No one who has not lived in a country where the circulating medium is constantly fluctuating in value can fully appreciate the enormous benefit conferred on the Philippine Islands by this important reform.

Another reform of far-reaching importance was the readjustment of the burden of taxation so that it should bear lightly on the necessities of life, and heavily on its luxuries. This was a complete reversal of the scheme which we found in force, under which wheat flour and kerosene oil paid very heavy import duties while cigars and champagne were lightly taxed.

We imposed export taxes on certain products of the country. Such taxes are objected to by many political economists, but were approved of by the Filipinos, who strongly opposed the imposition of a logical and very necessary personal tax to provide funds for the construction and maintenance of highways and bridges. It is usually wise, when practicable, to obtain funds for necessary governmental purposes by the imposition of taxes which are willingly paid.

Mr. Taft resigned the governorship of the Philippines to become secretary of war, his resignation taking effect January 31, 1904. He had performed a monumental work for the Filipinos, and for humanity at large, during his years of service in the islands, and carried with him the good will of most of the people whom he had so faithfully, efficiently and self-sacrificingly served. He had at one time very gravely impaired his health by hard work, and when the opportunity came to satisfy a lifelong ambition by accepting appointment as a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, he had passed it by, in order to perform his duty to the people of the Philippine Islands. As secretary of war, and as President of the United States, he availed himself of every opportunity which these high offices afforded to help the Filipinos, and to increase the prosperity of their country. They have had no better friend, and no other friend whom they have ever had has been so useful to them. One more proof of his real greatness is afforded by the fact that to-day, after being reviled by many Filipino politicians whom he befriended, who have succeeded to a large degree in making the common people of the Philippines consider him their enemy, his interest in the people of the Islands is as keen, and his eagerness to help them is as great, as in the early days when they acclaimed him their deliverer.

General Luke E. Wright, a democrat of Memphis, Tennessee, was appointed by President Roosevelt civil governor in Mr. Taft's place. He rendered his country and the Filipinos most distinguished service. It is one thing to build up a great government, with numerous political appointments at one's disposal, and another to stand by and keep it running smoothly and efficiently, when a lot of disappointed politicians, who have seen their last hope of political preferment go a-glimmering, are throwing sand into the bearings of the machine. This latter class had begun to plot against Governor Taft before his resignation took effect, but their machinations were rendered fruitless by the wave of regret raised by his coming departure.

They now devoted themselves, with a good deal of success, to injuring Governor Wright, who declined to be dictated to, in the matter of appointments, by the Federal Party, and aroused the ire of many politicians by occasionally telling the Filipinos unpalatable but wholesome and necessary truths relative to their fitness for immediate independence.

General Wright, whose title had been changed from governor to governor-general on February 6, 1905, went on leave during the latter part of that year, fully expecting to return and resume his work in the Philippines, but the islands were not to see him again. He resigned, effective April 1, 1906, to become United States Ambassador to Japan. In my opinion, the acceptance of his resignation at this time was one of the gravest mistakes ever made in the Philippine policy of the United States. The islands were deprived of the services of a very able and distinguished man, thoroughly conversant with their needs, who had the courage of his convictions, and whose convictions were thoroughly sound.

Certain Filipino politicians openly boasted that they had secured his removal, and they and their ilk were encouraged to put forth new and pernicious efforts. Had General Wright returned to the islands much of the political unrest from which they have since suffered would have been avoided. He was beloved by his associates, who felt a sense of personal loss when they learned that the places which had known him in The Philippines would know him no more.

He was succeeded for the brief period of five and a half months by Judge Henry C. Ide, vice-governor and secretary of finance and justice, who had performed his duties while he was on leave. Judge Ide was a republican, from Vermont. He resigned on September 19, 1906.

He was succeeded by General James F. Smith, a democrat from California, who had come to the islands as a colonel of volunteers, and had won promotion because of his valuable services in the Visayas, and more especially in the island of Negros, where he had earned the good will of the Filipinos by his tact and kindness. Later he had served, unwillingly, as head of the Manila custom house.

He was subsequently made a justice of the supreme court of the Philippines. A lawyer by profession, he had resigned this position with regret to accept appointment, on January 1, 1903, as secretary of public instruction. He did not desire the governor-generalship and made a strong but unsuccessful effort to avoid accepting the position, which he finally took from a sense of duty. He was a good lawyer, with a big heart, and a keen insight into human nature. He thoroughly understood the Filipinos, and he made an excellent governor-general. It was during his term of office that the Philippine Legislature, composed of an upper appointive house, the Philippine Commission, and a lower elective house, the Philippine Assembly, met for the first time on October 16, 1907.

I devote a separate chapter [478] to the Philippine Legislature and its work, so need not discuss it here. Suffice it to say that such success as attended the work of this body during its inaugural, first and special sessions, was very largely due to the tactful influence of Governor-General Smith, who gave the speaker of the assembly much valuable, friendly counsel, and kept the two houses working in comparative harmony. Having struggled through one session of the legislature, Governor-General Smith felt at liberty to resign. He greatly desired to leave the Philippine government service and return to the practice of his profession. His resignation was reluctantly accepted, about a year after he had tendered it, and he left the service on November 10, 1909.

He was succeeded by Vice-Governor W. Cameron Forbes, a republican from Massachusetts, who had accepted appointment as secretary of commerce and police on June 15, 1904. A man of independent means, Mr. Forbes entered the public service only because of the opportunity for greater usefulness which was thus afforded him. He brought to bear on the problems which confronted him as secretary of commerce and police intelligence and ability of a very high order. Wide practical experience in the management of large business interests had admirably fitted him to improve the organization and increase the efficiency of the insular police force, and to mature and carry out plans for bettering means of communication and otherwise facilitating and stimulating the normal, healthful commercial development of the islands. I have devoted several chapters to the discussion of the results accomplished along these lines, [479] and will not attempt here to enumerate them.

Like all of his predecessors, he brought to the office of governor-general mature experience gained on the ground, having been in the service more than five years at the time of his promotion.

As governor-general, he not only retained his keen interest in the large problems which had previously engaged his attention, and laboured unceasingly and most successfully in the performance of the duties of his new office, but took an especial interest in the development of the summer capital, and in the work for the non-Christian peoples of the islands, devoting a much greater amount of time and attention to familiarizing himself with the needs of this portion of the population than had ever previously been given to it by any governor-general. He visited the Moros and the Bukidnons in the south, and the Negritos, the Benguet Igorots, the Lepanto Igorots, the Bontoc Igorots, the Ilongots, the Ifugaos, the Kalingas, and both the wild and the civilized Tingians, in the north, repeatedly inspecting the several sub-provinces of the Mountain Province.

Through his generosity in making proper grounds available, public interest in outdoor sports was greatly stimulated at Manila and at Baguio, while his own participation in polo, baseball and golf was a good example to Americans and Filipinos alike, in a country where vigorous outdoor exercise is very necessary to the physical development of the young and the preservation of the health of the mature. He was a true friend of the Filipinos, whom he genuinely liked and was always ready to assist. His personal influence was a powerful factor in the success of the very important work carried on at the Philippine Normal School and the Philippine Training School for Nurses.

During his term of office the prosperity of the islands increased by leaps and bounds, public order became better than ever before in their history, and the efficiency of the civil service reached its maximum. No other governor-general ever drew so heavily on his private means in promoting the public good, and it was the irony of fate that he should have been accused, by certain irresponsible anti-imperialists, of using his public office to promote his private interests. Near the end of his administration grossly and absurdly false charges were made against him on the floor of the House by Representative William A. Jones. As their falsity has been conclusively and finally shown, [480] I will not here lend importance to them by repeating them. No official has ever given any country a cleaner administration than Governor-General Forbes gave the Philippines.

It was his fortune to be in office at the time of the change in the national administration of the United States. After continuing to serve for months with no sign from Washington as to whether his resignation was desired, he was advised by the Chief of the bureau of insular affairs that the appointment of Mr. Francis Burton Harrison, who is a Tammany Hall democrat, as his successor had been sent to the Senate, [481] and three days after its confirmation received a curt request for his resignation to be effected in a week and a day. He was also requested to employ servants for Mr. Harrison. Spaniards who read on the public streets newspapers which printed this message were seen to tear them up and stamp on the pieces! Our Spanish friends are accustomed to expect courtesy in connection with the removal of faithful and efficient public servants.

