Andres Bonifacio & Emilio Jacinto, best frat brods forever!

Emilio Jacinto with his Cartilla ng KKK and his best friend Andres Bonifacio at the Dambana ng Kagitingan atop Mt Samat, Bataan.

• "Ayon din kay Andres Bonifacio ay si Emilio Jacinto ang kaluluwa ng katipunan. Naging kalihim ng kapatiran ng mga manghihimagsik at siyang kinikilalang mata ng K.K.K.N.M.A.N.B. [Kataastaasang, Kagalanggalang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan] (Santos, 1935).”   Tr.:  According to Andres Bonifacio also, Emilio Jacinto was the soul of the katipunan. He was the secretary of the revolutionists and was considered the eye of the K.K.K.N.M.A.N.B.

His cousin-in-law Jose Turiano Santiago led Emilio Jacinto to the Katipunan, and thus began his amazing friendship with supremo Andres Bonifacio.

We wonder how Bonifacio sized up the long-haired young man, 12 years his junior, during their first meeting.  We don't know how true it was that when Jacinto was enrolled in San Juan de Letran and later in the University of Santo Tomas, he only had his haircut when he could no longer bear the teasing of his classmates (Santos).

Freshman pre-law student Jacinto was about to enter a fraternity of older men, and it could not have been different from what the young lads in the University of the Philippines today would go through once they opt to join a Greek-letter fraternity there.

We imagine master Bonifacio ribbing his prospective brod to first go and see a barber before they can even begin talking about the fraternity, what this brotherhood of this country's noble sons is all about, and going through the secret initiation rites that he, the supremo, and other founders originated.

The master could have discerned a treasure in the neophyte at the very start.  In today's setting, would Jacinto be a potential Collegian editor, chairman of the UP Student Council, or a Bar topnotcher? It's not unusual for senior fratmen to have promising brods to be groomed for the national leadership, in Congress, the Supreme Court and even the Palace! 

It didn't take long for Jacinto to gain the trust and affection of the fraternity head. "Nagkaroon agad sa kaniya ng malaking pagtatapat at pagmamahal si Andres Bonifacio na hindi maaaring matularan ng iba ..  (Santos)."

The young man spoke the language of Manila, kastilang tindahan (roughly today's Taglish), so he had to learn the dialect fast. Fraternal discussions were in Tagalog.  The supremo himself would be his Tagalog tutor, and in due time, the young katipunero surpassed his mentor in the quality of his oral and written Tagalog. 

One of the first things they could have found in common between them was passion for books on revolutions.  Both were fond of the History of the French Revolution.  Jacinto could have read La Solidaridad, El Filibusterismo, Les Miserables, The Wandering Jew, among others, from his mentor's personal library.   

"They were like brothers," Gregoria de Jesus, a katipunera herself, wrote of the supremo, her husband, and Jacinto. She had custody of the society's belongings for Jacinto, the Katipunan secretary, who lived with them. 

Emilio and Andres as featured in the Bonifacio monument, Kalookan City.

The supremo wrote the first regulations or ten commandments of the Katipunan, and later, the younger brod put out his own version, the Cartilla, which, of course, echoes Bonifacio's decalogue. Because of his affection for the younger brod, but more so because he found it better than his own, the supremo deferred to Jacinto's version. 

Bonifacio had so much trust in him. They shared secrets, and the supremo made sure he consulted his younger brod before they pursued any plan or activity. "Walang nang uuna kay Andres Bonifacio sa paghanga at pagdakila kay Emilio Jacinto.  Wala siyang lihim na hindi ipinagtapat ditto at walang bagay at pangyayaring hindi muna niya isinangguni kay Emilio Jacinto bago niya isagawa (Santos)." 

Together, they refined the policy structure and set up the propaganda machinery of the Katipunan. They secured a printing press, published the primer Cartilla, some sort of codes--the revolutionary Liwanag at Dilim (Light and Darkness) and the commercial Samahan ng Bayan sa Pangangalakal (Commercial Association of the People)--and their organ Kalayaan, which came out with two issues in 1896 (Fernandez, 1926; Cruz, 1922). 

When they went to war after the discovery of the Katipunan, it's said that the supremo was more worried about the safety of his young trusted brod even he was more at risk in the battlefield.

