Evening star., 1914-07-05

and for a quarter OF a century gave II
to them.
Civil war is something that no country
can give absolute guarantees against. and
therefore the Americans in Mexico for
the most part have realized that the
losses they sustained during the Madero
revolution were incidents OF war Many
Of them still have the claims which the
but postponed paying. A much larger
crop of claims for damages has grown
up since the Huerta control, or lack OF
control. The constitutionalists have also
promised that these claims shall be
recognized, but the truth is that few
Americans in Mexico expect TO receive
compensation during their lifetime.
An Aneican merchant in Torreon re-
opened his store a few weeks after Villa
had taken the city. He had only a small
stock. He could have done a good busi-
ness with a larger stock but he did not
feel safe in making purchases.
MY store has been looted three times
in three years" he said. When the Ma
dero troops first iook.sthe. town they
plundered US all When they 9aSe. way
to the federals.Ht the sedersisy. p,rrdered
US. When the rebels came IN 'sst Octo-
Der. and held the town for awhile they
looted US - ri
II have got claims for damages for all
three times fled With the state DEPART
ment.. but that doesn't. mean that Y will
ever see any cash. ~-However,~there is
no place in the stsres~ ~where-f-1can go
back and go into business, so I have to
stay here and do what ! can with small
stock Villa keeps order, but ] don't
know how long tnat will last.
N representing
panv which has a. chain OF stores
throughout Mexico, after his concern
closed in Tampico.- went. up ta,1saheston
and to Ell Paso and got thr@ugnseo- Tor
reon. There was a branch store In Tor
reon. and he had heard that il was open
and doing little business. = The day
after his arrival he sucteeded in finding
the man who had the Key TO the place.
That was about the only asset but he
expected that the business would be
cause that was the only chance OF get
ting back any of the money that had
been put in.
A Young American. who was doing q
commission business. STAYED when nearly
all the other Americans left I asked
him why he did not return to the states.
No joh for me there was his terse
reply Mexico is the only place in
which can make a living. and am not
1oing that now. But I don't care TO go
back and live off my folks. Maybe in
four or FIVE years those of US who stick
i out here will be able TO make some
money"
An American doctor, who had large
practice sent his family across the bor-
ier. bur declined himself to leave, al
.hougn very little Of his practice re-
NAMED.
y dor't see much of a future here
le said. but there IS none at all back in
he states am forty-five years old.
md ! don't krow where / could go and
lang out a sign Young doctors have a
lard enough time il building UP a prac-
ice, and what chance would a middle
lged doctor have whose whole profess
;lonal experience has been outside his
,wn country"
Scores of instances similar to these
,ame to my attention. The Americans
Who have been driven out of Mexico are
or the most part coming back because
hey can't make a living in the states.
They are not at all sanguine about the
prospects for them in Mexico, because
hey are not sanguine over the prospects
4 the country itself, but they feel that
hey will get along somehow until Amer
can intervention comes.
Probably their views are biased, but II
s safe to say that not one out of hun
red Americans who have been IN Mexico
nd who expect to return to Mexico be-
ieves that intervention in the sense OF
military occupation or policing the coun-
ry can be avoided.
Copyrighted. 1914. by Charles N, Pepper9