Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1914-03-21
TEXAS RANGER FORCE ON BORDER
TEXAS GOVERNOR EXPLAINS TIE
BORDER TROUBLES.
Mexico Is Affording Safe Refuge foE
Criminal Element Which Operates
Along the Rio Grande

Austin TeN.-The entire force a
Texas rangers. totallnE al present fiji
teen mounted men. Wa assigned 20
duty on the Mexican border Sunday
Governor O. b. Co,Quitt made public
lengthy list of the Texas border
troubles ON which his recent appeals
for more power to protect the bound
airy have been based and which Ok
plain the nature of the RANGERS az.
uvitics These incidents show the
rangers as peace officers, not au arm
ed power. which might cause the Unit
ed States government cnbarTas peHt
Many of these Incidents are com
parativoly petty crimes. not Included
within The scope OF neutrality Avs
and outside the police powers of Unit
ed States troops on border patrol
duty
The records Indicate that in hand
ling them the rangers frequently nip
trouble i'm the bud before it. has pro
ceeded to the stage OF international
complications. The timely arrest OF
a cattle or horse thief before hc
has had time to escape into Mexico.
has Wardcd off more serious consc-
Qu"uccs. such as the killing OF Gle
mrpte Nergara, the American, which
grew ont OF horse stealing.
The record Indicate also that while
many of the law-brcakors have come
across the international line in raids
from Mexico, some Observation-Disclosures
have been residents of American Ter
ritory in sections where the Mexican
population is large, and have used
Mexico as a refuge. one Of the
sources OF extreme yeXatiOn has been
inability TO secure cXtradition Of any
of these maraudcrs, whether original
ly from Texas or Mexico. during the
past three years
Governor Colquitt estimated that IN
this period there have been POO to 300
such cases, in which the state has
made some sort of attempt to get the
accused back to Texas without sue
/ cess in a single instance. The safe
refuge offered in Mexico has ,ended
/ to develop the oid-time Western bad
/ man again along the border.
/ How fifteen rangers can furnish
any real protection along a border 500
miles long was explained in state
ment by Captain Hughes In some
places one ranger is assigned TO pa
/ troll fifty TO one hundred miles Of Dor
! der, he said. These rangers. clothed
with all the police powers Of both
state and county officers, are feared
by the troublemakers who know that
the ranger can arrest them on sus-
picion, or for acts which the United
States border patrol has no power to
handle.
In ten cases during the last three
years Governor Coiquitt has acted
through the state department at Wash
ingtOn in efforts for eXtraditiOn from
Mexico of alleged criminals wanted in
Texas, none Of the applications which
the Washington authorities duly pre-
scented having been successful. accord
ing to the Texas records The first
of these ten instances is typical of the
entire troubles, for the annoyance il
caused is today cropping out afresh
near Laredo. This was the application
on Jan. rs, 1911, for Dionicio Martinez
alias Juan Garcia, accused of murder
in Caldwell County, Texas. Martinez
has been seen along the border OF
late near Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, and
l. 80
tons into Texas. but the rangers have
been unable to capture him. The
others in this list of extradition ap
plications handled by Washington are.
Nictoriano Hernandez, accused oI
a statutory Offense in Webb County
Texas; application April 3, 1911.
Jose Martinez, accused of horse
theft. Zavala County; fled to Goa
hula; application Oct %, 1911.
Crispin Zanes, accused of assault &c
murder, Bee County; fled to Tamauii
pas; application Oct. "a, 1911
VIII Long, accused of murder in
Jefferson County; fled to Tamaulipas;
application Jan. 5. 1912.
Ygnacio Trevino. accused of stat
utory offense in Cameron County; flct
to Tamaulipas; application May 5
1912.
Alberto Cabrera. accused of mur
der, escaped convict from Huntsvill,
penitentiary; fled to Nuevo Leon; ap
plication Oct 81, 1912.
Beverly Wood, murder. escaped from
Huntsville; fled to Chihuahua; appb
cation Oct. 10, 1912.
Fiburcio Zarate, accused of nurde
In Starr County; fled to NuevO Leon
application Feb. u, 1913.
Felipe Sanchez, accused of mnrde
in Dimmit County; fled to Coahuila
application Sept &c, 1913.
100000 Rounds of Ammunition Arrive