work of construction proceeds.
From a practical standpoint, this is a decided advantage because
the lethargy of the people is thrown into the scales on the side
of progress.
However, nothing seems as yet to have been accomplished
under this law other than the very important work of investigation of local conditions. Soon after its enactment the government found itself facing a probable deficit in the treasury and
most of the money which had accumulated in the irrigation fund
was reverted to the treasury.44
The common people of the East have always been the patient
victims of the usurer and the Filipinos, like the Ryots of India,
and the Fellaheen of Egypt, had been accustomed to pay from
two per cent. to twenty per cent. per month for small loans with
the privilege reserved to the lender to purchase the crops at a
ridiculously low price fixed in advance.45 During Spanish times
many unsuccessful attempts were made to find a way by which
agriculturists could secure loans at reasonable rates upon their
lands and crops. The Spanish Code of Commerce contains
liberal provisions for the establishment of agricultural banks
on the debenture plan and the charter of the Spanish Filipino
Bank authorized it to make real estate loans under certain restrictions. The demand for some kind of a land-mortgage bank
was universal. The report of the Schurman Commission declared that "the lack of proper capital and the high prices asked
for loans constitutes another obstacle which stupefies industry,
44"The development of irrigation in the islands continues slowly. Experience has amply demonstrated the unwisdom of sinking large sums of
money in irrigation systems in the Philippines before the most exhaustive
investigations have been made as to rainfall and the geological structure of
the proposed location, and such investigation ought properly to cover considerable periods of time." Report of Acting Governor-General Gilbert for
the fiscal year 1913.
45 An attempt in 1912 to pass a usury law was defeated in the Philippine
Assembly. Recently the legislature has passed a usury law (Act No. 2655)
which the commission calls unsatisfactory but believes "to be a material advance in the solution of this complex problem." Report Phil. Corn., 1915.
The problem was rendered "complex" by the number of usurers or representatives of such who occupied seats in the legislature.




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THE PHILIPPINES


augments the cost of production, and restrains, in consequence, its
benefits." In its second annual report the United States Commission recommended congressional action to encourage the creation of an agricultural bank by private enterprise.
In 1906 Mr. E. W. Kemmerer was sent to Egypt to investigate
the workings of the Agricultural Bank of Egypt, which had then
been in operation for four years. In his report Mr. Kemmerer
recommended the creation in the Philippines of a mortgage bank
with a private capital of two million dollars, with a government
guarantee of four per cent. dividends on the capital stock and
the right to the services of the provincial and municipal treasurers as its local representatives.46
Congress, after various hearings before its committees, conferred the necessary authority upon the commission,47 but private
capital was not forthcoming, and finally the Agricultural Bank
of the Philippine Government was established with a capital of
five hundred thousand dollars.48 It was purely a government
institution, to be administered by a board composed of the secretary of finance and justice, the insular treasurer, and three
citizens appointed by the governor-general. It was authorized
to make loans to persons or corporations engaged in agricultural
pursuits "for the payment or satisfaction of incumbrances on
agricultural lands, for the construction of drainage and irrigation
works, and for the purchase of fertilizers, agricultural seeds,
machinery, implements and animals, to be used exclusively by
the borrower for agricultural purposes," secured by mortgage on
unincumbered, improved urban or agricultural land and "on
crops already harvested, gathered and stored," and duly insured.
A subsequent law permitted loans for the repair, as well as main46 See The Agricultural Bank of Egypt, by E. W. Kemmerer, 1906, and his
preliminary report on the Advisability of Establishing an Agricultural Bank
in the Philippines, dated Feb. 7, 1905. These two reports and the papers
printed in connection therewith contain much valuable information about the
Agricultural Bank of Egypt and the various cooperative associations which
had proved so successful in Europe.
47 Act of March 4, 1907.
48 Act No. 1865, June 18, 1908. See the Report of the Secretary of Finance
and Justice of Oct. 26, 1908.




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


371


tenance, of drainage and irrigation works and otherwise extended
the scope of the phrase agricultural purposes. The maximum
rate of interest was fixed at ten per cent. per annum.
The bank opened for business October 1, 1908, and during
the succeeding nine months of the fiscal year 1908 it loaned
$27,725 to twenty-three applicants. Out of 417 applications 196
were refused because of defective titles. During the fiscal year
1910 only eighty-nine loans, amounting $114,500, were made,
and Secretary Araneta said that, in view of the pressure that
had been exerted for the creation of the bank, "it is somewhat
discouraging to note the little business done."  During 1911 the
rate of interest was reduced to eight per cent., but, in the report
for that year, it was stated that the "transactions of the Agricultural Bank show little, if any, improvement over last year."
However, during the year 1913 the business improved and loans
amounting to $514,325 were made.
The capital of the bank was then exhausted, and as the treasury was not in a condition to increase it, the bank was designated
as an official depository for the provincial treasurers, and $584,580 was taken over, twenty per cent. of which was made available
for loans.49 It thus required five years for the bank to loan its
capital of five hundred thousand dollars and accumulated surplus.50
Notwithstanding the popular demand for the creation of such
an institution, the Filipinos were slow in taking advantage of the
opportunities offered. The Agricultural Bank of Egypt, during
the first four years of its existence, loaned more than thirty-five
million dollars in amounts averaging about one hundred and fifty
dollars each. But in order to do so, it was necessary for repre49 In order to increase the banking facilities in the provinces the agencies
are authorized to receive deposits upon which interest of from 3 per cent. to
3/2 per cent. is paid. This money is merely deposited in the large commercial
banks, from which the same rate of interest is received.
50 The Agricultural Bank competes with the Postal Service Bank for deposits and loans. During the calendar year 1914 the bank loaned $697,875;
during 1915, $565,789. On January 1, 1916, there were outstanding loans
amounting to $2,541,280. Interest amounting to $33,562.48 was in default.
Report Secretary Commerce and Justice. Rept. Phil. Cor., 1915.




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THE PHILIPPINES


sentatives of the bank to take the actual gold and go among the
people soliciting loans.
The slow growth of the bank in the Philippines was due to the
condition of land titles. Probably the majority of the small landowners are not able to prove a record title, but they and their
ancestors have generally lived on the land long enough to establish a title by prescription. The registrations under the Torrens
Law have been slow, due to the lack of funds and the indisposition of the small landowners to take the trouble to have their
titles registered. It was thought that a requirement that the
Agricultural Bank should loan only on registered titles would
protect the government from loss and at the same time encourage
registration, but the difficulties in the way of registration limited
the operations of the bank. There have been practically no
losses. The average size of the loans is much larger than is
customary in Egypt. The very small land holders and the large
sugar growers have borrowed most of the money. The Agricultural Bank has now been absorbed by the Philippine National
Bank, an institution controlled by the government.
Left to his own initiative, the Filipino seldom leaves the neighborhood in which he was born. Certain districts are densely
populated while near by land suitable for cultivation remains
unoccupied. In 1913 the government, for the purpose of encouraging the dissemination of the population and the increase
of the rice crop, appropriated two hundred thousand dollars to
be used in establishing agricultural colonies on public lands. The
most interesting of the experiments under this law are the mixed
Moro and Filipino colonies on the Cotabato River in Mindanao.
Approximately one thousand families nearly equally divided between the Moros and Christians gathered from the congested
districts are attempting to answer the question whether Christian and Mohammedan Filipinos can live harmoniously together.
Another interesting experiment is being tried at Momungan
on the same island. In 1912 all the civilian employees of the
quartermaster's corps were replaced by an enlisted personnel.
Many Americans were thus left stranded in the islands. Quite




PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE


373


a number had married Filipino women and had no desire to leave
the country. The condition of these men was pitiable. There
is no place in the social and economic organization of the country
for Americans of that class and the government, under the law
authorizing agricultural colonies, established them on public lands
at Momungan, where they will have an opportunity to work out
their own salvations under the control of the Bureau of Agriculture.
The outstanding fact of the Philippine economic situation is
the backwardness of agriculture. The construction of railroads
and highways has not been followed by the expected rapid agricultural development. The government has done everything possible.51 Much special legislation has been enacted for the benefit
of the farmers. The Agricultural Bank enabled them to borrow
money on easy terms and at reasonable rates. Financial aid has
been given the sugar planters and government endowed sugar centrals are being provided for the cane growers. Notwithstanding
the ravages of rinderpest there are a reasonable number of carabao available for agricultural work. A better organized labor
system, increased ambition for personal well-being, and a great
deal more energy, and nothing else, will bring permanent prosperity to the Filipino farmers and remove the blight of inadequate
production from the country.
51 "A healthy sign of the times is the rapid formation, under stimulus
from the Bureau of Agriculture, of cooperative agricultural societies, of which
there are now 29 provincial and 295 municipal organizations. Above all, the
meeting of the first Farmers' Congress, from August 21 to 28, 1915, in Manila,
is significant of great progress. At the present time it may perhaps be
suggested that these agricultural meetings are apt to lean too heavily upon
the advantages of government aid rather than self-aid, but a very positive,benefit will result from these frequent meetings and conferences. The government is doing everything it legitimately can, and for which the necessary
funds can be provided, to meet the requests and necessities of the farmers.
During the past two years laws have been passed for the formation of rural
credit associations, for the founding of a government bank with special
credit facilities for the agriculturists, for the hastening of the work of the
cadastral survey, for the reform of the irrigation and water-right laws, for
the rapid building and extension of the road system, for the grading and
classifying of hemp for export, for the regulation and betterment of the export of cigars to the United States, for improvements in the locust and
rinderpest laws, and for the organization and operation with government aid
of sugar and copra centrals. And yet all of these laws will be of but little
effect unless the people themselves will cooperate and take advantage of
them." Report Governor-General, July 1, 1916.




CHAPTER XVIII


Policies and Personnel
Attitude of the Public-Visiting Statesmen-Misinformation-Declared Republican Policy-Executive Statements-Approval Thereof by CongressThe Most Difficult of all Possible Policies-Time Necessary for Its Success
-Failure to Control Local Situation-Changing Officials-The American
Employees-Filipinoism of the Service.
The government which has been described in the preceding
chapters remained under the control of its creators for a decade
and a half, and until a change of administration in the United
States threw it into the hands of the political party which was
committed in a general way to the so-called anti-imperialist theories. During that time it was in the hands of its friends and
while twelve years is a very short period in the life of a country,
it was long enough to enable the policy to be fairly well tested.
Absorbed in domestic affairs, the general public of the United
States gave very little serious consideration to the details of
what was occurring in the far-away islands. The great mass
of the people considered the question as having been settled,
for their generation at least. They had approved the McKinley
policy and were willing that it should be given a fair trial. In
the meantime, so long as there was no serious fighting with the
natives, they refused to become excited over the details of administration.
The attitude of the Democratic party continued to be that
of opposition if not hostility.1 For a time everything done by
the Philippine government was viewed with extreme suspicion.
Gradually, however, the indisputable facts of order and increasing material prosperity forced the reluctant admission from all
1 It will be understood that there were many Democrats and many Republicans who were not in sympathy with the Philippine policy of their party.
374




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


375


but the extreme radicals that the altruistic experiment had every
prospect of being successful.
It seemed difficult to get reliable information as to the actual
situation in the distant land. Various members of Congress
visited the islands at different times during the early years of
the occupation for the purpose of "learning the truth on the
ground," and most of them claimed to have found the evidence
which they deemed sufficient to justify the opinions and judgments which they had formed before leaving their homes.2 With
equal opportunities for observation, men of equally honest minds
reached contrary conclusions. One congressman found the Filipinos "nothing but savages with a thin veneer of civilization";
another believed that the country was simply "swarming with
latent George Washingtons" awaiting the beneficent rays of
democracy to burst into bloom.
Some of the distinguished visitors who represented the opposition delivered public addresses in Manila which were exceedingly eulogistic of the Filipinos and occasionally commendatory
of the American officials and their work. Without exceptions,
however, they appear to have returned to their places in Congress, or on the lecture platform, confirmed in their original
views. Although such visits have a certain value, it is doubtful
whether even those most desirous of learning the truth acquire
much accurate information with reference to the real conditions
in the islands, and the opinions and characteristics of any Filipinos, other than their hospitable entertainers. Of course, it is
the "obvious Orient" only that transient visitors see, and what
is obvious in the East is seldom true. When one of the most
distinguished of American scholars and historians, after a visit
to Manila, could write in the year 1910 that "the assembly is
2 In 1905 a large party of members of both houses of Congress under the
chaperonage of the secretary of war, visited the Philippines and conducted
a somewhat elaborate investigation into conditions. The publictessions were
devoted to the consideration of political, economic and commercial matters.
While the visitors acquired much information about the country, it is doubtful whether the opinions of any were changed. Each one saw what he came
to see. See the Report of Public Hearings on Proposed Reduction of Tariff,
August, 1905 (Pamphlet, Manila, 1905).




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THE PHILIPPINES


the only legislative body in the islands," and that the commission has never found it necessary to veto any of the laws passed
by the assembly, it is not surprising that less qualified investigators occasionally absorbed questionable information as to the
nature of the government.3 Only the newcomer and the passing
traveler feel certain that they have possessed themselves of the
soul of the East and are willing to dogmatize about its people
and its future. In fact there is no better way of cultivating the
seeds of modesty than by carefully comparing the opinions and
judgments entertained after a few days or months spent in the
Philippines with those held after several years of labor and close
contact with the people. Verily, as Lord Curzon has said, "The
East is a university in which the scholar never takes a degree."
Those most familiar with the Orient agree that special correspondents, visiting statesmen and publicists from home always
acquire a great amount of erroneous or half-true information,
particularly with reference to conditions other than physical.
With rare exceptions the casual visitor has neither the knowledge of alien races nor the breadth of view to enable him to grasp
the significance of what he sees. This is certainly true of the average American who has spent his life in an environment dominated
by ideas essentially provincial. He is certain to measure everything
by the home standards and to reason from the premise that all
human beings are controlled by the same reasons and influenced
by the same motives. And some of the many writers, American
and English, who have favored the public with their views on the
Philippines, it must be sorrowfully admitted, suggest Kipling's
famous "Pagett M. P.," who,-"a liar and a fluent liar therewith,"-visited India in winter and "spoke of the heat of India
as the Asian solar myth." After being entertained, feted and
feasted by individuals skilled in the art of selection, they assumed to speak with high authority on the strength of having
3 The above comments do not of course apply to the secretaries of war
and chiefs of the Bureau of Insular Affairs who have visited the Philippines.
Secretary Taft visited the islands in 1905, and again in 1907. Secretary
Dickinson spent about two months there in 1910, and his Special Report to
the President on conditions at that time is one of the best ever made.




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


377


"seen things with their own eyes." After being carefully insulated, informed and coached, Pagett M. P. returned to the homeland and his entertainer wrote,
"And I laughed as I drove from the station, but the mirth died out
on my lips
As I thought of the fools like Pagett who write of their Eastern
Trips."
Just a suspicion of such things may at times have flitted
through the minds of certain Filipinos as well as American administrators in the Philippines.
It has been said that the efficiency of the Philippine government suffered because of the lack of a definite policy. But there
never was any excuse for misunderstanding the policy of the
Taft regime. The trouble was that the local community always
refused to take seriously the statement that the Americans are
in the islands primarily for the benefit of the Filipinos and for
the purpose of training them to govern themselves. To the
American who had gone into business in Manila it seemed inconceivable that the United States "would ever be so foolish as to
withdraw from the islands." The persistent demand for the
declaration of a definite policy meant that Congress should declare that the United States does not intend to withdraw from
the islands or that independence is not a question for the consideration of the present generation,-the exact reverse of the
policy which in 1916 was expressed by Congress in the preamble
to the Jones Bill.
I have elsewhere described the situation and stated somewhat
in detail the reasons which induced President McKinley to demand the cession to the United States of the Philippine Archipelago.4 At the close of the Spanish War, Cuba, Porto Rico and
the Philippines were treated as separate and distinct propositions.
The statement made in connection with the declaration of war
against Spain, that the United States had no desire to acquire
4Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, Chaps.
XIII, XIV.




378


THE PHILIPPINES


territory by conquest, was literally true, but neither it nor the
joint resolution of Congress of April 20, 1898, demanding that
Spain withdraw from the island, had any relation to the Philippines. The situation which led to the acquisition of the islands
grew logically, if unexpectedly, out of the war. When these declarations of policy were made Cuba only was in the mind of the
president and Congress. The United States refused to accept
sovereignty over Cuba even temporarily, when it was urged upon
her by Spain and permitted the Cubans to organize a republic
subject to the restrictions imposed by the Platt Amendment to the
Army Appropriation Bill of March 2, 1901, which was merely a
legislative adoption of Secretary Root's instructions to General
Leonard Wood, the military governor, of February 9, 1901.5
The Cuban relation was established with comparatively little difficulty although its permanency is still a matter of uncertainty.
Porto Rico was to remain permanently a possession of the
United States and her problems are being slowly worked out on
the theory that she will in time be a regularly organized territory
with possible statehood as the ultimate goal.
Entirely different principles were applied to the Philippines.
By reason of its location Cuba would have been a valuable addition to the United States. The remote Philippine Islands, with
their troublesome natives and potentially entangling Oriental relations, were of doubtful value and but for the obligations which
resulted from the destruction of Spanish power, to the Filipinos
themselves and to the world at large, we may assume that they
would have been left to their own devices. The United States
put aside the acquisition which would unquestionably have been
advantageous and at the promptings of high duty assumed responsibility for what was certain to be a source of infinite trouble
and annoyance.
When the Schurman Commission was appointed, in 1898, the
United States had not been committed to any definite Philippine
policy. Nothing had then been settled other than that Spain
5 See Root, Military and Colonial Policy of the United States, PP. 185,
219-221.




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


379


should cede the islands to the United States, which was free to
grant them independence, establish a protectorate over them, give
them a colonial form of government, organize them as a territory, or even admit them into the Union as a state.6 The acceptance by the administration of the views expressed by that
commission that the Filipinos were not prepared to govern themselves, settled the question of independence for the time and
made it necessary to devise some form of government under
American control. During the negotiations which the Schurman
Commission carried on with the representatives of the insurgents,
Secretary Hay outlined a government under which, pending the
action of Congress, the people would have the largest measure of
self-government consistent with the maintenance of peace and
order. It provided for a governor-general appointed by the
president, an independent judiciary, a cabinet appointed by the
governor-general, and a general advisory council elected by the
people. But this was not satisfactory to the Filipinos, who had
established a government at Malolos, and the war continued.
The idea of building a government about a commission was
worked out after Elihu Root became secretary of war, and the
principles upon which it was founded were set forth in the instructions to the Taft Commission. No careful student of that
document can have any misconception of the views then entertained by the American government, or as to the principles upon
which it intended to act. All subsequent proclamations and
formal statements were merely amplifications of these instructions.7 Reduced to the lowest terms, their import was embodied
in the famous phrase, the Philippines for the Filipinos, under a
government based on American as distinguished from Spanish
principles.
The Taft Commission was charged with the duty of organizing such a government, and this it did under the direction of Sec6 See Schurman, Filipino Affairs, p. 4; Elliott, The Philippines: To the
End of the Military Regime, p. 450.
7 See Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, Chap.
XVIII, pp. 497-503.




380


THE PHILIPPINES


retary Root as the representative of the president. The gradual
establishment of local governments, the vesting of legislative
power in the commission, the elimination of military government,
the institution of a central civil government, the large participation of the Filipinos in the work of the departments, and the
final creation of the assembly, have already been described.
Every act of the administration accentuated the idea that the
government existed primarily for the benefit of the natives and
but incidentally for Americans. The United States asked no
compensation for its services; it collected no taxes for its own
benefit.
The country was made one great school,-a political and industrial laboratory,-for the education of a backward and undeveloped people who by participation in the government were to
be trained to govern themselves. Of course it was expected that
the contemplated development of the material resources of the
islands would prove financially advantageous to Americans as
well as Filipinos, but it was made perfectly clear from the beginning that in commercial and industrial as well as political matters,
the first consideration was the welfare of the natives. Extreme
personal consideration was shown the Filipinos as individuals and
they were made as conspicuous as possible in the local administration. There was no place in the new scheme of things for
either the American exploiter or the advocate of immediate independence. Naturally, therefore, neither the radical Americans
nor Filipinos were satisfied with the policy: the former, because
it restricted their business operations; and the latter, because it
postponed indefinitely the day of their freedom from American
control, and deprived the present generation of the offices, dignities and emoluments which would be theirs under an independent state.
The complete success of this policy meant the final elimination
of America from the situation. President McKinley, Secretary
Root, and Mr. Taft, as civil governor, secretary of war, and president, were perfectly frank in announcing a policy of which this
seemed to be the logical result. During the whole of the Taft




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


381


regime, which extended from the institution of civil government
in 1901 to the inauguration of President Wilson in 1913, it was
constantly being restated.8 Its essence was the maintenance of
law and order, the reasonable conservation of the public resources,
the material and economic development of the country, the education of the whole people and their training for self-government.
It denied their present preparation for independence or even for
complete internal self-government, but granted an ever-increasing
participation in every part of the work of the government. It
implied complete self-government and, ultimately, independence
should the people, when educated sufficiently to enable them to
form an intelligent opinion, desire it.9 In the words of Mr. Root,
its purpose was to "set the people on the path of ordered liberty
and competency for self-government."
In his Autobiography, Colonel Roosevelt, speaking of the
policy of his administration, says:10
"As regards the Philippines, my belief was that we should
train them for self-government as rapidly as possible, and then
leave them  free to decide their own fate.    I did not believe in
setting the time limit within which we would give them independence, because I did not believe it wise to try to forecast how
soon they would be fit for self-government, and once having
8 Governor-General Harrison in his inaugural address merely restated the
policy of his predecessors, and added thereto the reference to early independence. That part only of the address was new.
9 For the difference between this and the colonial policy of other countries, see Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, Introduction.
The object of France in Morocco as stated by General Lyautey is "To
bring to the country the maximum of progress, of security, of social and economic development; to make of Morocco in every way a great state with
modern equipment, by utilizing the wonderful resources of her people, who
are intelligent, laborious and open to all practical innovations; but, on the
other hand, to allow the country to develop according to its own genius, scrupulously respecting its customs, its law, its traditions, its religion, and leaving intact the great ancestral influences which have spontaneously come to the
assistance of the French, maintaining positions that have been won in the
social hierarchy; in a word, leaving men and things in their places and carefully abstaining from dividing against itself the house of Moroccan society,
which has hitherto rested on firm foundations." North Am. Rev., February,
1917.
It will be noted that there is no place in this program for political education.
10 P. 543.




382


THE PHILIPPINES


made the promise I would have felt that it was imperative to
keep it."
This policy, of course, denied the right of the small group of
Filipinos who had previously dominated and exploited the common people, or the young men who had assumed control of the
anti-American movement, to speak for the entire people on the
question of independence. It meant the continuance of American
control for an indefinite time, but with constantly increasing Filipino participation in the government.
"We accepted the Philippines," said President McKinley,
"from high duty in the interest of their inhabitants and for
humanity and civilization. Our sacrifices were with this high
motive. We want to improve the condition of the inhabitants,
securing them peace, liberty, and the pursuit of their highest
good.
"The Philippines are ours, not to exploit, but to develop, to
civilize, to educate, to train in the science of self-government.
This is the path of duty which we must follow or be recreant to
a mighty trust committed to us."
After this general policy had been declared somewhat in detail
in the Instructions to the commission, the president informed the
Congress that, "We shall continue as we have begun, to open the
schools and the churches, to set the courts in operation, to foster
trade and agriculture, and in every way in our power to make
these people whom Providence has brought within our jurisdiction feel that it is their liberty and not our power, their welfare
and not our gain, we are seeking to enhance."
An address made by Governor Taft in Manila in December,
1903, not only emphasized the policy of the administration but
throws such a flood of light on the situation as to justify extensive quotation.
"From the beginning to the end of the state papers which were
circulated in these islands as authoritative expressions of the executive, the motto that 'The Philippines are for the Filipinos' and
that the Government of the United States is here for the purpose




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


383


of preserving the 'Philippines for the Filipinos' for their benefit,
for their elevation, for their civilization, again and again and
again appear..
"Some of our young lions of the local press have spoken of the
'childish slogan,' 'The Philippines for the Filipinos.' It is unnecessary to comment on the adjective used, but it is sufficient to say
that, whether childish or not, the principle makes up the web and
the woof of the policy of the United States with respect to these
islands as it has been authoritatively declared by two Presidents
of the United States-for President Roosevelt has followed sedulously the policy of President McKinley-and by the interpretation of the supreme popular will, the Congress of the United
States.
"The doctrine as interpreted in the light of these authoritative
declarations assumes that the Filipino people are of future capacity but not of present fitness for self-government, and that
they may be taught by the gradual extension of self-government
to exercise the conservative self-restraints without which popular
government is impossible.
"The doctrine does not include, necessarily, the independence
of the Filipino, nor any particular degree of autonomy. It is entirely consistent with the principle to object to an immediate extension of popular government on the ground that we are going
too fast for the political digestion of the people, and that it is
not, therefore, for their good. Whether an autonomy or independence or quasi independence shall ultimately follow in these
islands ought to depend solely on the question, Is it best for the
Filipino people and their welfare?.
"I think I have demonstrated by what I have quoted and the
instances I have cited that the doctrine 'The Philippines for the
Filipinos' is one which the honor of the United States requires
it to enforce throughout these islands. Not only was it promised
to the Filipinos when the Americans came, after they had been
here, during the insurrection, and at its close, but I do not think
it too much to say that the reiteration of the promises as shown
in legislation carrying out these principles had much to do with
bringing about the present tranquillity in these islands. 
There are many Americans in these islands, possibly a majority,
and this includes all the American press, who are strongly opposed to the doctrine of 'The Philippines for the Filipinos.' They




384


THE PHILIPPINES


have no patience with the policy of attraction, no patience with
attempts to conciliate the Filipino people, no patience with the
introduction into the government as rapidly as their fitness justifies of the prominent Filipinos. They resent everything in the
government that is not American. They insist that there is a
necessity for a firm government here rather than a popular one,
and that the welfare of Americans and American trade should be
regarded as paramount. It is possible to trace the history of the
formation of these views.... With the lack of logic, so
characteristic of human nature, the merchant who finds hard
times coming on, the business man whose profits are not so great,
looks about for a scapegoat and an explanation, and he finds it in
the wicked civil government which has been encouraging the
natives as far as it could; has been taking the native into the government as far as he seemed fitted; is doing what it can to elevate
the Filipino people and provide for their welfare, and has not
taken the American merchant under its especial wing."
In his message of December 6, 1904, President Roosevelt said:
"We are endeavoring to develop the natives themselves so that
they shall take an ever-increasing share in their own government,
and as far as is prudent we are already admitting their representatives to a governmental equality with our own.... If they
show that they are capable of electing a legislature which in its
turn is capable of taking a sane and efficient part in the actual
work of government, they can rest assured that a full and increasing measure of recognition will be given them."
Again, in 1906, in contemplation of the institution of the assembly, the president said:
"We are constantly increasing the measure of liberty accorded
the islanders, and next spring, if conditions warrant, we shall
take a great stride forward in testing their capacity for self-government by summoning the first Filipino legislative assembly;
and the way in which they stand this test will largely determine
whether the self-government thus granted will be increased or
decreased; for if we have erred at all in the Philippines it has
been in proceeding too rapidly in the direction of granting a large
measure of self-government."




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


385


In 1908 President Roosevelt said:
"The Filipino people, through their officials, are therefore making real steps in the direction of self-government. I hope and
believe that these steps mark the beginning of a course which
will continue till the Filipinos become fit to decide for themselves
whether they desire to be an independent nation.... I trust
that within a generation the time will arrive when the Filipinos
can decide for themselves whether it is well for them to become
independent or to continue under the protection of a strong and
disinterested power able to guarantee to the islands order at home
and protection from foreign invasion."
Mr. Taft, while secretary of war, said:
"When they have learned the principles of successful popular
self-government from a gradually enlarged experience therein,
we can discuss the question whether independence is what they
desire... or whether they prefer the retention of a closer
association with the country which, by its guidance, has unselfishly led them on to better conditions."
In his address at the opening of the Philippine Legislature, in
1907, Secretary Taft said:
"The avowed policy of the National Administration under
these two presidents has been, and is, to govern the islands, having regard to the interest and welfare of the Filipino people,
and by the spread of primary, general and industrial education
and by practise in partial political control to fit the people themselves to maintain a stable and well-ordered government affording equality of right and opportunity to all citizens. The policy
looks to the improvement of the people both industrially and in
self-governing capacity. As this policy of extending control continues, it must logically reduce and finally end the sovereignty
of the United States in the islands, unless it shall seem wise to
the American and the Filipino peoples, on account of mutually
beneficial trade relations and possible advantages to the islands
in their foreign relations, that the bond shall not be completely
severed."




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THE PHILIPPINES


And in his special report to President Roosevelt, on his return
from his last visit to the islands, Secretary Taft said:
"The conditions in the islands to-day vindicate and justify
that policy. It necessarily involves in its ultimate conclusion,
as the steps forward become greater and greater, the ultimate
independence of the islands: although, of course, if both the
United States and the islands were to conclude, after complete
self-government were possible, that it would be mutually beneficial to continue a governmental relation between them like that
between England and Australia, there would be nothing inconsistent with the present policy in such a result.... If the
American Government can only remain in the islands long enough
to educate the entire people, to give them a language which enables them to come in contact with modern civilization, and to
extend to them from time to time additional political rights, so
that by the exercise of them they shall learn the use and responsibilities necessary to their proper exercise, independence can be
granted with entire safety to the people."n
Many additional quotations of the same general tenor might
be made from the messages, speeches and writings of the men
who formulated and were engaged in executing the Philippine
policy of the American government.'2 As Secretary Garrison
says, "Perhaps it was very unwise to have said it," but it was
said too frequently to leave any doubt as to the intentions of the
executive department of the government.
When Congress enacted the Civil Government Law of July 1,
1902, it expressly approved the policy outlined in the Instructions
to the commission and all that had been done thereunder.
President Wilson adopted the general policy of his predecessor,
but applied very different administrative methods. His adminis11These and many other statements were collected by Secretary of War
Garrison for the purpose of proving that the Jones Bill was merely another
step along the road laid out by his predecessors. See Hearings, Senate Committee, 1915, p. 633. See also Mr. Taft's Statement and extracts from his
speeches, Ibid., pp. 363, 420.
12 For other statements of the policy, see Root, Military and Colonial
Policy of the United States, pp. 27, 98; Olcott, Life of William McKinley,
II, pp. 96, 166-172, 193; Thayer, Life of John Hay, II, pp. 198, 199; Roosevelt, Autobiography, pp. 543-546; Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of
the Military Regime, pp. 53-60, 486-503.




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387


tration assumed to be even more altruistic than those of his predecessors, and it certainly moved more rapidly along the particular
route surveyed by Osmefia and Quezon. It was down grade and
the administration apparently removed the brakes, stood to one
side, and trusted Providence and the Filipinos to prevent a crash.
The Taft administration succeeded admirably in everything
but controlling the local political agitation.13 Why did it lose
control of the Filipinos? The critics of the policy included those
who favored immediate withdrawal from the islands, those who
urged a declaration that the occupation was permanent, those
who urged the immediate grant of greater and additional powers
to the Filipinos, and those who believed that important powers
had been granted prematurely before the qualifications as well
as the disposition of the people toward the United States had
been demonstrated. During recent years the first two groups
were negligible, the third in political opposition, and the fourth,
although in sympathy with the general policy, did not approve
of the methods employed for making it effective.
The great majority of the Americans in the service of the
Philippine government believed that the political phase of the
situation was permitted to be made too prominent, and that there
was serious danger that it would force the premature withdrawal
of American control.
It must not be forgotten that the McKinley administration
adopted the most difficult of all possible courses then open to it.
The grant of either more or less power to the Filipinos would
have made the work of the administration less difficult. Absolute American control would have been comparatively easy. The
grant of full political control under American protection would
have presented fewer intricate problems. But neither course
would have produced the results which President McKinley and
his advisers sought. The addition of political training to the
ordinary colonial educational curriculum added enormously to
the difficulties of administration. It was easy enough to announce
an enlightened and altruistic program, but it required the highest
13 Of course the opposition claimed that any control was wrong.




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THE PHILIPPINES


political skill to control a situation which must be constantly
changing while held in solution for a period long enough to secure the desired results.
To grant just so much political power and influence to an ambitious and eager group of people and request them to wait and
see whether its exercise agreed with them, resembled permitting
a hungry boy to take one bite of a piece of gingerbread and
telling him to preserve the rest of it with all its fragrance about
him until the doctor could ascertain whether his digestive apparatus was working properly. We would expect the boy to be
restless during the period of waiting and to try and convince
the doctor of the folly of delay. He would probably be willing
to take the chances of indigestion.
The Taft policy was based on the assumption that it would
require from one to two generations to prepare the Filipinos to
operate successfully a popular government such as had been outlined for them. Therefore, as time was an essential element of
the problem, the administration could not afford to have its hand
forced. If the work was not to be finished it had better never
have been begun on such broad lines. It was absolutely necessary, in addition to giving the Filipinos a good government, to
keep them satisfied ziith the conditions during the time required
for their education and training. That, apparently, we failed
to do.
The loss of control over the political conduct of the Filipinos
and the consequent shortening of the period necessary for proper
preparation for self-government was due to some extent to the
attitude of the administration and the higher American officials
toward the Filipinos as individuals and to the premature grant
to them of an equal share in legislation.
Assuming that several decades were necessary for the policy
to ripen and produce the expected fruits, no one should have been
left in doubt as to who was in control in the meantime. The
Filipinos were not Americans; they were not even Anglo-Saxons.
Those most familiar with the Malays say that, while they are
extremely persistent, they accept an ultimatum with perfect good




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


389


humor from one who has power to enforce it. Uncertainty
they construe in their own way. It was this characteristic which
Sir Frank Swettenham had in mind when he prophesied that
there would be no trouble in the Philippines "if the controlling
power made it clear from the start that it meant to control, and
not only to advise and educate."'4
I am afraid we proceeded on the assumption that in the dark
there is no difference between a Filipino and a Yankee, and that
in our desire to impress the natives with our friendship and the
altruistic side of our work we permitted them to overlook the
fact that our functions were much more than advisory.
Undoubtedly the attitude of the higher American officials toward the Filipinos was such as to cultivate unduly their selfesteem and generate premature ambitions. Exaggerated deference, much of it palpably insincere, was shown the Filipino
leaders. Every effort possible was made to secure their good
will and cooperation, and this of course was good policy as well
as the manifestation of proper feeling. The evil lay in the fact
that it was so often grossly overdone. The Filipinos were constantly flattered and jollied and there was a trifle too much of
the glad hand. When they did good work they were commended
in exaggerated terms; when the work was not good the much
needed corrective criticism was too often omitted. The results
of Filipino work under American direction were heralded as
evidences of their capacity and qualifications, and due allowance
was seldom made for the assistance they had received from
their American mentors.
The Filipinos took this sort of commendation very seriously.
Teachers tell us that Filipino pupils seem unable to measure
properly the language of praise and commendation. When a
bright boy is informed that his essay is first-class he is liable to
assume that it is the equal of the work of the great masters of
literature because he knows that even Shakespeare could not produce anything entitled to rank higher than first-class. Words
14 Sir Frank Swettenham to Consul-General Pratt, 1898, Sen. Doc. 62, 55th
Cong., 3rd Sess., Pt. I, p. 493.




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of praise are accepted in their literal sense, but criticism is often
resented or ignored as coming from those unable to appreciate
the qualities of their race.
Governor Taft announced that no one could hold office in
the Philippines who did not accept the doctrine of the Philippines for the Filipinos, and subordinate officials and employees
soon learned that unless they worked harmoniously with the Filipinos they were liable to find themselves separated from the service. To the natural desire to be courteous to a courteous people
was thus added the promptings of self-interest, and probably no
people were ever so "by flatterers besieged."
Occasionally, however, the matter was so overdone that it was
resented. Legarda, who, as a firm friend of the Americans,
was always treated with great consideration, while one of the
resident commissioners at Washington, wrote a confidential letter to a Filipino friend in Manila in which he referred to enjoying "the obsequious attentions of Mr. Forbes."'5 The friendly
intentions of the governor had been misconstrued. The incident
is instructive. It is certain that there was a good deal of this
feeling among the more intelligent Filipinos and that a little more
firmness and straightforwardness when dealing with individuals
would have increased the prestige and hence the influence of the
American officials.
The phrase, the Philippines for the Filipinos, was thus perverted from its proper meaning and made to imply the denial to
Americans of any rightful place in the islands. This had gone so
far that Governor-General Wright's declaration of a policy of
equal rights and opportunities for both Filipinos and Americans
created something of a storm.
From the accession of Governor-General Smith until the close
of the Forbes administration the strength of the Nationalist party
grew steadily, with a corresponding decrease in the feeling of
loyalty toward America.16 The transfer of Wright to Japan
15 Manila Times, April 22, 1911.
16 The apparent enthusiasm for President Wilson and his representative
was due entirely to belief in their willingness to accede to all Filipino demands.




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


391


was understood to be a concession to the demands of the Filipinos. It is possible that the mishandling of the Batangas situation and particularly the ill-advised arrest and unsuccessful
prosecution of a member of a prominent mestizo family (for
which Wright was not personally responsible) made his retirement advisable. But if so he should, if possible, have been succeeded by a man of similar caliber. It was a time in the history
of the American administration when it was necessary to make
very clear the intention either to govern the country or retire
and let the Filipinos manage what they assumed to be their own
affairs.
The situation required the firm hand of a man whose capacity
and power, as well as sense of justice, were recognized by the
Filipinos. It is much to be regretted that the administration
did not see its way clear to detail Leonard Wood from the army
and make him governor-general in succession to Wright. It
could not have been construed as a return to military government. General Wood was a student of colonial affairs, familiar
with the theories and methods of other colonial powers, and experienced in administrative work. He understood and appreciated the nature of the work that the American government was
trying to do and the place of the experiment in the history of
tropical colonization. His career in Cuba had demonstrated his
energy and skill as an administrator, and the prestige of his
military rank and reputation would have added greatly to his
ability to accomplish things in the Philippines.
But the position of chief executive seems to have been almost
forced upon the secretary of public instruction on the theory,
evidently, that he would be able, by good nature and compromise,
to prevent the crew from taking possession of the ship. It was
during his administration that the systematic development of the
natural resources of the country was seriously commenced, but
from the day of his inauguration until his departure GovernorGeneral Smith seems to have been concerned chiefly with the
task of getting his resignation accepted and retiring before something happened.




392


THE PHILIPPINES


Smith's successor strengthened the government on one side,
but was unable to check the movement which was so dangerous
to the success of the administration policy. Forbes was well
qualified to manage and develop a great estate. He had some
of the qualities essential for a successful chief executive. He
understood modern business methods, but knew very little about
governing a people. His character was a peculiar combination
of strength and weakness. He was energetic and resourceful
in devising plans for the development of the country. With
arbitrary power, unlimited money and the requisite time at command, he would have made a magnificent estate out of the Philippines. But he did not have the special qualifications required
for the successful administration of the government of the Philippines at the time when it was absolutely essential to gain the
good will and support of the native people. The policy of material development which he made so prominent was fairly well
supported by the natives, but the approval of the leading politicians was reluctantly given. They, with good cause, feared
its influence on the independence propaganda in which they were
primarily interested. Forbes had been widely advertised as a
man familiar with large business enterprises, and the Filipinos
were disposed to regard him as the advance agent of the awful
American trusts which the anti-Imperialists said were seeking
to devour them and their heritage. The idea was carefully cultivated that his administration was extravagant, that the public
money was being wasted, and color of truth was given the charge
by the unfortunate financial difficulties in which the administration became involved. As a result, projects which required large
expenditure of money were often looked on with suspicion, and
an infinite amount of explanation and persuasion was required
to secure the approval thereof by the assembly.
The Nationalists now had their campaign for independence
well under way and opposition to whatever the governor-general
desired, regardless of merit, seemed to be a part of their party
policy.
Thus, while the administration was busy with projects which




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


393


required at least a generation to produce tangible results, the
Filipino politicians were undermining the whole American position. They criticized and abused the administration, while the
governor-general cajoled, flattered and dickered with the leaders
and strove to win the approval of the people by a show of great
deference toward Osmefia and the members of the assembly.'7
It is perfectly certain that by the end of the year 1912 conditions
were such that it would have been necessary soon either to grant
further control over the local government to the Filipinos or
check them quite suddenly. As long as Taft was president there
would have been no radical changes in the form of government.
What the result of the check would have been need not be conjectured because the Wilson administration came in and promptly
put the Filipinos in full nominal control of the government.
While the administration was engaged in hustling the East,
Congress furnished the East with an agency through which it
was enabled to hustle the United States out of the islands.
There seem to have been two controlling ideas in the minds
of those who were responsible for creating the assembly. It
was known that there was much discontent in the country and
that there would certainly be much political agitation. There
was to be free speech and a free press and it was thought that
there should be a vent for the gas, which, if suppressed, might
blow up the machine. Better have open than secret discussions
of dangerous topics.
17 An aide was said to have been severely reprimanded for asking Speaker
Osmena to call at the governor-general's office instead of informing him that
the governor-general would call at the speaker's room. The situation at that
time suggests the days of Sir Elden Gorst in Egypt. Fyfe (The New Spirit
of Egypt, p. 184) quotes an Egyptian as saying: "Lord Cromer used to send
word, 'I shall come at a certain hour.' At that hour all the [Egyptian] secretaries and officials got behind their desks and bent their heads over their
work, appearing to be very busy. The Khedive would be ready to the minute,
rather nervous, hoping that all would be well and the visit soon over. Not
until it was over did the palace breathe freely again. Now, what a difference!
Sir Elden Gorst sends to inquire what time the Khedive will be pleased to
receive him. He enters and finds the officials lounging about, talking and
laughing. He talks and laughs with them. Then after being kept waiting a
while, he goes in to the Khedive, who assumes an air of condescension.
When he leaves the palace rubs its hands and chuckles, gleefully, contrasting
the present with the past." This, says Fyfe, "is a humorous, exaggerated
way of stating the case, but it is based on reality."




394


THE PHILIPPINES


The other was that in no other way could the people be so
rapidly trained in the art of self-government as by active participation through their elective representatives in the principal
law-making body. This was sound doctrine if the time had arrived for that particular sort of training. In fact, however,
there was no necessity for training a class of men such as those
who would compose the membership of the assembly. It was the
mass of the common people who required training and the place
to train them was in the subordinate governments-the provinces
and municipalities. The question was whether, as conditions were
at that time, the assembly would or would not aid in the work
of preparing the people for self-government. The Filipinos already had full representation in the legislative body, the commission, in the Supreme Court and in the departments and bureaus,
and it was immaterial for the time being whether they were
elected or appointed. From the point of view of the Filipinos
the assembly has conclusively demonstrated the qualifications of
the people for self-government. Its work has been extravagantly
praised in order to justify its existence and lay a foundation
for the demand for an elective Senate. After giving the assembly credit for much good work, it is questionable at least whether
it would not have been better for the country to have postponed
its creation for at least another decade. There was nothing in
the history of such legislative bodies to suggest that the balanced
situation thereby created could be maintained for the necessary
period. It certainly invited and encouraged the demand for immediate independence. And, as Sir George Cornwall Lewis
said:
"Unless the dominant country should be prepared to concede
virtual independence, it ought carefully to avoid encouraging the
people of the dependency to advance pretentions which nothing
short of independence can satisfy. If a dominant country grants
to a dependency popular institutions and professes to allow it to
exercise self-government, without being prepared to treat it as
virtually independent, the dominant country by such conduct only
mocks its dependency with the semblance of political institutions




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


395


without their reality.   It is no genuine concession to grant to
a dependency the names and forms and machinery of popular
institutions unless the dominant country will permit these institutions to bear the meaning which they possess in an independent
community; nor do such apparent concessions produce any benefit to the dependency, but, on the contrary, they sow the seeds
of political dissensions, and perhaps of insurrection and wars
which would not otherwise arise."'8
Having deliberately created such conditions, it was incumbent
on the administration to handle it with great care and delicacy.
Although the frequent changes in the higher personnel of the
government introduced the personal equation into local affairs
to an undesirable extent, they had little effect upon the general
policy of the administration.l9 Some of the changes were detrimental to the service being brought about, it is feared, by unworthy intrigues due to the personal jealousies and antagonisms
which seem always to develop under such circumstances. Unfortunately neither the governor-general nor the members of the
commission were appointed for definite terms and all were sub18 The Government of Dependencies, Lucas' Ed., p. 307.
19 When in 1904 Mr. Taft was called to Washington to become secretary
of war in the cabinet of President Roosevelt, he was succeeded as civil governor by Luke E. Wright, who had been commissioner and secretary of commerce and police since the organization of that department. After two years'
service as governor-general Wright was replaced by Henry C. Ide, then commissioner and secretary of finance and justice, who was permitted to serve
as chief executive for about six months. Dean C. Worcester, who had been
a member of the Schurman Commission also, and secretary of the interior,
was passed over and the governor-generalship given to James F. Smith, who
had been successively a brigadier-general of volunteer, collector of customs,
justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, commissioner, and secretary
of public instruction. Smith served as governor-general until October, 1909,
when at his urgent request he was permitted to resign. These men each
served as chief executive on an average of less than two years. Smith's successor, W. Cameron Forbes, had been a member of the commission and secretary of commerce and police. Forbes remained in office until after the
inauguration of President Wilson, when he was replaced by Francis Burton
Harrison, of New York, who is now in office.
Changes in the membership of the commission were also numerous during this period. When Wright became governor-general he was succeeded
as commissioner and secretary by Forbes. Ide was succeeded as commissioner by Smith, who made way for W. Morgan Shuster, who had served as
collector of customs. Forbes was succeeded as commissioner and secretary
of Commerce and police by Charles B. Elliott, who was transferred from the
Supreme Court, and Shuster by Newton W. Gilbert, who was acting governor-general for nearly a year before Forbes retired. See Appendix H.