All other governors-general had taken the oath of office at Manila. Mr. Harrison took it at Washington on September 2, 1913. He is the first American governor of the islands who has entered upon his high duties without previous experience in the country which he is to govern, and he has as yet displayed little inclination to profit by the experience of either Filipino or American administrative insular officials of high rank. It is too soon to discuss any feature of his administration other than his attitude toward the civil service, which I take up elsewhere, [482] and I can only express the hope that when he has gained that knowledge which can come only through personal observation on the ground, he will grow to be a wise, strong, conservative official.

The establishment of civil government in the Philippine Islands under American rule was a gradual evolution up to the time of the assumption of control by Governor-General Harrison.

I will not attempt to follow in detail all of its successive stages, but in closing this chapter will endeavour briefly to summarize the results obtained up to that time.

The Philippines now have two delegates to the Congress of the United States appointed by the legislature in accordance with the provision of Section 8 of the Act of Congress of July 1, 1902. Both are Filipinos.

The ranking executive officials of the insular government are a governor-general, a secretary of the interior, a secretary of finance and justice, a secretary of commerce and police and a secretary of public instruction. All of these officers are appointed by the President, subject to confirmation by the Senate. The secretary of finance and justice is a Filipino; the other secretaries of departments are Americans.

There is a legislature composed of two houses known respectively as the Philippine Commission and the Philippine Assembly. The Philippine Commission is composed of nine members; five are the governor-general and the four secretaries of department ex officio, and four are appointed by the President subject to confirmation by the Senate. Four of the members are Filipinos and five are Americans. [483]

The Philippine Assembly is composed of eighty-one elected members, all of whom are Filipinos. They represent thirty-four of the thirty-nine provinces into which the archipelago is divided. The two houses of the legislature have equal powers. Neither has any special privilege in the matter of initiating legislation, and affirmative action by both is required in order to pass it. The Moro Province, the Mountain Province and the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Agusan are not represented in the assembly, nor are they subject to the jurisdiction of the Philippine Legislature. The Philippine Commission alone has legislative jurisdiction over them, their population being largely composed of Moros, or members of other non-Christian tribes.

The provinces may be divided into regularly organized provinces governed under the provincial government act, and specially organized provinces, which include the Moro Province, the Mountain Province and the provinces of Mindoro, Palawan, Agusan and Nueva Vizcaya, of which the first is governed under a special law and the remaining four are governed under a different one known as "The Special Provincial Government Act."

Regularly organized provinces have a governor and a treasurer. The governor is elected, and the treasurer is appointed by the governor-general with the approval of the commission. These two officials, with another known as the third member, constitute a provincial board. The third member is elected. As the Filipinos usually elect to office men from among their own people, practically all of the elective provincial officers are Filipinos, as are ten of the appointive officers, it having been the policy to appoint Filipinos whenever possible.

Regularly organized provinces are divided into municipalities which elect their own officers and control their own affairs for the most part. Provincial treasurers have intervention in municipal expenditures, which are approved in advance for each fiscal year, and municipal officers may be removed for misconduct by the governor-general.

All officers of the six special government provinces are appointed by the governor-general with the approval of the commission.

There are four regularly organized municipalities in these provinces, but the remainder of their territory is divided into townships, which elect their own officers, except their secretary-treasurers, who are appointed by the provincial governor; and into rancherias or settlements, with all of their officials appointed by the provincial governor. This latter form of local government is confined to the more primitive wild people.

The judiciary is independent. The details of its organization will be found in Chapter XV.

Three of the seven justices of the supreme court, including the chief justice, are Filipinos, as are approximately half of the judges of the courts of first instance and practically all justices of the peace.

At the close of the fiscal year ending June 30, 1913, 71 per cent of the employees in the classified civil service of the islands were Filipinos painstakingly trained for the positions to which they had been appointed.

Prior to the American occupation, the Filipinos had practically no intervention in the government of their country.

The changes introduced in the twelve years since the establishment of civil government began are of a sweeping and radical nature. For reasons hereinafter fully set forth, I believe they have been somewhat too sweeping, and too radical. At all events, it is now certainly the part of wisdom carefully to analyze their results before going further.

I deem the subject of the establishment of civil governmental control over the non-Christian tribes of the Philippines worthy of special consideration. [484]



CHAPTER XIII

The Philippine Civil Service

Before the Philippine Commission left Washington, a clear understanding was reached with the President and secretary of war to the effect that no political appointee whatsoever should under any circumstances be forced upon us. After arrival at Manila early attention was given to the drafting of a civil service act by Mr. Taft, who was fortunate in having the assistance of Mr. Frank M. Kiggins, chief of the examining division of the United States Civil Service Commission. The passage of this act and its strict enforcement led to very favourable comment in the United States. In his first annual message President Roosevelt said:—

"It is important to have this system obtain at home, but it is even more important to have it rigidly applied in our insular possessions....

"The merit system is simply one method of securing honest and efficient administration of the government, and in the long run the sole justification of any type of government lies in its proving itself both honest and efficient."

Secretary Root also gave us his fullest support, calling attention to the fact that the law which we had passed was of a very advanced type, and that under such circumstances as confronted us, the securing of the best men available should outweigh, and indeed practically exclude, all other considerations.

Our action met with the unqualified approval of organizations which especially interest themselves in the maintenance of clean and efficient public service, such as the Cambridge (Massachusetts) Civil Service Reform Association [485] and the National Civil Service Reform League, whose committee on civil service in dependencies spoke in very high terms of existing conditions in the Philippines. [486]

In its first annual report the Civil Service Board called attention to some of the more important provisions of the Act in the following words:—

"Competitive examinations must, whenever practicable, be held for original entrance to the service, and promotions of employees must also be based upon competitive examinations, in which the previous experience and efficiency of employees shall be given due consideration. The examinations for entrance to the service must be held in the United States and in the Philippine Islands, and applicants are required to be tested in both English and Spanish.

"Disloyalty to the United States of America as the supreme authority in the Islands is made a complete disqualification for holding office, and every applicant for admission to the service must, before being admitted to examination, take the oath of loyalty. By an amendment to the Civil Service Act on January 26, 1901, it is further declared that all persons in arms against the authority of the United States in the Philippine Islands, and all persons aiding or abetting them, on the first day of April, 1901, shall be ineligible to hold office.

"A minimum age limit of eighteen years and a maximum age limit of forty years are fixed for those who enter the lowest grades in the service. This avoids the difficulty and embarrassment that would result from the admission of men advanced in years to positions where the duties can be better performed by younger and more energetic persons.

"The Board is given authority to investigate matters relative to the enforcement of the act and the rules, and is empowered to administer oaths, to summon witnesses, and to require the production of office books and records in making such investigations. Without such a provision it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to conduct satisfactory investigations, but with the authority conferred by the act, the Board can make a rigid inquiry into the facts of every case arising under the act and the rules.

"The act provides for the ultimate classification of all positions in the service, from laborers to heads of bureaus and offices, and the Board may, in its discretion, determine the efficiency of those now in the service as well as those who may enter hereafter through its examinations. This authority will enable the Board to ascertain the fitness of all employees so that only the most competent will be retained in the service.

"As a check upon the illegal payment of salaries the act provides that whenever the Board finds that a person has been appointed in violation of its provisions or of the rules of the Board, and so certifies to the disbursing and auditing officers, such payments shall be illegal, and if payment is continued the disbursing officer shall not receive credit for the same and the auditing officer who authorizes the payment shall be liable on his official bond for the loss to the government."

In its third annual report the Civil Service Board mentioned the following among its distinctive duties:—

"All appointments to classified positions are required to be made on a form prescribed by the Board, and the Board's attestation is required in each case before the Civil Governor or Secretary of Department will approve the appointment and before the disbursing officer will pay any salary.

"The papers in all cases of reduction, removal and enforced resignation are required to be submitted to the Board for recommendation before transmission to the Civil Governor or Secretary of Department for final action.

