New-York tribune., 1920-09-19
Mexican Rail
Lines Unable
To Meet Needs
Industry Threatened With
Complete Paralysis as
transportation Difficult.
ties Swamp Government
1913 Crops i'm Cranaries
Mills Forced to Increase
Wages Until Many Face
the Necessity of Closing
By George E. Hyde

MEXICO CITY, Sept. 1O.-Transpor-
tation difficulties. coupled with labor
troubles, are threatening Mexican in
dustry with complete paralysis. Dur
ing the past ten years the railway
lines have been brought to a state
where it is impossible for the system
to handle the business required of it.
Many thousands Of freight cars have
been burned on the sidings and many
more have become useless through lack
of repairs.
Engines have been dumped in the
ditch and the shops are full of loco
motives which have been partly dis
mantled to supply needed parts 1or
the few which are kept running.
One Of the ironical tricks of fate
has placed in control of the railway
system at the present time some OF
the very men who, while revolution
lists, assisted in the destruction of so
much of the rolling stock which they
now need.
crnment makes it virtually Impossible
for the needed material to be secured
at present even if it were for sale.
Reports have beer circulated during
the past few weeks that credit to
be used in the rehabilitation of the
lines had been arranged in New York,
but this has been denied by President
de la Huerta.
There are parts of Mexico where the
, crops Of 1918 are still in the granaries,
while there are others which do not
produce cereals where the price of
these nccesssrics is almost prohvitive
The cotton situation also is seriously
affected by the transportation situa-
ton. Practically all of the cotton is
grown in the Northern states, while
the spinning mills are in the more
thickly populated states of the central
highland.
Lack Of transportation has made it
cheaper for the manufacturers to Sc
cure their cotton in foreign markets
and to allow the native cotton to be
sold in the United States, which Is
nearer to the fields.
Mexican labor has lost no time in
taking advantage of the friendly at
t1udc Of the present government and
the past few months have seen long
series Of strikes IN ali branches OF
th" industrial &c of tho rnticn.
In the face OF government arbitra-
lion and the personal intervention Of
the lrcsIdtnt. tur .nHnularturcrs nave
where many manufacturers are faced
with the necessity of closing their
nails.
The situation hes wcr;>H' nuton'"'
,al}y with the transportation problem
as the prime factor, lhe inAblii.N on
manufacturers to get their goods to
market making, it impossible for them
TO increase prices to meet increased
costs There appears to be no end
Il
d1.! lheir Importance are on the in
crra~e rather than the contrary.
The actinE Minister 3f III. Interior
has predicted unless effective rcmed.a
legislation Is f5ltEc ming in the near
future. IT," pT.A.niding process Will
havc hr"urht ABOUT an extremely seri-
Gus crisis.
Conditions haze been aggravated Ivy
high wages in the United States and
tho den"Id Tor An9hiluu lalor i'm the
Southern states. Thousands Of Mex
can l&!or""s have left the country and
locked t" tnc coltnN fields OF the
south and Cltn to The beet fields Of
NJ MichiIan. Reports Indicate that
nsmbcr Of Mexican v'orhmen even
found tncr way to the ALASKAN fish
cllcS.
Various efforts have been made to
check the exodus Of NcXican la5orcrs
! ne present ln,- n.nunl .T..,, ta.C
M':de no official 'Aort 10 check it, but
nave rather pointed out to manutac-
lNEcfS ana Land uWn@rH hrlr uuuI
they wish TO check ;he movement thy
aust a" p:epH"od . meet the Ame"-
lean r.t4-c stan .I,l. This, tuc operators
are no. prepared to do under existing
conditions.
In the great majority of instances
1Hrsc conditions. * far as the manu-
:Nctu"srs "rc concerned, affect foreign
ers. There is lit;ic or no industrial
repre- sen:ation a. onC Mt'icaus. Wni.u
this phase Of the situation has not been
brought ort during the pluson regime,
during past administrations it has been
mentioned repeatedly and un4uestion-
ably has determined the official atti-
tude. The foreigner has been con-
sidcred fair game since it has been
assumed that the product of his in
dustry here has gone abroad rather
than remaining in Mcxico
Although President de ia IIuersa has