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THE PHILIPPINES


ject to removal without notice or cause at the will of the president. Such a situation was a standing invitation to the ever
present disaffected element to organize opposition and to carry
unfounded stories to Washington. After the departure of Taft
the Filipinos proceeded on the theory that the removal of a governor-general could be brought about by making the president
believe that he was no longer persona grata to them and that
therefore his usefulness had been destroyed. In my judgment
Wright was by far the best of Taft's successors, but it was commonly understood that his transfer to the embassy at Tokio was
induced by Filipino opposition. Governor-General Ide was also
a very efficient man, but for reasons which have never been made
clear he was required to resign at the end of six months, although his services had apparently been satisfactory to all elements of the community. Smith never desired to be governorgeneral. Forbes had not been in office six months before the
native papers were vilifying him and a systematic campaign had
been commenced by the Filipinos to have him removed from
office which continued until given its quietus by Secretary Dickinson during his visit to the islands in the summer of 1910. All
this unnecessary friction with its resulting injury to the service
would have been avoided had the governor-general and commissioners been given definite terms of office such as the British
government gives similar officials in India and their dominions
and colonies.
America entered upon the work in the Philippines without men
trained in colonial administration. An effort was made to supply
the deficiencies in the subordinate officials by establishing what
became a very efficient civil service. But neither the governorgeneral nor members of the commission were affected by the
civil service or subject to its restrictions or protection.
A sincere and successful effort was made to prevent the Philippine service from becoming entangled in the politics of the
home country. The members of the original commission were
selected by President McKinley without reference to their political affiliations and an absolutely non-partisan policy was pursued




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


397


by President Roosevelt and President Taft. It was the principle
which Cromwell announced for the government of England.
"The State in choosing men to serve it takes no notice of their
opinions; if they be willing faithfully to serve it that satisfies."
The abandonment of this policy by President Wilson is greatly to
be regretted. Before March 4, 1913, no person in the Philippine
government service had been appointed or removed because of his
party affiliations or party services. Governor-General Wright,
Governor-General Smith and Commissioner Branagan were Democrats in good standing. Forbes was understood to be a representative of the type who find it very difficult to discover the location of a polling place on election day. Worcester and Moses were
young college professors without apparent political affiliations.
Ide was a Vermont Republican. The members of the supreme and
inferior courts were selected and retained without the slightest
reference to politics. It is understood that the majority of them
were Democrats. One member of the Supreme Court promoted
from a lower court by President Roosevelt on the recommendation of Secretary Taft was an enthusiastic follower of Bryan.
There was a tendency on the part of certain party opponents
of the administration to deny the genuineness of the democracy
of these men because they accepted office in the Philippines from
a Republican administration, a theory of duty which would make
partisanship a necessary qualification for colonial service. The
preponderance of Democrats in the subordinate offices was probably due to the fact that many young officers of the volunteer
regiments from the southern states when mustered out elected
to remain in the islands and enter the service of the Philippine
government. They were mostly members of the Democratic
party, but they regarded themselves as non-partisan appointees
and served the government loyally without reference to their private views or home politics.
The young men and women who were working in the islands
came from all walks in life and from every grade of American
society. The great majority were young college folk who were
desirous of seeing something of the world while earning a liv



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THE PHILIPPINES


ing and getting a start in life. From the first the service attracted
a number of wealthy young men, graduates of Yale, Harvard
and similar institutions, who were ambitious to render service
to the country. The teachers particularly were inspired with the
altruistic spirit and eager to aid in the educational and political
missionary work in which the government was engaged.
Among so many government employees there were, of course,
some weaklings who were unable to sustain the strain imposed
by the abnormal conditions and resist the manifold temptations
to which they were subjected. It was indeed a severe test and the
wonder is that so few, comparatively, fell away from the paths
of rectitude and honest living. For a time it was difficult to
secure suitable persons to fill the many positions and serious mistakes were made in many instances. The government had to use
the material which was at hand and some of it proved of inferior quality. The numerous defalcations by the early American
provincial and municipal treasurers was a sad object-lesson for
the Filipinos who were being asked to place themselves in tutelage to a superior race. But defaulters were prosecuted and punished without mercy. So strict indeed was the government in
this respect that the idea soon prevailed among the Americans
that any malicious Filipino could secure the discharge and punishment of an American by simply charging him with misconduct.
As the war-time confusion passed away and better men were obtained through the operation of the civil service law, the defalcations practically ceased, and during recent years the Americans in the service of the Philippine government have maintained
a standard of duty as high as that prevailing in any service in
the world.
While the call of the East is strong and insistent and the life
and work in the Philippines is interesting, it has its reverse side.
In fact, the lot of the American men and women who were serving their country on the other side of the world has not always
been an enviable one. The business men particularly found it
hard and generally unprofitable. The government did not aid
them as the British, German, Dutch and French colonial govern



POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


399


ments assist those engaged in business in their colonies. With
the best of good will, government assistance to American business was restricted by the necessity for protecting the natives
from exploitation. For that purpose the land, mining and corporation laws were so framed as to make the transaction of business by a man accustomed to American methods difficult and
generally unprofitable. Not until after Forbes became the chief
executive was it found possible for the government and the American and European business element to work in entire harmony.
In the early days the majority of business men were out of
sympathy with the policy of the government. As Taft has said,
"We had to fight the military and we had to fight the business
men." But the type of business men improved. Men like Charles
M. Swift, who built the Manila electric street railway and the
Philippine railway, and Major P. G. Eastwick, who for years
was the manager of the International Banking Corporation,
worked loyally with the administration and are entitled to much
credit for their part in building up the country.
Governors-general and commissioners could come and go, but
the ordinary civil servant soon found himself tied to the country by chains of circumstance. Although he knew that under
the policy of the government it was all temporary, he easily convinced himself that his position at least was permanent; that
he belonged to the generation which was not to see independence.
So he purchased a home, and awoke one day to the chilling fact
that his Filipino understudy was ready to take over his position.
The difficulty was that the service offered no permanent career
and there was no provision for the last years of life. For the
man who had youth, imagination and perspective the life for a
few years was fascinating, and it grasped some so firmly that
escape seemed hopeless. Many, after having heard the mysterious call of the East, were never able to cast off its spell. To all
there came a time of uneasy questionings:
"Has he learnt how thy honors are rated
Has he cast his accounts in thy school,
With the sweets of authority sated
Would he give up his throne to be cool?"




400


THE PHILIPPINES


And then came disillusionment:
"Thou hast racked him with duns and diseases
And he lies as thy scorching winds blow,
Recollecting old England's sea breezes,
On his back in a lone bungalow;
As the slow coming darkness repining,
How he girds at the sun till it sets,
As he marks the long shadows declining
O'er the Land of Regrets."20
Then he sent in his resignation and returned to the States
and soon thereafter was seeking reinstatement.
During the Taft regime there was a steady but gradual substitution of Filipinos for Americans, but it extended upward
slowly.21 At its close the majority of the higher offices were
still filled by Americans, upon whom rested the duty of supervision and control. In writing of the Philippine service I have
20 Lyall's Verses Written in India.
21 It was the settled policy to proceed as rapidly as the good of the service
would permit in increasing the number of Filipino government employees. For
several years it was necessary to use Americans in many subordinate positions,
but these were gradually replaced by Filipinos. After his 1907 visit to the
islands Secretary Taft wrote that "in many bureaus the progress of Filipinos
to the most responsible places is necessarily slow and the proportion of them
to be found in positions of high salaries is not as large as it ought to be in
the near future. The winnowing out process, however, is steadily reducing
the American employes in the civil service."
At that time there were 3,902 Filipinos and 2,616 American employees.
Three years later there were 4,639 Filipinos and 2,633 Americans. In 1907,
the average salary of Americans was $1,504.06; and of Filipinos, $419.46. In
1910 the average American salary was $1,665.29; and Filipino, $463.12. On
July 1, 1915, there were 1,935 Americans and 7,881 Filipinos in the civil service. The average American salary was then $1,899.50 and the Filipino,
$499.09. July 1, 1916, there were 1,836 Americans in the classified service, of
whom 555 were teachers, 213 constabulary officers, 219 patrolmen, firemen
and prison guards, 112 civil engineers, surveyors and draftsmen, and 68 scientific and medical men. Rept. Phil. Cor. 1915.
It was necessary to pay the Americans higher salaries than was paid Filipinos doing similar work. They were far from home, it cost them much
more to live, and they were able to do more work. But the averages stated
above are liable to mislead because of high salaries paid a few Americans.
The Filipinos always protested against the apparent discrimination. American officials and employees have not been overpaid and they have rendered
full value for the money paid them out of the Philippine treasury. The
number of Americans who for various reasons retired from the service during the first year of the Harrison administration was not greater than during
some earlier years, but it included an unusual number of highly trained and
well-paid men.




POLICIES AND PERSONNEL


401


used the past tense. Recent changes in the laws and methods
of administration demonstrate that it will soon be a thing of
the past. It was the removal or forced resignation of men high
in the service by the Wilson administration that stirred the deep
waters. Commissioners, heads of departments, and bureau
chiefs, the men who for years had been responsible for the success of the government, were by various methods forced out of
the service. Filipinos have been placed at the head of the university, the Philippine General Hospital, the Bureau of Lands,
the Bureau of Agriculture, and the Executive Bureau. Some of
the new men were incompetent and all of them were much less
efficient than their predecessors.
The directing power was thus transferred to the Filipinos.
Few Americans of the higher class will serve in subordinate
offices under Filipino chiefs. Other methods of forcing Americans out were occasionally employed. Thus the resignation of
the experienced and efficient director of the Bureau of Education
was secured by the appointment of a Filipino, personally obnoxious, as his first assistant. Much general dissatisfaction resulted and the service has lost its attraction for Americans. They
no longer have the sense of being engaged in a great and inspiring enterprise. They feel that they are simply holding temporary
positions in a foreign country while better jobs are available at
home. Apparently the life and spirit have gone out of the service.
The fact is that the Filipinos back of the Harrison administration were determined to eliminate the Americans as rapidly as
possible. They were even willing to pay liberally for voluntary
resignations and devised an ingenious system of rewards for
those who were willing to retire. So the legislature passed a law22
which authorized "a gratuity by reason of retirements" to officers
and employees who had rendered satisfactory services during six
continuous years or more. Under this law the governor-general
was authorized to approve the retirements of any officers or employees in the civil service except those who were detailed from
the army and navy or civil service of the United States and
22 Act No. 2589, February 4, 1916.




402


THE PHILIPPINES


those who were receiving a pension or retirement pay from the
government of the United States, who had served six years or
more, who made application therefor before the first day of July,
1916. All who had served at least ten years would receive three
annual equal payments of a sum equal to thirty-three and onethird per cent. of the salary last received, with proportionate
amounts for shorter service.
Vacancies resulting from such retirements-except from the
positions of a judge, a chief or assistant chief of a bureau, chief
clerk or chief of division-were not to be filled, the positions
being considered as abolished, subject to the right of the governor-general under certain conditions to authorize at his discretion, in lieu thereof, the revival of such positions as he deemed
necessary. Vacancies occasioned in the accepted offices other
than judicial might again be filled, but at salaries equal to twothirds only of that received by the retiring officer.
Many Americans took advantage of this opportunity to get
out of a service which was being made untenable for them. As
the governor-general was not required to grant an application for
retirement at any particular time, the resignations of nearly all
the experienced officials were placed in his hands. Even the
justices of the Supreme Court, who were appointed by the president with the approval of the Senate and were independent of
the governor-general, who accepted the offer thereafter held their
commissions subject to his will. Under such conditions there
could, of course, be no such thing as an independent judiciary.
During the time Forbes was governor-general an action was
brought against him personally by certain Chinese to recover
large damages for what they claimed to have been illegal deportations, and he was forced to come into the court as a litigant
defendant. Should similar conditions arise at present, the governor might appear in court with the resignations of the justices
in his pocket which he might accept at his discretion. Such a
situation requires no comment.
Only those who have worked with the Americans in the service
of the Philippine government can appreciate the extent to which




POLICIES AND      PERSONNEL              403
they have been inspired by unselfish motives. They were a picked
body of men and women-in character, high ideals and efficiency
far above the personnel of any of our state governments. After
making all proper allowances for occasional individual deficiencies and weaknesses, it remains literally true, as said by Roosevelt,23 that:
"No higher grade of public officials ever handled the affairs
of any colony than the public officials who in succession governed
the Philippines, with the possible exception of the Sudan, and
not even excepting Algiers. I know of no country ruled and
administered by men of the white race where that rule and that
administration has been exercised so emphatically with an eye
singly to the welfare of the natives themselves."
23 Autobiography, p. 544.




CHAPTER XIX


The Independence Movement and the
Reorganized Government
Early Ideas of Independence-New Conceptions-Attitude of American Government Toward Independence-First Filipino Political Party-The Radicals and the New Men-Revival of Sentiment-New Political PartiesGrowth of Anti-American Sentiment-The Assembly-Leadership of Osmefia
and Quezon-The Propaganda in the United States-Mr. Jones and His Bills
-The Wilson Administration-Governor-General Harrison and His PolicyDefeat of Clarke Amendment-Passage of Jones Bill-Provisions of the
Law-Organizing the New Government-The Future of the Independence
Movement.
It is said that once upon a time Thackeray, meeting John
Bright in Pall Mall, took off his hat with an uncommon flourish.
"Well, what is the matter?" said Bright. "I always feel inclined
to take off my hat to you and Cobden," replied Thackeray. "You
know just what you want and ask for it. So few of these fellows know what they do want."
The instinct is strong to repeat the flourish and take off the hat
to Manuel L. Quezon and Sergio Osmefia: they are men who
know exactly what they want and ask for it. They almost succeeded in convincing the Congress of the United States that there
is a homogeneous Filipino people, competent to operate an independent state with a popular form of government. They did
secure legislation establishing a government which is almost as
autonomous as that of Canada. It was under the circumstances
a rather remarkable thing to accomplish.
In 1899 there were at least seven million people in the Philippines, of whom about eight hundred thousand were non-Christians. If the assertions of the present native leaders are true,
either their predecessors greatly underestimated the number of
educated men in the islands at the time of the American occupation or progress during the Taft regime was marvelous indeed.
404




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


405


Filipe Calderon, the distinguished Filipino lawyer and politician,
who in 1899 reported a constitution to the Malolos Congress, gave
as one reason for providing for a one-house legislature the fact
that there might not be enough qualified men in the islands for
a legislative body with two chambers.l
About five years thereafter a representative Filipino who appeared before the secretary of war and his congressional party
expressed the opinion that the islands were ready for independence
because there were enough qualified natives to supply two complete sets-relays-of office holders, and that, he believed, was
all any country required.
On August 28, 1905, a committee composed of leading Filipinos, some of whom are still active in Nationalist politics, presented a petition to the secretary of war which demonstrated that
educated Filipinos who assumed to speak for their countrymen
had no proper conception of the meaning of popular government.
This interesting document contained the following:2
"In spite of the unquestionable political capacity of the Filipino people, the result of their present degree of culture and civilization, that they are in a condition for self-government is denied
in varying degrees and forms, though precisely the contrary is
demonstrated by facts, experiences and considerations, among
which the following deserve mention:
"First. It is an irrefutable fact that the Filipino people are
governable; the period of Spanish dominion and of the present
American sovereignty bear out this assertion. The political condition of a country principally depends upon the degree of governableness of its people; the more governable the popular classes
are the better the political condition of the country.
"When a people such as the Filipinos give signal evidence of
their capacity to obey during a period of over three hundred
years, free from disturbance or deep political commotions, it must
be granted, considering that all things tend to progress, that they
1"Filipe G. Calderon and the Malolos Constitution," by Jorge Bocobo, in
The Filipino People for Sept., 1914.
2 The petition was signed by Dr. Simeon A. Villa, Baldomero Aguinaldo,
Dr. Justo Lukban, Dr. Jose de la Vina, M. Cuyugan, G. Apacible, Vicente
Illustre, Miguel Saragosa, Alberto Barretto, Pablo Ocampo, Antonio E. Escamilla, Enrique Mendiola, Vicente Lukban, and some twenty-five others. See
Mr. Taft's statement to the Senate Committee. Hearings, etc. (1915), p. 369.




406


THE PHILIPPINES


possess the art of government; all the more so because, among
other powers, they possess that of assimilation in a marked degree, an assimilativeness which distinguishes them from other
people of the Far East.
"Second. If the masses of the people are governable, a part
must necessarily be denominated the directing class, for as in the
march of progress, moral or material, nations do not advance
at the same rate, some going forward while others fall behind,
so it is with the inhabitants of a country, as observation will
prove.
"Third. If the Philippine Archipelago has a popular governable mass called upon to obey and a directing class charged with
the duty of governing, it is in a condition to govern itself.
"These factors, not counting incidental ones, are the only two
by which to determine the political capacity of a country-an
entity that knows how to govern, the directing class, and an
entity that knows how to obey, the popular masses."
Since that time Filipinos with more modem ideas of government have become prominent. Mr. Manuel L. Quezon, for instance, has spent nearly ten years in the American Congress and
probably now has as clear a conception of the American system
of government as the average member of that body. The local
leaders who have not had his opportunities for observation are
without his mental outlook, but they have developed greatly since
the time of the presentation of the above petition. It is fair to
say that most of the men who are at present prominent in Filipino politics desire to establish a government of a truly representative character. Whether they have the capacity to do so
and the material is at hand, that is, whether enough of the people
are sufficiently trained to enable them intelligently to participate
in the work of popular government, is another and very serious
question.
The leaders of the insurrection against Spain and the United
States talked much of independence, but only the most impractical
had any serious expectation of realizing it at that time. Aguinaldo and his associates knew that if the United States withdrew
from the islands at the close of the war, Spain, free from'the bur



THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


407


den of Cuba, would easily crush the Filipinos. The faint hope at
first entertained that the United States would make the abandonment of the Philippines a condition of peace soon faded away and
thereafter what Aguinaldo really desired was what the Cubans
secured-a quasi independent government under American protection. After the ratification of the treaty of peace, the United
States never seriously thought of immediately setting up an independent Filipino state. The islands had been acquired by the
United States by formal cession from Spain, and she was dealing
with her own subjects. Their future status was, under the terms
of the treaty, to be determined by Congress. For a time at least
they were to remain under the American flag. But the germ of
the independence idea was not destroyed, it was merely buried in
fruitful soil, to be nourished by a liberal policy. The attempt to
train the people for self-government on the lines laid down by
President McKinley in his Instructions and Secretary Root in
his reports as secretary of war, implied belief in their natural
capacity for development to a point where they could govern
themselves. It was assumed that their present inability was
due not to inherent racial incapacity for popular government, but
to the lack of education and experience.d The republic which the
insurgents attempted to establish under the Malolos constitution
was Spanish and South American in spirit and substance. Its
framers copied their constitution not from the United States, but
from continental Europe or South America. Under it the
"popular masses" certainly would have constituted "an entity
that knows how to obey." The government which President
McKinley and Secretary Root framed for them rested on principles of an entirely different character. The Filipinos had not
been trained to run that sort of government.
There were in the islands a few Filipinos, almost without exception Spanish or Chinese mestizos, who were reasonably competent to fill any office and perform the duties thereof according
3 See Reports of the Secretary of War, 1899, p. 24, 1900, p. 22; Root, Military and Colonial Policy of the United States, pp. 161, 239. Elliott, The PhiliPPines: To the End of the Military Regime, pp. 497-504.




408


THE PHILIPPINES


to the conceptions of government with which they were familiar,
but when compared with the total number of inhabitants they
were pitiably few. As we have seen, Senior Calderon feared
that there were not enough of them to furnish members for a
modern legislative body with two houses. If we may imagine
for instance that a hundred or so of the best educated and.most
intelligent men then in the islands had been deported, no one of
the deportees would for a moment have claimed that the remaining six or seven millions were able to operate an autonomous
government such as the McKinley administration had in mind.
Of course a country is entitled to the services of its most intelligent men and the supposition of their elimination is merely made
for the purpose of showing that any native government then
possible would have been an oligarchy and not a popular government.
It was the recognition of this fact that induced President McKinley and his advisers to adopt a policy which was designed to
educate and prepare the masses for active participation in a popular as distinguished from an oligarchical government. Under
such conditions the question of independence was necessarily
left in abeyance to be determined at some time in the future,
when not only a remnant but a popular majority had been by education and experience prepared for intelligent consideration of
the question. From the institution of civil government until
the arrival of Governor-General Harrison in September, 1913,
the subject of independence was very seldom discussed by the
American administrators in the Philippines.4 It was regarded as
not within the sphere of their activities. The official reports of
the commission and of the governor-general contain but the
briefest references to the independence movement.
No one realized better than President McKinley and Secretary Root that the difficulty with "bringing up an awkward race
under the control of a superior," to use Doctor Eliot's expressive
phrase, is that there is no natural time limit to the period of
tutelage; that they are liable to remain mentally dependent so long
4 See supra, p. 382 et seq.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


409


as they are subject to the active control of the superior. It is undoubtedly true that liberty of action is essential to the development
of robust character, but regulated liberty is all that civilization
permits to any one who enjoys its benefits. A sort of compromise
policy was adopted in the Philippines. As unrestricted freedom
of political action would then have meant anarchy, a practical
plan was devised which involved the very active and real participation of the Filipinos in the government-a participation so large
and so loosely controlled as to encourage initiative, test their powers and develop their inherent capacities. They were to be given
the opportunity to show what was in them. The great majority
of the leading Filipinos, such as Arellano, Legarda, Areneta,
Pardo De Tavera, Torres, Mapa, and the commercial class generally, including the English, Swiss, German, Chinese and Spanish business men, were in sympathy with this policy.
From the organization of the insular government the Filipinos
were given a substantial part of the work to do, and six years
after President Roosevelt's proclamation declaring that general
peace had been established, four of the nine members of the
commission, three of the seven members of the Supreme Court,
one-half of the judges of the courts of first instance, all of the
justices of the peace, four of the seven members of the upper
house of the legislature, practically all of the provincial and municipal officials, and the great majority of the officers, clerks and
employees of the various bureaus, were natives. The Americans
were planning, advising and supervising.
The first native political party organized under American rule
was a peace party which sought not independence but ultimate
admission as a state of the Union,5 and its members joined with
the Americans in their efforts to organize a government adapted
to existing conditions in which the natives should have a part,
limited only by their abilities.
Present-day Filipinos are disposed to minimize the importance
of the old Federal party and to claim that it was composed of
"office-holders" only. But the fact is that it included in its mem5 Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 513.




410


THE PHILIPPINES


bership substantially all of the men of first importance in the
islands, and it was finally submerged because the idea of ultimate
statehood received no encouragement from the insular government or from any one in the United States.
During these early years a few irreconcilables, such as Ftipe
Buencamino, Isabel4 de Los Reyes, Ricartjand other old military leaders, held aloof and continued to nurse the idea of an independent government.
The desire for independence was smoldering under the ashes
of the war. Before the insurrection in the provinces was suppressed, certain persons, apparently friendly to the Americans,
consulted Governor Taft with reference to organizing a political
party favorable to ultimate independence and were informed that
so long as there was fighting within a few miles of Manila, there
was danger that their motive would be questioned.
The victories of Japan over Russia gave great impetus to the
nationalist feeling which was manifesting itself in all the countries of the Far East. India, Egypt, and even Java, felt its influence. It was but natural that its appeal should be strongest
to the new generation. In the Philippines a number of patriotic
and ambitious young men who had taken but an unimportant, if
any, part in the insurrection and who saw place and power for
them in a new republic, joined with the radicals and the work of
educating the masses to demand independence was commenced
under their directions. Like the same class in India and Egypt,
these young men imbibed their ideas of political freedom from
the text-books placed in their hands by their foreign rulers. They
thought in terms of abstract principles and took little account of
the qualifying effects of time, place or race. The pensionados, the
young men who were being educated in the United States at the
expense of the Philippine government, almost without exception
joined this party, which easily gained control of the Spanish and
vernacular press and thus of the means of molding public opinion.
The distinguished Filipinos who had accepted office under the
American government soon found themselves politically ostra



THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


411


cized because of their alleged abandonment of the principles of
the revolution.
The provisions for the early creation of the assembly were inserted in the Civil Government Law of 1902 by Americans as a
voluntary grant of political power to the natives. The Filipino
leaders were prompt to take advantage of the remarkable opportunity thus offered for the cultivation of nationalist sentiment.
Their plans were carefully laid and thereafter everything was
subordinated to the demand for independence. Every change in
government personnel, every appointment to office, every law
enacted, was whenever possible used as a stepping-stone toward
that goal.
The number of persons engaged in the formulation of this
policy and its propaganda was insignificant when compared with
the entire population. The common people appreciated the peace,
quiet and the justice which had been promised by the Americans.
It was necessary first to develop in them a real desire for independence. They must not be permitted to become so well satisfied with existing conditions that the vision of a Filipino republic
would have no charms. This required constant and systematic
agitation and energetic criticism of the Americans and their government.
A compaign on these lines presented no very formidable difficulties. The raw material was at hand and the conditions were
favorable. A Filipino, like a Spanish, constituency is susceptible
to emotional and sentimental appeals to a degree unknown among
Anglo-Saxons. They love fine phrases and lofty sentiments. The
orator, like the actor who strikes a heroic attitude and announces
some lofty but self-evident sentiment, such as, "Be good to
mother!" is certain of enthusiastic applause from the galleries.
When told of their present ability and capacity to run a government, they readily accepted the views of the orator. It was easy
to convince the defeated that the victors were remaining in the
islands as oppressors. The policy which had been announced of
the Philippines for the Filipinos sounded well, but it was so contrary to all their experience with the Spaniards that it was hard




412


THE PHILIPPINES


to believe in its sincerity. To the skeptical it seemed too good to
be true. As certain American statesmen and publicists were assuring them that they were the victims of oppression it was easy
to misrepresent the motives and misconstrue the actions of the
government.
Prior to the general election for delegates to the assembly, the
popular elections had related to local issues only and had been
confined to the provinces and municipalities. The delegates to
the new assembly were to have a part in making laws for the entire Christian provinces and on the conspicuous stage on which
they were to play, the question of creating a new nation might
well be discussed and determined. The political parties which
were organized shortly before the first general election, unlike
the old Federal party, made independence the principal plank in
their platforms. The Federalists believed that the best interests
of the islands required that the United States should retain control of the country until the people were prepared to conduct a
proper government, and had been supporting the policy of the
American administration in which many of their leading members were taking an active part. But the majority of the people
had by this time been charmed by the magic word independencia
and the bold and aggressive policy of the Nationalist party forced
the Federalists to change their name to the Progressive party and
to modify their platform. The concessions thus made to practical
politics did not save the conservatives from defeat, as they elected
but fifteen to the Nationalists' sixty-five members of the assembly.6 The Progressive party has ever since been in the minority
and there is reason to question the sincerity of some of the declarations in favor of early independence, which it has from time
to time made. At heart the most of its members have favored
the continuance of American control for a reasonable period and
its exclusion from power has been the very proper reward for its
timidity. But its half-hearted adherence did not attract those
6 This does not represent the proportion of Progresista to Nationalista
voters as in many districts where Nationalist delegates were returned the
popular vote was close.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


413


who were really in favor of immediate independence, and it left
those who preferred the continuance of American control completely adrift.
The institution of the assembly with a membership outside of
the government circle gave a great impulse to the agitation for
independence. It furnished a legitimate field upon which the
agitators could maneuver and train their legions for further advances upon the government stronghold. Before it was created
Filipinos who were ambitious for a public career found it necessary to work with the American government. Thereafter they
sought election to the assembly, assumed that they must necessarily be opposed to a government controlled by foreigners and
renegade Filipinos, and too often angled for popularity with the
constituencies with unreasonable criticism and gross misrepresentation of the administration. The majority of the delegates to
the assembly under the strict control and discipline of a political
party organization of which Mi. Osmena, the speaker, was president, thereafter constituted an aggressive Opposition, the chief
object of which was to transfer the control of the government
from Americans to Filipinos. This opposition was skilfully organized and was carried on in a perfectly legal manner, without
malice toward Americans as individuals or as representatives of
the United States. From the time when they secured an open legislative forum from which to speak to the world, an equal share in
legislation and power to obstruct the policies of the American
administrators, the Filipino politicians systematically, skilfully
and persistently pushed their campaign. The pressure for office
and power was constant. Legislation was enacted or obstructed
with that object in view. The appropriations necessary for the
support of the government were refused without reason in the
hope that the difficulty of the government would influence sentiment in the United States and in Congress. Never for a day did
the assembly fail to assert its claim to be the dominant factor
in the government. Its speaker asserted and ultimately established a political position recognized officially by Mr. Taft as
second only to that of the governor-general. The legislature was




414


THE PHILIPPINES


in session but ninety days. The speaker's official work then
ceased. For his services he was paid a salary of nine thousand
dollars per annum.7 During the nine months of each year when
the legislature was not in session he traveled about the islands
frequently at government expense, cementing his political party
and cultivating sentiment in favor of an independent government.
While this work was being systematically carried on in the islands
under the direction of Speaker Osmefia another phase of the
campaign had its headquarters at Washington.
The Philippine question which had been the paramount issue
in the presidential campaign of 1900 played but a minor part in
that of 1904. The second defeat of William Jennings Bryan
seemed to put it permanently out of the field as a national issue.
The American people generally regarded the problem as solved
and turned their attention to other matters. There remained a
few of the old anti-imperialists who, faithful to the principle that
"nothing is settled until it is settled my way," continued a mild
academic fight on the bogy of imperialism. The return of peace,
the increasing material prosperity, and the evident contentment of
the mass of the Filipino people, were proving them poor prophets.
Nothing but the consent of the governed principle remained and
it really seemed that the Filipinos were settling down to live comfortably under the American flag.
The first resident commissioners in the United States, Benito
Legarda and Pablo Ocampo, were elected before the possibilities
of the independence campaign were fully grasped. Legarda was
a wealthy mestizo and a loyal friend of the Americans, but he
was without personal ambition and soon realized that he was out
of sympathy with the new generation. Ocampo was one of the
insurgent leaders who had been deported to Guam, but as a resident commissioner he was a negligible factor. A working agreement was soon made between two young members of the first
assembly which resulted in Osmenia becoming speaker and president of the Nationalist party and Quezon being sent as one of the
resident commissioners to Washington in the place of Ocampo.
T This salary was fixed by the assembly, but agreed to by the commission.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


415


Americans soon discovered that Quezon was far superior in intelligence, tact and ability to the ordinary bright Filipino and he
was soon the actual as well as the titular head of a compact body
of able men who were determined to secure additional power for
the Filipinos in the insular government and independence within
a very short time. Osmefia and his party were to cultivate and
consolidate the sentiment in the islands and incidentally make
life miserable for the American administration. Quezon was to
work with his American supporters and cultivate sentiment in
the United States. In this work he had the benefit of the advice
and active assistance of such men as Moorfield Storey, Erving
Winslow, J. H. Ralston and many others who had been prominent in the old anti-imperialist movement. In fact, Mr. Quezon
seems to have been syndicated and might well have been designated as Quezon, Ltd.
Magazine and newspaper articles and the reports of the officials had convinced the American public that the Philippine government was being well administered and that very important
work along educational and industrial lines was being done for
the Filipinos. Quezon, who assumed to represent "the Filipino
people" instead of the insular government by which he had
been elected, undertook to convince Congress and the American
public that the official reports were unreliable and the magazines
and newspapers subsidized. His attitude and work have been
well described by his official secretary.
"Every one knows what the work of the representative has
been. Instead of being a peaceful emissary of the good will and
complacent gratitude of the Filipino people to America he has
been the mouthpiece of Filipino discontent with their present
relations with America. He has told the American people that
the Filipino people do no want to remain under American sovereignty, that they desire to establish a government of their own
which would be more satisfactory to them than the American
government could be."
Mr. Quezon was too skilful and subtle openly to criticize the
work being done by the United States in the Philippines. He




416


THE PHILIPPINES


praised and commended the Americans for what they had accomplished, but his activities were all directed to the end of obstructing the work of the American administration and securing legislation which would eliminate American control. Year after year
Congress was bombarded with petitions, resolutions and bills designed to "free" the Filipinos from the disgrace of living under
the American flag and being protected by the army and navy of
the United States.
At first the American newspapers were not eager to publish
matter relative to Filipino aspirations and it was difficult to get
the ear of the public. The Philippine government had spent considerable money trying to arouse interest in the potential wealth
and commercial prosperity of the islands. Mr. Quezon and his
associates, being fully aware of the effect that this would have on
their plans for complete native control of the government, did
what they could to counteract such work and discourage American capital from going to the Philippines. The propaganda was
very skilfully conducted. Quezon has an attractive personality, is
an eloquent speaker, and a pleasant gentleman and he soon established a position of influence in the House of Representatives, of
which he was a courtesy member.
As resident commissioner he, in his official capacity, published
a magazine in English and Spanish called The Filipino People,
which was alleged to be "an official medium for expressing the
views of the people whose name it bears," designed "to bring
about a better understanding in the Philippines and the United
States, of the real conditions which exist in both countries." The
tone of this magazine was excellent, and it published many valuable articles. The delegate from the Philippines, having his own
official magazine in addition to the free use of the Congressional
Record, was unusually well equipped for securing publicity.
As long as Mr. Taft was president and the Republicans controlled Congress it was impossible to secure any radical legislation for the Philippines. But the elections of 1910 gave the
House of Representatives to the Democrats and Mr. W. A.
Jones, of Virginia, became the chairman of the House Committee




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THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


417


on Insular Affairs. Mr. Jones was a radical opponent of the
policy which the Republicans had pursued in the Philippines and
an ardent believer in the justice and propriety of immediately
granting the Filipino demand for independence, or at least a more
autonomous government.
When the Civil Government Bill of 1902 was before Congress,
the Democrats offered a substitute bill which provided for "qualified independence" during eight years after July 4, 1903, and
absolute independence thereafter. In 1912 Mr. Jones introduced
the first of the bills which became known by his name, in which he
provided for independence in 1921. But it was well understood
that while Taft was president no such bill could become law,
even though passed by Congress. Mr. Kalqw in his interesting
book says:8 "They were then offered a bill without fixed date
but with the formal and authoritative statement that independence
should be granted when a stable government could be established
in the islands. They accepted this as a first step in the right
direction." We are not informed who is meant by "they," or
who with authority made this offer.
The Democratic House of Representatives was in favor of
some such legislation, and the Filipino Nationalists were very
happy when in 1912 Mr. Wilson was elected president and the
Democrats secured control of both houses of Congress. Immediate
independence seemed assured. Enthusiastic ratification meetings
were held in Manila and the cables were warm with congratulatory messages. The Filipinos by this time had come to regard
their old friend President Taft as the immovable rock in the road
which led to independence. Mr. Wilson had not given them
much encouragement before his election, but his rhetoric and
fine humanitarian phrases had a certain savor of Latinism which
appealed to them. Much encouragement was found in the new
president's apology for America's past territorial growth and in
his statement that "if we have had aggressive purposes and
covetous ambitions, they were the fruits of our thoughtless
youth as a nation and we have put them aside. We shall,
8 The Case for the Filipinos, p. 238.




418


THE PHILIPPINES


I confidently believe, never again take another foot of territory
by conquest."
Unfortunately the Wilson administration for some unaccountable reason decided to abandon the non-partisan policy which had
been followed by McKinley, Roosevelt and Taft and to treat the
Philippines as a party matter. No living American knew better
than President Wilson, the scholar and historian, the danger involved in treating colonial offices as a part of the spoils of party
politics. Evidently the pressure from "deserving Democrats"
was too strong to be withstood. The governor-general, the vicegovernor and all the members of the commission who had served
under the Republican administration were soon forced to resign
their offices. Governor-General Forbes had returned to the Philippines after the election in the pleasing illusion evidently that he
would be retained in office. But he made the mistake of publicly
denouncing Mr. Quezon as a traitor (that is, one who had not supported Mr. Forbes in all things), and to the "traitor" was
awarded the privilege of naming a new governor-general. The
honor fell to Mr. Francis Burton Harrison, a Virginian by birth
and affiliation, the son of Jefferson Davis' private secretary, who
for ten years had represented one of the New York City districts
in Congress. A Filipino was appointed a member of the commission to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of an American, thus giving the Filipinos a majority in that body. The other
vacancies were filled by Democrats in good party standing but
who were without experience in Philippine affairs. Contrary to
custom, Mr. Harrison took the oath of office in Washington and
thus became governor-general about the time that Mr. Forbes became aware that his successor had been appointed. As a final indignity the secretary of war cabled the retiring governor-general
to prepare the Malacafian palace for the use of his successor and
Mr. Forbes, in disgust, like John Adams of old refusing to grace
the triumph of his successor, sailed away out of Philippine history
leaving the vice-governor and the government in a condition of
suspended animation.' It was reported that while on his way to
9 The formal telegram of commendation subsequently sent Mr. Forbes reminds one of the honor conferred by the Empress Dowager on the ex-Em



THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


419


Manila the new governor-general informed the newspaper men
in substance that he was going out as a Democrat and intended
to fill the offices with members of his own political party.
Upon his arrival at Manila he went directly to the Luneta and
made a speech which was very satisfactory to the Filipinos. Except in the reference to independence there was not an idea in the
speech which had not been many times expressed by his predecessors. The Americans, however, were greatly disgusted with his
public avowal of the fact that he owed his appointment to Mr.
Quezon, whose popularity was then confined to Nationalist circles. In this address which inaugurated the new administration
Governor-General Harrison said:
"The President of the United States has charged me to deliver
to you the following message on behalf of the government of our
country:
"'We regard ourselves as trustees acting not for the advantage
of the United States but for the benefit of the people of the Philippine Islands.
"'Every step we take will be taken with a view to the ultimate
independence of the islands and as a preparation for that independence. And we hope to move towards that end as rapidly as
the safety and the permanent interests of the islands will permit.
After each step taken experience will guide us to the next.
"'The administration will take one step at once and will give
to the native citizens of the islands a majority in the appointive
commission, and thus in the upper as well as in the lower house of
the legislature a majority representation will be secured to them.
"'We do this in the confident hope and expectation that immediate proof will be given, in the action of the commission under
the new arrangement, of the political capacity of those native
citizens who have already come forward to represent and to lead
their people in affairs.'
"This is the message I bear to you from the President of the
United States. With his sentiments and with his policy I am in
complete accord. Within the scope of my office as governorgeneral I shall do my utmost to aid in the fulfillment of our promises, confident that we shall thereby hasten the coming of the day
1eror Kuang Hsu, whom she had deposed. As an evidence of her consideration and esteem she created him "Duke of Confused Virtue."




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THE PHILIPPINES


of your independence. For my own part I should not have accepted the responsibility of this great office merely for the honor
and the power which it confers. My only motive in coming to
you is to serve, as well as in me lies, the people of the Philippine
Islands. It is my greatest hope that I may become an instrument
in the further spread of democratic government."
The new governor-general seems to have assumed that everything connected with the government was wrong and that his first
duty was to clean out the Augean stable by getting rid of the
Americans who had served under his predecessor. He evidently
turned a deaf ear to his own countrymen who might have given
disinterested views and sought information and guidance only
from Filipinos and a few Americans who for political and personal reasons had been opposed to the persons and policies of the
preceding administration. Many Americans were hurriedly removed from office or requested to resign and their positions given
to Filipinos. It was a very unfortunate beginning for the new
administration and for a while the service was badly demoralized.
The Filipinos, who felt that "the day" had arrived, were naturally
elated and inclined to be a trifle arrogant. The administration
was charged with removing trained and faithful American officials to make way for inefficient and even dishonest native politicians and with wrecking the great constructive work of its
predecessors. At the present time there is not a single bureau
chief in office who was serving when Mr. Harrison became governor-general, and recently the director of the great Philippine
General Hospital was forced to resign, confessedly because of
the demands of the Filipino press and politicians,10 in order to
make a place for a much less efficient Filipino physician.
10 According to Dr. Musgrave, Governor-General Harrison informed him
that an investigation had completely exonerated him from charges of arbitrary conduct, but that he must nevertheless resign-"If I would resign he
would guarantee immunity from  attack in the Philippine press.. 
When I refused to resign the governor-general told me that unless I agreed
to do so, he could not possibly control the legislature and the native press."
Statement of Dr. Musgrave in Cable News-American, Oct. 29, 1916.
Dr. Musgrave had been exonerated from a charge of imposing unduly
severe discipline upon the hospital nurses and was then informed that it was
the psychological moment for him to resign. In an editorial the Cable News



THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


421


The Koran says that "A ruler who appoints any man to an
office when there is in his dominions another man better qualified
for it, sins against God and against the state."
As Mr. Harrison was sent to the Philippines to carry out a
policy which had been determined upon at Washington and which
involved further restrictions on American control in the government and the early elimination of American sovereignty, it may
have been inevitable that he should throw himself into the hands
of those who were distinctly anti-American in feelings and actions. The destructive policy adopted was understandable only
on the theory that at an early date the administration intended
to pass the Jones Bill and set up a new Philippine Republic. As
a preparation for an early general moving day it was well enough,
although it disclosed a serious lack of knowledge of the actual
conditions and utter disregard of the rights and feelings of loyal
Americans, many of whom, regardless of politics, had given the
best years of their lives to what they regarded as a great altruistic
service.
Legislation for the Philippines was made a part of the Democratic congressional schedule. The modified Jones Bill was reported favorably by the house committee and languidly debated
during the latter part of September, 1914. The American people
took little interest in the matter. The attitude of the Republican
members of Congress was perfectly consistent with the policy
they had pursued during the past decade. They were willing to
grant additional powers to the Filipinos, but were opposed to
granting independence at this time, or making any express promises to be performed at some future time by their successors. The
Democrats were trying to make good their party pledges while
denying the immediate independence which so many of the leaders had promised the Filipinos. The majority of the Republicans
did not believe that independence would be to the interest of the
Filipinos and would not vote for a bill which contained a promise,
American said that his successor should not "be sacrificed as Musgrave has
been sacrificed to a yellow press and political jobbery, but supported with
courage and decency."




422


THE PHILIPPINES


the performance of which would rest on their successors in office. It was true, as Mr. Taft told the Senate committee, that no
express promise of independence at any definite time had ever
been made by any executive officer of the United States or the
Philippine government. But the policy which had been declared
and followed during the Taft regime did imply a promise of independence when, in the opinion of Congress, the Filipinos were
prepared for it, and Mr. Taft had frequently so stated. The
Republicans were not yet willing to transmute this implied into
an express promise.
Congress had never spoken on the subject and the Filipinos
were pressing for some sort of an expression from the only body
which had the power to make a promise effective. While the
logic of the Taft policy was clear, they were not willing to trust
to logic. They wanted a definite promise from Congress because,
as Mr. Quezon told the Senate committee, "the logical result of
a given policy does not always follow, and efforts are now being
made to prevent that logical result from being attained.""
In order to comply apparently with this demand and yet dodge
the responsibility involved in actually granting independence, the
majority affixed to the Jones Bill a preamble which assumed to
state the past, present and future intentions of the people of the
United States with reference to the Philippines. The Republicans
objected to the preamble because it would have no legal force and
would increase instead of quiet the agitation for independence
which had so injuriously affected conditions in the islands. They
criticized certain features of the proposed law, such as the extension of the franchise, the creation of an elective Senate and
the restrictions upon the appointive power of the governor-general, but had the preamble been stricken out there would have
been no very serious opposition to the enactment of the bill in its
final form. With the assistance of fifteen Republicans it passed
the House on October 14, 1914, by a vote of 211 to 59. The
Senate committee once again listened to the experts and near
experts, saw the lantern slides and by a majority approved the
"l Hearings before Senate Committee, 1915, p. 489.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


423


proposed legislation.12 But for the approaching decease of the
Congress the bill would doubtless have been passed. During
the closing hours of the session an attempt was made to secure
unanimous consent to pass the bill, but this failed and the Jones
Bill died with the Congress.13
The failure to reach the bill in the Senate was a serious disappointment to its friends, and the president and secretary of war
were profuse in their expressions of regret. They were very anxious to justify themselves to the Filipinos. On the day after the failure to reach the bill Secretary of War Garrison cabled GovernorGeneral Harrison that "we were unable to get the Philippine bill
taken from the Senate calendar and placed before the Senate for
consideration.... The president and I did everything which
we consistently could do in an endeavor to get the bill before the
Senate....      I feel that the attitude of the Filipino people
had much to do with the sentiment in Congress in favor of this
further step in their behalf, and that if they will continue patiently and wisely, the result at the next session of Congress will
be the success of the measure."  Two days later President Wilson
also cabled assuring the Filipinos that the Jones Bill had been
"constantly pressed by the administration, loyally supported by
the full force of the party, and will be pressed to passage when
the next Congress meets in December. It failed only because
12 Hearings before the Committee on, the Philippines, United States Senate,
on H. R. 18459, 63rd Cong. 3rd Sess. (Dec. 14, 1914, to January 11, 1915).
13 In asking for unanimous consent, Senator Shafroth said:
"It is very important. It is a measure, Mr. President, that the Philippine
people are looking to Congress for with intense eagerness. They have been
assured from almost the beginning of the occupation of the islands by the
Americans of self-government and independence. Now, since the bill has
passed the House, inasmuch as it has been favorably reported by the committee on the Philippines of the Senate, and inasmuch as it is here upon the
calendar, it seems to me that we ought to be able, since the bill has been
modified largely and does not embody as strong provisions as I had hoped
it would, to give it two hours' discussion after the bills on the calendar."
Senator Poindexter, of Washington, replied:
"I would want enough time to undertake to defeat the bill as it stands
now. I can not understand why the senator from Colorado should regard it
as important that this government should declare now what its attitude and
policy in regard to the Philippines is going to be at some distant time in the
future. It will be well enough for us when we arrive at that future time to
determine then what our policy will be in regard to these islands upon which
we have expended so much money and so many lives."




