*413. THE BUFFALO SOLDIERS IN PAMPANGA

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BLACK IS THE COLOR. Two African-American cavalry men, known as "Buffalo Soldiers" at Camp Stotsenburg, ca. 1918-20.

During the Philippine-American War that lasted from 1899-1902, the United States sent regiments of African-Americans as reinforcements to help fight the Filipino “insurrectos” led by Emilio Aguinaldo.

The 9th and 10th Cavalry that had previously fought native Americans in the last Indian Wars, earned the nickname “Buffalo Soldiers”, possibly because the soldiers’ curly hair looked similar to a buffalo’s dark mane, and their aggressiveness was likened to that of a ferocious bison. The Buffalo Soldiers later came to include the 24th and 25th Infantry, which also had all-black members.

There were over 5,000 Buffalo Soldiers that arrived in the Philippines, and hundreds were stationed in Camp Stotsenburg and in towns like Magalang, from where they got their marching orders. A few soldiers have notable experiences and stories to tell, relative to their assignment in the Philippines, and Pampanga, in particular.

 African-American soldier Richard Johnson, arrived in Stotsenburg in 1916, as a member of a medical unit of the 9th Cavalry. It was the 4th time that Corporal Johnson was sent to the Philippines; his first was as a 19-year old enlistee in 1899.

While in the camp, Johnson brought attention to the deplorable conditions there, which posed many health risks to soldiers, particularly, malaria. He also wrote about the poor living conditions of soldiers, in which he noted that married men below the rank of a staff sergeant had to build their own living quarters made of bamboo—at their own expense!

His observations paved the way for the next commanding officer of the camp to institute drastic measures to improve the “old and decrepit camp”. Johnson would have a long career in military service and would later write his memoirs about his U.S. Army life from 1899 to 1922.

 Perhaps the most written about African-American soldier was the deserter, Corporal David Fagen, of the 24th Infantry. On 17 Nov. 1899, Fagen defected to the Filipino army because he could no longer stand his sergeant’s constant harassment. He sought refuge in the areas around Mount Arayat, which were guerrilla-protected. For his dauntless courage, he was promoted to captain by Gen. Jose Alejandrino in 1900. Such was his popularity that Filipino soldiers often referred to him as “General Fagen.”

 His most daring exploit was the capture of a steam launch and its cargo of arms, while on the Pampanga River. Fagen earned notoriety in the U.S. press and was described by the New York Times as a “cunning and highly skilled guerilla officer who harassed and evaded large conventional American units.” It took a Tagalog bounty hunter, Anastacio Bartolome, to end his daring run, who delivered his severed head to American officers, after he and his men supposedly killed him while Fagen was taking a river bath.

But the Buffalo Soldier with the most fascinating story to tell, is Ernest Spokes of Chattanooga, Tennessee. To escape oppressive racism in the Deep South, Stokes volunteered for the Spanish American War.

After training at the Presidio Army Camp in San Francisco, Stokes was shipped off to the Philippines in 1898. But even in a foreign land, Spokes continued to face discrimination in the hands of his white superiors who often assigned him at the frontline. Nevertheless, he performed his duties well and became a sergeant in his unit.

 The Buffalo Soldiers formed a bond of kinship with Filipinos which incensed their Caucasian superiors, who, incidentally, referred to both groups as ‘savages”. They came to understand the cause of the Filipino fighters against the U.S. so, they refused to shoot them in their encounters.

After the war, many of these soldiers, who had come to love the people and their culture, opted to remain in the Philippines. By 1921, about 200 men of the 9th Cavalry had married Filipino women—and one of them was Ernest Stokes.

 Stokes first fell in love with a Nueva Ecijana from Peñaranda, Maria Bunag, whom he married in 1902, a union that produced three daughters-Felicia, Teodora and Dominga. The years after Maria’s death in 1917 were a sad and troubling period for the black Filipina sisters, who were abused by relatives. 

But in 1923, Stokes met the vivacious Roberta Dungca, a 16 year old illiterate girl from Angeles, where his base was located. Despite their age difference, Roberta was charmed by Stokes who spoke fluent Kapampangan (he also knew Tagalog, Spanish and a bit of Chinese). Their marriage was facilitated when Stokes was caught kissing Roberta—a no-no in the local courtship tradition.

Stokes and his young bride left for the U.S. in 1928, where they settled in West Oakland, California. Roberta raised her three stepdaughters as if they were her own. The couple would have no children of their own, but they adopted the daughter of Teodora, They also got reacquainted with former Buffalo soldiers and socialized with their Filipina wives.

 Stokes, who spent 25 years of his life in the Philippines, died in February 1936, at around age 66. Roberta would marry a second time, to Manuel Unabia. Buffalo Soldier Ernest Stokes is buried in the Presidio in San Francisco, the same place where he started his military career.

Today, a monument stands there to honor the memory of these volunteers who ventured to an “unholy war of conquest” across the seas , only to find their own hearts conquered by Filipinos whom they had sworn to fight.

 SOURCES:  
(Richard Johnson): 
American Voices of World War I: Primary Source Documents, 1917-1920, By Martin Marix Evans p. 1,”Prelude to War”.
Clark Field and the U.S. Army Air Corps in the Philippines 1919-1942, Richard B. Meixsel, New Day Publishers © 2002 
(David Fagen): 
Hidden Heroism: Black Soldiers in America's Wars, By Robert B. Edgerton,”The war to Save Humanity”,p. 57. 
http://www.blackpast.org/aaw/fagen-david-1875 
(Ernest Spokes): 
 The Woyingi Blog Buffalo Soldiers in the Philippines: A Filipina American Grandaughter remembers her African American Grandfather https://woyingi.wordpress.com/2011/01/03/buffalo-soldiers-in-the-philippines-a-filipina-american-granddaughter-remembers-her-african-american-grandfather/ 
Voices of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Experience, Volume 1, By Sang Chi, Emily Moberg Robinson, p. 233-235 
Filipinos in the East Bay, by Evelyn Luluguisen, Lillian Galedo,p.15

*403. TOTS IN STOTS: Life as a Soldier’s Kid in Clark Field

CHILDREN GO WHERE I SEND THEE. A military officer and his wife, hold their Pampanga-born twin babies in front of their Stotsenburg quarters. It was a challenge to raise kids in a camp before it became an urbanized, self-contained community in the 1970s. ca. 1920s.

The expansive sawgrass-carpetted land northwest of Kuliat that soldiers of the U.S. Army claimed in 1902 and later named Fort Stotsenburg had, by the 1920s, become a liveable place with a growing reputation as a preferred assignment by military servicemen. The camp became a self-contained community with many amenities that improved immensely its social environment.

Many American officers were given the privilege to bring over their families to the Philippines and reside inside the camp, helping them ward off homesickness and boredom. In 1909, there were just about  95 dependent children of both American officers and enlisted men, but by the mid-1930s, almost all of the American officers came with their wives and children. The birth of American babies further increased the child population, posing several issues such as finding domestic helps as well as establishing a school system on-base.

There was no problem looking for nannies, as labor was plentiful and affordable. American officers’ wives not only had Chinese cooks,  gardeners, lavanderas at their employ, but also had Filipino, Japanese or Chinese nannies and nurses to look after their babies and toddlers. When the sun went down at the camp, nannies would take their wards to the Officers’ Line (now the Parade grounds) for their regular afternoon promenade, a  leisurely stroll likened to a veritable “march of nations”.

In the course of the year, a program of events was planned for the amusement and social entertainment of Stotsenburg children—ranging from birthday parties, elaborate picnics,  aircraft rides at Kindley Field, animal and pet shows, to Santa’s visit  every December. Christmas trees were shipped from the U.S. and were set up on the porches, which kids then decorated.

Schooling of kids proved to be a challenge in the early years of the camp as there were not enough students to warrant a full-time school. The post chapel, in the 1900s, served as a school house, and there was also a separate school for the children of African-American soldiers by 1922.  Tutors were employed to teach five grades in one room , including a certain Miss Edmonds who was hired after a fruitless stint at a local Filipino school.

Two schools were built inside the camp in the 1920s—the 4-room Dean C. Worcester School (1925) and the Leonard Wood School (1929) which offered instructions from Grades 1-12. The schools flourished until the early 1930s.

It was only after World War II that the base went on a school-building spree, including an array of secondary schools for dependents. In 1949, the first Clark Elementary School for grades 1-8 was constructed near the site of the  future Wurtsmith/Wagner High School site. Six sawali buildings housed Grades 9-12. Eight teachers from the U.S. arrived in June 1949 to complete the faculty.

The Clark Dependents’ School, which started in 1950, evolved into the Wurtsmith School that offered both elementary and high school level education  The new Wurtsmith Memorial High School building was opened in 1961, and was designed for “tropical teaching and learning” (it was air-conditioned). On the other hand, Wagner High School, named after the WWII pilot Lt. Col. Boyd David Wagner,  was inaugurated in October 1962.

