The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1914-07-10
STUDY Of vENUSTIANO CARRANZA,
THE MAN OF THE HOUR IN MEXICO
First Chief of the ConstuOnasS and Perhaps Soon de FaCO
President of the Republic Is Remarkable Man in Many
ReSpeCts-WaS the intellectual Godfather of
Francisco Madero

/ cisco Madero he sat al the feet OF
Carranza and drank in his discourses
on the robbery of the poems lands
II was the opening of his eyes by Car
rama which caused Madero TO head
] the successful revolt which placed
him in short-lived possession Of the
national palace.
Senator CarranZa's independence
and his high ideals in politics." Ma
| dero once said, caused me TO sup
port him in his campaign for the gov.
ernorship. ! made speeches for him
and contributed 70 the expenses Of his
campaign. The people wanted him
for governor, but he was counted out
| saw then what the Diaz system
meant. had taken no active inter
est in politics up to that time, but
then l realized that we could have
no real self-goverument so long as
the Diaz machine, or any other ma
chine with the same purposes, was
permitted to perpetuate itself From
that defeat of Carranza we went on
to the national convention and the or
ganization of the movement against
Diaz."
Carranza refused the title of gen
eral under Madero, and he led his men
without a regular rank. He is not
a soldier by training, except the
training of actual hostilities. He was
secretary of state in the provisional
government Of Madero, for a time,
but declined cabinet Office later. He
had spent many years in Mexico City
as a senator and knew what its graft
infested atmosphere meant.
On Maderos success, however, Car
rama stood third time for governor
of Coahuila and was unanimously
elected. This was in 1911.
Madero had scarcely fallen when
his preceptor raised the standard OF
revolt. Governor Carranza was the
first leader to declare against Huerta !
He gathered 10000 men at Monclova |
and issued his famous declaration of |
principles, time-honored part of the |
Inauguration of any Latin-American |
revolt. His battle-cry has been Give |
the land back to the people" Yet he |
would pursue more orderly and lawful |
methods than the rougher Francisco
Villa.
Carranza is a stern, uncompromis- !
ing character with the simple habits
of the solitary frontiersman. He is
a total abstainer from liquor and to-
bacco and rises at five o'clock every
morning of his life. His six-foot fig
ure is most commanding He is a
type that naturally dominates. The
one side of his nature which is hard
for Americans to understand is his !
cruelty in warfare. While not so ruth
less as Villa and Zapata, he is wont to
prefer the shooting squad as a punish.
ment for minor offenses. There was
Carlos Piza, a young mountaineer
who Joined Carranza about the time
of his declaration against Huerta
Piza harassed the enemy increasingly
with his little band and did great
service to the constitutionalist cause.
But in the Mexican style he looted the
villages through which he passed.
Carranza himself is given to extorting
immense sums from wealthy Cientia-
cos, but he was seeking to free his
ranks from the charge of brigandage.
So when it was found that young Piza
had brought in 500 pesos from a GER
tain village he was ordered to return
he money. This he failed to do. Fur
.her, he grumbled and suggested to
his followers that they take to the
bush. Such conduct meant the end of
discipline. General Carranza ordered
he young man shot. Even after he
vas stood up against the adobe wall
md the firing squad of twelve lined
opposite, an appeal was sent to the
irst chief. The messenger brought
Jack the command. ia Muerta, and
he rifles spoke.
A few hours later the chieftain
wrote a sympathetic letter to the j
mother of the boy announcing his
Ieath and expressing grief at the ne
essity. j.
s,,,od 30 o,iva their names, were mo-