424


THE PHILIPPINES


blocked by the rules of the Senate as employed by the Republican
leaders who were opposed to the legislation and who would yield
only if we withdrew the assurance of ultimate independence contained in the preamble. That we would not do.... The
people of the islands have already proved their quality and in
nothing more than in the patience and self control they have
manifested in waiting for the fulfillment of our promises. Continuance in that admirable course of action will undoubtedly assure the result we all desire."
Even Mr. Taft, in the early days of his governorship, was not
more effusive in dealing with the Filipinos than was President
Wilson in his letter to the departing Filipino resident commissioner. "May I not," he wrote Mr. Quezon,14 "wish you a safe
and pleasant voyage and a happy return when you resume your
duties here again? I will be very much obliged if you will take
some occasion when you are at home to express the admiration
I have felt for the self-respecting behavior of the people of the
Philippines in the midst of agitations which intimately affect their
whole political future. Nothing is needed to establish their full
reputation with the people of the United States as a people capable of self-possession and self-government but a continuation in
the moderate and constitutional course which they have pursued."
Probably few real congressmen received such personal consideration from the president. There were valid reasons why this
young Filipino loomed large in the eyes of his constituents.
On the opening day of the Sixty-fourth Congress Mr. Jones reintroduced his bill in the House and soon thereafter Senator
Hitchcock presented it in the Senate. The Senate committee, after
making a slight change in the preamble, promptly reported the bill
for passage. The debate scarcely touched the legislative features
of the bill. The controversy over the preamble disclosed its sham
character. There was already a stable government in the Philippines and the question arose whether if the preamble was
adopted the Filipinos could not properly demand immediate inde14 These cablegrams and letters are printed in the March, 1915, issue of
The Filipino People.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


425


pendence. "Suppose," asked Senator Cummins, "that I believe
it would be better for the people of the Philippine Islands to remain permanently attached to the United States as a state, with
all the privileges of a state, or otherwise, would I not fulfill the
promise or assurance of the preamble in voting to retain the Philippine Islands as a part of the territory of the United States?"
Senator Hitchcock replied, "I presume the senator would." As
Mr. Kalow says,5 "Here was the confession of the author of the
bill himself that the preamble was not an explicit pledge that the
Philippines should be given their independence."
Some of the Democrats seem to have had an uneasy consciousness that the bill itself was a subterfuge.  "Would a measure
which merely made the Philippine government more liberal and
which according to the statement of the author himself, might or
might not lead to the granting of Philippine independence, be
really in accord with Democratic platforms and promises? Was
it not in effect a further evasion of the question of independence?"1
There was also prevalent a feeling of weariness of the subject. Many Republicans were tired of the whole matter and
inclined to say that if the Filipinos were so ungrateful for all that
had been done for them and so anxious to be free to go to wreck
and ruin why not drop them and get rid of the burden? But
were the Filipinos ungrateful, and was there any evidence other
than the assertions of the politicians, that independence was
seriously desired by any but the politicians? Mr. Quezon and
his associates spoke confidently of the "Filipino nation," of their
representative character, and of national sentiment and of the
universal desire for independence. But those most familiar with
the Philippines had reason to doubt whether such expressions
were justified by the facts. Nevertheless, many Republicans were
willing to take the claims at their face value and shift the burdens
15 The Case for the Filipinos, p. 222. This weakness in the position of
those who advocated the preamble was used as an argument in support of the
Clarke Amendment.
16 Ibid.




426


THE PHILIPPINES


of government to the shoulders of the natives. Senator Nelson,
of Minnesota, favored a definite statement that the United States
never intended to part with the islands. Other Republicans felt
that as the Democrats had created the situation they should go the
limit and make their promises good. Mr. Roosevelt said:
"The present administration has promised explicitly to let them
go, and by its actions has rendered it difficult to hold them against
any serious foreign foe. These being the circumstances, the
islands should at an early moment be given their independence
without any guarantee whatever by us and without our retaining
any foothold in them."
Mr. Root had been influenced by the manner in which the Wilson administration had thrown the Philippine service into party
politics and felt that rather than make promises for the future it
would be better to call an election in the islands and if the Filipinos voted for independence, turn the country over to them as
we had given Cuba to the Cubans. The claim that the islands
were a great financial burden on the United States and also a
source of military weakness also had its effect.17
On January 12, 1916, Senator Clarke, of Arkansas, announced
that he would offer an amendment granting independence in two
years and instructing the president if possible to negotiate neutralization treaties with other powers. After the time had been
extended to four years this proposed amendment was approved by
President Wilson.
After the provision for neutralization had been stricken out,
it read as follows:
"The president is hereby authorized and directed to withdraw
and surrender all right of possession, supervision, jurisdiction
control, or sovereignty now existing and exercised by the United
States in and over the territory and people of the Philippines, and
he shall on behalf of the United States fully recognize the independence of the said Philippines as a separate and self-governing
nation and acknowledge the authority and control over the same
17 As to the annual cost of the Philippines to the United States, see Appendix J.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


427


of the government instituted by the people thereof, and full power
to take the several steps necessary to institute such government is
hereby conferred upon the said Philippines acting by and through
governmental agencies created by this act. This transfer of possession, sovereignty and governmental control shall be completed
and become absolute not less than two years nor more than four
years from the date of the approval of this act, under the terms
and in the manner hereinafter prescribed:...
To this was added a proviso empowering the president under
certain conditions to extend the time beyond four years in order
to give Congress an opportunity further to consider the situation.
The president was also authorized to adjust all property rights
and other relations between the Philippines and the United States
and to provide for the protection of the personal and property
rights of citizens of the United States and foreign countries, and
to reserve or acquire such lands as in his judgment might be required by the United States for naval bases and coaling stations.
The Filipinos seem to have been considerably surprised by this
sudden turn in affairs. Here was a tender of absolute independence without any string to it. It looked like the United
States might take the Nationalists literally and simply drop the
whole troublesome matter. The Senate was proposing to grant
their application for release, let them establish their new state
and permit it to go its way and sink or swim according to the
capacities and abilities of the citizens. There was to be no neutralization, no guardianship, no further responsibility. It is said
that in Manila there were quiet gatherings to consider ways and
means of averting the sudden blessing without loss of face. But
the assembly, which could do nothing less, expressed its approval
of the bill as amended.
The vote in the committee of the whole was a tie and the
amendment was adopted by the casting vote of Vice-President
Marshall. On February 4, 1916, the bill as amended was passed,
six Republicans, including Borah, of Idaho; Clapp, of Minnesota,
and Kenyon, of Iowa, voting with the Democrats.
The passage of the bill by the Senate with the Clarke Amend



428


THE PHILIPPINES


ment was a surprise and something of a shock to the country,
which was not prepared for such radical action. It is probable
that some of the senators who voted for it hoped and expected
that the amendment would be stricken out by the House, and
that was what happened when, on the eighteenth anniversary of
the battle of Manila Bay, sixteen Democrats joined with the Republicans and defeated the bill. It then went to a conference,
where the Senate amendment was stricken out. As arranged by
the conference committee, the famous Jones Bill then passed both
houses and was duly signed by President Wilson on August 29,
1916. Independence at a definite date thus lost, defeated by
Democratic votes. Nevertheless, the law as enacted was a great
victory for Mr. Quezon and his friends, as they obtained much
greater power over the insular government and a sort of congressional promise of future independence.18
The Philippine Government Law of 1916 describes itself as an
act "to declare the purpose of the people of the United States as
to the future political status of the people of the Philippine
Islands and to provide a more autonomous government for those
islands." The enacting clause is preceded by the following preamble:
"Whereas it was never the intention of the people of the
United States in the incipiency of the war with Spain to make it
a war of conquest or for territorial aggrandizement, and
"Whereas it is, as it has always been, the purpose of the people
of the United States to withdraw their sovereignty over the Philippine Islands and to recognize their independence as soon as a
stable government can be established therein, and
"Whereas for the speedy accomplishment of such purpose it
is desirable to place in the hands of the people of the Philippines
as large a control of their domestic affairs as can be given them
without, in the meantime, impairing the exercise of the rights of
sovereignty by the people of the United States, in order that, by
the use and exercise of popular franchise and governmental
powers, they may be the better prepared to fully assume the re18 Thus by Democratic votes the Philippines were acquired and by Democratic votes early independence was denied.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


429


sponsibilities and enjoy all the privileges of complete independence: Therefore," etc.
This preamble was attached to the statute for reasons purely
political. It has no legal significance; it is not a part of the law;
and its recitals may be entirely ignored by this or any future
Congress. The Republicans were opposed to it because they
feared it would merely encourage further agitation of the independence idea to the detriment of business in the islands. The
question would have to be settled by a Congress the members of
which were not yet elected and any attempt to bind it would not
only be nugatory but also impertinent. Congress had no mandate
to declare the past, present or future intentions of the people of
the United States with reference to the ultimate disposition of
the islands. Its function was to legislate, and if it decided to
leave the legislation for its successors, its opinions as to the intentions of other people were unimportant. The intentions referred to are said to be those "of the people of the United States.",
A change of a dozen votes in Congress, for reasons personal to
that number of members, might have changed the language
of the preamble and hence, apparently, the intentions of the people of the United States.  The real objection was that the
Filipinos might take the preamble too seriously and be encouraged to make further demands which could not be granted. Then
the cry of bad faith would be again raised. The Democrats insisted on the preamble because the Filipinos demanded it, and
were agitating for it. They were not willing to trust to the logic
of past events and desired to transmute the numerous statements
of executive officers, senators, representatives, visiting statesmen
and party platforms into a definite promise by the only organ
of the United States government that had power to take effective
action. They wanted "to have the United States formally go on
record for an independence policy. They wanted to be in a position to carry forward with greater vigor their independence propaganda."'9 It was for this that they were agitating. According
19 Kalow, The Case for the Filipinos, p. 238.




430


THE PHILIPPINES


to Secretary Garrison, "if we were to determine our action by the
degree of agitation in the islands we are due to do this thing,
because it is the step next along the line taken by our predecessors." In his judgment the government was already committed
to a policy which meant ultimate independence. The Filipinos had
been told, he thought, that they were to have independence. "Perhaps," said the secretary, "it was very unwise ever to have said it,
but that water has gone under the bridge."20 There was, he
thought, no longer a clean slate and it would not do for "the present administration particularly" to refuse to do explicitly what
their Republican predecessors had done by implication.
This of course ignores the very great difference between statements of policy made by executive officers who have no authority
to bind the country, and formal acts or even declarations by
Congress.
However, the preamble in its final form contains no promise
other than what may be implied from a declaration of the intentions of the people of the United States. According to the author of the Senate bill, it is not binding upon the conscience of
even the members of the present Congress. The people of the
United States, whose intentions have there been officiously expressed for them, will, of course, ignore the matter unless they
agree with it when they are called upon to act. But how will the
Filipinos construe it? Mr. Quezon, who is always fair and reasonable, told the Senate committee 2 that they would construe it
to mean "that it is the purpose of the United States to grant to
the Philippines their independence, not when the Filipinos believe that they are ready for independence-because they have
believed that all the time, and they have been saying it all the
time, and if their opinion on the subject were to be the final say
this would not have been the bill before the Congress at this time;
it would have been an immediate independence bill; but when in
the opinion of the Congress we have conducted the government
that you provide in this bill, in a way that will justify the reason20 Hearings, Senate Committee, 1915, p. 651.
21 Hearings, Senate Committee, 1915, p. 485.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


431


able presumption that we shall establish and maintain a fairly
decent government, a government that would keep order and
offer protection to the rights of the people."
An examination of the new law22 shows that it is merely a
revision and amendment and, to some extent, a reenactment of
the Civil Government Law of July 1, 1902. Unfortunately, Congress contented itself with piecemeal legislation instead of taking
advantage of the occasion to formulate a constitution and submit it to the qualified voters of the Philippines for their adoption, thus eliminating forever the idea of an imposed government.   While it is true that the Filipinos, so far as their
representatives were able to speak for them, consented to and
in fact solicited this particular legislation, legally this statute is
as much imposed legislation as was that of 1902.23  The law
makes very substantial changes in the form of the Philippine
government and imposes additional responsibilities upon the Filipinos. The appointive power of the president is somewhat restricted, but that of the governor-general is greatly enlarged,
although his appointments are subject to confirmance by the Philippine Senate. He has ceased to be the presiding officer of the
Upper House of the Legislature.
But the principal changes are in the legislative department.
The United States Philippine Commission and the Philippine
Legislature as constituted under the Civil Government Law of
1902 are abolished and they are succeeded by a new body known
as the Philippine Legislature, composed of an elective Senate and
House of Representatives, with jurisdiction over the entire Archipelago.
An elective Senate slightly diluted by executive appointees to
represent the uncivilized regions takes the place of the former
upper house of the legislature, which was composed entirely of
the appointed members of the Philippine Commission.
22 Act of August 29, 1916, U. S. Comp. Stats., vol. 4, ~ 3804 (a) et seq. See
Appendix I.
23 The attitude of the assembly and the several political parties toward independence appears in a document published by the assembly in 1916 entitled
La Independencia como Aspiraci6n Nacional. See also appendices to the
Special Report of Secretary Dickinson (1910).




432


THE PHILIPPINES


The old division of the islands into Christian, non-Christian
and Moro24 territory has disappeared. The Archipelago is now
divided into twelve senatorial and ninety representative districts.
Each senatorial district is entitled to two elective senators who
must be qualified electors, over thirty years of age, able to read
and write either Spanish or English, residents of the Philippines
for at least two years, and of the district for one year immediately prior to the election.
Each representative district is entitled to one representative,
who must be a qualified elector, over twenty-five years of age,
able to read and write Spanish or English, and have been a resident of the district for at least one year immediately prior to
the election.
Although the entire territory of the islands is brought under
the jurisdiction of the new legislature, that part formerly under the exclusive control of the commission is not granted the
privilege of electing its representatives.
As it would have seemed a trifle too absurd to grant the franchise to the Moros and wild men, Congress provided that the
governor-general shall appoint without the consent of the Senate
and without restriction as to residence senators and representatives who will in his opinion best represent the districts included
in that territory.
Congress, against the advice of General McIntyre and most
other well-informed Americans, greatly extended the franchise
to the Filipinos. It is a remarkable fact that the political party
which at the close of the Civil War made the mistake of giving
the ballot to the negroes of the South, now opposed its further
extension in the Philippines, while the Democrats of the South
insisted upon forcing it upon nearly half a million equally ignorant Oriental people.
The members of the first new Philippine Legislature were required to be elected by the electors having the qualifications of
voters under the existing Philippine law. But thereafter and
24 See Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 86.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


433


until otherwise provided by the Philippine Legislature the right
to vote is extended to
"Every male person who is not a citizen or subject of a foreign power, twenty-one years of age or over (except insane and
feeble-minded persons and those convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction of an infamous offense since August 13, 1898),
who shall have been a resident of the Philippines for one year
and of the municipality in which he shall offer to vote for six
months next preceding the day of voting, and who is comprised
within one of the following classes.
"(a) Those who under existing law are legal voters and have
exercised the right of suffrage.
"(b) Those who own real property to the value of 500 pesos,
or who annually pay 30 pesos or more of the established taxes.
"(c) Those who are able to read and write either Spanish,
English, or a native language.
"The legal voters referred to in (a) include:
"(1) Those who, prior to the thirteenth of August, eighteen
hundred and ninety-eight, held the office of municipal captain,
gobernadorcillo, alcalde, lieutenant, cabeza de barangay, or member of any ayuntamiento;
"(2) Those who own real property to the value of five hundred pesos, or who annually pay thirty pesos or more of the
established taxes;
"(3) Those who speak, read, and write English or Spanishshall be entitled to vote at all elections: Provided, That officers,
soldiers, sailors, or marines of the army or navy of the United
States shall not be considered as having acquired legal residence
within the meaning of this section by reason of their having been
stationed in the municipalities for the required six months."25
25 This law (Act No. 1582) disqualified the following persons:
"(a) Any person who is delinquent in the payment of public taxes assessed since August thirteenth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight;
"(b) Any person who has been deprived of the right to vote by the sentence of a court of competent jurisdiction since August thirteenth, eighteen
hundred and ninety-eight;
"(c) Any person who has taken and violated the oath of allegiance to the
United States.
"(d) Any person, who, on the first day of May, nineteen hundred and one,
or thereafter, was in arms in the Philippine Islands against the authority or
sovereignty of the United States, whether such person be an officer, soldier, or
civilian;
"(e) Any person who, since the last day of March, nineteen hundred and




434


THE PHILIPPINES


The ability to read and write a dialect alone implies such limited educational qualifications as to have no particular value. The
extension of the franchise by the new law increases the number
of voters from about two hundred fifty thousand to approximately six hundred thousand and the additions are from those
who are too ignorant to qualify under the former law. However, the provision extending the suffrage is not of much importance, as the Act of Congress made it inapplicable to the election
of members of the first legislature and authorized that body when
organized to determine the qualifications of voters. The Philippine Legislature now has full control over the question of suffrage.26
The powers of the governor-general are now clearly defined.27
He is to be appointed by the president of the United States with
the advice and consent of the United States Senate, holds office
at the pleasure of the president and is vested with the supreme'
executive power and made responsible for the faithful execution
of the laws. He is charged with the duty of supervising and conone, has made or hereafter shall make contribution of money or other valuable thing in aid of any person or organization against the authority or sovereignty of the United States, or who shall demand or receive such contribution from others, or who shall make any contribution to any person or organization hostile to or in arms against the authority or sovereignty of the United
States, for the purpose of securing any protection, immunity, or benefit;
"(f) Any person who, since the last day of March, nineteen hundred and
one, has or hereafter shall in any manner whatsoever give aid and comfort to
any person or organization in said islands in opposition to or in arms against
the authority or sovereignty of the United States;
"(g) Insane or feeble-minded persons:
"Provided, That the provisions of the subsection (d) shall not apply to
those persons who surrendered in Cebu to Brigadier-General Hughes or to
those who were on October thirty-first, nineteen hundred and one, inhabitants
of the town of Pilar in the Province of Sorsogon: And provided further,
That the provisions of subsections (d), (e), and (f), shall not apply to acts
done prior to the surrender by persons who surrendered to Brigadier-General
Samuel Summer in the Province of La Laguna in the month of June, nineteen
hundred and one: And provided further, That the disqualifications prescribed in the foregoing subsections (d), (e), and (f) shall not apply to persons who have received the benefits of an amnesty and have not since committed any of the acts set forth in said subsections." Compilation, Acts and
Military Orders in Force October I5, r907. Sec. 16.
It is not clear whether Congress by the statement of disqualifications,
which includes a part only of the foregoing list, intended to annul the others.
26 A bill to grant the suffrage to women is now pending in the legislature.
27 See supra, p. 111.




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435


trolling all the departments and bureaus of the government and
is commander-in-chief of any locally created armed forces and
militia.  He appoints, subject to confirmation by the Philippine
Senate, all officers whose appointment is not otherwise provided
for. He must within ten days after the convening of each regular session of the legislature submit a budget of receipts and expenditures of the government as the basis for the annual appropriation bill. When necessary to prevent or suppress lawless
violence or insurrection, or repel invasion, he may summon the
posse comitatus, call out the militia, or call upon the military and
naval forces of the United States. When the public safety requires it he may suspend the writ of habeas corpus or place the
islands or any part thereof under martial law. When this power
is exercised he must at once inform the president of the United
States of the facts and circumstances and the latter may modify
or vacate his orders.
It is provided that the governor-general shall make an annual
report of the transactions of the government through "an executive department of the United States to be designated by the
President."28 For the first time in the history of the American
administration the governor-general is given the power to veto
an act of the legislature or any item thereof.29 Should both
houses of the legislature by a two-thirds majority of the members pass a bill over the veto it then goes to the president, whose
approval or veto is final.
28 Heretofore the governor-general and the heads of departments (the
secretaries) made their annual reports to the commission.
29 Under the commission government as adopted by the Organic Law of
1902 Congress reserved the power to annul any act of the Philippine Legislature or the commission, but neither the governor-general, the secretary of
war, nor the president, had the veto power. It has been claimed that the
president and secretary of war could veto a Philippine law, but no attempt
was ever made to exercise such power. It is very clear that it did not exist
after 1902 when all the legislative power granted was vested in certain bodies.
An executive who vetoes a bill exercises a part of the legislative power and
his authority must originate in some organic law. During the period of military government the president controlled the government, but after Congress
took control the authority of the legislature was derived from the Act of
Congress which did not provide for a veto. Under the Organic Law a statute
became effective when passed by the proper legislative body and Congress
only could render it ineffective by virtue of its power to annul.




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THE PHILIPPINES


The Philippine Legislature, like its predecessors, is required to
report all laws enacted by it to Congress, which reserves the
power to annul them.
The president must also appoint a vice-governor, an auditor
and a deputy auditor. The vice-governor, who must be secretary of public instruction and'have control over education and
health, is authorized to exercise all the powers of the chief executive in the event of a vacancy, or the disability or temporary absence of the governor-general.30
The appointment of the auditor was very properly reserved to
the president, as this important officer has heavy responsibilities
in connection with the finances of the government. His administrative jurisdiction over accounts and vouchers and records pertaining thereto is exclusive and his decisions are final and conclusive upon the executive branches of the government, subject
to an appeal to the governor-general, and, should he fail to sustain the action of the auditor, to the secretary of war. The auditor has the general powers, except as specifically restricted, of
auditors of the United States and the comptroller of the United
States Treasury. He must report annually to the governorgeneral and the secretary of war. The office of the auditor remains under the general supervision of the governor-general.
During the commission regime there were four executive departments, the heads of which were appointed by the president
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Under the
new law the Department of Public Instruction only is required to
be retained and it must contain the Bureaus of Education and
Health and such others as may be assigned to it. All the other
executive departments are placed under the control of the Philippine Legislature, which may increase the number or abolish any
or all of them, or make such changes in the names and duties
thereof as it sees fit. All executive functions must be directly
under the governor-general or within one of the departments
30 It is to be regretted that the absurd title of vice-governor was retained.
There are at least a hundred governors of various degrees in the islands. In
order to conform to the facts this official should have been given the title of
vice-governor-general.




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437


under his supervision. The Act of Congress creates one new bureau to be known as the Bureau of non-Christian Tribes, which
shall have general supervision over the public affairs of the inhabitants of the territory represented in the legislature by appointive senators and representatives.
The heads of the departments other than that of public instruction are to be appointed by the governor-general instead of the
president, as heretofore, and confirmed by the Philippine Senate
instead of the United States Senate. The name Philippine Congress and the provision that the heads of departments should constitute a cabinet for.the governor-general, which were in the
Jones Bill at one stage, were omitted from the law, as too suggestive, evidently, of an independent government.
The new legislature is directed to elect two resident commissioners to the United States "who shall be entitled to an official
recognition as such by all departments." This provision is substantially the same as in the former law and leaves them dependent upon the courtesy of the House of Representatives for the
privilege of a seat and the right to speak in the house.31
The present laws are continued in force until changed by Congress or the Philippine Legislature. Future Acts of Congress
shall not apply to the Philippines unless the contrary is specifically
provided. General legislative power, except as specifically limited, is granted to the new legislature. The limitations, however,
are important. The Bill of Rights, which is copied into the law
from the former statute,32 contains the usual prohibitions upon
legislation. A new paragraph provides that "No religous test
shall be required for the exercise of civil or political rights. No
public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied,
donated or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit or support of any sect, church, denomination, sectarian institution, or
system of religion, or for the use, benefit or support of any priest,
preacher, minister or other religious teacher or dignitary as such.
Contracting of polygamous or plural marriages hereafter is pro31 See supra, pp. 66, 112, 414-416.
32 See supra, pp. 66-68.




438


THE PHILIPPINES


hibited. That no law shall be construed to permit polygamous or
plural marriages."
The legislature is specifically authorized to modify or repeal
all laws relating to revenue or taxation in effect in the islands,
with the following limitations as to the tariff. It will be remembered that there are two tariff laws, one an Act of Congress regulating trade between the United States and the Philippines, the
other a Philippine tariff law regulating trade between the islands
and other countries. The law we have been considering contains
the following provision: "While this act provides that the Philippine government shall have authority to enact a tariff law, the
trade relations between the islands and the United States shall
continue to be governed exclusively by laws of the Congress of
the United States: Provided, that tariff acts or acts amendatory
to the tariff of the Philippine Islands shall not become law until
they shall receive the approval of the President of the United
States."
So acts affecting immigration, the currency or coinage, lands
of the public domain and timber and mining do not become effective until approved by the president. The imposition of export duties is forbidden. Taxes and assessments on property
and license fees for franchises and privileges and internal taxes,
direct or indirect, may be imposed by the Philippine Legislature
for the purposes of the insular and local governments.
Express authority is given the legislature to increase the
bonded debt of the insular government to fifteen million dollars, and that of any province or municipality to seven per cent.
of the aggregate tax valuation of its property. The troublesome
question of citizenship is put in the way of settlement, as the
legislature is authorized to provide by law for the acquisition
of Philippine citizenship by those natives of the islands who do
not come within the provisions of the Treaty of Paris, the natives
of the insular possessions of the United States, and "such other
persons residing in the Philippine Islands who are citizens of the
United States, or who could become citizens of the United States
under the laws of the United States if residing therein." The




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439


provisions of the new law with reference to the granting of
franchises are the same as in the former statute.
The judicial system also is unchanged. But the salary of the
chief justice is reduced to eight thousand dollars and that of an
associate justice to seven thousand five hundred dollars per
annum. The salary of the governor-general is fixed at eighteen
thousand dollars, with the right to the use of the official residences. The vice-governor is to receive ten thousand dollars, the
auditor six thousand dollars and the deputy auditor three thousand dollars per annum. All expenses incurred on account of
the government of the Philippines for salaries of the officials and
the conduct of their offices and departments, and all expenses and
obligations contracted for the internal improvement and development of the islands other than works undertaken by the United
States shall, as in the past, be paid by the government of the
Philippines.
An ambiguity thought to exist in the former statutes3 is cleared
up by the following provision of the new law:
"If at the termination of any fiscal year the appropriations
necessary for the support of government for the ensuing fiscal
year shall not have been made, the several sums appropriated in
the last appropriation bills for the objects and purposes therein
specified, so far as the same may be done shall be deemed to be
reappropriated for the several objects and purposes specified in
said last appropriation bill; and until the legislature shall act in
such behalf the treasurer shall when so directed by the governorgeneral make the payments necessary for the purposes aforesaid."
There is a difference of opinion as to the wisdom of some of
the provisions of this law. It seems to me that it was unwise to
extend the suffrage, and it would have been safer to vest the appointive power in the governor-general absolutely. Any one
familiar with the history of the assembly will expect the Senate
under the guise of confirmation to control appointments. Other
features of the bill are subject to criticism, but nevertheless when
all the conditions are taken into consideration, I think Congress
did the proper thing in passing the law even with the doubtful
88 See p. 117.




440


THE PHILIPPINES


preamble. Had the Philippine Commission not been emasculated
the country would have advanced more rapidly under its control
than it will under the present government. But the power and
prestige of the commission had been so weakened that some
radical changes in the system were necessary. The new legislature, with its elective Senate, is an improvement on the old complicated legislative arrangement which by its very nature could
be temporary only. It is far better, also, that the governorgeneral as the representative of American sovereignty should
not be a member of the legislature. His power over legislation
is much greater than when he was the presiding officer of the
upper house and engaged in trading with the skilful politicians
of the assembly.
But his position will not be an easy one. A weak and complaisant chief executive will be inclined to win cheap popularity
by signing all bills which are presented to him. A strong governor-general who uses his veto power fearlessly and conscientiously will save the country from the consequences of many mistakes, but he will be anathema to the people he serves. It is to
be regretted that Congress did not follow the custom of the other
powers and fix a definite term of office for the governor-general
and vice-governor. Had they been given four-year terms expiring in the middle of the presidential term the government would
have been more stable and there would have been less temptation
for the president to treat the positions as rewards for political
services.34
The new law has not changed the nature of the government
or the legal relation between it and the United States. The
Philippines are a possession and, in an international sense, a part
of the United States. The government is neither sovereign nor
quasi sovereign; it is an agency of Congress and subject to its
a4 There is an ambiguous provision in the law to the effect that the governor-general shall make his reports "to an executive department of the
United States to be designated by the President." The inference is that Congress contemplates the possible transfer of the administration of the Philippine government from the War to the State or some other department. The
control of the secretary of war through the Bureau of Insular Affairs is
provided for by an unrepealed statute.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


441


control. Its authority is derived from the orders of the president
before Congress acted and the subsequent Acts of Congress.
Within the limits of its authority it is a complete governmental
organism with executive, legislative and judicial departments exercising the functions commonly assigned to such departments
in a constitutional republic.35
The passage of the Jones Bill was the occasion of great rejoicing in Manila. It was accepted as a formal promise of ultimate
independence and as conclusive evidence of America's good faith,
which in the past had often been doubted. The native papers were
profuse in expressions of gratitude for a government in which
the Filipinos were to have so important a part. El Ideal, the
organ of the Nationalist party, said:
"With the final passage of the Jones Bill, which is the law that
organizes and regulates our political life and our relations with
the United States, a new pact of friendship, which is more consistent, more elevated, more equitable and therefore more permanent and most binding between the American people and the
Filipino people; has been executed.
"Henceforth, there will no longer be any reason to doubt the
noble intentions of the American nation; henceforth, no Amer35 U. S. v. Bull, 15 Phil. Repts. 7 (1910); Severino v. Governor-General,
16 Phil. Repts. 366; Forbes v. Chuco Tiaco, 16 Phil. Repts. 534 (1910); see
an article by George A. Malcolm, on "The Status of the Philippines," Michigan Law Review, May, 1916.
Dean Malcolm says (p. 542): "In the case of the United States v. Bull the
Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands, considering 'the importance of the
question' presented 'after much discussion and considerable diversity of opinion' established 'certain applicable constitutional doctrines.' In reality the
opinion by Mr. Justice Elliott constitutes a veritable text-book in the most
approved style on certain subjects of Philippine government. * * * While
the opinion went to the extreme in a judicial endeavor to sanction legislative
authority and to set up a quasi-sovereign government, it was not appealed to
the Supreme Court of the United States and is controlling. The same result
was attained in two later decisions affecting the executive power."
United States v. Bull merely established the principle that the orders of the
president and the Acts of Congress granted general legislative power to the
Philippine government, subject to express and implied restrictions. In other
words, it was held that in determining the constitutionality of a statute the
court would look for limitations instead of specific grants of power. The
principle established by that case is embodied in section 12 of the Act of
August 29, 1916, which provides that "general legislative power, except as
otherwise herein provided, is hereby granted to the Philippine Legislature,
authorized by the act."




442


THE PHILIPPINES


ican, however hostile and opposed he may be to the ideals of the
Filipino people, can charge us with being ungrateful when we act
in accordance with the confidence in our capacity to maintain a
stable government, with a view to obtaining the final recognition
of our full right to govern ourselves without outside help.
"The Jones Act is really a measure which unites Americans
and Filipinos in a concerted effort for the betterment of the country. The former are obliged to finish, nobly and disinterestedly,
the glorious work which they began here eighteen years ago, and
they are therefore bound to assist us considerably, and the latter
are obliged to accept, and they do accept, the valuable aid of the
Americans in the great work of laying the foundations of their
future nation, which shall be free and independent. The work is
indeed of such magnitude that we expect not only the assistance
of the Americans, but also of the foreigners who live in our
country and who, generally, have acted in a noble way."
According to the editor, the date of the signing of the Jones
Bill ushered in "a new period of mighty effort and growing responsibilities." A new era had opened. It was a time for gratitude, "gratitude to ourselves because we have conducted ourselves in such a way as to deserve a substantial part of what we
all long for, gratitude and blessing to the noble American people
and their representatives, gratitude and blessing to the loyal leaders of our cause who did not vacillate in spite of all obstacles,
neither did they shirk any responsibility, however great, and carried onward the flag of our faith in the new position of honor we
now occupy.
"And now that intense emotion calls for words which would
convey, in the briefest and most expressive manner, our gratitude
to the American people, we can find none which would sum up
so persuasively, so feelingly and so justly our tribute to the lofty
spirit which inspired the work of the American peqple in these
islands during their eighteen years of sovereignty, as the following which come from the heart of the highest and most genuine
representative of the Filipino people, Speaker Osmefia: 'The
American people could have treated us otherwise after we were
vanquished. And because they did not do so, they are deserving
of the appreciation and the sincere esteem of the Filipinos.'"
The elections for members of the new legislature, which was
to meet on October sixteenth, were strongly contested, but the
Nationalists were generally successful. They elected twenty of




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


443


the twenty-two members of the Senate. Mr. Quezon, who had
resigned his office of resident commissioner at Washington, was
elected a member of the Senate by a practically unanimous vote.
There has always been much fraudulent voting at Philippine
elections and this one was no exception. But the way in which
the matter was treated shows that the leaders appreciate the fact
that the country is on its good behavior.36
Governor-General Harrison appointed Hadji Butu of Jolo, one
of the advisers of the Sultan of Sulu, a member of the Senate,
and Datu Piang, a Moro from Cotabato, and a prominent Igorot from the Mountain Province, members of the House of Representatives, to represent the districts included in what was formerly called the non-Christian territory. Such appointments
seem very absurd, but it must be remembered that these men
are in fact recognized leaders of their people. The last time I
saw Datu Piang he stood digging up the sand with his toes while
soliciting government aid to retrieve one of his wives who had
run away from the over-populated home. Nevertheless, he will
represent his people in a much more real sense than will many
of the elected legislators. What Datu Piang wills is, and for
years has been, the law for many Moros who inhabit the Cotabato Valley.
The legislature was duly organized on October sixteenth. Quezon became president of the Senate, and Osmefia speaker of the
House of Representatives. As the reorganization of the departments required time, the life of the commission was extended
to January 1, 1917.
36 The Cable News-American of Nov. 5, 1916, reports Senator Quezon as
saying: "The sixth senatorial district shall not be represented in the Senate
until a new election, devoid of the incredible irregularities recently perpetrated in the last elections, shall have been held. Not even if the men coming
out victorious as a result of the last electoral battle were to come to the
Senate chamber, with certificates in their hands, of having been elected, will
they be allowed to occupy seats in the upper house of the Philippine Legislature. The frauds that have been committed in that district were so stupendous and phenomenal as to destroy all confidence in the honesty of the
voters within its jurisdiction. Therefore, it is not proper for the Senate to
permit any candidate triumphant in the last senatorial elections to have any
Place in it, because then, it would be an act of injustice, founded on the ignoble machinations of an irresponsible body of criminal voters."




444


THE PHILIPPINES


Innumerable projects for the good of the country were embodied in bills and promptly introduced. Every legislative body
has its crank bills. The extremists and the hitherto suppressed
seditiously inclined patriots were much in evidence. One of the
first bills introduced was intended to repeal the law which made
it a crime to exhibit the old insurgent flag or the emblems of the
Katapunan.37
The Filipinos have a chronic habit of assuming a trifle more
than the facts justify. Given an inch they will claim an ell. The
Jones Bill in one of the forms through which it passed provided
for a Filipino Congress, but the law as enacted created the Philippine Legislature. Nevertheless, this body provided that the
enacting clause to its laws should read "the Philippine Senate
and the House of Representatives in Congress assembled enacts..." In popular language the legislature is already
called the Congress, and even the American newspapers in Manila so designate it. Of course, it is no more a Congress than
is the legislature of North Dakota.38
The Act of Congress provided that the existing executive departments should continue until changed by the new legislature.
The change was promptly effected. The old departments, with
the exception of that of public instruction, which Congress required to be retained, were abolished, and new and additional
ones created, under the names of the Departments of the Interior,
Commerce, Agriculture, Treasury, Transportation and Communications, and Public Resources. The new office of assistant secretary for each department was created and Filipinos were appointed secretaries and assistant secretaries, the aggregate salaries
being about what had been paid formerly. The governor-general,
the vice-governor, the auditor and certain members of the Supreme Court are the only Americans who hold high office in the
37 It was erroneously announced in the American papers that this bill
became a law and the impression created was bad.
38 Before the Organic Law of July 1, 1902, the enacting clause read: "By
authority of the President of the United States, be it enacted by the Philippine
Commission." After the passage of that law the enacting clause read, "By
the authority of the United States be it enacted by the Philippine Commission." After 1907 the same form was used by the legislature.




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445


Philippine government. The issue for good or evil is now with
the Filipinos.
It is not easy to determine the real strength of the present
sentiment in favor of independence. The great majority of the
Americans who have served in the Philippines assert very positively that even now the desire exists only among interested politicians, that the well-to-do classes are at heart opposed to it,
and that the common people are so ignorant that they have no
conception of what independence means. This may have been a
correct description of the situation as it existed a few years ago,
but it is not true now because it ignores the growing middle
class in which the sentiment is strongest.
Our government deliberately and intentionally created the conditions which made inevitable the rapid development of a national spirit, and it is folly to close our eyes to facts and continue
to assert that the agitation about independence is merely as the
froth on the surface of the political pool. Nevertheless it is a
fact that American Philippine officials and civil service employees
generally, who have no reason to misrepresent conditions, have
but slight faith in the depth and sincerity of the sentiment.
Teachers and constabulary officers in particular, who have lived
close to the common people, almost without exception assert that
all but the politicians and newspaper men are satisfied with conditions as they were before the Jones Bill became a law. When
speaking in confidence the people with whom they are in contact
assure them that they do not desire independence, although they
would like to try some form of government under which the
United States would leave them free to go their own way while
protecting them from the consequences of their mistakes. It
seems that at present the mass of the people, in a vague, indefinite and uninformed manner, desire to run their own country
in their own way, even though it means a less efficient government. Yet even this is not generally conceded by Americans,
although it can not be denied that the political party which has
taken a radical position on the question is successful at the elections, while their opponents, who advocate delay, are defeated.




446


THE PHILIPPINES


I have little doubt that the great majority of the voters would,
if given the opportunity, make the mistake of casting their ballots
for immediate independence.
There are many who would prefer to live under a free popular
government operated by their own people under American supervision and protection such as they have been enjoying. Undoubtedly this is the feeling of the leading business and professional men who are not in politics. The attitude of this class
and the Spanish and Chinese mestizos who control most of the
business which is not in the hands of the Europeans and Americans has been rather shifty but it is understandable. Many of
them have expressed themselves publicly as in sympathy with
the Nationalist movement, but it is certain that at heart they are
not in favor of independence if it is to mean an oligarchical
republic under the control of the men who have established themselves as leaders during the last few years. They distrust many
of these men and fear that their influence over the ignorant people will be used for personal ends and to the prejudice of the
propertied class.39 They also fear that inefficient leadership and
personal rivalries will result in disorder and possibly in revolutionary disturbances. They know that their material interests
would be seriously prejudiced by the withdrawal of the American
government. The day the American flag ceases to float over
Fort Santiago rents in Manila will fall fifty per cent. for the
simple reason that there will be no tenants for the many modern
39 The attitude of this class was shown by a letter written by Mr. Legarda,
then Quezon's colleague as resident commissioner at Washington, on April
28, 1911, in which he said:
"As to what you say about Quezon, I knew very well what this type is;
this gives an idea of what our people are as yet, in so far as their capacity for
self-government is concerned; they allow themselves to be carried away by
those three or four mountebank legislators and overlook their histories and
moral characters. Who is Quezon? Who is Osmefia? And Dominador
Gomez, Poblete and Isabelo de los Reyes? What have they been? The
Americans are those who with all this are reaping their harvest, as they say,
rightly, that so long as our people continue to be at the mercy of the rascals,
and the reputable and wealthy classes remain aloof from them, it is impossible
to grant anything. And this is what will happen."
The letter was used as evidence in a suit between two Filipinos and was
printed in the Manila Times, April 22, 1912.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


447


houses which are now occupied by Americans connected with the
civil government, the army and the navy.
Few members of the upper classes who do not hold or aspire
to office seriously claim that the people are ready to govern themselves. But they express their views in a decided undertone.
They are very uncertain as to what the future will bring forth,
and they are not seeking to qualify as patriots or martyrs. They
have a vivid recollection of the confiscations and compulsory
contributions which were levied upon them during the brief period of Aguinaldo's ascendency. Nor have they been able to
measure the forces which in the United States are seeking to
cast the Philippines adrift. The democratic leaders and newspapers have been threatening the permanency of the American
control and the local politicians have assured them that the day
is near-that the good ship Independence is visible in the offing.
They know enough of the history of revolutions to understand
that if an independent Filipino state is established the fate of
those who were lukewarm toward the cause will not be enviable.
Not a few have for such reasons rendered lip service to the independence cause while trusting to their American friends to see
that the day of its success is postponed as long as possible.
There is also reason to believe that some at least of those who
have been most active in the independence propaganda do not
desire that it be too promptly successful. These men found it
a popular party shibboleth and encouraged it until in some localities it got beyond their control. One of the most prominent
of the Nationalist leaders once informed me that his constituents
were able to grasp the simple idea of absolute independence, but
that they could not comprehend the complicated arrangements
involved in an autonomous government under American supervision, and that he was advocating independence in the hope of
obtaining a government similar to that of Canada. They were
aiming at the stars in the hope of reaching the high hills. It
is said also on good authority that the quiet work of the Filipino leaders and their American advisers aided in defeating the




448


THE PHILIPPINES


Clarke Amendment to the Jones Bill. It was an evil time for an
infant nation to be born into the world and left to shift for itself
without a protector., We have then in the Philippines a prevailing sentiment in
favor of immediate independence, but it is not universal and
it varies greatly in intensity and seriousness. The older and
more experienced men of the upper class-the elder statesmen
-while mildly favoring it, at heart are in favor of the continuance of present conditions. The common people, which term
includes the small business men and farmers, the one carabao
men, and the millions of laboring men and taos, who live in the
provinces, understand but little and care less about the question.
They have been told by the politicians and orators that independencia is something to be desired and they are willing enough
to follow their natural leaders. The small middle class, including the young men who have been educated in the American
controlled schools, the lawyers, doctors and newspaper men, are
strongly in favor of independence and willing and anxious to
assume the burdens of government. It is from this class that
the real leaders of the Nationalist movement have come. Many
of them are able, competent and patriotic, and a few are sufficiently well informed to appreciate their relation to the rest of
the universe. They have now been given substantially all they
asked for short of independence, and I believe that the best of
them will be satisfied with the government as organized under
the law of 1916. But the agitation will not immediately subside.
The impetus of the movement and the desire for consistency
will seem to require the continuance for a time of the agitation
for independence.40 It will be held before the people as an ulti40 With reference to the Jones Bill, The Filipino People said:
"We do not of course regard this bill as a finality. Were it so, we should
never consent to its consideration or enactment. Did it debar us from continued agitation and effort to secure enactment of final independence legislation, we should oppose it to the uttermost. But such is not the case.. 
We therefore favor the passage of the new Jones bill, advise its acceptance
by the people of the Philippines, and pledge ourselves to its support." Quoted
in Kalow's The Case for the Filipinos, p. 207.
The arrogant tone of the foregoing is characteristic of certain of the
native politicians. They have been commended and flattered until they believe.,




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


449


mate prize to be won as the result of good conduct and efficient
government. If the Filipinos are left to work out their own
salvation under the new law without officious advice and interference on the part of their American mentors we shall hear comparatively little of independence during the next few years. A
few interested agitators may continue to talk, but with the government almost entirely in Filipino hands, and working successfully, it will be difficult to excite the public about the abstract
principles involved in sovereignty. If the government is not reasonably well administered the demand for independence will resolve itself into an absurdity.
The Filipinos must realize when they pass out of the emotional stage that independence would mean a larger establishment, more office holders and increased taxation. Although they
have not been heavily taxed, they are bitterly complaining of
the new taxes which have been imposed during the last three
years.41 When they are asked to vote yet additional taxes in
evidently that they are in a position to dictate terms to Congress. "We would
reject any concessions." "We should never consent to its consideration or
enactment." It would be well if these gentlemen were required to learn that
legislation for the Philippines is a matter of national importance and that it
is for the people of the United States as represented in Congress, to say what
is for the interest of the nation as well as the Filipinos. In determining its
action the wishes of the natives as a whole so far as ascertainable should be
given proper consideration. But it should not be forgotten that the Philippines are the property of the United States and that the Filipinos are American nationals who owe allegiance to the United States, under whose protection many of them were born and all live. The question of independence as
well as the extent of self-government which shall be granted to them is a
matter of American policy to be determined by the nation in the light of its
own interests, as well as those of the Filipinos.
41 "During the debate over the bill which authorizes the municipal councils
to increase the land tax for school purposes, and when Delegate Fonscier,
alleging the great burden of taxation which already weights on the people,
proposed that the law be postponed till 2915, Delegate Soto said:
"'Does the gentleman think that in view of the irksome burdens now
placed on the country, there will be any real estate left in the Philippines by
2915?'
"Sotto, with that subtle irony of Voltaire, announced in words teeming
with rich humor, terrible presage. The country is already exhausted by the
weight, of so many direct and indirect taxes, and if it does not protest and
with a spirit of resignation welcomes all such taxes, it is because it is nourished by the hope that it may find compensation in national liberty, for which
the people are willing to accept the most painful sacrifices, as shown in the
past, and are now ready to accept them so far as it may be possible for human
nature to do so. This must be unknown to the representatives of business
who, through Mr. Pitt, ask for the increase of the cedula tax to three pesos.




