It knows no race or creed, and Filipinos take advantage of its privileges quite as freely as do Americans.  Representatives of every nationality in the islands may be found on its golf course on a pleasant afternoon.  It is the common meeting place of Baguio, and hardly a day passes without the giving of some pleasant luncheon or dinner in its little living room or in the outdoor space covered by an overhanging roof at its eastern end.  No more democratic institution ever existed.

Congressman Jones, in his attacks on the Philippine administration, is fond of stating that “there is a club for officials at Baguio.”  The statement is true, but reminds one of that other statement of a ship’s first mate who came on board intoxicated just before the vessel sailed.  The following morning, happening to look at the ship’s log for the previous day, he saw the entry “The mate drunk to-day.”  It was his first offence, and he begged the captain to erase this record, but the captain said “It is true, is it not?” and insisted that it must stand.

A little later the captain was taken ill.  Upon resumption of duty he found an entry in the log reading:  “The captain sober to-day.”  When he furiously insisted that it be erased, the mate said “It is true, is it not?” Now, it is true that there is a club for government officers at Baguio, but in making this statement Mr. Jones and his ilk have neglected to say that there is also at Baguio a club for employees; a club for private citizens; a club for Americans; a club for Filipinos; a club for foreign consuls and other foreign residents of the islands; a club for business men; a club for clerks; and that all of these institutions are one and the same, namely, the Baguio Country Club, which is now strictly self-supporting and meets its obligations from the funds derived from the dues of its members.  These dues are absurdly low in view of the privileges which it affords.

Although Mr. Forbes does not like to have it known, I cannot refrain from stating that the club has not always been self-supporting, and that he has repeatedly made up deficits from his private funds.  The cost involved in getting the golf course into shape was out of all proportion to the resources of the organization.  Sufficient funds were not available to pay for the club house and cottages when they were constructed, and had it not been for the generosity of Mr. Forbes the club would not exist to-day in anything like its present form.

The polo field at Baguio has been referred to as another evidence of extravagant governmental expenditure.  It is true enough that it was in the first instance an expensive luxury, as an immense amount of earthwork had to be done in order to make a level piece of ground of sufficient size.  The field is administered by the Country Club, and is open to the use of the public for any form of amusement which will not interfere with its use for polo.  The detractors of the government have neglected to mention that the cost of its construction and maintenance have been met from the private funds of Mr. Forbes.