Evening star., 1915-01-10
Obscure Chiefs Now Monopo-
Iizing Attention in the
State of Sonora.
HILL AND MAYTORENA
HEAD RIVAL FACTIONS
Recognized, Respectively, as Repre-
sentatives of Carranza and Villa
in Struggles for Supremacy.
BY CHARLES M. PEPPER.

BY CHARLES M. PEPPER.
Two obscure individuals, Maytorena
and Hill, monopolize the Mexican news
dispatches for a month. They disappear
for perhaps a week or two, and reappear
in the headlines along with Gen. Scout
the chief of staff Of the United States
Army.
The section Of Mexico in which they
are conducting so-called military opera
tions gets prominence noninally on ac-
count of their doings Sonora becomes
familiar to newspaper readers. though
many of them have vague ideas OF where
it is.
Sonora is sometimes described as the
state of unrest. although its unrest IS ho
greater than that of 4 score OF other
Mexican states. 1t typifies. nevertneless'
certain permanent conditions IN the
geographical area which used to be caiied
the Republic of Mexico.
Hill and Maytorena, as individuals:
also typify certain political and social
tendencies. In them is reflected the
tribal tendencies Of the vast mass OF the
Mexican population They are two cnie1s'
and as in most primitive societies, there
is constant struggle between rlvai
sAAN
higher authority does not exist
Reflect Tendency to Revolution.
Maytorena and Hill. as tribal chiefs,
also reflect the tendency to revolution.
They keep up a show of fighting each
other because in the larger struggle of
bigger chiefs for the control of all Mexico
each of the two big chiefs must have his
IN
tain the semblance of power In that sec
ton.
Maytorena is. or was, Villas man.
Hill is, or was, Carranza's agent.
It has puzzled many persons who
know more or less of Mexican affairs
to understand why Villa took up
Maytorena when less than a year ago
he was threatening to court-martial
him because of disloyalty to the revo-
lutionary cause in refusing to obey
troops to the revolutionary forces.
Moreover, Maytoreno is allied by mar
riage and by other ties to the old
group of cientificos. and was very
lukewarm in opposing Huerta.
The answer to the question why Villa
should turn to Maytorena is that he is
an opportunist. He has learned to
work with whatever material he can
get and in Sonora, Gov. Maytorena
was his only available material. By
giving his influence to Maytorena he
was able to prevent the Carranzistas
from getting complete control of the
state of Sonora.
Carranza Chooses Hill.
Carranza, on his part, after finding
NIaytorena intractable gave all his in
auence to the faction led by Gen. Ben
jamin Hill, who has shown some talent
in bushwhacking. Hill is the angli-
cized form Of the Spanish name Gil, and
the general now in the public eye is
not. as might be supposed from his
name, an American.
fighting for the control Of Sonora, and
on their part ALLEGIANCE to the two
rival chiefs. Carranza and Villa, has
been per Eunctory. But 1t was neces-
sary for them to have the semblance
of loyalty to some distant authority.
because aid might be had from this
source.
These are inherent social and politi-
cal traits, based on the tribal ideas Of
the Mexican population. Sonora, how
ever. from its geographical situation.
typif1es something more than the primi-
tive struggles of rival chiefs. 1t has
the SeparatiSt tendencies even more
than Yucatan and Tehuantepec. The
Gulf of California on one side and the
almost insurmountable range of the
Sierra Madres on the other make 1t es-
sentially a state by itself.
The Governor of Sonora usually has
been a power unto himself. This was
the theory on which Maytorena went
after Madero had him counted in as
governor.
Years ago there was a very popular
political leader in Sonora named Ra-
mon Corral President Diaz elected the
Governor of Sonora at that time, just
as he elected the governors in the other
states. by nodding his head. He found
r1..,.
the influence OF his administration in
Sonora. Later he took Gov. Corral to
Mexico City, put him in the cabinet
and subsequently made him governor
of the federal district.
Choice Influenced by Patriotism.
Ten years ago. when the feeling was
universal throughput Mexico that Gen.
Diaz had fully made up his mind to
give up the presidency. everybody was
aware of the concern he felt over his
successor. 1t was a genuine patriotic
concern for the welfare of Mexico
While Gen. Diaz. as a benevolent des-
pot, did some remarkable things. in the
opinion of his friends. nothing was
more remarkable than his selection of
Corral for vice president. The Sonora
, leader had not impressed himself on the
country at all, but Diaz carried through
his program and Corral was elected
vice president, with a view to the sue
cession.
Gen. Diaz, apparently, changed his
mind, and decided that during his life
| time there should be no succession. Yet
the reason for his putting Corral in the
way of becoming president was allowed
to be known. 1t was by taking advan-
tage of COrraIs popularity in Sonora
to keep the state from seeding and
setting up as a government by itself.
Whether any kind of a Central an.