450


THE PHILIPPINES


order to raise the money to pay for the army and navy about
which the politicians are now talking so glibly,42 they will, if
competent to govern themselves, consider very seriously whether
it is not the part of wisdom to permit the United States to continue bearing that part of their burdens.
Successful government, particularly in the tropics, is largely
a matter of finance and low taxes. It will be impossible to
increase the income of the Philippine government to any great
extent without imposing additional direct taxes. If the islands
become independent the American markets will of course be
closed to them, and their sugar, hemp and cocoanut products
will have to pay the regular duties imposed on similar articles
coming from other foreign countries. The Philippine tariff will
be imposed on articles coming in from the United States as well
as Europe and Asia, and the imports now increasing rapidly
under free trade will decrease. The annual income of the Philippine government is approximately thirteen million dollars. The
fixed charges necessary to pay the interest on the bonded indebtedness, maintain the necessary sinking funds and pay the operating expenses of the government requires approximately eleven
million dollars. The modest balance has during recent years been
used for the construction of highways and other necessary public
improvements. The margin of difference between income and expenditure is so small that the increased expenses of an independent government would render impossible the construction of
additional public works and also necessitate the reduction of
the appropriations for health and education. It is possible to
increase the income of the government by developing the natural resources of the country, but that requires capital in large
amounts, which can only be secured from abroad. But the FiliThe approval of such proposition would be a cruel sarcasm and we sincerely
believe that the legislature will do its very best to avoid the carrying out of
such preposterous idea of the great commercial interests." El Ideal.
42 The new legislature is much interested in a military and naval school
and the organization of an army. The Moro senator, Hadji Butu, "in whose
veins tingles the traditions of his warlike race," called the attention of his
Christian brethren to the great advantage of having a good army and navy.
"And he is right," says El Ideal.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


451


pinos refuse those concessions and privileges which are necessary
to induce capital to enter such a country. It has been impossible
in the past to obtain it in substantial amounts and on such conditions as are now imposed it will not come at all after American
control has been withdrawn.
Another matter must be taken into consideration. The government which has been organized in the Philippines is too elaborate for the Filipinos to operate successfully. The work undertaken during the Taft regime was on a scale which required
considerable time for its completion. It was contemplated that
American control and supervision would not be withdrawn until
the somewhat elaborate plans were worked out, and results obtained. The work was to be completed by Americans before
the question of independence was seriously considered. The
way in which the friar lands were handled is a good illustration. The Congress organized by Aguinaldo disposed of the
matter in a very summary way. It simply confiscated the property. The Americans worked out a plan which was entirely
just to all parties. But it involved years of expert work and
careful handling of the property to produce the contemplated
results. It never would have been undertaken by Filipinos and it
can not be successfully carried out under their management.
The change of administration came and the move for independence reached its height while the American projects were
not more than half completed. It would be impossible for the
Filipinos to take over the government at the present time, particularly in view of the condition of the finances, and operate
it successfully. They must inevitably wreck the ship on the financial rocks. The country is too small and too poor to support
an independent government. That proportion of the income
which during the past few years has been devoted to public improvements designed to increase the production power of the
country would be frittered away on a diplomatic service, a petty
army and a tin navy, which would be useless for any serious
purpose. There is every reason to believe that the unsold friar
lands would be mismanaged, the sinking funds diverted, the




452


THE PHILIPPINES


money due on contracts and leases remain unpaid, and the outstanding seven million dollars of bonds thus become a general
charge on the treasury. The interest on the bonded indebtedness
of sixteen million dollars, in addition to the friar land bonds,
would have to be promptly met and the sinking funds maintained.
The Manila Railroad Company, which was recently purchased by
the government, will be a perpetual financial burden, and its
bonded debt of ten million dollars, which has been assumed by the
government, must be taken care of.43 The Philippine Railway
Company also will undoubtedly have to be taken over by the government in order to protect its investment under its guarantee of
the interest on the construction bonds. When that is done the
twenty million dollars of bonds will also become a charge on the
treasury unless the mortgage on the road is allowed to be foreclosed and the property sold. In that event all that has in the
meantime been paid as interest by the government will be lost.
The Filipinos have so far shown no capacity for large financial
operations, and while their leaders probably no longer believe
with Mabini44 that securing the money to operate a government
is a mere detail, there is no justification for assuming that they
fully comprehend the difficulties ahead of them. Under American control the financial problems other than those involved in
the Manila Railroad deal can be successfully solved. But an
independent Filipino state would soon find itself in the condition
of many of the South American republics, which would mean
inability to meet its obligations, repudiation, intervention and
all the usual complications, including the assertion by foreign
bond holders of a claim against the United States on the obligations issued or assumed by its agent the Philippine government.
When the Filipinos once fully grasp the situation and realize
the burdens and dangers involved in independence they will probably abandon the idea, be satisfied with their present government
and accept the aid and protection of the United States. The
43 The Philippine government did not merely purchase the road subject to
the lien of the bonds. It bound itself by a law incorporated in the contract of
purchase to create a sinking fund to retire the bonds.
44 Elliott, The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 507.




THE INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT


453


present situation is the result of skilful agitation based on a
natural and proper desire for nationality. The great majority
of the American people seem to be perfectly willing that the
Filipinos shall establish their own government when the proper
time comes. They feel kindly toward them, wish them well, and
expect no financial profit from the connection. They are even
willing to continue bearing the financial burdens involved in the
present relation. Having entered upon an altruistic enterprise
designed primarily for the benefit of the Filipinos, they are reluctant to abandon it while half completed. They feel that their
own honor and credit are involved.
It may be that when the Filipinos are prepared for independence they will be sufficiently intelligent not to desire it. They
now feel that Congress has conceded what they regard as their
abstract rights and that independence may be theirs when they
have established a stable government and demand the redemption of the implied promise. "When that time comes," as Mr.
Quezon told the Senate committee, "perhaps the Filipino people
may say, 'Well we prefer to be under the United States, we
prefer to be under a country which recognizes our right to be
free, and gives us our opportunity to work out our own salvation
under its flag.' "45
45 Hearings, Senate Committee, 1915, p. 513.




i
iK




A List of Books and Articles on the Philippines,
Colonization and Colonial Problems




4~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




A LIST OF BOOKS AND ARTICLES ON THE PHILIPPINES,
COLONIZATION AND COLONIAL PROBLEMS
1. COLONIZATION
ADAMS, G. B.-Civilization During the Middle Ages. New York, 1894.
ARNOLD, W. T.-The Roman System of Provincial Administration to the Accession of Constantine the Great. London, 1879.
ARTIN, YACOUB-England in the Sudan.     Translated from  the French by
George Robb, with map and illustrations. London, 1911.
BALCH, T. B.-French Colonization in North Africa. Am. Pol. Sci. Rev.,
Nov., 1909.
BEDWELL, C. E. A.-The Legislation of the Empire, being a survey of the
Legislative Enactments of the British Dominions for 1898-1909, with a
preface by Lord Rosebery. Four volumes. 1909.
BLAND, J. O. P.-Recent Events and Present Policies in China. Philadelphia
and London, 1912.
BOHN, M.-German Colonial Policy in United Empire (N. S.), IV, p. 284.
BOURNE, E. G.-Essays in Historical Criticism. New York and London, 1901.
BOURNE, E. G.-Spain in America, 1450-1580. New York, 1904.
BRAND, R. H.-The Union of South Africa. 1909.
BRODRICK, G. C.-Political Studies (Roman Colonies). London, 1879.
BRUCE, SIR CHARLES-The Broad Stone of Empire, Problems of Crown Colony Administration, with records of Personal Experience, with maps.
Two volumes. London, 1910.
BRUNIALTI-Le Colonie degli Italiani. Torino, 1897.
BRYCE, JAMES-Studies in History and Jurisprudence. Oxford Press, 1901.
BRYCE, JAMES-Impressions of South Africa. 1897.
CABATON, A.-Java, Sumatra and the Other Islands of the Dutch East Indies.
Translated, with a preface by Bernard Miall. Map and illustrations. London, 1911.
CHAILLEY, JOSEPH-Administrative Problems of British India. Translated by
Sir William Myer. London, 1910.
COLQUHOUN, A. R.-China in Transformation. 1898.
COLVIN, SIR A.-The Making of Modern Egypt. Second edition. London,
1906.
COTTON, SIR HENRY-Indian and Home Memories. London, 1911. Particularly valuable for its sympathetic account of the nationalist movement in
India.
Cox, SIR EDMOND C.-Police and Crime in India. London. A good book,
but without a date or index.
CRESWELL, W. P.-The Growth and Administration of British Colonies.
1837-1897.
CROMER, EARL OF-Modern Egypt. In two volumes. London, 1908.
CROMER, EARL OF-Political and Literary Essay. 1908-1913. London, 1913.
CROMER, EARL OF-Ancient and Modern Imperialism. New York, 1912.
CROMER, EARL OF-Abbas II. London, 1915.
CUNNINGHAM, ALFRED-Today in Egypt. London, 1912.
DAY, CLIvE-The Policy and Administration of the Dutch in Java. New
York, 1904.
457




458


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


DAY, CLIVE-A History of Commerce. New York and London, 1907.
DICEY, E.-The Story of the Khedivate. 1902.
DILKE, SIR CHARLES WENTWORTH-Problems of Greater Britain. Fourth edition, revised, with maps. 1890.
DOUGLAS, SIR ROBERT K.-Europe and the Far East. 1904.
DRIAULT, EDOUARD-La Question d'Extreme Orient. 1908.
EDGERTON, HUGH EDWARD-The Origin and Growth of the English Colonies
and Their System of Government. An Introduction to Lucas' Historical
Geography of the British Colonies. Oxford, 1904.
EDGERTON, HUGH EDWARD-A Short History of British Colonial Policy. Second edition, revised. London, 1908.
Essays in Colonial Finance, by members of the American Economic Association, New York, August, 1900. (Third Series, I, p. 3.)
FRANCOIS, GEORGES, ET ROUGET, FERNAND-Manuel de Legislation Coloniale.
Paris, 1909.
FRANK, TENNEY-Roman Imperialism. New York, 1914.
FRASER, LOVAT-India Under Lord Curzon and After. London, 1911.
FULLER, SIR BAMPFYLDE-The Empire of India. Boston, 1913.
FYFE, H. H.-The New Spirit in Egypt. London, 1911.
GIDDINGS, F. H.-Democracy and Empire, with Studies of Their Psychological, Economic and Moral Foundations. New York, 1901.
HARRMS-Intervention and Colonization in Africa. 1914.
HAZEN, C. D.-Europe Since I815. New York, 1910.
HELPS, SIR ARTHUR-The Spanish Conquest in America. New edition, with
an introduction, maps and notes, by M. Oppenheim. New York, 1900.
HOLLAND, BERNARD-Imperium et Libertas. 1901.
ILBERT, SIR COURTENAY-The Government of India. 1898.
IRELAND, ALLEYNE-The Far Eastern Tropics. Studies in the Administration
of Tropical Dependencies. Boston, 1905.
IRELAND, ALLEYNE-Tropical Colonization. New York, 1899.
JEBB, RICHARD —Studies in Colonial Nationalism. 1905.
JOHNSTON, H. H.-A History of the Colonization of Africa by Alien Races.
Cambridge, 1899.
KELLER, ALBERT GALLOWAY-Colonization, A Study of the Founding of New
Societies. New York, 1908.
KELTIE, J. S.-The Partition of Africa. Second edition. London, 1895.
KELTIE, J. S.-Africa. The History of the Nations. Vol. XIX, edited by
A. G. Keller. Philadelphia, 1907.
KIDD, BENJAMIN-Principles of Western Civilization. New York, 1902.
LEA, H. C.-A   History of the Inquisition in Spain. Four volumes. New
York, 1906-1908.
LEROY-BEAULIEU, P.-De la Colonisation chez les Peuples Modernes. Fifth
edition. Two volumes. Paris, 1902.
LEWIS, SIR GEORGE CORNEWALL-An Essay on the Government of Dependencies. Edited, with an introduction, by C. P. Lucas. Oxford, 1891.
Low, SIDNEY-Egypt in Transition. London, 1914.
LOWE, I.-Prince Bismarck. Two volumes. New York, 1886.
LUCAS, SIR C. P.-Lord Durham's Report on the Affairs of British North
America. Edited, with an introduction, by Sir C. P. Lewis. Three volumes. Oxford, 1912.
LUCAS, C. P.-A Historical Geography of the British Colonies. Second edition, revised by R. E. Stubbs. Six volumes. Oxford, 1906.
LYALL, SIR ALFRED-The Rise and Expansion of the British Dominion in
India. Fifth edition, corrected, with maps. London, 1910.
MAJOR, E.-Indian Educational Policy, being a Resolution issued by the Governor-General (Lord Curzon) in Council, on March 11, 1904. Calcutta,
1904.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


459


MAJOR, E.-Viscount Morley and Indian Reform. London, 1910.
MAJOR, R. H.-The Life of Prince Henry the Navigator, and Its Results.
London, 1868.
MILNER, ALFRED-England in Egypt. Fourth edition, with additions summarizing the course of events to the year 1904. London, 1909.
MODY, H. P.-The Political Future of India. A Study of the Aspirations of
Educated Indians. A prize essay. London, 1908.
MORLEY, VISCOUNT-Indian Speeches. London, 1910.
MORLEY, JOHN-Life of William Ewart Gladstone. Two volumes. London,
1903.
MOSES, BERNARD-The Establishment of Spanish Rule in America. An Introduction to the History and Politics of Spanish America. New York, 1898.
MOSES, BERNARD-The Spanish Dependencies in South America. Two volumes. New York, 1914.
OKUMA, COTNT SHIGENOBU-Fifty Years of New Japan. English version by
Marcus B. Huish. Two volumes. New York, 1909.
PAYNE, E. J.-The Age of Discovery. In Cambridge Modern History, I,
Chapter I, Cambridge, 1902.
PERRY, H. A.-The Traditions of German Colonization. MacMillan's Magazine, LXII, 113 (1890).
POWELL, E. ALEXANDER-The Last Frontier. The White Man's War for
Civilization in Africa, with map and illustrations. New York, 1912.
REID, S. J.-Life and Letters of Lord Durham. Two volumes. 1906.
REINSCH, PAUL S.-World Politics. 1900.
REINSCH, PAUL S.-Colonial Administration. New York, 1905.
REINSCH, PAUL S.-Intellectual and Political Currents in the Far East. Boston, 1911.
REINSCH, PAUL S.-Colonial Government. An Introduction to the Study of
Colonial Institutions. New York and London, 1902.
RICHMAN, IRVING BERDINE-California under Spain and Mexico, 1535-1847,
with maps, charts and plans. Boston, 1911.
ROBINSON, SIR J.-The Colonies and the Century. New York, 1899.
ROSE, J. H.-The Development of European Nations. New York, 1916.
ROY, DEEREsux-Aspects of Algeria. London, 1913.
SEELEY, SIR JOHN-The Expansion of England, 1884.
SEELEY, SIR JOHN-The Growth of British Policy. Two volumes. 1911.
SNOW, ALPHEUS H.-The Administration of Dependencies. A study of the
evolution of the Federal Empire, with special reference to American
Colonial problems. New York, 1902.
STEPHEN, LESLIE-The Life of Sir James Fitzjames Stephen, 1895.
STRACHEY, SIR JOHN-India, Its Administration and Progress. Fourth edition, revised by Sir Thomas W. Holderness. London, 1911.
TILBY, A. WYATT-The English People Overseas. Three volumes. Volume I.
London, 1908.
TOWNSEND, MEREDITH-Asia and Europe. Third edition. New York, 1910.
TREVELYAN, G. M.-The Life of John Bright. Boston, 1913.
VILLARI, LUIGI-Italy after the Libian War. Fortnightly Rev., Nov., 1913.
WATSON, R. G.-Spanish and Portuguese South America During the Colonial
Period. Two volumes. London, 1884.
WORSFOLD, W. BASIL-Lord Milner's Work in South Africa, from its commencement in 1897 to the Peace of Vereeniging, in 1902. New York, 1906.
WRONG, GEORGE W.-The Earl of Elgin. London, 1905.
ZIMMERMAN, ALFRED-Die Europaischen Kolonien, with maps and bibliographies. In course of publication. Five volumes have been published.
1895-1903.




460


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


2. THE PHILIPPINES
(a) BOOKS AND IMPORTANT PAMPHLETS
Volume 53 of Blair and Robertson's The Philippine Islands is devoted to
bibliography. The collection of titles is very complete to date of publication.
See also the following:
GRIFFIN, A. P. C.-A list of books (with references to periodicals) on the
Philippine Islands in the Library of Congress, with chronological list of
maps, by P. Lee Phillips. Washington, 1903.
TAVERA, F. H. PARDO DE-Biblioteca Filipina. This valuable list is bound up
with Griffin's list of books on the Philippines, in the Library of Congress,
Washington, 1903.
MEDINA, JOSE' ToRIBIA-Bibliografia Espanola de las islas Filipinas, I523-I8Io.
Santiago de Chile, 1897.
RETANA, WENCESLAO EMILIo-Catalogo Abreviado de la biblioteca Filipina.
Madrid, 1898.
AGUINALDO, EMILIo-Resena veridica de la revolucion filipina, Reimpresa por
6rden del Sr. Guevara, Jefe Superior militar interior. Nueva Caceras,
1899. An English translation is printed in Congressional Record XXXV,
Pt. 6, Appendix, pp. 440-445.
ALGER, R. A.-The Spanish American Wlar. New York, 1901.
ARNOLD, JOHN W.-The Land of Palm and Pine. An official guide and handbook, prepared by John W. Arnold under the direction of Charles B. Elliott, Secretary of Commerce and Police, Manila, 1911.
BARRETT, JOHN-The Philippine Islands and American Interests in the Far
East. An address. Hong Kong, 1899.
BARROWS, DAVID J.-A Short History of the Philippines.
BEST, ELSDEN-Prehistoric Civilization in the Philippines. Journal Polynesian
Society, Vol. I, pp. 118-125, 195-201. Wellington, 1892.
BIAIR, EMMA HELEN, and JAMES ALEXANDER ROBERTSON, Editors-The Philippine Islands, I493-1803. Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of
the islands and their people, their history and records of the Catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the
political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands
from their earliest relations with European nations to the beginning of the
nineteenth century. Translated from the originals. Edited and annotated
by Emma Helen Blair and James Alexander Robertson, with historical introduction and additional notes by Edward Gaylord Bourne. Cleveland,
1903-1907. Fifty-five volumes. A monumental work, invaluable to the
student of Philippine history. Contains translations of the principal narratives, such as Pigafetta, Morga, Legaspi and Mas.
BLOUNT, JAMES H.-The American Occupation of the Philippines, I898-1912.
New York, 1912.
BLUMENTRITT, FERD.-The Philippines, a summary account of their ethnological, historical and political conditions, translated by D. J. Doherty. Chicago, 1900.
BOcoBo, JoRGE-Mabini, in The Filipino People for August, 1913.
BOURNE, E. G.-Introduction to Blair and Robertson's The Philippine Islands.
Cleveland, 1903.
BOWRING, SIR JOHN-A Visit to the Philippine Islands. London, 1859.
BRIGGS, CHARLES W., Missionary in Panay and Negros-The Progressing
Philippines. Philadelphia, 1913.
BROWN, A. J.-The New Era in the Philippines. New York, 1903.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


461


BRYAN, W. J.-Republic or Empire, the Philippine Question. Speeches by
W. J. Bryan and other opponents of the policy of expansion. Chicago,
1899.
BURKES, FRANCES W.-Barbara's Philippine Journey. Manila, 1913.
CALLAHAN, J. M.-American Relations in the Pacific and the Far East, 1784 -900o. Baltimore, 1901.
CHADWICK, F. E.-The Relations of the United States and Spain. The Spanish-American War. Two volumes. New York, 1911.
CHAMBERLIN, FREDERICK-The Philippine Problem. Boston, 1913.
CHEYNEY, E. P.-European Background of American History, 1300-I600. In
American Nation Series, edited by Prof. A. B. Hart. New York, 1904.
COMBES, FRANCISCO-Historia de Mindanao y Jolo, obra publicada en Madrid
en 1667, y que ahora con la colaboraci6n del P. Pablo Pastello saca nuevemente a luz W. E. Retana. Madrid, 1897.
COMYN, TOMAS DE-Estado de las Filipinos in r8So. Madrid, 1820.
COMYN, TOMAS DE-State of the Philippine Islands, being an historical, statistical and descriptive account of that interesting portion of the Indian
Archipelago. Madrid, 1820. Translated from the Spanish, with a preliminary discourse by William Watson. London, 1821.
CONANT, C. A.-The United States in the Orient. The Nature of the Economic Problem. Boston, 1900.
COOLIDGE, A. C.-The United States as a World Power. New York, 1908.
CRAIG, AUSTIN-Lineage, Life and Labors of Jose Rizal. Manila, 1913.
DAMPIER, W.-Account of the Philippines, 1686, in Pinkerton's Collection of
Voyages, Vol. II, 1812.
DAUNCEY, MRS. CAMPBELL-An English Woman in the Philippines, with illustrations and a map. London, 1906.
DAVIS, OSCAR KING-Our Conquests in the Pacific. Illustrated. New York,
1899.
DEVINS, JOHN B.-4n Observer in the Philippines or Life in Our New Possessions. Foreword by W. H. Taft, with an appendix containing addresses
by President McKinley, President Roosevelt, Judge Parker, Secretary
Hay, Secretary Root, Secretary Taft and Governor-General Wright.
New York, 1905..
DEWEY, GEORGE-Autobiography of George Dewey, Admiral of the Navy.
Illustrated. New York, 1913.
ELLIOTT, CHARLES BURKE-The Philippines: To the End of the Military
Regime. Prefatory Note by Elihu Root. Indianapolis, 1917.
ELLIOTT, CHARLES W.-Phrase Book and Vocabulary of the Lanao Moro Dialect. Manila, 1912.
ESTY, T. B.-Views of the American Press in the Philippines. New York,
1899.
FABIE, A.-Ensayo Historico de la Legislacion Espanola en sus Estados de
Ultramar. Madrid, 1896.
FAUST, KARL IRVING-Campaigning in the Philippines. San Francisco, 1899.
FEE, MARY H.-A Woman's Impressions of the Philippines. Illustrated. Chicago, 1910.
FISKE, AMOS K.-The Story of the Philippines, a popular account of the
islands from their discovery by Magellan to the capture of Manila. 1898.
FOREMAN, JOHN-The Philippine Islands. A Political, Geographical, Ethnological, Social and Commercial History of the Philippine Archipelago.
Third edition. New York, 1906.
FOSTER, JOHN W.-American Diplomacy in the Orient. Boston, 1903.
FREER, W. B.-Philippine Experiences of an American Teacher. New York,
1906.
FUNSTON, FREDERICK-Memories of Two Wars. New York, 1912.




462


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


GEMELLI, CARERI G. F.-Of the Philippine Islands (1697-i698). In Churchill's
Collection of Voyages and Travels, 1704, Vol. IV, p. 416.
GIRONIERE, PAUL P. DE LA-Twenty Years in the Philippines. Translated
from the French. New York, 1854.
HALSTEAD, MURAT-Aguinaldo and His Captor. Cincinnati, 1904.
HALSTEAD, MURAT-The Story of the Philippines. Chicago, 1898.
HART, ALBERT BUSHNELL-The Obvious Orient. New York, 1910.
HOAR, GEORGE F.-Autobiography of Seventy Years. Two volumes. New
York, 1903.
Philippine Insurgent Records. MMS. War Dept. Records. See Elliott,
The Philippines: To the End of the Military Regime, p. 381, note.
HORD, J.-Internal Taxation in the Philippines. Baltimore, 1907.
JENKS, A. E.-The Bontoc Igorot. Manila, 1905.
JORDAN, D. S.-Imperial Democracy. New York, 1899.
KALAW, MAXIMO M.-The Case for the Filipinos. New York, 1915.
LALA, RAMON REYES-The Philippine Islands. 1899.
LATANE, JOHN HI.-America as a World Power (i897-I907), with maps. In
the American Nation Series, edited by Dr. A. B. Hart. New York, 1907.
LAUFER, BERTHOLD-Relation of the Chinese to the Philippine Islands. Smithsonian Institution Publications. Vol. L, pp. 248-284. 1907.
LENDOYRO, CONSTANTINO-The Tagalog Language. A Comprehensive Grammatical Treatise. Second edition. Manila, 1909.
LEA, H. C.-The Inquisition in the Spanish Dependencies. New York, 1908.
LEROY, JAMES A.-The Americans in the Philippines. A history of the conquest and first years of the occupation, with an introductory account of
the Spanish rule, introduction by William Howard Taft, and a biographical sketch by Harry Coleman. Two volumes. Boston, 1914.
LEROY, J. A.-Philippine Life in Town and Country. New York, 1905.
LODGE, H. C.-The War with Spain. Illustrated. New York, 1900.
LORD, WALTER FREwEN-The Lost Possessions of England. Essays in Imperial History. Second edition. London, 1898.
MACMICKING, ROBERT-Recollections of Manila and the Philippines During
I848-1850. London, 1851.
MCKINLEY, WILLIAM-Messages, Proclamations and Executive Proclamations
Relating to the Spanish-American War. Vol. X, of Richardson's Compilation. Washington, 1899.
MAGOON, CHARLES E.-Report on the Legal Status of the Territory and Inhabitants of the Islands Acquired by the United States During the War
with Spain, etc. Sen. Doc. 234, 56th Cong., 1st Sess.
MAGOON, CHARLES E.-Report on the Law of Civil Government in Territory
Subject to Military Occupation by the Military Forces of the United
States. Washington, 1902.
MALLAT, JEAN-Les Philippines: histoire, geographia, moeurs, agriculture,
industrie, et commerce des colonies Espagnoles dan L'Oceanie. Two volumes. Paris, 1846.
MAS, SINIBALDO DE-Informe Sobre el Estados de los Islas Filipinos. Manila,
1843.
MILLARD, T. F. F.-The New Far East. 1907.
MILLARD, THOMAS F.-America and the Far Eastern Question. Maps and
illustrations. New York, 1909.
MILLER, GEORGE A.-Interesting Manila. Illustrated. Manila, 1906.
MILLER, OLIVER C.-The Semi-Civilized Tribes of the Philippine Islands. (In
American Academy of Political and Social Science, American Race Problems, pp. 43-63.) New York, 1901.
MILLET, FRANCIS D.-The Expedition to the Philippines. New York, 1899.
MONTERO Y VIDAL, J.-Historia General de Filipinas, desde el descubrimiento
de dichas Islas hasta nuestros dias. Three volumes. Madrid, 1887-1895.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


463


MONTERO Y VIDAL, J.-Historia de la Pirateria Malayo-Mohometana en
Mindanao, Jolo y Borneo. Madrid, 1888.
MORGA, ANTONIO DE-The Philippine Islands, Molucca, Siam, Cambodia,
Japan and China at the Close of the Sixteenth Century. Translated from
the Spanish, with notes and preface, and a letter from Louis Vaez de
Torres, describing his voyage through the Torres Straits. By Henry E. J.
Stanley. London, 1868. (Hakluyt Society.)
MORGA, ANTONIO DE-Sucesos de las islas Filipinas, obra publicada en Mejico
el ano de 1609, nuevamente sacada a luz y anotado por Jose Rizal y presedida de un protogo del Prof. Fernando Blumentritt. Paris, 1890.
MosEs, EDITH-Unofficial Letters of an Official's Wife. New York, 1908.
MOWRY, WILLIAM A.-The Territorial Growth of the United States. New
York, 1902.
NAVARRETE, MARTIN FERNANDEZ DE-Coleccion de los viagjes y descubrimientos, que hicieron por mar los Espanoles desde fines del Siglo XV, con varios
documentos ineditos concernientes a la historia de la marina Casellana y
de los establecimientos Espanoles en Indias. Coordinada y ilustrada. Five
volumes. Madrid, 1825-1837.
NOYES, THEODORE W.-Oriental America and Its Problems. Washington,
1903.
OLCOTT, CHAS. S.-The Life of William McKinley. Two volumes. Boston,
1916.
PHILIPPINE INFORMATION SOCIETY-Facts About the Philippines. A series of
pamphlets issued 1900-1901.
PIGAFETTA, FRANCISCO ANTONIO-The First Voyage Around the World by
Magellan. Translated from the accounts of Pigafetta and other contemporary writers, accompanied by original documents, with notes and introduction by Lord Stanley of Alderny. London, 1874. (Hakluyt Society,
Vol. LII.)
PLEHN, C. C.-Taxation in the Philippines. Pol. Sci. Quar., XVI, p. 680;
XVII, p. 125.
QUEZON, MANUEL L.-The Filipino People. A magazine published at Washington by Manuel E. Quezon, Resident Commissioner. Devoted to the advocacy of Philippine independence. Contains articles by leading antiexpansionists.
RANDOLPH, CARMAN F.-The Law and Policy of Annexation, with special
reference to the Philippines, etc. London, 1901.
Recopilacion de los Reinos de las Indias. Madrid, 1841.
REED, W. A.-Negritos of Zambales. Ethnological Survey Publications, Vol.
II, Part I. Manila, 1904.
REID, WHITELAW —American and English Studies. Two volumes. New York,
1913.
REID, WHITELAW-Problems of Expansion. New York, 1900.
RETANA, W. E.-Vida y Escritos del Dr. Jose Rizal. Madrid, 1907.
RIZAL, Jos —The Reign of Greed (El Filibusterismo). Manila, 1912.
RIZAL, Jos —An Eagle's Flight (Nole me Jangere). New York, 1900.
ROBERTSON, JAMES A.-Legazpi and Philippine Colonization. In American
Historical Association Report, 1907, Vol. I, pp. 145-155.
ROBINSON, A. G.-The Philippines: the War and the People; a Record of
Personal Observations and Experiences. New York, 1901.
ROOSEVELT, THEODORE-An Autobiography. Chap. XIV. New York, 1913.
ROOT, ELIHU-Five Years of the War Department, following the war with
Spain. 1899-1903. Washington, 1904. This volume contains the annual
reports of the secretary of war during the four years that Mr. Root held
the office.
ROOT, ELIHU-The Military and Colonial Policy of the United States. Addresses and Reports. Cambridge, 1916.




464


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


ROOT, J. W.-Spain and Its Colonies. 1898.
ROSCHER, W.-The Spanish Colonial System. Edited by E. G. Bourne. New
York, 1904.
RUSSEL, FLORENCE KIMBALL-A Woman's Journey Through the Philippines
on a Cable Ship, That Linked Together the Strange Lands Seen en Route.
Boston, 1907.
SANGER, GEN. J. P.-Census of the Philippine Islands. Four volumes. 1905.
Volume    I. Geography, History and Population.
Volume II. Population.
Volume III. Mortality, Defective Classes, Education, and Families and
Dwellings.
SASTRON, MANUEL-La Insurreccion en Filipenas y Guerra Hispano-Americana en el Archipelago. Madrid, 1901.
SAWYER, FREDERIC H.-The Inhabitants of the Philippines. London, 1900.
SCHURMAN, JACOB G.-Philippine Affairs. A retrospect and outlook. New
York, 1902.
SCHURZ, CARL-The Reminiscences of Carl Schurz. Three volumes. New
York, 1903.
SCOTT, S. P.-The Visigothic Code (Fuero Juzgo). Boston, 1910.
SMALLEY, GEORGE W.-Anglo-Amrerican Memories. Second series. New York,
1912.
SONNICHSEN, ALBERT-Ten Months a Captive Among Filipinos. New York,
1901.
STEVENS, JOSEPH EARLE-Yesterdays in the Philippines. Illustrated. New
York, 1898.
STOREY, MooRFIELD-Secretary Root's Record. Boston, 1902.
STUNTZ, HOMER C.-The Philippines and the Far East. New York, 1904.
TAFT, W. H.-Civil Government in the Philippines. (In The Philippines, pp.
29-142. New York, 1902.) Mr. Taft's views are found in reports as president of the Philippine Commission, civil governor, secretary of war and
messages as president of the United States.
TAYLOR, J. R. M.-Philippine Insurgent Records. MMS. War Dept. History
of the Insurrection. Ibid. in proof sheets.
THAYER, R. T.-The Life and Letters of John Hay. Two volumes. Boston,
1915.
WALLACE, A. R.-The Malay Archipelago. London, 1872.
WALTON, C. S.-The Civil Law of Spain and South America, including Cuba,
Puerto Rico and Philippine Islands, and the Spanish Civil Code in force,
etc. Washington, 1900.
WELSH, HERBERT-The Other Man's Country. Philadelphia, 1900.
WILCOX, MARRION-Harper's History of the War in the Philippines. New
York, 1900.
WILKES, CHARLES-Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition
During the Years 1838-I842. Five volumes. Philadelphia, 1844. Volume V
contains the matter relating to the Philippines.
WILLIAMS, DANIEL R.-The Odyssey of the Philippine Commission. Chicago,
1913.
WILLIS, HENRY PARKER-Our Philippine Problem, a Study of American
Colonial Policy. New York, 1905.
WILSON, H. W.-The Doinfall of Spain. London, 1900.
WINSLOW, ERVIN —An Epitome of Historical Events and of Official and
Other Correspondence Connected with the Acquisition and Other Dealings of the United States with the Philippine Islands. Washington, 1902.
In Sen. Doc. 375, 57th Cong., 1st Sess.
WOODRUFF, C. E.-Expansion of Races. New York, 1909.
WOOLSEY, THEODORE S.-American Foreign Policy. Essays and addresses.
New York, 1898.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


465


WORCESTER, D. C.-The Philippines, Past and Present. Two volumes. Illustrated. New York, 1914.
WORCESTER, D. C.-The Philippine Islands. New York, 1899.
WORCESTER, D. C.-Headhunters of Northern Luzon, in Nat. Geo. Mag.,
Sept., 1912.
WORCESTER, D. C.-Non-Christian People of the Philippine Islands, Nat. Geo.
Mag., Nov., 1913.
WRIGHT, HAMILTON M.-A Handbook of the Philippines, with maps and illustrations. Second edition. Chicago, 1908.
(b) DOCUMENTS AND OTHER GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
Correspondence Relating to the War with Spain, and conditions growing out
of the same, including the insurrection in the Philippine Islands (from
April 15, 1898, to July 30, 1902), with an appendix. Two volumes. Washington, 1902.
Handbook of Executive Departments of the Government of the Philippines.
Manila, 1912.
Information from Abroad. Publications of the Office of Naval Intelligence.
Translations of Spanish and German pamphlets and magazine articles on
various phases of the Spanish-American War.
Philippine Journal of Science. Each volume is published in four sections:
Sec. A. Chemical and Geological Science.
Sec. B. Medicine.
Sec. C. Botany.
Sec. D. Biology, Ethnology and Anthropology.
Proclamations and Decrees during the war with Spain. Washington, 1899.
Senate Document 148, 56th Congress, 2d Session. Contains papers relating to
the treaty with Spain.
Senate Document 66, 56th Congress, Ist Session. Contains the account by
W. B. Wilcox and Leonard R. Sargent, United States Navy, of a trip
through northern Luzon in October and November, 1898, a letter from
General Charles King describing the "Filipinos as They Are" and a letter
to Congress by Felipe Buencamino.
Senate Document 73, 56th Congress, Ist Session. Admiral Dewey's Report of
April 13, 1898.
Senate Document 286, 57th Congress, ist Session (in Senate Document 331,
p. 1903). Matter relating to the alleged order for the massacre of the
foreign residents of Manila in February, 1899.
Senate Document 37I, 57th Congress, ist Session. Hearing before the Senate
Committee on the Philippines in relation to affairs in the Philippine
Islands, January to June, 1902. Three volumes. Contains a mass of interesting and valuable data, including the testimony of Governor W. H. Taft,
Admiral George Dewey, General R. P. Hughes, Dr. David P. Barrows,
General E. S. Otis, General Arthur MacArthur, and others.
Statement of the President as to cost which has accrued to the United States
as the result of occupation of the Philippines. July 19, 1912. House Doc.
875, 62d Cong., 2d Sess.
The Retention of the Philippines, by Cardinal James Gibbons. House Doc.
1446, 62d Cong., 3d Sess.
Atlas of the Philippine Islands. 1900. Twenty-four pages. Thirty maps.
(Coast and Geodetic Survey. Special publication 3.)




466               BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES
Reports of the Schurman Commission, 1899-1900. 4. vols.
Vol. 1. CONTENTS.-Efforts of commission toward conciliation and establishment of
peace.-Native peoples of Philippines.-Education.-Government.-Governmental
reforms desired by Filipinos.-Plan of government for Philippines.-Judicial
system.-Condition and needs of United States in Philippines from naval and
maritime standpoint.-Secular clergy and religious orders.-Registration law.Currency.-Chinese in Philippines.-Public health.
Vol. 2. Testimony and exhibits.
Vol. 3. CoNTENTS.-[Geography].-Hydrography.-Mineral resources and geology.
-Botany.-Timber and fine woods.-[Animal life].-[Ethnology.-[Language].
Vol. 4. CoNTENTS.-Agriculture.-Public works and edifices.-Health, hygiene, police, and public order under Spanish sovereignty.-Benevolent institutions.State of industry.-Commerce.-Means of communication.-Foreign population.
— Public lands.-Religion.-Climatology.-Chronology.
The Philippine Commission. Reports of the Philippine Commission, Civil
Governor, Governors-General, and heads of executive departments, from
1900 to 1916. Reports for 1900-1903, bound in one volume; 1901, two volumes or parts; 1902, two volumes; 1903, three volumes; 1904, three
volumes; 1905, four volumes; 1906, three volumes; 1907, three volumes;
1908, two volumes and an appendix; 1909-1916, one volume for each year.
Laws Enacted by the Commission Before the Creation of the Assembly in
1907.
War Department reports.
Nos. of acts.            Dates of acts.
Year.     Vol.     Part.
1-263......     Sept. 12, 1900-Oct. 11, 1901..........   1901        1           10
264-424......   Oct. 14, 1901-July  1, 1902............  1902        11........
425-949......   July 2, 1902 —Oct. 20, 1903.............  1903       8.......
950-1251.....   Oct. 21, 1903-Oct. 20, 1904............  1904       14........
1252-1407....   Oct. 26, 1904-Oct. 26, 1905............  1905       14........
1408-1538....   Nov. 3, 1905-Sept. 8, 1906...            1906       10........
1539-1800....   Sept. 16, 1906-Oct. 12, 1907...1907                 10........
Act numbered 1800 is the last enacted by the Philippine Commission exercising exclusively the legislative function of government. The Philippine Assembly convened on
Oct. 16, 1907, and since that date in accordance with sec. 7 of the Act of Congress of
July 1, 1902, all the legislative power theretofore conferred on the Philippine Commission
is vested in a Legislature consisting of two houses, the Philippine Commission and the
Philippine Assembly.
Laws Passed by the Philippine Legislature and the Philippine Commission.
No. of
legis-      Session.                       Date,                      Acts Nos.
lature.
1     1st and special..  Oct. 16, 1907-Aug. 22, 1908..........    1801-1878
1    2d..........       Aug. 23, 1908-June 26, 1909.............    1879-1959
2     Special.........  July 28, 1909-June 9, 1910..............  1960-1994
2     1st............   June 10, 1910-Oct. 3, 1911..............    1995-2075
2     2d and special..  Oct. 4, 1911-June 18, 1912..............   2076-2187
3     1st and special.  Oct. 16, 1912-Feb. 11, 1913.............    2188-2287
Continued and numbered consecutively until October 16, 1916, when the new Philippine
Legislature convened.
Diario de Sesiones de la Asamblea Filipina. Eleven volumes to 1916. Manila.
A  Compilation of the Acts of the Philippine Commission, embracing the acts
of the Philippine Commission and military orders in force on the 15th day
of October, 1907, omitting all private acts and local acts and laws which
do not constitute a part of the general and permanent legislation of the
islands as compiled by a committee created by a resolution of the Philippine Commission, together with the organic laws of the Philippine Islands.
Manila, 1908. Although this compilation was never enacted into law and is
not official, it has been in common use.
Journal of the Commission. Seven volumes.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


467


Compilation of Insurgent Records. Telegraphic correspondence of Emilio
Aguinaldo, July 15, 1898, to February 28, 1899, annotated. Bureau of Insular Affairs, 1903. The complete captured records are still in manuscript
in the War Department.
The Municipal Code and the Provincial Government Act, compiled and annotated, being Acts Nos. 82 and 83, as amended by Acts of the Philippine
Commission and Legislature down to February 3, 1911, and as annotated
with decisions of the courts, opinions of the Attorney-General, Executive
Secretary, etc., rulings and circulars, references to authorities, etc., together with an appendix containing Acts Nos. 308, 1147, 1458, 1487 and 151.
Edited and compiled by George A. Malcom, Assistant Attorney-General.
Manila, 1911.
The Administrative Code of 1916. Prepared by the Code Commission.
Hearings Before the Committee on the Philippines. United States Senate,
65th Cong., 3d Sess., on the bill to declare the purposes of the people of
the United States as to the future political status of the Philippines. 760
pages. Washington, 1915. Contains testimony of General Frank McIntyre,
Manuel L. Quezon, W. H. Taft, N. W. Gilbert, Lindley M. Garrison and
others.
Affairs in Philippine Islands, hearings before Committee on Philippines,
Senate [January 31-June 28, 1902]. Three parts, 2,984 pages, illustrated
map.
Acts of Congress Relating to Noncontiguous Territory and Cuba, and to Military Affairs, I903-1907. Washington, 1907.
Laws Against Treason, Sedition, etc. A communication from the Law Officer
of the Division of Insular Affairs making a comparison between existing
laws of the United States and the provisions of Act No. 292 of the Philippine Commission. Sen. Doc. No. 173, 57th Cong., 1st Sess. (1902).
El Ramo de Sanidad en Filipinos. Informe del comite especial investigador
sobre los asientos de la sanidad y sus dependencias. Manila, 1914.
Report of the Chief of the Division of the Currency to the Treasurer of the
Philippine Islands, concerning the Advisability of Establishing a Government Agricultural Board in the Philippines. Bureau of Insular Affairs.
Washington, 1906.
Senate Document 62, 56th Congress, 3d Session. Contains the Treaty of
Peace between the United States and Spain. Protocols of the Conference
at Paris. The Peace Protocol of August 12, 1898, and Correspondence.
The Correspondence between the State Department and the French Ambassador, as representing Spain. Consular Reports on Philippine Affairs.
Statements of General Wesley Merritt, General F. V. Green and others
concerning the Situation in the Philippines. A sketch of the Government
of the Confederated Malay States.
Senate Document 208, 56th Congress, ist Session. Contains Communications
between the Executive Departments of the Government and Aguinaldo.
Correspondence between General Aguinaldo and General Anderson, General Merritt, General Otis. Correspondence between General Miller and
the Filipinos at Iloilo. Records of the conferences between the various
boards appointed by the American Commander and Aguinaldo to try and
bring about Peace. Various Proclamations issued by Aguinaldo, and the
Constitution of the so-called Philippine Republic.
Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, i898.
The Spanish Diplomatic Correspondence and Documents. Washington, 1905.
Hearings before the Committee on Ways and Means. Hopuse of Representatives, December 13-18, 1905, with an appendix containing the Public Hearings held in the Philippines. August, 1905. Washington, 1906. Relates
principally to the Tariff.




468


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


Senate Document 205, 57th Congress, Ist Session, Parts I and 2. Letters,
documents and testimony relating to charges of cruelty and oppression
exercised by American soldiers against the Filipinos. 1902. Part 1 contains Gen. Order No. 100. Instructions for the government of the armies
of the United States in the field.
An Open Letter to the Officers and Members of the Anti-Imperialistic League
from Dean C. Worcester (1911).
Opinion of the Attorney-General of the Philippine Islands, of November 19,
1913, on the slavery and peonage cases in the Philippines, mentioned in the
Report of former Secretary of the Interior, D. C. Worcester. Manila,
1913.
The Penal Code in Force in the Philippines. Translation into English. Division of Customs and Insular Affairs. 1900.
A Special Report on Coinage and Banking in the Philippine Islands made to
the Secretary of War by Charles A. Conant. Washington, 1901.
The Power of the Governor-General to Expel Aliens, by C. A. DeWitt.
Manila, 1910.
Report on the Agricultural Bank of Egypt to the Secretary of War and the
Philippine Commission by E. W. Kemerer, Special Commissioner to Egypt.
Washington, 1906.
Memoranda for the Secretary of War on Currency and Exchange in the
Philippines. Bureau of Insular Affairs. 1900.
Preliminary Report on Irrigation in Java by J. W. Beardsley. Manila, 1909.
Discursos del Hon. Manuel L. Quezon, Comisionado Residente de Filipinos,
Pronunceados en la Camera de Representantes de los Estados Unidos con
motivo de la Discusi6n del Bill Jones, Sept. 26 to Oct. 14, 1914. Manila,
1915.
A Primer and Vocabulary of the Moro Dialect (Magindanau) by Lieutenant
R. S. Porter. Washington, 1903.
Certain Economic Questions of the English and Dutch Colonies in the Orient,
by Jeremiah W. Jenks, Special Commissioner. Washington, 1902.
Slavery and Peonage in the Philippine Islands, by Dean C. Worcester.
Manila, 1913.
Inforne sobre la Esclavitud y Peonaje en Filipenas. Compilado en vista de
los Informes Parciales y Exhibitos Presentados por el Comite Especial
Investigador de la Asemblea Filipena al Honorable Presidente de la
Misma. Manila, 1914.
Opinion of the Attorney-General of the Philippines on the Powers of the
Governor-General to Deport Chinese. June 8, 1910. Manila, 1910.
Slavery in the Philippines. Where Rests the Onus? A reply to Dean C.
Worcester, by W. H. Phipps (Insular Auditor). Manila, 1913.
Studies in Moro History, Law and Religion, by Najeeb M. Saleeby. Manila,
1905.
Limitation of the Amount of Land Which May Be Acquired by Individuals
and Corporations in the Philippine Islands. Opinion by George W. Wickersham, Attorney-General. December 18, 1909.
Reciprocity and the Philippine Islands, by Harold M. Pitt, with an introductory note by Charles B. Elliott, Secretary of Commerce and Police.
Manila, 1911.
Limit of Indebtedness of the Philippine Government. Hearings before the
Committee on Insular Affairs, House of Representatives, February 21 to
February 25, 1912.
United States Board of Geographical Names. Second Report. Washington,
1901.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


469


Public Hearings (at Manila) on the Philippine Islands, upon the proposed reduction of the tariff upon Philippine sugar and tobacco, the extension of
the United States Coastwise Navigation Laws to the Philippines, and the
general economic conditions in the islands, held during the month of
August, 1905, before the Secretary of War and the Congressional Party.
Manila, 1905.
Report on the Organization for the Administration of Civil Government Instituted by Emilio Aguinaldo and His Followers in the Philippine Archipelago by John R. W. Taylor. Washington, 1903.
First Annual Report of the Sales Agent, 1912. Manila, 1912.
Report amending bill for payment of claims of certain religious orders in
Philippine Islands. 1909. 18 pages. (60th Cong., 2d sess., S. Rept. 793.)
Catholic Church claims in Philippine Islands, claims of friars in Philippine
Islands, etc. (In Insular Affairs Committee Reports, hearings, and acts
of Congress corresponding thereto, 60th Congress, 1907-1909, pages 9 to
345, illus.)
Catholic Church claims in Philippine Islands, statement of W. H. Taft, Jan.
20, 1908. Pages 27 to 49. (Insular Affairs Committee.)
Negotiations for settlement of title to certain lands in Philippine Islands
claimed by Philippine government and by Roman Catholic Church and in
matter of charter of Spanish-Filipino bank. (In Philippine Commission
Report, 1907, pt. 3, pages 311 to 407, 1 illus.)
Papers relating to claim of Roman Catholic Church at Zamboanga, P. I.
1909. 22 pages. (61st Cong., 1st. sess. H. Doc. 63. Bound with other
docs.; serial no. 5579.)
Report favoring bill to provide for payment of claims of Roman Catholic
Church in Philippine Islands. 1908. 65 pages, illus. (60th Cong., 1st sess.
S. Rept. 378.)
Hearing before Secretary of War, Feb. 25, 1904, on Philippine shipping bill.
1904. 30 pages. (58th Cong., 2d sess. S. Doc. 182.)
To regulate shipping between ports of United States and ports in Philippine
Archipelago [and] between ports in Philippine Archipelago [hearings,
Feb. 26, 27, 1904]. 111 pages. (Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee.)
Special report of Wm. H. Taft to President on Philippines [with appendix
A, Negotiations for settlement of title to certain lands in Philippine
Islands claimed by Philippine government and by Roman Catholic Church,
and in matter of charter of Spanish-Filipino Bank]. 1908. 177 pages, map.
(War Dept.)
Special Report of Brigadier-General Frank McIntyre, Chief of the Bureau of
Insular Affairs. 1915.
Scientific surveys of Philippine Islands. (In National Academy of Sciences
Report, 1904, pages 21 to 33.)
Duty of Americans in Philippines; address of William H. Taft before Union
Reading College, Manila, P. I., Dec. 17, 1903. 17 pages. (58th Cong., 2d
sess. S. Doc. 191.)
Comparison of proposed Philippine tariff bill H. 7555 with present Philippine
tariff law, act of Mar. 3, 1905, as amended. 1909. 253 pages. (Ways and
Means Committee.)
Customs tariff of Philippine Islands, 1909, with index and appendix including
extract from United States tariff law of 1909 concerning tariff relations
with Philippine Islands. 166 pages. (Insular Affairs Bureau.)
Duties on Philippine products, sugar, hearing before Committee on Ways and
Means, Jan. 24, 1905. 54 pages.




