Chapter 17

Wood-Forbes Mission

 Succeeding Republican Government of Warren G. Harding wanted to verify Filipino preparedness for
independence in view of the rapid filipinization
 Harrison believed that complete filipinization was important if the Filipinos were to learn to maintain a
fully independent government
 A special investigation mission was led by former governor General W.Cameron forbes and Gen.
Leornard Wood who were appointed to look into Philippine affairs
 Wood-Forbes mission spent 4 months
 Philippine policy of the Republican party was unsympathetic to any proposal involving america’s
withdrawal in the future
 Indicted that the government was not reasonably free from those underlying causes which result in
destruction of government
 Criticisms were : lack of sufficient press which would insure a sound public opinion, mistakes in
finances, delay in administration of justice, need for good teachers, inadequate treatment and care
of cultural minorities

Administration of Leonard Wood

 Marked by vigorous political agitation – the most intense in Philippine- American relations since the
end of the Filipino-american War
 Wood took the position that the Jones Law – the organic act operating in the Philippines – could not be
modified except by action of US congress itself and that no subsequent legislation or executive action
on the part of the governor general or president of US could operate to change the law.

Wood vs. Filipino Politicos

 Manila’s metropolitan headlined the resignation of all Filipino leaders under General wood’s cabinet
thus precipitating the “cabinet crisis”
 Nationalistic feelings were aroused by holding up the governor as the enemy of Philippine autonomy
and independence
 Open break between wood and the Filipino leaders led by Senate President Quezon
 wood was bent on exercising the powers after the manner of an American executive chief
 determined to govern and to assume active leadership to remedy the maladministration he found in
the country
 Filipinos found this a threat to the autonomy they enjoyed
 Wood opposed independence except in the very distant future
 “American government would not extend any further autonomy until weakness pointed out in the
Wood-Forbes mission had been corrected”
 Complete independence would not be opposed if Filipinos were “industrially strong and could defend
themselves and hold their country”
 Osmena – Partido Nacionalista
  Quezon first broke away from Osmena’s party and then reconciled which was considered by some a
move of outrageous betrayal of people’s trust

Conley case and the Cabinet crisis

 Conley case – wood’s action in a police matter

 Conley case provided Quezon with an issue to bring on the “Cabinet Crisis”
 Controversy arose over charges of misconduct against an American named Ray Conley chief of the vice
president of the squad of the Secret Service Branch of Manila Police department
 Charges including the keeping of a mistress and making false statements relating to her were
presented, charges were repeated to the Director of the Civil Service
 Mayor of Manila, Ramon J. Fernandez was sent the charges for investigation
 A most exhaustive investigation was conducted under the Mayor’s orders by the Chief of Police, John
Green who reported that the charges were instigated by gamblers in order to get rid of Conley who
was making the gambling business unprofitable
 Secretary of Interior Jose P. Laurel who confirmed conley’s appointment to police force, received
numerous complaints that conley had received bribes from gamblers in Manila
 Mayor Fernandez and Secretary Laurel secured the approval of the governor to suspend Conley if they
had evidence
 They were insistent upon an administrative investigation to be conducted in their own departments but
Wood insisted that the case be given to the court of first instance to give a fair trial
 The committee recommended Conley’s reinstatement. Jose P. laurel transmitted the decision of the
general to the city mayor and tendered his resignation
 Mayor Rodriguez left his office without complying with the request and submitted his own resignation
 Chief of Police reinstated Conley
 Accusing the Governor with having meddled with and dictated details of the Philippine government
which should have been left entirely to the Filipino officials, The president of the senate (Manuel L.
Quezon), Speaker of the House (Manuel A. Roxas) and all Filipino secretaries tendered their
resignations as members of the council of state and as heads of departments on July 17, 1923
 Undersecretaries took over the positions and administered departments until the end of Wood’s term
in 1927 for the senate refused to confirm Governor’s appointments to vacancies in the cabinet
 It was a “protest against the encroachment by the governor general on the constitutional rights already
enjoyed by the Filipinos and against the usurpation of power in direct violation of existing laws
 Wood pointed his finger on Quezon
 Quezon, who was concerned about his political future became “impatient and provoked”

