READINGS IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY

MODULE NO. 6

CONTENT AND CONTEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF SELECTED

PRIMARY SOURCES IN THE PHILIPPINE HISTORY
At the end of this module, you are expected to:
1. To familiarize oneself with the primary documents in different historical periods of the
Philippines;
2. To learn history through primary sources; and
3. To properly interpret primary sources through looking at the content and context of
the document.

ALFRED MCCOY, POLITICAL CARICATURES OF THE AMERICAN ERA;

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
- Alfred Mccoy was born on June 8, 1945, at Massachusetts,
U.S.A.
- He finished his B.A. European History in Columbia
University, New York, M.A. in Asian Studies in University
of California at Berkeley, and Ph.D. in History at Yale
University.
- He has written extensively about Philippine political
history, opium trafficking in the Golden Triangle,
underworld crime syndicates, and international political
surveillance. Perhaps his most well-known work was his
1972 book The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia, which
documented the involvement of the CIA in the production
of heroin in the Golden Triangle of Burma, Thailand, and
Laos.
- He is currently a professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

ALFRED MCCOY, POLITICAL CARICATURES OF THE AMERICAN ERA;

ABOUT THE TEXT
- POLITICAL CARTOONS OR CARICATURE
o are a rather recent art form, which veered
away from classical art by exaggerating human features
and poking fun at its subjects. Such art genre and
technique became a part of the print media as a form of
social and political commentary, which usually targets
persons of power and authority.
- Cartoons became an effective tool of publicizing
opinions through heavy use of symbolism, which is
different from a verbose written editorial and opinion

1
 pieces.
- The unique way that a caricature represents opinion and captures the audience’s
imagination is reason enough for historians to examine these political cartoons.
Commentaries in mass media inevitably shape public opinions and such kind of opinions
is worthy of historical examination.

ALFRED MCCOY, POLITICAL CARICATURES OF THE AMERICAN ERA;

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
- Philippine political cartoons gained full expression
during the American era. Filipino artists recorded
national attitudes toward the coming of the Americans
as well as the changing times.
- While the 377 cartoons compiled in this book speak
for themselves, historian Alfred McCoy’s extensive
research in Philippine and American archives provides
a comprehensive background not only to the cartoon
but to the turbulent period as well.
- In his book, Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of
the American Era (1900-1941), Alfred McCoy,
together with Alfredo Roces, compiled political
cartoons published in newspaper dailies and
periodicals in the aforementioned time period.

ALFRED MCCOY, POLITICAL CARICATURES OF THE AMERICAN ERA;

SUMMARY

The first example shown was published in The Independent on May 20, 1916. The cartoon shows a politician from
Tondo, named Dr. Santos, passing his crown to his brother-in-law, Dr. Barcelona. A Filipino guy (depicted wearing salakot
and barong tagalog) was trying to stop Santos, telling the latter to stop giving Barcelona the crown because it is not his to
begin with.

2
The second cartoon was also published by The Independent on June 16,1917. This was drawn by Fernando
Amorsolo and was aimed as a Commentary to the workings of Manila Police on the said period.

Here, we see a Filipino child who stole a skinny chicken because he had nothing to eat. The police officer was
relentlessly pursuing the said child. A man wearing a salakot, labeled Juan dela Cruz, was grabbing the
officer, telling him to leave the small-time pickpockets and thieves and turn at the great thieves instead. He
was pointing to huge warehouses containing bulks of rice, milk, and grocery products.

This third cartoon was a commentary on the unprecedented cases of colorum automobiles in the city streets.
The Philippine Free Press published this commentary when fatal accidents involving colorum vehicles and
taxis occurred too often already.

3
This fourth cartoon depicts a cinema. A blown-up police officer was at the screen saying that couples are not
allowed to neck and make love in the theater. Two youngsters looked horrified while an older couple seemed
amused.

The next cartoon was published by The Independent on November 27,1915.

Here, we see the caricature of Uncle Sam riding a chariot pulled by Filipinos wearing school uniforms. The
Filipino boys were carrying American objects like baseball bats, whiskey, and boxing gloves. McCoy, in his
caption to the said cartoons, says that this cartoon was based on an event in 1907 when William Howard
Taft was brought to the Manila pier riding a chariot pulled by students Liceo de Manila. Such was
condemned by the nationalist at that time.

4
 This cartoon was published by Lipang Kalabaw on August 24,1907.

In the picture, Uncle Sam is rationing porridge to the politicians and members of the Progresista Party
(sometimes known as Federalista Party) while members of the Nacionalista Party look on and wait for their
turn. This cartoon depicts the patronage of the United States being coveted by politicians from either of the
party.