During school breaks, parents enrolled their hyperactive kids at the Hobby Shop that taught arts and craft subjects like pottery and leather-tooling. Other air force kids favored swimming and going to the outdoor theaters to while their time away.

Sadly, many of these places closely associated with the growing up years of American children in the heyday of  Clark,  are all gone, devastated by the great eruption of Mount Pinatubo. So, too, are the children who once had a run of the place—they have moved on, with many returning home to America as adults, fathers, mothers, grandparents themselves. But for many of them, a part of their childhood remains in a once-mighty military base that became their temporary home far, far away--Pampanga’s Clark Air Base.

*402. GEN. LUCAS, KING OF BALUGAS.

LUCAS, KING OF BALUGAS, arrayed in regal splendor, in military uniform, boots, hat, and complete with military medals, badges and a swagger stick. 1922. Photo courtesy of Mr. Jim Biven.

Our history shows that Negritos (Balugas, now used pejoratively) , like other ethnic groups, have always been marginalized since the day lowlanders took over their lands and conquistadors drove them back into the far reaches of the islands, in uncharted mountains and forests. Still others were sold into slavery.

No wonder, Negritos continued to be nomadic in their ways, unable to integrate with other Filipinos. For many years, this has helped them retain their customs and tradition, including their system of leadership.

 The American Thomasite Luther Parker, in his report on work among Pampanga Negritos in 1908, wrote about a certain “King of All Negritos of Pampanga”, by the name of Lazaro. But while the Negritos did have their own leadership system, there were no “kings” to speak of. Among the clans in their community, seniority is equated to authority. The oldest member of the clan was sought for advice, especially when tribal transgressions took place, and was looked up to as a chief.

 It was an American general who first gave a Negrito a royal title--Gen. Johnson Hagood--who took command of Camp Stotsenburg in 1922. By the time of his assignment, the Negritos had become privileged visitors of the post, silently paddling across officers’ residences, peddling orchids, ferns, animals and cultural souvenirs like bows and arrows to the foreigners. Negritos had easy access to the camp, and Americans let them be—even gamely posing with the naked natives for photos.

Gen. Hagood was also fascinated by these dark-skinned Filipinos; he even wrote many anecdotes about them, which filled up 7 pages of his published 2-volume memoirs.

 Beyond his amusement and interest, Gen. Hagood shared the belief with fellow Americans that help and protection would not come from the local government; hence, he viewed the Negritos with paternalistic concern. The one who struck most his fancy was the Baluga chief, “General Lucas”, an elderly Negrito with a dignified mien and who conducted himself with a confident air.

 Gen. Lucas once presented himself to the general arrayed as “a brigadier general in a miniature khaki uniform wielding a sword” and wearing an assortment of “fantastic and humorous commendations”, one of which was a Manila Carnival medal that identified him as “a prize bull”.

 Hagood proclaimed Gen. Lucas as “King of Balugas ”, and gave him a peace-keeping role in his region that was often beset by feuding Baluga tribes. He was elevated to kingship in the presence of hundreds of fellow tribe members and amidst great fanfare as Gen. Hagood conferred more decorations to the new king. He was given the titles "Defender of the Orchids” and the “Grand Commander of the Order of Dead Mules, Second Class”.

 Of course, the ceremonies were all done in good humor, but Gen. Lucas took his title seriously, even posing for an “official royal photo” smartly dressed in military regalia. What his fellow Negritos felt or thought of at that time can never be known, but for the next decades, they continued to become fixtures of Clark Field, with many families settling in “Baluga Village” in the 1970s. They enjoyed perks such as free medical care (the base hospital allocated a budget for them), free food from welfare groups run by the wives of American servicemen, and they could also set up stalls to sell “authentic” souvenir weapons (actually, Manila-made).

 King Lucas is now but a blur in our memory, a king of nothing with his small” kingdom” nearly gone—swallowed by Pinatubo, taken over by malls and resorts, stolen by unscrupulous land grabbers. Even the culture and traditions of his race are being obliterated and changed by modernism. Help from the government has been too long in coming. Yet, the hardiness of these simple, free-spirited Filipinos remains, but only time will tell if this is enough for their future survival.

*330. CLARK'S PLACES OF WORSHIP

SEEK YE FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD. Clark's Chapel One, as it looked in 1959. Just recently finished that year, the modern church featured amenities such as air conditioning for churchgoers'' comfort and convenience. The church as remained the same, unlike Chapel Two which was heavily restored post-Pinatubo.

By the late 50s, Clark Field was a modern, bustling and fully equipped air base, the nerve center of U.S. Air Force operations in Southeast Asia. The “biggest air base in the world” was home to thousands of servicemen from the Thirteenth Air Force and their families. Here, they converged as a community, from all parts of America, of diverse backgrounds and interests--and with different religious beliefs.

 For the varied spiritual activities, three base chapels and a religious center staffed with 8 chaplains of different faiths, were ready to offer varied religious programs to all Clark Air Base personnel. The chapels were the designated venues for the daily and weekly activities of major religious groups. As such, there were regularly-held Protestant Sunday Services, Sunday School, General Worship Service, Episcopal Service, Latter Day Saints Sunday School, Christian Science Service, Protestant Evening Fellowship and Evangelistic Service.

Two notable churches were operational by 1959. Church 1 was the newest, built on sprawling grounds near the corner of Dyeess Highway. The church had a modern, sleek design and even had air-conditioning for the churchgoers’comfort and convenience. On the other hand, Chapel Two, with its trademark spire, stood along Marrat Highway, across Kelly Restaurant and right next to the Gymnasium.

The churches and the religious staff observed a hectic schedule, what with weekly services that include Midweek Fellowship, Episcopal Communion and Bible Study. Seven times on Sunday, Catholic Sunday masses were celebrated. On regular days, masses were said twice daily. Also conducted weekly were evening devotions, and novenas. 

Religious organizations included the well-attended Sunday schools operated by the Protestant chaplains on an inter-denominational basis. They sponsored a daily vacation Bible School, a Junior and Senior Choir, Youth Fellowship, Retreats, Bible Classes and frequent social events.

On the other hand, Roman Catholic chaplains organized religious groups like the Holy Name Society, Ladies’ Sodality, Legion of Mary, with well-rounded programs that included holding Holy Name Retreats, missions, novenas, choir and religious instruction classes.

Special Jewish services conducted by their chaplains include: Chanukah, Purim, Passover and Shavvoth.

Baptism, confirmation, weddings and other religious ceremonies could also be arranged by contacting the chaplain of one’s respective faith.

Today, the churches of Clark, heavily restored post-Pinatubo,  are still very much around, serving a whole new community that includes both military personnel and civilians-- local tourists, PX shoppers, residents of nearby cities of Mabalacat and Angeles. Chapel One (now dedicated to  Saint Joseph) and Chapel Two  (dedicated to Our Lady of the Remedies, patroness of Pampanga) have regular AFP chaplains on duty. They continue to be popular venues for Masses, Weddings and other Catholic rites as well as houses of prayer and refuge,  just as they were intended to be, over 50 years ago.

*328. In Their Spare Time: DEPENDENT ACTIVITIES IN CLARK

ANIMAL RACE. A field meet at Stotsenburg featured an Animal Race, held from Nov. 8-15, 1920. The participating wildlife included a goose, a chicken, a dog,  a pig and a few more fowls. Field meets were regular dependent activities in the early days of Clark and were held at the all-purpose drill grounds.

In the first two decades of Fort Stotsenburg, families of military servicemn had to find ways to amuse themselves in their down time. There was just the parade ground to work on, which was converted into a playing field for sports events like polo, equestrian competitions and softball games.

For dependents who were not into heavy sports, creative recreational games were the answers. There were “fun” races for pets and other animals that provided hours of enjoyment and laughter. With the reconstruction of Clark after the War, there was more deliberate planning for spaces and buildings for recreational purposes. By the end of the 1950s, many facilities, social clubs and leisure programs were already in place, for military wives and youngsters.

The Officers’Wives Club, was one of the first associations to be put up, which held meeting in the O’Club monthly. It organized luncheons, bridge parties and does volunteer work for charity. Meanwhile, the NCO Wives Club included in their regular social schedule a wide variety of projects to aid the needy, both on and off the base.

Not to be outdone, the wives of the airmen on base also banded together to form the “Lower Four Wives’Club”, which maintained a busy social and charitable schedule. Many of the wives also participated in their own Squadron Wives’ Club, a very active organization that had a Bowling League Tournament. It also held many social get-togethers for both wives and husbands.

The pride of the teen-agers is their own Teen-Age Club. Through sponsors, the club held weekly dances, social dinners and special field trips around the island.

For active little youngsters, there is plenty of action in the Clark Little League. This group sponsors football, basketball and baseball for little sportsmen in a competitive mode. Excitement ran high during the various seasons when high energy games are held, as parents and friends cheered on. Clark’s Little League Football ranked as one of the few and the best in the Far East.