"The Board is required to keep a record of all unclassified as well as classified employees in the Philippine civil service, showing among other things date of appointment, original position and salary, place of employment, all changes in status and grade, and all accrued and sick leave granted.

"From its service records the Board is required to compile annually, for publication on January 1, a roster of the officers and employees under the Philippine Government.

"Applications from employees, classified and unclassified, for accrued and sick leave for more than two days must be made on a form prescribed by the Board and forwarded to it for verification of service record and previous leave granted and for recommendation before final action is taken by the Civil Governor or Secretary of Department."

These extracts from official reports clearly show that the act was indeed of a very advanced type, and if honestly enforced would of necessity lead to the establishment and maintenance of "an efficient and honest civil service," for which purpose it was enacted.

In 1905 the insular government dispensed with boards as administrative agencies, and in accordance with this general policy, a bureau of civil service with a director at its head was substituted for the Civil Service Board, thus securing greater administrative efficiency and increased economy.

At first the Civil Service Act applied to comparatively few positions, as only a few bureaus and offices had been created, but as the government was organized and grew, the different bureaus and offices were placed in the classified service, the acts organizing them leaving in the unclassified service positions to which in the judgment of the commission the examination requirements of the act should not apply. Ultimately these requirements were made applicable to the treasurers of all municipalities and to all positions, including teachers, in the executive and judicial branches of the central government, the provincial governments, and the governments of the cities of Manila and Baguio, except a few specifically excepted by law, which for the most part are unclassified or exempt in almost all governments, national, state and municipal, having civil service laws. None of the states of the Union has such a widely extended classification of its civil service.

With the exception of the positions specifically placed in the unclassified service by law and of appointments made by the Philippine Commission, all positions in the Philippine civil service are classified and must be filled by appointees who have passed civil service examinations. Neither the governor-general nor the Bureau of Civil Service can, by the promulgation of civil service rules, or in any other manner whatever, transfer any position from the classified to the unclassified service or except from examination any position in the classified service. Under most of the civil service laws of the United States the President or the governor of the state has authority to transfer positions from the non-classified or exempted class to the competitive classified civil service or vice versa, these powers sometimes leading to manipulation of the civil service rules for political purposes.

In the Philippines, where emergencies, such as cholera epidemics, sometimes lead to the employment of large bodies of temporary employees without examination, when the emergency has passed the temporary employees have always been discharged; and no employee has ever received classification without examination on account of temporary service. This is in marked contrast to the practice in the United States, where large bodies of employees taken on for temporary service due to emergencies, such as the war with Spain, are not infrequently blanketed into the classified service without examination.

In its last annual report the board recommended that a number of official positions in the unclassified service be placed in the classified service, and gave as a reason therefor that such action would "add to the attractiveness of the classified service by increasing the opportunities therein for promotion to responsible positions." This recommendation was adopted by providing that all vacancies in the positions of heads and assistant heads of bureaus or offices and of superintendents shall be filled by promotion, with or without examination, in the discretion of the civil governor or proper head of a department, of persons in the classified civil service, if competent persons are found therein.

This provision is an important and distinguishing feature of the Philippine Civil Service Act. The federal civil service has none comparable with it. It is of special value in that it induces young men of exceptional ability and training to enter the lower grades, for they have the certainty that faithful and efficient work will in the end earn for them the highest positions.

On February 25, 1909, the director of civil service made the following statement with respect to the observance of the law:—

"A careful study of Act 5 and all acts amendatory thereof will show that there has been no change in the policy adopted by the Commission at the outset to extend the classified service as widely as possible and to fill by promotion all the higher positions so far as practicable. The provision requiring the higher positions to be filled by promotion so far as practicable has always been regarded by the Philippine Commission, by this Bureau, and by others interested in obtaining the best possible government service in the Philippines as one of the most important provisions of the Civil Service Act. It has been faithfully observed by all Governors-General....With the exception of the positions of Governor-General and Secretaries of Departments, the Philippine Civil Service Act requires the highest positions in the executive civil service, namely, chiefs and assistant chiefs of Bureaus and Offices, to be filled by promotion from the entire service in all cases except when in the opinion of the appointing power there is no person competent and available who possesses the qualifications required, and this provision has been faithfully observed heretofore."

The enforcement of the law by the commission has received the following commendation from the executive committee of the National Civil Service Reform League:—

"We have further to note with satisfaction the course of the Philippine Commission, by which, if it be persevered in, the merit system will be established in the Islands of that archipelago at least as thoroughly and consistently as in any department of government, Federal, State, or Municipal, in the Union. This must be, in any case, regarded as a gratifying recognition of sound principles of administration on the part of the Commission, and justifies the hope that, within the limits of their jurisdiction at least, no repetition of the scandals of post-bellum days will be tolerated."

Up to the time of the appointment of Governor-General Harrison the provisions of the Civil Service Act and rules were firmly supported by all of the governors-general and secretaries of departments, and the annual reports of the governor-general uniformly expressed satisfaction with their practical operation. Mr. Taft was always an enthusiastic supporter of the merit system.

Governor-General Forbes in his inaugural address made the following statements:—

"It is necessary that the civil service should be rigidly maintained and its rules carefully observed. One very distinguished Filipino has recently been appointed to administrative control of one of the most important departments of the Government, equal in rank to any executive position in the Islands with the exception of the Executive head. In the executive branch of the Government, the Filipinization of the service must steadily continue. As vacancies occur Filipinos will be gradually substituted for Americans as rapidly as can be done without positive detriment to the service. At the same time, care will be taken to provide a suitable career for honest and capable Americans who have come out here in good faith. They should know that during good behavior and efficient performance of their duty they are secure in their positions, and that when they desire to return to the United States an effort will be made to place them in the civil service at home.

"I want no better men than the present officers and employees of the Government, Americans and Filipinos. They compare favorably with any set of men I have ever seen both as regards ability and fidelity to duty."

Under the operation of the Civil Service Act the proportion of Filipinos employed has increased from 49 per cent, in 1903, to 71 per cent in 1913, as is shown by the following table:—

Comparison of Percentages of Americans and Filipinos in the Service

============================================= NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES YEAR - Americans Filipinos - 1903 ......... 51% 49% 1904 ......... 49 51 1905 ......... 45 55 1906 [487] ... - - 1907 ......... 40 60 1908 ......... 38 62 1909 ......... 38 62 1910 ......... 36 64 1911 ......... 35 65 1912 ......... 31 69 1913 ......... 29 71 =============================================

For the first few years after the establishment of the government large numbers of Americans were appointed, as there were comparatively few Filipino candidates with the necessary educational qualifications. During the last two years, 89 per cent of the persons appointed in the islands have been Filipinos.

There has been a great increase in the number of Filipinos entering the civil service examinations in English. Ten years ago 97 per cent of those examined took their examinations in Spanish, while during last year 89 per cent of those examined took examinations in English, the total number so examined being 7755. Almost all appointees for ordinary clerical work are now Filipinos, but the supply of bookkeepers, stenographers, civil engineers, physicians, veterinarians, surveyors, chemists, bacteriologists, agriculturists, horticulturists, constabulary officers, nurses, electricians, mechanical engineers, and other scientific employees is still insufficient to meet the demands of the service. Only one Filipino has passed the stenographer examination in English since the organization of the government, and it is necessary each year to bring many American stenographers from the United States. A few Filipinos pass each year the junior stenographer examination [488] and are able to fill some of the positions which would formerly have required the appointment of Americans.

The salaries paid to executive officials, chiefs of bureaus and offices, chief clerks, and chiefs of divisions equal in many instances those paid to officials occupying similar positions in the service of the United States government.

In the legislative branch the speaker receives $8000 per annum. Members of the Philippine Commission without portfolios receive $7500 per annum. Members of the Philippine Assembly receive $15 a day for each day in which the assembly is in session.

In the executive branch secretaries of departments receive $15,500 per annum each, including $5000 received by them as members of the Philippine Commission. The executive secretary receives $9000 per annum. The salaries of other bureau chiefs range from $2500 per annum to $7500.

The justices of the Philippine Supreme Court receive $10,000 per annum. Judges of courts of first instance receive from $4500 to $5500.