ALFRED MCCOY, POLITICAL CARICATURES OF THE AMERICAN ERA;

CONTRIBUTION AND RELEVANCE OF THE DOCUMENT
- It serves as a mirror of the society’s colonial condition.
- It reflected the positive and negative changes in the Philippines during the said period.
- It conveyed scandals, struggles, and social changes of the American Colonial Period.
- It discovered Filipino’s creativity in journalism and cartoons and used it as an act of
protest or weapon in the struggle for social reform & independence.
- It showed an array of information and graphic images that mainly focused on the political
aspect.
- It showed how Filipino politicians failed to understand the essence of democracy and
the accompanying democratic institutions and processes.
- During those times, patronage became influential and powerful.
- It shows the transition from a Catholic-centered, Spanish-Filipino society to an imperial
America-assimilated one.
o For example, the “sexual revolution” mindset.
- It depicted the condition of the underprivileged Filipinos.

ACTIVITY NO. 8

5
 I. Draw your own poster/political caricature reflecting the present Philippine politics.
In addition to the poster, provide your explanations by answering the following
questions:
i. Why do you think this is our situation?
ii. What did you learn from the cartoons?
iii. Is the situation during the American Era similar or different from what is
happening now? Why or why not?

(Note: You may refer to the actual book of Alfred McCoy’s Political Caricatures
attached to this assignment)

REFERENCES:

Biography of Alfred W. McCoy, [Link] last visited on 13

October, 2022
Biography of Alfred W. McCoy, [Link] last visited on
13 October, 2022
McCoy, Alfred W., Roces, Alfredo, Philippine Cartoons, Political Caricatures of the American Era 1900-
1941; Vera-Reyes, Inc.

6
COMMISSION ON INDEPENDENCE, FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD; HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
- From the time the Americans arrived in the Philippines
in 1898, Filipinos persistently demanded to give them
independence. American colonial officials did not say no to
them because it would surely derail their effort to pacify them.
Instead, they appointed Filipino politicians to key government
positions hoping that by doing so they would forget their desire
for independence.
- The appointment of Francis Burton Harrison as
governor-general and the passage of the Jones Law in 1916
changed the political landscape in the Philippines. Jones Law
categorically stipulated that the American government would
give the Filipinos independence once they had established a
stable government. No specific date was given but for Quezon
and other officials, the written promise was already a significant
achievement.
Passage of Jones Law in the - They were further elated when the Retirement Act was
Philippines. passed in 1915 which offered an attractive financial package to
Americans who would voluntarily give up their positions in the
Philippines. This paved the way for the Filipinization of the bureaucracy.
- Except for the position of the governor-general, vice governor, Secretary of Public
Instruction, and a few more sensitive positions, all other positions were offered to
Filipinos. Local politicians were allowed to hold cabinet positions and top-notch Filipino
lawyers were appointed justices of the supreme court. Moreover, forty-five provinces
and more than eight hundred municipalities were put under Filipino governors and
mayors respectively. The Jones law also created a bicameral congress that gave
opportunities to politicians based in the provinces to participate in policymaking.
- Quezon led the Senate and the House of Representatives
elected Sergio Osmena as their speaker. While holding
key positions in the government, Filipinos tried to prove
to the Americans that they were now competent and
ready to manage their own affairs. They were expecting
that in the coming years, American officials would be
convinced that Filipinos are now compliant with the
requirements of the Jones Law and therefore must be
given independence.
- The defeat of the Democrats in the 1920 presidential
election had devastating effects on the aspiration of the
Filipinos to be given independence. Months after
President Warren Harding was sworn into office, he sent
Leonard Wood and William Cameron Forbes (Wood-
Forbes mission) to the Philippines to check if the Filipinos
had already satisfied the conditions set by the Jones law.
- The team conducted an exhaustive investigation and visited 48 provinces and 449
municipalities. The report they submitted was not favorable to the cause of the Filipino

