The Washington herald., 1919-08-20
AMERICAN FORCES
CROSS TO MEXICO
in BANDIT CHASE

IN BANDIT CHASE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE.
of the State Department, who is now
chairman of the American peace
delegation in Paris SO far as is
known there is no written agree
ment on the subject.
Handicapped for Aircraft.
If the present situation should
develop to the point of forcing mil
itary Intervention by the United
States, the invading forces would be
seriously handicapped by a lack of
adequate aircraft. according to Brig.
Gen. William Mitchell. head of the
Army Air Service. Gen. Mitchell
told the House Rules Committee
yesterday that the Army Air Service
is too small even TO maintain an
expedition into Mexico" He said:
IF we go to Mexico now, we have
&he skeleton of seventeen sQuadrons.
Twelve hundred officers are not suf-
ficient to keep them up; we need
twice as many. That number is
| even too small to maintain an ex-
pedition into Mexico"
This revelation of conditions in
prise among members Of the COM
mittee. representative RodenberE
said
With the possibility of trouble
with Mexico, think we should keep
aviation up to a high state of EN-
cheney"
Other members of the committee
cOncurred in this view.
SI5O0 900 900 In IunI
Chairman Kahn, of the military at
fairs committee, who was present at
the hearing. interposed that Mai
Gen. Menoher, chief of the aviation
bureau of the War Department. had
testified before his committee that
after spending $500 10000 the army
had nothing but junk in the way of
aircraft
Chairman Campbell, of the rules
committee, added that now they are
junking highly trained officers"
In announcing that troops had been
ordered to cross the border, Secretary
Baker made this verbal statement:
When the report came OF the cap
ture of these two officers and their
/ being held for ransom the hour of
| their execution was fixed on the next
I Cay in default of ransom being paid
/ There was, of course, no opportunity
| to make military rescue within such
! time, and l. therefore. directed that
/ the ransom money be paid and that a
! force be arranged to take up the hot
( trail of the bandits and pursue them.
with the hope Of being able to capture
/ as many as possible of the perpetra-
. tors of this wrong
! i understand from the newspapers
/ that the captured officers have been
/ released and returned to this country.
| and no doubt the attempt to follow
the hot trail has been arranged in
] accordance with the directions given
| by me-"
Released Airmen's Story.
The story of the adventures OF
/ Lieuts. Davis and Peterson is told in
a dispatch received at the War De-
partment from Mai. Gen Dickman,
commander of the southern Depart
ment According to this dispatch, the
! Captives were brought to the Rio
| Graude by bandits and delivered TO
! Capt MatlaCk." who was in COM
mand of the units of the EiGhth Cav
airy at Candciaria. The text Of Cen.
DiCkmau's report follows:
"Lieuts. Peterson and Davis. Air
| Service, were brought to the RIO
Grande by bandits and delivered to
Capt. Matlack, Eighth Cavalry. COM
manding officer at Candelaria about =
a m. this date. The full details OF
tho airplane flight not yet reCsHed.
1T seems that the aviators went
lup the Conchos thinking that it was
the Rio Grande. Their machine
crashed in Mexico somewhere near
Falomir. on the Conchos River. as
]
railroad bridge over the river.
Bandit Chief Spoke English.
They made their way down tho
river and were captured on We'd
Inesday somewhere near the COnchOs,
near Lasugus or ChUrChillO Harado.
They report seeing about twenty
mounted men, six or whom tney
thought were bandits.
THE leader of the bandits speaks
English. says that he was educated
in the United States and railrOaded
in Kansas, where he left an arm
and a leg. He claims to have sixty
men under him.
The Iieutenants were then taken
toward the north and northeast un-
Ill they Were about opposite Can
IGelaria, all the while apparently be-
| IcVlng that they were in Texas.
When their machine crashed. It was
badly broken up. They disabled the
machine gun Dy removing certain
parts
They We're well treated and had
enough to eat. They were accom-
panied b. three or four bandits to
near Candelaria. Their parents have
been notified. Fuller details later"
= Full information on the policy pur-
sued by the administration in cases
: OF Americans being kidnapped and
held for ransom by Mexicans is asked
OF the State Department in A resolu-
ton INTRODUCED in the House today
! by Representative LaGuardia. The
resolution also inquiries L any action
has been taken TO bring the kidnap-
ping cases to the attention Of the
Mexican government, and whether
. any form Of retaljatory measures
have been suggested" 10 Carranza.