The following extracts from an article by the chairman of the Philippine Civil Service Board give information with respect to salaries in the Philippine Islands, as compared with salaries paid in surrounding British and Dutch colonies:—

"The salaries paid officials in all branches of the service of the Straits Settlements are generally lower than those paid in the Philippine civil service. In this connection, however, it is only just to state that the population and extent of the territory under British control, and the expenses of living, are less than in the Philippines, while the difficulty of the problems to be solved is not so great. The salaries paid to natives who fill the lower grade positions in the civil service of the Philippine Islands are three and four times as great as the salaries paid to natives in similar classes of work in the civil service of the British Malay colonies.

"A study of the colonial civil service of the Dutch in the islands of Java and Madura gives us somewhat different results....

"The matter of salaries is peculiarly interesting. The comparison made above of the compensations received by the high officials in the civil service of the English colonies and by those in the Philippines does not hold good when applied to the Dutch in Java. In fact, the salary of the Governor-General of Java is somewhat remarkable in contrast with that of the Civil Governor of the Philippines. As is well known, the latter receives $20,000, while the salary of the Governor-General of Java amounts to 132,000 gulden or something over $53,000. The American official is given, in addition, free transportation on all official investigations and free use of the governor's palace, but not the cost of maintenance. On the other hand, the Dutch governor is granted 51,000 gulden (about $21,500) as personal and household expenses and travel pay.

"The general secretary of the government receives 24,000 gulden ($9648), as compared with the executive secretary of the Philippine government, whose salary is $7500. [489] The seven heads of departments in the Javanese service each receive a like compensation of 24000 gulden. The Raad, or Council, of the Dutch colonial government is composed of a vice-president and four members—the former receiving about $14,500, the latter slightly over $11,500 each. In the Philippine government the executive functions of heads of departments are exercised by four members of the legislative body, each of whom receives $10,500 for his executive services and $5000 for his legislative duties. Without going further into detail, the conclusion is evident that all officials of high rank are much better paid in the Dutch service. When a comparison is made between the chief clerks and other office employees of middle grades—not natives—the salaries are seen to be about the same in the two countries.

"All natives in positions of lower grades, however, in the Philippine Islands fare better than their Malay brethren, either in the Straits Settlements or in the East Indies."—(Second Annual Report of the Philippine Civil Service Board, pp. 60, 61.)

"Difference in salaries for subordinate positions in the British and Dutch colonial services and the Philippine service are distinctly in favour of subordinate employees in the Philippine service; only the higher officials, after long experience, in the British colonial service receive larger salaries than corresponding officials in the Philippine service; the leave of absence and other privileges for the Philippine service are not less liberal than for other colonial services."—(Report of the Philippine Commission for 1905, p. 74.)

The entrance salaries of Americans brought to the islands are considerably in excess of the entrance salaries received on appointment to the civil service in the United States.

The following table shows the minimum entrance salaries given to Americans appointed in the United States to the United States civil service, as shown by the manual of examinations of the United States Civil Service Commission for the fall of 1913, and to Americans appointed in the United States to the Philippine Civil Service:—

==================================================================== Philippines United States Aid (Surveyor) $1400 $ 900 Civil Engineer 1400 1200 Forester, assistant 1400 1200 Scientific Assistant, (Agricultural Inspector) 1400 600 Physician 1600 1320 Printer 2000 .50 per hour Stenographer 1200 700 Trained Nurse 600 Board, 600 and laundry quarters and laundry Teacher 1000 540 Veterinarian 1600 1200 ====================================================================

The following cases taken from the official rosters show some promotions to the higher positions in the service of employees who entered the lower ranks of the classified service:—

A clerk who entered the service in 1899 at $1800 per annum was appointed in 1903 an assistant chief of bureau at $3000 per annum and in 1908 executive secretary at $9000 per annum. A teacher appointed in 1899 at $720 per annum was appointed a chief of an office at $4000 per annum and in 1912 a judge at $4500 per annum. A teacher who entered the service in 1901 at $1200 per annum was in 1909 appointed a chief of a bureau at $6000 per annum. A teacher who entered the service in 1904 at $1000 per annum was appointed in 1911 an assistant chief of a bureau at $6000 per annum. A clerk who entered the service in 1901 at $1200 per annum was appointed in 1909 an assistant chief of the executive bureau at $3750 per annum and in 1912 a chief of a bureau at $6000 per annum. A stenographer who entered the service in 1902 at $1400 per annum was in 1908 appointed an assistant chief of a bureau at $5000 per annum. A transitman who entered the service in 1905 at $1400 per annum was in 1913 appointed an assistant chief of a bureau at $4500 per annum. An accountant who entered the service in 1901 at $1800 per annum was in 1907 appointed an assistant chief of a bureau at $3750 per annum and in 1909 a chief of a bureau at $6000 per annum. A law clerk who entered the service in 1904 at $1800 per annum was in 1913 appointed judge at $4500 per annum. In no service anywhere has promotion depended more directly on demonstrated ability, and in many instances it has been rapid.

Young men living two in a room may obtain room and board in boarding houses in Manila at a rate as low as $35 per month each. In the Young Men's Christian Association building, a large reenforced concrete structure with reading room, gymnasium, and a good restaurant, the charge for two in a room is $10.25 each. Board costs $27.50, a total of $37.75. The expenses for clothing in Manila are less than in the United States, as white clothing is worn the whole year and white duck suits may be obtained for about $3 each. The expenses for laundry amount to about $5 a month. The necessity of employing a muchacho [490] is nil, in the case of an unmarried employee who boards. Servants are far cheaper and better in the Philippines than in the United States.

In a discussion of the salaries paid in the Philippine civil service the question of the leave allowed should be considered. Classified employees who receive an annual salary of $1000 or more per annum may be granted twenty-eight days' leave per annum to cover absences from duty due to illness or other causes. If not taken during the calendar year in which it is earned or in January or February of the succeeding year, it is forfeited. Employees taking vacation leave during the months of December, January, February and March may take fifty-six days, corresponding to two years of service, at one time, and may thus get time to visit Australia, Japan, China, and neighbouring countries.

In addition to vacation leave an employee whose salary is $1000 or more but less than $1800 per annum is entitled to thirty days' accrued leave per annum, and an employee whose salary is $1800 per annum or more is entitled to thirty-five days' accrued leave per annum. Accrued leave may accumulate for not more than five years of service.

All classified employees are entitled to visit the United States or foreign countries once in every three years, receiving in addition to their accrued leave, one year's vacation leave, allowance of actual travel time at half pay not to exceed sixty days, and return travel expenses from place of residence in the United States, or from port of embarkation in a foreign country to Manila, on the completion of two years of service after date of return. An employee entitled to thirty-five days' accrued leave per annum who visits the United States after having rendered three years of service receives a total of two hundred thirteen days' accrued leave, vacation leave, and half-pay travel time. If he postpones his visit till he has completed five years of service, he receives a total of two hundred ninety-one days' accrued leave, vacation leave and travel time. An employee entitled to thirty days' accrued leave per annum who visits the United States after three years of service receives a total of one hundred ninety-four days' leave and half-pay travel time, and if he postpones his visit until he has rendered five years of service, he receives a total of two hundred fifty-nine days' leave and travel time.

It will be seen that these are very liberal allowances. An employee receiving $1200 at the end of two years of service may spend eight weeks of vacation leave visiting Japan or other surrounding countries, and at the end of an additional year's service he may visit his home in the United States with six and a third months' absence on full and half pay and with his expenses from his home to Manila payable two years after his return, and during every three years of his service he may have the same privileges.

The law also provides that if an employee is wounded or injured in the performance of duty, he may have a total of six months' leave on full pay in addition to any accrued leave to his credit.

Employees who have rendered satisfactory service and resign after three or more years receive in a lump sum all accrued leave due and thirty days' half salary. For example, an employee who has received $1800 per annum and has served five years without taking any leave in excess of the four weeks' vacation leave allowable annually would draw $1025 were he to resign.

The school sessions amount to forty weeks per annum and the school vacations to twelve weeks per annum. [491] Teachers receive an annual salary and draw full pay during vacations as well as during school sessions. Every third year they are allowed to visit the United States or foreign countries with an allowance of sixty days' half-pay travel time in addition to the ten weeks' long vacation, and on completing two years of service after return to the islands they are entitled to their travelling expenses from place of residence in the United States to Manila or from port of embarkation in a foreign country to Manila.

