Imperial Valley press., 1914-05-15
O'SHAUGHNESSY AS JOLLIER;
JUDGE OF GOOD SHIRTINGS
(By Joseph Medill Patterson)

the diplomatic service of the United
States. He has been charge d. affaires
in Mexico, which means he has beer
steadily lingering the most infamed
| spot in our foreign relations.
That he has showed well a truly
amazing combination of cunning
courtesy and calm is evident not only
from the grateful testimony of the
American refugees now in Vera Cruz
but also from his achievement in get
ting on comfortably with three sue
cessive Mexican governments, all
bitterly antagonistic to each other.
first with the old regime of Porfrio
Diaz, then with the Madero revolu-
tionists, who tried him out, then with
the Tuertaistas, who turned Madero
into his grave.
Undoubtedly if O'Shaughnessy had
waited in Mexico City for the ultimate
arrival of Pancho Villa he would have
been teaching that eminent generals
simo the distances on the links of
the Mexico clubs within a month.
He is a pluperfect jollier, is Mr..
Nelson O'Shaughnessy, but his work
is artistic. He sits and smiles and
bushes trife and shows white teeth
like an embarrassed youth rconversing
with debutante., He breeds con-
fdence easily. You tell him what you
know and then he tells you what you
know, and when you go you are i'm
pressed with his exceptional penetra
ton and hope to meet him again and
have another talk about Mexico. He
doesn't say anything in particular, but
a whole lot in general, and says 1T
charmingly. He makes the abstraco
sound like the concrete IN remark
able way.
New York Club Man
He was appointed first by Roosevelt
in 1904 as Secretary to Copenhagen
at the age of 27. He was one of those
rich young fellows in New York City
who ran to clothes, tennis and money.
Some people call them "clubmen."
though of course he would sooner eat
soup with his knife than use sucn
an expression. His. family wished
him into the diplomatic service be-
cause he did not care enough for
money to work for it.
The Republican Senators of his
State held his appointments up, but
Roosevelt had one of his obstinate fits
and finally showed it through.
In 1905 he was transferred to Ber-
lin as third secretary and played ten
mis- with the Crown Prince. In 1907
he went to Vienna, where he stayed
four years.
He was distinguished in neither
place except as a jolly good fellow
which nobody can deny-and a chap
whose taste in gentlemen's shirtings,
suiting and sockings was infallibly
prophetic.
He was offered the appointment OF
Minister to Bucharest, but some of his
Jealous friends had his appointment
held up in the Senate, hoping to ge5
him {. better one.
He knew nothing of this at the
time, but was blamed for it, and for
discipline he was given second secre-
taryship to Mexico. This was in the
days before the excitement and diplo-
matically distinct step downward.
Doubtless he was expected to resign,
but he didn't and his reward fol-
lowed quickly. A month after
O'Shaughnessy's arrival in Mexico
City Diaz fled, and the Mexican post
became the most important in our
service. Then O'Shaughnessy forgot
about shirtings and tieings. For a
big show was coming off and he want
ed to take part in it.
Friend of MaderO
Francisco MaderQ entered Mexico
City as the leader of social revolu-
ton. He stood for the redistribution
of. property in hand. He rode into
power on the promises he made the
poems that he would make them own
ers of the land they titled. 1t was
the old forty acres and a mule idea
that seized the negroes after the
Civil War.
Madero was a more drastic Lloyd
George in theory, but far feebler
one in practice.
The country turned to Madero al
most unanimously. He needed to
fight little. So strongly were the peo-
ple-all the people except the land
lords--with him that Diaz, the old
eagle of Chepultepec, who had ruled
as despot for thirty years, fled al
most without resistance.
But what Madero.promised he could
not perform. His friends who came
:4o ,,oYyar with him on the siren OFT \