The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1914-04-21
CRISIS IN MEXICO
HASBEEN FORCED
BY HUERTA
Wilson Puts Blame Upon Prov.
Isional President
HIS MESSAGE TO CONGRESS
Asserts That United States Has
Been Singled Out for Retsllstory
Affronts

Washington. April 2l-President
Wilson laid the Mexican situation
before Congress yesterday In these
words:
Gentlemen OF the Congress: It
is my duty to call your attention to
o situation which has arisen in our
dealing with Gen. Nlctoriano Huerta
at Mexico City. which calls for act
ion. and to ask your advice and CO.
operation In acting upon Il. On the
s.h OF April. u paymaster Of the Unit
ed States steamship Dolphin landed
at the lturhide bridge-landlng at
Tampico with a whalcboat and boats
crew TO take of certain supplies
needed by his ship. and while en-
gagged in loading the boat was arrest
ed by an officer and squad Of men OF
the army OF Gen Huerta. Neither
tho paymaster nor anyone OF the
boats crew was armed. Two OF the
men were in the boat when the ar
rest took place and were Obliged 10
leave 1t and submit to be taken into
custody, Notwithstanding the fact
that the boat carried. both at her
how and at her stern. the flag OF the
United 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 authority
who ordered him 90 return To the
landing 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 paymaster and his men. The re-
lease was followed by apologies from
the commander and later by an ex-
preston OF regret by Gen 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 lturbide bridge,
and that our sailors had no right to
land there. Our naval commanders
~ the port had not been notified of
any such prohibition, and. even II
they had been, the only justifiable
course open 20 the local authorities
would have been TO request the pay
master and his crew to withdraw
and lodge protest with the com
manding officer OF the fleet. Admiral
Mayo regarded the arrest as SO seri-
Gus an affront that he was not salts
fed with the apologies offered. but
demanded that the flag Of the Unit
/ ed States be saluted with special
ceremony by the military command
er of the port.
The incident cannot be regarded
( as trivial one especially as two of
the men arrested we're taken from
/ the boat itself-that is to say, from
the territory of the United States,
but had it stood by itself, it might
I have been attributed to the ignor-
/ ance or arrogance of a single officer.
| Unfortunately il was not an isolated
! case. A series of incidents have re-
Gently occurred which cannot but
create the impression that the repre-
/ sentatives of Gen. Huerta were will.
( ing 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 at Tampico an or
Derby from the United States steam
! ship Minnesota was arrested at Vera
/ Cruz while ashore in uniform to OBJ.
tain the ships mail and was for a
time thrown into Jail. An official
dispatch from this government to
4 its embassy at Mexico City was with
! held by the authorities of the tele.
graphic service until peremptorily
demanded by our charge daffaires
in person. SO far as can learn,
: such wrongs and annoyances have
been suffered to occur only against
1 representatives of the United States
: have heard of no complaint from
other governments of similar treat
! 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 i'm
punity, for sights and affronts in re-
taliation for its refusal to recognize
the pretensions of Gen. Huerta to be