Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1914-04-24
FRIENDSHIP FOR
PEOPLE OF MEXICO.
PRESIDENT WILSON EXPRESSES
HOPE THAT CONTROVERSY
BE PEACEFULLY SETTLED.
In Message to Congress, President
Wilson says sour Feeling For Peo-
pie Of Mexico is one Of Deep
and Genuine Friendship"

Washington.-P Wilson on
Monday laid the Mexican situation
before congress in these words:
Gentlemen Of the Congress:
1t is my duty to call your attention
to situation which has arisen in our
dealings with Gen Victoriano Huerta
at Mexico City which calls for ac-'
ton, and to ask your advice and CO
operation in acting on it. On the 9Th
of April paymaster Of the U S. 5.
Dolphin landed at the Iturbide land
ing at Tampico with whaleboat
and beats crew to take off certain
supplies needed by his ship, and while
engaged in loading the boat was ar
rested by an officer and squad of men
of the army of General Huerta
Neither the paymaster nor anyone of
the boats crew was armed. Two of
the men we're in the boat when the
arrest took place and were obliged
to leave it and submit to be taken
into custody, notwithstanding the fact
that the boat carried, both at her bow
and at her stern, the flag of the Unit
ed States. The officer who made the
arrest was proceeding up one of the
streets of the town with his prisoners
when met by an officer of higher au-
thority, who ordered him to return to
the landing and await orders, and
within an hour and a half from the
time of the arrest orders were re-
ceived from the commander Of the
Huertista forces at Tampico for the
release of the paymaster and his men.
Huerta's Apology Unsatisfactory.
The release was followed by apol-
ogies from the commander and later
by an expression of regret by General
Huerta himself General Huerta
urged that martial law obtained at
the time at Tampico, that orders had
been issued that no one should be al
lowed to land at the Iturbide bridge
and that our sailors had no right to
land there. Our naval commanders
at the port had not been notified Of
any such prohibition and, even if they
had been, the only justifable course
open to the local authorities would
have been to request the paymaster
and his crew to withdraw and to lodge
a protest with the commanding office
of the fleet Admiral Mayo regarded
the arrest as so serious an affront
that he was not satisfied with the
apologies offered, but demanded that
the flag Of the United States be sa.
luted with special ceremony by the
military commander of the port.
Several Affronts Given United States
The incident cannot be regarded as
a trivial one, especially as two of the
men arrested were taken from the
territory of the United States; but
had 1t stood by itself it might have
been attributed to the ignorance OF
arrogance of a single officer. Unfor.
tunately it was not an isolated case
A series of incidents have recently oc
CURED which cannot but create the
impression that the representatives OF
General Huerta were willing to go out
of their way to show disregard for
the dignity and rights of this govern
ment and felt perfectly safe in doing
what they pleased, making free to
show in many ways their irritation
and contempt. A few days after the
incident at Tampico an orderly from
the United States ship Minnesota was
arrested at Vera Cruz while ashore
in Uniform to obtain the ships mail
and was for time thrown into Jail
ment to its embassy at Mexico City
was withheld by the authority of the
Geographic service until peremptorily
demanded by our charge d'affaires in
person SO far as | can learn such
wrongs and annoyances have heen
suffered only to occur against repre-
sentatives of the United States.
have heard of no complaints frorl
other governments of similar reat
ment. Subsequent explanations and
formal apologies did not and could not
alter the popular impression, which
it is possible it had been the object
of the Huertista authorities to create
that the government of the United
States was being singled out and
might be singled out with impunity
for Sights and affronts in retaliation
for its refusal to recognize the pre-
lenses of General Huerta to be re
garded as the constitutional pro
visional president Of the republic OF
Mexico.
Situation Fraueht With Danger.
The manifest danger of such a sit
uation was that such offenses might
grow from bad to worse until some
thing happened of SO gross and in
tolerable a sort as to lead directly
and inevitably to armed conflict. II
was necessary that the apologies OF
General Huerta and his representa-
tiyes should go much further, thai
they should be such as to attract the
attention of the whole population t.
their significance and such as to i'm
press en- General Huerta himself the
necessity of seeing to it that no fur
ther occasion for explanations and