Although outside the United States, Clark has very active troops of Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. The scouts, together with their leaders once embarked on fund drives, camp-outs and other activities with equal vigor. Highlight of Boy Scouting has been the 10th World Jamboree held in the Philippines in which Clark scouts participated. Sports-wise, the women have their leagues too.

There were various “Powder Puff” Leagues in softball, volleyball and basketball, where women engaged in fast, rousing games climaxed by hard-won championships. Bowling leagues occupied a prominent position during the season as the dependents hurry in the bowling alleys to help their favorite teams. Clark’s Gray Ladies of the Red Cross, on the other hand, thrived on the spirit of volunteerism. It always lent a helping hand at the hospital, on a volunteer basis.

When The Hobby Shop was opened, it offered courses in leathercraft, pottery and other artistic pursuits for dependents. Movies and theatrical performances staged by Clark students became staple entertainment in the base. Then there were the fund-raising exhibits, barbecue and swimming parties that bonded many military families.

With all these activities designed to amuse and fight boredom, there really was never and idle day in Clark for Americans and their dependents, who had come to serve their country in this little spot in Pampanga, thousands of miles away from their home.

*325. SEE YOU AT THE CLUB!

 OFFICERS' MESS. Interior of the Officers' Club, located in the perimeter of the Clark Parade Ground, was a favorite haunt for officers who looked forward to nights of unwinding and socializing. Along with the NCO Club and the Airmen's Coconut Grove, the clubs were main sources of entertainment for many military personnel of all ranks in the late 50s.

Back in 1959, “see you at the club!” was on almost every Clark personnel’s lips after the day’s work was done. Officers, NCO’s and airmen alike trooped to the 3 main clubs located at the base—to hang loose, socialize, and bond with buddies and families. A Clark Air Base guide printed that year, unrtyiduced in glowing terms, the 3 social centers to ‘newbies’—just arrived at the headquarters of the U.S. Thirteenth Air Force.

 The Officer’s Club, located by the Parade Ground, was “a tastefully furnished, air condition club with a schedule of events that can’t be beat”. Regular features included dances, variety shows, special game nights with prizes, buffet and exclusive family dinners, stag nights with entertainment, bridge tournaments and several monthly functions for officers’wives. Downstairs in the club, you step into the quiet candlelit atmosphere of the “Rathskaller”, with its superb “charcoal-broiled” foods ( sirloin steak was the specialty!) and excellent service.

Adjacent to the main club building one can find amenities such as a barber shop, a beauty parlor, an outdoor patio with a service area, and a swimming pool that provides perfect relief from the hit, tropical weather. The Officers Club also maintains a club annex on the hill in the officer’s quarters area.

“Where every member is a V.I.P.”, was the boast of the NCO Club (along Dyeess Highway, near Lilly Hill), which also prided itself as “the finest in the Air Force”. The air conditioned indoor patio has a seating capacity of 1,100, and its main feature is a beautifully decorated bandstand where a 16-piece dance band (Iggy de Guzman and his band) regularly performs 6 nights a week, while Western music holds forth the other night.

 Other attractions include exciting bridge, pinochle and shuffleboard tournaments, two nights of games a week, highlighted with floor shows, contests (at one time, there was a hula hoop competition!) and special family menus (the onion rings were to die for!) A Stag Room and a barber shop—both air-conditioned—are open for use by patrons. On the drawing board at that time are a modern health room and a swimming pool with patio. In 1986, the NCO Club was moved near Silver Wing. A most relaxing feature is the T-Bar 3 Room, designed and decorated with a Western motif, complete with cattle horn wall hangings, authentic Western-inspired rug and a plush cocktail lounge.

Meanwhile, at the Airmen Open Mess, one can find the company of “lower four” airmen in the remodelled and modernized club that also has a Stag Room, cocktail lounge, TV and game room and a spacious ballroom with a tropical motif.

The recently-enlarged dining area has endless offerings for everyone’s leisure—from nightly dances, game events, special formal dances, weekly floor shows and special Sunday breakfasts. For members’ convenience, there is a barber shop and a gift shop located at the club. Weekly, the “Mr. Big Shot”contest is held in the club, with the winner getting a free, all-expense paid week-end trip to Manila.

All the fun came to pass after the Pinatubo eruption which buried Clark—and with it, all the fond memories of clubbing in-base. The building housing the NCO Club is now home to a call center company. The Officer’s Club, still at the parade ground, is also being used as an office while the Airmen’s Mess has become an adjunct of the casino. But for military servicemen assigned to Clark in the late 50s, the 3 clubs were the places to be and to be seen, where homesickness, boredom and other worries were momentarily forgotten, through wholesome leisure and safe entertainment, under the shadow of the legendary red-light district of Balibago just a few kilometers away.

*324. 1914 CHRISTMAS DINNER AT STOTSENBURG

WHERE ARE THE CHESTNUTS ROASTING ON AN OPEN FIRE? The formal 1914 Christmas dinner for the members of the 2nd Field Artillery Regiment featured a range of delectable dishes--from roasted turkey and salads to glorious desserts. Personal Collection,

What’s Christmas dinner like for hundreds of American servicemen and their families, in a tropical Asian country thousands of miles from home? This Christmas Day menu for the officers and men of “Battery F” 2nd Field Artillery stationed at Camp Stotsenburg (now Clark Field) in Pampanga, gives us a glimpse of the holiday fare specially prepared to give everyone a taste of home.

At that time, living conditions at the Camp were still not exactly up to par, and the troops were experiencing low morale. In fact, a Lt. Bentley Mott, who served in the 2nd Field Artillery Regiment, had packed up and left the year before, complaining of boredom and the abject lack of available amusements. Determine to improve the service, a special Christmas menu was prepared for the regiment, which was actually copied from a selection served the previous year for the officers of the Jefferson Barracks .

Americans who pined for the flavors of home started their own version of “noche buena” with a piping-hot soup made from pureed green peas. There was also fresh celery stalks, olives and pickles to munch, in preparation for the piece de resistance: Roast Turkey laced with Oyster Oyster Dressing and Cranberry Sauce. The succulent fowl was enjoyed with sidings of Mashed Potatoes,Candied Sweet Potatos and Succotash. The turkey meal could also be slathered with Giblet Gravy for a different taste experience. Also for one’s delectation are Cold Sliced Hams and Cole Slaw with French Dressing.

The Christmas desserts featured your choice of Mince Pie, Peach Pie and Fruit Cake—all-American holiday staples, not readily seen on Filipino tables. An assortment of Cheese and Crackers rounded off the heartwarming dinner. As a fitting finale, hot cups of Coffee were served and fine Cigars were distributed to partakers of the Christmas meal.

The sumptuous Christmas Dinner of 1914 would have certainly warmed not just the tummies but also the hearts and minds of these soldiers, rekindling memories of Christmasses past in the mainland, and of their own Yuletide traditions totally unknown in this alien country. By the 1920s, with the Americanization process effectively in full swing in the colony, the Philippine—even without Turkey dinners, snows and mistletoes-- had become the top choice of most officers wanting to be assigned overseas.

*308. NEGRITO NEWSMAKERS

TRIBE AND TESTED. For many years, Aetas were a source of fascination for Americans in Stotsenburg. Often permitted to roam the military camp grounds, Aetas sold orchids, handicrafts and root crops to the American residents. They also gamely posed for souvenir pictures as seen from this rare, tinted photographs taken in the early 1930s.

 “Map ya pa ing Baluga..biasa yang mamana..”

 "Better is the Baluga, he knows how to shoot an arrow" so goes a line from the popular folk song “O Caca, o Caca”, underlining the superiority of Aetas or Negritos in the ways of the jungle, despite their kind, docile nature. For centuries, the original inhabitants of the province have displayed a strong sense of independence and a strong attachment to their ethnic culture, which may explain why they are not as integrated as the other minorities in mainstream Philippine society, attached to their small mountain communities where they are free to do as they please, as hunters and as nomads.

But through the years, the Negritos have also reached out to lowland people, demonstrating their hardiness, resilience, bravery and goodwill. In the early days of Camp Stotsenburg, Negritos descended from their mountain dwelling to peddle orchids and other air plants to Americans living in the camp. Some were even employed as house helps, learning to speak English in the process. Indeed, interesting Aeta characters have been noted by Pampanga visitors as early as the 19th century.

Historians credit a Negrito as the first head of Mabalacat town. Garangan or Caragan’s wife who went by her Christian name, Laureana Tolentino, succeeded him and made history as the first female mayor of Pampanga. On 28 February 2008, to honor the Negrito chieftain of Mabalacat, the 1st Caragan Festival was held to cap the month-long town fiesta celebration. The festival, akin to Cebu’s Sinulog, Bacolod’s MassKara and Iloilo’s Dinagyang, featured festive street dancing, colorful Baluga costumes and “uling” (charcoal) face swiping.

