Arizona republican., 1919-08-25
MEXICO GIVES LEGAL CLAIMS IN SUPPORT
 IF PETROLEUM LAWS
[RepubIIean 4. ?. Leased WIrel

MEXICO CITY. Aug. 24-The right of the constituent legislator is almost unlimited and cannot be checked, when dealing with the public organization by rights acquired by private parties. Examples which have been cited are sufficient to demonstrate that when the constituent legislator has consid- cred it of general interest to enact any law Of retroactive effect. he has done so even if he has passed over acquired rights of many years which have been sanctioned almost as rights inherent to man. The only fundamental ques- ton is this.
 "Is the public interest at stake when petroleum laws have been enacted2 ? Evidently yes. Thep the state has had the right to enact such laws
 These statements express the legal grounds upon which the Mexican gov ernment bases the right of the con stituent assembly of Queretaro which enacted the Mexican constitution of 1917. to place in that document article 27 nationalizing the oil lands. They also provide defense for the presi- dentiai decrees on petroleum. develop ing article 27, which foreign oil inter ests are attacking as confiscatory.
 The statements themselves are taken from official documents given to the correspondent exclusively by Leon Salinas, sub secretary of commerce and industry, and also chic fof the petro- leum bureau of the department The defense Of the retroactiyity of article 27. and the subsequent presi- dential decrees as prepared by Attor- ney Quiles Kloroudy which forms part of the governments defense of its attitude on petroleum, continues in 1 part as follows:
 ''The only serious article which ap- pareatiy is of great force is that de- claring the petroleum law absolutely retroactive. This argument can be answered from two points, constitu- tional and common legislation.
 Regarding the first point, the the orv hereby sustained is that the con- stitueHt legislator can almost esta5- 1 Iisn iii a countrys constitution all legal | principles which, in his judgment. are good for the nation in such q manner that. whatever rights are established in countrys constitution. all legal principles which, in his judgment, are good for the nation in such manner that whatever rights are established by another anterior constitution. a new constitution can derogate them with out difficulty.
 Article 27 of the ruling constitution has introduced a necessary reform in the judgment of the legislators con- corning the regime of petroleum land ownership. Within the theory already expressed by the constitution, the congress of f@Queretaro was within it's most absolute right to introduce this reform and give the law retroactive ef- ! fec. This constitutional reform is con | sidered necessary for the benefit of the i majority and for society in general 1 since that reform would result in the state having in hand the means of de- veIoping it's petrol6erous wealth on 9 l larger scale than formerly. and this
 wealth would not as in former times
 be the special patrimony of few pow erful corporations who have given the nation only insignificant participation in the enormous incomes they have ob- I tained for themselves"
 An additional and supplementary statement furnished the correspondent
 from the same source gives the land ] in Mexico owned and leased by petro- 1eum companies and individuals. sum-
 mary of the mass of figures submitted l showing that 677553 hectares are
 owned and 2.012.604 hectares are leased, a hectare being about two and 1 one-half acres.