Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-08-01

| would be no BORDER raids" no mo
| bilization," no war talk" There
/ would be no occasion for the clouds
that darken so many American homes
today Investments" in these plu-
| toCratic times, are vastly more impOr-
tant than citizens" And it is not to
protect Citizens" but to protect in
veStments" that our boys in khaki
| have been forced into action. That is
! the truth of it,
| These American Investors" in Mex
| -millionaires-are using every in
| strument they can cOntrol-their mon
/ ey, their newspapers, their magazines,
their political influence, all their
| dark and devious ways"-to bring
| about Intervention" Intervention
means war. War means blood, and
killing, and bereaved families, and I'M
mentionable horrors. And all for
what? Profits! Privilege profits!
Privilege exploits US folks here in
our own United States. And priv
lege makes SO much money out of US
that it creates a huge surplus. Privi-
1 lege, never satiated, wants this sur
| plus to be at work bringing in still more
profits. Weak and undeveloped (and
uneXploited) countries offer the big
gest returns. So privilege buys for
| e1Sn concession. cheap. Inc SyS-
| tenn looks to that bargain! But, to
maintain the great profits, it is Ordin-
| arily necessary to resort to strong
arm" methods. Sometimes people like
the workers in the mining districts of
| Colorado, Michigan and West Virginia)
resist oppression and exploitation.
Machine guns become the order of the
day. And, after all, our present Mex
| lean situation" is only a Ludlow" on
a bigger scale. Privilege is today try
ling to shape public sentiment, so that
| our boys" shall be made to march
down into Mexico and offer up their
| lives--for the purpose of placing the
| guarantee of the United States govern
ment behind those gold mines and
| other concessions, and to make profits
of privilege secure.
Who owns Mexico? Really owns it?
Let US glance at a few figures. Dol
lars, they are-millions and millions
| of them And they tell the story.
| What follows shows the wealth of
| Mexico, according to nationality of
| ownership. 1t is taken from the Unit
ed States consular report No. 1913, is
! sued July IS, 1912, by Consul Marion
Letcher of Chihuahua. This table was
prepared by William H. Seamon, late
of Chihuahua, who, according to the
J
had long experience in Mexico as a
mining engineer"
Nationality. Amt. Investment.
American ...............$1,O 57 TIC, goo
EnglSh -.-...--..-.....- 3zI,5uz,6OU
French ......... 143, 446, 900
! Mexican 1913, 1877 ,242
! other nations 1885, $50
Hold fast to these figures. What
ever may be urged upon you in these
trying times by way of justifying in
tervention,' keep in mind this big, out
standing fact:
! American financiers have more mon
ey invested in Mexico than the Mexi-
| cans themselves have-S264, 582,7 5S
| more.
American investments are biggest of
all in that unhappy, system-ridden
country.
This American money is found in
railroad stocks and bonds. mines, ma
tional bonds. ranches, smelters, timber
! lands, factories, oil, rubber, insurance,
and other enterprises.
! Let US glance at a few more figures
! from the same authority:
| Railway Stocks-Mexican money in
vested. $125,44O 900; American money
| invested, $235, AGA 900.
| Railway Bonds-Mexican money in
vested, $12,275, 700; American money
| invested, $4OS. 1926 900
Mines-Mexican money invested, ST.
! 500, 900; American money invested,
| 1929, 600, 900.
| National Bonds-Mexican money in
vested. 21,000,0 900; American money
! invested, $50, 000,O 900.
Smelters-Mexican money invested,
| $7,200,000; American money invested,
| $26,5OO, 900.
! Timber Lands-Mexican money in
| vested, So 1000, 900; American money in
vested, $8,1OO,O0O.
| Factories s)-Mexican
money invested, $3,270, 200; American
money invested, $4,000, 900
| Oil-Mexican money invested, $780,
| 900; American money invested, $751;,
| 00O, 900
Rubber Mexican money invested,
! 81 500 900; American money invested,
5000, 900.
Insurance-Mexican money invest
ed, $4,000 900; American money invest
! ed. 81 900 900
In the ownership of Mexico we find
the real menace to the peace between
| Mexico and the United States. Amer
lean capitalists are desperately at
tempting to have the flag follow their
| investments
They who own Mexico are the ones
| who want war.
Shall these powerful influences be
| permitted to succeed in their plot?