The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1914-05-19
Thrilling Story From = Tope-
kan Living in Mexico City.
American Flags Drag in Dust
Behind Public Hacks.
HOW HuERTA FOOLED THEM
Enlisted 10000 to Fight U. s.
and Sent Them North.
Weird Tales Told by News
papers in Troubled City.

A most fascinating story is told in
q letter received today from a we'll
known Topekan in Mexico City. The
letter Is written in diary form. with
the last word May 4, and depicts In q
way that isn't found in the dispatches
the real conditions in the Mexican
capital.
"A first hand tale Of how the Next
cans treat the flag of the United
States, q report of the stories printed
by the Mexican newspaper concern
ing the impending war, and reve-
lation OF the manner in which Huerta
enlisted volunteers to go against the
rebels, all brought together In this
letter. form a most interesting feature
directly from the scene OF savagery.
Parts Of the letter follow:
ut certainly has been most trying.
I have lots of gray hair and As
head is almost white. If there was
any insult on the calendar that these
sayages did not THU k of, 1 don't
know what it was. They simply went
crazy-that is, crazier than they nat
urally are. To the uninitiated the
sight OF just one Of the hundreds OF
bowling mobs would create the i'm
mediate impression that they were
intensely patriotic. They are-in
their own way-but their idea Of pa
triotism is to holler, parade. break
up American signs and American
business houses, insult Americans
and kill them-if they have the right
opportunity-and the right oppor-
tunity Is not in battle.
Can you imagine the feelings OF
the Americans here when they see
every crupper on every public hack
horse wound with the American flag:
when the American flag, many. many
times is dragged through the streets
behind carriages, autos. bicycles,
vuk 10 cfa r1n0d into the dnRt
spit upon and torn into shreds? And
always, of course, where Americans
can see them and where they can
hear the incessant Death to the
Gringos.' Death to Yankees the
pigs dogs blonde beasts and
many things unprintable.
Great mobs run up and down the
streets making speeches, screaming
the vilest epithets bands every block
playing the national hymn and thou
sands Of men, women and children
singing it.
The Many Newspaper Lies.
Every half hour or so the newspa-
pers issue extra editions with the
most villainous lies. melting the peo-
pie to arms. to kill the 'Gringos' at
once, and even printing a list of
Americans and American houses to
the extent of their knowledge at the
moment. These sheets reported, as
examples, tndt the On1lcQ states meet
in Vera Cruz had sunk a Spanish bat
tleship because she wouldn't move
out of the way and gave all Of the
details Of 1t, including the last words
Of the Spanish captain and drowning
struggles Of some 1000 Spanish ma
rines.
"Then followed the declaration Of
war on the United States by Spain,
also that on account of a mix-up in
connection with a German owned
merchant vessel in Vera Cruz, Ger
many had declared war on the Unit
ed States. That in the United States,
the negroes, the Texans, the Mexi-
cans and some strikers somewhere in
sympathy with Mexico had instituted
a civil war in the United States
ALSO that this intestinal war,
with that of Spain. Germany and
Mexico, would rend United States from
stem to stern in 80 days. That her
arms and ammunition, equipment,
vessels, ETC., were antiquated and the
American soldiers and marines the
rankest towards: that all rebels in
Mexico had Joined together to repel
the invaders: that Mexican troops
had captured Ell Paso, Eagle Pass,
Laredo and Brownsville and the
American soldiers at these places had
run like rabbits, leaving large guam
titles of arms and ammunition In DOS
session of the captors; that the Mexi.