In 1922, Gen. Johnson Hagood took command of Camp Stotsenburg and met with Negritos up close. He found the Negritos and their lifestyle so fascinating that he even wrote about them in his memoirs, dedicating 7 pages of anecdotes about them. Gen. Hagood was most amused with the Baluga chief, “Lucas”, who once presented himself to the general arrayed as “a brigadier general in a miniature khaki uniform wearing a sword” wearing and assortment of “fantastic and humorous commendations” and medals, one of which was a Manila Carnival medal that identified Lucas as “a prize bull”.

Hagood proclaimed Lucas as “King of All Negritos”, and gave him a peace-keeping role among feuding Baluga tribes. He was elevated to kingship in the presence of hundreds of fellow tribe members and amidst great fanfare as Gen. Hagood conferred more decorations to the new king. He was given the titles Defender of the Orchids”and the “ Grand Commander of the Order of Dead Mules, Second Class”.

A true war hero however, is Lt. Kudiaro Laxamana, an Aeta tribal chief who headed the 55-155th Squadron of the Northwest Pampanga Mountain District. He reputedly killed 50 Japanese soldiers at the height of World War II, and supposedly chopped off 17 heads with his bolo knife. He is also credited with saving the lives of Col. Gyle Merrill, the overall commander of a U.S. military contingent, and Maj. Henry Conner, of the 27th Bomb Group. After the War, Laxamana returned to civilian life and became active in fighting for the rights of Aetas. He was killed because of his advocacy in 1970 and at his death, he was given a 21-gun salute and buried at the Clark Cemetery. So well-regarded was Laxamana that he was even featured in a 1949 issue of LIFE Magazine, together with his two wives and two daughters. A major road in Clark—Kudiaro Laxamana Avenue—is named after him.

More recent Negrito newsmakers include Wida Cosme, the first Aeta law graduate who finished her law course from the Harvardian College, although she still has to pass the bar. Then there’s Arjohnel Gilbert, an Aeta boy from Marcos Village who became an online singing sensation when a video of his was posted on Youtube. Singing Justin Bieber’s song, “Baby” in front of Puregold-Clark, his video attracted thousands of views. GMA-7 News did several features of the Aeta singing wonder, who sang to people as a way to get them to buy his nose flutes.

At the 1st ASEAN Tribal Games held in Malaysia from 14-16 September 2010, Aeta Olympians from Mabalacat dominated the games. Jun Ablong, Dumlao Naval and Danilo Tecson won Golds for Treetop Archery, Archery Assault, Blow Pipe Game respectively, while Jimmy Ablong garnered a Bronze in Blow Pipe shooting. The team beat other ethnic delegates from the host country.

In the field of beauty pageantry, Renagie Gilbert became the first winner of Lagu ning Aeta (Beauty of Aeta) contest in June 2012. The seminal pageant for women of color attracted 12 contestants from Sitio Bilad, Pulang Lupa, Monicayao, Madapdap, Haduan and Calapi. Completing her court of honor were Queen Rose Maye Sibal and Loretta Quedeng.

Often facing discrimination, these Negritos found a way to overcome. Despite lack of understanding and support, they gained strength, breaking barriers and knocking down seemingly indestructible walls. In every way, our Aeta brothers have persevered—growing from a gentler race into history-making heroes.

*295. HORSING AROUND AT STOTSENBURG

A HORSE WITH NO NAME. A favorite annual activity at Camp Stotsenburg is the holding of a Sports Week or Sports Carnival, which featured  equestrian events such as polo, horseback riding and horse dressage, which includes obstacle racing such as the one shown on the photo above. ca. 1915.

Fort Stotsenburg, the precursor of Clark Air Base, started as a military camp with the size of 7,600 acres. By 1908, it had expanded to 158,277 acres, to include parts of Dolores in Mabalacat, Bamban and Zambales Mountains, including the Pinatubo area. The size and breadth of the enlarged military camp was perfect for exploration and adventure, especially on horseback. Soon, Stotsenburg became an ideal equestrian paradise, the site of many horse-based sports competition, field events and exhilarating horse rides on mountain sides and ridges, amidst wild but spectacular surroundings.

 A certain Capt. H. A. Myers was lavish in his recommendation of the camp environs, noting that “the Stotsenburg Reservation and nearby country in general, offers much that is worthwhile for persons interested in mounted activities. Not only is there much pleasure to be derived from riding over the country, but there is much beautiful scenery and many interesting landmarks to be seen”. Horse trails led to the lush and luxuriant Fern Canyon, whose main attractions are its variety of giant ferns that dot its landscape. There was also a Lost Canyon that abounded with colored birds and orchids.

Trails were fancifully named according to the natural characteristics of the terrain—Three Crater Trail, Top o’ the World Hill, Banyan Trail, Dead Horse Pass Trail and Dry River Bed Trail, among others. Soldiers and their families took to riding these trails during their off-duty hours every Wednesday, with pit stops along the way. There were waterfalls and swimming holes where people could take refreshing dips as well as good viewing spots from where one could survey the camp and the surrounding areas. But it was easy to get lost too, and there have been reported cases of missing people. In 1919 for example, 4 army men were trapped by rising waters in a narrow canyon along the Bamban River, necessitating their rescue by the daring army pilot, Lt. Ira Eaker. 

Meanwhile, equestrian field events were being introduced as early as 1909 in Stotsenburg. The most popular were the polo games, and at one point, the polo teams of the camp claimed to be the best in the Far East. During the term of post commander, Brig. Gen. Hagood Johnson, the army polo team played against the visiting Prince of Wales (the future Edward VIII) in 1922. Polo fields were laid out in the base parade grounds and regular polo tournaments were soon being held every April, during the Sports Week. Though skilled and experienced, the American team were no match against the “Los Tamaraos” (the team of Elizalde brothers), which had more superior horses that the Filipino-Spanish millionaires could very well afford.

 In the mid 20s, Stotsenburg held Sports Carnivals that included golf, ball games and riding events. The equestrian competition included dressage, horse-jumping events and bareback riding, with silver cups awarded to champion teams and individual winners. Much of the riding trails have all but been changed with the continuous alteration and modification of the camp grounds. The eruption of Mount Pinatubo obliterated not just the trails but also permanently changed the landscape of the military base. Beginning in 2009, the picnic grounds of Clark Field became alive again with the sounds of trotting horses and ponies.

Today, the spacious grounds near the Mabalacat exit gate have been transformed into a riding range, with a pseudo-main street complex that sports a wild, wild west theme complete with a salon named “El Kabayo”. Here, one can rent horses and ponies by the hour, for a leisurely ride around the picturesque grassy trail canopied by giant mimosa trees. The sight of smiling kids on ponies led by guides and more experienced riders galloping at full speed certainly brings back memories of old Clark in the 1920s and 30s, when it held repute among sports and leisure lovers as an equestrian paradise.

*248. SURVIVAL IN THE JUNGLE

WHEN IN PAMPANGA, DO AS AETAS DO. Aetas at Stotsenburg show how to cook horse meat before an observant American soldier. The hardy natives were looked at by Americans as masters of jungle survival and in the 60s, many were employed to mentor the U.S. military on jungle survival technqiues. Ca. 1915.

To Spanish colonizers, the hardy Aetas (or Negritos) were objects of disdain for their stubborn resistance to the new religion. For their refusal to be Christianized, they were branded as “uncivilized savages”, without use or purpose, and no attempt was made to protect the tribes who were among the first to inhabit the Islands. Hence, the Aetas were pushed back to the wilds, living by hunting and foraging, never to be integrated with Christian lowlanders.

The coming of the Americans, somehow, changed that perception. After all, when the first contingent of U.S. military arrived in Pampanga to found Camp Stotsenburg, the semi-nomadic Aetas quickly made their presence felt in the area and were determined to make the visitors’ stay comfortable—while making a few quick bucks. While Americans went about their daily grind, these Aetas would quietly make the rounds of the houses, peddling exotic air plants (orchids), root crops, animals and souvenir native weapons to their families.

Many Americans, however, found the Aetas a fascinating people, equipped with unique skills and capable of embracing change. In the first ever census conducted in the Philippines in 1903, 35 Negritos living in Pampanga and Tarlac were described as ‘civilized’, from a total of 6,000 ‘wild’ ones. Then, at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, two Negritos, Basilio and Sayas, astounded a mixed international and American crowd by finishing 1-2 in the Pole Climbing competition during the “Anthropological Days Contest”—part of the Olympic Games of 1904.

Americans in Stotsenburg shared this positive interest for these generally good-natured tribes. At least one commanding general, Gen. Johnson Hagood, who served the camp in 1922, showed real concern for the Aetas’s welfare, for he was of the belief that the local Filipino government had nothing for them to uplift their lives. As such, all throughout the 1920s, the U.S. government granted them reservations where they could go about their lives peacefully, protected from abuses. (In the 1970s however, during the term of Col. William Truesdell, Aetas were threatening to overrun Clark Field, with their on-base ‘Negrito village’ and makeshift tiangge-style stalls. Macapagal and Marcos Village, two barangays of Mabalacat, started as ‘Negrito villages’ ).

