OCR Text |
Show OBREGON'S DEFIANCE. , General Alvaro Obrcgon has announced an-nounced that ho will take the field against the United States in the case of armed intervention by this country. As Obregon is a candidate for tho presidency presi-dency his purpose in indulging in such talk is to find political supporters. Such talk is foolish, nevertheless. Thero is a strong feeling in the United States that Mexico will remain a hotbed of anarchy an-archy until American soldiers in sufficient suffi-cient numbers aro sent down thera to clean out tho bandits and mate the country safe for natives and foreigners alike. The government of Mexico has so far failed to take effective measures for this purpose and so long as Carran-?.a Carran-?.a remains at the head of affairs there is no hope. As he does not go out of office until 1921 intervention before that time is among the possibilities. Perhaps General Obregon realizes the fact. At the same time he should be careful how he talks for he might precipitate pre-cipitate a conflict by heedlessly arousing arous-ing the passions of the Mexican people who are suspicious of the intentions of this country. Major General Wood is said to have recently remarked that he could overrun over-run Mexico with 40,000 soldiers. While it might require a much larger force to do tho work it is certain that the Mexicans Mexi-cans would bo beaten from start to finish in case of war and that Obregon would not win any laurels as a military eenius in case he should he placed in command of the Mexican army. Santa Ana tried his luck against the American Ameri-can soldiers more than seventy years ago and his efforts wero attended with the most disastrous results. Obregon could not hope for any better success in the field, although he might be elected president as a warrior bold. Carranza has proved a dismal failure as an executive, but if the Mexicans of high and low degree can be induced to remain quiet until the old humbug goes out of office Obregon or some one else may be able to avoid intervention by acting in a reasonable manner where foreign financial interests and nationals nation-als are concerned and by wiping out the various bands of bandits operating along the bordr. Punitive expeditions are well enough in their way, but they are merely local in effect and the punishment pun-ishment inflicted is too slight to stop the raids. Obregon, Gonzales and the other Mexican generals should turn iheir attention to Villa. If any one of tlem should succeed in putting the northoru cutthroat out of the way the prestige gained would be a first-class political asset. There is absolutely nothing to be gained by railing at tho United States. |