It is interesting to compare these provisions with the regulations governing leave of absence in the British colonial service:—

(1) There is no distinction between sick leave and ordinary leave, the leave of absence on account of sickness being charged against the ordinary leave allowable.

(2) There are two classes of leave: vacation leave on full pay and half-pay leave.

(3) The vacation leave amounts to three months every two years, and must be taken during the two years, as it does not accumulate.

(4) The half-pay leave amounts to two months for each year of service, but cannot be taken until after a period of six years' resident service in the Colony, except in cases of serious indisposition supported by medical certificate, or of "urgent private affairs," the nature of which must be stated to the governor. In either case, the governor and council must be satisfied that the indulgence is indispensable.

Half pay in African and Asiatic colonies may accumulate for twelve years' service—i.e. twenty-four months' half-pay leave.

(5) After the exhaustion of all vacation leave and half-pay leave, an advance of six months' half-pay leave may be made on special grounds ("urgent private affairs" or illness supported by a medical certificate), the advance being charged against leave accruing subsequently.

(6) For the purpose of visiting home, an officer may be granted the vacation leave due him (which is never more than three months) on full pay, and his accumulated half-pay leave, to commence at the expiration of his vacation leave.

(7) Judicial and education officers do not receive the vacation leave described in paragraph 3 above, the vacation of courts and schools being considered equal to this, but they do receive the half-pay leave described in paragraph 4, and may, when visiting home on half-pay leave, receive full pay during any ordinary vacation of the court or school.

It will be noted that although officers in the British colonial service are allowed much longer periods of absence, the greater part of their absence is on half pay and the total money value of the leave allowable in the British colonial service and in the Philippine civil service is about the same. As officers naturally prefer to be on full pay instead of half pay while on leave, the provision of the Philippine law is in their interest; it is also in the interest of the service, as the periods of the absence from duty are not so prolonged.

The Philippine Civil Service Law is now about to be put to its first really severe test as a result of the change in the national administration. Heretofore those whose duty and privilege it has been to enforce it have been in the most full and hearty sympathy with its purposes. President McKinley was from the outset definitely committed to the widest application of the merit system to appointments in the Philippines. Mr. Roosevelt and Mr. Taft firmly supported that system, as has each succeeding governor-general up to, but not including, Mr. Harrison, who is as yet an unknown quantity.

It is interesting, however, to note that on the day following his arrival there was a demand for the instant resignation of Mr. Thomas Cary Welch, a faithful and efficient employee of the government, who had been for nearly ten years in the service, whose position was desired for, and immediately given to, Mr. Stephen Bonsal. That gentleman had been appointed at Washington a member of the Municipal Board of Manila immediately after Mr. Harrison's confirmation as governor-general. It is not recorded that Mr. Bonsal rendered any valuable service to the city on the voyage, or during the twenty-four hours of his occupancy of his municipal post subsequent to his arrival! Nor does it appear that he passed any examination before his early promotion.

Following closely upon the removal of Mr. Welch came a demand for the resignation of Captain Charles H. Sleeper, Director of Lands, who was unquestionably one of the ablest and most efficient of the bureau chiefs.

He had earned the ill-will of the politicos by insisting that persons authorized to make public land surveys, or other surveys on which claims of title as against the government were to be based, should know enough about surveying to make one correct survey when given an opportunity practically to demonstrate their abilities under very favourable conditions. He had also incurred the dislike of influential caciques by defending the occupants of small holdings on friar estates from the rapacity of their rich neighbours, and by protecting free-patent applicants and homesteaders when large landowners opposed their applications in order to prevent their securing land, so that they might the more easily be held as peon labourers.

He had started in his bureau a practical school for Filipino surveyors which was training really well-qualified candidates for positions desired by the politicians for themselves or their incompetent friends.

Last, but not least, he had helped to upset the plans of the men primarily responsible for the so-called "friar lands investigation" conducted by the House Committee on Insular Affairs, which cost the United States government a very large sum, and resulted in demonstrating his uprightness and the efficiency of his administration.

Mr. John R. Wilson, the assistant director of lands, was absent at the moment, but his resignation was demanded on the day of his return. He too was an active, efficient, upright man.

Both of these removals were political acts, pure and simple. Sr. Manuel Tinio was appointed Director of Lands. He is a bright young Ilocano of good character, who had become a "general" in the Insurgent army at twenty-one years of age. He is unfit to hold the place, because, as he has himself frankly said, he knows nothing about the work. He is charged with the duty of administering $7,000,000 worth of friar lands, and the whole public domain of the Philippine Islands, and with such minor duties as the checkmating of the machinations of numerous wealthy Filipinos who seek fraudulently to acquire great tracts through fraudulent claims to unperfected titles and by other improper means.

While in Honolulu, en route to Manila, Mr. Harrison gave out an interview, which I am credibly informed he has since confirmed in substance. It contained the following statement:—

"For years I have been of the minority in Congress and have seen the Democrats kicked about, trampled upon, and otherwise manhandled by Republicans, so that I must confess it now gives me a saturnine pleasure to see the Democrats in a position to do the same thing to the Republicans."

His early official acts after arrival at Manila confirmed the belief that this was indeed the spirit in which he was facing the grave responsibilities which there confronted him.

It is beyond doubt or cavil that high ideals heretofore have prevailed in the Philippine Civil Service. Are they now to be substituted by the methods of the ward politician?

In its report for 1901 the Philippine Commission said:—

"The civil service law has been in operation since our last report, and we see no reason to change our conclusion as to the absolute necessity for its existence, and strict enforcement. Without this law American government in these Islands is, in our opinion, foredoomed to humiliating failure."

I signed that report. I have not since seen any reason to change my mind.



CHAPTER XIV

The Philippine Constabulary and Public Order

During the last thirty years of Spanish rule in the Philippines evil-doers were pursued and apprehended and public order was maintained chiefly by the guardia civil. At the time of its organization in 1868 this body had a single division. By 1880 the number had been increased to three, two for Luzon and one for the Visayan Islands.

The guardia civil was organized upon a military basis, its officers and soldiers being drawn from the regular army of Spain by selection or upon recommendation. Detachments were distributed throughout the provinces and were commanded according to their size by commissioned or non-commissioned officers. Central offices were located in district capitals; company headquarters were stationed in provincial capitals, and detachments were sent to places where they were deemed to be necessary.

Under ordinary conditions they rendered service as patrols of two men each, but for the purpose of attacking large bands of outlaws one or several companies were employed as occasion required.

The guardia civil had jurisdiction over all sorts of violations of laws and municipal ordinances. They made reports upon which were based the appointments of municipal officers, the granting of licenses to carry firearms, and the determination of the loyalty or the disloyalty of individuals.

They were vested with extraordinary powers. Offences against them were tried by courts-martial, and were construed as offences against sentinels on duty. Penalties were therefore extremely severe.

Officers of the guardia civil on leave could by their own initiative assume a status of duty with the full powers and responsibilities that go with command. This is contrary to American practice, under which only dire emergency justifies an officer in assuming an official status unless he is duly assigned thereto by competent authority.

The guardia civil could arrest on suspicion, and while the Spanish Government did not directly authorize or sanction the use of force to extort confessions, it was not scrupulous in the matter of accepting confessions so obtained as evidence of crime, nor was it quick to punish members of the guardia civil charged with mistreatment of prisoners.

Reports made by the guardia civil were not questioned, but were accepted without support even in cases of the killing of prisoners alleged to have attempted to escape, or of men evading arrest.

This method of eliminating without trial citizens deemed to be undesirable was applied with especial frequency in the suppression of active brigandage, and latterly during the revolution against Spain. Prisoners in charge of the guardia civil were always tied elbow to elbow. They knew full well that resistance or flight was an invitation to their guards to kill them, and that this invitation was likely to be promptly accepted.

In the investigation of crime the members of this organization arrested persons on suspicion and compelled them to make revelations, true or false. Eye-witnesses to the commission of crime were not needed in the Spanish courts of that day. The confession of an accused person secured his conviction, even though not made in the presence of a judge. Indirect and hearsay evidence were accepted, and such things as writs of habeas corpus and the plea of double jeopardy were unknown in Spanish procedure.

