The Encomiendoros and the Alcaldes.
In the early days of the colony there were, besides the
Governor-General, the sub-governors, known as Encomiendoros, who
rented their provinces at so much per annum, called Encomiendas,
from the General Government. These Encomiendoros were usually men of
wealth, that entered into politics as a speculation. More properly,
I should say, as a peculation; for it became their policy to fleece
the natives and to extort as much money as possible during the term of
their incumbency. Few, indeed, left the scene of their civil brigandage
without full coffers; and as enormous fortunes were to be made during
a few years sojourn in the islands, no wonder that this office was
eagerly sought after in Spain.
This imitation of the methods of the Roman tax-payers, however,
became so demoralizing to the morale of the Spaniards themselves, and
so ruinous to the colony and to the natives, that a more equitable
policy was introduced. The Encomiendoros were succeeded by Judicial
Governors, called Alcaldes, to whom was paid a small salary, from
$300 upward a year, according to the prominence of the province.
This office, however, proved almost equally remunerative to the
holders; for, by means of a Government license to trade, they were
able to create, to their own advantage, monopolies in every line
of industry, thus freezing out all competitors. Though each was
responsible to the Central Government for the taxes of his provinces,
yet this did not prevent the shrewd and unprincipled from finding
profit here also. For, by a system of false weights and measures,
the native, who, in lieu of silver, brought his produce in payment
for taxes, was shamefully defrauded, the Alcalde sending the indebted
amount to the Government storehouse and selling the rest to his own
profit. In addition, many of these Alcaldes, by arbitrary decrees
and despotic methods, conducted a system of public robbery that in a
few years enriched them at the expense of the long-suffering natives;
for them there was no redress, inasmuch as each Alcalde was also the
head of the Legal Tribunal in his own province. These abuses, however,
became so flagrant that the Alcaldes were finally forbidden to trade;
but as this measure was not as effectual as had been expected,
sweeping reforms were instituted.
To recount what these were; to mention in detail what malignant
opposition was manifested by a large body of natives and resident
Spaniards toward the purposed overthrow of the old system, would be
only to reiterate well-known characteristics and abnormalities of
the Spanish nature; placed, too, in but a slightly different setting.
I will merely add that these Alcaldes, these perpetrators and
beneficiaries of wholesale misrule and dishonor, yielded finally
to the reform-wave, and, accordingly, fell away before their own
judicial perversion. And the new system, it must be confessed, is a
great improvement upon the old.
But the evil wrought upon the Filipino mind and character was
deep-planted. For, by the despotic and summary disposing of his
labor and chattels, in the name of the King,--abetted frequently,
too, by seemingly supernatural means,--respect for the Spaniard and
the white man in general had fled, fear and distrust supplanting it.
In the new order of things,--instituted by a decree from the
Queen-Regent Maria Cristina, the 26th of February, 1886,--18 Civil
Governorships were created, and the Alcaldes' functions were confined
to their Judgeships. And thus the former frightful distortion of
justice was overcome and banished.
So, too, under this law of 1886 each Civil Governor has a Secretary,
who serves as a check upon his chief, if he be illegally inclined.
Accordingly, two new official safeguards were thus erected in the
fabric of Colonial Administration in these 18 different provinces.
The Present Division and Administration.
The colony was then divided into 19 civil provinces, including Sulu,
and into 3 grand military divisions.
As before, at the head was the Governor-General,--the supervising and
executive officer of the province,--directly responsible to Spain. His
salary is $40,000 a year. He is assisted by an Executive Cabinet and
by an Administrative Council. The Provincial Governor, the successor
to the Alcalde, must be a Spaniard, and at least 30 years old. He
is the direct representative of the Governor-General and it is his
duty to execute his decrees and to maintain order. He also has the
power of appointment and removal, presides over provincial elections,
controls the civil and local guard, interprets the laws,--usually
to suit his own profit or convenience,--supervises the balloting
for military conscription, can assess fines to the amount of $50,
or imprison for 30 days, is Superintendent of Public Instruction,
issues licenses and collects taxes. It is his duty also to furnish
statistics and to control the Postal and Telegraph service. He is the
Superintendent of health, prisons, charities, agriculture, forestry,
and of manufactures. It will thus be seen that his duties are as
diverse as they are important. He is now allowed no percentage, nor
other emolument than his salary. At the same time, a shrewd Governor
is yet able to reap a golden harvest. This, however, can be done only
in conjunction with other Government officers.
Owing to the extreme shortness of his term of office--three years
only--there is no incentive for the improvement of his province, as
his successors would reap the results as well as the credit of his
industry. Besides, he has no reason to hope that a good work begun
will be a good work continued; for the next Governor may be averse
to exertion, or may be at variance with his policy.
Most of the Governors live in good style; as a rule they spend about
two hours a day in Government employ. Is it to be wondered at, then,
that this office is so eagerly sought after in Spain?