470


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


Duties on Philippine products, tobacco and cigars, hearing before Committee
on Ways and Means, House, Jan. 25, 1905. 31 pages. (Ways and Means
Committee. )
Philippine tariff, hearings Dec. 13-18, 1905 [on H. 3, to amend act to provide
revenue for Philippine Islands]; appended, Public hearings in Philippine
Islands [upon proposed reduction of tariff upon Philippine sugar and tobacco, etc.] held Aug. 1905 [before Secretary of War and Congressional
party.] 296+186 pages. (Ways and Means Committee.)
Proposed tariff revision law of 1909 for Philippine Islands. 1909. 158 pages.
(61st Cong., 1st sess. H. Doc. 14.)
Report amending bill to raise revenue for Philippine Islands [etc.]. 1909. 104
pages. (61st Cong., 1st sess. S. Rept. 9.)
Revenue for Philippine Islands, hearings before Committee on Philippines,
Senate, Jan. 20 to Feb. 21, 1906. 984 pages, illus.
Same, with hearings Feb. 23-28, 1906. 1247 pages, illus. (59th Cong., 1st sess.
S. Doc. 277.)
Compilation of notes and reports on pearl, shell, and sponge fisheries of
Philippine Islands. (In Philippine Commission Report, 1908, appendix,
pages 521 to 554.)
Administration of Philippine lands, report by Committee on Insular Affairs
of its investigation of Interior Department of Philippine government
touching administration of Philippine lands and all matters of fact and
law pertaining thereto, in pursuance of H. R. 795, with views of Mr.
Rucker, and of Messrs. Hubbard, Davis, and Madison, hearings, and
views of minority. 1911. 2 vols., 1305+14 pages. (61st Cong., 3d sess.,
H. Rept. 2289.)
Cooper, Henry A., of Wis. Speech in House, May 8, 1912. (In Congressional
Record of Aug. 22, vol. 48, no. 217, pages 12716 to 12725.)
Against the sale of large tracts of lands to corporations or to individuals.
Martin, John A., of Colo. Speech in House, May 8, 1912. In Congressional
Record of May 11, vol. 48, no. 131, pages 6622 to 6637.
Concerning the sale of large portions of the friar lands to alleged members of the
Sugar Trust.
Morse, Elmer A., of Wis. Speech in House, May 1, 1912. (In Congressional
Record of May 2, vol. 48, no. 122, pages 6052 to 6054.)
On the acquisition of the friar lands by alleged members of the Sugar Trust.
Quezon, Manuel L., of the Philippines. Speeches in HouseMay 1, 1912. (In Congressional Record of May 14, vol. 48, no. 134, pages
6788 to 6798.)
May 15, 1912. (In Congressional Record of June 1, vol. 48, no. 152, pages
7991 to 7997.)
Against acquisition of large tracts of land by American capitalists.
Report favoring bill, with views of Messrs. Davis and Morse. 1912. 13
pages. (62d Cong., 2d sess., H. Rept. 280 [pt. 1].)
Documents relating to sale of friar lands in Philippine Islands. 1910. 118
pages, 1 illus. map. (61st Cong., 3d sess., H. Doc. 1071.)
Friar-land inquiry [by] Philippine government. 1910. 208 pages. (Philippine
Commission.)
Friar lands in Philippine Islands. 1910. 5 pages. (61st Cong., 2d sess., H.
Doc. 911.)
Martin, John A., of Colo. Sale of friar lands in Philippine Islands. Speech
in House, Mar. 25, 1910. (In Congressional Record, vol. 45, no. 79, pages
3844 to 3849.)
Reply to inquiry as to sale of friar lands in Philippines. 1910. 11 pages.
(61st Cong., 2d sess., H. Doc. 894, pt. 3.)
Same, Views of minority, separate.
Includes reports by W. Cameron Forbes, Dean C. Worcester, and Frank W. Carpenter on friar-land inquiry of Philippine government.




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


471


Compilation of laws and regulations relating to public lands in Philippine
Islands, Feb. 1, 1908. 247 pages, illus. (Insular Affairs Bureau.)
Exploiting the Philippines. Speech of John A. Martin of Colo., in House,
June 13, 1910. (In Congressional Record of June 17, vol. 45, no. 156, pages
8481 to 8513.)
Protesting against the sale of the friar lands in large sections.
Information relative to letter from Insular Bureau to Strong & Cadwalader
[relating to number of acres of farming land which a corporation may
acquire in Philippine Islands, etc.] 1910. 11 pages. (61st Cong., 2d sess.,
H. Doc. 916.)
Report of director of lands of Philippine Islands, fiscal year 1909. 88 pages,
illus. (61st Cong., 2d sess., H. Doc. 914.)
Sale of public lands in Philippine Islands. Speech of Edgar D. Crumpacker
of Ind., in House, June 13, 1910. (In Congressional Record of June 17,
vol. 45, no. 156, pages 8471 to 8477.)
Spanish public land laws in Philippine Islands and their history to Aug. 13,
1898. 61 pages. (Philippine Commission Forestry Bureau.)
Speech of Chas. H. Dietrich, of Nebr. [in Senate] Feb. 13, 1903 [including
compilation of tables and data by Truman G. Palmer]. 112 pages. (57th
Cong., 2d sess. S. Doc. 186. Bound with other docs.; serial no. 4428.)
Against selling large tracts of land to corporations for sugar and tobacco plantations.
Report on geology of Philippine Islands, followed by version of Ueber
tertiare Fossilien von den Philippinen, 1895. 139 pages, illus., maps.
[From 21st Geological Survey Report, 1900, pt. 3.]
Pronouncing gazeteer and geographical dictionary of Philippine Islands, also
law of civil government approved July 1, 1902, with index. 1902. 933 pages,
illus., 61 maps. (Insular Affairs Bureau.)
Archipielago Filipino, colecci6n de datos geogra/ficos, estadisticos, cronologicos y cientificos, entresacados de anteriores obras ui obtenidos con propia
observaci6n y estudio, por algunos padres de la mision de la Compafiia de
Jesus. 1900. 2 vols., 708+469 pages, illus., 22 maps. (State Dept.)
Philippine Archipelago, collection of geographical, statistical, chronological, and scientific data compiled from former works or obtained by careful observation and
study of several fathers of the Jesuit mission.
Philippine tariff, statement of W. H. Taft, Feb. 23, 1905 [on control of
opium traffic]. (Philippine Committee.)
Report of committee appointed to investigate use of opium and traffic therein,
in Japan, Formosa, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Saigon, Singapore, Burma,
Java, and Philippine Islands. 1906. 283 pages. (Philippine Commission.)
Philippine insurrection, 1896-1898, account from Spanish sources. (In War
Dept. Report, 1903, pt. 3, pages 399 to 433, map.)
The truth about the so-called rebellion in the Philippine Islands. Speech of
Manuel L. Quezon in House, Dec. 29, 1914. Cong. Rec. of Dec. 31, vol. 52,
no. 19, pages 879 to 881.
Claims accounts of an uprising in Manila had no foundation but the arrest of a
small band of Christmas Eve celebrators.
Notes on military administration in India; by Kitchener, Elles, and Curzon.
1905. 68 pages. (Philippines Division, Bulletin 4.)
Bulletins and circulars on hemp, maguey, jute, and other fiber plants. Pages
471 to 564+779 to 788. [From Philippine Commission Report, 1906, vol. 3.]
CONTENTS:
Preliminary report on commercial fibers of Philippines.
List of Philippine agricultural products and fiber plants.
Maguey in the Philippines.
Jute industry, considered in relation to its introduction into the Philippines.
Abaca (manila hemp).
Cultivation of maguey in Philippine Islands.
Maguey cultivation in Mexico, 1904.
Maguey: Propagating abaca from seed.
Public lands.




472


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


Contributions to Philippine ornithology. (In National Museum Proceedings,
1898, vol. 20, pages 549 to 625, 6 plates, map.)
Commercial Philippines in 1906. 66 pages. (Statistics Bureau, Commerce and
Labor Dept.)
Compilation by John B. Worcester of certain statistical matter on commerce
with Philippine Islands. 1913. 14 pages. (63d Cong., 1st sess., H. Doc.
217.)
Report on right of government of Philippine Islands, instituted by United
States, to regulate commercial intercourse with archipelago and to impose
import and export duties; by C. E. Magoon. 1901. 131 pages. (Insular
Affairs Bureau.)
APPENDIX B.-Summary of principal events connected with military operations in
Philippine Islands Sept., 1900, to June, 1901, and distribution of troops in
Islands.
Trade of Philippine Islands. 1898. 160 pages, map. (Foreign Markets Bulletin 14.)
Coal measures of Philippines, history of discovery of coal in archipelago and
subsequent developments, with record of MacLeod coal concession in Cebu
or Uling-Lutac coal and railway concession. 1901. 269 pages, illus., maps.
(Philippine Commission.)
The currency of the Philippine Islands. (In Report on Introduction of GoldExchange Standard into China, Philippine Islands, Panama, and Other
Silver-Using Countries, pages 283 to 312. 1904.)
Special report of director of Philippine Weather Bureau, on cyclones of the
Far East. 2d edition. 1904. 283 pages, illus. maps. (Philippine Commission, Weather Bureau.)
Forestry matters in Philippines, hearings before Committee on Insular Affairs, House, [Feb. 19, 1908.] 11 pages. (Insular Affairs Committee.)
Useful information concerning Philippine public forests and possibilities for
their exploitation. 1909. 12 pages, map. (Philippine Commission. Forestry Circular 4.)
Cotton fabrics in Philippines. 1907. (In Special Agents Series 13, pages 83
to 117.)
Condition of Moro affairs in Sulu group [1903]; Moros of Philippines; Brief
summary of historical accounts respecting Spanish military operations
against Moros, 1578 to 1898. In War Dept. Report, 1903, pt. 3, pages 354
to 398.
Compilation of notes and reports on mineral resources, mines, and mining of
Philippine Islands [with list of books and papers on Philippine geology].
In Philippine Commission Report, 1908, appendix, pages 3 to 519.
Historical sketch of old walls of Manila, and an account of the capture of
Manila by the English in 1762. (War Dept. Report, 1903, vol. 3, pages 434
to 454, illus. maps.)
A short history of Spanish rule in the Philippines. The plates show the old gates
and portions of the city wall.
Conditions and future of Philippines; by Erving Winslow. 1909. 8 pages.
(61st Cong., 1st sess. S. Doc. 81.) [From North American Review.]
Consular reports on Philippine affairs [Feb. 21-Aug. 4, 1898]; Statement of
Wesley Merritt including correspondence with Aguinaldo; Memoranda by
F. V. Greene; Statement of John Foreman on conditions in the Philippines; Statement of R. B. Bradford on the Philippines as a naval base,
etc.; Statement of C. A. Whittier on conditions in Philippines; Preliminary report of G. F. Becker on geological and mineral resources of Philippines; Data concerning Philippine Islands, their history, people, geography,
etc. (In Treaty of Peace between United States and Spain, pages 319 to
607. 1899.)


*




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


473


Information as to rubber-producing capacity of Philippine Islands. 1907. 44
pages, illus., maps. (59th Cong., 2d sess. Sen. Doc. 356.) [Reprint of Bulletin 7 of Bureau of Government Laboratories of Philippine Islands and
Bulletin 3 of Bureau of Forestry of Philippine Islands.]
Rubber-growing industry of Philippine Islands, cost of production and profits.
1911. 24 pages, illus., maps. (Insular Affairs Bureau.)
People of the Philippines. 1901. 76 pages. (Insular Affairs Division.)
CONTENTS.-Their origin and different tribes.-Domesticated native.-As soldier and
sailor.-As citizen.-Characteristic traits of Tagalo and Visayas.-The Chinese.
-Moros.-Europeans.-Slavery.-Katipunan Society.-Tulisanes and Ladrones.
-Languages spoken in the Philippines.-Estimate of population in 1890.
Peoples of Philippines. (In 8th International Geographic Congress Report,
1904, pages 671 to 675, chart. State Dept.)
Peopling of the Philippines; List of native tribes of Philippines and languages
spoken by them. (In Smithsonian Report, 1899, pages 509 to 547, illus.
map.)
Population of Philippines by islands, provinces, municipalities, and barrios,
1903. 100 pages. (Philippine Census Bulletin 1.)
Preliminary Report of the Board to devise a system of wireless telegraphy
for the islands. Manila, 1911.
Message transmitting joint reports by officers representing insular government
of Philippine Islands, Army and Navy relative to wireless telegraphy in
Philippine Islands. 1912. 23 pages. (62d Cong., 2d sess. S. Doc. 299.)
"Will the Philippines pay?" and "Real feelings of Filipinos"; by Augustus 0.
Bacon. 1902. 20 pages. (57th Cong., 1st sess. S. Doc. 273. Bound with
other docs.; serial no. 4239). [From Saturday Evening Post of Philadelphia.]
What has been done in Philippines, record of practical accomplishments under
civil government. 1904. 42 pages. (58th Cong., 2d sess. S. Doc. 304.
Bound with other docs.; serial no. 4592.)
Speech of Clarence B. Miller of Minn., in House, Mar. 5, 1914. (In Congressional Record of Mar. 9, vol. 51, no. 70, pages 4842 to 4846.)
On the plight of American men who held minor government positions and lost these
positions under the present administration and who do not wish to return to the
United States because they have married Filipino wives.
Special report of Hon. J. M. Dickinson on Philippines. 1911. 96 pages. (War
Dept.)
Report of a tour of investigation made by the Secretary of War.
Report of Major-General Otis on military operations and civil affairs. May
1, 1898, to Aug. 31, 1899. 165 pages.
Report of Major-General Otis, commanding division of Philippines, military
governor. Sept. 1, 1899, to May 5, 1900. 365 pages, 6 maps.
Annual report of Major-General MacArthur commanding division of Philippines, military governor in Philippine Islands, [pt. 2, reports of civil
officers]. May 5 to October 1, 1900. Various paging.
Military notes on Philippines. 1898. 314 pages, 51 maps. Military Information Publication 20.
Report of Wesley Merritt and other officers on operations of troops in expedition to Philippines. In Major-General Commanding Army, Report, 1898,
pages 39 to 137, maps.
Reports of various officers on military operations in the Philippines. 477
pages, illus. maps. Lieutenant-General Commanding Army, Report, 1900,
pt. 5.
Report of E. S. Otis commanding Department of Pacific and 8th Army
Corps and of other officers. Aug., 1898-Aug., 1899. 560+642 pages, illus.,
maps. (Major-General Commanding Army, Report, 1899, pts. 2 and 3.)
Pt. 2. Chronological summary of principal events connected with military operations in Philippine Islands.-Annual report of E. S. Otis.-Correspondence with
insurgent leaders.-Report of operations against insurgents, Feb. 4 to Apr. 6,
1899.




474


BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


Pt. 3. Report of R. P. Hughes and others concerning fires at Manila and accom.
panying events, Feb. 22, 23, 1899.-Reports of H. G. Otis of operations of 1st
brigade, 2d division, Mar., 1899.-Reports of H. W. Lawton of expeditions to
Provinces of La Laguna, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, and Pampanga, Luzon, and
Province of Morong.-Report of R. P. Hughes commanding Visayan Military
District.-Report of B. A. Byrne of engagement at Babong, Island of Negros.Report of Loyd Wheaton of operations along Pasig River and in Province of
Cavite.-Report of Arthur MacArthur on operations of 1st division of 8th Army
Corps.
Report of Arthur MacArthur of operations of 2d division, 8th Army Corps.
656 pages, illus. map. May 31, 1899-Apr. 6, 1900. Lieutenant-General Commanding Army, Report, 1900, pt. 6.
Report of operations against the insurgents.
Report of H. W. Lawton of expedition to provinces north of Manila, Sept.Dec., 1899, and reports of other officers in the Philippines. 891 pages, illus.
maps. Sept.-Dec., 1899. Lieutenant-General Commanding Army, 1900, pt. 4.
Report of Arthur MacArthur commanding Division of Philippines [with
accompanying reports]. 644 pages, illus. maps. Lieutenant-General Commanding Army, Report, 1900. May 5, 1900-Oct. 1, 1900, pt. 3.
CONTENTS.-Chronological summary of principal events connected with military operations in Philippines, Sept. 1, 1899, to Aug. 31, 1900.-Distribution of troops
in Philippines, Sept. 1, 1900.-Report of Arthur MacArthur.-Report of Loyd
Wheaton commanding Department of Northern Luzon.-Report of J. C. Bates
commanding Department of Southern Luzon.-Report of R. P. Hughes cornmanding Department of Visayas.-Report of W. A. Kobbe commanding Department of Mindanao and Jolo.-Report of H. W. Lawton of expedition to province
of Cavite, June 10-22, 1899.-Report of Schwan's Expeditionary Brigade.
Report of G. W. Davis commanding Division of Philippines. Sept. 30, 1902 -July 26, 1903. In War Dept. Report, 1903, pt. 3, pages 131 to 459, illus.
maps.
Reports, Speeches and Debates on the Jones Bill.
Debates in House, on Bill to declare the purpose of the United States to
grant independence to the Philippines. Oct. 1, 1914. Cong. Rec., vol. 51,
no. 347, pages 17466 to 17481.
Debates in House-Oct. 2, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 248, pages 17539 to
17542.)
Oct. 3, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 249, pages 17637 to 17641 and 17644
to 17652.)
Oct. 6, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 251, pages 17742 to 17767.)
Includes a discussion of slavery and religious freedom in the Philippines.
Oct. 9, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 254, pages 17958 to 17984.)
Includes some discussion of lands.
Oct. 10, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 255, pages 18022 to 18038.)
A discussion of qualifications for voting and woman suffrage in the Philippines.
Oct. 12, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 256, pages 18099 to 18122.)
Oct. 13, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 257, pages 18188 to 18208.)
Report favoring H. 18459, to declare purpose of people of United States as to
future political status of people of Philippine Islands and to provide more
autonomous government for those islands; with Views of minority. 1914.
2 pts., 19+7 pages. (63d Cong., 2d sess., H. Rept. 1115.)
Ansberry, Timothy T., of Ohio. Extension of remarks in House, Oct. 6, 1914.
(Cong. Rec., Oct. 7, vol. 51, no. 252, pages 17841 and 17842.)
Cline, Cyrus, of Ind. Extension of remarks, in House, Oct. 16, 1914. (Cong.
Rec., vol. 51, no. 260, pages 18444 to 18446.)
Fess, Simeon D., of Ohio. Speech in House Sept. 28, 1914. (Cong. Rec., vol.
51, no. 244, pages 17308 to 17312.)
"I say it is dangerous to turn the Philippines afloat. The moment that foreign
capital, coming from foreign countries, will get a foothold, that moment conflicting interests will be found."
Jones, William A., of Va. Speech in House, Sept. 28, 1914. (Cong. Rec.,
vol. 51, no. 244, pages 17301 to 17306.)
Jones, William A., of Va. Speech in House, Oct. 2, 1914. (Cong. Rec., Oct.
16, vol. 51, no. 260, pages 18447 to 18450.)




BOOKS ON THE PHILIPPINES


475


Kelley, Patrick H., of Mich. Extension of remarks in House, Oct. 9, 1914.
(Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 254, pages 17995 and 17996.)
Kinkaid, Moses P., of Nebr. Extension of remarks in House, Oct. 19, 1914.
(Cong. Rec., vol. 51, no. 262, pages 18531 and 18532.)
Slayden, James L., of Tex. Speech in House, Oct. 14, 1914. (Cong. Rec., Oct.
16, vol. 51, no. 260, pages 18435 and 18436.)
Brent, C. H. Article from New York Tribune. (Cong. Rec., June 13, 1913,
vol. 50, no. 44, pages 2269, 2270.)
The heading reads, "Filipinos, if free, prey to invaders-would ultimately be devoured, were United States to relinquish rule-must attain to strength-distinguished churchman suggests that severely nonpolitical commission investigate
conditions-nation's reputation at stake."
Burgess, George F., of Tex. Government of Philippine Islands. Speech in
House, July 29, 1913. (Cong. Rec., vol. 50, no. 73, pages 3219 to 3222.)
In favor of a declaration of the Nation's purpose in regard to the ultimate independence of the Philippines.
Quezon, Manuel L. Extension of remarks in House, July 11, 1912. (Cong.
Rec., vol. 48, no. 181, pages 9481, 9482.)
Includes the preface to American Occupation of the Philippines, by J. H. Blount.
Quezon, Manuel L. True democratic policy for the Philippines. (Cong. Rec.,
Apr. 3, 1912, vol. 48, no. 95, pages 4487, 4488.)
An answer to the article by W. C. Redfield which was published in the January
issue of the National Monthly.
Redfield, W. C. Suggested Democratic policy for Philippines. (Cong. Rec.,
Apr. 2, 1912, vol. 48, no. 94, pages 4395 to 4397.)
Not in favor of giving the Philippines their independence immediately. A review
of conditions in the Philippines.
Stedman, Charles M., of N. C. Speech in House, Jan. 23, 1915. (Cong. Rec.,
vol. 52, no. 38, pages 2319 to 2323.)
Views of minority adverse to bill to secure neutralization of Philippine
Islands and recognition of their independence by international agreement.
1912. 6 pages. (62d Cong., 2d sess., H. Rept. 635, pt. 2.)
Cline, Cyrus, of Ind. Independence and neutralization of the Philippines.
Speech in House, Jan. 30, 1913. (Cong. Rec., Jan. 31, vol. 49, no. 44, pages
2432 to 2438.)
In favor of the independence of the Philippines.
Jones, William A., of Va. Truth as to conditions in Philippines. Speech in
House, Feb. 13, 1913. (Cong. Rec., Feb. 18, vol. 49, no. 62, pages 3454 to
3459.)
In answer to speech of Mr. Redfield of New York.
Letter of C. C. McCollum of Pawnee, Okla., and other documents bearing
upon capability of Filipino people. (Cong. Rec., Jan. 27, 1915, vol. 52, no.
42, pages 2626 to 2637.)
Against independence for the Filipinos.
McDill, J. N. The Philippines, America's lost opportunity in the Orient.
(Cong. Rec., May 12, 1913, vol. 50, no. 27, pages 1557 to 1559.)
In favor of independence for the Philippines.
Miller, Clarence B., of Minn. Speech in House, Apr. 21, 1914. (Cong. Rec.,
vol. 51, no. 108, pages 7529 to 7534.)








APPENDICES


-1




r




APPENDICES
APPENDIX A TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN UNITED STATES AND SPAIN.
APPENDIX B INSTRUCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT TO THE SCHURMAN COMMISSION.
APPENDIX C INSTRUCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT TO THE TAFT COMMISSION.
APPENDIX D  AGUINALDO'S PROCLAMATION ON HIS ARRIVAL AT CAVITE.
APPENDIX E  AGUINALDO'S PROCLAMATION OF JUNE 18, 1898, ESTABLISHING
THE DICTATORIAL GOVERNMENT.
APPENDIX F AGUINALDO'S PROCLAMATION OF JUNE 23, ESTABLISHING THE REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT.
APPENDIX G THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC.
APPENDIX H LIST OF LEADING OFFICIALS OF THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT.
APPENDIX I THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT LAW OF 1916. 
APPENDIX J THE COST OF THE ARMY IN THE PHILIPPINES.
APPENDIX A
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN UNITED STATES AND SPAIN
To the Senate of the United States:
I transmit herewith, with a view to its ratification, a treaty of peace between the United States and Spain, signed at the city of Paris on December
10, 1898, together with the protocols and papers indicated in the list accompanying the report of the Secretary of State.  WILLIAM MCKINLEY.
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
Washington, January 4, I899.
To the President:
The undersigned, Secretary of State, has the honor to lay before the
President, with a view to its submission to the Senate if deemed proper, a
treaty of peace concluded at Paris on December 10, 1898, between the United
States and Spain.
Accompanying the treaty are the protocols of the conferences of the Peace
Commission at Paris, together with copies of statements made before the
United States commissioners, and other papers indicated in the inclosed list.
Respectfully submitted.                              JOHN HAY.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE,
Washington, January 3, I899.
The United States of America and Her Majesty the Queen Regent of
Spain, in the name of her august son Don Alfonso XIII, desiring to end the
state of war now existing between the two countries, have for that purpose
appointed as plenipotentiaries:
The President of the United States,
William R. Day, Cushman K. Davis, William P. Frye, George Gray, and
Whitelaw Reid, citizens of the United States;
And Her Majesty the Queen Regent of Spain,
Don Eugenio Montero Rios, president of the senate; Don Buenaventura
479




480


APPENDICES


de Abarzuza, senator of the Kingdom and ex-minister of the Crown; Don
Jose de Garnica, deputy to the Cortes and associate justice of the supreme
court; Don Wenceslao Ramirez de Villa-Urrutia, envoy extraordinary and
minister plenipotentiary at Brussels; and Don Rafael Cereo, general of division;
Who, having assembled in Paris, and having exchanged their full powers,
which were found to be in due and proper form, have, after discussion of the
matters before them, agreed upon the following articles:
ARTICLE I
Spain relinquishes all claim of sovereignty over and title to Cuba.
And as the island is, upon its evacuation by Spain, to be occupied by the
United States, the United States will, so long as such occupation shall last,
assume and discharge the obligations that may under international law result
from the fact of its occupation, for the protection of life and property.
ARTICLE II
Spain cedes to the United States the island of Porto Rico and other
islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and the island of
Guam in'the Marianas or Ladrones.
ARTICLE III
Spain cedes to the United States the archipelago known as the Philippine
Islands, and comprehending the islands lying within the following line:
A line running from west to east along or near the twentieth parallel of
north latitude, and through the middle of the navigable channel of Bachi,
from the one hundred and eighteenth (118th) to the one hundred and twentyseventh (127th) degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, thence along
the one hundred and twenty-seventh (127th) degree meridian of longitude
east of Greenwich to the parallel of four degrees and forty-five minutes
(4~ 45') north latitude, thence along the parallel of four degrees and fortyfive minutes (4~ 45') north latitude to its intersection with the meridian of
longitude one hundred and nineteen degrees and thirty-five minutes (119~ 35')
east of Greenwich, thence along the meridian of longtitude one hundred and
nineteen degrees and thirty-five minutes (119~ 35') east of Greenwich to the
parallel of latitude seven degrees and forty minutes (7~ 40') north, thence
along the parallel of latitude of seven degrees and forty minutes (7~ 40')
north to its intersection with the one hundred and sixteenth (116th) degree
meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, thence by a direct line to the intersection of the tenth (10th) degree parallel of north latitude with the one
hundred and eighteenth (118th) degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, and thence along the one hundred and eighteenth (118th) degrees
meridian of longitude east of Greenwich to the point of beginning.
The United States will pay to Spain the sum of twenty million dollars
($20,000,000) within three months after the exchange of the ratifications of
the present treaty.
ARTICLE IV
The United States will, for the term of ten years from the date of the
exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty, admit Spanish ships and
merchandise to the ports of the Philippine Islands on the same terms as ships
and merchandise of the United States.




APPENDICES                             481
ARTICLE V
The United States will, upon the signature of the present treaty, send back
to Spain, at its own cost, the Spanish soldiers taken as prisoners of war on
the capture of Manila by the American forces. The arms of the soldiers in
question shall be restored to them.
Spain will, upon the exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty,
proceed to evacuate the Philippines, as well as the island of Guam, on terms
similar to those agreed upon by the commissioners appointed to arrange for
the evacuation of Porto Rico and other islands in the West Indies, under the
protocol of August 12, 1898, which is to continue in force till its provisions
are completely executed.
The time within which the evacuation of the Philippine Islands and Guam
shall be completed shall be fixed by the two Governments. Stands of colors,
uncaptured war vessels, small arms, guns of all calibers, with their carriages
and accessories, powder, ammunition, live stock, and materials and supplies
of all kinds, belonging to the land and naval forces of Spain in the Philippines and Guam, remain the property of Spain. Pieces of heavy ordnance,
exclusive of field artillery, in the fortifications and coast defenses, shall remain in their emplacements for the term of six months, to be reckoned from
the exchange of ratifications of the treaty; and the United States may, in the
meantime, purchase such material from Spain, if a satisfactory agreement
between the two Governments on the subject shall be reached.
ARTICLE VI
Spain will, upon the signature of the present treaty, release all prisoners
of war and all persons detained or imprisoned for political offenses in connection with the insurrections in Cuba and the Philippines and the war with
the United States.
Reciprocally, the United States will release all persons made prisoners of
war by the American forces and will undertake to obtain the release of all
Spanish prisoners in the hands of the insurgents in Cuba and the Philippines.
The Government of the United States will, at its own cost, return to Spain
and the Government of Spain will, at its own cost, return to the United
States, Cuba, Porto Rico, and the Philippines, according to the situation of
their respective homes, prisoners released or caused to be released by them,
respectively, under this article.
ARTICLE VII
The United States and Spain mutually relinquish all claims for indemnity,
national and individual, of every kind, of either Government or of its citizens
or subjects against the other Government that may have arisen since the beginning of the late insurrection in Cuba and prior to the exchange of ratifications of the present treaty, including all claims for indemnity for the cost of
the war.
The United States will adjudicate and settle the claims of its citizens
against Spain relinquished in this article.
ARTICLE VIII
In conformity with the provisions of Articles I, II, and III of this treaty,
Spain relinquishes in Cuba and cedes in Porto Rico and other islands in the
West Indies, in the island of Guam, and in the Philippine Archipelago, all the
buildings, wharves, barracks, forts, structures, public highways, and other
immovable property which, in conformity with law, belong to the public domain and as such belong to the Crown of Spain.




482


APPENDICES


And it is hereby declared that the relinquishment or cession, as the case
may be, to which the preceding paragraph refers, can not in any respect impair the property or rights which by law belong to the peaceful possession of
property of all kinds, of Provinces, municipalities, public or private establishments, ecclesiastical or civic bodies, or any other associations having legal
capacity to acquire and possess property in the aforesaid territories renounced
or ceded, or of private individuals, of whatsoever nationality such individuals
may be.
The aforesaid relinquishment or cession, as the case may be, includes all
documents exclusively referring to the sovereignty relinquished or ceded that
may exist in the archives of the peninsula. Where any document in such
archives only in part relates to said sovereignty, a copy of such part will be
furnished whenever it shall be requested. Like rules shall be reciprocally
observed in favor of Spain in respect of documents in the archives of the
islands above referred to.
In the aforesaid relinquishment or cession, as the case may be, are also
included such rights as the Crown of Spain and its authorities possess in
respect of the official archives and records, executive as well as judicial, in
the islands above referred to, which relate to said islands or the rights and
property of their inhabitants. Such archives and records shall be carefully
preserved, and private persons shall without distinction have the right to require, in accordance with law, authenticated copies of the contracts, wills,
and other instruments forming part of notarial protocols or files, or which
may be contained in the executive or judicial archives, be the latter in Spain
or in the islands aforesaid.
ARTICLE IX
Spanish subjects, natives of the peninsula, residing in the territory over
which Spain by the present treaty relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty, may
remain in such territory or may remove therefrom, retaining in either event
all their rights of property, including the right to sell or dispose of such property or of its proceeds, and they shall also have the right to carry on their
industry, commerce, and professions, being subject in respect thereof to such
laws as are applicable to other foreigners. In case they remain in the territory they may preserve their allegiance to the Crown of Spain by making,
before a court of record, within a year from the date of the exchange of
ratifications of this treaty, a declaration of their decision to preserve such
allegiance; in default of which declaration they shall be held to have renounced it and to have adopted the nationality of the territory in which they
may reside.
The civil rights and political status of the native inhabitants of the territories hereby ceded to the United States shall be determined by the Congress.
ARTICLE X
The inhabitants of the territories over which Spain relinquishes or cedes
her sovereignty shall be secured in the free exercise of their religion.
ARTICLE XI
The Spaniards residing in the territories over which Spain by this treaty
cedes or relinquishes her sovereignty shall be subject in matters civil as well
as criminal to the jurisdiction of the courts of the country wherein they reside, pursuant to the ordinary laws governing the same; and they shall have
the right to appear before such courts, and to pursue the same course as citizens of the country to which the courts belong.




APPENDICES


483


ARTICLE XII
Judicial proceedings pending at the time of the exchange of ratifications
of this treaty in the territories over which Spain relinquishes or cedes her
sovereignty shall be determined according to the following rules:
1. Judgments rendered either in civil suits between private individuals,
or in criminal matters, before the date mentioned, and with respect to which
there is no recourse or right of review under the Spanish law, shall be
deemed to be final, and shall be executed in due form by competent authority
in the territory within which such judgments should be carried out.
2. Civil suits between private individuals which may on the date mentioned be undetermined shall be prosecuted to judgment before the court in
which they may then be pending or in the court that may be substituted
therefor.
3. Criminal actions pending on the date mentioned before the supreme
court of Spain against citizens of the territory which by this treaty ceases to
be Spanish shall continue under its jurisdiction until final judgment; but,
such judgment having been rendered, the execution thereof shall be committed to the competent authority of the place in which the case arose.
ARTICLE XIII
The rights of property secured by copyrights and patents acquired by
Spaniards in the island of Cuba and in Porto Rico, the Philippines, and other
ceded territories, at the time of the exchange of the ratifications of this
treaty, shall continue to be respected. Spanish scientific, literary, and artistic
works, not subversive of public order in the territories in question, shall
continue to be admitted free of duty into such territories for the period of
ten years, to be reckoned from the date of the exchange of the ratifications
of this treaty.
ARTICLE XIV
Spain will have the power to establish consular officers in the ports and
places of the territories, the sovereignty over which has been either relinquished or ceded by the present treaty.
ARTICLE XV
The Government of each country will, for the term of ten years, accord to
the merchant vessels of the other country the same treatment in respect of
all port charges, including entrance and clearance dues, light dues, and tonnage duties, as it accords to its own merchant vessels not engaged in the
coastwise trade.
This article may at any time be terminated on six months' notice given by
either Government to the other.
ARTICLE XVI
It is understood that any obligations assumed in this treaty by the United
States with respect to Cuba are limited to the time of its occupancy thereof;
but it will upon the termination of such occupancy, advise any Government
established in the island to assume the same obligations.
ARTICLE XVII
The present treaty shall be ratified by the President of the United States,
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate thereof, and by Her
Majesty the Queen Regent of Spain; and the ratifications shall be exchanged
at Washington within six months from the date hereof, or earlier if possible.




484


APPENDICES


In faith whereof, we, the respective Plenipotentiaries, have signed this
treaty and have hereunto affixed our seals.
Done in duplicate at Paris, the tenth day of December, in the year of our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety-eight.
[SEAL] WILLIAM R. DAY,
[SEAL] CUSHMAN K. DAVIS,
[SEAL] WILLIAM P. FRYE,
[SEAL] GEO. GRAY,
[SEAL] WHITELAW REID,
[SEAL] EUGENIO MONTERO RIOS,
[SEAL] B. DE ABARZUZA,
[SEAL] J. DE GARNICA,
[SEAL] W. R. DE VILLA URRUTIA,
[SEAL] RAFAEL CERERO.
APPENDIX B
INSTRUCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT TO THE SCHURMAN
COMMISSION
DEPARTMENT OF STATE,
Washington, January 21, 1899.
MY DEAR SIR: I inclose herewith a copy of the instructions which the
President has drawn up for the guidance of yourself and your associates as
commissioners to the Philippines.
I am, with great respect, sincerely yours,
Hon. JACOB G. SCHURMAN,                               JOHN HAY.
The Arlington.
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
Washington, January 20, 1899.
The SECRETARY OF STATE:
My communication to the Secretary of War, dated December 21, 1898, declares the necessity of extending the actual occupation and administration of
the city, harbor, and bay of Manila to the whole of the territory which by the
treaty of Paris, signed on December 10, 1898, passed from the sovereignty of
Spain to the sovereignty of the United States, and the consequent establishment of military government throughout the entire group of the Philippine
Islands. While the treaty has not yet been ratified, it is believed that it will
be by the time of the arrival at Manila of the commissioners named below.
In order to facilitate the most humane, pacific, and effective extension of
authority throughout these islands, and to secure, with the least possible delay,
the benefits of a wise and generous protection of life and property to the
inhabitants, I have named Jacob G. Schurman, Rear-Admiral George Dewey,
Major-General Elwell S. Otis, Charles Denby, and Dean C. Worcester to
constitution a commission to aid in the accomplishment of these results.
In the performance of this duty, the commissioners are enjoined to meet
at the earliest possible day in the city of Manila and to announce, by a public
proclamation, their presence and the mission intrusted to them, carefully setting forth that, while the military government already proclaimed is to be
maintained and continued so long as necessity may require, efforts will be
made to alleviate the burden of taxation, to establish industrial and commer



APPENDICES


485


cial prosperity, and to provide for the safety of persons and of property by
such means as may be found conducive to these ends.
The commissioners will endeavor, without interference with the military
authorities of the United States now in control of the Philippines, to ascertain
what amelioration in the condition of the inhabitants and what improvements
in public order may be practicable, and for this purpose they will study attentively the existing social and political state of the various populations,
particularly as regards the forms of local government, the administration of
justice, the collection of customs and other taxes, the means of transportation,
and the need of public improvements. They will report through the Department of State, according to the forms customary or hereafter prescribed for
transmitting and preserving such communications, the results of their observations and reflections, and will recommend such executive action as may
from time to time seem to them wise and useful.
The commissioners are hereby authorized to confer authoritatively with
any persons resident in the islands from whom they may believe themselves
able to derive information or suggestions valuable for the purposes of their
commission, or whom they may choose to employ as agents, as may be necessary for this purpose.
The temporary government of the islands is intrusted to the military authorities, as already provided for by my instructions to the Secretary of War of
December 21, 1898, and will continue until Congress shall determine otherwise.
The commission may render valuable services by examining with special care
the legislative needs of the various groups of inhabitants, and by reporting,
with recommendations, the measures which should be instituted for the maintenance of order, peace, and public welfare, either as temporary steps to be
taken immediately for the perfection of present administration, or as suggestions for future legislation.
In so far as immediate personal changes in the civil administration may
seem to be advisable, the commissioners are empowered to recommend suitable persons for appointment to these offices from among the inhabitants of
the islands who have previously acknowledged their allegiance to this Government.
It is my desire that in all their relations with the inhabitants of the islands
the commissioners exercise due respect for all the ideals, customs, and institutions of the tribes which compose the population, emphasizing upon all occasions the just and beneficent intentions of the Government of the United
States. It is also my wish and expectation that the commissioners may be
received in a manner due to the honored and authorized representatives of
the American Republic, duly commissioned on account of their knowledge,
skill, and integrity as bearers of the good will, the protection, and the richest
blessings of a liberating rather than a conquering nation.
WILLIAM MCKINLEY
APPENDIX C
INSTRUCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT TO THE
TAFT COMMISSION
The SECRETARY OF WAR,              U*,EXECUTIVE MANSION, April 7, 1900.
Washington.
SIR: In the message transmitted to the Congress on the 5th of December,
1899, I said, speaking of the Philippine Islands: "As long as the insurrection
continues the military arm must necessarily be supreme. But there is no
reason why steps should not be taken from time to time to inaugurate govern



486


APPENDICES


ments essentially popular in their form as fast as territory is held and controlled by our troops. To this end I am considering the advisability of the
return of the commission, or such of the members thereof as can be secured,
to aid the existing authorities and facilitate this work throughout the islands."
To give effect to the intention thus expressed I have appointed Hon. William H. Taft, of Ohio; Prof. Dean C. Worcester, of Michigan; Hon. Luke
E. Wright, of Tennessee; Hon. Henry C. Ide, of Vermont, and Prof. Bernard
Moses, of California, commissioners to the Philippine Islands to continue and
perfect the work of organizing and establishing civil government already
commenced by the military authorities, subject in all respects to any laws
which Congress may hereafter enact.
The commissioners named will meet and act as a board, and the Hon.
William H. Taft is designated as president of the board. It is probable that
the transfer of authority from military commanders to civil officers will be
gradual and will occupy a considerable period. Its successful accomplishment
and the maintenance of peace and order in the meantime will require the most
perfect cooperation between the civil and military authorities in the island,
and both should be directed during the transition period by the same Executive Department. The commission will therefore report to the Secretary of
War, and all their action will be subject to your approval and control.
You will instruct the commission to proceed to the city of Manila, where
they will make their principal office, and to communicate with the military
governor of the Philippine Islands, whom you will at the same time direct to
render them every assistance within his power in the performance of their
duties. Without hampering them by too specific instructions, they should in
general be enjoined, after making themselves familiar with the conditions
and needs of the country, to devote their attention in the first instance to the
establishment of municipal governments, in which the natives of the islands,
both in the cities and in the rural communities, shall be afforded the opportunity to manage their own local affairs to the fullest extent of which they
are capable, and subject to the least degree of supervision and control which
a careful study of their capacities and observation of the workings of native
control show to be consistent with the maintenance of law, order, and loyalty.
The next subject in order of importance should be the organization of
government in the larger administrative divisions corresponding to counties,
departments, or provinces, in which the common interests of many or several
municipalities falling within the same tribal lines, or the same natural geographical limits, may best be subserved by a common administration. Whenever the commission is of the opinion that the condition of affairs in the
islands is such that the central administration may safely be transferred from
military to civil control, they will report that conclusion to you, with their
recommendations as to the form of central government to be established for
the purpose of taking over the control.
Beginning with the 1st day of September, 1900, the authority to exercise,
subject to my approval, through the Secretary of War, that part of the power
of government in the Philippine Islands which is of a legislative nature is to
be transferred from the military governor of the islands to this commission,
to be thereafter exercised by them in the place and stead of the military governor, under such rules and regulations as you shall prescribe, until the establishment of the civil central government for the islands contemplated in the
last foregoing paragraph, or until Congress shall otherwise provide. Exercise of this legislative authority will include the making of rules and orders,
having the effect of law, for the raising of revenue by taxes, customs duties,
and imposts; the appropriation and expenditure of public funds of the
islands; the establishment of an educational system throughout the islands;
the establishment of a system to secure an efficient civil service; the organization and establishment of courts; the organization and establishment of




APPENDICES


487


municipal and departmental governments, and all other matters of a civil nature for which the military governor is now competent to provide by rules or
orders of a legislative character.
The commission will also have power during the same period to appoint
to office such officers under the judicial, educational, and civil-service systems
and in the municipal and departmental governments as shall be provided for.
Until the complete transfer of control the military governor will remain the
chief executive head of the government of the islands, and will exercise the
executive authority now possessed by him and not herein expressly assigned
to the commission, subject, however, to the rules and orders enacted by the
commission in the exercise of the legislative powers conferred upon them.
In the meantime the municipal and departmental governments will continue
to report to the military governor and be subject to his administrative supervision and control, under your direction, but that supervision and control will
be confined within the narrowest limits consistent with the requirements that
the powers of government in the municipalities and departments shall be
honestly and effectively exercised and that law and order and individual freedom shall be maintained.
All legislative rules and orders, establishments of government, and appointments to office by the commission will take effect immediately, or at such
times as they shall designate, subject to your approval and action upon the
coming in of the commission's reports, which are to be made from time to
time as their action is taken. Wherever civil governments are constituted
under the direction of the commission, such military posts, garrisons, and
forces will be continued for the suppression of insurrection and brigandage,
and the maintenance of law and order, as the military commander shall deem
requisite, and the military forces shall be at all times subject under his orders
to the call of the civil authorities for the maintenance of law and order and
the enforcement of their authority.
In the establishment of municipal governments the commission will take
as the basis of their work the governments established by the military governor under his order of August 8, 1899, and under the report of the board
constituted by the military governor by his order of January 29, 1900, to formulate and report a plan of municipal government, of which his honor
Cayetano Arellano, president of the audiencia, was chairman, and they will
give to the conclusions of that board the weight and consideration which the
high character and distinguished abilities of its members justify.
In the constitution of departmental or provincial governments, they will
give especial attention to the existing government of the island of Negros,
constituted, with the approval of the people of that island, under the order of
the military governor of July 22, 1899, and after verifying, so far as may be
practicable, the reports of the successful working of that government, they
will be guided by the experience thus acquired, so far as it may be applicable
to the condition existing in other portions of the Philippines. They will avail
themselves, to the fullest degree practicable, of the conclusions reached by
the previous commission to the Philippines.
In the distribution of powers among the governments organized by the
commission, the presumption is always to be in favor of the smaller subdivision, so that all the powers which can properly be exercised by the municipal government shall be vested in that government, and all the powers of
a more general character which can be exercised by the departmental government shall be vested in that government, and so that in the governmental
system, which is the result of the process, the central government of the
islands, following the example of the distribution of the powers between the
States and the National Government of the United States, shall have no direct
administration except of matters of purely general concern, and shall have
only such supervision and control over local governments as may be neces