How close they were can be gleaned when they entered, side by side, Magdalo territory in 1897.  Here's Artemio Ricarte (1927) dramatic recollection of it -- 

"... Pagkatanggap ng anyaya, si G. Andres Bonifacio ay umalis na kasama sina GG. Baldomero Aguinaldo, Daniel Tirona at ang sugo ng Magdiwang, upang magtungong Nobeleta; sila'y nagdaan ngunit di na nagtigil pa sa Cavite el Viejo, at dumating sila sa Nobeleta nang unang oras ng hapon ng araw ding yaon, na di na kasama si G. Baldomero Aguinaldo. Sila'y tinanggap ng maraming pinunong naghihimagsik sa maliwalas at bagong bahay ng hukom pamayapa ng Nobeleta na siyang ipinahandang pangsamantala. Nang ika-3 ng hapon ding yaon, si G. Andres Bonifacio at G. Emilio Jacinto ay lumulan sa isang sasakyang natatalibaan sa magkabilang tabi; sa gawing kanan, ang nakakabayong si G. Daniel Tirona ay bunot ang sableng sumisigaw ng buong lakas tuwing matatapat a pook na may pulutong na tao, ng:- Mabuhay ang Supremo ng Katipunan! Nasa kaliwa naman si G. Esteban San Juan, sa likod nito'y kasunod ang mga sasakyan ng tanang mga Kagawad ng Magdiwang at saka dalawang pulutong na kawal na nakaunipormeng pula, isang pangkat sa harap at isa pa rin sa likod, at sa ganitong ayus ay nagsilakad ang lahat na patungong San Francisco de Malabon. Dito'y tinanggap ng buong sigla si G. Andres Bonifacio sa tugtog ng banda ng musika at saka "Te-Deum" sa simbahaln. Ilang nasa lansangan ang sumigaw ng:- Mabuhay ang Hari ng Pilipinas! bagay na narinig at sinagot naman ni G. Andres Bonifacio ng:- Mabuhay ang Kalayaan ng Pilipinas! Ang Kataas-taasang Pang-ulo ay tumuloy muna sa bahay ni G. Santos Nocon, komandante noon ng hukbong naghihimagsik, at nang huli ay sa kayayaring bahay ni Ginang Estefania Potente, hanggang sa araw na ikinakuha ng mga kastila sa bayang San Francisco de Malabon noong nagsimula ang Abril ng 1897 (Ricarte, 1927)." 

An English version can be read from the translation of revolutionary General Santiago Alvarez's memoirs, published in 1992: 

“The Supremo left Imus for Noveleta in the company of Messrs. Emilio Aguinaldo, Daniel Tirona, Baldomero Aguinaldo, Esteban San Juan, and others.  They did not stop at Kawit, although it was along their way to Noveleta.  When they reached Noveleta before two in the afternoon, they were joyfully greeted by the Magdiwang leaders and troops.  They were welcomed by a brass band, flags, fireworks and gunfire, and by shouts of “Long live the Supremo!” The Supremo would then answer back, “Long live the Motherland!”

“The party was led to a house where they ate and rested for a while.  At past three that afternoon, the Supremo and Sec. Emilio Jacinto boarded a luxurious carriage by well-fed, swift white horse to inspect the defense positions of the Katipunan territories.  A cavalry detachment led by Col. Santos Nocon provided the honor guard in front, on the left and right sides, and at the rear of the carriage.  Astride a magnificent horse, Magdalo Secretary of War Daniel Tirona rode abreast on the right side of the Supremo and Sec. Emilio Jacinto.  His sword was drawn and he was wearing a cap. Whenever they passed a crowd he would shout, “Long live the Supremo!” 

“On the left side was Maj. Esteban San Juan, and at the rear were Magdiwang infantrymen.  They were followed by a cavalry detachment and armed troops dressed in red. After inspecting the Katipunan country and its defenses, they proceeded to San Francisco de Malabon.  There the Supremo was also welcomed most warmly.  There was a brass band, pealing of the church bells, and a Te Deum said by Fr. Manuel Trias, a Katipunan member.

““Along the streets, some shouted, “Long live the King!” to which the Supremo would answer, “Long live the Motherland!”

“At San Francisco de Malabon, the Supremo stayed for some time at the house of Col. Santos Nocon and later moved to the house of Mrs. Estefania Potente.” 

We've been looking for Emilio Jacinto after this triumphant entry to Magdalo country. Where was he during the prosecution of his supremo in Cavite?  We were expecting a John the Beloved accompanying and protecting Gregoria during the trial, and when she went looking for her missing husband and his brother.

Alas, there's no passion and death of Andres Bonifacio according to Emilio Jacinto, the beloved brother. 