7
 politicians. It exposed the corruption and patronage system that became prevalent in
government-owned and controlled corporations during the
Harrison era. It singled out, particularly the anomalous
transactions in the administration of public lands and the
banking malpractices that resulted in the bankruptcy of the
Philippine National Bank (P.N.B.). Quezon and other members
of the Nacionalista Party were offended by the report because
it insinuated that Filipino leaders were corrupt and
incompetent and therefore did not deserve to be given
independence.
- After Leonard Wood retired from the U.S. Army in
1921, President Harding appointed him Governor General of
the Philippines. When he was sworn into office on October
15, 1921, Filipino politicians did not oppose his appointment
because they were led to believe that he would go back to the
Governor Leonard Wood U.S. after a year to assume the presidency of the University of
Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, Wood opted to stay in the
Philippines and remained governor general until he died in 1927.
- During his governorship, he monitored closely the activities of the local politicians and
corrected some of their misconduct. He also vetoed numerous bills that the Philippine
legislature passed and appointed American military men in key positions under the
executive branch (known as the Khaki cabinet). On top of these, he strengthened the
powers and jurisdiction of the governor-general which were significantly reduced during
the Harrison era. Wood’s reforms and his reassertion of American sovereignty did not
sit well with Quezon and other Filipino politicians.
- As years went on the situation went from bad to worse and ultimately catapulted in the
Cabinet Crisis of 1923.
- The anti-Wood sentiment of Filipino politicians ruptured on July 21, 1923, and the event
that triggered it was the decision of Wood to reinstate Ray Conley, the chief of the vice
squad of the Manila police force who was accused of
receiving money from gambling lords. The case was
spearheaded by Mr. Almario, the secretary of the
City Mayor, who presented a faked telephone
conversation between Conley and some gamblers.
- When Manila Mayor Ramon Fernandez referred the
case to Gov. Wood, the latter advised the mayor to
bring the case in court. The court acquitted Conley
and to save their face, Mayor Fernandez and Justice
Secretary Jose P. Laurel requested Wood to allow
them to conduct an administrative investigation on
Conley. Instead of granting their request, Wood
created a board composed of the Civil Service
Director, the undersecretary of Justice, and an
American Colonel of the Constabulary.
- The board found Conley not guilty and
Manuel Quezon
recommended his reinstatement. Wood personally

8
 believes that Conley is innocent and the charges against him were
just fabrications of influential and well-connected personalities who
were affected by this anti-gambling campaign. After he was acquitted,
Conley resigned and Wood accepted it. Wood found him innocent
of bribery but he found him guilty of keeping a mistress and for
making false statements.
- Manila Mayor Ramon Fernandez and Justice Secretary Jose P.
Laurel felt insulted when they learned that the Board created by
Wood acquitted Conley. The decision put them in a bad light
because it implied that the case they filed against Conley was weak.
As a countermeasure, they explained to the people that Conley was
acquitted not because he was innocent but because he was an
American. Fernandez and Laurel tendered their resignation and
Senate President Quezon and Speaker Manuel Roxas also resigned as members of the
Council of State in support of Laurel and in protest of Wood's handling of the Conley
case.
- Gov. Wood tried to win back the support of those Filipino officials who gave up their
positions in his government. His gesture was not
reciprocated and this prompted him to accept their
resignation and replace them with their deputies.
- At the height of the crisis, various accusations were
raised against Wood. Quezon and his allies also sent a
cable to President Harding informing him of the reasons
why they resigned en masse. They also told the president
that they were planning to send a delegation to the
United States that would explain to him Wood’s blatant
disregard of the rights and privileges granted to Filipinos
by the previous administration.
- The document that will be presented basically
summarizes the grievances and disgust of Filipino
politicians who were affected by Wood’s reforms and
management style.

COMMISSION ON INDEPENDENCE, FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST

GOVERNOR WOOD; SUMMARY
- The document Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood is an example of a joint
resolution expressing the legislators’ disgust with the way Gov. Wood was running the
affairs of the government. It may also be classified as a protest or a petition letter. Since
the persons behind it and the circumstances surrounding it were highly political, one
could expect that it is loaded with political bias and partisan interest.
- Readers should be extra careful and should exercise due diligence in distinguishing what
elements are truthful and what are mere black propaganda. Some of the issues raised
here are partly true but were blown out of proportion in order to discredit the Wood
administration.
- Wood admitted in his diary that the “Conley case” was only a pretext and the root
cause of his falling out with the Filipino politicians was his refusal to let Quezon run the

9
 government. Lewis Gleeck on his part wrote that the cabinet crisis was provoked by
Quezon who at that time was desperately in need of an election issue that he could use
in his political campaign.
- The third paragraph of the document states that what prompted them to write the
resolution was Wood’s issuance of Executive Order No. 37. It abolished the Board of
Control that Gov. Gen. Francis Burton Harrison created during his term.
- This development stripped the power of Filipino legislators to oversee the sale and
management of government-owned and controlled corporations. The Board of Control
was important to Filipinos because they were given voting powers and they could even
outvote the governor if they voted as a block.
- For them, the Executive Order was illegal because it violates the principle of separation
of powers. Moreover, they claimed that the governor general had no power to abolish
it.
- Aside from E.O. 37, they also raised more than twenty other abuses and unjust acts of
the governor-general. They characterized Wood as “arbitrary, oppressive and
undemocratic.” The last paragraph of the document states that they are issuing it to
appeal to the judgment and conscience of the American people to support their stand
and uphold their political rights.

