The Washington herald., 1914-02-26
both SIDES IN MEXICO
|. NOT YET HEARD in U. S.
R. H. Phillips Says Nearly 5000. 900
People There Are in Poverty.
but Peaceful.
UNJUST TO CALL THEM BANDITS

r. IL. Phillips last night commune
Gated to The Washington Herald a ques-
tion whether Congress should not au-
thorize the President TO send troops
across the Rio Grande. Mr.. Phillips i'm
plying that Congress ought so to do.
His communication Is as follows:
"The American people have not heard
both sides Of Mexico's troubles.
Since 1850 thousands OF Mexicans In
New Mexico, Texas. Arizona and Cali
fornia have prospered under United
States government as peaceful law
abiding residents. They engage In agri-
culture and pastoral occupations.
''Is II justice, therefore. to race hav-
ing worthy traits. to decry them as
bandits and assassins? Is II not just TO
inquire. therefore, how a population of
5000. 600 peaceful inhabitants Is trans
formed into desperate combatants. who
shoot their prisoners and deluge rich
and prosperous land with rapine and
slaughter.
"when Spaniards In the sixteenth GEN.
tury achieved the conquest Of Mexico.
they proceeded to divide up all the lands
among themselves, leaving the native
population OF Aztec or Indian descent 10
poverty and peonage or a modified form
OF slavery. The descendants OF those
Spanish conquerors and their families still
possess nearly all the valuable land of
the republic. and the descendants Of the
Aztecs continue In poverty and are kept
In illiteracy.
Thus, possibly 10000 citizens own
practically every thing Of value, and the
remainder. nearly l5.ooo.ooo, possess moth
ing; yet they struggle along in poverty
and with little or no education. but are
peaceful and law-abiding citizens, unless
forced into enlistment at point of the
bayonet
quite dissimilar is the class Of wealth
and landed estates. They manifest the
same cruel greed for power and govern
mental control that imbued their forbears
when they slaughtered many Of the
peaceful Aztecs and took possession OF
their beautiful country. With wealth and
idleness and avarice as the environment
Of the few and poverty for the many.
revolutions spring up In a night and
drench the fair land Of Mexico in blood.
IL II Just TO the poorer Mexican people
TO criticize them for these revolutions?
They are merely unwilling participants.
II only land owners were involved in
such bloody struggles, IL might be
poetic or rather tragic retribution to
permit them TO fight to finish.
Can We, however, as AN enlightened
humane and Christian nation, see 15,c"0O
SlaugnteIlns cdCn ttntE WIN
out even the pretense Of civilized rules Of
warfare. Should not Congress authorize
the President to send troops across the
Rio Grande: not with the purpose OF
acquiring and anneNing Mexican terri
tory, but To terminate this inhuman war
fare. and 10 aid the Mexican people in
constitutional government.
With that honorable result our mission
would be accomplished.
Nations, like individuals, have duties
and obligations when humanity Is in
volved. a brave man will not stand idly
by and see two ncighbors in murderous
combat without AN effort to stop the fight
and save their lives, and a brave nation
might. at least. compel neighboring ma
tions to tight by laws OF civilization. Is
the Monroe doctrine a sham and a sub
terfuge. or is II a solemn declaration to
the world that America does not toie-
rate foreign encroachment against Ameri-
can republics. Nor should America per-
nit civilization to be destroyed. and saw
agery and anarchy survive. and human
liberty sacrificed on the American con-
tinent."