There's an account though of how Jacinto eluded the Spanish authorities after getting wounded in a battle in Majayjay, Laguna in 1898.  He recovered and went back to Manila, staying there briefly.  When he returned to Majayjay, he got sick and never got well again.  He died on 16 April 1899.

References:

• Alvarez, Santiago V. (c1992).  The Katipunan and the Revolution: Memoirs of a General with the Original Tagalog Text / Translated into English by Paula Carolina Malay.  Quezon City:  Ateneo de Manila University Press. Available in parts at http://books.google.com.

• Cruz, Hermenegildo.(1922). Kartilyang makabayan : mḡa tanóng at sagot ukol kay Andres Bonifacio at sa Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan.  Manila: S.P.  Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/ADT3553.0001.001

• Fernández, Leandro H. (1926). The Philippine Republic. New York:Columbia University.  Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/afj2313.0001.001

• Jesus, Gregoria de. (1930, June).  Autobiography of Gregoria de Jesus.  Tr. by Leandro H. Fernandez.  Philippine Magazine.  27(1):16-18,65-68.  Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acd5869.0027.001

• Ricarte, Artemio. (1927). Himagsikan nang manga Pilipino laban sa Kastila. Yokohama, Japan:"Karihan Cafe". Available at http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acs6869.0001.001

• Santos Cristobal, Epifanio de los. (1918, June). Emilio Jacinto. The Philippine review (Revista Filipina). Gregorio Nieve, ed. 3(6)412-429.  Manila, P.I.  Retrieved at http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acp0898.0003.001

• Santos, Jose P. (1935). Buhay at mga sinulat ni Emilio Jacinto. Paunang salita ng Kgg. Rafael Palma. Place of publication and publisher not indicated.

JP Rizal and the "Moros"

We do not know the Philippine national hero as deeply as the chairman of Ateneo's history department, Facebook friend/columnist/history lecturer with a very large fan base, JP Rizal authority Ambeth R Ocampo; hence, whatever we write here is subject to his critical appreciation, which we will most welcome.

Front cover of the satirical weekly Lipang Kalabaw issue of 28 Dec 1907. It says "Rizal healing Moro boys in Dapitan."

We combed through JP Rizal's notes and letters regarding his stay in Dapitan to see if he hinted at giving medical attention to "Moro" children even if he was not a pediatrician but we found none.  He did run some kind of 'boarding school' for boys though, who we take to be the sons of Christian families in the town.

We know that the "Moros" did not figure in the Noli and Fili. The only Rizal work we found where they were major characters was his poem The Battle:  Urbiztondo, the Terror of Jolo that he penned when he was a young Ateneo Municipal de Manila student.  Here he celebrated how Governor-General Antonio de Urbiztundo vanquished the "Moros" of Jolo.

Could the publisher, writers and illustrators of Lipang Kalabaw of the early 1900s, and may be most of our countrymen at that time, thought of Mindanao as largely Moroland, and hence the cover of the December 1907 issue (probably the Rizal Day commemorative number) had JP Rizal "healing the Moro boys in Dapitan"?

Probably still etched in their collective memory were tales of "Moro" pirates, reason why there were watch towers in some coastal towns.  They could also have been thinking of the "Moro Province" comprising Zamboanga, Sulu, Lanao, Davao and Cotabato that the Philippine Commission created in 1903, alongside their demarcation of the Filipinos into Christians and non-Christians.

There were no "Moros" among the indios bravos in the propaganda movement, nor were they part of the revolution instigated by the Magdiwangs and Magdalos against Spanish rule.  It took some more years for the "Moros" to be represented in government and their plight included in the national agenda.

This editorial cartoon of The Independent was reprinted in the December 1926 issue of the monthly magazine Philippine Republic published in Washington DC.

By 1926, when the US Congress was arguing on the Bacon Bill, the Filipinos have already assimilated the "Moros" into the national consciousness.  The Independent, a Philippine newspaper at that time, took up the cause of opposing the bill.  It's editorial cartoon showed how Bacon proposed to "take the Moro provinces containing vast tracts of rubber land away from the Philippine government and administer them as a separate government under the United States."

The cartoon depicted JP Rizal asking his countrymen what they're doing about Bacon's intent.  History tells us that there were mass protests against the bill, and Senate President Manuel Quezon, Speaker Manuel Roxas and Minority Leader Claro Recto went to Washington to convey to the US Congress their country's opposition to it.

