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Absentees-Still living is Cardinal Dougherty's oldtime adversary Gregorio Aglipay, whose Independent Church now claims 4,000,000 members, is generally credited with about 1,000,000. Two years ago Aglipay did almost as well as Aguinaldo in the Presidential campaign in which Manuel Quezon swamped them both. Before the Eucharistic Congress opened, Aglipay sought an injunction to restrain the Commonwealth from issuing postage stamps commemorating the Congress. Failing, he kept out of sight last week and other Aglipayans did nothing to mar the pious occasion. Absent also, for apparently mixed reasons, was President Quezon. Four years ago Quezon was a Mason, an anti-Catholic. Ailing of tuberculosis, he was visited often by Manila's affable, Irish-born Archbishop O'Doherty. Finally Quezon abjured Freemasonry, had a chapel built in his house, became to all intents a good Catholic and took to playing golf with the Archbishop on Manila's Wack Wack links. For the duration of the Congress President Quezon invited Cardinal Dougherty to stay in Malacanan Palace, the old residence of Spanish and U. S. Governors General. But before the Cardinal arrived last week the wily brown politico slipped away, bound for Washington, he said, to confer on the date and agenda of a U. S.-Philippine trade and economic conference, which other Filipinos considered was of no pressing importance. From Tokyo Manuel Quezon welcomed the Cardinal by telephone while Senora Quezon appeared . at official receptions, addressed women in the Congress. To observers it looked as if Manuel Quezon, who has profited by turning Catholic, was showing in a not-too-delicate way that he could always turn back if need be.
Crowds & Rain, During the planning of the 33rd International Eucharistic Congress, its officials were at pains to announce that, according to the Manila Weather Bureau, there had never been a typhoon during February, and during its first ten days there had been rain in only 47 out of 69 years. On the Luneta, on which there had been erected a tall, glass- enclosed, air-conditioned altar, two downpours of rain scattered the faithful who came to worship in crowds of from 50,000 to 200,000 at a time. Also, to the scandal of strait-laced Filipinos, the Congress coincided with the annual Philippine Carnival, a 16-day combination of Mardi Gras, county fair and Coney Island which paralyzes Manila business for weeks. But the director general of the Carnival, Arsenio Luz, was chairman of the Congress Ways & Means Committee, and he canceled all balls, toned down sideshows.