The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-03-12
What Is Practically Martial Law Is Established
 by Diaz
DEATH PUNISHMENT
 FOR MANY OFFENSES
If Officer of Law Detects Prisoner in Act of Lawlessness He Has Right to Shoot Prisoner
 on the Spot

| MtAiCO AltyB k4diSu lA.- hOlOuSiiiy
 aroused by the spread of brigandage and
 vandalism incident to the revolution led | by Francis l. Madero, and determine to protect property, the Diaz government this week will begin to wage against the | awless element a pitiless war of ex- l termination. Nt | Resurrecting provision of the Mexican constitution not used for 15 years and | acting under it's authorization, the gov
 ernment will set aside. for six months
 certain personal guarantees. Then those
 detected in the act of highway robbery,
 of raiding and any form of train-wreck- | ing, of cutting telegraph or telephona wires. of even removing a spike from the railroad track or throwing a stone at train, will be summarily shot by | those making the arrest.
 | Today the bill providing for this dras- l tic measure was sent to the permanent | was signed by Miguel Macedo. sub-se,- retary of the department of interior. and | clearly states that its enactment Is the
 wish of the president.
 That the measure did not immediately | become law Is due only to official form. Tho permanent commission is a body em- powered to act during the period when Congress is not in session. The members of the commission immediately approved the measure. but under the law it is not necessary that the bill come up for a second reading. It was referred to a subcommittee and this subcommittee was instructed to report it to the com mittee Monday at a special session. That 1t will be favorably acted upon there is
 no doubt
 Martial Law The decision to ask for the "suspension of personal guarantees" provided for by
 the constitution, was reported by the President in conference with the mem bers of his cabinet. This provision is one calculated to permit the federal gov- ernment to, put into effect in extraor-
 dinary times a form of government ap- preaching that of martial law Under the constitution the government mas go fur ther and may declare martial Jaw, but the provyions invoked do not abroeate lthe powers Of the civil authorities. but do deny, in cases of certain crimes, the right of formal trial to the accused Possibly the nearest approach to thls provision of the Mexican constitution found in the constitution of the United States is that which permits under cer- tain conditions the withdrawal of the habeas corpus.
 The growing prevalence of robbery, pillage and the raidhng of villages and plantations Is discussed and the assur- ance given that the president wishes the measure adopted to provide drastic
 means for dealing with those who conn
 init these offenses also.
 In this note MT. Macedo indirectly
 quotes President Diaz as saying that he regrets profoundly the necessity of re- sorting to means so extreme-measures once frequently upheld but which have
 not been employed for 15 years; that, the conditions now are, however, such that he considers the safeguarding of prop
 erty of so great importance that it justi- fles the recourse to the extreme provis-
 ions of the constitution
 Under the terms of the measure ap-
 proved by the president the crimes speci- fled as those which will ltake from the
 accused the ordinary right of formal trial
 includes interference with the operation
 of trains the interference with telegraph,
 telephone and transmissions wires. kid
 naping, highway robbery and assault. or
 raiding of villages or farms. It is speci- fled that for the crimes of interference
 with trains. cutting of wires, highway
 robbery and under certain conditions
 raiding. Kidnapping and assault shall be
 punished by death.
 It is provided that in case where the
 offender is detected and arrested in the
 commission of his act the man making
 the arrest shall ask no other proof than
 the fact of the offense and the fact that
 he has personal knowledge that the
 man arrested committed the act. to shoot
 him.