The Washington times., 1913-03-10
A TASK FOR MR.. BRYAN.

Secretary of State Bryan has one task before
him which will be easier if it gets prompt attention
That is, to define this country's attitude toward
Mexico in such manner as to make all Latn-Americs
clearly understand it.
The outgoing Administration left very bad stu
alton for Mr. Bryan to handle. Vacation and inca
pacity in Washington, complicated by the fact tina
our ambassador at Mexico was partisan through
out of the most Objectionable elements in Mexico
and persistent enemy of the Madero regime, pre-.
cipitated this situation
Ambassador Wilson was permitted, during the
Madero Presidency, to be hostile to the constitutional
government of Mexico, to degree that was simply
shocking every conception of diplomatic decences
Everybody in Mexico and everybody here understood
perfectly. Latin-American diplomacy as represented
in Washington gazed in open-mouthed wonder, and
questioned whether all this reflected deliberate
policy of Government, was merely by-product
of the ignorance and bad manners which mad so
long characterized our diplomatic attitude toward the
American republics
At any rate, these things happened; and they had
the effect of arousing most unpleasant impressions
among the Latin-American countries. Ambassador
Wilson, after pursuing long course of open hos
tilty toward Madero, was permitted to report with
satisfaction that he had been instrumental in accom-
plishng the victory of the Huerta revolt He was
permitted to rush forward with certificate of char
acter for Huerta and Daz; to urge instant recogni-
ton of their government to have his friends brag.
in his BEHALF tat ne practically arranged the treason
of Huerta. and the arrest of Madero. The reason
ableness of that story is argued by every crcun1-
stance in the whole history of Ambassador Wilson's
career at Mexico., When the Madero murders took
place, it was Wilson, and Wilson alone, who i'm
,<ol and n IN The COck-
andbul story of accidental killing during attempt
at rescue.
That story is now completely exploded the
world knows that foul murders were perpetrated.
Nobody as matter of fact doubted it from the very
beginning nobody except Ambassador Henry Lane
Wilson.
All this has brought our relations with Latin
America in general to crisis. Mr.. Bryan, we have
reason to know will find it very real and imminent
crisis. The more he looks into it, the more serious
ne will find it.
Ii is crisis in the sentiment of the southern
publics toward US. They have been urged for many
years, BY the agents of European diplomacy and
European trade that the United States had only SIM
lister designs against them; that its purpose was
day to absorb the whole Western Continent under
its own domination. Ridiculous as it sounds to US,
that story mas been told till it is believed all
South America.
The Wilson episode in Mexico is the finest bit
of veriication that this preposerous yarn has ever
been able to summon. 1t is impossible to avoid the
fact that the suspicious and over-aert countries to
the south of US, ready TO read the worst significance
into any policy of this country, nave in the
record at Mexico City ample ground for what
ever uncharitable conclusions they may reach con-
cernng US.
Not only ought Ambassador Wilson to be with
drawn from Mexico City with the greatest prompt
ness and the least ceremony, but his retirement
should be signaled by very definite declaration of
the new Administrations reputation of some of the
things he has DONE Nothing less than this can con-
vince the minor Americas that we mean to deal
squarely with them.