The enterprise. [volume] (Harlem, Mont.) 1899-1926, 1914-04-23
President Asks Au-
thority to Act.
REVIEWS THE SITUATION
Chief Executive Appears Before
Joint Session Of the Sen
ate and House.

Washington, April 21.-Presdent
Wilson laid the Mexican situation be-
fore congress in these words:
"Gentlemen of the congress-:
1T is my duty to call your atten.
ton to q situation which has arisen
in our dealings With General Victori-
ano Huerta at Mexico City, which
calls for action, and to ask your adj
vice and cooperation in acting upon
it,
"On the ninth of April paymaster
Of the United States Steamship Dol
phin landed at the lturbide bridge
landing at Tampico, with a whale
boat and boats crew to take off GER
tain supplies needed by his ship and
while engaged in loading the boat
was arrested by an officer and squad
of men Of the army of General
Huerta.
Neither the paymaster nor any OF
the boats crew was armed. Two OF
the men were 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
United States.
Men Are Freed Later.
1.-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 authority,
who ordered him to return to the land
ing and await orders, and within an
hour and a half from the time of the
arrest orders were received from the
commander of the Huertista forces at
Tampico for the release of the pay
master and his men. The release was
followed by apologies from the COM
mander and later by an expression Of
regret by Huerta himself.
General Huerta urged that martial
law obtained at the time at Tampico !;
that orders had been issued that no
one should be allowed 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 it they had been the only justiti.
able course open to the local authors
ties would have been to request the
paymaster and his crew to withdraw
and to lodge protest with the com.
handing officer of the fleet.
admiral Mayo regarded the arrest
as SO serious an atfront that he was
not satisfied with the apologies, but
demanded that the flag of the United
States be saluted with special cere
mony by the military commander OF
the port.
1.-The incident cannot be regarded
as a trivial one, especially as two OF
the men arrested were taken from
the boat itself-that is to say 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.
Not only Case OF Kind.
Unfortunately. it was not an isolat
ed case. A series of incidents have
recently occurred which cannot bu,
create the impression that the repre-
sentatives OF General Huerta were
willing to go out of their way to show
disregard for the dignity and rights
of this government and felt perfectly
safe in doing what they pleased, max
ing free to show in many ways their
irritation and contempt.
"A few days after the incident al
Tampico an orderly from the United
States steamship Minnesota was ar
rested at Vera Cruz while ashore in
uniform to obtain the ships mail, ant
was for a time thrown in jail.
"An official dispatch from this gov
eminent to its embassy at Mexico
City was withheld by the authorities
Of the Geographic service until per
emptorily demanded by our charge
d'affaires in person. So far as car
learn, such wrongs and annoyance;
have been suffered only to Occur
against representatives of the United
States. | have heard no complaints
from other governments of similar
treatment.
1.-THE manifest danger of such a sit
uation was that such offenses Nigh,
grow from bad to worse until some
thing happened of grave and intol
cradle sort as to lead to interven
ton"
Asks Approval Of Congress.
mo doubt could do what is neces
| aarx In the circumstances 4o ankonol