This graphic illustration reminds us of the creation of the Autonomous Region of  Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) in 1987 as a result of an accord between the Philippine government and  the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).  But despite this, peace has yet to prevail in the southern Philippines.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) came around with a different political agenda. New peace negotiations were initiated.  Recently, its officially recognized head secretly met with President Benigno Aquino III in Japan about the possibility of creating a sub-state.  But this idea was met with critical opposition in the public media, and in social networks.  Tragically, talks about the resumption of the peace negotiations had been disrupted by violent encounters between the Philippine armed forces and supposedly break-away MILF groups or lawless Abu Sayyaf elements.  Aquino's response to these recent developments is not to make war but "all-out justice."

Would waging "all-out justice" result in a Moro sub-state?  Is this Aquino's Bacon Bill? 

References: 

• Front cover. (1907, Dec 28). Lipang Kalabaw.1(23). Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/aah0606.0001.001

• Reprint, The Independent editorial cartoon. (1926, Dec).  The Philippine Republic. 3(11):16.  Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acc6198.1926.011

• Rizal, Jose. (1875, Dec 05). The Battle: Urbiztondo, the Terrór of Jolo. National Historical Institute. Retrreved from Filipiniana.net at http://www.filipiniana.net/publication/the-battle-urbiztondo-the-terror-of-jolo/12791881729528/1/0

 

Modern day witch hunting, legacy from the Salem Witch Trials of 1692

As we write this, the street party of Halloween revelers in downtown Salem, Massachusetts, dubbed the Witch City, is in crazy fever despite the early autumn cold, the threat of rain or unexpected snow in October.  

Also known as the Jonathan Corwin House, the only remaining structure with direct links to the Witch Trials of 1692.  Magistrate Corwin served with the Court of Oyer and Terminer that sent 20 innocent victims accused of being witches to death between June and September, 1692.  (Photo by the author.) 

We've enjoyed this Halloween party each time we visited in Salem in early fall. The last day of the Haunted Happenings of October has all the state roads lead to the city, and parking would be a problem for visitors arriving in the afternoon.  Those in the know take the bus, ferry and commuter train because they can immediately jump into a boisterous crowd in colorful, absurd, funny and horrific costumes. It's one big holiday for camera buffs like us.

"Witch" is spelled in almost every visitor's sightseeing agenda in the, well, Witch City.  Those who are interested in witchcraft can go to the Salem Witch Village, which aims "to promote religious tolerance and participation in a positive society that encourages growth and acceptance of all its people."  They can walk with the Salem Witches and learn the truth about spells, love potions, herbal charms, among others.  These Witches celebrate the Witches' New Year on October 31! 

Salem derived it's nickname Witch City from the religious hysterical events of 1692, the Salem Witch Trials in American history. These events are recreated in the visitors' imagination in the Salem Witch Museum, the Witch Dungeon Museum, the Witch House, and the Salem Witch Trials Memorial.  Since 1983, historian/author Jim McAllister has been conducting every October the popular one-hour outdoor candlelit tour that explores the sites and the story of the 1692 witch trials.

The Memorial was dedicated by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel in August 1992 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the Trials of 1692.  (Photo by the author.)

There is a "historically accurate live presentation" of "untold stories of1692" at the Witch Museum. Here, visitors meet Tituba, the Caribbean slave in the household of  the Reverend Parris, one of the three women that the girls Elizabeth Parris, daughter of the reverend, and Abigail Williams, his niece, blamed for their mad afflictions.  The three women were accused of witchcraft but it was only Tituba who confessed of having met "the Devil" and told the court that there were other witches out to destroy their community.  The witch hunt began with Tituba's "confession." 

At the Witch Dungeon Museum, visitors can watch a reenactment of the trial of Sarah Good based on the original transcript of 1692 (the court records are found in various documentary archives listed in the webpage Salem Witch Trials). 

There's also the long-running play, "Cry Innocent: The People vs. Bridget Bishop" mounted by History Alive! of the Gordon College theater department at the Old Town Hall.  The audience acts as part of the jury, listening to testimonies, cross-examining the witnesses and deciding the verdict.  The actors respond in character to comments and questions from the audience.

The Witch House is the only remaining structure in Salem that has direct links with the Witch Trials. It is also called The Jonathan Corwin House.  Corwin was the local magistrate who served on the Court of Oyer and Terminer, which sentenced nineteen innocent citizens accused of witchcraft to death by hanging.  The 20th victim was pinned with stones to death. He was 24 in 1675 when he bought the house, which remained with the Corwin family until the mid-1800s. 

