The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-12-28
MENCANS CHARGE
AMnnzcAx nMDAssY TO INvEsra-
 CATE coNDyCrOR's. ARREST.
vnAuenee cx I.aber unlens Brings sub- lest te Omc1a1s' Attsntfon and Helease of Pr1s0ner
 is Expeefed.

washfngton, Dec. 27.--Acting under the demands of labor unions. the State Department has called upon the Amer tcan embassy to investigate sharply the matter of the incarceration of Con- ductor James A. Cook. an American. who was arrested and imprisoned for alleged compicity in the robbery of freight trains of Mexican railroad.
 Cook has been in prison for some time without trial. and his friends in this country have besieged both the White House and the State Department with demands that he be given imme- diate trial or be admitted to bail. In cases of this kind, the latter aiterna- tive Is never resorted to under Mexican law.
 The text of the note addressed to the embassy Is not made public. although what purports to be a copy of the note was published in an afternoon paper here today. The State Department off, ficiais declined to say whether it was authentic or without foundation in fact. but they did acknowledge that the United States diplomatic representative in the Mexican capital had been in- structed to undertake an immediate and thorough investigation into the matter and bring the request of the United States Government to the at- tention of the Mexican Foreign once. . saThe department deplores the sem sationai stories based on this action" said high official of the department tonight The United States has taken steps to safe guard the rights of an American citizen. but the friends of that citizen believe those rights are not being recognized. Personally. know little about the case. but I know that the man in the case has not been imprisoned much longer. If as long. as many suspected persons under the same charge have been incarcerated in this country awaiting trial. It is entirely natural that the friends of Cook should be anxious about him and should likewise exert every effort to have him brought to a speedy trial The Idea of an American pictured as helpless and subjected to persecution. Ianguishing in a foreign jail. always will appeal to the tender-hearted. It is altogether likely. however, that the Mexican law Is taking It's course. If not, the embassy will so report
 Cook. fl is said here. was a member of the Brotherhood of Railway Train men before he went to Mexico to work pn the railroads there. This organi. Eation is a powerful one and closely allied with other railroad labor organ Izations equally powerful. These la- bor bodies have brought powerful pressure to bear. not only on the White House and the State Depart nient. but also on Congress. and the delegation from Kansas. the State from which Cook halls. has taken up the matter.
 The exchanges between the United States and Mexico are purely friendly and informal. They are being con- ducted through the regular iiplo- matie channels, and on the part of the department with a complete recogni- tion of the peculiarities in laws gov erning the operation of railways in Mexico. Not the slightest friction. the officials of the department insist, has arisen as a result of the interchanges and a satisfactory solution of the entire situation is matter of orl- a few hours or days. at the further est
 The existing delay in the matter of giving Cook hearing is well known here. Under the Mexican law. the conductor of a train which kills or mains a citizen or is footed, is held without ball until he can be heard and his case passed upon by a court of first instance. which corresponds with the American grand jury.
 Cook was arrested last August and has been in prison since. all attempts to obtain his release on bail having been refused
 
 Coal Company Dividend.