The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-05-24

Invasion-The Questions OF War ana
Annexation.
We submit to our readers this morning
some very important dispatches from Texas,
which fix upon certain Mexican authorities
the crime of active conspiracy in the
Indian raids upon and robberies from our
people along the river boundary Meantime
we are gratifed that in Colonel Mckenzie
the United States soldier hos at last appeared
on the Rio Grande with the moral courage
required to assume the responsibility under
an extreme provocation Of invading the
''sacred soil'' of Mexico. With or without
the consent of the Mexican government this
course should have been adopted on our side
as soon as these cattle stealing forrays began to
assume the form Of systematic operations
between the Mexican freebooters and the
Mexican authorities and people sharing in the
profits Of the lawless adventures. Colonel
Mckenzie, in dashing across the Rubicon, and
in pursuing the band of thieving Kicka-
poos eighty miles into Mexico, and in soundly
thrashing them on overtaking the fantastical
procession with its stolen mules, horses and
CATTLE has brought Mexican border troubles
to crisis, from which there must now be
| settlement peace or war.
Upon the heels of this cheering intelligence
from the Rio Grande the opinion seems to
| prevail in Wall street that it is ga speck Of
war;" o cloud hardly as large as mans
hand, but which, it is thought may over
spread the whole heavens and startle the
peacemakers with its rolling thunder. We
can, however, discover no cause for war in
| Colonel McKenzie's pursuit Of the maraud-
ing Kickapoos into Mexico. The act cannot
be regarded by that government as an act of
hostility or as proceeding requiring an ex-
PLANTATION, after the many circumstances,
warnings and indulgences which Mexico has
received from Washington during the last
seven years on these border troubles. Mexico
cannot afford quarrel with us on such
shallow punctilio of offended national dignity
as this invasion of Colonel Mckenzie. Our
'sister Republic knows too well that she
owes her existence as an independent State,
from 1S47 to this day, to the generous for
bearance and assistance of the United States
We know that in 1916 President Polk. in
pushing the army of General Taylor across
| he Nueces (the boundary then claimed by
Mexico,) brought on the war which imme-
on the other hand that General Scott occupa-
ton of the 'sHalls of the Montezumas' is not
yet forgotten there, and that Mexico wants no
more wars with 'the North Americans" If
we could believe that she was bent on pur
suing the part of an honest neighbor in her
indulgences to these Kickapoo Indians taken
under her protection we should expect letter
of thanks from President Lerdo to President
Grant for this overt act of Mckenzie, and
cordial invitation to the gallant Colonel to
return and take these troublesome savages
back to our Indian Territory, where they be-
long. But as Mexico has manifestly dealt
unfairly, yea, treacherously, towards us in
we expect from her in this business the policy
Of shutting and prevarication, which is always
the resort Of o weak party in bad cause.
But let us suppose that, in Difference to the
wounded sensibilities of Mexico, President
Lerdo respectfully solicits of President Grant
an explanation of this armed incursion into
Mexico by Colonel Mckenzie, what will be the
response of Mr.. Secretary Fish?
He will, doubtless, inform the Mexican gov
eminent that as far back as the 26th of June,
1871, in despatch to Mr.. Nelson, our Minister
to Mexico, and in answer to a communication
on the subject, he had the honor to say that the
frequency Of those raids into Texas, the serious
NH, he i'm
munity enjoyed by their perpetrators demanded
grave consideration-that he presumed that
any circumstances addressed to the Mexican
government would have little or no effect, but
that our Minister could unofically say "that
it may become our duty at last to weigh the
e1pediency Of pursuing the hostile Indians
into Mexico without the consent of that gov
ernment if it shall not adopt measures towards
checking the robberies referred to-" Continu-
ing his statement of our grievances, Mr.. Fish
will next inform the Mexican government that
this communication was promptly made
known to Senior Mariscal, the Mexican Secre-
tary for Foreign Affairs, and that his reply
this question of the entry Of foreign troops on
Mexican soil without the authority of Con-
gress but that if driven on cur part to the
extremity of pursuing hostile Indians into
Mexico he assured Mr.. Nelson unoficially that
in his judgment the Mexican government
would not seriously complain.
Still pursuing his narrative, our Secretary of
State will or should remind the government of
Mexico of the heavy schedule Of losses suffered
by our citizens Of Texas since 1871 from the
crimes Of Mexican Notwithstanding the
outrages of robbery, arson, kidnapping and
murder-and of his repeated circumstances
and our continued forbearance to trespass on
Mexican soil until forbearance has ceased to