Such good relationship fostered many benefits for both sides. Negritos found gainful employment, and later, were given access to food and free medical services. On the other hand, Americans hired the ever-willing Negritos as hunting assistants, errand and cargo boys and even posers for souvenir photographs. Early on, the Negritos’ mastery of the jungle was acknowledged by the Americans, and their skills for jungle survival were soon harnessed by the U. S. military, most specially during the Vietnam War.

It took the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), to tap the abilities of the Aetas in leading the secret training of military soldiers. In the early 1960s, as communist military strength grew in Vietnam, the PACAF began to beef up its forces not only with better munitions but also training and readiness. Hence, the PACAF Jungle School, under Maj. Ewing, was set up at Clark Air Base to prepare air crew members for their Vietnam assignment and to help banish the fear of jungle. This program would help save the lives of many American pilots shot down in the hinterlands of Southeast Asia.

Before their ‘students’, Aetas demonstrated such a wide variety of lessons as loading and shooting a primitive crossbow. They also showed the military how to identify species of poisonous snakes and crocodiles, often letting them pet slithering snakes like pythons to overcome their fear. They also gave instructions on how to make traps and tent-style animal snares.

For the Aetas, the bamboo can be a critical tool for survival. A piece of bamboo can help one start a fire and cook a decent meal. It also has a thousand and one uses—as a utensil, a carry-all, a rice cooker. This cooking technique, called “binulu” (from ‘bulu’, a bamboo specie), entails stuffing uncooked rice (abias) and adding a cup of water into a ‘bulu’. For the rice to cook, the bulu is placed over a bamboo-created fire. If desired, tomatoes, kamias, onions, garlic, fish or meat could be added to make for a more filling meal.

To build a fire, one needs a bamboo piece split in the middle. A small hole is cut on one side where a rounded stick can be driven. Friction is created by rubbing the stick between palms while blowing on it gently, until wood shavings or dry bamboo leaves spread around it, catches fire.

Drinking water can be collected using funnel-shaped leaves and certain stalks of plants, when cut, can yield potable drinking water. All these valuable jungle survival lessons—and more—were learned in the PACAF school, thanks largely to the Aetas who ably mentored the military from the 1960s through the 80s.

Today, the program has been adapted for contemporary use—mainly, to entertain adventure-loving and nature-tripping tourists and mountaineers. In Subic, the Ocean Adventure offer such a show, where native Aetas continue to demonstrate the aforementioned jungle-survival techniques. There are mountain treks, through forests and canyons, guided by Aetas who are always quick to point out the name of an insect, a tree, a forgotten trail, along the way. The Aetas may have learned to survive in the wilds, but in the face of modernity and relentless change, he still struggles to find his identity and his rightful place in Philippine society, that has for centuries, continue to neglect his race.

*247. BARS, BOOZE AND BABES: Off-Duty Pleasures of Stotsenburg

"ONE WHO CAN ALWAYS TELL WHEN PAYDAY IS COMING..". A Filipina stands ready to sell her charms to American military servicemen near Stotsenburg. Angeles. Ca. 1915.

For decades, especially in the 60s and 70s, Angeles was Pampanga’s “sin city”, a reputation bolstered by its honky-tonk atmosphere, its avenues lined with girlie bars and booze houses that catered to American servicemen stationed at Clark. En route to school from Mabalacat to Angeles, I would often pass through Balibago, lit with bright neon signs that spell come-on names like Cock and Bull, Pussy Galore, Thigh Hi alongside Las Vegas-inspired establishments like Copa Cabana, Stardust and Nina’s Papagayo.

Fields Avenue reflected a brasher, Wild, Wild West mood with its dizzying array of swanky bars, ‘dens of iniquities’, go-go-girls and ladies offering pleasures of the flesh to lonely American soldiers. Drunken brawls, crimes both violent and petty, conflicts between the military and civilians--not to mention the spread of venereal disease--were the inevitable consequences that are bound to happen in such volatile settings.

But scenarios like these already existed in the early days of Clark Field. American soldiers’ abuse of alcohol was already a constant problem then, and liquor-related deaths were regularly reported as in the case of Pvt. Henry T. Horton, who, in drunken stupor, fell asleep on the railroad track between Dau and the camp and was promptly ran over by a train. Alcohol also led to the violent end of Pvt. Arthur Breault who was beaten to death by 4 co-soldiers in 1911. Perhaps the worse tragedy was the deaths of four officers who met a vehicular accident on 23 January 1938, after their off-base drunken revelry. Only the driver survived.

It did not help that Filipinos also engaged in illegal liquor trade, causing strain between the base and the local government. In 1920, Lt. W.B. Ganther stormed into the office of acting governor Jose Narciso to demand the suspension of the Angeles police chief, who, he believed was involved in the illegal sale of wine. Narciso refused, and the next day, armed soldiers from Stotsenburg confronted him again. Only then did Narciso issue a suspension order, but he had the sense to report the matter all the way to Gov. Gen. Francis B. Harrison.

Another major problem that Stotsenburg officials had to contend with was the rise of sexually-transmitted diseases at the camp which became the leading cause of military inefficiency. An 1898 medical report took note that as American soldiers became “ habituated to the repulsiveness of native women, sexual immorality (became) more common”. By 1901, the report was more serious, with venereal disease spreading in other provinces “where the native women have been hitherto free from disease”.

Red-light districts were to be seen in Sapang Bato, known as “Sloppy Bottom” to soldiers, a place “full of sin and iniquity". Here, Filipino ‘baylarinas’ plied their services, although some Japanese women also worked the area. Barrio Margot, a recently-established barrio in the mid 1920s, provided an alterNAtive, what with its 300 residents, “composed mostly of women with questionable character”. Eventually, other areas of pleasure would sprout outside of Margot and all over Angeles—and pick-up places like “Bull Pen” were patronized by soldiers before the War, with girls to be had for 2 pesos per hour and 10 pesos for an all-night stand.

Much like Sodom and Gomorrha, the heady, decadent days of Angeles as a sin city came to a sudden end with the eruption of Mount Pinatubo, which caused the closure of Clark, and subsequently, the places of lusty pleasure along Jake Gonzales Blvd., Friendship Highway, Fields Avenue and Balibago. But such setback was only temporary. A quick survey of those places today reveal that only the habitués have changed—instead of Americans, a more international crowd animate the strip: German retirees, Aussies, Britons, Japanese and the ubiquitous Koreans.

Even business has expanded to include spas, massage parlors, gay bars, comedy and videoke clubs featuring strippers, masseuses, macho dancers, transvestite performers, hostos and GROs, sing-along masters and even oil wrestlers. Angeles may never be able to shake off its ‘sin city’ image, but for as long as cash registers are ringing, it does not really matter: happy days are here again.

*244. YESTERDAYS IN SAPANGBATO

STONEY RIVER. Sapangbato, once a vast frontierland, is today, Angeles City's biggest barangay. Its progress is linked with nearby Camp Stotsenburg, America's largest military installation in the Philippines, which depended on the Sapangbato for supplies and labor force. Ca. 1912. 

Angeles City’s biggest barangay (around 18.8 hectares) , Sapangbato, was once a rugged, unfriendly land, marked by thick forests and cliffs, bisected by a strong stream (sapa) that flowed and brought large stones (bato) down its route, as it made its way to lower Pampanga. Long before the American military came to claim large portions of Sapangbato, Negritos lived and hunted freely here, scrounging for root crops like yams and cassava, and roaming the wilds of nearby Mabalacat, Porac and the mountains of Zambales. 

 There are claims that Sapangbato was the property of Ludovico Narciso, a former town head of Mabalacat, who was said to have registered the place under his name during the Spanish times. In fact, old residents assert that marriages, births and deaths occurring in Sapangbato were registered in the town as well, up to 1892. Unfortunately, all municipal records were burned during the last war and no documents have yet been recovered to validate this claim. 

 One thing was certain though; the arrival of the US 7th Cavalry in 1901 was a turning point in Sapangbato’s history, and their settlement of the place would result in the establishment of Fort Stotsenburg. The population of Sapangbato started to swell beginning on 12 May 1903, when families of those who joined the Philippine Scouts migrated to the said district. 

 Thus, Sapangbato became a melting pot of sorts, a place of convergence for Kapampangans, Tagalogs, Negritos and Americans. Its progress was intertwined with the development of Fort Stotsenburg. Not only were residences built, but also markets, sari-sari stores, a church and schools. In 1918, a teacher, Glaciano Cruz, went to Sapangbato and set up a school in the shop of Mr. Geirge Seltzer. Civilian American families settled in Train Barrio, Hill Barrio and Veterinary Barrio, but they would often venture into the commercial area of Sapangbato to do their marketing and shopping in open-air tiendas that sold fruits, vegetables, meats, dry goods, and domestic products. 

On the other hand, the locals who were employed in Stotsenburg lived at the perimeter of the barrio closest to the camp, called the “civilian line”. In 1931, however, they were required to move further, to the barrio proper. Sapangbato’s proximity to the military camp caused it to be placed under constant surveillance by the U.S. military police, who kept watch on gambling and drinking activities. 