Governor’s Veto Power

 in the eyes of the Filipinos, Wood’s veto power was being excessively exercised on the most flimsy
motives
 6th Philippine Legislature passed 27 bills out of which 46 were vetoed, in the 7th Legislature , 24 were
vetoed out of 72 and in the second session 44 out of 122 bills
 Went to the extent of altering measures already passed by the Legislature
 Filipino leaders were annoyed that would should veto bills of local interest
  Wood explained that all vetoes were due to serious defects or unconstitutional provisions due to the
rushing through of a large number of bills during the last hours of the session without opportunity
being given for careful consideration
 Wood was convinced that Filipino leaders deliberately gave him impracticable legislation to draw his
vetoes and thus give them opportunity to charge him with despotism (cruel and arbitrary use of
power)

Board of Control controversy

 Wood was determined to get the government out of business

 The government in harrison’s time created and controlled stocks in various government corporations
through the Board of Control
 Wood was convinced that the board of control was illegal because the governor general occupied a
minority position in it (in violation of the organic act which placed supreme executive control in the
hands of the governor general) and so he could never get the consent of the senate president and the
house speaker to get the government out of business
 There were two fundamental reasons advanced by wood for getting the government out of business:
1st was that the Philippine Treasury needed the money invested in business enterprises to spend it
for the greater benefit of the public, 2nd was that the governments were not qualified, in any nation
of the world to conduct business and engage in any industries
 Wood was unhappy with the graft and mismanagement which he saw and felt that the only hope for
the enterprises was to put them in the hands of experienced American businessmen
 Filipino leaders wanted the continuance of the companies and a share in their management through
the board of control for to them, the acceptance of the governor’s policy would have meant
domination by the American capital, situation which might prejudice their campaign for independence
 General wood abolished the Board of control thus removing what he saw as the most serious
encroachment on the executive power in the Philippines. The order provided that thereafter, all duties
of the board of control would be exercised by the Governor general

