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Show PRESIDENT TAFT VERY CAREFUL OF 1NTERFERANSE The governor of Arizona recently asked ask-ed President Taft to intervene to save the city of Douglas from the fire of the Mexicans, but President Taft hesitated to send the troops into Mexico on account of the danger to lives of Americans now in that country. The presideut, in his telegram, replying to the governor, stated that while his petition was prooably justifiable and Americans ought probably to stop the firing he hesitated to take such a radical step, because of the possible resistence and greater bloodshed and the danger of having his motives misconstrued which would evidently arouse the Mexicans against the Americans in that country. The president's reply to Governor Sloan's urgent appeal was as follows: "To Gov. Sloan, Douglas, Arizona: "Your dispatch received. Have made urgent demands upon Mexican government govern-ment to issue instructions to prevent firing across border by Mexican federal troops and am waiting reply. Meantime Mean-time I have sent direct warning to the Mexicans and Insurgent forces near Douglas. "I infer from your dispatch that both parties attempt to heed the warning, but that in the starined situation and exigencies of the contest wild bullets still find their way into Douglas. The situation might justify me in ordering our troops to cross the border and attempt at-tempt to stop the fighting or to fire upon up-on both combatants from the American side. "But if I take this step I must face the possibility of resistance and greater bloodshed and also the danger of having our motives misconstrued and misrepresented, misrep-resented, and of thus inflaming Mexican popular indignation against many thousands thous-ands of Americans now in Mexico and jeopardizing their lives and property. "The pressure for general intervention interven-tion under such con litions it might not be practicable to resist. It is impossible to foresee or reckon the consequences of such a course, and we mnst use the greatest self-restraint to avoid it. "Pending my urgent representations to the Mexican government I can not, therefore, order the troops at Douglas to cross the border, but I mast ask you and the local authorities, in case the same danger seems to threaten, to direct the people of Douglas to place themselves them-selves where che bullets cannot reach them, and thus avoid casualties. I am loath to endanger Americans in Mexico, where they are necessarily exposed, by taking a radical ptep to prevent injury to Americans on our side of the border who can avoid it by a temporary inconvenience. incon-venience. (Signed) "WILLIAM H. TAFT." The Mexican situation is very serious and no one knows what accident may happen to cause American intervention. Tne result of the uprising in Cuba was a war between United States and Spain. Who knows w.nat may happen? At present there is no cause for the United States to intervene unless the Mexican government proves itself unable to restore re-store order and peace, but in case some such accident as the blowing up of the Maine should happen it would immediately immed-iately plunge Mexico into a war with this country. Pres. Taft has done all in his power and he has now handed the affair up to congress to decide what is to be done. |