Evening star., 1896-07-18
By an American Who Has Lived
There Sixteen Years.
WHAT he TOLD A STAR REPORTER
Political Development Under the
Guidance of President Diaz.
THE SILVER QUESTION

Mr. Santiago Carter, for the past sixteen
years a resident of Mexico, thoroughly in
sympathy with Mexican life. and a close
student of, its social growth, is visiting
relatives in this city. reporter of The
Star ran across Mr.. Carter last night and
interviewed him on Mexico. He said:
1.-The general Mexican phenomenon is in
teEsely interesting to the impartial student.
1t takes years for a Saxon to get the Mex
ican point Of view. and get into sympathy
with their modes of feeling. When he
does. he is abundantly repaid.
ITO form a compact idea Of the actual
state of the Mexican mass, one must sum-
marize Mexican history. She broke away
from Spanish tyranny as a wild horse does
from brutal master. Spain left her all
the factors Of discord. that corresponded to
the phase of growth of each-vast fanati-
Ilerce warrior egotism. Add to this Indian
conservatism divided into several hundred
communities with as many languages and
local discords. with an infinitely varied and
inaccessible topography, and revolution
was inevitable
THE superstition of the masses sustained
priestly domination in temporal councils
until the time of Juarez. 1t then became
unbearable, and the priests were thrown
out of power by the Juarez reaction. The
American and French invasions were only
episodes. The tremendous personality Of
Juarez dominated the society until his
death.
His successor, Lerdo, was practically ap-
pointed by Juarez, and fell victim to
two fatal mistakes. First, he tried to build
Chinese wall between Mexico and the
United States, and open correspondence
between Mexico and Europe. This was un-
American, anti-republican and unnatural
His second mistake was to over-estimate
the progress Of social growth, and argue
81
them.
President Diax.
He was succeeded by President Porfirio
Diaz. the most tremendous personality on
this continent since Abraham Lincoln. We
are all familiar with the gross. warrior,
dominant type in these Indo-Latin COM
nunities. For the past fifty years he has
been common. He pronounces against cor
ruption. stirs up a crude people, shoots a
rev, governs while, steals a million and
Is In turn chased out or shot. But General
Diaz Is unique. He Is a soldier, scientist,
a philosopher and pure patriot. He has
governed Mexico since 1876 President Con-
Zales was an incident Of his policy.
1T is impossible to think of Mexico to-
day without including Diaz in the thought.
One cannot think of Bismarck without
thinking Of Won Moltke and William but
no one intrudes on the thought of Porifrio
Diaz. Summing up the German and Mexi-
can problems for thirty years. and bearing
In mind all the factors, Diaz has accom-
plished more for his people than any one
else.
''The corner stone of his fame rests on
two general facts. First he began by
shooting turbulent people, and ended by
arguing with them as they developed an
probation. Secondly, he foresaw that COM
mercial and social union with the north
man was natural and inevitable and, in
stead of Lerdo's Chinese WALL 'damming
back superf1uous energy until swept away
by pressure, he let the Yankee in, and he is
getting their goods for Mexico in an easy
way. In other words, he preferred irriga-
ton to Johnstown incident.
Americans in Mexico.
THE beauty Of this process is that it is
done under Mexican control. There is care
full selection Of what they deem the flttest,
and both Mexican and Yankee happiness is
increasing. War. that scourge of fools, Is
becoming impossible between Mexico and
the United States. There are a hundred
thousand Americans down there now, do
Ing honest work with Mexicans and profit
able to both IN sympathy and dollars. The
evolution OF the society under the supervis-
lon OF General Diaz Is very interesting.
"The great question of today is what
would happen In case of his death or retire
ment. This question Is often asked me in
an anxious way by persons who have inter-
mistically. 1t is a sociological fact that after
good despot chaos is natural owing to the
PARALYSIS of the national governing func-
t1on: But the unique feature of the Diaz pol
ICY is tnat ne began as a good despot, and
has been and is democratizing his people.
This process of letting go gradually has no
parallel in history.
When any state shows itself capable (as
Yucatan has) of electing peaceably a good
goVernor,h he ceases to interfere with the pro-
cess. AS the soldier becomes unnecessary
and the judge possible he retires the first
and gives power to the second ever acting
along lines of scientific DEVELOPMENT for
Mexico. Surrounded by all the temptations
OF ruler and man, he has lived morally
from his youth up. The Mexicans. like
our own folk, are artistic mud-throWers Al
prominent objects, but no mud ever stuck
to President DiaZ
Revolution u Thing of the Past,
This process of letting go is developing
Mexican character, and foreign contact
with new industries is drawing social forces
into the struggle, and I am convinced that
physical revolution Is thing of the past
in Mexico. The natural 1S47 prejudice
against US is rapidly disappearing. The
Mexican governing class are beginning to
like US. l served the government Of Mex
leo five years as division telegraph superin-
tendent In a district of four states. 1t was
uniformly fair in all things, and we sep
arated friends. Decent foreigners are we'll
treated all over Mexico, and as a conse-
Quence foreign industry and capital are
Neay oo6AAChlhiS nSAlCd1 udpplueSS.
Belief in the Future,
'The political tension is growing less.
Reason is taking the place of the strong
arm, and mutual interest in the united
struggle with matter is absorbing the force
formerly spent III war. To sum up, the
present Mexican social phase and President
Diaz are hard to separate in thought We
have no point of comparison to judge the
man. The good despot Is common in his
tory. The political genius that begins as
necessary czar and seeks to gradually
virtualize a paper constitution, develop q
congress and give them their places IN a
budding democracy is unique. The peaceful
amalgamation Of the Mexican and Ameri-
can element has no historic parallel Yet
both are substantial facts, and as new
facts must be allowed in all science, these
two give us right to believe in Mexico's
future.
THE present phase Of Mexican politics
| Is very interesting. For the first time Gen
Diaz asked the Mexicans to re-elect MIN.
All former elections were influenced ty
physical force. He decided that the so ,iety
has grown up to the point where it can be
trusted to act reasonably. The wisdom of
his course has been justified, and his re-
election was unanimous.
Try to imagine a noble giant who SUBJ
dies lot of people crazy with fever and
beginning with rude police discipline, grows
milder. need grows laSa until tbo ~