The New York herald., 1921-09-25

formally with the vicinity Of Brooklyn
Heights at II O'Clock on Sunday morn
ing. Q9
How long do you think this condi-
ton will continue?' ! asked an Ameri-
can who has lived here for some fifteen
years.
"How long do you think Obreson will
eonttnue?" was his prompt answer.
what obregon Faces.
The general situation that confronts
Gen. Obregon is as follows:
He has established q firm Government
In virtually the whole OF Mexico with
the exception of the Yucatan district
There Is no railroad communication with
that district The financial excesses and
economic follies of the great land
owners In that section of Mexico during
the war boom times were followed by a
collapse of the same nature as that
which occurred In Cuba.
The Immediate burden, Of course, fell
on the working class The net result
Is. briefly, that the laboring element has
taken the bit In its teeth. Communism
is rampant throughout the district. The
red card is the only efficacious passport
there.
This Yucatan situation cannot be
handled by force of arms by any one.
There Is a solidarity Of thought and
feeling between the workers In the re-
public that must be taken into consider
alton not only by the authorities Of
Mexico but by those who wish to pre-
serve the established order beyond the
borders of Mexico. Within recent years
certain connections have been estab-
lished between various labor organiza-
tfons in this republic and those in the
United States These intimacies run
the entire gamut between the crafts that
stand behind Samuel Gompers to the
fraternities that rendered loving obedi-
ence to Mother" Jones.
The Mexicans have a positive genius
for organization. While a day laborer
may be hired for as little as one and
half pesos a day, the engineers on
the railways collect the comfortable pay
of 1,500 to 1900 pesos a month ($750
to 5000 u. 8. currency. That is organi-
zation. On proposition to reduce this
pay a temporary truce has just been
established on the basis of 10 per cent
reduction for ninety Mys only.
How Workers View Big Wages.
"How can you men expect to collect
such wages from now onT asked q
railroad man who was pointed out to
me as somewhat OF leader among his
fellows. s
''why notrs he retorted.
"You know the railroads cannot afford
to pay them. They are making q
deficit now. They will go bankrupt
unless wages are reduced"
You talk like a priest senior. In
olden days we used to think about what
the operators could pay, but We do not
do it any more. We have learned better
Of late years. Tell me. you. senior, did
the wealthy people ask you how much
you could afford to pay for sugar a
couple Of years ago? Did they ask
you how much you could afford to pay
for -four or meat? No! Not at all.
They said: Pay what we demand
or starve.' Very well. Many people
starved all right. That killed the
buncombe about fair dealing You get
for what you have to sell all you can.
Who cannot afford to buy can go with
out. That's the rule of life made by
the rich We follow 1t.
''Who interferes with us, let him look
out. It's the true religion. 1t has
always been, but we have Just dis
covered 1t after all these centuries
the religion OF the rich. Go elsewhere.
senior, to preach fair dealing"
Mexican soil.
The next pressing question is that
which arises out of the so-called Flaw
of hunger (ley de hambre) In the
State of Vera Cruz. The general legis-
lation included under the term has to
do with the division of profits from the
operation Of public utilities, &C., and
with what has been denounced as being
general scheme Of industrial and
economic appropriation. The Federal
Government is struggling with this
problem through the medium OF the
courts.
The general opinion is that these laws
will be nullified In an orderly way In
the due course Of judicial determine
ton. Certain 1t is. that any attempt
to interfere with this local legislation
by sheer force would be disastrous.
Problem of the Foreigner.
The third grave problem that faces
Obregon Is that of the foreigner, espe-
cially the American. On this phase of
the situation I can do no better than
quote an aristocratic Mexican of pure
blood who has suffered considerable
financial losses during the various revo-
lutions and who begged that his name
should not be mentioned. He Is not q
sympathizer with the present regime.
His one hearts wish Is for restoration
Of the things that were as they were
under Porfirio Diaz. 4
"The trouble with you Americans" he
said. is that with your characteristic
national thoroughness you wholly and
absolutely fail to understand the Mexi-
can people. You come down here quite
convinced of the fact that you are su-
perior beings: that your system of liv-
ing is just right, and that our system Of
living is wrong to tho last degree. You
have q certain air of condescension
toward us which we of the cultured
class find amusing, but the lower
classes find It exasperating. We Mexi-
cans deem 1t proper to get some Joy out
OF life as we live. Perhaps we have not
been so successful In establishing great
world enterprises as your people have
been, but / venture the opinion that,
generation for generation and class for
class, we have got more out Of life than
you have.
"Then again." he continued, ''in your
industrial relations with our people you
assume an air Of command which Is not
calculated to get you very far. / can
assure you from personal experience
that the Mexican of the present genera
tion. worldly wise as he is yes. and in
solent as he is to those who are his
superiors by birth. will give you his
shirt-should you desire it--if you ask
for 1t with a smile. but he will defend
with his life his chosen position on a
sidewalk II you attempt to brush him
from 1t.
"A little while ago one Of your
master men came to see me. He had