RECOLLECTIONS OF FULL YEARS
by a United States Congressman of the Military Committee of the House, who was visiting Manila at the time.
Tickets of admission to the central pavilion had been sent to him, but he had forgotten to bring them with him. However, when he arrived at the plaza he started, with several ladies who were with him, to mount the steps of the Inaugural platform on which no ladies were allowed. He was stopped, naturally, and a guard offered to conduct his guests to seats on a side pavilion, telling him at the time that the central stand had been reserved for government officials and representatives, among whom he, of course, was included. This separate seating of the ladies seemed to annoy him for some reason, and he announced his intention of remaining with his party. He was then shown to the best available seats and the incident seemed to be closed. But he was by no means satisfied with his position, especially when he found that the wives of some of the Commissioners had seats in front of him. I think the heat must have been affecting him for he called the Naval Lieutenant, who was in charge as usher, and made audible protest against "those wives of clerks" being put before him and his wife. The young naval officer was polite, but quite firm in his refusal to take any steps to remedy matters.
"You don't seem to know who I am!" he exclaimed, with manifest indignation.
"No, sir, I do not," mildly replied the Lieutenant.
"Well," said the angry man, "I'm a member of the Military Committee of the House of Representatives. I helped to make this Army out here and I've come out to see what kind of work I did. I don't like it, and I'm going home and unmake it. This treatment of me here is of a piece with the treatment I've received ever since I've been in these islands."
This didn't sound quite fair. He had been treated with marked courtesy by everybody and had accepted rather lavish hospitality from both Army officers and civil officials. In
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