 At the height of the second World War, most of the buildings in Sapangbato were torched by the American military, with the exception of the school, the church and the market. Today, a site called “Grotong Hapon” can be found in Purok 6, near the cemetery, where Japanese soldiers who lost their lives in the last war lie at rest. 

 Several natives of Sapangbato have played crucial parts in the barrio’s long history. Gen. Lucas was the first and only Aeta to be appointed as a military head officer of Negritos by the commanding officer of Stotsenburg, giving him the rank of a general. Don Lorenzo Sanchez, for instance, sheltered Manuel L. Quezon in his home as the American forces pursued Aguinaldo and his party who had earlier sneaked into Angeles. 

 Similarly, Don Segundo Tayag opened his house to battle-weary revolucionarios, supplying them with food and clothes. It was said that Don Segundo gave up his bedroom to sleep on a bench outside, which caused him to fall ill of a respiratory disease that claimed his life. 

Of course, a modern day celebrity from Sapangbato is currently making waves in the U.S.and around the world as a member of the Grammy award winning hip hop group Black Eyed Peas: Apl. De Ap (born Allan Pineda Lindo Jr.). 

 With the re-development of Clark Air Base as a commercial business district with an international airport to match, Sapangbato continues to bustle with activity, as it did when Americans were still around--only this time, the barangay is moving forward with a livelier beat, in keeping with the quicker tempo of progress that the whole of Angeles now enjoys.

*201. LOTA DELGADO: The Star of Rogelio de la Rosa’s Life

LOVELY LOTA. Actress Lota Delgado of Angeles was on her way to becoming a major star when the War interrupted, and Rogelio de la Rosa's love beckoned. She stood by Rogelio even as he changed careers--from being in the movie industry to government service. 1953.

The charming Sampaguita contract star who became the wife of movie’s golden boy, Rogelio de la Rosa is, herself, a Kapampangan. Carlota Delgado was born in Camp Stotsenburg, Pampanga on 19 May 1921 to parents Luis Delgado and Caridad Concepcion. As a child, Lottie, as she was called, showed no inclination to the performing arts, and it was through a twist of fate that she found herself working in the movies.

In fact, she had started out as a secretary at Marsman office. In one Anti-TB gala ball she had to attend, Lottie was introduced to Pedro Vera, the big boss of Sampaguita Pictures. Mr. Vera encouraged her to enter the movies, but she demurred; she was not sure her parents would approve. Lottie was given employment anyway at the Sampaguita office, and it was here that she caught the attention of two kabalens from Lubao—the director Gregorio Fernandez and Rogelio de la Rosa, then a rising star.

The two convinced Lottie to do a screen test, to which she agreed. She registered so well on the screen, prompting one smitten reporter to write: “An eloquent personification of live youth and exquisite charm, her person is as eye-arresting as black against a background of white and vice versa. A complexion that is clear and fair, a height that is just right for one endowed with so great an amount of charm, a carriage that is impressively stately, a physique that is pleasantly slender and a smile that carries an eyeful of infection---all these are the fundamentals that justify Lota Delgado’s attractiveness.”

Immediately, the young ingenue now known as Lota Delgado was cast in her first movie made in 1938, “Magsasampaguita”, supporting Corazon Noble and Rogelio de la Rosa. Her first appearance on the silver screen was a pleasant discovery to movie fans who took note of the photogenic Angeleña actress. She then showed up next in “Takip-Silim” (1939). Though just a feature role (it was a Carmen Rosales-Rogelio de la Rosa starrer), Lota’s performance convinced even the studio skeptics that the young artist was somebody to watch.

She was kept busy at the start of the 40s decade. In 1940, she made five Sampaguita movies in a row ( “Gunita”—a musical, “Katarungan”—her first lead role with Rogelio, “Estrellita”, “Colegiala”, “Nang Mahawi Ang Ulap”). In 1941, she made a movie with Rogelio de la Rosa yet again--“Tarhata”. Rogelio, then already a superstar, decided to put up his own RDR Productions and invited Lota to do “Dalawang Anino”, with younger brother Jaime de la Rosa. Lota’s career was not only blooming, but also his love affair with leading man, Rogelio.

Just when Lota was hitting the apex of her movie career, World War II broke out, putting her stardom on hold. He forced retirement however, gave her time enough to consider Rogelio’s proposal, and on 20 September 1942, Lota became Mrs. Rogelio de la Rosa.

From then on, she opted to focus on her new role as a wife, and later as a mother of six children, 5 boys (Ramon, Rudolph, Reynaldo, Roberto, Rocky) and 1 girl (Ruby). She preferred to stay in the background and allowed Rogelio to run the show, so to speak. She would follow her husband all the way to the Mountain Province, where they not only had a Baguio home but also a ranch in Irisan, where she ran the de la Rosa household efficiently while managing a dairy farm. When Rogelio decided to revive RDR Productions, he convinced Lota to stage a comeback with him as her leading man in the 1951 movie, “Irisan”.

The death of Ramon Magsaysay in a plane crash in 1953 galvanized Rogelio to join politics. Magsaysay, the godfather de la Rosa’s only daughter, Ruby—had often prodded the actor to enter government service, and 4 years later, Rogelio was elected Senator. He continued his quest for presidency in 1961 and had excellent chances of winning. Eventually, he had to give way to the LP bet-- his brother-in-law, Diosdado Macapagal. Had he pursued his quest, Lota Degado could have been a First Lady—and a beautiful star at that! But she remained dutiful as always, standing behind her husband in his multi-facetted career as an actor, politician and a popular diplomat, until his death in 1986.

Lota Delgado would live for over two more decades in the company of her children with Rogelio, none of whom entered showbiz. One of the most beautiful faces to grace the silver screen finally passed away of undisclosed causes on 28 April 2009.

*147. MAMIPI: Livelihood in Laundry

WASH 'N WEAR. A group of labanderas for American families in Camp Stotsenburg do their laundry at a nearby stream in Angeles. Ca. 1912-14.

Just two decades ago, the only laundry services available in Pampanga are those in Angeles and the areas near Clark, and these catered primarily to the get-up-and-go lifestyle of American servicemen and their families. Today, mechanized laundry shops are gaining popularity in the country, a response to the demands of an upwardly mobile market who wants his laundry done and delivered just as fast as his fastfood pizza.

The shift from hand-wash to machine-wash has certainly taken its toll on today’s labanderas or laundrywomen, whose kuskos-kusot-kula skills have been taken over by state-of-the-art, coin-operated, liquid-detergent and fabric softener-fed washing machines, with spinner and dryer to match.

More than a century ago, however, any one with busy hands and an enterprising spirit could make a living out of laundering someone else’s clothes. Indeed, laundering was a legitimate and honorable job, although it paid very little—20 centavos per day—the same fee as one would pay a seamstress, but a weaver and a cigar box filler earned more. By 1902, the rate has gone up to 40 centavos.

The most proficient in clothes washing were surprisingly the menfolk—and the hardworking and fastidious Chinese were tops at this trade, often rising to become laundry foremen, in charge of supervising a group of labanderas. But Filipinas, too, became expert mamipi, adept in scrubbing dirt and grime away with a brisk hand rub and lots of tender, loving care. A complete service included home pick-ups of the dirty laundry, ironing, starching and folding of clothes, delivered to the client in neat bundles.

The tools of the trade were simple enough—a round batya hewn from a tree trunk, palu-palo (a wooden clothes beater) , commercial soap (the speckled blue and white sabon Intsik was favored) and iskoba (scrub made from coconut fiber). Washing was done in the clear waters of a stream or a river, and was almost always, a communal event, with labandera groups working as a pack.

Before pressing, the fabric was soaked in “gogo”, starch solution made from rice or cassava, to stiffen and give it form. The butterfly sleeves of the native baro, for instance, had to be starched to make it stand. Indigo blue or “tina” was added to the starch solution to heighten the whiteness of clothes—a bluish kind of white was the standard.

Ironing implements were a bit more complicated—one could iron large items like blankets, using the dry heat of “buli”, a foot operated wooden presser. The cloth item was rolled around a wooden cyclinder, which was rolled on a plank using another wooden piece, on which one stood and slid from side to side, thus flattening the fabric. Mostly, clothes were ironed after starching using open brass flat irons—plantsang korona. Live coals were put into this heavy iron with a wooden handle and was then run over clothes. They came in different sizes, the better to maneuver on the different parts of the garment. There were minuscule plantsa koronas for cuffs and sleeves.

Eventually, the safer “plantsang de baya”, which had an iron cover, was favored as it kept embers from flying out and burning the fabric. Ironing was done on a burlap-covered, ironing board called “pakabayo”, as it resembled a horse when unfolded. To make the plantsa glide better, it was allowed to rest at intervals on a bed of banana leaves.