The Salem Witch Trials Memorial was designed by Maggie Smith and James Cutler. It was chosen from among 246 entries in an international competition.  Picture shows 20 granite benches jutting out from a low stone wall surrounding the area. Each bench is inscribed with the name of the victim and the date of his/her execution. Behind the wall on the left is the Old Burying Point. (Photo by the author.)

  

In August 1992, Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel dedicated the Salem Witch Trials Memorial to commemorate the tercenary or 300th anniversary of the events of 1692.  This adjoins the Old Burying Point behind the Essex Peabody Museum in downtown Salem.  It consists of 20 granite benches jutting out from a low stone wall, and each is inscribed with the name of the innocent victim and his/her date of execution.  There were 14 women and 6 men who were executed on separate dates - 10 June, 19 July, 19 August, 19 and 22 September, 1692. 

Bridget Bishop was the first to go to the gallows.  She cried, "I am no witch. I am innocent. I know nothing of it." (Photo by the author.)

There were five of them who were hanged on 19 Jul 1692.  The other four were Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin and Sarah Wildes. Howe cried, "If it was the last moment I was to live, God knows I am innocent..."  "Oh Lord, help me!," Rebecca Nurse implored, "It is false. I am clear. For my life now lies in your hands...."   "I have no hand in witchcraft,"Susannah Martin professed. (Photo by the author.)

Four men and one woman--John Proctor, John Willard. George Burroughs, George Jacobs and Martha Carrier--met their death on 19 Aug 1692.  "I am wronged. It is a shameful thing that you should mind these folks that are out of their wits," Martha Carrier cried.  (Photo by the author.)

Giles Corey, 80 years old, expired after two days of being pressed by stones piled on his chest. Till death, he refused to plead guilty before the court. (Photo by the author.)

Six women and two men were hanged on 22 Sep 1692: Mary Eastey, Martha Corey, Ann Pudeator, Mary Parker, Alice Parker, Margaret Scott, Wilmot Redd and Samuel Wardwell. "Ye are all against me," Martha Corey told the jurors.  "If it be possible no more blood be shed," implored Mary Eastey, "I am clear of this sin." (Photo by the author.)

It would take years before the 20 victims were cleared of their accusation.  Many of those involved publicly confessed their error and guilt.  "On January 14, 1697, the General Court ordered a day of fasting and soul-searching for the tragedy of Salem.  In 1702, the court declared the trials unlawful. And in 1711, the colony passed a bill restoring the rights and good names of those accused and granted £600 restitution to their heirs.  However, it was until1957--more than 250 years later--that Massachusetts formally apologized for the events of 1692 (Blumberg, 2007)."

Marker on the grave of Col. John Hathorne, one of the magistrates of the Court of Oyer and Terminer that tried and sentenced to death the 20 innocent victims of the Salem Witch Trials.  His grave is in the Old Burying Point that adjoins the Salem Witch Trials Memorial.  (Photo by the author.)

"Witch hunting" is the legacy of 1692 that survives today. During the McCarthy era in US history from after the second world war to the late 1950s, thousands of American government employees, entertainers, writers, artists, educators, labor unionists, etc. were suspected to be communists or communist sympathizers and accused of subversive activities based on questionable evidences.  There was a similar period in Philippine history when academicians from the University of the Philippines were accused by the Legislature's committee on un-Filipino activities of being communists. 

Other modern-day witch hunting can be discerned in the discrimination of one religious group against another (the Muslim and the terrorist tags after 9/11, for example), the gay bashing and the expired "Don't ask, don't tell" policy in the US military, and the "trial by publicity" in a much-hyped controversial criminal or social case by tabloid journalists, usually.

References:

• Blumberg, Jess.  (2007, Oct 24). A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials.One town's strange journey from paranoia to pardon. Smithsonian.com at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/brief-salem.html?c=y&story=fullstory

• Salem Witch Trials. Documentary Archive and Transcription Project at http://www2.iath.virginia.edu/salem/archive2.html

• Salem Witch Trials. The Comprehensive Salem Guide at http://www.salemweb.com/guide/witches.shtml and http://www.salemweb.com/memorial/

Terms of interment then and now

The 'brains of the Katipunan' could have been buried simply 'rezado' (a priest prayed over his body), or if he had the means, 'cantado con posas, vigilia, cajon y tumba' (there was a wake, he was laid in a coffin, and a priest sang prayers behind it during the funeral procession from their house to his tomb in the cemetery). [Picture Source:  Heroes Photo Collection of Ambeth Ocampo.]

