New-York tribune., 1918-06-11
Analyses Attitude to Visit
ing Editors and Makes
Plea for Friendship
Harm in Pro-German
Propaganda Cited
President Advocates Pact
That Will Protect Amer
icas From Aggression
Special Dispatch to The Tribune,

Wilson'S speech to the Mexican editors
who called on him at the White House
last Friday and withheld from pub
lication until it had been published il.
Mexico became known tonight.
Although the tour of the editors was
arranged by the Committee on Public
Information. and on their visit to the
White House they were accompanied
BY George Creel, chairman of the COM
mittee, little publicity of the result of
the visitation has been given to the
press.
The editors were received by the
President in the executive offices last
Friday, the Cabinet meeting being
abandoned that the editors be given an
opportunity to meet with the President
and hear from him his message to the
Mexican officials. Mr.. Creel, as official
escort of the delegation, presented the
editors to the President.
The President made an extended
statement to the visiting editors,
ana!yzing in detail the causes that
have led up to Misunderstanding be-
tween this nation and the Mexican Re-
public.
The Presidents Address
In his speech the President said:
Il have never received a group of
men who were more welcome than you
are because it has been one of my dis
trcsses during the period of my Presi-
dency that the Mexican people did not
more thoroughly understand the atti-
tude of the United States toward Mex
ico
Il think can assure you, and hope
you have had every evidence of the
truth Of my assurance, that that atti-
tude is one of sincere friendship-not
merely the sort of friendship which
prompts one not to do his neighbor any
harm, but the sort of friendship which
earnestly desires to do his neighbor
service.
my own policy and the policy of my
own Administration toward Mexico was
at every point based upon this princi-
pie: that the internal settlement of
the affairs of Mexico was none of our
business; that We had no right to in
terfere with or dictate to Mexico in any
particular with regard to her own af-
fairs
Take one aspect of our relations
which at one time may have been diff
cult for you to understand. When we
sent our troops into Mexico our sim
cere desire was nothing else than to
assist you to get rid of the man who
was making the settlement of your af-
lars for the time being impossible.
w mad no desire to use our troops for
any other purpose, and / was in hopes
tna1 by assisting in that way and there
upon immediately withdrawing the
DIV ,6c% II
VI the truth of the assurances that l
nad ne given your government through
president Carranza.
German Influences at Work
And at the present time it dis
uesses me to learn that certain influ-
ehces, which | assume to be German
IN their origin, are trying not only
~ make wrong impression, but to
give an absolutely untrue account of
tue things that happen.
iou Know distressing things have
pecn happening just off our coast: YOU
nnow OF vessels that have been sunk
Yesterday received a quotation from
tlpp paper IN Guadalajara which stated
taal thlrteen of our battleships had
0een sY sunk off the Capes of Chesapeake
,,o lou see how dreadful it is to have
1 sae people SO radically misinformed
II was added that our Nayy Denart.
ment was withholding the facts with
aest adegard to these sinkings. have nc
rvuul rv;n mat the publisher of the paper
rs;.hted m;.h this in perfect innocence and
;nout intending to convey wrone
IMPRESSION. but it is evident that ale.
eJSs.ons wSa OF that sort proceed from those
Ma.'. Mao wish to make trouble between
Aex,co es, and the United States.
wow, gentlemen, for the time beins
any ' rat and hope that it will MOI
ns.s r. short time, the influence Of tn.
united States is somewhat pervas;ys s
i;a.he H. the affairs of the world, and I be
t;e sese 1t is pervasive because those ma
sssaa, syns OF the world which are less pow
t;tui than some of the greatest ma
,ohS are coming to believe that on,
.ere sas... desire is to do dsintereste,
L. S. Seeks No Gain
.;.-"e are the champions of those ma
s,.ss. ns ."hlch have not had the militar,
sanoing which would enable them e
fSapete with the strongest nations il
nrss world, and l look forward will
sa,.e ne 10 the time which l hope vii
~ when we can give substantial
Msnce sssce not only that we do not wan
~as5sna'ng out of this war, but that W,
S,su a.a not accept anything out of thi
d,s;n. mat IT is absolutely a case O.
sainterested action.
a. and II you will watch the attitude
ia,Vur Vur people you will see that moth
srs I SUNS them so deeply as the assur
s" ees shat this war, so far as we ar
oSya.srned. ~ Is for idealistic objects. On
S,,.Me Me difficulties that / experience,
* 'hg the first three years of the war
~, nv years when the United States wa
po.ih IN the war, was in getting tn
n.c'gn Offices of the European ma
NJ us TO believe that the United State
seeking nothing for herself. tina
neutrality was not selfish, and tha
ere came in she would not come +
get anything substantial out Of tn
,.s .sany material object, any terri
sers. ~ VI guy '"'"s ease oi 'ns
ln some Foreign Offices there wer
La who personally know me and the
s..eyed, hope. that ] was sincere
d'alahg them that our purposes we,
aterested; but they thought ths
sse assurances came from an &C.
snlc sss,c gentleman removed from tn
spinary sources of information an
saking the idealistic purposes of
ster They did not believe ! ws
essksng the real heart of the Amer
~ people. and knew all along that
Now ! believe every one WI
ses in contact with American peop
81 that am speaking their pu
Ready to Help Russia
100 other night in New York