New Britain herald., 1926-01-09
MEXICO AND |, s. ARE
 NOW MUCH DISTURBED
This Country Objects to Recently Enacted Pe-
 trOleum Laws
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Washington. Jan. 9 P,-turther indication of the critical nature of diplomatic conversations between Washington and Mexico City relative to MeXiCo's new land and petroleum laws came today with examination of the text of the petroleum act as 1t VAS promulgated Dee. 31 and now stands us Mexican statutory law OH the subject,
 In that form the petroleum law contains cIauaes which are con- strucd a5 in plain violation Of pledges made by Mexican members of the McNGau- American commis- sion in 1923 that no retroactive ef- feet would be given 10 Article 27 Of , the Mexican constitution.
 1 Recent discussion in American and Mexican papers has turned more on | Inc pending alien land law, not as yet officially published so fur as | known here, rather than on the pc trolcm act. It now appears like- ly, however. that the oil law will be the matter involved if a specific case of it's attempted enforcement Iagainst an American interest should aris".
 Thc o;l act stipuatcs that it went into effect with official publication i and adds that existing regulations go far as they conform to the pur' poses of the now law. shall apply il its enforcement pending the draw ing up of new regulations. A! American investment in Mexican oi properties is therefore subject to
 day to Inc terms of the new act
 which, in Article l, vests oWncrshll in the nation of "all natural mix
 tires oC cartoons and hydrogen WhiC, lar" found in their natural deposits.
 Prior 10 the promulgation of th constitution of 1917 Mexican la' recognized that the owner of title { land surface also owned title to pc
 trolcum deposits beneath that SUI face, The new law denies rccOgn'
 ton 10 legally acquired rights undo
 the old law to sub-surface deposit
 and makes retroactive application ( Article @7 of the constitution despit the contradictory Article fl of tt same instrument which declares "n law shall be given a retroactive Q. feet 10 the detrimcnt of any perso whatsoever"
 The new petroleum act also W;
 promulgated in the face of the ia that the Mexican supreme court, \ the necessary series of five cases establish a legal interpretation of constitutional questions has held th ' atriclc 27 could not be construed have a pctroactive effect.
 The text of paragraph four, artic
 q. of the constitution of 1917, re'
 in conjunction with article 1 of | r new petroleum act, shows the eXtc
 to which not only the pledges ma
 in the 1923 conference which "
 the basis of recognition of the Me
 ico city government by the Unit
 States. but also the judicial findin
 of the Mexican government it's r. have been ignored. The paragra U reals in part:
 il "In the nation Is vested dirt le ownership of all minerals or su Is stances which \ \ constitute r. posits whose nature is different frC Ly the components of the land such 10 minerals \ petroleum and
 hydro o-carbons-solid, liquid or ga )! ous."
 Ic Another aspect of serious conct nt to Washington authorities is that lit new act ignores the positive a Q. doctrine laid down by the MexiC n. supreme court and rCaftairmed CT the executive power at the 1923 e es ference as a basis to establish t
 to petroleum deposits. That doctr e. was that where an owner of surf nt title or of sub-surface rights legi Ial acauired from a surface title hoi 10 under pre-constitution mining l' lis had performed certain spec
 positive acts" of exploration wit
 fixed period of time, he had m
 good his legal rights to such dopo'