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Show r II APPEALS I FOfl THE PRIESTS I HELDJN MEXICO i Persecution of Churchmen by Carranza for Purpose : of Obtaining Money Is : Condemned. AMERICAN PRIEST IS NOT MOLESTED Villa Forces Win an Import. ant Battle on West Coast; Victory for Carranza; Torres Surrenders. i WASHINGTON, Feb. 20. Further j representations against the persecution by Carranza officials of priests in Mexico -were made today by Secretary ! Bryan. Consul Canada at Vera Cruz j was instructed to appeal "directly to General Carranza himself in behalf of the ISO priests arrested by Geueral Ob-refi'on Ob-refi'on in Mexico City, where they are detained in the national palace. Some of them are reported to bo Spaniards, and these, it is said, have been threatened threat-ened with expulsion from tho country. Carranza officials demanded 500,000 pesos of the priests by a ecrtain time, and when it was not forthcoming, told the foreigners among them, according to report, that they would be banished, while natives would be held in captivity. captiv-ity. It was not known here how many of tho 180 priests were Spaniards. Secretary Bryan said he had been informed that one American and one British priest in Mexico City had not been molested. Railway communication between Mexico Mex-ico City and Vera Cruz, cut several days ago, has been restored, the department de-partment was .notified in a dispatch which said John K. SUliman, special aent of the United States government, ! prepared todav to join Carranza at Vera I Cruz. I |