Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-27
WHY LATIN AMERICANS
VIEW i. S. ANXIOUSLY
citizenship of the Dollar" Regarded
BY Them As New Phase of
American Diplomacy.

the United States. Latin American
lost sight of the facts of the case from
the United States official viewpoint
; The full logic of the Mexican side APP
pealed to Latin America. frankly, and
there 1t was assumed that the United
States side must be Numerically op
posed to 1t. The casual observer II
Latin America Tor the official observer
indeed has quite as much difficulty ii
realizing that the Mexican issue is
not two-sided. but at least an eight
sided, one, as has the average NORTH
American.
Growing Self-consciousness.
But even the total Of all this does
not explain Latin American uneas
ness. Deep down in the heart of that
unrest lis something else. The grow
Ing self-consciousness of those coun.
tries. their increasing tendency to put
themselves in the shoes Of every
eountry upon which the United
states appears to turn its attacks -
has other hooks Of steel with which
TO grapple the issue to it's soul.
The attitude of the United States
| Department Of state in Mexico and
| Nicaragua is being taken today in
Latin America as an indication of a
Capitalization of new type OF
| thought, a new separation in the at
| titude Of the United States from it's
brothers and sisters OF the Americas.
| That change, the countries of Latin
america feel, is fraught with peril
for their future. To explain. it is
necessary to go back, briefly, over a
road Of reasoning new to most people
| in the United States.
| All of the countries Of the Americas
| have been in the past importers both
OF citizens and of capital. In the last
| century only few have imported
citizens, the United States. Argentina.
| Brazil. Chile, perhaps. But all in
| Guiding the United States, have i'm
| ported capital
| The nationality of those new citi.
zens from Europe has been one of the
continual points of friction between
the Old World and the New To this
DAY, when you get a United States
passport, you win find among the
printed instructions to holders" of
these documents the frank statement
| that while naturalized citizens horn
abroad are regarded as United States
citlzens, none the less this Govern.
ment cannot guarantee them against
peing forced into military and other
service by the countries of their birth
II they return there. France, Ger
many. Italy. Greece--the otherwise
friendly sources Of Americas Euro.
pean immigration-claim their sons as
NATIONALS despite naturalization
abroad. In that the United States
ana all Latin America are in the same
ooat' and exceptionally sympathetic
Citizenship of Capital.
The same question Of citizenship"
arises as regards imported CAPITAL
ana mere comes point of divergence
on when Latin America has its eve.
are Br1tlsh pounds sterling invested
IN united States or Argentina or even
mexican railways British pounds still
or are they American or Argentine
or Mexican in nationality? There
were some very lively controversies
over this issue in the United States
an years gone by, when investments in
inns country involved the risks that
| investments in some countries of
Latln America still bear TODAY. The
issue was never settled here, because
| the United States soon passed the
| stage or danger and reached a nros.
perity where even forced sales NJ for.
elgn-owned property did not entail a
| loss, because the natives here had
money to buy them-in contrast to
Mexico today, where requirements of
the sale or the foreign.owned property
70 Mexlcans mean a great pecuniary
tai to buy. N
Now. since 1918, the United Statas
mas ceased, almost abruptly. TO be an
| importer or capital, and has become
| one OF the greatest exporters of cant.
| TAI. Latin America knows that very
Wen, and all Latin America. has heen
wa1cnlng jealousy for a sign OF the
new attitude of WASHINGTON toward
those dollars that go abroad.
u. >. Attitude Toward Dollars.
PerhapS. since 1918, the first ont.
standing signs Of this looked.fos. atfi.
| tuoe toward those migrating dollars
mas come IN the present issues of Mex.
| !co ana Nicaragua. In the old transit
| t!on period. from 1875 to 1918, the
OhlIeo states was uncertain and self.
assertlVe. put this Government usually
| let the dollars shift for themselves.
and only If harm came to them were
representations made and recompense
| sought. In 1914 and 1916, Secretary
or state Bryan called upon all Ameri.
cans In Mexico to abandon their prop
cries and retire. in order to- save the
United States from the problem Of
protecting their lives-the properties
| did not enter into the que6.ion-in
those official orders to nonresident
Americans; today two claims commits.
sions are adjusting the responsibility
and sum Of the damages caused to the
properties. MIR. Bryan and Mr.. Lans-
| ing, Mr.. Colby and Mr.. Hughes pro-
| tested, made solemn record of the
| claims OF Americans who had suffered
loss in Mexican and other revolutions,
but that was almost the extent Of the
protection" Of that property. SO, at
least, does Latin America look back on
those simpler days.
| But now the representations, to the
ears Of listening Latin America, are Of
a different tone. Now Washington
protests that such and such legislation
| in Mexico, 'if enforced" will endanger
the property rights symbouzed by the
United States dollars abroad. Now
! Washington sends it's Marines to Mica
ragua, ostensibly to prevent conf1sca-
ton and destruction Of property own.
ed by It's cdtizens-property that in
other years might have been aban-
doned (the American citizens having
removed thernSelves), and later claims
| commissions set up to adjudicate the
| losses.
Question of Preparations.
Mexico, to follow this reasoning
one step further, has offered, in va
rious tenders Of an unofficial char
acter at least, to arrange O. settlement
Of the losses involved in the land and
oil controversies, through claims COM
missions already established. But the
United States has avoided acceptance
Of such q solution. for that would
recognize the right Of Mexico to deter
mine what becomes Of the United
States dollar when II enters Mexico.