The Taney County republican. (Forsyth, Mo.) 1895-1992, 1916-04-06

| tion is hut Il veneer thinly covering the
| savage nature of man. How can this
| nation. which loves peace and intends
justice. avoid the curse of militariSm
and at the same lime preserve lis in.
dependence. defend its territory. pro.
tect the lives and liberty and proper
ty Of its citizens? How can we pre-.
vent the same principles of action, the
same policies Of conduct. the same
forces Of military power which are ex.
hiblted in Europe from laying hold
upon the vast territory and practically
undcfendcd wealth of the new world?
Have we still national ideals? viii
anybody live for them? Would any
oody die for them? Or are we all for
case and comfort and wealth at any
price! Confronted by such questions
as these ana the practical situations
which give rise to them, is the COun.
try satisfied to trust itself again in the
hands of the Democratic party;
lmpotent Interference In Mexico.
The United States had rights and
duties in Mexico More than 10000 Of
our citizens had sought their fortunes
and made their homes there \ thou
sand millions Of American capital had
been invested in that productive cOun.
! try. But revolution had come. and
factional warfare was rife. Americans
hn1 lnnn ,,,,,plnVn1
ty had been wantonly destroyed, the
lives and property Of all Americans in
Mexico were in danger. That was the
situation when Mr. Wilson became
president in March, 1913, His duty
then was plain. 1t was, first, to use
his powers as president 10 secure pro-
lection for the lives and property of
Americans in Mexico and to require
that rules Of law and stipulatiOns Of
treaties should he observed by Mexico
toward the United States and its Citi-
zcns. Ills duty was. second, as the
head OF foreign power to respect the
independence of Mexico, to refrain
from all Interference with her internal
affairs, from all attempt at DONNA.
tion except as lie was justified by the
law of nations for the protection of
American rights, The president of the
United States failed to observe either
of those duties. He deliberately aban'
doncd them both and followed an en-
tircly different and inconsistent pur-
pose. He INTERVIEWED in Mexico to aid
one faction in civil strife against an
other. He undertook to pull down
IIuerta and set Carran2a up in his
place. Arms and munitions Of war
were freely furnished to the northern
forces aud withheld from tIuerta
Finally the president sent our army
and navy to invade Mexico and cap
ture its great seaport. Vera Cruz, and
hold ii and throttle Mexican commerce
until HucrtH fell.
Americans Outraged In Mexico.
The government of the United States
ntcrvcncd In Mexico to control the in
tcrnal affairs Of that independent coun-
try and to enforce tie will of the
American president in those affairs by
! threat, by economic pressure ana hy
force of arms. Upon what claim OF
right did this intervention proceed?
Not to secure respect for American
rights, not tn protect the lives or prop
erty of our citizens. not tO assert the
laws of nations, not to compel obsery-
ancc of the law of humanity. On the
contrary, IIucrtas was the only power
in Mexico to which appeal could be
made for protection of life or property.
That was the only power which, IN
| fact, did protect either American or
| European or Mexican. 1t was only
within the territory where Ilucrta
ruled that comparative peace aud or
der prevailed. The territory over
which the armed power of Carranza
and villa and their associates extended
was the thcatcr of the most appalling
crimes. Bands of robbers royed the
country with unbridlcd license. Amer
| leans and McXiCans alike were at their
| mercy, and American men were MUIR
dCrcd and American women were out
ragged with impunity. Thousands were
| reduced to poverty by the wanton de-
structiOn OF the industries through
which they lived. Yet the government
of the United States ignored, CON
doncd, the murder of American men
and the rape of American women and
destruction Of American property and
insult TO American officers and dciile-
mcnt Of the American flag and joined
itself 10 the men who were guilty Of
all these things to pull down the pow
cr of HuGrta. Why The president
himself has told us. II was because
he adjudged IIncrta 10 be usurper,
| because he deemed that the common
people of Mexico ought 10 have great
er participation in government and
share I'm the land, and he believed that
Carranza and Villa would give them
these things. We must all sympathi2e
with these sentiments. but there Is
nothing more dangerous than mis-.
placed sentiment.
When our army landed at Vera Cruz
CarrHnZa himself, who was to he the
chief beneficiary Of the act. publicly
protested against it. So strong was
the resentment that he could not have
kept his followers otherwise. When
IIucrta had fallen the new government
which for the day had succeeded to
| his nlncn nnreInnfnrilY lrlnnnhnh the