The guardia civil could rearrest individuals and again charge them with crimes of which they had already been acquitted. I have been assured by reliable Filipino witnesses that it was common during the latter days of Spanish sovereignty for persons who had made themselves obnoxious to the government to be invited by non-commissioned officers to take a walk, which was followed either by their complete disappearance or by the subsequent discovery of their dead bodies.

It naturally resulted that the members of the guardia civil were regarded with detestation and terror by the people, but their power was so absolute that protest rarely became public. The one notable exception was furnished by Dr. Rizal's book entitled "Noli Me Tangere," which voiced the complaints of the Filipinos against them. There is not a vestige of doubt that hatred of them was one of the principal causes of the insurrection against Spain.

In 1901 the American government organized a rural police force in the Philippines. It was called the Philippine constabulary. The insurrection was then drawing to a close, but there were left in the field many guerilla bands armed and uniformed. Their members sought to excuse their lawless acts under the plea of patriotism and opposition to the forces of the United States. In many provinces they combined with professional bandits or with religious fanatics. Various "popes" arose, like Papa Isio in Negros. The Filipinos had become accustomed to a state of war which had continued for nearly six years. Habits of peace had been abandoned. The once prosperous haciendas were in ruins. War and pestilence had destroyed many of the work animals, and those which remained continued to perish from disease. Asiatic cholera was sweeping through the archipelago, and consternation and disorder followed in its wake.

Under such circumstances the organization of a rural police force was imperatively necessary. Unfortunately the most critical situation which it was to be called upon to meet had to be faced at the very outset, when both officers and men were inexperienced and before adequate discipline could be established.

The law providing for its establishment was drawn by the Honourable Luke E. Wright, at that time secretary of commerce and police and later destined to become governor-general of the Philippines and secretary of war of the United States.

It was intended that the constabulary should accomplish its ends by force when necessary but by sympathetic supervision when possible, suppressing brigandage and turning the people towards habits of peace. The fact was clearly borne in mind that the abuses of the guardia civil had not been forgotten and the new force was designed to meet existing conditions, to allay as rapidly as possible the existing just rancour against the similar organization established under the Spanish regime, and to avoid the evils which had contributed so much toward causing the downfall of Spanish sovereignty. The law was admirably framed to achieve these ends.

The officers of the constabulary were selected chiefly from American volunteers recently mustered out and from honourably discharged soldiers of the United States army. Some few Filipinos, whose loyalty was above suspicion, were appointed to the lower grades. This number has since been materially augumented, and some of the original Filipino appointees have risen to the rank of captain.

It was inevitable that at the outset there should be abuses. The organization was necessarily born at work; there was no time to instruct, to formulate regulations, to wait until a satisfactory state of discipline had been brought about. There were not barracks for housing the soldiers; there were neither uniforms, nor arms, nor ammunition. There was no system for rationing the men. All of these things had to be provided, and they were provided through a natural evolution of practical processes, crystallizing into form, tested by the duties of the day. The organization which grew up was a true survival of the fittest, both in personnel and in methods. The wonder is not that some abuses occurred, but that they were so few; not that there were occasional evidences of lack of efficiency, but that efficiency was on the whole so high from the beginning.

The several provinces were made administrative units, the commanding officer in each being designated as "senior inspector." The men who were to serve in a given province were by preference recruited there, and a departure was thus made from the usual foreign colonial practice.

In 1905 the total force was fixed at one hundred companies with a nominal strength of two officers and fifty men each. Under special conditions this rule may be departed from, and the size of the companies or the number of officers increased.

Each province is divided by the senior inspector into sections, and the responsibility for patrol work and general policing rests on the senior company officer in each station. The provinces are grouped into five districts, each commanded by an assistant chief who exercises therein the authority, and performs the duties appropriate to the chief for the entire Philippines. The higher administrative positions have always been filled by detailing regular officers of the United States army.

The constabulary soldiers are now neatly uniformed, armed with Krag carbines and well disciplined. They show the effect of good and regular food and of systematic exercise, their physical condition being vastly superior to that of the average Filipino. They are given regular instruction in their military duties. It is conducted in English.

The Philippine constabulary may be defined as a body of armed men with a military organization, recruited from among the people of the islands, officered in part by Americans and in part by Filipinos, and employed primarily for police duty in connection with the establishment and maintenance of public order.

Blount's chapters on the administrations of Taft, Wright and Smith embody one prolonged plaint to the effect that the organization of the constabulary was premature, and that after the war proper ended, the last smouldering embers of armed and organized insurrection should have been stamped out, and the brigandage which had existed in the Philippines for centuries should have been dealt with, by the United States army rather than by the constabulary.

Even if it were true that the army could have rendered more effective service to this end than could have been expected at the outset from a newly organized body of Filipino soldiers, the argument against the organization and use of the constabulary would in my opinion have been by no means conclusive. It is our declared policy to prepare the Filipinos to establish and maintain a stable government of their own. The proper exercise of police powers is obviously necessary to such an end.

From the outset we have sacrificed efficiency in order that our wards might gain practical experience, and might demonstrate their ability, or lack of ability, to perform necessary governmental functions. Does any one cognizant of the situation doubt for a moment that provincial and municipal affairs in the Philippine Islands would to-day be more efficiently administered if provincial and municipal officers were appointed instead of being elected? Is any one so foolish as to imagine that the sanitary regeneration of the islands would not have progressed much more rapidly had highly trained American health officers been used in place of many of the badly educated and comparatively inexperienced Filipino physicians whose services have been utilized?

Nevertheless, in the concrete case under discussion I dissent from the claim that more satisfactory results could have been obtained by the use of American troops.

The army had long been supreme in the Philippines. Every function of government had been performed by its officers and men, if performed at all. Our troops had been combating an elusive and cruel enemy. If they were human it is to be presumed that they still harbored animosities, born of these conditions, toward the people with whom they had so recently been fighting. Had the work of pacification been then turned over to them it would have meant that often in the localities in which they had been fighting, and in dealing with the men to whom they had very recently been actively opposed in armed conflict, they would have been called upon to perform tasks and to entertain feelings radically different from those of the preceding two or three years.

A detachment, marching through Leyte, found an American who had disappeared a short time before crucified, head down. His abdominal wall had been carefully opened so that his intestines might hang down in his face.

Another American prisoner, found on the same trip, had been buried in the ground with only his head projecting. His mouth had been propped open with a stick, a trail of sugar laid to it through the forest, and a handful thrown into it.

Millions of ants had done the rest.

Officers and men who saw such things were thereby fitted for war, rather than for ordinary police duty.

The truth is that they had seen so many of them that they continued to see them in imagination when they no longer existed. I well remember when a general officer, directed by his superior to attend a banquet at Manila in which Americans and Filipinos joined, came to it wearing a big revolver!

Long after Manila was quiet I was obliged to get out of my carriage in the rain and darkness half a dozen times while driving the length of Calle Real, and "approach to be recognized" by raw "rookies," each of whom pointed a loaded rifle at me while I did it. I know that this did not tend to make me feel peaceable or happy. In my opinion it was wholly unnecessary, and yet I did not blame the army for thinking otherwise.

After the war was over, when my private secretary, Mr. James H. LeRoy, was one day approaching Malolos, he was sternly commanded by a sentry to halt, the command being emphasized as usual by presenting to his attention a most unattractive view down the muzzle of a Krag. He was next ordered to "salute the flag," which he finally discovered with difficulty in the distance, after being told where to look. The army way is right and necessary in war, but it makes a lot of bother in time of peace!

This was not the only reason for failing to make more extensive use of American soldiers in police duty. A veteran colonel of United States cavalry who had just read Judge Blount's book was asked what he thought of the claim therein made that the army should have done the police and pacification work of the Philippines. His reply was:—

"How long would it take a regiment of Filipinos to catch an American outlaw in the United States? Impossible!"

Another army officer said:—

"Catching Filipino outlaws with the Army is like catching a flea in a twenty-acre field with a traction engine."

There is perhaps nothing so demoralizing to regular troops as employment on police duty which requires them to work singly or in small squads. Discipline speedily goes to the dogs and instruction becomes impossible.

