The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-07-21
new OUTRAGE
NEAR TAMPICO
Bandits Rob Atlantic Refining
Company's Oil Station
of $4,000.
INTENDED FOR PAYROLL
Dispatch to Statae Depart
ment Tells of Another Un-
toward Incident.

Washington, July ga dis
patch to the state department
today from Tampico said ban
dts had robbed the Atlantic Re
fining company's oil-loading sta
tion at Puerto Lobos, near Tam
pico, Mexico, of about $4,000
last Wednesday. The funds
were intended for the com
pany's payroll.
A full report from the com
mander of the cruiser Topeka al
Tampico is expected to develop
the character of the band which
held up and robbed the sailors
while they were on official duty
First accounts of the incident re-
ferred to the assailants, but, in
the light of previous informa-
ton that Carranza forces had
been in complete control of the
Tampico district for some time,
officials desired further informa-
tion on this point.
Secretary Daniel said today
no part of the Pacific feet, now
en- route to the west coast, would
be diverted to Mexican waters,
adding that if additional forces
were needed they would be
drawn from the Atlantic feet.
Three American warships now
are on duty at or near Tampico.
They are the cruiser Topeka,
the gunboat Castine and the
Cheyenne.
A number Of senator's and repre-
sentatives called at the state depart
ment today to discuss the Mexican
situation with Henry F. Fletcher,
American ambassador to Mexico. A
resolution proposing investigation of
the situation in the republic is now
pending in the house.
While the conferences at the state
department were in progress the sem
imously reported a resolution by
Senator King, democrat, Utah, asking
the state department for full infor-
nation as to the depredations against
American citizens in Mexico during
recent years.
Situation More Strained.
The news of the latest activities
of Mexican bandits, following so
closely upon the heels of the attack |
upon and robbery of a boatload of |
American sailors from the U. S. S. |
Cheyenne, served to make the sit |
uation even more strained. State de- |
partment officials today declined to /
add anything to what they had al |
ready said, and indicated that there |
was nothing to be done at the present |
moment but await a reply from the
federal authorities at Mexico City |
and the local authorities at Tampico,
to the urgent representations that al
ready have been made. They said
reasonable time" would be allowed
to elapse before any move would or
could be made from Washington. In
other words, the attitude of the de-
partment was that the next move
was "up to CarranZa."
The robbery of the Atlantic's COM
pany station, while not an incident
that would call for diplomatic repre-
sentations, served to demonstrate the
fact, of this pointed out, the Mexican
federal authorities are far from be-
Ing in control of the situation in the
Tampico district.
Ambassador Bonills, on his recent
return from Mexico City, where he
conferred with President Carranza,
reported that the Mexican president
had been unable to stamp out all out
aw bands in this district. The quick
succession with which the outrages
n the district followed, however, has
created more of an impression In Of
icial circles here than otherwise
would have been the case.