River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1915-03-11

The outlook in Mexico at present
is really encouraging, though the con-
fusion attendant upon military opera
lions has served to make this country
consider the situation more dark than
ever before. All the patriotic ele-
ments in Mexico are rallying to Car
ranZa's standard. Villa with his own
division of the army is fighting the
rest of the nation and an indication
of what his movement really signifies
is the fact that he has invited all the
old Federal army officers against
whom the Madero revolution and it's
successor that drove Huerta from pow
er was waged, to join him.
World conditions are such that no
government in Mexico can exist with
out the friendship of this country and
without it's moral and financial help.
In sense then, Americans are in duty
bound to look upon the situation ia
Mexico from an intelligent and SYM
pathetic angle.
Carranza Misunderstood.
Carranza has been grossly miGun-
derstood in this country. He is
man of probity, clean living and in
tense patriotism. He is not a wealthy
man. He has reared his family in
comfort, having made his living from
the raising of cattle He himself has
visited the United States many times.
He has had his family educated in
this country. Every man whom he
has selected to become a member Of
his Cabinet he has first sent to this
country to become acquainted with the
American idea, system and plan OF
conducting the office he is about to as
sumo.
Carranza is unmilitary, educated,
having taken a law degree, intensely
Mexican, and whole-heartedly desir-
Gus of helping the downtrodden peon
to obtain "his chance in life" Villa
! contrastingly is uneducated, ignorant,
brutal, unrestrained in his passions,
totally unappreciative of the needs OF
his country and is simply riding his
vanity to what he hopes will be the
dictatorship Of Mexico.
Illustrative of the character Of the
| two men is the fact that CarranZa, not
even to gain valuable political ends,
would stultify himself to the extent of
currying favor with the Washington
administration as long as our troops
were at Vera Cruz. His feelings of
friendship he kept locked in his heart
until the time he deemed proper to
express them. Villa, on the other
hand, has been one thing to this
| country and another to Mexico. He
has taken every occasion to slobber-
ingly express his regard and friend
ship for this country and the admin
| istration, while in Mexico he has at
tempted to gain recruits for his army
| by demagogically declaring that the
| United States intends to annex Mexico
and that he in the role of his countryS
savior calls upon the ex-Federals to
| join him in resisting the invasion that
| he announces soon is to come. Villa
is forced to make this explanation to
| his own troops because otherwise they
would keenly resent the presence Of
| these Huertistas in their ranks
Carranza and the Constitutionalist
cause has been assailed in this cOun-
| try as being not only Anti-CathOlic,
| but Anti-Religious. The true facts
| show both these accusations to be
! false. The Constitutionalist cause is
| opposed to any church taking part in
| the politics of the country and is We
| hementIy opposed to it's aligning itself
with the reactionaries and privileged
| classes, as unfortunately the Catholic
| church has done since the colonization
of Mexico by the Spaniard.
Rafael Zuberan Capmany, former
agent of the Constitutionalists in
Washington, and now minister Of the
interior in Carranza's Cabinet, stated
in the following manner the Constitu-
tionalists' position in this respect:
Hhurrh Ouae4ion
"Iet the Catholics of America I'M
derstand that the occurrences which
have happened and are explainabl9
under the present disturbed condi-
tions, do not, nor cannot constitute a
part Of the program Of the Constitu-
tionalists who are pledged to the prin-
ciple of the separation of the State
and church and are firm believers in
the principle of religious liberty"
One of the main reasons that has
prevented better feeling of cordial
ity existing between Mexico and this
country has been the fact that the
ordinary American looks upon all
Mexicans as "greasers" and affects an
air of superiority towards the nation,
that has bred the worst Of understand
ing between the two countries. The
lower class of Mexicans, commonly
called the 'peon," is undoubtedly ig-
norant and ill-kempt, but he has ster-
ling virtues of honesty and a genuine
love of his country that deserves re-
spect.
President Wilson by his just atti-
tude towards Mexico has wiped out
the old memories that country has
held of us since the Mexican war,
when we took from it the greater por~
ton of it's territory. Mexicans now
universally recognize that the only
ambition this country has in regard
TO Mexico is to he of helm and assist.