Successful prosecution of the work of chasing ladrones in the Philippines requires a thorough knowledge of local topography and of local native dialects. Spanish is of use, but only in dealing with educated Filipinos. A knowledge of the Filipino himself; of his habits of thought; of his attitude toward the white man; and toward the illustrado, or educated man, of his own race; ability to enter a town and speedily to determine the relative importance of its leading citizens, finally centring on the one man, always to be found, who runs it, whether he holds political office or not, and also to enlist the sympathy and cooeperation of its people; all of these things are essential to the successful handling of brigandage in the Philippines, whether such brigandage has, or lacks, political significance.

The following parallel will make clear some of the reasons why it was determined to use constabulary instead of American soldiers in policing the Philippines from the time the insurrection officially ended:—

United States Army Philippine Constabulary

Soldier costs per annum $1400. Soldier costs per annum $363.50. (Authority: Adjutant General Heistand in 1910.)

American soldiers come from Constabulary soldiers are America. enlisted in the province where they are to serve.

Few American soldiers speak All constabulary soldiers the local dialects. speak local dialects.

Few American soldiers speak All educated constabulary any Spanish. soldiers speak Spanish.

American soldiers usually have Constabulary soldiers, native to but a slight knowledge of local the country, know the geography geography and topography. and topography of their respective provinces.

Few American soldiers have had The Filipino soldier certainly enough contact with Filipinos knows his own kind better than to understand them. the American does.

The American soldier uses a The constabulary soldier is ration of certain fixed components rationed in cash and buys the imported over sea. (A ration is food of the country where he the day's allowance of food for happens to be. one soldier.)

The American ration costs The constabulary cash ration is 24.3 cents United States currency 10.5 cents United States currency. (exclusive of cost of (No freight or handling charges.) transportation and handling). The constabulary soldier knows not Fresh meat requiring ice to keep ice. His food grows in the islands. it is a principal part of the He buys it on the ground and needs American ration. To supply it no transportation to bring it to him. requires a regular system of transport from the United States to Manila and from thence to local ports, and wagon transportation from ports to inland stations.

The American soldier is at no The idea of enlisting the sympathy pains to enlist the sympathy and and cooeperation of the local cooeperation of the people; and population is the strongest tenet his methods of discipline habits in the constabulary creed. of life, etc., make it practically impossible for him to gain them.

Before preparing the foregoing statement relative to the reasons for using Philippine constabulary soldiers instead of soldiers of the United States army for police work during the period in question, I asked Colonel J. G. Harbord, assistant director of the constabulary, who has served with that body nine years, has been its acting director and is an officer of the United States army, to give me a memorandum on the subject. It is only fair to him to say that I have not only followed very closely the line of argument embodied in the memorandum which he was good enough to prepare for me, but have in many instances used his very words. The parallel columns are his.

The constabulary soldier, thoroughly familiar with the topography of the country in which he operates; speaking the local dialect and acquainted with the persons most likely to be able and willing to furnish accurate information; familiar with the characteristics of his own people; able to live off the country and keep well, is under all ordinary circumstances a more efficient and vastly less expensive police officer than the American soldier, no matter how brave and energetic the latter may be. Furthermore, his activities are much less likely to arouse animosity.

Incidentally, the army is pretty consistently unwilling to take the field unless the constitutional guarantees are temporarily suspended, and it particularly objects to writs of habeas corpus. The suspension of such guarantees is obviously undesirable unless really very necessary.

Let us now consider some of the specific instances of alleged inefficiency of the constabulary in suppressing public disorder, cited by Blount.

On page 403 of his book he says, speaking of Governor Taft and disorder in the province of Albay which arose in 1902-1903:—

"He did not want to order out the military again if he could help it, and this relegated him to his native municipal police and constabulary, experimental outfits of doubtful loyalty, and, at best, wholly inadequate, as it afterwards turned out, for the maintenance of public order and for affording to the peaceably inclined people that sort of security for life and property, and that protection against semi-political as well as unmitigated brigandage, which would comport with the dignity of this nation."

The facts as to these disorders are briefly as follows:—

In 1902 an outlaw in Tayabas Province who made his living by organizing political conspiracies and collecting contributions in the name of patriotism, who was known as Jose Roldan when operating in adjoining provinces, but had an alias in Tayabas, found his life made so uncomfortable by the constabulary of that province that he transferred his operations to Albay. There he affiliated himself with a few ex-Insurgent officers who had turned outlaws instead of surrendering, and with oath violators, and began the same kind of political operations which he had carried out in Tayabas, the principal feature of his work being the collection of "contributions."

The troubles in Albay were encouraged by wealthy Filipinos who saw in them a probable opportunity to acquire valuable hemp lands at bottom prices, for people dependent on their hemp fields, if prevented from working them, might in the end be forced to sell them. Roldan soon lost standing with his new organization because it was found that he was using for his personal benefit the money which he collected.

About this time one Simeon Ola joined his organization. Ola was a native of Albay, where he had been an Insurgent major under the command of the Tagalog general, Belarmino. His temporary rank had gone to his head, and he is reported to have shown considerable severity and hauteur in his treatment of his former neighbours in Guinobatan, to which place he had returned at the close of the insurrection. Meanwhile, a wealthy Chinese mestizo named Don Circilio Jaucian, on whom Ola, during his brief career as an Insurgent officer, had laid a heavy hand, had become presidente of the town.

Smarting under the indignities which he had suffered, Jaucian made it very uncomfortable for the former major, and in ways well understood in Malay countries brought it home to the latter that their positions had been reversed. Ola's house was mysteriously burned, and his life in Guinobatan was made so unbearable that he took to the hills.

Ola had held higher military rank than had any of his outlaw associates, and he became their dominating spirit. He had no grievance against the Americans, but took every opportunity to avenge himself on the caciques of Guinobatan, his native town.

Three assistant chiefs of constabulary, Garwood, Baker and Bandholtz, were successively sent to Albay to deal with this situation. Baker and Bandholtz were regular army officers. The latter ended the disturbances, employing first and last some twelve companies of Philippine scouts, armed, officered, paid, equipped and disciplined as are the regular soldiers of the United States army, and a similar number of constabulary soldiers. Eleven stations in the restricted field of operations of this outlaw were occupied by scouts. There were few armed conflicts in force between Ola's men and these troops. In fact, it was only with the greatest difficulty that this band, which from time to time dissolved into the population only to reappear again, could be located even by the native soldiers. It would have been impracticable successfully to use American troops for such work.

Referring to the statement made by Blount [492] that Vice-Governor Wright made a visit to Albay in 1903 in the interest "of the peace-at-any-price policy that the Manila Government was bent on," and the implication that he went there to conduct peace negotiations, General Bandholtz, who suppressed outlawry in Albay, has said that Vice-Governor Wright and Commissioner Pardo de Tavera came there at his request to look into conditions with reference to certain allegations which had been made.

Colonel Bandholtz and the then chief of constabulary, General Allen, were supported by the civil governor and the commission in their recommendations that no terms should be made with the outlaws. The following statement occurs in a letter from General Bandholtz dated September 21, 1903:—

"No one is more anxious to terminate this business than I am, nevertheless I think it would be a mistake to offer any such inducements, and that more lasting benefits would result by hammering away as we have been doing."

And General Allen said in an indorsement to the Philippine Commission:—

"... in my opinion the judgment of Colonel Bandholtz in matters connected with the pacification of Albay should receive favourable consideration. Halfway measures are always misinterpreted and used to the detriment of the Government among the ignorant followers of the outlaws."

These views prevailed.

Blount has claimed that the death rate in the Albay jail at this time was very excessive, and cites it as an instance of the result of American maladministration.

Assuming that his tabulation [493] of the dead who died in the Albay jail between May 30 and September, 1903, amounting to 120, is correct, the following statements should be made:—

Only recently has it been demonstrated that beri-beri is due to the use of polished rice, which was up to the time of this discovery regarded as far superior to unpolished rice as an article of food, and is still much better liked by the Filipinos than is the unpolished article. Many of these deaths were from beri-beri, and were due to a misguided effort to give the prisoners the best possible food.

