Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-02-28
MEXICO AND i. S.
/ ON BETTER TERMS
Friendly Spirit Marking Steps
/ Toward Settlement of
II Land Law Issue.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

The acute feeling between the gov
ernments Of Mexico and the United
States has been superseded by a sen
timent of pronounced friendliness In
the controversy over the petroleum
land laws While the exact formula
for a solution has not been found as
Vet, the spirit of approach to a set
Element is better today than it has
been since the new land laws were
passed by the Mexican Congress in
December.
Secretary Kellogg has found that
In dealing with the Mexican govern
ment the latter can be relied upon to
see that international obligation as
well as a spirit Of comfy requires an
examination of every internal act in
the light Of external effects.
Retroactive Law Opposed.
In asserting sovereign rights Mex.
co is looked upon as exercising natu-
"al and inherent prerogative, but the
question of making a law retroactive
which might be confiscatory is some
thingSwhich all nations have looked
upon as a delicate problem which can
not be handled in one-sided fashion.
The desire Of Mexico to control her
subsoil rights and to regulate foreign
ownership is viewed by American Of
tlcials as legitimate. 1t is merely a
question of how these laws shall oper-
ate. Mexico has not yet proclaimed
her regulations which give effect to
new laws. The Mexican government,
therefore,, is somewhat disturbed that
Drematurely there should have been
differences drawn that confiScatory
acts would follow. 1t still remains pos
sible for the Mexican government by
It's regulations to draw a line between
ronfiscation, which Is by international
law recognized as unfriendly, and con-
troll.
Reciprocity at Stake.
Thus the United States Government
has the sovereign right TO require any
diplomatic officers of foreign govern
ments to conform absolutely to Amer
lean laws in their residence here. But
such a step would he followed by the
withdrawal of reciprocal privileges
abroad. The examples could be multi
piled of the same thing. The whole
problem, therefore, becomes one of
reciprocity. Would Mexico be JUST
fed, as matter OF pollcy, IN enrorc-
ing literally some of the laws she has
passed, especially if by SO doing she
might lose reciprocal benefits in other
directions not only with the United
States but foreign governments?
American officials think it would be
unwise and are urging in spirit Of
friendlinesS that the solution be based
upon such considerations.
In working out the dilemma Secre-
tary Kellogg has at his side Charles
b. Warren of Detroit, formerly Am
bassador to Mexico, the man who
worked out one of the most difficult
of all Mexican questions--namely, the
general and special claims growing
out of the revolutionary disturbances
and the passage of agrarian laws that
were held to be confiscatory. Mr..
Warren has the confidence of the
AIexicans to an extraordinary extent.
They know he has tried to be an i'm
partial judge and to see Mexico's
viewpoint. The correspondence be-
tween the two governments i'm the
last few days shows that both sides
are trying to reach an amicable OBJ
jective, and. while the barriers are
difficult, they are not altogether in
surmountable.
Copyright. 1920