COMMISSION ON INDEPENDENCE, FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST

GOVERNOR WOOD; CONTRIBUTION AND RELEVANCE OF THE
DOCUMENT IN UNDERSTANDING THE GROUND OF PHILIPPINE HISTORY
- The document shows that by the 1920s Filipinos had already the confidence to debate
on equal footing with top-ranking American colonial officials like Gov. Wood. Despite
his military background and despotic tendencies, Quezon and his allies did not hesitate
to raise their grievances against him.
- The complaints that they enumerated in the document clearly show that the root cause
of the anti-Wood campaign was the decision of the latter to lessen the autonomy of the
Philippine legislature and the increasing interference of the governor-general on some
functions that were turned over to Filipino officials during the Harrison era.
o Many Filipinos felt upset when all of a sudden they lost control and jurisdiction
over certain government functions that for several years were already part of
their regular function. They also felt offended when Wood appointed Americans
to occupy key positions in the government even if Filipinos of proven capacity
were available. For them, the re-Americanization of the bureaucracy would make
them irrelevant and it would surely delay the giving of independence. These
developments forced Filipinos to set aside their personal and political interests
and formed a united stand against the Wood administration.
- The document presented is also relevant in the study of Philippine history because it
exposes the other side of the Harrison administration. Much of what people know
about this era centered on the Filipinization of the bureaucracy and the gradual
ascension of local politicians to key positions in the government. When Wood came in,
he exposed the negative effects of Harrison’s failure to put up safety measures that will
prevent newly appointed and elected Filipinos from using their position to enrich
themselves at the expense of the government and other people. He did not hesitate to
veto the poorly crafted legislative outputs of both houses of Congress and he also

10
 publicized the true financial state of the Philippine National Bank and other government-
owned and controlled corporations.
o Wood specifically explained that the P.N.B. debacle was the result of the illegal
transfer of deposits from New York to Manila, inexperienced management, and
dishonest and reckless extension of credit to well-connected Filipino
businessmen. It appears that Filipinos hated Wood not because he was pro-
American but because he implemented measures that prevented wasteful
politicians from making extravagant appropriations.
o It also insinuates that not all critics of Wood’s administration were clean and
with noble intentions when they campaigned for Philippine independence. Some
were just employing diversionary tactics to direct the attention of the Filipinos
away from their corrupt practices.

ACTIVITY NO. 9
I. Illustrate the acts that were allegedly done by Governor Wood as provided in the
“Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood.”

(Note: Refer to the actual text of “Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood”
under Annex “A” of this Module.)

REFERENCES:

Kalaw, M. M. (1927). Philippine government under the Jones Law: An Account of Contemporary
Philippine Government and Politics. Manila, P.I: Oriental Commercial Co.
Zaide, Gregorio F. & Zaide, Sonia M. (1990). Documentary Sources of Philippine History. Metro Manila,
Philippines: National Book Store

11
 ANNEX “A”
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST GOVERNOR WOOD
(Taken from Gregorio F. Zaide and Sonia Zaide’s Documentary Sources of Philippine History)

More than a quarter of a century has elapsed since the Philippines came under the American flag -- an
emblem of freedom, not of subjugation; a symbol of altruism, not of selfishness or greed. American sovereignty
was implanted in our country with the avowed purpose of training in us in the art of self-government and
granting us independence. Our good, not her gain was to be America’s aim. Our country was committed to her in
trust to be conserved and developed for the benefit of our people. Believing in the sincerity of America’s purpose,
the Filipinos applied themselves to the task of meeting the conditions exacted of them, anxiously awaiting the day
when America would honor her promise.

The first twenty years of civil government were marked by mutual understanding and loyal cooperation
between American and Filipinos. At the end of that period, when it seemed that the goal had finally been
reached, after the President of the United States had advised the Congress that the time had come for America
to fulfill her sacred pledge, Major-General Leonard Wood was sent to the Philippines as Governor-General.
Cognizant of the part taken by General Wood in the liberation of Cuba, the Filipino people expected that under
his administration the spirit of cooperation would be maintained and that the work of political emancipation
would be complete. Contrary, however, to our expectations, his conduct of government has been characterized by
a train of usurpations and arbitrary acts, resulting in the curtailment of our autonomy, the destruction of our
constitutional system, and the reversal of America’s Philippine policy.