488                       APPENDICES
sary to secure and enforce faithful and efficient administration by local
officers.
The many different degrees of civilization and varieties of custom and
capacity among the people of the different islands preclude very definite instruction as to the part which the people shall take in the selection of their
own officers; but these general rules are to be observed: That in all cases the
municipal officers, who administer the local affairs of the people, are to be
selected by the people, and that wherever officers of more extended jurisdiction are to be selected in any way, natives of the islands are to be preferred,
and if they can be found competent and willing to perform the duties, they
are to receive the offices in preference to any others.
It will be necessary to fill some offices for the present with Americans
which after a time may well be filled by natives of the islands. As soon as
practicable a system for ascertaining the merit and fitness of candidates for
civil office should be put in force. An indispensable qualification for all
offices and positions of trust and authority in the islands must be absolute
and unconditional loyalty to the United States, and absolute and unhampered
authority and power to remove and punish any officer deviating from that
standard must at all times be retained in the hands of the central authority of
the islands.
In all the forms of government and administrative provisions which they
are authorized to prescribe, the commission should bear in mind that the
government which they are establishing is designed not for our satisfaction,
or for the expression of our theoretical views, but for the happiness, peace,
and prosperity of the people of the Philippine Islands, and the measures
adopted should be made to conform to their customs, their habits, and even
their prejudices, to the fullest extent consistent with the accomplishment of
the indispensable requisites of just and effective government.
At the same time the commission should bear in mind, and the people of
the islands should be made plainly to understand, that there are certain great
principles of government which have been made the basis of our governmental system which we deem essential to the rule of law and the maintenance of individual freedom, and of which they have, unfortunately, been
denied the experience possessed by us; that there are also certain practical
rules of government which we have found to be essential to the preservation
of these great principles of liberty and law, and that these principles and
these rules of government must be established and maintained in their islands
for the sake of their liberty and happiness, however much they may conflict
with the customs or laws of procedure with which they are familiar.
It is evident that the most enlightened thought of the Philippine Islands
fully appreciates the importance of these principles and rules, and they will
inevitably within a short time command universal assent. Upon every division
and branch of the government of the Philippines, therefore, must be imposed
these inviolable rules:
That no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due
process of law; that private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation; that in all criminal prosecutions the accused shall
enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, to be informed of the nature and
cause of the accusation, to be confronted with the witnesses against him, to
have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have
the assistance of counsel for his defense; that excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted; that no person shall be put twice in jeopardy for the same offense, or
be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself; that the
right to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be
violated; that neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist except as
a punishment for crime; that no bill of attainder, or ex-post-facto law shall




APPENDICES


489


be passed; that no law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech or of
the press, or the rights of the people to peaceably assemble and petition the
Government for a redress of grievances; that no law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, and
that the free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship
without discrimination or preference shall forever be allowed.
It will be the duty of the commission to make a thorough investigation
into the titles to the large tracts of land held or claimed by individuals or by
religious orders; into the justice of the claims and complaints made against
such landholders by the people of the island or any part of the people, and
to seek by wise and peaceable measures a just settlement of the controversies
and redress of wrongs' which have caused strife and bloodshed in the past.
In the performance of this duty the commission is enjoined to see that no
injustice is done; to have regard for substantial rights and equity, disregarding technicalities so far as substantial right permits, and to observe the following rules:
That the provision of the Treaty of Paris, pledging the United States to
the protection of all rights of property in the islands, and as well the principle of our own Government which prohibits the taking of private property
without due process of law, shall not be violated; that the welfare of the
people of the islands, which should be a paramount consideration, shall be
attained consistently with this rule of property right; that if it becomes necessary for the public interest of the people of the islands to dispose of claims
to property which the commission finds to be not lawfully acquired and held
disposition shall be made thereof by due legal procedure, in which there shall
be full opportunity for fair and impartial hearing and judgment; that if the
same public interests require the extinguishment of property rights lawfully
acquired and held due compensation shall be made out of the public treasury
therefor; that no form of religion and no minister of religion shall be forced
upon any community or upon any citizen of the islands; that upon the other
hand no minister of religion shall be interfered with or molested in following
his calling, and that the separation between state and church shall be real,
entire, and absolute.
It will be the duty of the commission to promote and extend, and, as they
find occasion, to improve, the system of education already inaugurated by the
military authorities. In doing this they should regard as of first importance
the extension of a system of primary education which shall be free to all, and
which shall tend to fit the people for the duties of citizenship and for the
ordinary avocations of a civilized community. This instruction should be
given in the first instance in every part of the islands in the language of the
people. In view of the great number of languages spoken by the different
tribes, it is especially important to the prosperity of the islands that a common medium of communication may be established, and it is obviously desirable that this medium should be the English language. Especial attention
should be at once given to affording full opportunity to all the people of the
islands to acquire the use of the English language.
It may be well that the main changes which should be made in the system
of taxation and in the body of the laws under which the people are governed,
except such changes as have already been made by the military government,
should be relegated to the civil government which is to be established under
the auspices of the commission. It will, however, be the duty of the commission to inquire diligently as to whether there are any further changes
which ought not be delayed; and if so, they are authorized to make such
changes, subject to your approval. In doing so they are to bear in mind that
taxes which tend to penalize or repress industry and enterprise are to be
avoided; that provisions for taxation should be simple, so that they may be




490


APPENDICES


understood by the people; that they should affect the fewest practicable subjects of taxation which will serve for the general distribution of the burden.
The main body of the laws which regulate the rights and obligations of
the people should be maintained with as little interference as possible.
Changes made should be mainly in procedure, and in the criminal laws to
secure speedy and impartial trials, and at the same time effective administration and respect for individual rights.
In dealing with the uncivilized tribes of the islands the commission should
adopt the same course followed by Congress in permitting the tribes of our
North American Indians to maintain their tribal organization and government, and under which many of those tribes are now living in peace and contentment, surrounded by a civilization to which they are unable or unwilling
-to conform. Such tribal governments should, however, be subjected to wise
and firm regulation; and, without undue or petty interference, constant and
active effort should be exercised to prevent barbarous practices and introduce
civilized customs.
Upon all officers and employes of the United States, both civil and military, should be impressed a sense of the duty to observe not merely the
material but the personal and social rights of the people of the islands, and
to treat them with the same courtesy and respect for their personal dignity
which the people of the United States are accustomed to require from each
other.
The articles of capitulation of the city of Manila on the 13th of August,
1898, concluded with these words:
"This city, its inhabitants, its churches and religious worship, its educational establishments, and its private property of all descriptions, are placed
under the special safeguard of the faith and honor of the American army."
I believe that this pledge has been faithfully kept. As high and sacred an
obligation rests upon the Government of the United States to give protection
for property and life, civil and religious freedom, and wise, firm, and unselfish guidance in the paths of peace and prosperity to all the people of the
Philippine Islands. I charge this commission to labor for the full performance of this obligation, which concerns the honor and conscience of their
country, in the firm hope that through their labors all the inhabitants of the
Philippine Islands may come to look back with gratitude to the day when
God gave victory to American arms at Manila and set their land under the
sovereignty and the protection of the people of the United States.
WILLIAM McKINLEY.
APPENDIX D
AGUINALDO'S PROCLAMATION ON HIS ARRIVAL AT CAVITE
MY BELOVED COUNTRYMEN: I accepted the agreement of peace proposed
by Don Pedro A. Paterno after his consultation with the Captain-General of
the islands (Philippines), agreeing in consequence thereof to surrender our
arms and disband the troops under my immediate command under certain
conditions, as I believed it more advantageous for the country than to sustain
the insurrection, for which I had but limited resources, but as some of the
said conditions were not complied with, some of the bands are discontented
and have not surrendered their arms. Five months have elapsed without the
inauguration of any of the reforms which I asked in order to place our
country on a level with civilized people-for instance, our neighbor, Japan,
which in the short space of twenty years has reached a point where she has
no reason to envy any one, her strength and ascendency being shown in the
last war with China. I see the impotence of the Spanish Government to con



APPENDICES


491


tend with certain elements which oppose constant obstacles to the progress of
the country itself and whose destructive influence has been one of the causes
of the uprising of the masses, and as the great and powerful North American
nation has offered its disinterested protection to secure the liberty of this
country, I again assume command of all the troops in the struggle for the
attainment of our lofty aspirations, inaugurating a dictatorial government to
be administered by decrees promulgated under my sole responsibility and
with the advice of distinguished persons until the time when these islands,
being under our complete control, may form a constitutional republican assembly and appoint a president and cabinet, into whose hands I shall then
resign the command of the islands.
Given at Cavite, May 24, 1898.                 EMILiO AGUINALDO.
APPENDIX E
AGUINALDO'S PROCLAMATION OF JUNE 18, 1898, ESTABLISHING
THE DICTATORIAL GOVERNMENT'
To the Philippine Public:
Circumstances have providentially placed me in a position for which I can
not fail to recognize that I am not properly qualified; but since I can not
violate the laws of Providence nor decline the obligations which honor and
patriotism impose upon me, I now salute you, oh, my beloved people.
I have proclaimed in the face of the whole world that the aspiration of
my whole life, the final object of all my efforts and strength, is nothing else
but your independence, for I am firmly convinced that that constitutes your
constant desire, and that independence signifies for us redemption from
slavery and tyranny, regaining our liberty and entrance into the concert of
civilized nations.
I understand, on the other hand, that the first duty of every government
is to faithfully interpret popular aspirations; with this motive, although the
abnormal circumstances of the war have compelled me to institute this dictatorial government which assumes full powers, both civil and military, my
constant desire is to surround myself with the most distinguished persons of
each province, those that by their conduct deserve the confidence of their
province, to the end that the true necessities of each being known by them,
measures may be adopted to meet those necessities and apply the remedies in
accordance with the desires of all.
I understand, moreover, the urgent necessity of establishing in each town
a solid and robust organization, the strongest bulwark of public security and
the sole means of securing that union and discipline which are indispensable
for the establishment of the republic, that is, government of the people for
the people, and warding off the international conflicts which may arise.
Following out the foregoing considerations, I decree as follows:
ARTICLE I. The inhabitants of every town where the forces of the Spanish
Government still remain will decide upon the most efficacious measures to
combat and destroy them, according to the resources and means at their disposal, according to prisoners of war the treatment most conformable to
humanitarian sentiments and to the customs observed by civilized nations.
ART. II. As soon as the town is freed from Spanish domination, the inhabitants most distinguished for high character, social position, and honorable conduct, both in the center of the community and in the suburbs, will
come together in a large meeting, in which they will proceed to elect, by a
majority of votes, the chief of the town and a headman for each suburb,
1Senate Doc. 62, part 1, 55th Cong., 3d sess., 1898-99, pp. 432-437.




492


APPENDICES


considering as suburbs not only those hitherto known as such, but also the
center of the community.
All those inhabitants who fulfill the conditions above named will have the
right to take part in this meeting and to be elected, provided always that they
are friendly to the Philippine independence and are 20 years of age.
ART. III. In this meeting shall also be elected, by a majority of votes, three
delegates, one of police and internal order, another of justice and civil registry, and another of taxes and property.
The delegate of justice and civil registry will aid the chief in the formation of courts and in keeping of books of registry, of births, deaths, and marriage contracts, and of the census.
The delegates of taxes and property will aid the chief in the collection of
taxes and administration of public funds, the opening of books of registry
of cattle and real property, and all work relating to encouragement of every
class of industry.
ART. IV. The chief, as president, with the headman and the abovementioned delegates, will constitute the popular assemblies, who will supervise the exact fulfillment of the laws in force and the particular interests of
each town.
The headman of the center of the community will be the vice-president of
the assembly and the delegate of justice its secretary.
The headmen will be delegates of the chief within their respective boundaries.
ART. V. The chiefs of each town, after consulting the opinion of their
respective assemblies, will meet and elect by a majority of votes the chief of
the province and three councilors for the three branches above mentioned.
The chief of the province as president, the chief of the town which is the
capital of the province as vice-president, and the above-named councilors will
constitute the provincial council, which will supervise the carrying out of the
instructions of this government in the territory of the province and for the
general interest of the province, and will propose for this government the
measures which should be adopted for the general welfare.
ART. VI. The above-named chiefs will also elect by a majority of votes
three representatives for each one of the provinces of Manila and Cavite, two
for each one of the provinces classified as terminal in Spanish legislation, and
one for each one of the other provinces and politico-military commands of the
Philippine Archipelago.
The above-named representatives will guard the general interests of the
archipelago and the particular interests of their respective provinces, and will
constitute the revolutionary congress which will propose to this government
the measures concerning the preservation of internal order and external security of these islands, and will be heard by this government on all questions
of grave importance, the decision of which will admit of delay or adjournment.
ART. VII. Persons elected to any office whatsoever in the form prescribed
in the preceding article can not perform the same without the previous confirmation by this government, which will give it in accordance with the certificates of election.
Representatives will establish their identity by exhibiting the above-named
certificates.
ART. VIII. The military chiefs named by this government in each province will not intervene in the government and administration of the province.
but will confine themselves to requesting of the chiefs of provinces and of the
towns the aid which may be necessary, both in men and resources, which are
not to be refused in case of actual necessity.
Nevertheless, when the province is threatened or occupied by the enemy,




APPENDICES


493


in whole or in part, the military chief of highest rank therein may assume the
powers of the chief of the province until the danger has disappeared.
ART. IX. The government will name for each province a commissioner
specially charged with establishing therein the organization prescribed in this
decree in accordance with instructions which this government will communicate to him. Those military chiefs who liberate the towns from the Spanish
domination are commissioners by virtue of their office.
The above-named commissioners will preside over the first meetings held
in each town and in each province.
ART. X. As soon as the organization provided in the decree has been
established, all previous appointments to any civil office whatsoever, no matter
what their origin or source, shall be null and void, and all instructions in conflict with the foregoing are hereby annulled.
Given at Cavite the 18th day of June, 1898.    EMILIO AGUINALDO.
APPENDIX F
AGUINALDO'S PROCLAMATION OF JUNE 23, ESTABLISHING
THE REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT1
Don Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy, president of the revolutionary government of
the Philippines and general in chief of its army.
This government desiring to demonstrate to the Philippine people that one
of its ends is to combat with a firm hand the inveterate vices of the Spanish
administration, substituting for personal luxury and that pompous ostentation
which have made it a mere matter of routine, cumbrous and slow in its movements, another administration more modest, simple, and prompt in performing the public service, I decree as follows:
CHAPTER I
Of the Revolutionary Government
ARTICLE I. The dictatorial government will be entitled hereafter the revolutionary government, whose object is to struggle for the independence of the
Philippines until all nations, including the Spanish, shall expressly recognize
it, and to prepare the country so that a true republic may be established.
The dictator will be entitled hereafter president of the revolutionary
government.
ART. II. Four secretaryships of government are created, one of foreign
affairs, navy, and commerce; another of war and public works; another of
police and internal order, justice, education, and hygiene; and another of
finance, agriculture, and manufacturing industry.
The government may increase this number of secretaryships when it shall
find in practice that this distribution is not sufficient for the multiplied and
complicated necessities of the public service.
ART. III. Each secretaryship shall aid the president in the administration
of questions concerning the different branches which it comprises.
At the head of each one shall be a secretary, who shall not be responsible
for the decrees of the presidency, but shall sign them with the president to
give them authority.
But if it shall appear that the decree has been promulgated on the propoSenate Doc. No. 62, part 1, 55th Cong. 3d sess., 1898-99, pp. 433-437.




494


APPENDICES


sition of the secretary of the department, the latter shall be responsible conjointly with the president.
ART. IV. The secretaryship of foreign affairs will be divided into three
bureaus, one of diplomacy, another of navy, and another of commerce.
The first bureau will study and dispose of all questions pertaining to management of diplomatic negotiations with other powers and the correspondence
of the government with them; the second will study all questions relating to
the formation and organization of our navy, and the fitting out of such expeditions as the necessities of the revolution may require; and the third will
have charge of everything relating to the internal and external commerce and
the preliminary work which may be necessary for making treaties of commerce with other nations.
ART. V. The secretaryship of war will be divided into two bureaus-one
of war, properly speaking, and the other of public works.
The first bureau will be subdivided into four sections-one of campaigns,
another of military justice, another of military administration, and another
of military health.
The section of campaigns will have charge of the appointment and formation of the certificates of enlistment and service of all who serve in the revolutionary militia; of the direction of campaigns; the preparation of plans,
works of fortification, and preparing reports of battles; of the study of military tactics for the army, and the organization of the general staff, artillery
and cavalry; and finally, of the determination of all the other questions concerning the business of campaigns and military operations.
The section of military justice will have charge of everything relating to
courts of war and military tribunals, the appointment of judges and counsel,
and the determination of all questions of military justice. The section of
military administration will be charged with the furnishing of food and other
supplies necessary for the use of the army, and the section of military health
will have charge of everything relating to the hygiene and healthfulness of
the militia.
ART. VI. The other secretaryships will be divided into such bureaus as
their branches may require, and each bureau will be subdivided into sections
according to the nature and importance of the work it has to do.
ART. VII. The secretary will inspect and supervise all the work of his
secretaryship, and will determine all questions with the president of the
government.
At the head of each bureau will be a director, and in each section an officer
provided with such number of assistants and clerks as may be specified.
ART. VIII. The president will appoint the secretaries of his own free
choice, and in concert with them will appoint all the subordinate officials of
each secretaryship.
In order that in the choice of persons it may be possible to avoid favoritism it must be fully understood that the good name of the country and the
triumph of the revolution require the services of persons truly capable.
ART. IX. The secretaries may be present at the revolutionary congress, in
order that they may make any motion in the name of the president, or may be
interpellated publicly by any one of the representatives; but when the question which is the object of the motion shall be put to vote, or after the interpellation is ended, they shall leave and shall not take part in the vote.
ART. X. The president of the government is the personification of the
Philippine people, and in accordance with this idea it shall not be possible to
hold him responsible while he fills the office.
His term of office shall last until the revolution triumphs, unless under
extraordinary circumstances he shall feel obliged to offer his resignation to
congress, in which case congress will elect whomsoever it considers most fit.




APPENDICES


495


CHAPTER II
Of the Revolutionary Congress
ART. XI. The revolutionary congress is the body of representatives of the
provinces of the Philippine Archipelago, elected in the manner prescribed in
the decrees of the 18th of the present month.
Nevertheless, if any province shall not be able as yet to elect representatives because the greater part of its towns shall have not yet been able to
liberate themselves from Spanish domination, the government shall have
power to appoint, as provisional representatives for this province, those persons who are most distinguished for high character and social position, in
such numbers as are prescribed by the above-named decree; provided, always,
that they are natives of the province which they represent, or have resided
therein for a long time.
ART. XII. The representatives having met at the town which is the seat
of the revolutionary government, and in the building which may be designated, will proceed to its preliminary labors, designating by plurality of votes
a commission composed of five individuals charged with examining documents accrediting each representative, and another commission composed of
three individuals, who will examine the documents which the five of the
former commission exhibit.
ART. XIII. On the following day the above-named representatives will
meet again, and the two commissions will read their respective reports concerning the legality of the said documents, deciding by an absolute majority
of votes on the character of those which appear doubtful.
This business completed, it will proceed to designate, also by absolute
majority, a president, a vice-president, and two secretaries, who shall be
chosen from among the representatives, whereupon the congress shall be considered organized and shall notify the government of the result of the
election.
ART. XIV. The place where congress deliberates is sacred and inviolable,
and no armed force shall enter therein unless the president thereof shall ask
therefor in order to establish internal order disturbed by those who can
neither honor themselves nor its august functions.
ART. XV. The powers of congress are: To watch over the general interest of the Philippine people, and carrying out of the revolutionary laws;
to discuss and vote upon said laws; to discuss and approve, prior to their
ratification, treaties and loans; to examine and approve the accounts presented
annually by the secretary of finance, as well as extraordinary and other taxes
which may hereafter be imposed.
ART. XVI. Congress shall also be consulted in all grave and important
questions, the determination of which admit of delay or adjournment; but
the president of the government shall have power to decide questions of
urgent character, but in that case he shall give account by message to said
body of the decision which he has adopted.
ART. XVII. Every representative shall have power to present to congress
any project of law, and every secretary, on the order of the president of the
government, shall have similar power.
ART. XVIII. The sessions of congress shall be public, and only in cases
which require reserve shall it have power to hold a secret session.
ART. XIX. In the order of its deliberations, as well as in the internal government of the body, the instructions which shall be formulated by the congress itself shall be observed.
The president shall direct the deliberations and shall not vote except in
case of a tie, when he shall have the casting vote.




496


APPENDICES


ART. XX. The president of the government shall not have power to interrupt in any manner the meetings of congress nor embarrass its sessions.
ART. XXI. The congress shall designate a permanent commission of justice, which shall be presided over by the auxiliary vice-president or each of
the secretaries, and shall be composed of those persons and seven members
elected by plurality of votes from among the representatives. This commission shall judge on appeal the criminal cases tried by the provincial courts,
and shall take cognizance of and have original jurisdiction in all cases against
the secretaries of the government, the chiefs of provinces and towns, and the
provincial judges.
ART. XXII. In the office of the secretary of congress shall be kept a book
of honor, wherein shall be recorded special services rendered the country
and considered as such by said body. Every Filipino, whether in the military
or civil service, may petition congress for notation in said book, presenting
duly accredited documents describing the service rendered by him on behalf
of the country since the beginning of the present revolution. For extraordinary services which may be rendered hereafter the government will propose
said notation, accompanying the proposal with the necessary documents justifying it.
ART. XXIII. The congress will also grant on the proposal of the government rewards in money, which can be given only once, to the families of those
who were victims of their duty and patriotism as a result of extraordinary
acts of heroism.
ART. XXIV. The acts of congress shall not take effect until the president
of the government orders their fulfillment and execution. Whenever the
said president shall be of the opinion that any act is unsuitable, or against
public policy, or pernicious, he shall explain to congress the reasons against
its execution, and if the latter shall insist on its passage, the president shall
have power to oppose his veto under his most rigid responsibility.
CHAPTER III
Of Military Courts and Justice
ART. XXV. When the chiefs of military detachments have notice that
any soldier has committed or has perpetrated any act of those commonly
considered as military crimes, he shall bring it to the knowledge of the commandant of the zone, who shall appoint a judge and a secretary, who shall
begin suit in the form prescribed in the instructions dated the 20th of the
present month. If the accused shall be of the grade of lieutenant or higher,
the said commandant shall himself be the judge, and if the latter shall be the
accused the senior commandant of the province shall name as judge an
officer who holds a higher grade, unless the same senior commandant shall
himself have brought the suit. The judge shall always be a field officer.
ART. XXVI. On the conclusion of the preliminary hearing the senior
commandant shall designate three officers of equal or higher rank to the
judge, and the military court shall consist of said officers, the judge, the
councilor, and the president. The latter shall be the commandant of the
zone if the accused be of the grade of lieutenant or higher. This court shall
conduct the trial in the form customary in the provincial courts, but the judgment shall be appealable to the higher courts of war.
ART. XXVII. The superior court shall be composed of six members, who
shall hold rank not less than brigadier-generals, and the judge-advocate. If
the number of generals present in the capital of the revolutionary government shall not be sufficient, the deficiency shall be supplied by representatives
designated and commissioned by congress. The president of the court shall
be the general having the highest rank of all, and should there be more than




APPENDICES                             497
one having equal rank, the president shall be elected from among them by
absolute majority of votes.
ART. XXVIII. The superior court shall have jurisdiction in all cases
affecting the higher commandants, the commandants of zones, and all officers
of the rank of major and higher.
ART. XXIX. Commit military crimes: First, those who fail to grant the
necessary protection to foreigners, both in their persons and property, and
those who similarly fail to afford protection to hospitals and ambulances,
including persons and effects which may be found in possession of one or the
other, and those engaged in the service of the same, provided always they
commit no hostile act; second, those who fail in the respect due to the lives,
money, and jewels of enemies who lay down their arms, and of prisoners of
war; third, Filipinos who place themselves in the service of the enemy, acting
as spies or disclosing to them secrets of war and the plans of the revolutionary positions and fortifications, and those who present themselves under
a flag of truce without justifying properly their office and their personality;
and fourth, those who fail to recognize a flag of truce duly accredited in the
form prescribed by international law.
Will commit also military crimes: Those who conspire against the unity
of the revolutionists, provoking rivalry between chiefs, and forming divisions
and armed bands; second, those who solicit contributions without authority
of the government and misappropriate the public funds; third, those who
desert to the enemy, or are guilty of cowardice in the presence of the enemy,
being armed; and fourth, those who seize the property of any person who
has done no harm to the revolution, violate women, and assassinate or inflict
serious wounds on unarmed persons, and who commit robberies and arson.
ART. XXX. Those who commit the crimes enumerated will be considered
as declared enemies of the revolution, and will incur the penalties prescribed
in the Spanish Penal Code, and in the highest grade.
If the crime shall not be found in the said code the offender shall be imprisoned until the revolution triumphs, unless the result of this shall be an
irreparable damage, which, in the judgment of the tribunal, shall be a sufficient cause for imposing the penalty of death.
Additional Clauses
The government will establish abroad a revolutionary committee composed of a number, not yet determined, of persons most competent in the
Philippine Archipelago. This committee will be divided into three delegations
-one of diplomacy, another of the navy, and another of the army.
The delegation of diplomacy will arrange and conduct negotiations with
foreign cabinets with a view to the recognition of the belligerency and independence of the Philippines.
The delegation of the navy will be charged with the studying and organizing of the Philippine navy, and preparing the expenditures which the necessities of the revolution may require.
The delegation of the army will study military tactics and the best form
of organization for the general staff, artillery, and engineers, and whatever
else may be necessary in order to fit out the Philippine army under the conditions required by modern progress.
ART. XXXII. The government will issue the necessary instructions for
the proper execution of the present decree.
ART. XXXIII. All the decrees of the dictatorial government in conflict
with the foregoing are hereby annulled.
Given at Cavite the 23d of June, 1898.         EMILIO AGUINALDO.




498


APPENDICES


APPENDIX G
THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC'
POLITICAL CONSTITUTION
Presidency of the Revolutionary Government of Philippines
Don EMILIO AGUINALDO Y FAMY, President of the Revolutionary Government
of Philippines and Captain-General and Commander in Chief of the Army.
Know all Philippine citizens: That the assembly of representatives of the
nation, using its sovereignty, has decreed, and I have sanctioned, the political
constitution of the estate.
Therefore I command all the military and civil authorities of any class or
rank to keep it and cause it to be kept, complied with, and executed in all its
parts, because it is the sovereign will of the Philippine people.
Done at Mololos on the 21st day of January in the year eighteen hundred
and ninety-nine.
The President of the Council:                  EMILI AGUINALDO.
APOLINARIO MABINI.
We, the representatives of the Philippine people, lawfully invoked, in order
to establish justice, provide for common defense, promote general welfare,
and insure the benefits of freedom, imploring the aid of the Sovereign Legislator of the Universe in order to attain these purposes, have voted, decreed,
and sanctioned the followingPOLITICAL CONSTITUTION
FIRST TITLE
The Republic
ARTICLE 1. The political association of all the Filipinos constitutes a nation, the estate of which is denominated Philippine Republic.
ART. 2. The Philippine Republic is free and independent.
ART. 3. Sovereignty resides exclusively in the people.
SECOND TITLE
The Government
ART. 4. The government of the republic is popular, representative, alternative and responsible, and is exercised by three distinct powers, which are denominated legislative, executive and judicial. Two or more of these powers
shall never be vested in one person or corporation; neither shall the legislature be vested in one individual alone.
THIRD TITLE
Religion
ART. 5. The state recognizes the equality of all religious worships and the
separation of the church and the state.
1 See an article in The Filipino People, Sept., 1914, by Jorge Bocobo, on "Filipe Calderon and the Malolos Constitution."




APPENDICES


499


FOURTH TITLE
The Filipinos and Their National and Individual Rights
ART. 6. The following are Filipinos:
1. All persons born in Philippine territory. A vessel flying the Philippine
flag shall, for this purpose, be considered a portion of the Philippine territory.
2. The offspring of a Filipino father and mother although born outside
the Philippine territory.
3. Foreigners who have obtained certificates of naturalization.
4. Those who, without it, may have gained "vecindad" (residence) in any
town of the Philippine territory.
It is understood that residence is gained by staying two years without
interruption in one locality of the Philippine territory, having an open abode
and known mode of living and contributing to all the charges of the nation.
The nationality of the Filipino is lost in accordance with the laws. (S. C.
C., 1st Title, 1st. art.; S. C., 1st Title, 1st art.)
ART. 7. No Filipino nor foreigner shall be arrested nor imprisoned unless
on account of crime, and in accordance with the laws. (S. C., 4th art.)
ART. 8. Any person arrested shall be discharged or delivered over to the
judicial authority within twenty-four hours following the arrest. (S. C.,
4th art.)
Any arrest shall be held without effect or shall be carried to commitment
within seventy-two hours after the detained has been delivered over to a competent judge.
The party interested shall receive notice of the order which may be issued
within the same time. (S. C., 4th art.)
ART. 9. No Filipino can become a prisoner unless by virtue of the mandate
of a competent judge.
The decree by which may be issued the mandate shall be ratified or confirmed, having heard the presumed criminal within seventy-two hours following the act of commitment. (S. C., 5th art.)
ART. 10. No one can enter the domicile of a Filipino or foreign resident
in the Philippines without his consent, except in urgent cases of fire, flood,
earthquake, or other similar danger, or of unlawful aggression proceeding
from within or in order to assist a person within calling for help.
Outside of these cases, the entrance in the domicile of a Filipino or
foreign resident of the Philippines and the searching of his papers or effects
can only be decreed by a competent judge and executed during the day.
The searching of the papers and effects shall take place always in the
presence of the party interested or of an individual of his family, and, in their
absence, of two resident witnesses of the same place.
Notwithstanding, when a delinquent may be found, in "flagranti" and
pursued by the authority with its agents, may take refuge in his domicile, he
may be followed into the same only for the purpose of apprehension.
If he should take refuge in the domicile of another, notification to the
owner of the latter shall precede. (S. C., 6th art.)
ART. 11. No Filipino can be compelled to make change of his domicile or
residence unless by virtue of an executive sentence. (S. C., 9th art.)
ART. 12. In no case can there be detained nor opened by the governing
authority the correspondence confided to the post-office, nor can that of the
telegraph or telephone be detained.
But, by virtue of a decree of a competent judge, can be detained any correspondence and also opened in the presence of the accused that which may
be conveyed by the post-office. (S. C., 7th art.)
ART. 13. Any decree of imprisonment, of search of abode, or of detention
of the correspondence written, telegraphed, or telephoned, shall be justified.




500


APPENDICES


When the decree may fall short of this requisite, or when the motives in
which it may be founded may be judicially declared unlawful or notoriously
insufficient, the person who may have been imprisoned, or whose imprisonment may not have been ratified within the term prescribed in art. 9, or whose
domicile may be forcibly entered, or whose correspondence may be detained,
shall have the right to demand the responsibilities which ensue.  (S. C.,
8th art.)
ART. 14. No Filipino shall be prosecuted nor sentenced, unless by a judge
or tribunal to whom, by virtue of the laws which precede the crime, is delegated its cognizance, and in the form which the latter prescribe. (S. C.,
16th art.)
ART. 15. Any person detained or imprisoned, without the legal formalities, unless in the cases provided in this constitution, shall be discharged upon
their own petition or that of any Filipino.
The laws shall determine the form of proceeding summarily in this case,
as well as the personal and pecuniary penalties incurred by him who may
order, execute, or cause to be executed, the illegal detention or imprisonment.
ART. 16. No person shall be deprived temporarily or permanently of his
property or rights, nor disturbed in the possession of them, unless by virtue
of a judicial sentence. (S. C., 10th art.)
Those functionaries who under any pretext infringe this provision shall be
personally responsible for the damage caused.
ART. 17. No person shall be deprived of his property unless through necessity and common welfare, previously justified and declared by the proper
authority, providing indemnity to the owner previous to the deprivation.
(S. C., 10th art.)
ART. 18. No person shall be obliged to pay contribution which may not
have been voted by the assembly or by the popular corporations legally authorized to impose it, and which exaction shall not be made in the form prescribed by law. (S. C., 3d art.)
ART. 19. No Filipino who may be in the full enjoyment of his civil and
political rights shall be hindered in the free exercise of the same.
ART. 20. Neither shall any Filipino be deprived of:
1. The right of expressing liberally his ideas and opinions either by word
or by writing, availing himself of the press or of any other similar means.
2. The right of associating himself with all the objects of human life
which may not be contrary to public morality; and, finally,
3. Of the right to direct petitions, individually or collectively, to the
public powers and to the authorities.
The right of petition shall not be exercised by any class of armed force.
(S. C., 15th art.)
ART. 21. The exercise of the rights expressed in the preceding article
shall be subject to the general provisions which regulate them.
ART. 22. Those crimes which are committed upon the occasion of the
exercise of the rights granted in this title shall be punished by the tribunals
in accordance with the common laws.
ART. 23. Any Filipino can found and maintain establishments of instruction or of education, in accordance with the provisions which are established.
Popular education shall be obligatory and gratuitous in the schools of the
nation. (S. C., 12th art.)
ART. 24. Any foreigner may establish himself liberally in the Philippine
territory, subject to the provisions which regulate the matter, exercising
therein his industry or devoting himself to any profession in the exercise of
which the laws may not require diplomas of fitness issued by the national
authorities. (S. C., 12th art.)
ART. 25. No Filipino who is in the full enjoyment of his political and




APPENDICES


501


civil rights shall be hindered from going freely from the territory, nor from
removing his residence or property to a foreign country, except the obligations of contributing to the military service and the maintenance of the
public taxes.
ART. 26. The foreigner who may not have become naturalized shall not
exercise in the Philippines any office which may have attached to it authority
or jurisdiction.
ART. 27. Every Filipino is obliged to defend the country with arms when
he may be called upon by the laws, and to contribute to the expenses of the
estate (government) in proportion to his property. (S. C., 13th art.)
ART. 28. The enumeration of the rights granted in this title does not imply
the prohibition of any other not expressly delegated.
ART. 29. Previous authorization shall not be necessary in order to prosecute before the ordinary tribunals the public functionaries, whatever may be
the crime which they commit.
A superior mandate shall not exempt from responsibility in cases of manifest infraction, clear and determinate, of a constitutional provision. In the
other cases it shall exempt only the agents who may not exercise the authority.
ART. 30. The guarantees provided in articles 7, 8, 9, and 10 and 11 and
paragraphs 1 and 2 of the 20th article shall not be suspended in the republic
nor any part of it, unless temporarily and by means of a law, when the security of the estate shall demand it in extraordinary circumstances.
It being promulgated in the territory to which it may apply, the special
law shall govern during the suspension according to the circumstances which
demand it.
The latter as well as the former shall be voted in the national assembly,
and in case the assembly may be closed the government is authorized to issue
it in conjunction with the permanent commission without prejudice to convoking the former within the shortest time and giving them information of
what may have been done.
But neither by the one nor the other law can there be suspended any other
guarantees than those delegated in the first paragraph of this article nor authorizing the government to banish from the country or transport any
Filipino.
In no case can the military or civil chiefs establish any other penalty than
that previously prescribed by the law. (S. C., 17th art.)
ART. 31. In the Philippine republic no one can be tried by private laws nor
special tribunals. No person can have privileges nor enjoy emolument which
may not be compensation for public service and which are fixed by law. "El
fuero de guerra y mariana" (the jurisdiction, privileges, and powers of army
and navy) shall extend solely to the crimes and faults which may have intimate connection with the military and maritime discipline.
ART. 32. No Filipino can establish "mayorazgos" nor institutions "vinculadoras" (title of perpetual succession by eldest son nor institutions entailed)
of property, nor accept honors, "condecoraciones" (insignia or decoration of
orders) or titles of honor and nobility from foreign nations without the
authorization of the government.
Neither can the government establish the institutions mentioned in the
preceding paragraph, nor grant honors "condecoraciones" or titles of honor
and nobility to any Filipino.
Notwithstanding the nation may reward by a special law, voted by the
assembly, eminent services which may be rendered by the citizens to their
country.




502


APPENDICES


FIFTH TITLE
Legislative Power
ART. 33. The legislative power shall be exercised by an assembly of the
representatives of the nation.
This assembly shall be organized in the form and under the conditions
determined by the law which may be issued to that effect.
ART. 34. The members of the assembly shall represent the entire nation,
and not exclusively those who elect them.
ART. 35. No representative shall be subjected to any imperative mandate
of his electors.
ART. 36. The assembly shall meet every year. It is the prerogative of the
President of the republic to convoke it, suspend and close its sessions and dissolve it, in concurrence with the same or with the permanent commission in
its default, and within legal terms.
ART. 37. The assembly shall be open at least three months each year, not
including in this time that which is consumed in its organization.
The President of the republic shall convoke it, at the latest, by the 15th
of April.
ART. 38. In an extraordinary case he can convoke it outside of the legal
period, with the concurrence of the permanent commission, and prolong the
legislature, when the term does not exceed one month nor takes place more
than twice in the same legislature.
ART. 39. The national assembly, together with the extraordinary representatives, shall form the constituents in order to proceed to the modification
of the constitution and to the election of the new President of the republic,
convoked at least one month previous to the termination of the powers of the
former.
In the case of the death or of the resignation of the President of the republic, the assembly shall meet immediately by its own right and at the request
of its president or of that of the permanent commission.
ART. 40. In the meantime, while the appointment of the new President of
the republic proceeds, the president of the supreme court of justice shall
exercise his functions, his place being filled by one of the members of this
tribunal, in accordance with the laws.
ART. 41. Any meeting of the assembly which may be held outside of the
ordinary period of the legislature shall be null and void. That which is provided by art. 39 is excepted, and in that the assembly is constituted a tribunal
of justice, not being allowed to exercise in such case other than judicial
functions.
ART. 42. The sessions of the assembly shall be public. Notwithstanding,
they can be secret at the petition of a certain number of its individuals, fixed
by the regulations, it being decided afterwards by an absolute majority of the
votes of the members present whether the discussion of the same matter be
continued in public.
ART. 43. The President of the republic shall communicate with the assembly by means of messages, which shall be read from the rostrum by a secretary of the government.
The secretaries of the government shall have entrance into the assembly,
with the right to the floor whenever they ask it, and shall cause themselves
to be represented in the discussion of any particular project by commissioners
designated by decree of the President of the republic.
ART. 44. The assembly shall constitute itself a tribunal of justice in order
to try the crimes committed against the security of the estate by the President
of the republic and individuals of the Counsel of Government, by the Presi



APPENDICES


503


dent of the Supreme Court of Justice, by the Procurer-General of the nation
by means of a decree of the same, or of the permanent commission in its
absence, or of the President of the republic at the proposal of the ProcurerGeneral, or of the counsel of the government.
The laws shall determine the mode of procedure for the accusation, preparation for trial, and pardon.
ART. 45. No member of the assembly can be prosecuted nor molested for
the opinions which he may express nor for the votes which he may cast in the
exercise of his office.
ART. 46. No member of an assembly can be prosecuted in a criminal matter without authorization of the same, or of the permanent commission, to
whom shall immediately be given information of the act for proper disposition.
The arrest, detention, or apprehension of a member of the assembly can
not take place without previous authorization of the same or of the permanent commission; but having once notified the assembly of the decree of
arrest, shall incur responsibility if, within two days following the notification,
it may not authorize the arrest or give reasons upon which its refusal is
founded.
ART. 47. The national assembly shall have besides the following powers:
1. To frame regulations for its interior government.
2. To examine the legality of the elections and the legal qualifications of
the members elected.
3. Upon its organization to appoint its President, Vice-President, and
secretaries.
Until the assembly may be dissolved, its President, Vice-Presidents, and
secretaries shall continue exercising their offices during the four legislatures;
and
4. To accept the resignations presented by its members, and grant leaves
of absence subject to the regulations. (S. C., 34th and 35th art.)
ART. 48. No project can become a law before being voted upon by the
assembly.
In order to pass the laws there shall be required in the assembly at least a
fourth part of the total number of members, whose elections may have been
approved and who may have taken the oath of office.
ART. 49. No proposed law can be approved by the assembly without having been voted upon as a whole, and article by article.
ART. 50. The assemblies shall have the right of censure and each one of
its members the right to be heard.
ART. 51. The proposal of the laws belongs to the President of the republic
and to the assembly.
ART. 52. The representative of the assembly who accepts of the government pension, employment, or commission with a salary, shall be understood
to have renounced his office.
The employment of the secretary of the government of the republic and
other offices prescribed in special laws are excepted from this provision.
(S. C., 31st art.)
ART. 53. The office of representative shall be for a term of four years,
and those who may exercise it have the right, by way of indemnity, according
to the circumstances, to a sum determined by the law.
Those who may absent themselves during the whole of the legislature
shall not be entitled to this indemnity, but will recover this right if they assist
in those which follow.




504


APPENDICES


SiXTH TITLE
The Permanent Commission
ART. 54. The assembly, before the closing of its sessions, shall elect seven
of its members in order to constitute a permanent commission during the
period of its being closed, the latter obliged in its first session to designate a
president and secretary.
ART. 55. The following are the functions of the permanent commission in
the absence of the assembly:
1. To declare whether or not there is sufficient reason to proceed against
the President of the republic, the representatives, secretaries of the government, President of the Supreme Court of Justice, and the Procurer-General
in the cases provided by this constitution.
2. To convoke the assembly to an extraordinary meeting in those cases in
which it should constitute a tribunal of justice.
3. To transact the business which may remain pending for consideration.
4. To convoke the assembly to extraordinary sessions when the exigency
of the case may demand; and
5. To substitute the assembly in its functions in accordance with the
constitution, exception being made of the right to make and pass the laws.
The permanent commission shall meet whenever it may be convoked by
him who presides in accordance with this constitution.
SEVENTH TITLE
The Executive Power
ART. 56. The executive power shall reside in the President of the republic,
who exercises it through his secretaries.
ART. 57. The conduct of the interests peculiar to the towns, the provinces,
and of the estate belonging respectively to the popular assemblies, to the
provincial assemblies, and to the active administration, with reference to laws,
and upon the basis of the most ample "desceb-trakizacion" (distribution) and
administrative autonomy.
EIGHTH TITLE
The President of the Republic
ART. 58. The president of the republic shall be elected by an absolute
majority of votes by the assembly and the representative specially met in
constitutive chamber.
His term of office shall be for four years and he will be re-eligible.
ART. 59. The President of the Republic shall have the proposal of the
laws as well as the members of the assembly, and shall promulgate the laws
when they have been passed and approved by the latter and shall watch over
and insure their execution.
ART. 60. The power of causing the laws to be executed extends itself to
all that which conduces to the conservation of public order in the interior
and the international security.
ART. 61. The President of the Republic shall promulgate the laws within
twenty days following the time when they have been transmitted by the
assembly definitely approved.
ART. 62. If within this time they may not be promulgated, it shall devolve
upon the President to return them to the assembly with justification of the
causes of their detention, proceeding in such case to their revision, and it
shall not be considered that it insists upon them, if it does not reproduce




APPENDICES


505


them by a vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the assembly present.
Reproducing the law in the form indicated the government shall promulgate
it within ten days, announcing his nonconformity.
In the same manner the government shall become obligated if he allow to
pass the term of twenty days without returning the law to the assembly.
ART. 63. When the promulgation of a law may have been declared urgent
by a vote expressed by an absolute majority of the votes of the assembly the
President can call upon them by a message, stating his reasons for a new
deliberation, which can not be denied, and the same law being approved anew,
shall be promulgated within the legal term, without prejudice to the President's announcing his nonconformity.
ART. 64. The promulgation of the laws shall take place by means of their
publication in the official periodical of the republic and shall take effect after
thirty days from the date of publication.
ART. 65. The President of the Republic shall have command of the army
and navy, making and ratifying treaties of peace, with the previous concurrence of the assembly.
ART. 66. Treaties of peace shall not be binding until passed by the assembly.
ART. 67. In addition to the necessary powers for the execution of the
laws, the President of the Republic shall have the following:
1. To confer civil and military employment with reference to the laws.
2. To appoint the secretaries of the government.
3. To direct diplomatic and commercial relations with foreign powers.
4. To see to it that in the entire territory may be administered speedy and
complete justice.
5. To pardon delinquents in accordance with the laws, excepting the provision relative to the secretaries of the government.
6. To preside over national assemblies and to receive the envoys and representatives of the foreign powers authorized to meet him.
ART. 68. The President of the Republic shall need to be authorized by a
special law:
1. In order to alienate, cede, or exchange any part of the Filipino territory.
2. In order to annex any other territory to that of the Philippines.
3. In order to admit foreign troops into tile Philippine territory.
4. In order to ratify treaties of alliance, offensive and defensive; special
treaties of commerce-those which stipulate to give subsidy to a foreign
power-and all those which may bind individually the Filipinos.
In no case can the secret articles of a treaty derogate those which are
public.
5. In order to grant amnesties and general pardons.
6. In order to coin money. (S. C., 55th art.)
ART. 69. To the President of the Republic belongs the power of dictating
regulations for compliance and application of the laws in accordance with the
requisites which the same prescribe. (S. C., 54th art.)
ART. 70. The President of the Republic can, with the previous concurrence adopted by a majority of the votes of the representatives, dissolve the
assembly before the expiration of the legal term of its office.
In this case they shall be convoked for new elections within a term of
three months.
ART. 71. The President of the Republic shall only be responsible in cases
of high treason.
ART. 72. The compensation of the President of the Republic shall be fixed
by a special law, which can not be changed until the end of the presidential
term of office.




