Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-10

/ taken place. Tall, rather stout, with
| upturned mustache and a military
bearing, Escobar resembles some Prus-
sian marshal rather than the leader OF
Mexican troops. The discipline In MS
forces is much better than Is usual
below the Rio Grande. -,
Mai. Gen. Francisco Manzo, the mill
tary chief of the rebels in Sonora, Is a
younger man with a record OF being
able to carry out difficult orders.
He is the only man who ever paclneo
the Yaqui Indian tribe. He did so py
encircling the Indians, building roads
to the edge Of their country to supply
his own troops and cutting the tribe
off from the outside world, which meant
no ammunition. Manzo was UNDER
minister of war for Gales.
The second government leader is MAJ.
Gen. Juan Andrea AlmaZan. VINO WIFI
drew from Monterey before Escooar
took it this week to lead the attack
on the rebels in Vera Cruz. Almazan
was one of the youngest generals In the
army of Mexico. He Is soldier OF teen
nical proclivities, admiring greatly tne
implements of modern warfare Wnlcn
he does not have at his command.
What the Civilians Feel.
In any civil war the attitude of the
population Is of great Importance to
the warning troops. There may be some
basis for the rebel claims to cooperation
from many of the States which the
government denies are affected.
If these more southerly States are,
In fact, in revolt, it is for reasons quite
different from those animating the
Northern group. The States OF Central
and South Mexico are populated by
people deeply religious. Rightly or
wrongly, they have been profoundly
shocked and embittered by the treat
ment of the church by Gales. Only IN
the sense that the Catholics, as such,
have joined the military rebellion. can
this war be called a popular uprising.
The Sonorans, by declaring the church
again Independent and open, have I'M
mensely strengthened their cause
throughout Mexico.
The states in which revolt Is spread
ing include Sinaloa. Durango, Jalisco,
Zacatecas, Nayarit and Oaxaca. All ex-
cept Oaxaca are west-central. Oaxaca
adjoins Vera Cruz and spreads entirely
across the Isthnius Of Tehuantepec,
south of Mexico City. Since church
laws were declared effective in 1927.
there have been sporadic outbreaks Of
Catholics, particularly in the states of
Jalisco, Quanajuato and Queretaro.
An old man, an officer of the Diaz re-
gime, Gen. Gorotleta, has been their
leader. He is a military man purely,
no figure to lead cause. His men
when they attack shout viva Cristo
Reyl" and are called the "Crasteros,"
which is to say, the "Christers."
Church and State.
From the beginning the church fight
ing has lacked something necessary in
every successful revolt, "Caudillo,"
which means in Mexican revolution the
personification of cause in man, who
becomes a symbol.
Gales has been condemned in this
country for attacking the church. AS
enforce laws written into the constitu
ton and on the statute books 10 years
before he took office.
When the Spaniards settled Mexico
the church was in the van and was in
titsinguishable from the government.
It remained so after Augustin Iturbide
became the first chief Of the new in
dependent state in 1921. Priests col
lected tithes, they also collected taxes
and conducted the only schools. Santa
Ana followed the same way when he
became president In 1888. To the people
the church was the state. It owned
much land and riches. and 1t worked
the people upon its land. The priest
hood was largely recruited from Spain,
rather than Mexico.
In 1864 Benito Jaurez led q success
full revolution and made himself Presi-
dent. For his time, Jaurez was liberal.
He declared the church and state sep
arate; the great holdings of the church
were nationalized. The law, however,
was not enforced to the letter. It never
was. %re 4s,4G Y.. ~ &
r. Venustiano Carranza rewrote the
constitution in 1917, embodying the.
program for which he had led revolt
against Huerta. This constitution is
still the basic law of the land. The Sec
tons relating to the church provide for
naturalization Of all church property,
the registration Of all the clergy, and
later statutes call for a certain proper
ton of Mexicans in the clergy. There
are other stringent provisions.
In 1927 Gales declared that the laws
Of the land should be carried out. The
clergy refused to accede to bis demands.
He is fighting now to decide whether
or not Mexico can enforce It's consti-
tuition.
A.