Leonard Wood: In Retrospect

 His tenure was marked by deadlock and political strife with the Filipino Politics led by Quezon openly
Challenging the authority of American representative in Manila
 This was due to the governor’s program to restore American supervision and control particularly in
the legislature
 This was exacerbated by the clash of personal ambitions of Filipino political leaders and wood’s desire
to exercise what he saw as “inherent rights of the governor general”
 Any governor general who was sent after Harrison would have found Filipino leaders difficult to handle
unless he went as far as Harrison did in allowing Filipinos a generous share in the direction of their
affairs
 Wood was convinced that Filipinos had taken a stride backwards in the Harrison administration
 He found the Philippine government bogged down in a major financial crisis and riddled with
inefficiency, graft and nepotism (favoritism)
 He therefore saw it as a responsibility to reform the “critical situation” and restore the country to an
efficient and orderly government worthy of the sponsorship of Americans
 Had the right prescription –honesty in government and a tight administration – but had the ineffective
approach
 Showed little consideration for the sensitive feelings of the Filipinos, for whom self-esteem, personal
honor and that incomprehensible (to the westerner) worship of “face” were important matters
 Wood’s experience all his life had been an administrator with absolute authority
 If he thought of more methods and lower results he would have gotten better
 Forceful personality, powerful will, devotion to results
 Wood was thirty years in the military
 Partisan Politics had much to do with the “crisis” which clouded Wood’s term.
 Quezon’s lust for power (in the struggle to win supremacy over Osmena’s leadership) and his
maneuvers to shore up his sometimes faltering leadership made him difficult to deal with
 Quezon was a proud, volatile, charismatic with a tremendous capacity to manipulate people and
events to mobilize them to serve his needs
 He found the supreme moment which he turned into a national issue and succeeding himself as heroic
champion of Filipino Nationalism. He disagreed with Wood on almost every fundamental issue affecting
the Philippines. Wood, in a way, helped him by resisting him and insisting on his rights
 To the Filipinos, governor wood was not endearing personality, not simpatico, except to his close
friends; he was frigid
 A serious bone of contention between wood and the Filipino leaders was the issue of independence
 Wood opposed Philippine independence and resented the agitation for it by the nationalistic politics
 It was impossible to even think of independence when condition were unsatisfactory and Filipino
leaders were lacking qualities for leadership
 he possessed a vision of the future of the Philippines and was baffled that Filipino leaders did not the
same passion as he had devotion to duty, service and country, and highest ideals public morality
 offended Filipino pride by consistently arguing against Filipino capacity and character
 wood failed to understand the aspirations of backwards people for self-government for to him the
greatest blessing such peoples could receive was American rule over them
 it was unrealistic for the Filipinos to agree to the prolonged postponement of independence unless
there was a definite declaration
 Wood believed that all Filipinos wanted independence but were willing to trust the good faith of
America so long as America did not seek to backward step (in relation to the insular autonomy)
 Quezon and his colleagues felt forced to maintain a false and insincere position when they insisted on
complete, immediate and absolute independence in the Philippines despite being aware that their
country was not ready for independence politically and financially (symptomatic of indirection which
often characterizes Philippine society) they were compelled to take that position because no
declaration of policy was forthcoming from Washington
 Wood dismissed the independence movement as agitation of a handful of self interested leaders
 It was Wood’s wish the United States would hold the Philippines until a young and clear-visioned class
of leaders had succeeded to power
  Wood opposed any further concessions with regards to autonomy so long as irregularities reported in
Wood-Forbes report remained uncorrected
 Wood in running the Government was limited by the Jones’ Law
 Filipino leaders disagreed with wood on Economic Policy affecting the disposition of the public domain
and the administration of government owned corporations
 Wood stressed the need for economic development as a prerequisite to a stable government (A
prerequisite to independence) and favored attracting foreign capital to the country
 Filipinos were afraid that foreign capital would mean exploitation by foreigners and would nullify
economic policy established by the legislature (for the protection of rights and interests of the
Filipinos in the development of resources of the Island)
 Filipinos opposed liberalization of land laws to accommodate tropical plantations (Which would be
foreign financed and owned)
 Wood undeniably worked hard and knew the Philippines as few knew the country, he was sincerely
interested in the welfare and interests of the Filipinos, understandably enough he also worked for
American interests
 Wood had given the Filipinos a tradition of service in government and a loyalty to duty

Administration of Henry L. Stimson : cooperation restored

 Henry L. Stimson was inaugurated governor general of the Philippines on March 1, 1928
 He had determined to establish a working relationship with the Filipino leaders to remove ill-feelings
left over from Wood administration
 He was willing to compromise to win the confidence of the Filipino leaders
 Steered away from emotional independence issue and concentrated on political or administrative
cooperation while forthrightly expressing his view that only that would save the island from the danger
of immediate independence
 He favored a greater degree of autonomy for he sympathized with the Filipino demand for more
responsibility
 Had only one year but was characterized by very cordial relationship between Filipinos and Americans
(1st complete cabinet since july 23 was named)
 Proceeded with creation of machinery for the restoration of regular and responsible cooperation
between legislative and executive branches of the Philippine government
 Among them were the provision of technical advisers and assistants to the governor general (Belo Act)
and revival of the Council of state
 Also changed emphasis as to the prerequisites for independence --from previous stress upon fitting
the Filipinos for independence and sovereignty through training and responsibility in the political
sphere, to an emphasis upon economic and industrial development of the Philippines’ natural
resources as a sound basis for their independence
 Because of the genuine fear of Filipinos of exploitation, Stimson was able to implement only a portion
of his economic program
 After his term, Filipino leaders had begun to consider the “economic foundations of their political
problems” and realized that economic development could actually aid aspirations for self-
government
 Most significant achievement was the cessation of the period of acrimonious deadlock and the
substitution of cooperation and friendly feelings between the American authority and Filipino
leadership
 Stimson was able to accomplish because he understood what was necessary in order that sensitive
Filipinos would not be “provoked into fanatical outbursts”
 Succesors were: Dwight F. Davis, Theodore Roosevelt Jr., Frank Murphy