The Washington times., 1911-04-18
THE RIGHT TO INTERVENE
IN MEXICO.

people of Mexico really sympathize
with the revolution. People who have
had confidential communication with
the President and the department come
away convinced that something like
80 per cent of Mexicans would like to
see the revolution win.
That is much larger percentage of
support than the American Revolution
of l775 was ever able to claim.
Let us see about this. We Ameri-
cans are in poor position to deny to
any people the elemental right of
revolution. We became a nation by
process of revolution. We are proud
of it.; vide the Fourth of July orators,
school histories, etc.
If it was right and justifable for us
to revolt against tyrannical govern
ment, why is it not right for the peo-
pie of Mexico to do the same?
Our revolution of l775 was against
tyranny which, times and conditions
considered, was not half SO onerous as
that of Diaz in Mexico has been.
There is no apparent reason why
we had the right to revolt, while that
right should be denied to the people of
Mexico.
1t will not do to say that we must
intervene in Mexico in order to restore
peace and security. Some things are
more important than peace and Sc
curity. Human rights are among these
| things
Jefferson told us, and Lincoln in
dorsed it, that the right of revolution
is a fundamental right of the human
race. When this nation assumes to
deny that, it viii repudiate the great
est truths and the noblest deeds in its
history.
If 90 per cent of the Mexican peo-
pie want this revolution to succeed,
why should they not be let alone to
work out their own salvation? Sup
pose we Americans had a disagreement
about some domestic question that
plunged us into internecine war.
Would we thank anybody for coming
in from the outside and settling it
for us?
Suppose, in the case of our own
civil war, outside intervention had
taken place. 1t would almost GER
tainly have been on the side of the
South. That intervention might have
won the case of the South. 1t would
have destroyed our nation. Would it
have been good thing?
Is any outside intelligence more capa-
BILE of knowing what a people want,
than that people?
1t will be sad day when the
American people decide that intelli-
gence can be imposed from the out
side; that good government can be
handed down from above, that after
all a people must not be trusted to
Judge just what they want.
II Int -hClANdl pCoplC "dHI d Hc"
deal, a real republic instead of a
mockery, and if they want it earn
estly enough to be willing to fight and
die for it-then they must want it
about as much as we wanted our
! liberties back in l776. Shall they not
have as good a chance as we had?
But we are told that the lives of
American citizens are in danger. Very
well. The lives of a number of Italian
citizens were snuffed out by mob in
New Orleans a few years ago. What
happened. Did this country and Italy
20 to war? No; this Government paid
and apologized. and it served far better
than a war that would have cost more
lives, and more payments, and could
not possibly have resurrected the
original victims.
Then we are told that American in
vestments are at stake ) Well, they
were made by people who should have
understood that they took extra risks
in investing in a country like Mexico.
They were made in the hope of high
dividends, as compensation for those
extra risks.
There are some sixteen millions of
people in Mexico. Are they to be de-
MED the rights which we, when we were
not yet three millions, held to be
inalienable?
The greatest international outrage
that has ever disgraced this nation was
the conquest of Mexico and the ap-
preparation of a great, rich slice of its
territory.
Shall we now rape Mexico again, be-
cause the dollar power of the North
wants more opportunities for expan-
sion2 Will two wrongs of that sort
make rightH
Why not let Mexico fight out her
own battlesl .-.- ...
She is rich enough to pay all the in
IDENTITIES that may be necessary.
Foreign citizens and foreign investors
are entitled to no more protection
than they would be accorded if Mexico
were frst-class power; not one whit