We were listening to a woman from the urban poor sector telling a TV reporter that she does not think of having her deceased husband cremated even if this is a less expensive option than doing business with a funeral parlor for her dear departed's coffin, wake and interment.  Her reason:  cremation is for the rich!

Burial of Don Catalino Abiva, 53, a man of means, on 22 Sep 1889:  "Fue entierro cantado con posas, vigilia, tumba y cajon."  His remains were contained in a coffin (cajon) and laid to rest in a tomb (tumba).  There was a wake or vigil (vigilia) in the church.  "Cantado con posas" could mean the priest fetched the remains from the Abiva house and accompanied it to the cemetery singing prayers along the way, a practice still done today by the Aglipayan church of San Narciso, Zambales.  The bill for the services are listed on the right of the burial entry.  (Source:  Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

Going to the Great Beyond really does entail considerable expense for those who are left behind. Hence, the pre-need plans for those who can afford to prepare for the inevitable end, and the financial KBL (kasal-binyag-libing, wedding-baptism-burial) assistance of local government executives for both charitable and political reasons.  We were neighbors to a block of informal settlers in Cubao in the 1970s, and we witnessed that wakes for the dead could last more than a week to raise funds for interment, although there were rumors that these provided the cloak to run a small-scale neighborhood casino.

Burial of ordinary citizen Dionisio Gregorio Amon, 32, on 25 Jun 1889:  "Fue su entierro rezado con cajon (the priest prayed over his body laid in a coffin)." The church services were "gratis" (free). (Source:  Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

During the Spanish regime and into the 1930s, the people of our town buried their dead within 48 hours.  Definitely, the art/science of embalming had not reached this coastal town yet. Funeral parlors are recent business ventures there.  There were no coffins of various styles and colors with different price tags yet to choose from.  Even into the 1950s, when we were an innocent boy, we still saw carpenters make coffins for the dead in our neighborhood using carefully measured and cut pieces of wood from the hardware store.  Superstition had it that the coffin must exactly fit the departing body.

Burial of Chinese Christian Tomas Barretto, 36, on 13 Mar 1892:  "Fue su entierro cantado (the priest sang the prayer over his body)." The bill for the church services are written on the right margin of the burial entry.  (Source:  Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

Electricity came late to our town.  The Ramos Electric Company of our relatives provided power after the second world war, and we remember we had lights only six-to-six, early evening to early morning.  We imagine candles and wicked oil lamps lighting up a one-night wakes during the pre-electricity period. These could have been held in the town church because one of the services paid to the church was for "vigilia" (wake or vigil).

Wakes in the cities are now held in the chapels of funeral homes or memorial parks or large churches. Expense for these are included in the pre-need plans.  Many sleepless nights for the bereaved also entail funds for food, snacks, coffee, etc. in the entertainment of friends who come to condole, and for novena masses until before the body is taken out for burial.

Burial of Don Anacleto Sugui, 62, a past cabeza de barangay, on 08 Nov 1889:  "Fue su entierro rezado (the priest prayed over his body)." This suggests that he was not laid in a coffin, nor did he have a tomb.  He was buried under the ground. The priest's service was free.    (Source:  Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

Wakes in the countryside have taken a new twist.  In our town, the funeral parlor services also include a live band event during the last-night vigil, which comes as a package with a brass band for the funeral procession the next day.  The live band is to attract more people to hopefully spend a sleepless night with the bereaved family. 

For those with lesser means, the live band may be a karaoke or sing-along music system.  Filipinos are musical, and it is expected that there would be a queue to the microphone of the town's or barrio's undiscovered singing talents.

Unless the bereaved family is strict about gambling in the premises, there would always be tables for the mahjong or card players.

All these mean that a kitchen cabinet of friendly neighbors and relatives would be around to serve the late night snack of sandwiches and/or arroz caldo, and to keep the supply of hot water for 3-in-1 coffee running.

Burial of R.Padre Fraile Celestino Fernandez de Retana de San Jose, Agustine Recollect, parish priest of San Narciso, Zambales, 35, on 15 Jul 1889.  He was the first in the list of cholera victims in the burial records.   The entry did not say anything about his burial.  It is presumed that Fraile Cipriano Acha prayed over his body before this was wrapped and buried. (Source:  Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

The funeral procession today has the deceased in a coffin conveyed to his grave in a funeral car.  One suspects that there is a funeral cortege ahead if the traffic slows down on Metro Manila streets or on the stretch of MacArthur highway from Pampanga to Zambales.  This service of course comes with the pre-need plan.