This line of conduct recently culminated in the issuance of Executive Order No. 37, by which he has
attempted to nullify laws creating the Board of Control and assumed functions of the body. The gravity of this last
step is more evident when we recall the series of usurpations theretofore committed by him.

He has refused to assent to laws which were the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has set at naught both the legal authority and responsibility for the Philippine heads of departments.

He has substituted his constitutional advisers for a group of military attaches without legal standing in
the government and not responsible for the people.

He has reversed the policy of Filipinizing the service of the government by appointing Americans even
when Filipinos of proven capacity were available.

He has obstructed the carrying out of national economic policies duly adopted by the Legislature, merely
because they are in conflict with his personal views.

He rendered merely perfunctory the power of the Legislature to pass the annual appropriation law by
reviving items in the law of the preceding year, after vetoing the correspondent items of the current appropriation
act, in flagrant violation of the Organic Law.

He has made appointments to positions and authorized the payment of salaries therefor after having
vetoed the appropriations for such salaries.

He has used certain public funds to grant additional compensation to public officials in clear violation of
the law.

12
 He has arrogated upon himself the right of exercising the powers granted by law to the Emergency
Board after abolishing said board on the ground that its powers involved an unlawful delegation of legislative
authority.

He has unduly interfered in the administration of justice.

He has refused to obtain the advice of the Senate in making appointments where such advice is
required by the Organic Act.

He has refused to submit the Senate appointment for vacancies occurring during the recess of the
Legislature in contravention of the Organic Act.

He has continued in office nominees whose appointments had been rejected by the Senate.

He has usurped legislative powers by imposing conditions on legislative measure approved by him.

He has, in the administration of affairs in Mindanao, brought about a condition which has given rise to
discord and dissension between certain groups of Christian and Mohammedan Filipinos.

He has by his policies strained relations between resident Americans and Filipinos.

He has endeavored, on the pretext of getting the government out of business, to dispose of all the
companies capitalized by the government worth many millions of the people’s money to powerful American
interests.

He has sanctioned the campaign of insidious propaganda in the United States against the Filipino
people and their aspirations.

He has attempted to close the Philippine National Bank so necessary to the economic development of
the country.

He has adopted the practice of intervening in, and controlling directly, to its minute details, the affairs of
the Philippine Government, both insular and local, in violation of self-government.

He has insistently sought the amendment of our land laws approved by the Congress of the United
States, which amendment would open up the resources of the country to exploitation by predatory interests.

Not content with these and other arbitrary acts, the Governor-General has recently promulgated
Executive Order No. 37, declaring that the laws creating and defining the powers of Board of Control which is
authorized to vote the stocks owned by the government in certain private corporations, are absolute nullities. In
the same order the Governor-General also announced his purpose to exercise solely and by himself the powers
and duties developing upon said board. This executive order is purported to be based upon an opinion rendered
by the Judge Advocate General of the United States Army and the conformatory opinion of the Acting Advocate
General on November 7. Despite this fact, he has found it convenient to withhold the publication of his order
until November 10, a few hours after the Legislation had adjourned, thus depriving the Legislature of an
opportunity to consider the matter.

The laws creating and defining the powers of the Board of Control have been in force and acted upon by
the present Governor-General and other officers of the government for a number of years, and they have neither
been repealed by the Legislature, annulled by Congress, nor declared unconstitutional by the courts. To hold that

13
the Governor-General by a mere executive order can set them aside, is to subvert the whole system of
constitutional government and destroy the theory of separation of powers which the Governor-General has always
been so intent in upholding.

In the face of this critical situation, we, the constitutional representatives of the Filipino people, met to
deliberate upon the present difficulties existing in the Government of the Philippine Islands and to determine how
best to preserve the supremacy and majesty of the laws and to safeguard the rights and liberties of our people,
having faith in the sense of justice of the people of the United States and inspired by her patriotic example in the
early days of her history, do hereby, in our behalf and in the name of the Filipino people, solemnly and publicly
make known our most vigorous protest against the arbitrary acts and usurpations of the present Governor-
General of the Philippine Islands, particularly against Executive Order No. 37.

The consciousness of our sacred and inescapable duty to our country and our sense of loyalty to the
people of the United States constrain us to denounce the foregoing acts of the present Governor-General as
arbitrary, oppressive and undemocratic. We appeal to the judgment and conscience of the American people in
justification of our stand and for the vindication of our rights.*

*The document was originally published as Appendix of Maximo M. Kalaw’s Philippine Government
under the Jones Law.

14