Mountain advocate., 1913-09-12
THE MEXICAN
MIDDLE
A Srrt of Tempest In a
Teapot" Affair.
Contr. by Prof. @. Britain Lyttle.

The assertion OF PROVISIONAL Presi
dent Huerta, OF Mexico, that tn,
diplomatic intervention of Presi
dent Wilson in Mexican mat.
tiers has served to crystalize the
forces and influences In his favor in
that country, through the chronic
hatred and apprehension in Mexico
regarding the intervention Of the
United States. appears to be true tn
the degree that the farmers of
Mexico have contributed a fund of
three million pesos to be used as a
loan by the Provisional President
This is doubtless precisely what
Huereta aims at, unless. indeed, it
turns out that he has been only an
intermediary for the restoration of
the Diaz regime. But to one at all
familiar with Mexican history, all
this display Of diplomacy bet ween
our representatives and those OF
Mexico can only appeav Ridiculous
What we should have concern about
at all is that, in case we are involv
ed in war with any nation, Mexico
included, 1--WE should have our quar-
rel just" and then in the prophhtic
language OF Patrick Henry (save the
comparison) before the Virginia
Convention on the eve of the war
for our national independence. we
may RELY upon the aid of "A just
God who presides over the destinies
of nations" for the success of our
arms on land and sea ami with the
appreciation of mankind. On
former occasion we sent an army to
Mexico in twelve-month. cam.
paign and placed the American Aag
there. and with view OF occupying
the whole country and assuming
a protectorate over it indefinitely,
"a has been done in Cuba, Presi.
dent Polk issued call for one. hun
dred thousand more troops. About
this time some OF the better inform.
ed among the leaders of the Mexi-
cans began to realize that their
autonomy as a nation was gravely
threatened, and asked for an arms.
tice to consider terms of Peace, a
word to con lure with always among
our people. who are long suffering
by nature, but "bad" when they do
have to fight. and it was granted
President Polk had no one at hand
just at the time TO his taste wit h
whom to trust an Enthusiastically
to Mexico. But on looking around
he found a man in one OF the de.
partments. employed as secretary,
or something OF the sort. who had
been Private Secretary to Thomas
Jefferson, and had held some SIM
lar position under the Jackson adj
ministration, and had also been
Consul in Cuba for one or two
terms aud could speak good Spanish
President Polk authorized this man,
whose name was Nicholas Trist. tn
go tn Mexico and place before the
government there the terms under
which America would be willing Ia
make peace. which are the final
terms agreed on at Guadalupe Hid
algo. But in the interim Pres. Polk
had suspended his call for ond hun
dred thousand more troops. The
MeNicans seeing this. at first de
clinad to concrde the terms propos.
c by lrist, The latter then wrote
to President Polk. stating the terms
to which the Mrxicans> had said
they would subscribe. and even GO.
ing 50 tar as 10 suggest to the Presi.
deaf oi the United States the pro-
,,rt-tv nf his accentinu the Mexican
conditions. This led to Trusts i'm
mediate recall. the President stat.
Jug in his letter TO rrist that upon
receipt OF i'. his Enthusiastically
ended, aud immediately renewed his
call for one-hund,ed thousand more
troops. The Mexicans on seeing
this. hssteusd 10 rrist, signiying