The Donaldsonville chief., 1914-03-28


tions of the earth.
If there is nothing in the Mexican
situation at present to Justify inter-
yention, what was there in the Gu
ban situation and in the Nicaragua
situation to justify intervention?
The civil war that has ragged in
Mexico for the last three years is
certainly more widespread, has been
more destructive of the lives and
property of American and other
foreign citizens, and has been accom-
panied by more atrocities than char
acterized these small revolutions
which our government, however, felt
justified in quellfng by armed inter-
vention. Further than the fact that
the situation in Mexico is many
times worse than that which existed
in Cuba and Nicaragua, all that
seems to differentiate the present
from the former situations is that
Mexico is much larger and more
powerful country, whose people would
not peacefully submit To armed inter
vention. It is precisely as II big
policeman, sworn to the preservation
of law and order, should arrest for
disturbing the peace a small and
weak man, but stand looking on in
an attitude Of "Watchful waiting"
should big bully so on rampage,
shoot up the town, and snuff out the
lives of innocent bystanders.
His duty is the same il one case
as in the other, and the fact that it
would cost more in blood and treas
ure to intervene in Mexico than in
the smaller Latin-Ame meTican countries,
in no wise alters our obligation. We
have responsibility we cannot shift
and a duty we must perform.
Indeed, the longer we put off the
evil day, the greater the difficulties
to be encountered, and the greater
the task to be accomplished. The
lifting of the embargo on arms will
result in the wholesale arming of
the Mexican popuIace, and this
means that when the American army
does cross the border, as sooner or
later it must, it viii be opposed by
a people equipped with modern arms
and trained in their use: and where
as before, we should nave met only
tens of thousands of armed foes. we
shall now have to contend with hun
dreds of thousands of seasoned vet
Grams.
Now, what is meant by "Watehful
Waiting?, Waiting for what? Wait
ing until there is a general massacre
of American or other foreigners and
sr+e fs,, FIro
Mexicans to fight it out among them
selves? Any one familiar with the
history of Mexico knows that after
gaining her independence in 1921,
following ten years Of intermittent
warfare, revolutions followed each
other in rapid succession for fifty
five years, during which period there
occupied at different times the
chief executive office of the nation
more than thirty rulers, including
one emperor, several dictators, and
a number Of presidents and provi-
siona1 presidents, an average Of
less than two years for each.
And what finally brought this con-
dition of affairs to an end? Not
"a fill of fighting, or desire for
peace, on the part of the warning
factions themselves, but the rise OF
a military genius and statesman,
Gen. Porfirio Diaz, the man Of
blood and iron,'' who grasped the
reins of power in 1876, and after
finally crushing all opposition gave
peace to his distracted country for
a generation.
Now, Mexico is fast drifting back
to conditions which existed prior
to the accession of Diaz. It is
reasonably certain that Huerta will
be overthroWn-how could it be 9th
erwise when all the moral force OF
this government is exerted against
him? But after Huerta, who? The
strongest of the revolutionary chiefs,
Villa, is impossible, because Of his
former long record as a common
outlaw, and the fact that he is SIM
ply an untamed though able savage,
and totally illiterate. Carranza,
though a wealthy and enlightened
man, has shown none OF those quail
tiles of masterful leadership neces-
sary to compose a situation now be-
yond the control Of any less than
another Diaz. Felix Diaz, the great
Diaz's nephew, was weighed in the
balance and found wanting, and now
wanders exiled and discredited.
There is no one ON the horizon, SO
far as human eye caa seq, who viii
ever be able to bring order out OF
chaos and restore peace to Mex
leo.
Not only is the blood lust of the
Mexicans-forty per cent Of whom
are full-blooded Indians, and fifty pei
cent mixed breeds-noW fully
aroused, but more sinister still, the
habit of pIunder and pil1age has now
been formed, and it win prove diff
cult for them to return to honest Ia
Dor when it is much easier to de
mand at the point of a gun what
ever may be needed.
So the situation simply resolves it
self into either allowing the Mexi
cans to fight and murder and rol
| until another Diaz is developed
which may take d generation o
more, or choose the other aIterna
tive Of armed Intervention by thi
country. It might have been par
donable on our part during the pc
riod from 1891 to 1876 to look ol
calmly while the Mexicans slaugh
tered each other, but conditions ar
now radically different. At tina
time there was an Insignificant nun
Der of Americans and other foreig
] residents In Mexico and PRACTICAL