Preface

Recently, the Philippine people have endured a series of harsh blows—from nature in the form of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, killer typhoons, and floods and from the government through its mismanagement, abuse, neglect, and corruption. Such events have saddened me considerably, for during my many years of study in and about this country I have developed a great affection and admiration for its citizens. They have been open and hospitable to me, and I can only offer this book as a token of my appreciation. Here I try to explain in what I think is a sympathetic fashion how colonialism and the international export economy shaped their lives. Hopefully, with the ebbing of neocolonialism, Filipinos can put the larger control of their own destiny more to the service of the many. They deserve a better fate.

A book of this dimension could not exist but for the assistance of many friends and organizations. As always, the late Adelina Ventura and her children, now scattered to the winds, supplied a roof, encouragement, or a quick translation whenever I appealed to them. Norman Owen, Ben Kerkvliet, Yoshiko Nagano, and Ronald R. Edgerton read portions of the manuscript and gave me the benefit of their valuable comments. Sheila Levine eased the process of moving the manuscript along to publication, and Doug Perrelli patiently created meaningful maps from my imperfect directions. Dore Brown and Joanne Sandstrom did an excellent job preparing the manuscript for publication. Serafin Quiason, my kabalen , offered me special access to Pampanga and loaned me the services of the able Roland Bayhon to lighten the burden of archival work. Lina Concepcion not only opened the Philippine National Archives to me, she also listened sympathetically to the problems of a struggling researcher. And Janet

Baglier, my wife, did the major hand holding that saw this book to completion. It is customary to absolve the above for any errors in the text, and I do so; as well, there are certainly fewer mistakes because of them.

Others who supplied either materials, expertise, or moral support include the late Domingo Abella, John and Myrna Adkins, Marysol Aizpuro, Dorothy Baglier, Charles Bryant, Nita and Jim Burris, Linda Casper, Amado Castro, Rosendo Coruña (of SPCMA), Nicholas Cushner, Marina Dayrit, Noel de Paula, Eden Divinagracia, Evelyn Dizon, the late Fred Eggan, Oscar and Susan Evangelista, Doreen Fernandez, the late Frank Golay, Mitchell Harwitz, Namnama Hidalgo, Karl Hutterer, Natividad Jardiel, the residents of Jesuit House in Chicago, Carl Landé, Emma Larkin, Judith Larkin, Sarah Larkin, Sean Larkin, La Salle Brothers of Bacolod, Violeta Lopez Gonzaga, Stephen Moscov, Barbara Nowak, Mario Nuñez, Akil Pawaki, Kathleen Revelle, the J. B. L. Reyes family, Norman Schul, the Smith, Bell & Co. staff, Wilhelm Solheim, the late Tony Tan, and Pedro Tison.

Grants for time away from teaching came from the American Council of Learned Societies, the Center for Asian and Pacific Studies at the University of Hawaii, the U.S. Department of Education (Fulbright Office), and the State University of New York at Buffalo. The School of Economics at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, loaned me an office for a year and facilitated my interaction with its knowledgeable staff.

Unfailingly the staffs at the following repositories assisted me in my search for obscure materials: Newberry Library, Lilly Library, Lockwood Library (SUNY/Buffalo), Colgate-Rochester Divinity School Library, Harvard Library, Yale Library, Library of Congress, New York Public Library, University of Michigan Library, University of Hawaii Library, Cornell Library, Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association Library, University of the Philippines Library, Ateneo de Manila University Library, Philippine National Library, U.S. National Archives, and Philippine National Archives.

Finally, at a time when my spirits were especially low, Donn V. Hart gave me a much needed boost in morale that put me back on the track to finish. In his own ebullient manner he kept me on that track until the time of his death. For his caring ways and his contributions to keeping Philippine studies alive, I include him in my dedication.

One note on names and sources: with Spanish proper names and references I have used Spanish accents, but with Philippine names I have adopted the local practice that drops those accents.

QUEZON CITY, JANUARY 1992