Memoirs of Victor Buencamino

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MEMOIRS OF VICTOR BUENC AMINO

JORGE B. VARGAS FILIPINIANA FOUNDATION (Ineolporatefl February 11, 1969) BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Jorge B. Yargas Chairrnan-President

Pio

Victor A. Lim

Pedrosa

Vice Preside.nt

Vice Chairman TRLISTT1ES

Carlos P. Kornuler Victor Buencamino

Geronima

T.

Pecson

Adelaida

Evett D. Ilester

Lourdes

V.

Ledesma

A. Tan,

OPER.dTING OFFICII&S

*

Jorge B.

Vargas Presidcnt

{

Victor A. Um Vice President Jorge B. Vargas ru

Mauro Garcia

Treasuret

Director

{gnacio G. Pamintuau Assistant Treasurer

0scar Z. C

Benareg

ouwel^Assist0nt

S

eer

etdt|,

Suzano Jun Gonzales Curator-Re sid

6nt

Restor

ct

Angelita R. Villanueva Acting Librarian

Andrea M. Edang c Asistanl lActing Musaum Curator) Ad.ministratiu

I

VICTOR BUENCAMINO, IBBB-1977. (Oil Portrait Fernaodo Amo,rsolo.

V.

Buencamino

Fanily

Estate).

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Mlernoirs of

Victor Buencamino

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JORGE

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l\{andaluyong, Metro Manila VARGAS FILIP.INIANA TOUNDATION

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Copyright (c) 19?? by The Jorge B. Vargas Filipiniana Foundation .4.U Rights Reserved

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FIRST EDITION

Printed in the of the Philippines

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To my u,tfe, Loltta, to

wh,orn

I owe so mmeh, And to Vic and Dolly and Nuneng;

nd to my grand,chtlrlren; And, to th.e m,emot'y of Pluth,p ttt

t,

I PREFACE Atvt VERY happy to Xrave rhe privilege and opportunity of writing a feur words regarding these memoirs one of of the most colorful, versatile, and durable pioneers among our nation-builders who were in their prime during the first ha-lf of the 20th century.

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Dr. \rictor Buencamino, noly nearing 89, has a remarkable memor,v and has diligently preserved most of his papers. His memoirs, therefore, are rich in documented details and in anecdotes that are worthy of being preserved as part of the heritage of our race. As a human document, this book telis of the life and times of our people in a bygone era; it tells of their virtues, their foibles. lt records some hitherto unpublished rnorsels of history, such as how General Arthur MacArthur, {ather of "I-shallreturn" Douglas, refused, even in his deathbed to forgive his junior colleague, General J. Franklin Bell, because, according to Arthur, Bell had done the Filipinos some injustice. This book tells of President Manuel L. Quezon as a human being; of his loves and of his labors and lifelong fight for the freedom of his country. It tells of the struggle of a generation of Fiiipinos against racial discrimination.

This bcok has drama and suspense" Thrice the author was on the brink of a tragic ending. vu

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And it's a good thing that the author has included in this book some copious excerpts from the diary of his heroson Philip whose account of the life of Filipino troopers on Bataan and Corregidor and in the Death March is, to me, one of the more unforgcttable firsthand versions of our people's part in the last war. ., . .For., on the whole, this is a happy book by one who has lived a full life through four-fifths of a century, but who is still so vigorous and so gaily young at heart. ;- ,I am grateful to Dr.',Buencamino for generously giving me abundant recognition for my humble role in the story oI our. times. As his .conternporary he is only two yeam my - captured senior'-- r think Dr. Buencamino has in his memoirs the flavor of that historic era. During our lifelong association both in and out of the Government, Dr. Buencamino has always impressed me with his sterling qualities and inlpeccable behavior as a true gentleman.

In the public service, he can boast of an unassailed and enviable record of industry, honesty and dedication to duty. As his close friend, co-worker and admirer, I do not to commend this book as a "must" to every reader. .hesitate The Jorge B. Vargas Filipiniana Foundation, of which Dr. Buencamino is one of its founding fathers, is indeed privileged to issue this book, the first of its kind to appear ,rrrd., its imprint. JORGE B. VARGAS

Kawilihan, Mandaluyong Metro Manila 15 November 1976

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POSTSCRIFT

TO

PRE.FACE:,

his book rvas about to come off the press and was scheduled to be launched to the public on February 15, 1977, his 89th birthday, when Dr. Buencamino unfor-[anuary tunatcly passcd away on tr, \977 . It is a great pity that Dr. Buencarnino clid not livc to see the final printing of his Mcmoirs, but it n,as rrroviclcntial that he rvas able to finish his manuscript just before his rlemise. With his passing, the Jorge B. Vargas l'ilipiniana Foundation has cxertcd everv effort to have this l:ook published as scheduled as a fitting memorial to his sr:rviccs to olrr people and to his patriotic dedication to the public good and the name Filipino.

ffiffi

J. B. V. I

5 January

197?

IX

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F'ORE!VORD

ffi W

VER at the round mahogany table of the Philippine

Columbian Club library, my cronies and I spcnd many an early evening hour chewing the rag, so to speak. I enjoy these sessions immensely. I\{y friend, Cariing }'ernandez, leads most of our disc,-rssions tlrat have to do with economics, while the venerable retired Justice J. B. L. Reyes enlightens us on public affairs. Very often, $re reach a consensus on how to solvc the all problems, that is, except our problems of the world own. And when we run out of topics and juicy gossips, I oftdn amuse the gang with little anecdotes, such as how, at 12, I u,as sent to the Unitcd States ostensibtry as a student but. I suspect, more trulv as a hostage. Most of my yarns are, by choice, of pre-World War I vintage because I feel safer knowing that nonc of those around me can challenge my being an authority o'n things that happened before they were born. That's one distinct advantage of being an octogenarian.