In our town, the funeral car may be done away with and replaced with a horse-drawn caisson or carriage.  It could still be a carroza (float) decorated with flowers ceremonially pulled by the menfolk using a pair of long ropes.  The horses are rented from Pampanga thus the dramatic effect of a  horse-drawn carriage equates to quite a hefty sum of money.

When our parents died, they were buried with the Aglipayan (Philippine Independent Church) priest attending them.  Both were fetched by the priest and brought to the church where a mass was said.  Before their remains were brought out of the house, the priest and some elder women sang prayers for them.  We remember that in the case of our mother, the funeral procession paused a couple of times and the priest and the women again sang prayers.  In the case of our father, who was a widower for around 25 years, the priest and the women just said the prayers.  Probably, it was faster that way or they did not know tune of the prayer song.

Thus in recent memory, "cantado con posas" was still in practice.

Then and now, burial services depends on capability to pay.

68,000 classrooms needed; TEN Moves go for 10,000 units

“Plan No. 1.--This building contains one unit, 7 meters by 9 meters. It provides classroom space for approximately 50 pupils. It is suitable for construction in the smaller barrios. Future additions to this building cannot be made without seriously interfering with the original structure. This type of building has been constructed for P2,100 [around US$1,000].

“Plan No. 3.--This building contains three units and provides classroom space for approximately 150 pupils. The units are so arranged that two additional classrooms may be constructed at the rear or front of the building, thus forming a complete structure of five classrooms. This building is suitable for central barrios where the attendance will, in all probability, not exceed 250 pupils. This type of building has been constructed for P6,000 [around US$3,000].”  -- Bulletin No. 37-1912.

 

The Philippines department of education (DepEd) recently launched in San Francisco, California its TEN Moves (short for ‘The Entire Nation Moves’) project to attract US-based Filipinos and other nationals to support the construction of 10,000 classrooms, which is estimated to cost Php600,000 (US$14,000) each.

The DepEd strategy aims to raise some PhP6-billion (US$140M)  from two million supporters, which means each donor contributing Php3,000 (US$70) each.

This partially addresses the need for 68,000 classrooms for students going into the 10-year basic schooling from kindergarten to junior high school.   Current budget is reported to be sufficient only for the construction of 58,000 units.

“Plan No. 2.--This building contains two units and provides classroom space for approximately 100 pupils. It is suitable for larger barrios, but should not be authorized in places where future additions are contemplated, as this cannot be done without seriously affecting the general construction. This type of building has been constructed for P4,100 [around US$2,000].

“Plan No. 10.-This provides for six classrooms and an assembly room with storeroom and office. The assembly room occupies space equivalent to three classrooms. This type of building is suitable for large central schools and is recommended for large growing towns. It has been constructed for P18,000 [US$9,000].” -- Bulletin No. 37-1912.

TEN Moves is a private sector initiative, part of the bigger Bayanihang Pampaaralan campaign of the 57-75 Education Reform Movement, which is an alliance of the Ateneo Center for Educational Development (ACED), Foundation for Worldwide People Power (FWWPP), League of Corporate Foundations (LCF), Philippine Business for Education (PBEd), Philippine Business for Social Progress ((PBSP), and Synergeia Foundation (Synergeia).

The reverse-image 57-75 speaks of the mission of the alliance-- “to reverse the educational crisis.”  The number 57 reflects the current state of affairs of the Philippine public education system being the national average score in percentage points in the National Achievement Test (NAT) of public elementary school pupils.  The reverse image 75 is target passing mark within the next five years.

It’s not only the perennial shortage of classrooms that has to be addressed though to turn 57 around to 75.   There are other needs as well like blackboards, desks, and salaries for teachers.  And even sanitation facilities!

“Plan No. 6.--This plan provides for foul classrooms and an assembly room equivalent to two units. It is suitable for the ordinary central school where office room and storeroom space may be provided outside of the buildings. This type of building has been constructed for P10,500 [around US$5,200].

“Plan No. 7.--This plan is similar to No. 6 but has provisions for a larger assembly room, equivalent in space to three units, and containing a storeroom and an office room. This building is considered more serviceable than Plan No. 6 and is recommended in all cases where sufficient funds are available and where the average attendance will exceed 400 pupils. This type of building has been constructed for P12,500 [around US$6,200].

