Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-06-14

Under able ana aggressive eccleSlaStlcS
the moral power of the church continued.
II was, moreover, said that much wealth
in the form of jewels. and particularly
the archbishop's tiara, had been acquired.
Durango unquestonably was a corner
stone of Catholicism, perhaps reactionary
clericalism. in Mexico, and as such was
part of the existing social order which
was destined to be overthrow by vol
lence.
y sequence of events leads up to lei
saquo," the sacking of Durango.
When the Dfaz government abdicated.
the old-fashioned army officer who was in
command of the small garrison of the
city refused to turn it over to the Made
ristas until he received a specific COM
rand from his superior in Mexico City.
Then he left with his aids. When Huerta
usurped authority the troops at Durango,
through their officers, remained faithful
to him; but it was known that the feder-
ais we're half-hearted and would take the
first chance to get away as soon as the
constituencies appeared in force. This
is what happened, and Durango was left
10 its fate.
Early in June 1918, the various forces
of the revolution, largely bandit forces,
but all acknowledging allegiance to Villa
and Carranzl. began to gather in large
numbers on all sides of Durango. They
We're under "arious jefes or chiefs, the
best known OF whom We're Tomas Ur-
bina, the Sa-ieta brothers, Calisto Con-
treras and Orestes Peyrera-
!: <
There We're three distinct groups under
these respective iefes, or chiefs, but an
understanding was reached tnat Urbina
should, for while at least. be the SUI
preme chief or commander There was,
further, an actual agreement that the
army should take the town and that
all the head jefes should remain outside
for a day so that there might be no
sen?blarce of authority to appeal to for
protection from the looting. This agree
ment was carried out
The three divisions of the constitution
alist forces swooped down on Durango,
without commanders, on the afternoon of
June is The story of that night of ter
ror and the subsequent days when
Durango was hell was told in official
reports by tie various consuls to their
governments. but these were not given to
the public unedited.
Some of the incidents of the sacktng
were also told by eyewitnesses, refugees
after their arrival in the United States
and Europe. But news of this KIND from
Mexico at that time was so common that
il is doubtful if one person in a thou
sand has even d vague impression OF the
circumstances. I ana not going to repeat
them.
One incident. l believe, has not been
recorded 1t was told to me by a for
eigner.
When 1t became certain that the ban
dts were going TO take the town the
women and girls of the better classes
We're hastily gathered in the foreign con-
sulateS. in secret recesses of the
churches, in hidden passages. Mercifully
the first booty of the sackers proved to be
stores of fiery liquor. That and the
plumber diverted their minds.
In few days the danger to the women
was thought % be over. Some of them
began TO rcappear in public Then an
orninous. sinister rumor began to spread
the fullest license of outlawry would be
enjoyed.
In the ranks of the constitutionalists
was a German named Schutt He was
there. perhaps, as something more than
an adventurer, for he was feared even
by his bandit associates Whatever dark
spots there may have been in his life by