Norwich bulletin., 1913-10-01

1 VI 1AAS 4AGIl bTOI1GTnOOO QI lAS Broadway Congregational church Tues l cay evening, speaking on conditions | and situations in Mexico. There was | a short business meeting of the Brotherhood prior to the address and 1 the following officers were elected for | the year: President, Carl Hero vice 1 president, William H. Baker; secretary, 1 Henry Barrett; treasurer, Ronald Kim pail; executive committee. M. w. AL l ling. B. P. Bishop reported on the plans Of the Mems class in the Sunday school.
 Mexicans Ardent Patriots. President Hero presented Rev. Dr. Rowland, who held the close interest of his audience throughout his address, and was given vote of thanks at the close. The Mexicans, said the speaker, are ardent patriots, devoted to their coun- try, and one meets many very line people in Mexico. All the Latin races 1 are fundamentally polite, artistic of temperament, chivalrous and hot blooded The Mexicans are by race gentlemen. Everything they do is done with admirable grace Most of you have regarded them as shiftIess, 1 ignorant. worthless people but in real ity they are a people of abil1ty-but inefficient; inefficient through lack of opportunity which when offered they embrace to the best advantage. They work hard. understandingly and eff cientIy within their limits
 Government Controls Railroads.
 In the United States the railroads have reached such a position of power that they almost dictate to the people ! as well as to the government. Mexico 1 pronted by tFa experience of this coun- | try and the national government quiet ! ly went to work and secured major l tty of the stock of every railroad in | the country, The railroads there were built by American capital and operated 1 by Americans, The Mexican govern | nent decided that train operatives 1 should speak the language of the coun- | try-Spanish and, having the deciding i vote in all the companies, replaced the ! Americans by Mexicans. Train service | and efficiency were never better than 1 at present, ;n the hands of the natives. ! This is one bis problem that the Mexi- l cans settled: they have the ability to ] take up big propositions and decide 1 them, but they have no end of big | propositions to settle.
 MarvelousIy Fertile Soil.
 In Mexico is the best climate in the | world, and one wears the same weight l of clothing the year round. Anything ] will grow there ard there is water eV- 1 anywhere. Where cupidity has swept [ away the forests, leaving barren des i eTts, water will be found at depth of | 20 or 30 feet The soil is of marvellous fertility and for 300 years the only | CdA AG lO tue IdIu HdS DCG1l 10 reap LIlS crops He told of the marvelously fine oranges and drew a laugh when he said that the ears of corn there were as long as his arm In reply to a question he said that the oranges were not on . sale here because of the long distance islation prohibits it.
 Newspaper Stories Misleading.
 For the past three years the papers of this country, said Rev. MT How land, have devoted their first page or at least the second or third page to the political situation in Mexico, and most of this comment has been unfair. Many of the items have no truth what sOever and we call them Fl Pasograms because they originate in Fl Paso and not in Mexico. We read of two gov ernments in Mexico, but there is and has been out one government. Mex leo has 27 federal divisions and of these all but one accepted the present government without a protest. The whole trouble with Mexico lies in the fact that she never had a chance. The United States was started by a group of men and women determined to stand for what they saw as the right Their first step was to build a church and beside it a schoolhouse. The funda- mental principles of this group the country has never been able to turn away from.
 
 Mexico was started by a group of adventurers, wild sOrdid and selfish, and for 300 years Mexico was squeezed as one would squeeze sponge In 1S10 Mexico started cry for indepen- dence and in Il years obtained 1t, but the people, accustomed to fraud in the government, Cnprincipled and throttled by the power of the church, were un- fitted for independence. The church at one time owned a third of all the real estate in the country and the cities were filled with their convents. Finally in a single day in a land where 999 out of every 1000 persons were Catholic the government took a step to burst the bonds. turning monks and nuns into the street and issuing an order whereby no church can own property. Churches may be maintain ed now only on the property of the government.
 Diaz Ruined the Country.
 In the late 7Os there came man who seized the reins of power by rev olution and for 30 odd years held his place at the head of the government. The people were robbed and abused through the flee of jefe politiCo. This person, responsible to the government and not to the people, did as he pleased and the people had no redress as he was supported by the govern ment, This office was one cause of the inevitable upheaval. Porflrio Dia9 ruined the country. As one writer apt ly put it: ''He made d nation, but he destroyed a people" Most of Mexi- co.'s troubles today are due to Diaz. He invited foreigners in, encouraged the building of railroads and telegraph lines, for his personal benefit. All were of vast benefit to the nation, but he broke in the people all confidence in themselves. The country has a fine constitution. Sometimes they had a real election--but rarely. There was no liberty, no justice in the courts, every thing was subject to the will of Diaz and his henChmen.
 Diaz Vs. Madero.
 In was finally announced that the people should have their choice of rulers and dn election, the most far cical ever, took place, with Diaz re- elected. Madero a member of a prominent family, became candidate for the presidency. AS expected, he was defeated, and then he called upon the people 70 rise and bring to an end this reign of tyranny. When the revo- lution began in earnest Dfaz resigned and hurried away to France. where he had safely slowed away his mil Hons years before. With the one man in whom erything had centered talk en away, the government dropped to pieces and M2derO took the reins
 Madero a Crazy Man.
 The best one can say of Madero is that he was crazy, He had faculty for doing -he wrong thing at the wrong time. The friends who had 1,i Ia ss, |