“Plan No. 8 provides for a special building designed for use in connection with shop work. It should be constructed in connection with large intermediate schools or provincial schools of less importance. This type of building has been constructed for P15,000 [around US$7,500].” – Bulletin No. 37-1912.

We’d like to think that Ten Moves considered the seismic and climate threats in the design and construction of the “brick-and-mortar” classrooms, which we read as “concrete” buildings, the same critical elements that were deemed significant in the design of standard school buildings a century ago. 

“In the Philippines,” said the Bureau of Education Bulletin No. 37-1912, “a building to be permanent must be prepared to withstand earthquakes and severe storms, and resist the ravages of insect pests. White ants alone have destroyed buildings worth thousands of pesos. Only the best timber, stone, or concrete will resist them.”  It did not say anything about floods though.  There could have been minor floods in some parts of Manila and major towns but these were not as life-threatening as we know of them today to cause suspension of classes when heavy rains occur.

Back then, the Bureau of Education faced “the threefold problem of organizing the schools, training a corps of Filipino teachers, and providing them with the buildings essential to their success.”  The American administrators inherited from the Spaniards predominantly “temporary structures, poorly built and of perishable materials. The best of these were great oblong buildings of stone, with earth floors, roofs of grass or tile, low eaves, and deep-set, heavily barred windows. They were usually damp and poorly ventilated. “

“Plan No. 20.--This plan provides for a twenty-room building, the largest of the series. It should be constructed in provincial capitals and large growing towns where the needs of the schools require a large number of classrooms. It is essentially Plan No. 7 with additions and changes in a few minor details which make it superior to Plan No. 7. It is advisable to authorize a part of this building to be constructed in all places needing a school building larger than Plan No. 7 for the reason that this offers the best structure, if additions are contemplated at any time in the future.” – Bulletin No. 37-1912

Then as it is now, the “need of buildings was so pressing, and the funds available locally, whether provincial or municipal, were so limited that it was impossible for the local authorities to effect the construction of permanent school buildings unaided.”  The Insular Government infused capital funds for school buildings through legislative action starting with Php350,000 [around US$175,000] in 1904 and by 1911, it had appropriated a total of Php4,149,000 [around US$2.075M] including the Php1,000,000 [around US$500,000] for primary schools provided for by the Gabaldon Law of 1907.

The standard schoolhouses built a century ago were of concrete re-enforced with steel in “combination with timbers of superior quality for roof trusses, floors, and partitions, and galvanized iron for roofing.”

The unit system of construction had the standard classroom size of 7 by 9 meters.  “[The] classrooms are so arranged in the plans that additions may be made at a minimum cost and without prejudice to the original structure. In Plan No. 6 and those for larger buildings, provision is made for an assembly room. These buildings are enlarged by adding units at the rear of the original building on both sides of the assembly room, forming a continuous row of classrooms on either side. These additions may be extended almost indefinitely without injury to the original structure and without interfering with the lighting or ventilation of any of the classrooms. The largest building of this kind at present contemplated is a twenty-room building containing two wings, each having six classrooms in addition to the large assembly room connecting these in front, and four additional classrooms in the rear, which completes the quadrangle, thus forming an open court within the structure. This court is faced by porches or open corridors from which doors lead into the various classrooms.”

The Plans were numbered 1 (the unit building) to 14, and 20 (see pictures with descriptive captions). Plan No.12, which is not shown here was a special designed for trade schools in the provinces.

Plans No. 4 and 5 were abandoned, and the use of Plans No. 9, 11, 13 and 14 were discontinued.

The classroom sizes may have evolved through the years to accommodate more students and the introduction of technologies for teaching like audio-visual equipment and computers. 

The TEN Moves classrooms may well be standard school houses of 1912 re-configured to withstand the risks of fire and floodwater, to be adaptable to modern teaching tools, and to accommodate increases in class sizes.

References:

• Bureau of Education.  (1912).  Bulletin No. 37—1912.  School buildings and grounds.  Manila: Bureau of Printing.  Retrieved from  http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acp1028.1912.037

• Reporter not named. (2011, Oct 08).  Department of Education Initiative to Raise Funds for Classrooms.  Inquirer.net. Retrieved from http://globalnation.inquirer.net/14913/department-of-education-initiative-to-raise-funds-for-classrooms 

• Ronda, Rainier Allan Ronda.  (2011, Oct 22). DepEd to end classroom shortage by 2014. Philippine Star Online at Philstar.com.  Retrieved from http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=739987&publicationSubCategoryId=63