The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-04-03
AWAITS FOR AFFECT
ON THE REPUBLICS
Mobilization of u. S. Army
May lnjure Harmony of
Western Hemisphere.

New York, April. Some weeks
VIII pass before ii will be possible to
learn exactly how the mobilization OF
"a portion OF the army OF the United
States and the concentration OF ii
along the Me iican frontier are 10 af-
feet business interests and the politi-
cal leaders OF the Central America ma
tions. That i a problem which many
OF our bu>ipeSs mon and some of the
leaders of the Repu olrcan party now
regard as the most important Of any
questions before the American people
In this city where very large tinanc-
ing pans We're uvdcr contemplation
including the in estment of great
amounts of American capital in South
and Central America. and including al
so the financing OF one important rail
way in the West Indies, the capitalists
are wondering, whether it will not be
the better part to hold these plans in
allegiance until it can be learned what
the effect ~ the appearance of this
army alon.5 our Southern boundary is
to nave upon the people of Central
and South America.
Regarded With Suspicion.
One reason for this feeling of doubt,
almost OF apprehension. is the knowl-
edge that in every diplomatic head
quarters at Washington this action is
regarded with suspicion and in many
of them with regret. No one doubts
III
he speaks with perfect sincerity. and
without the slightest mental reServa-
ton, when he tells members of con.
Sress who call uDon him that this
movement was undertaken because he
had information that the situation was
grave i'll Mexico, that American prop
erty there was threatened and that he
believed that a demonstration of this
kind would avail to secure order, TO
prevent smuggling or flibustering and
to maintain property interests intact.
In diplomatic circles. however. the
feeling is very strong that The PreSi-
dent has made a mistake: Il mistake,
TOO, which may imperil our growing
commercial and friendly political re-
! iatiors with Central and South Amcri-
ca. For instance, ii was said by one
diplomat of high rank TO some of our
business mon who have recently been
in Washington, that he and his asso-
ciate diplomats could not understand
how the President came to overlook
the possible effect of the sudden APP
pearance of the American army on the
boundary which separates the United
States from a nation with which she
is at IGacc.
The Case of France.
He illustrated what he said by re-
ferling to the conduct of France at
tho time of the revolution in Portugal,
by which the republic was established
acrC. Investments OF French capital
III Portugal are probably twice as great
, rs are the investments of American
capital in Mexico. Therefore, French
property interests in Portugal are
very large. Yet there never WAS the
slightest suggestion that France send
Il part of her army to the border, nor
was there any assumption on the part
of France that il had a right to make
such military demonstration as would
persuade the revolutionary party of
Portugal that France intended at any
cost to protect her commercial inter
estS there.
Another leading diplomat at Wash
inrton told some of the New York
business men that he thought he could
make comparison which would be
understood by the people of the Unit
ed States. He asked what the Unit
ed States would have thought if. at
the beginning of the Civil War Great
Britain had sent q portion of her army
into Canada, encamping ii along tlc
border line and had also sent several
warShipS to make Il demonstration off
the coast of the United States. doing
that on the pretense that there We're
hundreds OF millions of English money
invested in the United States. and
that it was the duty of England to see
that these property interests were pro-
teCted from any kind of danger. OF
course. the United States would have
looked upon that as an unfriendly
even warlike. demonstration. And so
the diplomatists at Washington say
that President Taft. in the earnest
ness and sincerity with which he acted
apparently has overlooked this fea
ture of the military demonstrations
along the Mexican border.