I followed his example to the extent
of buying a lot and constructing on it a simple and inexpensive house,
thus obtaining the first and only home that I have ever owned.
Ultimately Mr. Forbes formulated a plan for the construction of a group
of government buildings, a mess hall and a large number of small and
inexpensive cottages for rental to government officers and employees
so that the executive offices of the government might be transferred
to Baguio during the heated term and it might become the true summer
capital of the Philippines. This plan was adopted in substance, and
it was decided to transfer the bureaus of the government to Baguio
for the coming hot season, so far as practicable.
Funds were appropriated for the carrying out of Mr. Forbes's plan,
but before the construction work had fairly begun there occurred,
on October 17, 1909, a destructive typhoon. Eighteen inches of rain
fell in nine hours, and twenty-six inches in twenty-four hours. The
Bued River quickly rose fifty feet, carrying away trees and rocks
which obstructed its course, and seriously injuring the road for
miles. Four of the largest bridges were swept away and the work of
constructing government buildings, which was just about to begin,
was greatly retarded.
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