506


APPENDICES


NINTH TITLE
The Secretaries of the Government
ART. 73. The council of the government shall be composed of a President
and seven Secretaries, who shall have charge of the offices of Foreign Affairs,
Interior, Treasury, Army and Navy, Public Instruction, Public Communications and Works, Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce.
ART. 74. All that which the President may order or provide in the exercise of his authority shall be signed by the Secretary to whom it belongs. No
public functionary shall give compliance to any which lack this requisite.
ART. 75. The secretaries of the government are responsible jointly to the
assembly for the general policy of the government and individually for their
personal acts.
To the Procurer-General of the nation belongs the accusing of them, and
to the assembly their trial.
The laws shall determine the cases of responsibility of the secretaries of
the government, the penalties to which they are subject, and the mode of
procedure against them.
ART. 76. If they should be condemned by the assembly, in order to pardon
them there shall precede the petition of an absolute majority of the representatives.
TENTH TITLE
The Judicial Power
ART. 77. To the tribunals belong exclusively the power of applying the
laws in the name of the nation in civil and criminal trials.
The same codes shall govern in the entire republic without prejudice to
modifications which for particular circumstances the laws may prescribe.
In them shall not be established more than one jurisdiction for all the
citizens in common trials, civil and criminal.
ART. 78. The tribunals shall not apply the general and municipal regulations only in so far as they conform with the laws.
ART. 79. The exercise of the judicial power resides in the Supreme Court
of Justice and in the tribunals which are prescribed by the laws.
The composition, organization, and other attributes shall be governed by
the organic laws which may be determined.
ART. 80. The President of the Supreme Court of Justice and the "Procurer-General" shall be appointed by the national assembly in concurrence
with the President of the Republic and Secretaries of the government, and
shall have absolute independence of the executive and legislative powers.
ART. 81. Any citizen can institute a public prosecution against any of the
members of the judicial power for the crimes they may commit in the exercise of their office.
ELEVENTH TITLE
Provincial and Popular Assemblies
ART. 82. The organization and powers of the provincial and popular assemblies will be regulated by their respective laws.
The latter shall be regulated according to the following principles:
1. Government and management of the interests peculiar to the provinces
or towns, by their respective corporations, the principle of popular and direct
election being the basis for the organization of said corporations.
2. Publicity of the sessions within the limits prescribed by the laws.
3. Publicity of the budgets, accounts, and important decisions.




APPENDICES


507


4. Intervention of the government, and in the proper case of the national
assembly in order to prevent the provincial and municipal corporations from
exceeding their powers, to the prejudice of general and individual interests.
5. Determination of their powers in the matter of taxes, in order that the
provincial and municipal taxation may never be antagonistic to the system of
taxation of State.
TWELFTH TITLE
The Administration of State
ART. 83. The government shall present yearly to the assembly budgets of
income and expenses, setting forth the alterations made in those of the preceding year and inclosing the balance of the last fiscal year in accordance
to law.
When the assembly may meet the budgets will be presented to it within ten
days following its convening.
ART. 84. No payment shall be made except in accordance with the law of
budgets or other special laws, in the form and under the responsibilities fixed
thereby.
ART. 85. It is necessary that the government be authorized by law in order
to dispose of the goods and properties of State or to secure a loan upon the
credit of the nation.
ART. 86. The public debt which is contracted by the government of the
republic in accordance with this constitution shall be under the special guaranty of the nation.
No indebtedness shall be created unless at the same time the resources
with which to pay it are voted.
ART. 87. All the laws relating to incomes, public expenditures, or public
credit shall be considered as a part of those of the budget, and shall be published as such.
ART. 88. The assembly shall fix each year, at the request of the President
of the Republic, the military forces of land and sea.
THIRTEENTH TITLE
Reforms in the Constitution
ART. 89. The assembly, upon its own motion or at the proposal of the
President of the Republic, can resolve the reform of the constitution, prescribing for that purpose the article or articles which should be modified.
ART. 90. The declaration made, the President of the Republic shall dissolve the assembly and convoke the "constituyente" (constituting power),
which shall meet within three months following. In the convocation shall be
inserted the resolution referred to in the preceding article.
FOURTEENTH TITLE
The Observance and Oath of the Constitution-Languages
ART. 91. The President of the Republic, the government, the assembly,
and all the Filipino citizens, shall faithfully guard the constitution; and the
legislative power, immediately after the approval of the law of budgets, shall
examine as to whether the constitution has been exactly observed and as to
whether its infractions have been corrected, providing that which is most
practicable in order that the responsibility of the transgressors may be made
effective.
ART. 92. Neither the President of the Republic nor any other public func



508


APPENDICES


tionary can enter upon the performance of his duty without previously taking
the oath.
Such oath shall be taken by the President of the Republic before the
national assembly.
The other functionaries of the nation shall take it before the authorities
determined by law.
ART. 93. The use of the languages spoken in the Philippines is optional.
It can only be regulated by the law, and solely as to the acts of public authority and judicial affairs. For the purpose of these acts shall be used at present
the Castillian language.
Temporary Provisions
ART. 94. In the meantime, and without prejudice to the 48th article and
the commissions which may be appointed by the assembly for the preparation
of the organic laws for the development and application of the rights granted
the Filipino citizens, and for the regime of the public powers determined by
the constitution, the laws in force in these islands before their emancipation
shall be considered as the laws of the republic.
In like manner shall be considered in force the provisions of the civil
code in respect to marriage and civil registry, suspended by the general government of the islands; the instructions of the 26th of April, 1888, in order
to carry into effect articles 77, 78, 79, and 82 of said code; the law of civil
registry of the 17th of June, 1870, referred to by article 332 of the same, and
the regulations of the 13th of December, 1870, for the execution of this law,
without prejudice to the local chiefs continuing in charge of the entries in the
civil registry and intervening in the celebration of the marriage of Catholics.
ART. 95. Pending the approval and enforcement of the laws referred to
in the preceding article the provisions of the Spanish laws temporarily enforced by said article may be modified by special laws.
ART. 96. After promulgating the laws which the assembly may approve
in accordance with the 94th article, the government of the republic is authorized to issue the decrees and regulations necessary for the immediate
formation of all the organizations of state.
ART. 97. The President of the Revolutionary Government shall at once
assume the title of President of the Republic, and shall exercise said office
until the constituting assembly meets and elects the person who is to fill said
office definitely.
ART. 98. This congress, with the members who compose it, and those who
may be returned by election or decree, shall continue four years-that is to
say, the whole of the present legislature, beginning the 15th of April of
next year.
ART. 99. Notwithstanding the general rule established in the 2d paragraph
of the 4th article, during the time the country may have to struggle for its
independence the government is hereby authorized to determine, at the close
of congress, whatever questions and difficulties, not provided for by law, may
arise from unforeseen events, by means of decrees, which may be communicated to the permanent commission and to the assembly on its first meeting.
ART. 100. The execution of the 5th article of title 3 is hereby suspended
until the meeting of the constituting assembly.
In the meantime, the municipalities of those places which may require the
spiritual offices of a Filipino priest shall provide for his maintenance.
ART. 101. Notwithstanding the provisions of arts. 62 and 63, the laws
returned by the President of the Republic to congress can not be reproduced
until the legislature of the following year, the President and his council of
government being responsible for the suspension. If the reproduction be




APPENDICES


509


made, the promulgation will be compulsory within ten days, the President
stating his nonconformity if he so desires.
If the reproduction be made in subsequent legislatures, it will be considered as being voted for the first time.
ADDITIONAL ARTICLE. From the 24th of May last, on which date the dictatorial government was organized in Cavite, all the buildings, properties, and
other belongings possessed by the religious corporations in these islands will
be understood as restored to the Filipino government.
Barasoain, January 20, 1899.
THE PRESIDENT OF THE CONGRESS.
PEDRO A. PATERNO.
The secretaries:
PABLO TECSON.
PABLO OCAMPO.


APPENDIX H
LIST OF LEADING OFFICIALS OF THE PHILIPPINE
GOVERNMENT


Military Governors:
General Wesley Merritt..Comrr
Milita
1898.
General Elwell S. Otis...Comn
Milita
Aug..
was c
Island
General Arthur MacArthur. Comn
Milita
1901.
General Adna R. Chaffee.. Comn
Island
Provi
tinuin
ippine
Governors-General:*
Wm. H. Taft.
Luke E. Wright
Henry C. Ide....
James F. Smith
W. Cameron Forbes.
Francis Burton Harrison
Vice-Governors of Philippine Islands:
Luke E. Wright
Henry C. Ide..
W. Cameron Forbes.
Newton W. Gilbert..
Henderson S. Martin 


landing Department of the Pacific and
ry Governor, July 25, 1898, to Aug. 30,
landing Department of the Pacific and
ry Governor of the Philippine Islands,
30, 1898, to May 5, 1900. (March, 1900,
ommanding Division of the Philippine
Is and Military Governor.)
landing Division of the Philippines and
try Governor, May 5, 1900, to July 4,
nanding Division of the Philippine
Is and Military Governor over certain
nces, July 4, 1901, to July 4, 1902, cong as Commander Division of the PhilIslands until Sept. 30, 1902.
Period of Service. July  4, 1901-Jan. 31, 1904
Feb.   1, 1904-Mar. 30, 1906. Apr.  1, 1906-Sept. 19, 1906. Sept. 20, 1906-Nov. 10, 1909
Nov. 11, 1909-Sept. 1, 1913. Sept. 2, 1913-.  Oct.. Feb..   July. Feb.. Dec.


Period of Service
29, 1901-Jan. 31, 1904
1, 1904-Mar. 31, 1906
31, 1908-Nov. 10, 1909
14, 1910-Nov. 30, 1913
1, 1913 -

* Title was "Civil Governor" from July 4, 1901, to Feb. 6, 1905, when title was changed
to "Governor-General" by Act of Congress (Public 43-Feb. 6, 1905).




510                        APPENDICES
PHILIPPINE COMMISSIONERS
First Philippine Island Commission, Appointed January 20, 1899:
Jacob G. Schurman, Chairman.
Rear Admiral George Dewey.
Maj.-Gen. Elwell S. Otis.
Dean C. Worcester.
Charles Denby       Seretaries.
John R. MacArthur I Secretares.


New Philippine Islands Commission:
Wm. H. Taft (President).
Henry C. Ide...
Luke E. Wright.
Dean C. Worcester..
Bernard Moses.....


Period of Service... Mar. 16, 1900-Jan. 31, 1904... Mar. 16, 1900-Sept. 19, 1906. Mar. 16, 1900-Mar. 30, 1906..  ar. 16, 1900-Sept. 15, 1913... Mar. 16, 1900-Dec. 31, 1902


Changes in Above:                            Period of Service
Benito Legarda.....Sept. 2, 1901-Dec. 21, 1908
T. H. Pardo de Tavera..Sept. 2, 1901-Mar. 1, 1909
Jose R. Luzuriaga....Sept. 2, 1901 - Oct. 26, 1913
James F. Smith.....Jan.                  1, 1903 —Nov. 11, 1909
W. Cameron Forbes....June 16, 1904 - Sept. 1, 1913
W. Morgan Shuster...                Sept. 25, 1906 —Mar. 1, 1909
Gregorio Araneta..            June 30, 1908- Oct. 26, 1913
Newton W. Gilbert....July                 6, 1908 - Dec. 1, 1913
Rafael Palma...             June 30, 1908 -Juan Sumulong.....Mar. 1, 1909- Oct. 26, 1913
Frank A. Branagan....Mar. 2, 1909 —Oct. 26, 1913
Charles Burke Elliott....          Feb. 10, 1910-Dec. 6, 1912
Francis Burton Harrison...         Sept. 2, 1913 —
Victorino Mapa.....Oct. 27, 1913 -Jaime C. de Veyra...Oct. 27, 1913 -Vicente Ilustre.....Oct. 27, 1913 —
Vicente Singson Encarnacion..    Oct. 27, 1913 -
Henderson S. Martin....    Nov. 29, 1913 -Clinton L. Riggs..... Nov. 29, 1913-Oct. 31, 1915
Winfred T. Denison....Jan. 27, 1914 —Mar. 31, 1916
Eugene E. Reed..... May 24, 1916- Oct. -, 1916
(Vacancy.)
The Philippine Commission was abolished by the Philippine Government
Law of August 29, 1916. See Appendix I.


SECRETARIES OF DEPARTMENTS IN PHILIPPINE ISLANDS
Secretaries of Interior:                      Period of Service
Dean C. Worcester....        Sept. 1, 1901- Sept. 15, 1913
Winfred T. Denison......      Jan. 27, 1914 —Mar. 31, 1916
(Vacancy.)
Secretaries of Commerce and Police:           Period of Service
Luke E. Wright... Sept. 1, 1901 —Jan. 31, 1904
W. Cameron Forbes...                 June 16, 1904- Nov. 10, 1909
Charles Burke Elliott.. Feb. 10, 1910-Dec.              6, 1912
Clinton L. Riggs... Dec.                   1, 1913- Oct. 31, 1915
Eugene E. Reed... May 24, 1916 -



APPENDICES


511


Secretaries of Finance and Justice:                Period of Service
Henry C. Ide........ Sept.   1, 1901 - Mar. 31, 1906
Gregorio Araneta....... June 30, 1908 —  Oct. 26, 1913
Victorino Mapa........ Oct. 27, 1913 -Secretaries of Public Instruction:                 Period of Service
Bernard Moses........         Sept. 1, 1901 -Dec.   31, 1902
James F. Smith.......                 Jan.   1, 1903- Sept. 19, 1906
W. Morgan Shuster......                  Sept. 25, 1906-Apr. 30, 1909
Newton W. Gilbert....... Mar.                1, 1909 - Nov. 30,1913
Henderson S. Martin.....           Dec.   1, 1913 -These executive departments were reorganized and new departments created by the Philippine Legislature soon after the enactment of the Act of
Congress of August 29, 1916. See Sec. 22 thereof, Appendix I.
MEMBERS OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE PHILIPPINES
Chief Justice                                      Period of Service
Cayetano Arellano... Sept. 26, 1900 -Associate Justices:                                Period of Service
Joseph F. Cooper.... June 15, 1901 - Oct. 18, 1904
Fletcher Ladd......... June 15, 1901 —                   July  13, 1903
Victorino Mapa... June 15, 1901 - Sept. 30, 1913
James F. Smith... June 15, 1901- Jan.                        1, 1903
Florentino Torres....... June 15, 1901 -Charles A. Willard.....            June 15, 1901 - Mar. 13, 1914
John T. McDonough...... Mar.            1, 1903 —July  20, 1904
E. Finlay Johnson....... June                8, 1903 -
Adam C. Carson..                      Nov. 16, 1904 -James F. Tracey....             July   1, 1905 - Feb.  1, 1909
Sherman Moreland......   Feb.   2, 1909 -Charles Burke Elliott...June                  3, 1909- Feb. 10, 1910
Grant T. Trent... Feb. 15, 1910 -Manuel Araullo                            Nov. 29, 1913 -All the preceding officers were appointed by the President and confirmed
by the United States Senate.
DIVISION OF CUSTOMS AND INSULAR AFFAIRS1
Chiefs:                                            Period of Service
Maj. John J. Pershing.. Mar. 10, 1899 —Aug. 24, 1899
Lieut.-Col. Clarence R. Edwards..     Feb. 18, 1900 — June 30, 1902
Assistant Chiefs:                                   Period of Service
Capt. James G. Harbord.....           July  31, 1901- Nov. 19, 1901
Capt. John Van Ness Philip.... Dec. 20, 1901-June 30, 1902
BUREAU OF INSULAR AFFAIRS (AFTER JULY 1, 1902)
Chiefs:                                            Period of Service
Brig.-Gen. Clarence R. Edwards... July    1, 1902- Aug. 15, 1912
Brig.-Gen. Frank McIntyre... Aug. 16, 1912 -
1 The officers of this Bureau are not Philippine officials, but the business of the Government of the Philippines is under the direction of the Secretary of War, who acts
through the Chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs.




512


APPENDICES


Assistant Chiefs:                              Period of Service
Capt. John Van Ness Philip..    July   1, 1902 —June 20, 1903
Col. Frank McIntyre.....   Apr. 20, 1905 -Aug. 16, 1912
Maj. George H. Shelton... July 16, 1908 —Mar. 29, 1913
Col. Chas. C. Walcutt, Jr..Aug. 27, 1912 —
Maj. Irvin L. Hunt.... Mar. 28, 1913 -APPENDIX I
THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT LAW OF 1916
An Act to declare the purpose of the people of the United States as to the future political status of the people of the Philippine Islands, and to provide a more autonomous
government for those islands.
Whereas it was never the intention of the people of the United States in the
incipiency of the War with Spain to make it a war of conquest or for
territorial aggrandizement; and
Whereas it is, as it has always been, the purpose of the people of the United
States to withdraw their sovereignty over the Philippine Islands and to
recognize their independence as soon as a stable government can be established therein; and
Whereas for the speedy accomplishment of such purpose it is desirable to
place in the hands of the people of the Philippines as large a control of
their domestic affairs as can be given them without, in the meantime, impairing the exercise of the rights of sovereignty by the people of the
United States, in order that, by the use and exercise of popular franchise
and governmental powers, they may be the better prepared to fully assume
the responsibilities and enjoy all the privileges of complete independence:
Therefore
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled, That the provisions of this Act
and the name "The Philippines" as used in this Act shall apply to and include
the Philippine Islands ceded to the United States Government by the treaty
of peace concluded between the United States and Spain on the eleventh day
of April, eighteen hundred and ninety-nine, the boundaries of which are set
forth in Article III of said treaty, together with those islands embraced in
the treaty between Spain and the United States concluded at Washington on
the seventh day of November, nineteen hundred.
SEC. 2. That all inhabitants of the Philippine Islands who were Spanish
subjects on the eleventh day of April, eighteen hundred and ninety-nine, and
then resided in said islands, and their children born subsequent thereto, shall
be deemed and held to be citizens of the Philippine Islands, except such as
shall have elected to preserve their allegiance to the Crown of Spain in accordance with the provisions of the treaty of peace between the United States
and Spain, signed at Paris December tenth, eighteen hundred and ninetyeight, and except such others as have since become citizens of some other
country: Provided, That the Philippine Legislature, herein provided for, is
hereby authorized to provide by law for the acquisition of Philippine citizenship by those natives of the Philippine Islands who do not come within the
foregoing provisions, the natives of the insular possessions of the United
States, and such other persons residing in the Philippine Islands who are
citizens of the United States, or who could become citizens of the United
States under the laws of the United States if residing therein.
SEC. 3. That no law shall be enacted in said islands which shall deprive
any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, or deny




APPENDICES


513


to any person therein the equal protection of the laws. Private property shall
not be taken for public use without just compensation.
That in all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right to be
heard by himself and counsel, to demand the nature and cause of the accusation against him, to have a speedy and public trial, to meet the witnesses
face to face, and to have compulsory process to compel the attendance of
witnesses in his behalf.
That no person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due
process of law; and no person for the same offense shall be twice put in
jeopardy of punishment, nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a
witness against himself.
That all persons shall before conviction be bailable by sufficient sureties,
except for capital offenses.
That no law impairing the obligation of contracts shall be enacted.
That no person shall be imprisoned for debt.
That the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended,
unless when in cases of rebellion, insurrection, or invasion the public safety
may require it, in either of which events the same may be suspended by the
President, or by the Governor-General, wherever during such period the
necessity for such suspension shall exist.
That no ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted nor shall
the law of primogeniture ever be in force in the Philippines.
That no law granting a title of nobility shall be enacted, and no person
holding any office of profit or trust in said islands shall, without the consent
of the Congress of the United States, accept any present, emolument, office,
or title of any kind whatever from any king, queen, prince, or foreign State.
That excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.
That the right to be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures
shall not be violated.
That slavery shall not exist in said islands; nor shall involuntary servitude
exist therein except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have
been duly convicted.
That no law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech or of the
press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the Government for redress of grievances.
That no law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, and that the free exercise and enjoyment of
religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall
forever be allowed; and no religious test shall be required for the exercise
of civil or political rights. No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit,
or support of any sect, church, denomination, sectarian institution, or system
of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister,
or other religious teacher or dignitary as such. Contracting of polygamous or
plural marriages hereafter is prohibited. That no law shall be construed to
permit polygamous or plural marriages.
That no money shall be paid out of the treasury except in pursuance of an
appropriation by law.
That the rule of taxation in said islands shall be uniform.
That no bill which may be enacted into law shall embrace more than one
subject, and that subject shall be expressed in the title of the bill.
That no warrant shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath
or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the
person or things to be seized.
That all money collected on any tax levied or assessed for a special pur



514


APPENDICES


pose shall be treated as a special fund in the treasury and paid out for such
purpose only.
SEC. 4. That all expenses that may be incurred on account of the Government of the Philippines for salaries of officials and the conduct of their
offices and departments, and all expenses and obligations contracted for the
internal improvement or development of the islands, not, however, including
defenses, barracks, and other works undertaken by the United States, shall,
except as otherwise specifically provided by the Congress, be paid by the
Government of the Philippines.
SEC. 5. That the statutory laws of the United States hereafter enacted
shall not apply to the Philippine Islands, except when they specifically so provide, or it is so provided in this Act.
SEC. 6. That the laws now in force in the Philippines shall continue in
force and effect, except as altered, amended, or modified herein, until altered,
amended, or repealed by the legislative authority herein provided or by Act
of Congress of the United States.
SEC. 7. That the legislative authority herein provided shall have power,
when not inconsistent with this Act, by due enactment to amend, alter, modify,
or repeal any law, civil or criminal, continued in force by this Act as it may
from time to time see fit.
This power shall specifically extend with the limitation herein provided as
to the tariff to all laws relating to revenue and taxation in effect in the
Philippines.
SEC. 8. That general legislative power, except as otherwise herein provided, is hereby granted to the Philippine Legislature, authorized by this Act.
SEC. 9. That all the property and rights which may have been acquired in
the Philippine Islands by the United States under the treaty of peace with
Spain, signed December tenth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, except such
land or other property as has been or shall be designated by the President of
the United States for military and other reservations of the Government of
the United States, and all lands which may have been subsequently acquired
by the government of the Philippine Islands by purchase under the provisions
of sections sixty-three and sixty-four of the Act of Congress approved July
first, nineteen hundred and two, except such as may have heretofore been sold
and disposed of in accordance with the provisions of said Act of Congress,
are hereby placed under the control of the government of said islands to be
administered or disposed of for the benefit of the inhabitants thereof, and
the Philippine Legislature shall have power to legislate with respect to all
such matters as it may deem advisable; but acts of the Philippine Legislature
with reference to land of the public domain, timber, and mining, hereafter
enacted, shall not have the force of law until approved by the President of
the United States: Provided, That upon the approval of such an act by the
Governor-General, it shall be by him forthwith transmitted to the President
of the United States, and he shall approve or disapprove the same within six
months from and after its enactment and submission for his approval, and if
not disapproved within such time it shall become a law the same as if it had
been specifically approved: Provided further, That where lands in the Philippine Islands have been or may be reserved for any public purpose of the
United States, and, being no longer required for the purpose for which reserved, have been or may be, by order of the President, placed under the
control of the government of said islands to be administered for the benefit
of the inhabitants thereof, the order of the President shall be regarded as
effectual to give the government of said islands full control and power to
administer and dispose of such lands for the benefit of the inhabitants of
said islands.
SEC. 10. That while this Act provides that the Philippine government
shall have the authority to enact a tariff law the trade relations between the




APPENDICES


515


islands and the United States shall continue to be governed exclusively by
laws of the Congress of the United States: Provided, That tariff acts or acts
amendatory to the tariff of the Philippine Islands shall not become law until
they shall receive the approval of the President of the United States, nor
shall any act of the Philippine Legislature affecting immigration or the currency or coinage laws of the Philippines become a law until it has been approved by the President of the United States: Provided further, That the
President shall approve or disapprove any act mentioned in the foregoing
proviso within six months from and after its enactment and submission for
his approval, and if not disapproved within such time it shall become a law
the same as if it had been specifically approved.
SEC. 11. That no export duties shall be levied or collected on exports
from the Philippine Islands, but taxes and assessments on property and
license fees for franchises, and privileges, and internal taxes, direct or indirect,
may be imposed for the purposes of the Philippine government and the provincial and municipal governments thereof, respectively, as may be provided
and defined by acts of the Philippine Legislature, and, where necessary to
anticipate taxes and revenues, bonds and other obligations may be issued by
the Philippine government or any provincial or municipal government therein,
as may be provided by law and to protect the public credit: Provided, however, That the entire indebtedness of the Philippine government created by
the authority conferred herein shall not exceed at any one time the sum of
$15,000,000, exclusive of those obligations known as friar land bonds, nor
that of any Province or municipality a sum in excess of seven per centum
of the aggregate tax valuation of its property at any one time.
SEC. 12. That general legislative powers in the Philippines, except as
herein otherwise provided, shall be vested in a legislature which shall consist
of two houses, one the senate and the other the house of representatives, and
the two houses shall be designated "The Philippine Legislature": Provided,
That until the Philippine Legislature as herein provided shall have been organized the existing Philippine Legislature shall have all legislative authority
herein granted to the government of the Philippine Islands, except such as
may now be within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Philippine Commission,
which is so continued until the organization of the legislature herein provided for the Philippines. When the Philippine Legislature shall have been
organized, the exclusive legislative jurisdiction and authority exercised by the
Philippine Commission shall thereafter be exercised by the Philippine Legislature.
SEC. 13. That the members of the senate of the Philippines, except as
herein provided, shall be elected for terms of six and three years, as hereinafter provided, by the qualified electors of the Philippines. Each of the
senatorial districts defined as hereinafter provided shall have the right to
elect two senators. No person shall be an elective member of the senate of
the Philippines who is not a qualified elector and over thirty years of age,
and who is not able to read and write either the Spanish or English language,
and who has not been a resident of the Philippines for at least two consecutive years and an actual resident of the senatorial district from which chosen
for a period of at least one year immediately prior to his election.
SEC. 14. That the members of the house of representatives shall, except
as herein provided, be elected triennially by the qualified electors of the Philippines. Each of the representative districts hereinafter provided for shall
have the right to elect one representative. No person shall be an elective member of the house of representatives who is not a qualified elector and over
twenty-five years of age, and who is not able to read and write either the
Spanish or English language, and who has not been an actual resident of the
district from which elected for at least one year immediately prior to his
election: Provided, That the members of the present assembly elected on the




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APPENDICES


first Tuesday in June, nineteen hundred and sixteen, shall be the members of
the house of representatives from their respective districts for the term expiring in nineteen hundred and nineteen.
SEC. 15. That at the first election held pursuant to this act, the qualified
electors shall be those having the qualifications of voters under the present
law; thereafter and until otherwise provided by the Philippine Legislature
herein provided for the qualifications of voters for senators and representatives in the Philippines and all officers elected by the people shall be as follows:
Every male person who is not a citizen or subject of a foreign power
twenty-one years of age or over (except insane and feeble-minded persons
and those convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction of an infamous
offense since the thirteenth day of August, eighteen hundred and ninetyeight), who shall have been a resident of the Philippines for one year and
of the municipality in which he shall offer to vote for six months next preceding the day of voting, and who is comprised within one of the following
classes:
(a) Those who under existing law are legal voters and have exercised the
right of suffrage.
(b) Those who own real property to the value of 500 pesos, or who annually pay 30 pesos or more of the established taxes.
(c) Those who are able to read and write either Spanish, English, or a
native language.
SEC. 16. That the Philippine Islands shall be divided into twelve senate
districts, as follows:
First district: Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Ilocos Norte, and Ilocos Sur.
Second district: La Union, Pangasinan, and Zambales.
Third district: Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, and Bulacan.
Fourth district: Bataan, Rizal, Manila, and Laguna.
Fifth district: Batangas, Mindoro, Tayabas, and Cavite.
Sixth district: Sorsogon, Albay, and Ambos Camarines.
Seventh district: Iloilo and Capiz.
Eighth district: Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, Antique, and
Palawan.
Ninth district: Leyte and Samar.
Tenth district: Cebu.
Eleventh district: Surigao, Misamis, and Bohol.
Twelfth district: The Mountain Province, Baguio, Nueva Vizcaya, and
the Department of Mindanao and Sulu.
The representative districts shall be the eighty-one now provided by law,
and three in the Mountain Province, one in Nueva Vizcaya, and five in the
Department of Mindanao and Sulu.
The first election under the provisions of this Act shall be held on the
first Tuesday of October, nineteen hundred and sixteen, unless the GovernorGeneral in his discretion shall fix another date not earlier than thirty nor
later than sixty days after the passage of this Act: Provided, That the Governor-General's proclamation shall be published at least thirty days prior to
the date fixed for the election, and there shall be chosen at such election one
senator from each senate district for a term of three years and one for six
years. Thereafter one senator from each district shall be elected from each
senate district for a term of six years: Provided, That the Governor-General
of the Philippine Islands shall appoint, without the consent of the senate and
without restriction as to residence, senators and representatives who will, in
his opinion, best represent the senate district and those representative districts which may be included in the territory not now represented in the Philippine Assembly: Provided further, That thereafter elections shall be held
only on such days and under such regulations as to ballots, voting, and quali



APPENDICES


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fications of electors as may be prescribed by the Philippine Legislature, to
which is hereby given authority to redistrict the Philippine Islands and
modify, amend, or repeal any provision of this section, except such as refer
to appointive senators and representatives.
SEC. 17. That the terms of office of elective senators and representatives
shall be six and three years, respectively, and shall begin on the date of their
election. In case of vacancy among the elective members of the senate or in
the house of representatives, special elections may be held in the districts
wherein such vacancy occurred under such regulations as may be prescribed
by law, but senators or representatives elected in such cases shall hold office
only for the unexpired portion of the term wherein the vacancy occurred.
Senators and representatives appointed by the Governor-General shall hold
office until removed by the Governor-General.
SEC. 18. That the senate and house of representatives, respectively, shall
be the sole judges of the elections, returns, and qualifications of their elective
members, and each house may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish
its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of twothirds, expel an elective member. Both houses shall convene at the capital on
the sixteenth day of October next following the election and organize by the
election of a speaker or a presiding officer, a clerk, and a sergeant at arms
for each house, and such other officers and assistants as may be required. A
majority of each house shall constitute a quorum to do business, but a smaller
number may meet, adjourn from day to day, and compel the attendance of
absent members. The legislature shall hold annual sessions, commencing on
the sixteenth day of October, or, if the sixteenth day of October be a legal
holiday, then on the first day following which is not a legal holiday, in each
year. The legislature may be called in special session at any time by the
Governor-General for general legislation, or for action on such specific subjects as he may designate. No special session shall continue longer than
thirty days, and no regular session shall continue longer than one hundred
days, exclusive of Sundays. The legislature is hereby given the power and
authority to change the date of the commencement of its annual sessions.
The senators and representatives shall receive an annual compensation for
their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the treasury of the
Philippine Islands. The senators and representatives shall, in all cases except
treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during
their attendance at the session of their respective houses and in going to and
returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in either house they
shall not be questioned in any other place.
No senator or representative shall, during the time for which he may have
been elected, be eligible to any office the election to which is vested in the
legislature, nor shall be appointed to any office of trust or profit which shall
have been created or the emoluments of which shall have been increased during such term.
SEC. 19. That each house of the legislature shall keep a journal of its proceedings and, from time to time, publish the same; and the yeas and nays of
the members of either house, on any question, shall, upon demand of onefifth of those present, be entered on the journal, and every bill and joint
resolution which shall have passed both houses shall, before it becomes a
law, be presented to the Governor-General. If he approve the same, he shall
sign it; but if not, he shall return it with his objections to that house in which
it shall have originated, which shall enter the objections at large on its journal
and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of
the members elected to that house shall agree to pass the same, it shall be
sent, together with the objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of all the members
elected to that house it shall be sent to the Governor-General, who, in case




518                       APPENDICES
he shall then not approve, shall transmit the same to the President of the
United States. The vote of each house shall be by the yeas and nays, and
the names of the members voting for and against shall be entered on the
journal. If the President of the United States approve the same, he shall
sign it and it shall become a law. If he shall not approve same, he shall
return it to the Governor-General, so stating, and it shall not become a law:
Provided, That if any bill or joint resolution shall not be returned by the
Governor-General as herein provided within twenty days (Sundays excepted)
after it shall have been presented to him the same shall become a law in like
manner as if he had signed it, unless the legislature by adjournment prevent
its return, in which case it shall become a law unless vetoed by the GovernorGeneral within thirty days after adjournment: Provided further, That the
President of the United States shall approve or disapprove an act submitted
to him under the provisions of this section within six months from and after
its enactment and submission for his approval; and if not approved within
such time, it shall become a law the same as if it had been specifically approved. The Governor-General shall have the power to veto any particular
item or items of an appropriation bill, but the veto shall not affect the item
or items to which he does not object. The item or items objected to shall not
take effect except in the manner heretofore provided in this section as to bills
and joint resolutions returned to the legislature without his approval.
All laws enacted by the Philippine Legislature shall be reported to the
Congress of the United States, which hereby reserves the power and authority
to annul the same. If at the termination of any fiscal year the appropriations
necessary for the support of government for the ensuing fiscal year shall not
have been made, the several sums appropriated in the last appropriation bills
for the objects and purposes therein specified, so far as the same may be
done, shall be deemed to be reappropriated for the several objects and purposes specified in said last appropriation bill; and until the legislature shall
act in such behalf the treasurer shall, when so directed by the GovernorGeneral, make the payments necessary for the purposes aforesaid.
SEC. 20. That at the first meeting of the Philippine Legislature created by
this Act and triennially thereafter there shall be chosen by the legislature two
Resident Commissioners to the United States, who shall hold their office for
a term of three years beginning with the fourth day of March following their
election, and who shall be entitled to an official recognition as such by all
departments upon presentation to the President of a certificate of election by
the Governor-General of said islands. Each of said Resident Commissioners
shall, in addition to the salary and the sum in lieu of mileage now allowed by
law, be allowed the same sum for stationery and for the pay of necessary
clerk hire as is now allowed to the Members of the House of Representatives
of the United States, to be paid out of the Treasury of the United States,
and the franking privilege allowed by law to Members of Congress. No
person shall be eligible to election as Resident Commissioner who is not a
bona fide elector of said islands and who does not owe allegiance to the
United States and who is not more than thirty years of age and who does
not read and write the English language. The present two Resident Commissioners shall hold office until the fourth of March, nineteen hundred and
seventeen. In case of vacancy in the position of Resident Commissioner
caused by resignation or otherwise, the Governor-General may make temporary appointments until the next meeting of the Philippine Legislature, which
shall then fill such vacancy; but the Resident Commissioner thus elected shall
hold office only for the unexpired portion of the term wherein the vacancy
occurred.
SEC. 21. That the supreme executive power shall be vested in an executive officer, whose official title shall be "The Governor-General of the Philippine Islands." He shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice




APPENDICES


519


and consent of the Senate of the United States, and hold his office at the
pleasure of the President and until his successor is chosen and qualified.
The Governor-General shall reside in the Philippine Islands during his official
incumbency, and maintain his office at the seat of government. He shall,
unless otherwise herein provided, appoint, by and with the consent of the
Philippine Senate, such officers as may now be appointed by the GovernorGeneral, or such as he is authorized by this Act to appoint, or whom he may
hereafter be authorized by law to appoint; but appointments made while the
senate is not in session shall be effective either until disapproval or until the
next adjournment of the senate. He shall have general supervision and control of all of the departments and bureaus of the government in the Philippine Islands as far as is not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, and
shall be commander in chief of all locally created armed forces and militia.
He is hereby vested with the exclusive power to grant pardons and reprieves
and remit fines and forfeitures, and may veto any legislation enacted as herein
provided. He shall submit within ten days of the opening of each regular
session of the Philippine Legislature a budget of receipts and expenditures,
which shall be the basis of the annual appropriation bill. He shall commission all officers that he may be authorized to appoint. He shall be responsible
for the faithful execution of the laws of the Philippine Islands and of the
United States operative within the Philippine Islands, and whenever it becomes necessary he may call upon the commanders of the military and
naval forces of the United States in the islands, or summon the posse
comitatus, or call out the militia or other locally created armed forces,
to prevent or suppress lawless violence, invasion, insurrection, or rebellion; and he may, in case of rebellion or invasion, or imminent danger
thereof, when the public safety requires it, suspend the privileges of the writ
of habeas corpus, or place the islands, or any part thereof, under martial
law: Provided, That whenever the Governor-General shall exercise this authority, he shall at once notify the President of the United States thereof,
together with the attending facts and circumstances, and the President shall
have power to modify or vacate the action of the Governor-General. He
shall annually and at such other times as he may be required make such
official report of the transactions of the government of the Philippine Islands
to an executive department of the United States to be designated by the
President, and his said annual report shall be transmitted to the Congress of
the United States; and he shall perform such additional duties and functions
as may in pursuance of law be delegated or assigned to him by the President.
SEC. 22. That, except as provided otherwise in this Act, the executive
departments of the Philippine government shall continue as now authorized
by law until otherwise provided by the Philippine Legislature. When the
Philippine Legislature herein provided shall convene and organize, the Philippine Commission, as such, shall cease and determine, and the members thereof
shall vacate their offices as members of said commission: Provided, That the
heads of executive departments shall continue to exercise their executive
functions until the heads of departments provided by the Philippine Legislature pursuant to the provisions of this Act are appointed and qualified.
The Philippine Legislature may thereafter by appropriate legislation increase
the number or abolish any of the executive departments, or make such
changes in the names and duties thereof as it may see fit, and shall provide
for the appointment and removal of the heads of the executive departments
by the Governor-General: Provided, That all executive functions of the
government must be directly under the Governor-General or within one of
the executive departments under the supervision and control of the GovernorGeneral. There is hereby established a bureau, to be known as the Bureau
of Non-Christian tribes, which said bureau shall be embraced in one of the
executive departments to be designated by the Governor-General, and shall




520


APPENDICES


have general supervision over the public affairs of the inhabitants of the territory represented in the legislature by appointive senators and representatives.
SEC. 23. That there shall be appointed by the President, by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate of the United States, a vice-governor of
the Philippine Islands, who shall have all of the powers of the GovernorGeneral in the case of a vacancy or temporary removal, resignation, or disability of the Governor-General, or in case of his temporary absence; and the
said vice-governor shall be the head of the executive department, known as
the department of public instruction, which shall include the bureau of education and the bureau of health, and he may be assigned such other executive
duties as the Governor-General may designate.
Other bureaus now included in the department of public instruction shall,
until otherwise provided by the Philippine Legislature, be included in the
department of the interior.
The President may designate the head of an executive department of the
Philippine government to act as Governor-General in the case of a vacancy,
the temporary removal, resignation, or disability of the Governor-General
and the vice-governor, or their temporary absence, and the head of the department thus designated shall exercise all the powers and perform all the
duties of the Governor-General during such vacancy, disability, or absence.
SEC. 24. That there shall be appointed by the President an auditor, who
shall examine, audit, and settle all accounts pertaining to the revenues and
receipts from whatever source of the Philippine government and of the provincial and municipal governments of the Philippines, including trust funds
and funds derived from bond issues; and audit, in accordance with law and
administrative regulations, all expenditures of funds or property pertaining
to or held in trust by the government or the Provinces or municipalities
thereof. He shall perform a like duty with respect to all government
branches.
He shall keep the general accounts of the government and preserve the
vouchers pertaining thereto.
It shall be the duty of the auditor to bring to the attention of the proper
administrative officer expenditures of funds or property which, in his opinion,
are irregular, unnecessary, excessive, or extravagant.
There shall be a deputy auditor appointed in the same manner as the
auditor. The deputy auditor shall sign such official papers as the auditor may
designate and perform such other duties as the auditor may prescribe, and in
case of the death, resignation, sickness, or other absence of the auditor from
his office, from any cause, the deputy auditor shall have charge of such office.
In case of the absence from duty, from any cause, of both the auditor and the
deputy auditor, the Governor-General may designate an assistant, who shall
have charge of the office.
The administrative jurisdiction of the auditor over accounts, whether of
funds or property, and all vouchers and records pertaining thereto, shall be
exclusive. With the approval of the Governor-General he shall from time to
time make and promulgate general or special rules and regulations not inconsistent with law covering the method of accounting for public funds and
property, and funds and property held in trust by the government or any of
its branches: Provided, That any officer accountable for public funds or
property may require such additional reports or returns from his subordinates
or others as he may deem necessary for his own information and protection.
The decisions of the auditor shall be final and conclusive upon the executive branches of the government, except that appeal therefrom may be taken
by the party aggrieved or the head of the department concerned within one
year, in the manner hereinafter prescribed. The auditor shall, except as




APPENDICES                             521
hereinafter provided, have like authority as that conferred by law upon the
several auditors of the United States and the Comptroller of the United
States Treasury and is authorized to communicate directly with any person
having claims before him for settlement, or with any department, officer, or
person having official relations with his office.
As soon after the close of each fiscal year as the accounts of said year
may be examined and adjusted the auditor shall submit to the GovernorGeneral and the Secretary of War an annual report of the fiscal concerns of
the government, showing the receipts and disbursements of the various departments and bureaus of the government and of the various Provinces and
municipalities, and make such other reports as may be required of him by the
Governor-General or the Secretary of War.
In the execution of their duties the auditor and the deputy auditor are
authorized to summon witnesses, administer oaths, and to take evidence, and,
in the pursuance of these provisions, may issue subpoenas and enforce the
attendance of witnesses, as now provided by law.
The office of the auditor shall be under the general supervision of the
Governor-General and shall consist of the auditor and deputy auditor and
such necessary assistants as may be prescribed by law.
SEC. 25. That any person aggrieved by the action or decision of the
auditor in the settlement of his account or claim may, within one year, take
an appeal in writing to the Governor-General, which appeal shall specifically
set forth the particular action of the auditor to which exception is taken, with
the reason and authorities relied on for reversing such decision.
If the Governor-General shall confirm the action of the auditor, he shall
so indorse the appeal and transmit it to the auditor, and the action shall
thereupon be final and conclusive. Should the Governor-General fail to sustain the action of the auditor, he shall forthwith transmit his grounds of
disapproval to the Secretary of War, together with the appeal and the papers
necessary to a proper understanding of the matter. The decision of the Secretary of War in such case shall be final and conclusive.
SEC. 26. That the supreme court and the courts of first instance of the
Philippine Islands shall possess and exercise jurisdiction as heretofore provided and such additional jurisdiction as shall hereafter be prescribed by law.
The municipal courts of said islands shall possess and exercise jurisdiction
as now provided by law, subject in all matters to such alteration and amendment as may be hereafter enacted by law; and the chief justice and associate
justices of the supreme court shall hereafter be appointed by the President,
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate of the United States. The
judges of the courts of first instance shall be appointed by the GovernorGeneral, by and with the advice and consent of the Philippine Senate: Provided, That the admiralty jurisdiction of the supreme court and courts of
first instance shall not be changed except by Act of Congress. That in all
cases pending under the operation of existing laws, both criminal and civil,
the jurisdiction shall continue until final judgment and determination.
SEC. 27. That the Supreme Court of the United States shall have jurisdiction to review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm the final judgments and
decrees of the Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands in all actions, cases,
causes, and proceedings now pending therein or hereafter determined thereby
in which the Constitution or any statute, treaty, title, right, or privilege of the
United States is involved, or in causes in which the value in controversy exceeds $25,000, or in which the title or possession of real estate exceeding in
value the sum of $25,000, to be ascertained by the oath of either party or of
other competent witnesses, is involved or brought in question; and such final
judgments or decrees may and can be reviewed, revised, reversed, modified,
or affirmed by said Supreme Court of the United States on appeal or writ




522


APPENDICES


of error by the party aggrieved within the same time, in the same manner,
under the same regulations, and by the same procedure, as far as applicable,
as the final judgments and decrees of the district courts of the United States.
SEC. 28. That the government of the Philippine Islands may grant franchises and rights, including the authority to exercise the right of eminent domain, for the construction and operation of works of public utility and service, and may authorize said works to be constructed and maintained over and
across the public property of the United States, including streets, highways,
squares, and reservations, and over similar property of the government of
said islands, and may adopt rules and regulations under which the provincial
and municipal governments of the island may grant the right to use and
occupy such public property belonging to said Provinces or municipalities:
Provided, That no private property shall be damaged or taken for any purpose under this section without just compensation, and that such authority
to take and occupy land shall not authorize the taking, use, or occupation of
any land except such as is required for the actual necessary purposes for
which the franchise is granted, and that no franchise or right shall be granted
to any individual, firm, or corporation except under the conditions that it
shall be subject to amendment, alteration, or repeal by the Congress of the
United States, and that lands or right of use and occupation of lands thus
granted shall revert to the governments by which they were respectively
granted upon the termination of the franchises and rights under which they
were granted or upon their revocation or repeal. That all franchises or
rights granted under this Act shall forbid the issue of stock or bonds except
in exchange for actual cash or for property at a fair valuation equal to the
par value of the stock or bonds so issued; shall forbid the declaring of stock
or bond dividends, and, in the case of public-service corporations, shall provide for the effective regulation of the charges thereof, for the official inspection and regulation of the books and accounts of such corporations, and for
the payment of a reasonable percentage of gross earnings into the treasury
of the Philippine Islands or of the Province or municipality within which
such franchises are granted and exercised: Provided further, That it shall
be unlawful for any corporation organized under this Act, or for any person,
company, or corporation receiving any grant, franchise, or concession from
the government of said islands, to use, employ, or contract for the labor of
persons held in involuntary servitude; and any person, company, or corporation so violating the provisions of this Act shall forfeit all charters, grants,
or franchises for doing business in said islands, in an action or proceeding
brought for that purpose in any court of competent jurisdiction by any officer
of the Philippine government, or on the complaint of any citizen of the Philippines, under such regulations and rules as the Philippine Legislature shall
prescribe, and in addition shall be deemed guilty of an offense, and shall be
punished by a fine of not more than $10,000.
SEC. 29. That, except as in this Act otherwise provided, the salaries of
all officials of the Philippines not appointed by the President, including deputies, assistants, and other employes, shall be such and be so paid out of the
revenues of the Philippines as shall from time to time be determined by the
Philippine Legislature; and if the legislature shall fail to make an appropriation for such salaries, the salaries so fixed shall be paid without the necessity
of further appropriations therefor. The salaries of all officers and all expenses of the offices of the various officials of the Philippines appointed as
herein provided by the President shall also be paid out of the revenues of
the Philippines. The annual salaries of the following named officials appointed by the President and so to be paid shall be: The Governor-General,
$18,000; in addition thereto he shall be entitled to the occupancy of the buildings heretofore used by the chief executive of the Philippines, with the furniture and effects therein, free of rental; vice-governor, $10,000; chief justice




APPENDICES


523


of the supreme court, $8,000; associate justices of the supreme court, $7,500
each; auditor, $6,000; deputy auditor, $3,000.
SEC. 30. That the provisions of the foregoing section shall not apply to
provincial and municipal officials; their salaries and the compensation of
their deputies, assistants, and other help, as well as all other expenses incurred by the Provinces and municipalities, shall be paid out of the provincial
and municipal revenues in such manner as the Philippine Legislature shall
provide.
SEC. 31. That all laws or parts of laws applicable to the Philippines not in
conflict with any of the provisions of this Act are hereby continued in force
and effect.
Approved, August 29, 1916.
APPENDIX J1
THE COST OF THE ARMY IN THE PHILIPPINES
THE EXPENSES OF THE CIVIL GOVERNMENT ARE ALL PAID FROM THE
PROCEEDS OF LOCAL TAXES
Statement of the increased amount of expenditures made on account of
the Philippine Islands by War Department bureaus from United States appropriations over that amount which would have been expended if the Army
had not been in the Philippines and an equal number of troops (exclusive of
Philippine Scouts) had been maintained in the United States, showing the
character of expenditures and, so far as practicable, the amounts by fiscal
years, to which is added a further statement of the expenditures made by the
Coast and Geodetic Survey and the direct appropriations made by the Congress of the United States for civil purposes on account of the Philippine
Islands, covering the period from July 1, 1902, to June 30, 1914:
QUARTERMASTER CORPS (QUARTERMASTER SUPPLIES)
Quartermaster supplies, which include all expenses from the appropriations for regular supplies, incidental expenses, military-post exchanges, transportation of the Army (includes transport service and rail transportation of
troops en route to and returning from the Philippine Islands), roads, walks,
wharves and drainage, water and sewers at military posts, barracks, and
quarters in the Philippine Islands, clothing and camp and garrison equipage,
seacoast defenses in Hawaii and Philippine Islands, and bringing home remains of deceased officers and soldiers, etc.:


Fiscal year June 30:
1903..............
1904..............
1905..............
1906.............
1907..............
1908..............
1909..............
1910..............
1911..............
1912..............
1913..............
1914..............