There are about 750 towns in the colony; each governed by a
Gobernadorcillo, "Little Governor," called Capitan; usually a native
or half-caste. This office is elected every two years, and is to the
Provincial Governor what the latter is to the Governor-General. He is
the tax-collector of his district, and is, furthermore, responsible for
the amount apportioned to his district. If he fails to collect this,
he must make the deficit good out of his own pocket. Under him are
a number of deputies, called Cabezas, each likewise responsible for
another division of the population called a Barangay,--a collection
of forty or fifty families. If the individuals of this group are
unable to pay, the property is distrained and sold by the deputy,
who would otherwise have to make good the amount himself. If the
proceeds of the sale fail to equal the indebtedness of the delinquent,
he is cast into prison.
I have often seen respectable men deported to the penal settlements;
and for no other offense than inability to pay the oppressive tax laid
upon their shoulders, regardless of the season,--whether productive
or not. Their families, meanwhile, left without a head, were thrown
into the most woeful destitution.
The Gobernadorcillo gets the munificent salary of $200 a year, though
his expenses, for clerk-hire, for presents to his chief, and for
entertainments in his honor, are often many times greater. A shrewd
Gobernadorcillo, however, manages to make something out of the place,
which, in some districts, is eagerly sought after by rich planters. The
official dress of this worthy is a short black jacket, the tail worn
over the trousers. He also carries a stick as a sign of authority. To
him is entrusted the apprehension of criminals, and he has command
of the local guards, or cuadrilleros, the police of the towns.
The Taxes and What Became of Them.
It can easily be guessed that the taxes are not inconsiderable, when
I simply mention a few things that are assessed: There is a tax on
the ownership and sale of live-stock and vehicles, on realty, and
on all private industries and manufactures. Opium, liquors, stamps,
tobacco, and lotteries yield an immense revenue. Then there is a
Community-fund, which is usually several hundred thousand dollars a
year in each province, and is supposed to be spent in the interest
of the community. The Chinese Capitation tax also brings in a large
amount. But the most common and onerous tax of all is that arising
from the Government sale of Cédulas, or documents of identity, which
is a poll-tax from $25 down. The individual paying less than $3.50 is
subject to 15 days' hard labor each year and to a fine of 50 cents for
each day that he shall fail to work. Those whose cédulas have cost
more than $3.50 must also pay a municipal tax of $1.50. The cédula
is also used as a passport, and must be brought into court to render
legal instruments effective.
From this brief and imperfect survey of the system of provincial
taxation, it can easily be gathered that the revenues are considerable;
and yet, of the hundreds of thousands of dollars extorted from the
natives in each province, under the plausible pretexts of an avaricious
policy, it is safe to say that not a dollar is expended for any local
improvements. No building of bridges, no constructing of highways,
no public schools, nor halls of justice must mar the stagnant serenity
of provincial life. Nothing is ever repaired; a system of "let alone"
blights every aspiration, and is fatal to the extension of commerce
and industry. Consequently, in the wet season, for vehicles, the
public roads are impassable, and, in many parts of the country,
for months transportation is practically at a stand-still. As if
effectually to close every door to progress, private individuals,
too, are forbidden by law to repair the highways.
Did any government ever foster a more imbecile and iniquitous policy
for its own damnation?
Although the speculations in the colony are not so enormous as
formerly, yet there is no doubt that they still amount to several
millions annually; mostly, however, at the seat of Government in
Manila. It is indeed notorious that General Weyler, during his brief
incumbency of the office, succeeded in placing several millions of
dollars to his credit--I should have said to his dishonor!
Dilatory and Abortive Courts.
Perhaps no feature of Colonial life is fraught with more evil and
is so disgusting, as the process of the courts. The Supreme Court of
the early years of the colony was modeled after the one in Majorca,
and on several occasions when the Governorship has been left vacant,
it has assumed the functions of the executive--pro-tem.
There are two Supreme Law Courts in the colony: one in Manila;
the other in Cebú. The President of the one in Manila has a salary
of $7,000 a year; that of Cebú, $6,000. There are also 41 Superior
Courts, of various degrees of importance, the salary of the judges
ranging from $2,000 to $4,000 per annum. The department of Justice
alone costs the colony about $350,000 a year.
The dilatoriness of the courts has become proverbial. It is, in fact,
years before a case can be brought to a close. Meantime, the litigant
has been fleeced out of an amount perhaps a hundred times the value
of the article under litigation. The islands are full of native
pettifoggers from the law schools of Manila, who have learned too well
the meaning of the Spanish mañana. A suit can never be considered as
disposed of; for another judge, scenting the faint possibility of a
fee, may again have it retried. Thus I have seen the lives of acquitted
persons again brought into jeopardy by the meddlesome officiousness
and the grasping greed of a new judge. He that goes to court in the
Philippines must not do so without reckoning the cost.
Commenting on this, a recent English traveler says: "Availing one
self of the dilatoriness of the Spanish law, it is possible for a man
to occupy a house, pay no rent, and refuse to quit on legal grounds
during a couple of years or more." A person who has not a cent to lose
can persecute another by means of a trumped up accusation, until he is
ruined by an "informacion de pobreza"--a declaration of poverty--which
enables the persecutor to keep the case going as long as he chooses,
without needing money for fees.
A New Yorker's Experience.
The following experience of an American friend of mine, whom I knew
very well in Manila, will bring out in a graphic way the course of
justice in the Philippines. Nor is his experience uncommon. It is,
in fact, the usual one of the stranger or the native who goes to the
fountain of Justice for the redress of a grievance.