One day, Carling suggested that I recall as much of the past as I carr remember and coliect these reminiscenCIes into a book. He was persuasive. For one thing, he is the fairy godfather of o,ur club library and he makes me feel that I should n rite sorne kind of a memorabilia if only because I am the only surviving founder of our 69-year old Columbian Club. I am therefore the last original source of authentic Columbiania, Carling insists. x1

Furthermore, my cronies tell me it is not given to many to live all of eight years and eighty, ?nd I owe it to the coming generations of Filipinos to try and capture the flavor of life and living during these perhaps the most eventful and exciting nine decades of our country's past.

My

cronies were particularly insistent that I leave behilrd an account of any pioneering work in which I was involved. They contend that anything done for the first time is worth noting.

At first, f

was reluctant. I never was a top figure in any field. But my cronies insisted that precir.ly b."u*. there will be chroniclers aplenty who will tell stories about top men, I should do a story to fill a gap that shall be there becailse historians as a rule do not bother to see the past from the eyes of an orclinary mortal.

Quite apatt from the encouragement I received from my Columbian cronies, the big push that finally put this book across cam(: from my lifelong friend, Jorge B. "George" Vargas. Among George's many useful preoccupations is the collecting of Filipiniana. In his sprawling Kawilihan com. pound in lVlandaluyong, he has built a muscum housing his varied and priceLess collections. To assure a perpetual sup port for the maintenance and clevelopment of his museum, George has organized the Jorge B. Vargas Filipiniana Foundation. He has kindly asked me to serve as one of its trustees.

When he Iearned that I was thinking of doing these memolrs, George at once offered to have the book published by the Fotrndation. He said anything of interest that I can recall about the past is the precise type of material that he would like to collect for his Filipiniana. He even said I was a rare primary source as there are not many of our generaxll

tiorr still livirrri rvlro crrrr tcll;r firstlrand story of what lilc w:rs lilic irr our hcyclay.

It

wirs gcncrous of Gcorgc to considcr this little rvor"k rvorthy of bcing enshrinccl in his Xrilipiniana collection. I t'onsiclcr it a distinct honor to have this book published b1, tlrt: Jorgc B. Vzrrgas Filipiniana !'oundation.

I

had had fun rccalling r,r,hat l,ent into these iittlr I think having so much fun doing i.t n as reason r:nough for corning out r,vith the tidbits that tell the story o[ my life ancl times. nrcmoirs.

This book lvould noi have bccn possible nithout the inr,:rluable assistariee o[ the follon,ing: Tomas Valdezco and Robcrto Yumul, rny faithful sistants, for their: recollcctions, researches and advice;

as-

\/ic, m1, son and his u'ife, Bessie, for his recollections and for her assistancc in translating Spanrsh source rnaterials that rvcnt into this hook; Lirdia G. de la Cruz, my e{ficient Sccretary, who did all the stenographic and typing rvork oI the manuscript; Baldomerr: T. "Toto" Olivera, my Columbian erony, who looked after its styling ancl ecliting. u'George" \,'arsas, Chairman-President of the Jorge B. Jorge B. Vargas F'ilipini;rna Foundation, and N,{auro Garria, the Foundation's Director. for undertaking its puhrlieatio,n.

VB, l5 November,

1976

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CONTENl]

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Preiface, oii m

Some Secrets of Longevity, 7 fite Parnpered Boy of Sagunto Street, 6 Ixarning the Palme,ta Way, fl

Dofia Ninay "Supot,', 76 ) Why I Don't Go to Confession, 9{ Hostages Abroad, 28 Into Manhood at Boone's, 34 Felipe Buencamino the First, 49

A Fair Exhibit at the St. Louis Exposition, fd The Flrst Streaket 62 Hoqr I Got Stuck With Hogs, 62 We Loved Our Heroes and Our Country

1\e\ Ztr

Earning trVhile Learning at Corne'll, 82 A Fun Tour of, Europe on a Budget, gP The Philippines' Greatest Contributron to tho World of Science, I03 The "FatheC' of Veterinary Medicine in the Philippines, IJO A Confirmed Bachelor Falls, Jl9 The French Connection: Circa 192A, fil Guess Whose Stench: The Horse's or Mitre, IS9 The MacArthurs: Like Father, Like Son, lfO Meet Dr. Schurma,n of Qornell, 767 A Moment of Fulfillmernt, 775 xv

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24 25

26 27

28 29

30 31 ,)D

33 34 35 36

37 38 39 40

As I Knew Quezon, the Marl IgI As I Knew Quezon, the Statesman, lgs The Era of Eleganee on the Dance FLoor, 209 tsreaking the Race Barrrer, 277 Eight Hours Work for Eight Hours Pay, 227 Enough Rice,for the Masses, Enough Earrings for the Tarmert, 937 On Being Firm But Fair, 2dI My Bullet Was a Dud., pS6 The Heil Hole that Was Bataary 267 Marchers in a Snake Plt", e8f The Lure of ttre Uniform, 900 How to Iose 40 Pounds witho,ut Even Tryin g, got, Listed for Liquidalion, ?tS A Testimonial for President Larxel, Sp7 The Boo,f is My Grandstand, gr2 My Puppy Mana Has a Preunonition, 550 Two Sets a Day Keep the Gerrontologigt Away, 959 The 50-Thousand-Peso Man, 86r

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Refuospcct, 376

Index, 883

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