New-York tribune., 1868-05-16

which few creditors are willing to pay WIN good
temper EscandOn bought bonds 10 that amount Tor
a small surn when a preceding Liberal government
was badly of for want OF hol!eyif a. . & a. ~ hI '' -.
for its successor to IoTGT yu1 railroad concession
| when from the Empire and the Republic, TINS
| road under its present company, mas received
already more than OoOV& & sono0s vo of ta
enterprise from ITS inception 10 te present tlme' Is
amazing 1t is the See tortoise f laying % down
rsiIs Government does not provide that 1t
shall be built i'm less than four years. and 1t ought to
be built in two; but in this as IN other points, is
copsiderafe of the risks which foreign capitalists
| assume Robbers may harraSs the building OF the
road f Terra na Caiene nav corTv of
its wOrkmen lido not think that the Vera Cruz road
i'm remarkable danger from any OF these evils, and II
| onght TO command enough force TO protect itself.
Yet robbers doubtless will modest the road, all the
more from the turn which Congress- and particularly
! the more blatant of its demagogues have taken
| against il. The Englishmen who own the road are
| not IN themselves worth gTleYng over. The Mexl-
| cans owe them favOrS, as they were as ready
TO build for the Empire as for the Republic
pare with railroads III the United States
Bur the delay caused to all enterprise in Mexico by
six months Of palaver this concession is serious
Ii has been injurious to the financial interests OF the
Republic and these the country cannot afford TO
have trihed with. Admit that the Government
granted an eXtravagant concession, il is question
whether-n view of the risks which foreign capital
undergOes or magnes it has to undgO III tins c0ul-
tryit was so far in excess as TO justify Congress IN
delay of one kind or another
A very curious case is presented by this railroad
debate On the one hand, If the theory OF ample
powers Is asufcient what help is there for the
country in the Government have chosen TO de
cree foolish lawY On the other, the President had
powers to confer n concession, and concession
pledges the faith of the Government. The stand
which Congress has taken Is, III effect against the
ample powers One is glad TO see that II has will
of its own even if foreigners have 10 stand rebuff
But, consider: First, the people are poor
and burdened, and robbery and dcstitution
are common; second, that trade and com
merce are stagnant, or failing 1Or want
of the encouragement which the speedy building
of roads would give them. Now, where is the prac-
tical sense of making issue on the Vera Cruz priv
ilege when the Government has so strong side IN
the argumenti If Congress must do something to
test the ample powers. why not bring Ortega to
tral3 Why keep the most vital enterprise OF the
country from completion for arguments sake
There is such thing as legslating on POpOcatapet
when the people are starving In the valley. num-
Der of tragedies have been lately appended TO the
common stOTyOf robbery The funeral of Mr. BTanlif,
principal victim in the recent attack made by robbers
on employees of the Apzaco rilroad place i'll the
capital the other dav. Mr. Prior, the young eXCon-
federate, who almost unaided beat oil the party OF
villains at whose hands Branf received his death, is
visited Mr.. Ambrose Bray, young Englishman. who
has received terrible wound in the face from rob
bers. They attacked a hacienda not more than
dozen leagues away in the direction OF Pachuca and
maSsacred all its inmates except Mr.. Bray Most on
the victims in this were Mexicans. and brought
their fate upon them by mistakenly resisting the ad-
vance of N0riegas band of robbers, more than 100
strong. The brutal murder OF Capt Becker is
also within memory. He was killed avowedly be-
cause he had fought against the Empire and was an
American. These murders occurred within radius
of 60 miles of the capital but II is fair 10 say that
the circuit thus indicated has been the theater OF
highway robbery for many day. am careful 10
recount them for several reasons First, they show
that the bandittI of Mexico still constitute orplda
bic evil and second that 1t Is dangerous for the MeX
can authorities to turn demagogues at any time and
appeal to anti-fOregD prejudice-dangerous lmean
to the foreigners yet, upon the boomerang principle.
quite dangerous TO the inventors OF the prejudice
But in the third place have no idea that the recent
OuIagcs were the result Of any precOnCert against
foreigners. 1t should be IA ken for granted without
any more ado that among the narrow, untaught and
devilish class of Mexican outlaws, foreigner has
less right 10 windppe and purse than native. vast
quantities of this feeling against strangers were
brought into play to expel the intervention and 1t IS
not so easy IN nature 10 get rid Of II all at once
But it is lamentable that anybody in position |
the other day rode at full tilt against this windmill
trouble of the foreigners. Why should we be de-
| pendent foreigners asks this Qulxote. Why
| borrow money from them at all Why not build
our own railroads, telegTaphs, and everything be-
sidesi The Monitors questions count for little and
| they are hardly worth an answer, No nation ever
existed with the task which Mexico is bound 10 have
if she insists that any commercial help given her is
an impertnence. Why she should show the least
! disposition to resent bargain Is mott clear nor
why she should beg on horseback. Fortunately
| JuarcZ, LerdO, and Romero. the prime movers
of the Government appear to be practical
men, and so with number of other earnest men in
! Congress and in the Cabinet The bayros who may
bray, upon steady principle against everything for
eign have about the same SIZE OF ears that breed Is
known 10 possess the world over. If the Republic Is
10 be given 10 the Mule Prnclpe-that IS 20 say
if all lis business is to be conducted on foot and all
ITS wisdom is to come by ear, and if TO he
closed and feet TO be set against foreigners know
of no better candidates for new government than
some of the minority of gentlemen who have been
making NOISE this foreign side of the question
Nero fddled while Rome was burning These people
would bray while Others starved.
MEASURES AGAINST REBELS AND ROBBERs-sUs-
PENSION OF INDIVIDUAL GUARANTEES-THE |
IMPROVED sITUATION-ECONOMY IN FINANCE |
THE EARTHQUAKE.
MEXICO, April 90 1903.
The Government is naturally anxious to procure
the strongest measures attainable for the treatment
OF rebels and conspratOr and thus to put end to
the pronunciamento business On this subject Mr..
Donde made significant utterance the other day
in Congress- After saying that consprators were
treated far too lenenty and that the actual state OF
the Republic unsatisfactory, he declared
that if the measures proposed by the Gov
ernment were not taken the French inva-
sion would be insomuch justified. in thus
delivering himself Mr.. DOnde desired 10 lay all pos
sible stress upon the ingenuity OF highway robbery
and the breed Of revolutionary evils growing ont of
it, all cOuntenanced by the practical mbecility of
the Mexican system OF justice Government has not
been so slow TO attempt the of these evils
Congress has been to grant the needed power The
Government is bound to be sustained IN It's motion
for measure and now that the questions of SinalOa
and Guerrero are settled, severe attention should
be paid to the worst nuisance of all, the bandit
system. This is the foundation of all the petty
revOlts of which YOU hear from these
parts and more the shame and pity on that account.
Remembering however, that the country has been
in feud since its BIRTH that labor is untaught and
the people are poor is 1t to be wondered at Bad
the condition of the country may be from the causes
mentioned. there IS still proof that II has amended
in the last three MONTHS and that it is more hopeful
and promising than It has been in the past ten years
This testimony take from organs Of the oppOsi-
ton. You = will note that the only phase of
actual warfare now in the Republic exist
IN the demonstration made by Negrete, and the