White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1912-10-13
SITUATION
IN MEXICO
UNTIL PRESENT DISORDER IS
ENDED MINING AND OTHER IN
DusTRIES WILL BE AT LOW
MARK.

~ wv = Alh1g II
peing possible to operate mines and
conduct business otherwise only in
such parts of the country as have
Deen unaffected by disorder and
Violence, and such parts are not
many. Brains are puzzled to deter
mine what steps to restore order out
OF this chaos can and ought to be
taken. Years ago there was a COM
mon expression of wonder as to what
would happen in Mexico after Diaz
had gone. The answer Is now be-
fore us and Diaz himself lived to
read 1t, says the Engineering and
Mining Journal.
Diaz In the early days of his ad-
ministration, appreciated that pros
perity of Mexico depended upon the
establishment of order and appreciat-
Ing moreover that his people were
not sufficiently enlightened to dis
tinguish between liberty and license,
he put the fear of the law into them
by arbitrary, and even highland
ed measures. These were often
harsh and bloody; yet they were
necessary. because how could bust
ness be conducted except in peace?
What was the use of anybody operat-
ing a mine if his bullion were likely
to be stolen on the way TO the ex-
press office? How could mines be
successfully operated If their man
ayers ran the risk of assassination
every time they went to and fro?
Assassination, highway robbery and
brigandage were rooted out by the
strong arm of Diaz and his crops of
rurales, and it became possible 10
conduct business even in remote
parts of Mexico with almost as much
security as In the United States. For
this Mexico owed a debt of gratitude
TO its great administration. 1t is un-
fortunate that his officials introduced
grating that imposed too great
burdens upon the people and led to
therevolution, resulting In the GUST
ing of Diaz and substitution of Ma
dero.
Whatever be the faults of Madero,
it is evident that he has not had a
fair chance, not having had sufficient
time, and having been entangled
from the outset by a series of rebel
lious assurances. 1t is evident,
moreover, that Zapata, Orozco and
the others have not been in the field
for any sincere purpose, but rather
out of pique or for objects of person.
al gain. Since the dispersion of
orozco's main army the situation in
the northern part of Mexico has been
one of magniied ~brigandage, nothing
else.
Such brigandage existed in Mexi-
co in a way in the early days of
Diaz's administration. Even then
there were bold spirits, like Heraclio
Bernal, in Durango, who taking to
the road, collected a band of two or
three hundred around him ,robbing
w~ayfarers, raiding haciendas and oc-
c~asionally taking a town. Bernal,
who possessed a sense of humor,
used to give receipts for property ap
propriated, his receipts being re-
deemable when he became governor
OF Durango" Even in those days
the dividing line between a leader of
the political opposition and the pro-
fessional bandit was uncertain. The
government characterized every po-
litieal opponent as a bandit, while
the professional bandit called him
self a leader of the political opposi-
ton. Diaz, however. put a stop to all
that, and whether he vas uneonstitu-
tional, dictatorial. autocratic or not,
anyway he established order and
made 1t possible for orderly persons
to do business.
We see in Mexico at the present
time a recurrence of the old evil,
but greatly magniied. Instead of
there being brigands here and there,
we now see them almost everywhere.
To refer to these gentry as rebels"
or "revolutionists'' confers undue
dignity upon them. They will con-
tinue to rob towns, mines and
~haciendas as long as they can. Out
of fear they have heretofore pretty
we'll let alone American and other
foreign property, but recently they
have become holder and holder in
their threats against the mining
camps and have raided more and
more of them.