Cholera was raging in the province of Albay throughout the period in question, and the people outside of the jail suffered no less than did those within it. The same is true of malarial infection. In other words, conditions inside the jail were quite similar to those then prevailing outside, except that the prisoners got polished rice which was given them with the best intentions in the world, and was by them considered a superior article of food.

With the present knowledge of the methods of dissemination of Asiatic cholera gained as a result of the American occupation of the Philippines, we should probably be able to exclude it from a jail under such circumstances, as the part played by "germ carriers" who show no outward manifestations of infection is now understood, but it was not then dreamed of. One of the greatest reforms effected by Americans in the Philippines is the sanitation of the jails and penitentiaries, and we cannot be fairly blamed for not knowing in 1903 what nobody then knew.

The troubles in Albay ended with the surrender of Ola on September 25, 1903. Blount gives the impression that he had a knowledge of them which was gained by personal observation. He arrived in the province in the middle of November, seven weeks after normal conditions had been reestablished.

On October 5, 1903, General Bandholtz telegraphed with reference to the final surrender of Ola's band:—

"The towns are splitting themselves wide open celebrating pacification and Ramon Santos (later elected governor) is going to give a record-breaking fiesta at Ligao. Everybody invited. Scouts and Constabulary have done superb work."

Blount makes much of disorders in Samar and Leyte. Let us consider the facts.

In all countries feuds between highlanders and lowlanders have been common. Although the inhabitants of the hills and those of the lowlands in the two islands under discussion are probably of identical blood and origin, they long since became separated in thought and feeling, and grew to be mutually antagonistic. The ignorant people of the interior have always been oppressed by their supposedly more highly civilized brethren living on or near the coast.

The killing of Otoy by the constabulary in 1911 marked the passing of the last of a series of mountain chiefs who had exercised a very powerful influence over the hill people and had claimed for themselves supernatural powers.

Manila hemp is the principal product upon which these mountaineers depend in bartering for cloth and other supplies. The cleaning of hemp involves very severe exertion, and when it is cleaned it must usually, in Samar, be carried to the seashore on the backs of the men who raise it. Under the most favourable circumstances, it may be transported thither in small bancas [494] down the streams.

The lowland people of Samar and Leyte had long been holding up the hill people when they brought in their hemp for sale in precisely the way that Filipinos in other islands are accustomed to hold up members of the non-Christian tribes. They played the part of middlemen, purchasing the hemp of the ignorant hill people at low prices and often reselling it, without giving it even a day's storage, at a very much higher figure. This system was carried so far that conditions became unbearable and finally resulted in so-called pulajanism which began in the year 1904.

The term pulajan is derived from a native word meaning "red" and was given to the mountain people because in their attacks upon the lowlanders they wore, as a distinguishing mark, red trousers or a dash of red colour elsewhere about their sparse clothing. They raided coast towns and did immense damage before they were finally brought under control. It should be remembered that these conditions were allowed to arise by a Filipino provincial governor, and by Filipino municipal officials. It is altogether probable that a good American governor would have prevented them, but as it was, neither their cause nor their importance were understood at the outset. The pulajan movement was directed primarily against Filipinos.

The first outbreak occurred on July 10, 1904, in the Gandara River valley where a settlement of the lowlanders was burned and some of its inhabitants were killed. Eventually disorder spread to many places on the coast, and one scout garrison of a single company was surprised and overwhelmed by superior numbers. Officers and men were massacred and their rifles taken.

In point of area Samar is the third island in the Philippines. In its interior are many rugged peaks and heavily forested mountains. It was here that a detachment of United States marines under the command of Major Waller, while attempting to cross the island, were lost for nearly two weeks, going without food for days and enduring terrible hardships.

At the time in question there were not five miles of road on the island passable for a vehicle, nor were there trails through the mountains over which horses could be ridden. The only interior lines of communication were a few footpaths over which the natives were accustomed to make their way from the mountains to the coast.

Troops have perhaps never attempted a campaign in a country more difficult than the interior of Samar. The traditional needle in the haystack would be easy to find compared with an outlaw, or band of outlaws, in such a rugged wilderness.

Upon the outbreak of trouble troops were hurried to Samar, and by December, 1904, according to Blount himself, there were some 1800 native soldiers on the island who were left free for active operations in the field by the garrisoning of various coast towns with sixteen companies of United States infantry.

If the nature of the feuds between the Samar lowlanders and highlanders had then been better understood, the ensuing troubles, which were more or less continuous for nearly two years, might perhaps have been avoided. As soon as it became evident that the situation was such as to demand the use of the army it was employed to supplement the operations of the constabulary.

About the time that trouble ended in Samar it began in Leyte. There was no real connection between the disorders in the two islands. No leader on either island is known to have communicated with any leader on the other; no fanatical follower ever left Samar for Leyte or Leyte for Samar so far as we are informed.

For convenience of administration the two islands were grouped in a single command after the army was requested to take over the handling of the disturbances there, in cooeperation with the constabulary. The trouble ended in 1907 and both islands have remained quiet ever since. The same causes would again produce the same results now or at any time in the future, and they would be then, as in the past, the outcome of the oppression of the weak by the strong and without other political significance. Under a good government they should never recur.

Many circumstances which did not exist in 1902 and 1904 made it feasible to use the army in Samar and Leyte during 1905 and 1906. The high officers who had exercised such sweeping powers during the insurrection had meanwhile given way to other commanders. Indeed, a practically new Philippine army had come into existence. The policy of the insular government as to the treatment of individual Filipinos had been recognized and indorsed by Americans generally, but many of the objections to the use of the troops, including the heavy expense involved, still existed and I affirm without fear of successful contradiction that had it been possible to place in Samar and Leyte a number of constabulary soldiers equal to that of the scouts and American troops actually employed, disorder would have been terminated much more quickly and at very greatly less cost.

With the final breaking up of organized brigandage in 1905 law and order may be said to have been established throughout the islands. It has since been the business of the constabulary to maintain it. The value of the cooeperation of the law-abiding portion of the population has been fully recognized. The newly appointed constabulary officer has impressed upon him the necessity of manifesting an interest in the people with whom he comes in contact; of cultivating the acquaintance of Filipinos of all social grades, and of assisting to settle their disagreements and harmonize their differences whenever possible. He is taught a native dialect.

The constabulary have to a high degree merited and secured the confidence and good-will of the people, whose rights they respect. There is a complete absence of the old arbitrary procedure followed by the guardia civil and as a result there are frequent requests from Filipino officials for additional detachments, while the removal of a company from a given community is almost invariably followed by vigorous protests. The power of human sympathy is very great, and as the attitude of constabulary officers and men is usually one of sympathy, conciliation and affection, that body has earned and deserved popularity.

The success of the constabulary in apprehending criminals has been both praiseworthy and noteworthy. The courage and efficiency which have often been displayed by its officers and men in hard-fought engagements with Moro outlaws or with organized bands of thieves and brigands have been beyond praise. Many of its officers have rendered invaluable service in bringing the people of the more unruly non-Christian tribes under governmental control, not only bravely and efficiently performing their duty as police officers, but assisting in trail construction or discharging, in effect, the duties of lieutenant-governors in very remote places which could be visited by the actual lieutenant-governors only infrequently. I later take occasion to mention the valuable work done by Lieutenant Case in the early days of Ifugao, and to dwell at length on the splendid service rendered there by Lieutenant Jeff D. Gallman, who was for many years lieutenant-governor of the subprovince while continuing to serve as a constabulary officer. Lieutenant Maimban at Quiangan, and Lieutenant Dosser at Mayoyao, have been and are most useful, though they do not hold official positions under the Mountain Province or receive any additional compensation for the special services which they render. Captain Guy O. Fort served most acceptably as governor of the province of Agusan during the interim between the resignation of Governor Lewis and the appointment of Governor Bryant and Lieutenants Atkins and Zapanta have also rendered valuable service as assistants to the provincial governor. Lieutenant Turnbull is now assistant to the governor of Nueva Vizcaya for work among the Ilongots on the Pacific coast of northern Luzon. Other constabulary officers, who have not been called upon for special service of this kind, have performed their ordinary duties in such a way as to demonstrate that they were actuated by the spirit of cooeperation and have been of great help.