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Haunting the President's restless mind was Manila's lack of air-raid shelters. U.S. authorities expect that if war begins Tokyo will be worse bombed than Manila, but talk about bombing the paper cities of Japan is no comfort to Quezon. In the old city of Manila, walled and narrow, there are no underground shelters, for the water table is only three feet underground. Underground shelters are not a necessity if Manila receives only sporadic bombings, but a greater danger than bombs is fire.
The streets funnel out into only a few exits; the houses are wood; the congestion is terrible; fire in the Tondo district of tenements and shops, brothels and huts would turn it into Hell on a Holiday.*
Into the parks, roads and buildings of magnificent Quezon City President Quezon is pouring an estimated $50,000,000—but the vulnerable sections of Manila still need fire-fighting equipment. Quezon's position was that until 1946 the U.S. is responsible for protecting the Philippines. Position of Commissioner Sayre was that the U.S. is indeed responsible for Philippine defense but that the law does not cover civilian protection. From gold devaluation and the sugar-processing tax the Philippine Treasury actually has a U.S. credit of $54,000,000. But an act of Congress in Washington is needed to release the money.
Even if all had been well about defense, finances and air-raid shelters, President Quezon would still have felt pain about Commissioner Sayre. Artful Manuel Quezon got whatever he wanted from Commissioner Frank Murphy, played poker with Paul McNutt, but cannot get around superconscientious Francis Sayre.
Six months ago President Quezon said: "Should the United States enter the war, the Philippines should follow her and fight by her side ... for the cause for which America would fight is our own cause." Last week war got so close that he exploded. This week he hastened to change tack, announced: "There can never be any question as to my absolute loyalty. . . . President Roosevelt knows that he can count on me and my Government and my people to the bitterest end."
*The Tondo district has had many a disastrous fire even in peace (1937, 1941).