Published across January and February 1905, this compilation contains the earliest surviving serial impressions of Silliman Truth, the foundational student-and-faculty newspaper of Silliman Institute (now Silliman University) in Dumaguete City. Established a mere four years after the school’s founding in 1901 by Dr. David Hibbard under the auspices of the American Presbyterian Mission, the periodical served as a dynamic platform for both colonial education and local societal changes. Historically, this text is profoundly significant for its record of the very first Rizal Day celebration held in Dumaguete City. It details a civic parade led by Silliman students carrying flags, followed by the town band, figures from the newly formed Philippine Independent Church (Aglipayan Church), and a grand floral float showcasing a portrait of the national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. The publication captures a critical societal transition where early American educational philosophies (championing personal responsibility and industrial work) collided and coalesced with burgeoning Filipino secular nationalism and localized Visayan daily life at the turn of the twentieth century.
Silliman Truth, Vol. III, Nos. 1, 2, and 3