Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-08-31

HEN the subcommittee OIL
M the Senate committee on
w foreign relations begins
hearing the stories OF
Mexican atrocities perpetrated against
Americans, no more narrowing story
will be told than that of Mrs. Cora
Lee Sturgis, who. with her husband
and her mother, was held a prisoner
by a zapatist band for eight weary
months, the older woman suffering not
quite that long, because starvation
claimed her a short time before the
other two were released.
Mrs. Sturgis is now in Washington
and is well acquainted in this city,
having lived here for time with her
mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Keenright, who
met such a tragic end in a Mexican
bandit camp.
Went From Michigan to Mexico.
The story of Mrs. Sturgis has been
told before in part, but her own yer
sion of the terrible days in captivity
has never before been given to the
public DR.. Charles T. SturgiS, a dem
list. is a native of Michigan, but In
1905 he moved to a large coffee planta-
ton in the state of Chiapas. taking
with him his bride of a few months,
who was later joined by her parents.
Her father died shortly before the
revolution broke out in Mexico.
The plantation included 5000 acres
most of it under cultivation, and the
coffee crop alone was worth SZo'ooo
annually. In addition, Dr. Sturgls
raised a large amount of 1--we STOCK
and had a large fruit orchard.
La Blanca, as the place was called,
was undisturbed until the Mexican
government came into the hands OF
Gen. Carranza, who stationed small
band of troops at Capainala, ABOUT
six miles distant from the SturglS
home In November, 1914, troop OF
about twenty men, under the com
mand of sergeant, rode up 10 La
blanca, and DR.. Sturgls was tod ne
would no longer be allowed to carry
on his activities there.
Workmen Are Threatened.
The sergeant then told the en-
n1oves to cease work, adding: Gen.
Carranza is going to conf1scate ana
divide I'D the lands and property OF
the owners of these large haclendas
and each Of you will get share. III
you insist on going on win n, YOU'D and
work here we shall come back ana
\ tie Won nm and shoot you as we would
p lot of dogs" ,..d
Most Of the Indians were oensh.eu
the prospect of being landowners
ID the few who remained iaiul a
n IN their American employers were
fraid to render any service. SO the
"a ntation at once began to fail INTO
Recay. The sum of $4,000. which Or.
turEis had advanced to his laoorers'
was a total loss. e.h
Mrs. Stureis speaks both the Spanish
and INDIAN languages, SO she was
never at a loss to know what was pc
ing said in her presence. Beginning
with the result of the first RAID Oh
-Carranza soldiers. her story foiioks:
"From the time of this first VISTA
( %,cn we were under the constant
ApionaEe of Carranza's agents Occa-
sionally we succeeded in getting one
or two Indians to work for US LOT a
few days at time. but as soon as
they were discovered. they were
driven away, and generally with such
threats that they did not come pack'
There was a growing sense OF oppreS-
sion on our part, and we frequently
were made subjects of threats ana
curses. They applied to US the West
epithets-
Ordered to Leave Country.
1--WE were almost uniformly ad-
dressed as 'chingado gringoes,' wnlcn,
according to the gentlest translation
means damned Americans. ana were
told over and over again tnat we
must leave the country.
But we did not leave, and we con-
tinued to live under these cono1tions
for several years. We were not max
ing money. but had pasture for our
horses and all the fruits and vege-
tables we needed. We. therefore, were
not uncomfortable, except for the an
noyance of the espionage. We felt 1t
necessary to remain to protect our
property. believing that order would
att was not until February Is, 1917,
that we were subjected to any real
personal humiliation. 1t was about 8
o'clock in the evening of that date
that a troop of so or 100 CarranZista
Capt. Julio Castilliano and Capt. Leo
poldo Garcia, rode up to the house and
demanded that all persons within
should surrender. They charged that
we were harboring rebels. We pro-
tested that such was not the case, but
while we were sure that they were
satisfied Of the truth of our statement
they persisted in making search of
the premises.
Held Up With Pointed Guns.
"This process was accompanied by
much abuse and ultimately my mother
and my husband were crowded into a
corner of the dining room by ten of
the soldiers and held there with point
ed guns, while 1 was taken in charge
by Garcia and other soldiers, and
forced to lead them in a search of the
house. After they had investigated
every nook and Granny, Garcia man
whom had known personally very
we'll before the war, commanded me
to lead the squad to the roof. Indig-
nant before, 1 became furious at this
order, and replied to him:
Il shall do nothing of the kind.
am an American citizen. 1 am not
roof climber and 1 shall not do your
bidding"
strike me over the shoulder with his
You will pay for that to the Amer
lean government" told him.
Go on and tell it to your damned
old government. 1t is nothing but a
bluff anyway. and we are not afraid
that it will do anything to U.S. We
control this country. and if you grim
goes do not like our methods, you can
get out That is what we want you
10 do. and what we are going to make
you do
II was painfully hurt. and fearing
another attack, / called to my hus-
band for help. He started to my as
s1stance. but was crowded back into
tne corner by the prodding bayonets
Forced to Feed Troops.
when ultimately the Garcia Cas-
tflfano troop was satisfied that there
were really no rebels about the house
ana when they had helped themselves
10 everything that appealed to them
they mounted their horses and rode
away, leaving us in comparative peace
until the following November Then
we were called upon by Col Zanaripa
Carranzlsta commander, and forced