$8,140,065.03
5,159,444.46
6,036,946.02
6,251,851.41
5,539,037.85
4,901,869.43
5,795,832.44
6,203,885.35
5,233,233.85
5,106,035.50
5,009,211.44
4,897,317.21


SUBSISTENCE
June 30:
1903.............. $1,436,040.53
1904..............  1,145,739.65
1905..............  840,819.81
1906..............  781,974.52
1907..............   800,220.33
1908..............  568,379.00
1909..............  590,771.01
1910..............  716,340.67
1911..............  597,832.66
1912..............  377,375.81
1913..............  395,311.25
1914..............  281,016.11
Total........... $8,531,821.35


Total.........$68,274,729.99


1 Prepared by Brig. Gen. Frank McIntyre, chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs, for
the Senate Committee (1915).




524


APPENDICES
PAY OF THE ARMY AND MILEAGE


This includes payment from these appropriations for foreign-service pay
to officers and enlisted men, commutation of quarters, court-martial expenses,
and mileage:
June 30:                              June 30-Continued.
1903..............  $958,390.55     1910..............  $981,650.68
1904..............   776,166.95      1911..............   911,286.75
1905..............  626,944.83      1912..............  994,635.73
1906..............  687,126.07      1913..............  745,301.01
1907..............  797,820.63      1914..............  873,260.91
1908..............   790,395.60
1909..............   954,516.79        Total...........$10,097,496.50


PHILIPPINE SCOUTS
This includes all expenditures on account of Philippine Scouts, for pay of
officers and enlisted men, travel pay, interest on soldiers' deposits, clothing,
and beneficiaries:
June 30:                              June 30-Continued.
1903..............  $633,172.52      1911.............. $1,206,737.24
1904..............   612,412.69      1912.............. 1,117,191.89
1905..............   797,702.07      1913..............  1,042,776.97
1906..............   803,670.61      1914.............. 1,110,172.52
1907..............   746,491.23  May 11, 1908, to June 30,
1908..............   911,019.09    1914................   *23,125.04
1909.............. 1,044,323.04
1910.............. 1,110,852.28        Total.......... $11,159,647.19,,.,


MEDICAL DEPARTMENT


June 30:
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
1909..............
*........ -............  -
* -.....- - -..
* -....-..   **
*...........................


$18,563.51
19,783.34
22,634.82
26,051.75
53,131.12
39,302.99
30,470.63


June 30-Continued.
1910..............  $27,904.61
1911..............    41,833.40
1912..............    33,917.85
1913..............   21,469.92
1914..............   25,489.41
Total.........    $360,553.35


ENGINEER DEPARTMENT


July 1, 1902, to June 30,
1911................
June 30:
1912..............
1913..............


$4,648,249.06
1,027,113.60
1,117,480.82


June 30-Continued.
1914..............  $782,103.36
Total........... $7,574,946.84


ORDNANCE DEPARTMENT
For maintenance Manila Ordnance Depot, Philippine Scouts, armament of
fortifications, seacoast ammunition, alteration and maintenance of seacoast
artillery, and seacoast mines and appliances:
July 1, 1902, to June 30, 1914 (total).......................... $7,174,170.25
* Beneficiaries.




APPENDICES
SIGNAL SERVICE


525


For installation, maintenance, and operation of telephone, telegraph, and
cable systems, fire-control installations, and maintenance of fire control:
June 30:                              June 30-Continued.
1903..............  $36,466.85      1910..............  $88,541.87
1904..............   23,099.44      1911..............  51,970.89
1905..............    23,000.00      1912.............     78,147.62
1906..............   27,768.11      1913..............  58,622.11
1907..............   30,843.51      1914..............   73,490.71
1908..............   21,901.83
1909..............    24,153.41       Total...........   $538,006.35


Summary of Expenditures by the War Department
Quartermaster Corps....................................... $98,063,695.03
Medical Department........................................     360,553.35
Engineer Department.......................................    7,574,946.84
Ordnance Department......................................     7,174,170.25
Signal  Service..............................................  538,006.35
Total.................................................$113,711,371.82
Coast and Geodetic Survey


June 30:
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
1909.........,.***........................................o....oooooooooooo
ooo................. *.... *..*...
*. *  @.....  * 


$98,063.00
98,909.00
140,843.00
178,310.00
172,454.00
197,130.00
190,132.00


June 30-Continued.
1910..............  $173,588.00
1911..............   173,099.00
1912.............    167,347.49
1913..............   188,106.88
1914..............  169,397.45
Total........... $1,947,379.82


Congressional Relief Fund
Act of Congress of March 3, 1903, for the relief of distress in the Philippine Islands, $3,000,000.
Act of Congress, March 3, 1903, appropriating funds for the tabulating
and printing of the Philippine census, $351,925.50.
Grand total, $119,010,677.14.
Average expenditures by War Department bureaus per fiscal year,
$9,475,947.65.
On account of the withdrawal of many of the troops the expenses are now
much less than in 1914.




I




INDEX




I




INDEX
Administrative Code, adopted in 1916, 82.
Aglipay, Gregoria, insurgent leader, founds Independent Filipino Catholic
Church, 58-60.
Agricultural Bank: preliminary investigations, 370; authorized by Congress,
370; failure to secure private capital, 370; organized as government institution, 371; slow growth of, 371, 372; absorbed by Philippine National Bank, 372.
Agricultural colonies: mixed Moro and Filipinos, 372; for stranded Americans, 372, 373.
Agriculture: see Chapter XVII; basis of wealth, 338; backwardness of, 338,
373; encouraged by government, 373; climate and soil, 338, 339; limitations on, 339; early American experiments, 339; organization of Bureau of Agriculture, 340; methods pursued, 340, 341; bright anticipations, 341; not fully realized, 342, 343; introduction of new plants and
vegetables, 343, 344; corn, 344; coffee, tea, rubber, etc., 344; improving
cattle and horses, 345, 346; introduction of farm machinery, 347; grasshoppers, 347; rinderpest, 347; campaign against, 348, 349; hemp, its
cultivation, 350, 351; export of, 351; classification and grading of, 352;
the tobacco industry, 353; the American market, 354; exports of
cigars and tobacco, 354, 355; sugar, its cultivation and export, 355-358;
cocoanut industry, 359; table of exports, 360; rice, manner of cultivation, 361, 363; importation of, 361; irrigation, 363-369; agricultural
bank, 369-372; agricultural colonies, 372, 373; encouraging signs, 373.
Aguinaldo, Emilio: proclamations, of May 24, 1898, 490, Appendix D; establishing dictatorship, 491, Appendix E; establishing a revolutionary government, 493, Appendix F.
Amoebic, now successfully treated, 213.
Annulment of laws, by Congress, 436.
Appropriations: must be made by legislature, 116, 513; subject to approval
of executive, 112, 113; excessive, 132; failure to appropriate for support of government, 116; misconstruction of congressional act, 117-120;
corrected by Congress, 439.
Army: control by, 162; number of troops in islands, 163; why there, 164;
necessity for, 181; danger of insurrection, 181, 182, 183; scouts, number
of, where stationed, 163; cost of army, 163, 164, 523, Appendix J; defenses, 164, 165; friction with civil government, 165, 166; appreciation of
its work, 166, 167; the army theory, 167, 168; army officers detailed, 168;
their valuable services, 169; native troops, 169; organization of scouts,
169, 172; number of, 172; constabulary organized, 173; under civil government, 174; regular army officers detailed with, 174; maintained by
Spain, 164 note.
Arolas, General Juan, sanitary work in Jolo, 186.
Artesian wells, 203, 204.
Assembly, the: see GOVERNMENT; lower house of Philippine Legislature, 16;
provided for in Act July 1, 1902, 11-19; different views as to, 12, 13;
election of delegates to first, 18; conditions precedent to, 14, 15; deference shown to, 124; increased difficulties of administration, 125; use
of Spanish language in, 107.
Asuang, spirits believed to carry disease, 186.
529




530


INDEX


Athletics in schools, 241.
Auditor, insular: appointed by president, 121, 436; supposed to be check on
financial operations, 121; jurisdiction over accounts, 121.
Automobile lines: over the Benguet road, 316; in provinces, 316.
Baguio: health resort and mountain capital, 278, 295; governed under special
charter, 95.
Balangiga, treacherous attack at, 29.
Bandholtz, General H. H.: captures Ola, 33; chief of constabulary, 177.
Banks: dealings with the currency, 137; Philippine National Bank, 145.
Batangas Province, disturbances in, 26-29.
Bates Treaty, with Sultan of Sulu, abrogated, 35, 36 note.
Bell, General J. Franklin, campaign in Batangas, 26-29.
Benguet Road: see ROADS; its object, 295; subject of criticism, 291, 298; its
justification, 298; cost of, 296, 298.
Beriberi, elimination of, 212.
Bill of Rights: in President McKinley's Instructions, 488-489; in Act of July
1, 1902, 66-68; in Act of August 29, 1916, 437.
Bliss, General Tasker H., governor of Moro Province, 92.
Bonded debt, of government, amount of, 133.
Bonds: authority to issue and restrictions on, 69, 70, 515; friar lands bonds, 69.
Brent, Bishop C. H., 250.
Bulletins, issued by Bureau of Agriculture, 342, 343.
Bureaus: organization of, 6, 8; too elaborate, 100; reorganized, 101; changes
under 1916 law, 444.
Calderon, Filipe G., reports Malolos constitution, reasons for bicameral legislature, 405.
Carriedo, Sefior, gives money for water system, 202.
Cedula: a poll tax, 151; double for roads, 283.
Cemeteries: old Spanish, 188; new, 199.
Census: taken preliminary to creation of legislature, 16; new authorized,
17 note.
Chaffee, General Adna E., succeeds MacArthur, 6.
Children, mortality of, 212.
Chinese Exclusion Laws, appliable to Philippines, 72.
Cholera: epidemics frequent, 205; deaths from, 205.
Church and State: see Chapter III, FRIARS, FRIAR LANDS; relations between, in
Spanish times, 37; control of charitable and educational trusts, 39-41;
the Aglipay movement, 58-60.
Citizenship: provided for by treaty of peace, 66; legislature may provide
for, 438.
Civil governor: inauguration of, 5; title changed to governor-general, 111
note.
Civil Service, 126, 397-399.
Clarke Amendment: 426; see JONES BILL.
Climate, as affecting agriculture, 338, 341.
Coast and Geodetic Survey: cooperation with Philippine government, 327;
progress in the work, 327; cost of, 327, 525.
Coast guard service, 336.
Coast guard vessels, 333.
Cockfights, licensed and restricted, 86.
Cocoanut industry: importance of, 359; export of copra, 360.
Coinage: see FINANCES; power to coin money, 69, 136-141; present, 141.
Colton Law, tariff against all but United States, 146.




INDEX


531


Commission, the United States Philippine: see Chapter VI; known as Taft
Commission, 97; its powers, 6, 7, 9; instructed to frame a government,
97, 98; activities, 7; certain executive powers, 98; transferred to civil
governor, 98; organizes a government, 98; sole legislature until 1907,
16; its residuum of legislative power, 107-110; American majority, 110;
Filipinos given majority by Wilson, 110; its loss of prestige, 110, 126;
abolished, 110.
Conant, C. A., financial expert, 141.
Concentration camps, 27-29.
Confiscation, of friar lands, 37.
Congress: its control, 61; the Philippine government, its agent, 61; approved
acts of President McKinley and the commission, 61; authorized continuance thereof, 63; passes Organic Law of July 1, 1902, adopts existing government, 62; creates Bureau of Insular Affairs, 63; provides for
Philippine Legislature, 11; extends various laws to Philippines, 72-74;
enacts new Organic Law, 431.
Constabulary: organized, 7, 173; controlled by the civil government, 174;
detail of regular army officers, 174; abuses by constabulary, 174; present organization, 175; how enlisted, 176; selection and education of
officers, 175, 178; the constabulary schools, 176; recent expansion of,
176, 177; duties of constabulary, 177; recognition of, 177; standing of
officers, 178; scouts serving with constabulary, 179; the question of
command, 178, 179; inspection of municipal police, 180; control of examinations, 180, 181.
Constitution, for Philippine Republic, Appendix G.
Cooperation, of civil and military authorities, 162.
Cooper Law: Act of February 6, 1905, provides for railway construction, 302;
authorizing issue of bonds, 71.
Corn, importance of, 344.
Cost, of army in Philippines, Appendix J.
Courts, see JUDICIARY.
Cuba, policy as to, 377, 378.
Culion Leper Colony, 209-211.
Customs: see TARIFF; new tariff law, 8, 72, 73, 146.
Dairy cattle, 346.
Dalhousie, Lord, inaugurated Indian railway system, 270-271.
Declaration of Independence: read to Filipinos, 2; its true meaning, 3.
Defense and Public Safety, see Chapter VIII.
Departments: executive, organized by executive order, 6, 64; approved by
Congress, 64; distribution of Bureaus, 101, 102; new department created, 444.
Dickinson, J. M., secretary of war: visits islands, 92; ruling on powers of
local government, 320.
Dingley Tariff Law, effect on Philippine trade, 146, 149.
Disorders and disturbances: after the insurrection, 21; restoration of order
difficult, 21, 22; adverse influences, 24; bandits and outlaws, 24; special
statute defining offenses, 34 note; premature organization of civil governments, 25, 26; delay in using troops, 24, 25; effect of pending election in United States, 32; General Bell's Batangas campaign, 26, 29;
concentration camps, 27, 28, 29; suspension of writ of habeas corpus,
29; General Jacob Smith in Samar, 30; conditions in Moro country,
34-36.
Draft animals, attempts to improve, 345, 346.
Drugs, adulteration of, 200.




532


INDEX


Education: American theories of, 219, 224, 225; ignorance in a republic, 220;
education of masses essential, 220; training of a governing class only,
220; Spanish aristocratic methods, 220; friars regarded education dangerous, 220, 221; provided for upper classes only, 221, 222; demand
for popular education, 221; primary education, system  of, 222; few
taught, 223; system not secular, 223, 248; subjects taught, 223; compensation of teachers, 223; schools broken up by war, 223; a new
spirit, 224; secularization of education, 226; no religious instruction,
248; the Faribault plan, 226; introduction of the American common
school system, 226, 248; industrial education favored, 234-240; conditions unfavorable for, 237; policy of sending students to American
colleges, 242; comparison with British methods of education, 249, 250.
Education: see SCHOOLS; vice-governor must be secretary of public instruction, 436.
Elective franchise: 432-434; election of delegates to first assembly, 15, 17, 18.
Elliott, Charles B.: justice Supreme Court, commissioner, and secretary of
commerce and police, 395 note; chairman Joint Wireless Board, 327.
Eminent domain: power of granted, 69; to acquire friar lands, 69.
English language: adopted as official, 106; Spanish retained in courts, 106;
used exclusively in public schools, 227, 228; McKinley's Instructions as
to, 227 note; the future of, 107.
Esteros: canals in Manila, 187; cleaned up, 200.
Executive departments, see DEPARTMENTS.
Executive secretary, importance of office, 120.
Expenses, of government, borne by Philippines, 514.
Exploitation, fear of, 51, 68.
Export duties: on hemp, etc., 282; now forbidden by Congress, 515.
Exports, table of, 161.
Extension of Acts of Congress, 73.
Extradition laws, extended, special provisions, 72.
Farm machinery, introduction of, 347.
Federal party, 409.
Fiestas, excessive indulgence in, 86, 87.
Filipinization, of the service, 400.
Finances: policy, 127, 128; controlled by local government, 127; limited issue
of bonds, 128; amount outstanding, 133; revenue, how raised, 128; customs duties, 129; alleged excessive expenditure for public works, 129,
130; over-appropriations during Forbes' administration, 131; retrenchment, 132, 133; use of gold standard fund, 131; income and expenditure, 132; table of, 135; sources of income, 145; bonded debt of Manila
and Cebu, 134; finances of local governments, 134; the currency in
Spanish times, 134; American difficulties with, 136; new currency authorized, 139; coinage, 140; standard of value, theoretical gold peso,
139; plan to maintain parity, 139, 141-143; the gold standard fund, 141;
loans from, 143; total silver coinage, 144; silver certificate, 144; gold
reserve, 144; notes of Bank of Philippines, 144; Philippine National
Bank, 145; division of revenues, 145; tariff laws, 146, 147; duties levied,
147, 149; Spanish internal revenue laws, 149, 150; changes in, 149; new
revenue law, 150; sources of, for insular government, 151; the cedula,
151; stamp tax, 152; privilege tax, 153; distinction between business
and occupations, 153, 154; tax on volume of business, 155; specific internal revenue taxes, 155; principal specific taxes, 156-157; the land
tax, 158; revenues of Manila, 158; exempt property, 158; special assessments, 159; apportionment of internal revenues, 159.
Fire departments, in villages, police act as firemen, 86.




INDEX


533


Forbes, W. Cameron, commissioner, secretary of commerce and police and
governor-general: attitude toward Filipinos, 390; his character and
qualifications, 392.
Foreign trade, increasing, 161.
Franchise: powers to grant, 6, 70; must contain what, 70; authorized by
Cooper Law, 71, 302; all subject to repeal, 307.
Free trade, between United States and Philippines, 146.
Friar lands: size of the landed estates, 43; attempted forfeiture by Malolos
Congress, 44; condition and value of, 43, 44; rents in arrears, 44; the
titles, 44; investigations by commission, 45; recommends purchase of
lands, 46; Governor Taft visits Rome, 46; Congress authorizes purchase, 47; negotiations therefor, 47; purchased, 48, 49; a wise arrangement, 49; bonds, 50; sales of lands, 50; question whether public land law controlled, 51, 55; sale of Mindora tract, 52; attacks in
Congress, 55, 56; congressional investigation, 56; vindication of Forbes
and Worcester, 56; policy of sales in small tracts, 57; the law of 1916,
57.
Friars: their powers and influence, 42; question of their return, 38, 45, 46;
Archbishop Chapelle supports their claim, 38; Filipino opposition, 39.
Garrison, Lindley M., secretary of war, favor Jones Bill, 423.
Gilbert, Newton W.: commissioner, secretary of public instruction, vicegovernor, 395; acting governor-general, 119.
Gold Standard Fund: its creation and purpose, 141-143; loans from, 143, 144.
Gota de Leche: to supply milk for infants, 201; receives aid from state, 201;
its milk sterilizing plant, 202.
/ Government, the Philippine: see Chapter VI; organized by Philippine Commission; its legal nature, 440; original powers, 8, 9; temporary form, 8;
commission recommends permanent form, 8 note; Taft at Washington,
9; pending civil government bills, 10; attitude of parties, 10, 11; provision for assembly, urged by Taft, 12; not favored by Root, 13; enactment of Organic Law of July 1, 1902, 16; its general provision, Chapter
IV; provided for assembly, 14, 15, 16; organization of the government, 97, 99, 100; participation of Filipinos, 99; difficulties of administration, 125; the Act of August 29, 1916, 431-440, Appendix I; reorganization thereunder, 442.
Governor-General: president of commission, 111; powers during commission regime, 111; as confirmed by Congress, 111, 112; duties imposed
on, 112; authority to "release" appropriations, 112, 113; office magnified at expense of commission, 114, 126; practically named and removed
commissioners, 114, 115; usurpation of authority over appropriations,
116-120; member of both legislative bodies, 115; no veto power originally, 115; conferred in 1916, 435; powers now defined by law, 434.
Gross earnings, tax on, 70.
Guaranty, of interest on railway bonds, 302, 308, 309.
Guard, Civil, Spanish constabulary, 7.
Habeas corpus, suspension of writ, 29.
Harbors: 329; of Manila, Iloilo and Cebu, 329, 330.
Harrison, Francis Burton: governor-general, appointment of, 418; his LunetA
speech, 419-420; unfriendly toward American officials, 420, 421; removals by, 420; demoralizing effect, 421; policy claimed destructive,
421; favors Jones Bill and early independence, 421.
Harty, Jeramioh, Archbishop, 41.
Health and sanitation: see Chapter IX; study of tropical diseases, 184; condition in Spanish times, 186-190; unsanitary Manila, 187; attitude of
natives, 186, 195-197, 215; local doctors, 189; early work of Army
Medical Corps, 190; organization, 192, 199; educating physicians, 192;




534


INDEX


Health and sanitation-Continued.
hospital facilities, 192, 193; the prevention of disease, 194; largely a
matter of money, 194; restrictions on health work, 195; comparison
with Panama, 195; collection of garbage, 198; Manila sewer system,
198; public laundries, 199; jails and prisons, 199; sanitary markets,
199, 200; the old moats, 200; adulterated drugs and food, 200; bad
milk, 201, 202; old and new water systems, 202, 203; boiled and distilled
water, 203, 204; cholera, 205; bubonic plague, 204; destruction of rats,
214; leprosy, history of, 206; isolation, Culion Colony, 209-211; treatment for, 211; beriberi, practically eliminated, 212; child mortality,
212, 213; hook-worm, 213; amoebic, 213; conditions still bad, 213; malaria, fight against mosquitoes, 214; people underfed, school lunches,
214; diseases of the Moros, 215; the hospital ship, 216; the Public
Health Service, 216; its organization, 217; objectionable council of hygiene, 217.
Heiser, G. Victor, director of health, 1905 to 1915, see Chapter IX.
Hemp: importance of, 349; method of cultivation, 350; lack of proper machinery, 351; table of hemp exports, 351; government classification
and grading of, 352.
Hook-worm, prevalence of, 213.
Hord, John S., prepares original internal revenue law, 150.
Hospitals, 192, 193, 420.
Ide, Henry C.: commissioner, secretary of finance and justice, and governorgeneral, 395; prepares revenue law, 150.
Igorots, cultivation of rice, irrigation, 362.
Imports: table of, 160; see EXPORTS.
Income tax, federal law applicable, 72.
Independence movement: see Chapter XIX; implied in our policy, 422; first
Filipino political party against, 409; leading men favor American control, 410; idea revived, 410; new leaders, 410; effect of creating assembly, 413; delegates elected on issue of, 413; new political parties favor,
412; Osmena and Quezon in charge, 413, 414; the campaign in the
islands, 413; renewed agitation in America, 415; Quezon's labors, 415;
The Filipino People, 416; the Jones Bill, 417; progress of the bill, 417;
strength of present sentiment, 445; would be injurious to natives, 446;
independent state would fail, 451; probable acquiescence in present
government, 453.
Independent Filipino Catholic Church, its organization and short life, 58-60.
Industrial education: see SCHOOLS; trade schools, 234-240.
Information: as to conditions in islands, 375; conflicting reports of travelers,
375, 376.
Instruction: President McKinley's to Schurman Commission, 484, Appendix
B; to Taft Commission, 66, Appendix C.
Insular Affairs, Bureau of: created, 63; its organization and powers, 63.
Insurrections: danger of uprisings, 181; greatly exaggerated, 182, 183; frauds
on ignorant natives, 182; control of leaders, 182, 183.
Interisland commerce: see WATER TRANSPORTATION; condition of, 332; its
rehabilitation, 332, 334.
Irrigation: necessity for, 363; in India and Egypt, 365, 366 note; first Philippine irrigation law, defective, 364; improved law enacted, 365; native
objections, 366; obtaining consent of landowners, 367, 368; comparative
failure of irrigation work, 363, 369; revised irrigation law, 368, 369.
Joint Wireless Board, 322.
Jones Bill: as introduced in 1912, 417; made a party measure, 421; attitude
of Republicans, 421, 422, 426; passed by House, 422; Senate committee
hearings, 422; not reached in Senate, 423; regrets of secretary of war




INDEX


535


Jones Bill-Continued.
and president, 423-424; new session, Senate debates, 424; the Clarke
Amendment, 426; favored by administration and Filipinos, 426, 427;
its passage a surprise, 428; fails in House, 428; enactment of the law,
428; the preamble, 428-430; its provisions, 431-440; effect on present
laws, 437; no change in nature of government, 440; grants general
legislative power, 437; bill of rights, 437; restrictions as to tariff, land
and currency laws, 438; citizenship, 438; appropriations continued, 439;
abolishes the commission, 431; creates new Philippine legislature with
an elective Senate, 431; qualifications of electors, 432-434; abolishes distinction between Christian and non-Christian territory, 432; senators
and representatives from, appointive, 432; defines powers of governorgeneral, 434-435; veto power conferred, 435; governor-general, vicegovernor and auditor, 435, 436; vice-governor must be secretary of
public instruction, 436; other departments controlled by legislature,
436, 437; the judicial system, 439; ultimate control reserved to Congress, 440, 441; reception of law in Philippines, 441-2; new election
under, 442-3; appointment of non-Christian members, 443; organization
of government under, new departments, 444.
Judiciary: organized by commission; appointment of justices, 102; and judges,
64, 65; jurisdiction of Supreme Court, 65, 102; compensation of, 65;
procedure, 65; tenure of justices of Supreme Court, 102; of judges,
104; judicial districts, 103; jurisdiction of courts of first instance, 103,
104; no juries, 103; American and Filipino judges, 103, 104; Spanish
the official language in courts, 106; opposition to English, 107; reorganization of courts in 1915, 105; objectionable provisions, 105; justices of the peace, 105, 106.
Knepper, Commander Chester H., member Joint Wireless Board, 323.
Labor: in the tropics, 251; factors of problem, 252; exclusion of Chinese,
252; early experience with Filipino labor, 253; must be trained and
developed, 254, 259, 260; methods in other countries, 255-258; vagrancy
laws, 255; imported labor, 256-7; prohibited, 258; laborers sent to Hawaii, 258; forced labor, 261; violation of labor contracts, no remedy,
262; system of advances, 263; advances secured by fraud, 264, 265;
Bureau of Labor, 266; wages paid, 266; laborers improving, 259, 260,
266-7 note.
Ladrones, prevalence of, 7.
Land laws: see FRIAR LANDS; restrictions on sales, 68, 438.
Land mortgage banks, authorized by Spanish Code of Commerce, 369.
Laws, of Congress: not in force unless extended, 73; provision of Rev. Stat.
not appliable, 73.
Legarda, Benito: appointed commissioner, 5; resident commissioner, 390.
Legislative power: at first in commission, 64; in two bodies after 1907, 64;
powers retained by the commission, 107-110; now in a single legislature, with two houses, 431.
Legislature, Philippine: created by Act of July 1, 1902, 16; composed of two
houses, the Philippine Commission and the Philippine Assembly, 16,
64; jurisdiction over territory not inhabited by Moros and non-Christians, 16, 107-110; first session of, 19; opened by Secretary Taft, 19;
distribution of power, 107-110; new body with same name created in
1916, with elective Senate, 431.
Leprosy: formerly, 188; isolation, 206; Culion Colony, 209-211; treatment
for, 211.
Lighthouses, 328.
Loans, to provinces and municipalities, 82.




536


INDEX


Local government: see Chapter V; institution of by military, 76; under provincial and municipal government acts, 76, 77; for Moros and wild
men, 99.
Luzuriaga, Jose, appointed commissioner, 5, 6.
MacArthur, Major-General Arthur: military governor, 4; organization of
civil governments, 25, 26.
Malolos Constitution: see APPENDIX G; not American in spirit, 407.
Malaria, greatly reduced, 214.
Malvar, surrenders to General Bell, 29.
Manila, City of: special form of commission government, 95; the police,
172; its defenses, 164; new sewer system, 198; sanitation in, 198; old
water supply, 187; new, 202; death rate, 214, 215.
Manila Railroad Company: its charter, 305; purchased by government, 311 -314.
Manila Railway Company, Limited, the old Spanish chartered company, 300,
303 note.
Material development: policy of, Chapter XII; backwardness of country,
269; resources undeveloped, 270; public works in colonies, India, 270;
schools and material development, 271; order of, 271; policy outlined,
272, 273; its scope and purpose, 277-8; hustling the East, 274; public
works or schools, 274; attitude of natives toward policy, 275; results
obtained, 276; expenditures for, table, 277.
Maura Law, Spanish municipal code, of 1893, 82.
Metcalfe, Sir Charles, opposed to roads for India, 270.
Mineral lands, restrictions upon development of, 68, 69.
Missionary work, 250.
Moats, old, unsanitary, now parks, 200.
Momungan, agricultural colony at, 372.
Monastic orders, lands owned by, 43.
Money-orders, see POSTAL SERVICE.
Moro Province: its organization, 92, 100; powers of, 93, 94; military control, 93; changes to civilian officers, 94; reorganized as the Department
of Mindanao and Sulu, 94; now subject to Philippine Legislature, 95.
Municipal Code, repealed by Administrative Code of 1916, 82.
Municipalities: their nature and organization, 82; resemble American townships, 82; four classes, 83; number of councilors, 83; officers of, their
duties and pay, 83, 84; duties of a councilor, 84; powers of council,
84-86; revenue, powers of taxation, 87; school funds, 87; budget, 87;
among uncivilized tribes, 88-89.
Municipal police: must be maintained by municipalities, 172; generally inefficient, 7, 180; of Manila, reasonably efficient, 172; improvement in,
civil service examinations, 180; examining board, 180; enlistments,
181; extent of constabulary control over, 180.
Navigation Laws, regulating coastwise traffic, not applicable, 71.
Navy: no direct connection with the government, 162; naval stations, 164.
Non-Christian tribes, special governments for, 101.
Normal School, 244.
Nurses' Training School, 244.
Obras Pias, charitable and religious foundations, 40.
Officials, list of, Appendix H.
Ola, Simeon, bandit leader, 33.
Organic Laws: Act July 1, 1902, see Chapter IV; Act August 29, 1916, Chapter XIX and Appendix; see JONES BILL.
Osmenia, Sergio: speaker of assembly, influence over legislation, 125; deference shown, 124; works for independence, 404.




INDEX


537


"Pagett, M. P.," 376.
Parcels post: inaugurated in islands by executive order, 320; with foreign
countries, 319-320.
Parties, American political, attitude of, 374.
Parties, Filipino political: 18; membership of first assembly, 18-19; demand
independence, 412.
Payne Tariff Law, effect on Philippine trade, 147.
Peace, declared by proclamation, 16, 17.
Penal Colony, at Iwahig, a school for reformation of convicts, 245.
Pensionados, students educated in American colleges, 242.
Pershing, Major-General John J., governor Moro Province, 92.
Personnel: of Philippine service, 395-403; character of, 397, 398, 403; frequent changes in, 395, 396; the subordinate officials, 397, 398; Filipino
officials, 300; the call of the East, 399; no permanent career, 401;
Taft's non-partisan policy, 397; Wilson's policy, 419, 420; elimination of
Americans, 401; rewards for retirement, 401-2.
Philippine Government Law of 1916, Appendix I.
Philippine Railway Company: its charter, 309; interest on bonds guaranteed,
309.
Philippines for the Filipinos, the policy of, 382-396.
Piers, at Manila, 331.
Plague, 204.
Policy, Philippine: statement of, 380; involved training of the common people, 198; compared with Cuban policy, 377, 378; plan outlined by Secretary Hay, 379; formulated by Secretary Root, 379; in McKinley's
Instructions, 379; most difficult of all, 387; alleged indefiniteness, 377;
criticism of, 387; American business men, 398, 399; attitude of local
American community, 377; policy purely altruistic, 380; the Philippines
for the Filipinos, 379; opposition to policy, 380, 387; success meant
elimination of United States, 380; implied ultimate independence statements by McKinley, 382; Roosevelt, 381, 384, 385; Taft, 382-384, 385,
386; approved by Congress, 386; by President Wilson's administration,
386, 387; time essence of, 388; failure to satisfy natives, 388; loss of
political control, 388, 389; excessive deference to Filipinos, 389, 390,
391; stronger executives required, 390, 391; growth of anti-American
sentiment under Smith and Forbes, 391-2; early institution of assembly
a mistake, 394; frequent changes of higher officers, 395; non-partisan
policy, 396-7; changes by Wilson administration, 397, 401.
Polygamy, forbidden, 437, 513.
Postal Savings Bank, 325.
Postal Service: its importance, 317; early American service, 318; adoption
of Spanish regulations, 318; turned over to local government, 318;
an independent service, 318; money-orders service with United States,
319; with foreign countries, negotiations of conventions, 319, 320;
parcels post within the islands, 320; the telegraph, 320; operators
trained in bureau, 321; cables laid by army, 321; relocated, 321; wireless, 322; the Joint Wireless Board, 322, 323; its report, 323; President
Taft approves, 324; franchise to private concern, 325; postal service
efficient, 325; Postal Savings Bank, 325.
Potatoes, difficulty in raising, 345.
Prisons: sanitary condition of, 199; death rate in Bilibid, 199.
Provinces: Spanish, 78; at present, 78; are public corporations, 78; the chief
officers, 78, 80; control of governor-general, 78; the governor, 79; the
treasurer, 79; the fiscal, 80; the provincial board, how constituted, 76;
all now elected, 76; powers of board, 80-81; specially organized provinces, 88-91; in non-Christian country, 91; the Moro Province, 91-93;
city of Manila, a province for certain purposes, 78 and note 5; under
special charter, 95.




538


INDEX


Public Health Service: new name for Bureau of Health, 217; its organization,
217, 218.
Public lands: see LAND LAWS; conservation of, 68; acquisition of, 68.
Public Utilities Commission, 306 note.
Pure Food Law: Act of Congress, applicable, 72; enforcement of, 200-201.
Quadrilleros, municipal guards, 164 note.
Quezon, Manuel L.: resident commissioner, 414, 415; active for independence,
404; an efficient leader, 406; recommends new governor-general, 418;
president of Senate, 443.
Railroads: the Spanish-English company, 300; its claim against the United
States, 303-304; study of situation, by commission, 300; recommendations, 301; the policy adopted, 301; authorized by Congress, the Cooper
Law, 302-303; Manila Railroad franchise, 305; its provisions, 305; supplementary contract, 307; northern and southern lines, 308; provides
for guaranty of interest on southern lines, 308; bond issue, 308; hastening construction by Manila Railroad Company, loans to, 310; purchase of road by government, 311-314; Manila street railway, 315; the
Philippine Railway Company, and its franchise, 309; its prospects,
315; results of railway construction disappointing, 314.
Railway bonds, guaranty of interest by government, 302, 308, 309.
Rates, freight and passenger, regulation of by board, 306 note.
Religious controversies, see Chapter III.
Religious tests, forbidden, 437.
Resident commissioners: Filipino, provided for, 66, 122; influence at Washington, adverse to government, 122, 123, 414, 415.
Retirement Law, 401-2.
Revenue, see FINANCES.
Revolution, right of, 3.
Rice: staple food product, 361; importations of, 361; methods of cultivation,
362; improved methods required, 363.
Rinderpest: destroys draft animals, treatment of, 347; policy of isolation,
348, 349.
Rizal, cable ship, 336.
Roads: in early days, 279, 280; difficulties connected with construction, 280;
prior to 1908, without system, 281; early road laws, 281, 282; forced
labor, 282; toll roads, 283; double cedula law, 283; the new policy, rules
and regulations, 284-285; maintenance provided for, 285; caminero system, 288, 289; methods of construction, 285, 289; classification, 285 -286; allotment of funds, improved conditions, 286, 288; cost of construction, 289; expenditure for roads, mileage, 287; prizes, 288; road
construction in non-Christian provinces, 289, 290; in Moro Province,
290, 291; roads built by army, 291; the Benguet road, 291-298; its
origin and early history, 292; difficulties in way, 293; policy of commission, 295; cost of the roads, 296, 298; difficulties of maintenance,
297.
Rockefeller Foundation, contributes funds for hospital ship, 216.
Roosevelt, Theodore: as president, directs transfer of executive power to
civil governor, 4; peace proclamation, 16; statement of policy, 381, 384,
385; advises early independence, 426; opinion of government personnel,
403.
Root, Elihu: secretary of war, creates government for Philippines, 11; favors delay in establishing assembly, 13.
Samar: conditions in, 30; the pulijanes, 30, 31; abuse of natives by traders,
30; regulars sent to, 32; General Smith's campaign, 30; fight at Magtaon, 33; civil government for, 32.




INDEX                               539
Sanger, General J. P., superintendent of census, 17.
Sanitation, see HEALTH.
San Lazaro Estate, acquired by government, 41.
Santo Tomas, College of, controversy over control of, 40, 41.
Schools: see EDUCATION; opened by military, 225; taken over by commission,
225; the general policy, 226; use of English language in schools, 227,
228; importing American teachers, 228, 229; the transport Thomas consignment, 219, 229; the teachers and their work, 229, 230; Filipino instructors necessary, 230, 231; normal schools opened, 231; proportion
of American teachers, 232; insular provincial and municipal schools,
232; secondary schools established, 233; night schools, 233 note; industrial education, 234-240; social prejudice against, 237; prizes at
Panama-Pacific Exposition, 240; special text-books, 240, 241; athletics,
241; the pensionados, 242; housing schools, 243; University of the
Philippines, 243; the normal school, 244; nurses' training school, 244;
bureau schools, 244; Iwahig Penal Colony, 245; non-Christian and
Moro schools, 245, 246; number of children in schools, 246, 247; cost
of educational work, 247; results, 250.
Scouts: see ARMY; organized, 169-172; number of, 172; valuable soldiers,
171, 172.
Scriven, Lieutenant-Colonel George P., member Joint Wireless Board, 323.
Secretaries, heads of departments: appointed from commission, 100; constitute cabinet, 215.
Secularization of schools, 226.
Self-Government: in local governments, 75, 76; education of common people for, 408; Filipino ideas of, 405; qualifications of Filipinos for, 405,
407, 408.
Senate, elective, created in 1916, 431, Appendix I.
Shuster, W. Morgan, commissioner and secretary of public instruction, 395
note.
Silver certificates: 144; see FINANCES.
Smallpox: ravages of, 188; eliminated by vaccination, 206.
Smith, General Jacob, campaign in Samar, 30.
Smith, James F., governor-general, 391, 395.
Soil, fertility of, 339.
Spanish law, continued in force, 64, 103.
Speaker of the assembly: office magnified, 124; excessive salary, 124; dickering with governor-general, 125.
Spooner Law, restrictions of, 6.
Steamship companies, 331.
Subsidies, interisland commerce, 334, 335.
Sugar: importance of industry, 355; methods of cultivation, 356; improved
conditions, 358; modern sugar mills, 358; government assistance, 359;
attempt to develop large estates, opposition thereto, 358; primitive methods still in use, 358; table of exports, improved conditions due to high
prices, 357.
Sultan of Sulu: Bates treaty with abrogated, 35; relinquishes claim of sovereignty, 36 note.
Supreme Court, see JUDICIARY.
Taft, W. H., secretary of war and president: head of second commission,
97; appointed civil governor, 4; inauguration of, 5; work as president
of commission, 6-9; visits Washington, 9; urges creation of assembly,
12, 13; becomes secretary of war, 395; visits islands and addresses
new legislature, 19; on use of army, 25 note; estimate of disturbances,
24; adjusts controversies with Church, 41; the friar lands adjustment,
43-49; judicial appointments, 104; attitude toward commission, 110;




540


INDEX


Taft, W. H.-Continued.
toward office of governor-general, 114; calls speaker second in rank,
124; on command of scouts, 179; Benguet road policy, 295; railway
policy, 305, 314; appoints Wireless Board, 323; approves its report, 324;
statement of Philippine policy, 380, 382-384, 385, 386, 422; non-partisan
appointments, 397; opposes further extensions of power to natives,
416; opposed to early independence, 417.
Tariff laws: enacted by Congress, 72; changes in, 146; Payne Law of 1909,
move toward freer trade, 72; Underwood Law of 1913, 146 note; Philippine tariff laws, 72, 73.
Tavera, Pardo de, appointed commissioner, 5.
Taxation: see FINANCES; not excessive, 127, 129; customs, duties, internal
revenue, 149-157; special assessments, 159; exemptions, 158; land tax,
158; municipal, 87.
Telegraph: see POSTAL SERVICE; constructed by army, 320; transferred to
Bureau of Posts, 321.
Text-books, specially prepared for schools, 240-241.
Tobacco: introduction of, 352; Spanish methods, 353; admitted to American
market, 354; government encouragement of industry, 354; table of exports, 354, 355.
Tonnage fees, 72.
Transportation, see Chapters XIII-XVI.
Treasurer, insular, appointed by president, 121.
Treaty of peace: with Spain, 479-484; Appendix A.
Trusteeship, of United States of property acquired from Spain, 68.
University of the Philippines, 243, 244.
Usury: prevalence of in the East, 369; attempts to pass usury laws, 369 note.
Vaccination, 206.
Veto: no power of, 115; granted governor-general by 1916 law, 435.
Vice-Governor: office created, 17; approved by Congress, 64; duties, 100;
under present law, 436; appointed by president, 436; controls education and health, 436.
Visiting congressmen, opinions confirmed by, 375.
Water: generally bad, safe if boiled, 204; artesian wells, 203, 204; distilled
water discarded, 204.
Water transportation: see Chapter XVI; importance of in island country,
326; water communication with Manila, 326-327; insufficient charts and
lights, 327; new modern surveys, 327; coast and geodetic survey, division of expense, 327; lighthouses, 328; Weather Bureau, important
services rendered, 328; insufficient harbors, 328; new ports at Manila,
Cebu and Iloilo, 329; importance of minor ports, 329; modern wharves,
330; the port of Manila, modern improvements, 330, 331; steamship
service, 331; destroyed by war and Act of Congress, 331, 332; interisland
transportation, new methods required, 332; Bureau of Navigation, 333;
commissioned and enlisted service in, 336; abolished, 337; the coast
guard ships, 333; nursing interisland commerce, 333-335; system of subsidies, 333-335; the cable ship Rizal, 336; improvement of rivers, 337.
Weather Service, 328.
Wilson, Woodrow, president: his Philippine policy, 421-422; before election,
417; Filipino expectations, 417; abandons non-partisan policy, 418;
changes commission, 418; supports Jones Bill, 423; approves Clarke
Amendment, 426; removes Forbes, 418; appoints Harrison governorgeneral, 418.




INDEX                              541
Wireless: stations operated, 322; board to extend same, 322, 323; its report,
323; approved by revising board and president, 324; franchise granted
Marconi Company, 325.
Wood, Major-General Leonard: military operations in Moro country, 35;
recommends abrogation of Bates treaty, 35; governor Moro Province,
92; qualifications, 391.
Worcester, Dean C., commissioner and secretary of interior, 395.
Wright, Luke E.: commissioner and secretary of commerce and police, 6;
first governor-general, 17; issues proclamation, and calls election for
assembly, 17; visit to Samar, 30 note, 32.








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