When American servicemen started arriving in Camp Stotsenburg for their military assignments together with their families, Kapampangan laundrywomen were employed as outside help to take care of this backbreaking, but necessary task. Caroline S. Shunk, wife of an American army officer stationed at the camp in 1916, observed their work process and habits:

“The laundresses were sitting out on the porch, pounding the clothes with heavy sticks. I make them boil the clothes now on the American stove, which they consider most unnecessary and cruel. They have to use starch, too, instead of rice-water, which makes the clothing like stiff paper and unfit to wear; and it is another grievance that they have to put starch in the clothes and not eat it! They iron on a blanket spread on the floor, and as they smoke long cigars during the process, the clothing is apt to be burned and scorched. They do up the white and khaki uniforms most excellently, however”.

Labanderas, like kutseros, are a vanishing breed, but it is inspiring to know that at one time, the cleanliness of a nation rested in their hands. As the same foreigner noted and concluded, “The Filipinos are not dirty people—quite the contrary, they are the most bathed, washed, and ironed creatures you can imagine, and sally forth from wretched-looking little nipa huts, spick and span and immaculately clean.”

*145. CLARK FIELD LIVING IN THE 1920s

DOMESTICATED LIVES. A U.S. serviceman with his wif and newborn, begins their new life as a young married couple at their Camp Stotsenburg (Clark Field) house. From a private album ca. 1920s.

By the 1920s, Camp Stotsenburg had been firmly established as a military post and many American army men were encouraged to transfer to the Philippines as part of their tour of duty. For a lot of officers, this Pampanga assignment was equivalent to “two years lost…in a germ-laden country of burning heat and torrential downpours”. To others though, it meant “ two years of golden days and silver nights which fly on their way all too quickly”.

Most certainly, the facilities of early Clark Field were nowhere near perfect. A 1929 Manila newspaper described the camp as “ a lonely, dreary waste for many years”. The wooden houses that were the first buildings were “unpainted and unsightly”, resembling nothing so much as “an old lumber or mining camp”. Malaria plagued the area, so much so that the troops referred to Clark as a “death valley”.

Enlisted men who began arriving at the military post starting in 1919 had to be housed in conical canvas tents, around which a framework of bamboo thatched with nipa palms were put up as a shade to the bright sun and tropical heat. Married servicemen were horrified to know that their families had to be housed in bamboo houses and nipa huts in nearby barrios.

Caroline S. Shunk, an officer’s wife assigned to the Stotsenburg, detailed some of her personal experience in her book, “An Army Woman in the Philippines” as she faced the day-to-day challenge of living in the camp. “ This constant battle against cholera, leprosy, dysentery, malaria, and horrible skin diseases gets on the nerve, but at least together with spiders and scorpions, earthquakes and typhoons, they leave us no excuse for being dull.”

It was Brig. Gen. Johnson Hagood who initiated the improvement of living conditions in Clark in January 1922. Military activities were set aside to complete the necessary buildings and residential quarters of enlisted men. After a 4-month building frenzy, 33 new houses, nurses’ quarters, 5 new barracks, a commissary, a power plant, new stables, a new meat market and a new sewer were built on Clark.

The new residences were equipped with modern plumbing with showers and baths, while the old ones were updated. Porches were added to buildings in the absence of trees that provided cool shade. Commander Squadron Roy Brown and his wife Camille were the first to occupy the married officers’ quarters, and their house had capacious rooms furnished with rattan and wicker furniture. Homes were often tastefully furnished with capiz shell lamps, Oriental rugs while rare orchids and ferns bought from Negrito peddlers were hung around the wooden porches

American families also had access to household helps and the nearby towns provided the extra manpower to run the Clark households efficiently. Most sought after were the all-around muchachos (houseboys), lavanderas and nannies who came to work every day, obediently addressing their masters with “Sir” and “Madam”. They were supplemented by Chinese cooks and Japanese amahs. Language was often a problem as the servants came from the rural class with limited education. One lady of the house once instructed his Kapampangan ‘boy’ to “heat the food for dinner”, and the servant dutifully answered , “But I eat it already, Madam”, showing off the empty pan.

In 1923, a post exchange and a recreation hall were put up near the barracks. Garrison children, which numbered only to a few hundreds, were entertained through picnics, parties, sports shows and gift-giving events. Two schools—the Leonard Wood School and Dean Worcester School—were established to serve the growing educational needs of these children in 1925 and 1929.

Families depended on traveling peddlers of all nationalities: from Indians who sold scarves and ivory canes to Chinese and Japanese who hawked Mandarin robes, silks, lacquered trays and boxes, fans and lanterns. Filipino vendors had finely-woven Baliuag and Lucban hats, exquisite piña and jusi cloth, baskets and furniture in their inventory. For food, Americans would venture to Angeles, where the crowded tiendas of Sapang Bato provided everything from papayas, cucumbers, limes, nuts, fish, shrimps, sweets made from brown sugar and even edible bugs—“chow bugs” the foreigners call them.

Of course, the heyday of Clark living peaked in the ‘60s and ‘70s, when enterprising Kapampangans saw dollars in their agricultural lands, quickly transforming these into posh subdivisions and fancy villages to house a growing American population. Many chose to live off-base in such new residential communities as the Diamond Subdivision, Villa Teresa, Villa Angela and Marisol Village, which provided privacy and other exclusive amenities. All these would be taken away in 1991, when the eruption of Mount Pinatubo rendered Clark uninhabitable and uninhospitable as it was in the early 1900s---even worse, perhaps—as tons of lahar buried the traces and memories of the good American life forever.

*128. HAPPY TRAILS TO YOU!

CALL OF THE WILD. An American wife of a U.S. military stationed at Camp Stotsenburg enjoys the idyllic views of an unidentified trail near the camp. From a 1925 album.

Part of the excitement of being stationed at the Fort Stotsenburg in Angeles in the 1920s was the opportunity to explore the wild environs of a new country. The officers of Stotsenburg made sure that soldiers, in their spare time, get to do some nature-tripping in the nearby Pinatubo area. A memo issued on 17 January 1925, listed down points of interest for those interested in riding, hiking, or just plain enjoyment of the scenery.

Some of the trails and sites recommended included the following:

FERN CANYON. This canyon offers the finest scenery of its kind. Here, one can see a beautiful array of ferns, wild fowls and smaller birds many of which are bedecked with the brightest of plumage. After entering the canyon, it narrows down into a gorge with rock walls from 75 to 150 feet in height. Huge trees jut out from the walls, refreshing and cooling the air, tinged with the scent of wild flowers.

THREE CRATER TRAIL. This trail forms part of the 24th Field Artillery China Sea Trail. The trail follows along a canyon which opens out frequentlt into circular clearings similar to and which probably are, very old craters. Interesting and unsual geological formations are frequently encountered. The stream which flows through this canyon furnishes a portion of Stotsenburg’s water supply.

LOST CANYON. Lying just south of the larger canyon of the Three Crater Trail is the Lost Canyon, which offers a lot to the seeker of the unusual. The canyon is narrow and overgrown with dense tropical shrubbery, vines and trees. Here, one can find everything in its natural state—from vari-colored birds to air plants and epiphytic orchids that grace the porches of most quarters in the Post. This is a fine place to cool off on hot, tropical days.

DRY RIVER BED TRAIL. An excellent route for beginners. It runs through the sandy river bed, with an easy footing for horses. This trail is also an excellent place to work frisky, nervous horses as the deep sand tends to quiet them down. Tress line the stream bed forming natural barriers on either side.

BANYAN TRAIL. This is an excellent route to take for a short ride. One can leave the Post, cover this trail to where it joins the Dolores road and return in 45 minutes. The trail is taken near the Air Service and then runs through the Banana Grove where the famous Banyan Tree is passed. There is a very dense growth in the Banana Grove and as the sun seldom filters through the thick foliage, it is always cool here.

ARTILLERY TRAIL TO THE CHINA SEA. This trail was constructed by the 24th Filed Artillery and is open from about the 1st of November to the 1st of July for individually mounted parties and pack animals. A 2 and a half hour ride, without one hill, brings one to Camp Three located on the Bamabn River, which is an excellent place for picnics. A good swimming hole lies 200 yards from the Camp. During this ride, you pass through the 4 craters marked with great scenic beauty and marvelous rock formation.

About 30 minutes from the 4th crater, the tropical forest begins and continues to the base of Mount Pinatubo. The beauty and wonders of this forest cannot be appreciated unless seen. There is practically no animal life but abundant flora: giant ferns, air plants, orchids, and other trees 250 feet tall and from 25-30 feet in diameter. Unnamed beautiful flora peculiar to this forest can be found here.

Camp Six offers a cool view of Zambales Pass and the plains of Pampanga at an altitude of 4,000 feet. To the west, one can see coastal mountains and the Capones Islands. Plenty of spring water is available here. A mile away from this Camp is the Pinatubo Crater, which is beyond description with walls rising shear from 500 to 2000 feet.

Today, some of these trails have either been settled on, forgotten or disappeared forever brought about by the Pinatubo eruption. But it is good to know that once, in the not-so-distant past, our fair province had more natural attractions and scenic wonders to offer adventurous souls—to lift tired spirits, enthrall the eye, and provide an unforgettable welcome to visitors from here and far.

