The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-03-01


 case and requested telegraphic informa- ton from the local authorities at Chi huahua, asking them to send him a full report on the case, which he has not re- ceived, owing, no doubt, to the advance of General Vnia south of Chihuahua "Carranza's attitude in the Benton and | Baucb cases in not accepting the repre- sentation made by the British government
 in the case of a British subject, and
 his reply at once with deep interest to l the representations made to him through | a duly authorized representative in the
 case of an American citizen, goes to prove 1 clearly that What Carranza desires is to
 have the national dignity and his posi- | tion as supreme chief of the constitution
 alst army respected, but at the same
 time he does not wish by any means to | elude representations made to him, in due 1 form and according to international law | General Carranza's reply to Mr. Bryans request for information of the Bauch case reads as follows:
 ''1 have received through the acting sec- retary of the department of foreign af- fairs the telegram which the honorable, the Secretary of State, William Jennings Bryan, addressed to you today relative to the Bauch case.
 "In reply thereto I have the honor to inform you that l have today telegraphed to the competent constitutionalist authori-
 
 once in detail, and soon as I shall have positive information to convey to you, l shall do so at once.
 Please believe. and I beg of you to so inform the department of state that 1 I most sincerely lament this unfortunate in-
 cident and that the department may rest assured and have confidence that my at
 titude now, as always, will be inspired by absolute respect for the lives and prop critics of foreigners and for international law.
 | Please accept for yourself and be good enough to transmit to the Secretary of State, the assurance of my highest con | sideration."
 | The text of the longer explanation about 1 the Benton incident read:
 Tn reply to the unofficial representation which you made to me yesterday in the name of the department of state of the l United States, I have to inform you as | follows:
 l 'T have already on other occasions in- | formed you, so that you may communi- | cate it to your government, that in order l to enable the executive power under my l charge to attend to representations rela- | tive to foreigners residing in this country within the territory under the jurisdiction | os constitutionalist authorities, that such representations must be made by repre- sentatives authorized by their respective governments and communicated directly | to me as supreme chief of the constitution I alst army, through the department of | foreign affairs attached to the executive power.
 Therefore, in order to be consistent with my policy as above outlined I wish ] to inform you that l shall be only too pleased to consider any representations
 made in the case of the British subject William S. Benton, provided of course, | that 1t may be made directly to me by representative of the British government With reference to this case and in l order to show the spirit of justice which animates the constitutionalfst government I think 1t advisable to re- peat here what I have already told you and other authorities of the United States and stated publicly through the press:
 The constitutionalist government recognizes the rights of all foreigners as provided for by the decree of May IS, 1913-to claim losses and damages
 already suffered by them or which they may continue to suffer during the pres ent civil strife, l. e., since February 19, 1913, until the restoration of con sttutional order in Mexico. The above is evidenced by your honorable Secre- tary of State, MT. William Jennings
 Bryan, who does me justice in his sec. ond telegram of yesterday addressed to you wherein he appreciates my eff forts in endeavoring to protest the lives and properties of foreigners, in- asmuch as I have always respected them In my character as supreme chief
 of the constitutionalist army. and en- forced the respect for the lives and property of all foreigners residing In the republic who strictly complied with their obligations as neutrals. q wish, however, to call especially l to your attention-in order that you may so inform your government-that yours is the first direct representation | made to me in the Benton case, since all of the representations made in this case so far have been made to author | tiles ot fhe constitutionalist govern l ment who only have been dealt with, although I am the supreme chief of l the constitutionalist army, according | to the declaration of Guadalupe of March 26. 1913. And 1t is therefore only to me, as I have repeatedly stated on various occasions, that foreign gov ernments or their representatives | should address representations regard