(*NOTE: Feature titles with asterisks represent other writings of the author that appeared in other publications and are not included in the original book, "Views from the Pampang & Other Scenes")

*82. THE DAU PX EXPERIENCE

DAU"S DAYS. Post-war fiesta celebration of Dau presaged a future of business booms and commercial success, thanks to nearby Clark Field and the enterprising spirit of its people.

There was a time in the '70s when barangay Dau was even more recognizable than its mother town, Mabalacat. Who would think that this town's biggest and most populous barangay, bustling with commercial possibilities, was once just a forest thicket, where hardwood Dau trees (Sc. Name: Dracontomelon dao) grew in profusion and provided the barrio’s landmark?

Teodoro Lising is listed as the fundador of Dau in the year 1843. Dau became a barrio in 1936 by virtue of Presidential Proclamation no. 1. That same year, President Manuel L. Quezon issued a decree establishing the first training cadre in Dau Checkpoint at Fort Stotsenburg 1. Camp DAU, as became the venue for training hundreds and thousands of 20-year old Filipinos who were required to render military service starting in 1936. Training began the next year under the command of Philippine Scout and Army Officer General Fidel Segundo, from the U.S. West Point Class 1917. Segundo had been the 1st Filipino officer assigned to Stotsenburg’s Scout artillery regiment twenty years earlier.

Based on stories of retired superiors, DAU was an acronym for Division Artillery Unit, since it was the first artillery training unit of the Philippine Army. It has been suggested that barangay Dau got its name from this unit, but this cannot be possible, as the name “Dau” has been appearing on maps earlier than 1936. The camp's Post Exchange was also set up in Dau, which presaged the rise in stature of the barrio as the country's PX capital in the 70s.

With the relaxation of Clark rules, PX goods flowed out of the base in abundance, to be resold later in stores and shops that quickly sprouted like mushrooms along MacArthur Highway. Farmlands were flattened and idle lots were cleared to give way to hole-in-the-wall stalls that sold never-before-tasted goodies and luxuries seen only on American glossies.

All of a sudden, Pringles in canisters, Hanes T-Shirts, PACEX Milk and ice cream, Dove soaps and PikNik shoestring potatoes were all the rage. Everybody joined the PX bandwagon and soon, a commercial area of sorts rose in Dau, the biggest of which is the Marina Arcade owned by the Moraleses. Even houses nearby turned their garages into stalls, selling not just brand new items but also second-hand, American leaving goods---from lamps, toys, plumbing fixtures to whole dining room showcases.

With the construction of the North Expressway that linked Dau to Manila, the great American experience became just a short ride away. Week-ends found hordes of Manilenos shopping for imported shampoos, Playboy magazines, rubber shoes, cookies, bedsheets, army fatigues and lawn mowers in Dau, rummaging through second-hand shops for bargains and finds retrieved, rescued and sometimes stolen from the base.

For a lot of Dau folks, the 70s were the heydey of PX business, a get rich-quick period that enabled a lot of them to earn sizeable fortunes in just a few years, never mind if the practice was not exactly legal. Dau thrived and throbbed with heady excitement as symbols of American pop culture--McDonald's, Donut King, Shakey's, Kentucky Fried Chicken-- made their appearance at the mouth of the Dau exit.

No martial law, no anti-American demos, and not even fire, which razed the commercial strip a couple of times, could dampen the tempo of business. Dau was so popular and prosperous in those days, it overshadowed the slow progress of Mabalacat town proper.

The reversal of fortune began with the departure of American servicemen facilitated by the Pinatubo eruption of 1991. Business took a turn for the worse when PX Clubs opened at Clark--the first being the Royal PX Club--which extended PX shopping privileges to every Mabalacat resident.

From Dau, the shopping traffic shifted to Clark where big PX outlets offered fresher, cheaper, more varied merchandise set in American-size warehouses.There simply was no match to the competition, forcing PX proprietors in Dau to cry foul. An enterprising few expanded their merchandise to include both Bangkok and local goods, while still others simply gave up and closed shop.

Since then, the face of Dau's PX business has changed a whole lot. At the height of the Pinatubo eruption, even whole doors, hospital beds, architectural pieces and medical apparatus found their way in Dau shops. Now, more shops are carrying more traditional boutique items, but in the process, they are also losing their unique points of attraction which once lured thousands to their doors.

Dau's golden PX age may have gone, but with the unwavering spirit of enterprise demonstrated by its hard-working people, the barangay continues to forge to the future, firmly entrenched as Mabalacat's premier and undisputed commercial center.

(*NOTE: Feature titles with asterisks represent other writings of the author that appeared in other publications and are not included in the original book, "Views from the Pampang & Other Scenes")

71. BORN ON THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN

HOME ON THE RANGE. The Zambales Mountain Range as seen from the Pampanga side. The range forms a natural border that runs through Zambales, Tarlac and Pangasinan. The Zambales range is home to Mount Pinatubo, which caused the century’s 2nd biggest volcanic eruption, awakening in June 1991 after 600 years of dormancy. Circa 1924-1926.

“I was poorly born on the top of the mountain...”, so goes a song I learned from the singing of my Mother. As Kapampangans, we grew up under the shadows of not just one but many mountains—the grand Bunduk Arayat in the east and the expansive undulating slopes in the west—the Zambales Mountain Range. When I was growing up, I knew very little of those nameless blue-grey mountains that loomed above Clark Field, paying less attention to them than the more familiar Arayat. The only time my interest was kindled was when I was in elementary school. I remember we were in our gardening classes, I must have been in Grade 5 then. Our vegetable plots were situated in an enclosed farm fronting the mountain range, so we had a commanding, unobstructed view of the landscape. We were at work on our pechay plots when a school boy stood transfixed before the mountains and shouted to us all that he could see an image of the Virgin on the flank of the mountain! This created quite a stir amongst us gullible 10 year olds. For days, I would strain my eyes on those mountains, and I swear that on a clear day, I, too, could see the faint outline of our Lady!

The Zambales mountain range forms a border that traverses the whole length of Zambales, extends into Tarlac and ends somewhere near Pangasinan’s Agno River. The mountains consist of old volcanic stocks, formed under intense heat and pressure from deep beneath the Earth’s surface, centuries ago. The mountain range is noted for its endemic tropical rainforests and flowering plants like wild orchids that number over 60 species. The mountains had no real agricultural value to Kapampangans, except for a thousand or so Aetas who were found living there in the 1900s. They were cultivating corn and bartering beeswax and rattan with lwlanders in exchange for cloth and salt.

Of course, the most famous occupant of the Zambales range is Mount Pinatubo, which awoke after 600 years of slumber in June 1991 and caused one of the biggest volcanic eruptions in modern history. (Other mountains in the range include Mt. Liwitan, Mt. Kontitik and Mt. Dalayap, whose virgin forests were mercifully spared from Pinatubo’s lahar flows).

There are no recorded documents of Pinatubo’s ancient upheavals, but there exists an oral account from the hardy Aetas, handed down from generation to generation and collected by the eminent anthropologist H. Otley Beyer in 1915. Aetas tell of a violent fight between Arayat and Pinatubo in which big boulders were heaved by the latter, levelling off the cone of Arayat. There were also accounts of earth tremors, rumbling noises, a rain of ash, hot rocks and lava flows that went on for years.

When the Americans came to build Fort Stotsenburg, they familiarized themselves with the rough terrains of the Zambales range. One of their first objectives was to scale Mount Pinatubo, which was one of the highest mountains there, almost twice the height of Arayat. This became a popular past-time for American soldiers who inexplicably nicknamed Pinatubo as “Ida’s Tit”. Camp Sanchez, a picturesque forest encampment set up along the artillery trail (also known as the China Sea Trail) that ran through the mountain borders of Pampanga and Zambales, became the starting point for the ascent of Pinatubo. Successful climbers who reached the peak could sign their names in a guest book up the mountain and certificates were given to those who reached certain designated distances. The conquistadores, as the triumphant American climbers were called, were given certain privileges for their feat, such as leaving their shirt tails out even during formal occasions.

It is interesting to note that in April 1907, a Marine Corps expedition under Maj. E. K. Cole hacked its way to Pinatubo. Accompanying the group was Warren D. Smith, a Division of Mines employee who concluded that “Mount Pinatubo is not a volcano and we saw no signs of its ever having been one, although the rock constituting it is porphyritic”. In November 1914, a Pvt. Edgar J. Eckton of the 7th Cavalry supposedly reached the apex of Mt. Pinatubo but there are half a dozen or so claimants to this feat of honor. In 1921, the first airplane flight over Mt. Pinatubo was successfully undertaken.

Years after the Pinatubo eruption, the range was blanketed with ash that gave it an eerie, snow-covered look, white and ghostly from afar. Today, the Zambales mountain range has regained much of its color and vegetation, forming a scenic backdrop once again to Pampanga’s phoenix-like rise to progress.
(26 October 2003)