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Show TROOPS 10 REMAIN Of! memn SOIL CARRANZA ADVISED THAT ISSUE OF WAR OR PEACE IS UP TO HIM. President Rebukes First Chief for Manifestations of Eumity and Ad-vises Ad-vises Him That Attack Will Lead .to Grave Consequences. "Washington. President Wilson's miHwcr to General Carranza's note demanding de-manding Immediate withdrawal of American troops from Mexican soil, leaves the issue of war or peace qunrely up to Carranza. A note signed by Secretary Lansing, Lans-ing, conveying President Wilson's rejection re-jection of the demand for withdraws.1. I " ofAmerlcan soldiers frcm Mexico, accompanied ac-companied by a specific warning that an attack on the troops "will lead to the gravest consequences" was telegraphed tele-graphed to Mexico City on June 20 by Kliseo Arredondo, Mexican ambassador-designate. In plain terms it accuses General Carranza of having brought matters to the verge of war by open hostility toward to-ward the United States and failure to safeguard even the lives of Americans in Mexico or on the border from the lawless elements among his countrymen. country-men. In sternest tones the note repudiates re-pudiates and resents imputations of bud faith and ulterior motives brought .against the Washington government in the Mexican communication to which it is a reply. General Carranza is informed in so many words that protection of its own borders is the only ol)ject sought by the United StaLT's-and is told that that object will be pursued whatever the consequences conse-quences may be. President Wilson declares that: "The government of the United States has viewed v.ith deep concern and increasing dsj'-'upointment the progress reivblution in Mexico. For thveQ ' 's "fie Mexican republic - 'x--'U-JciiCP ,v'tn c'v11 strife; the three- -r'cans antl other aliens .ne ueen sacrificed; vast properties developed by American capital and enterprise have been destroyed or1 rendered non-productive; bandits have been permitted to roam at will through the territory contiguous to the United States and to seize, without with-out punishment, the property of Americans, while the lives of citizens of the United States who ventured to remain in Mexican territory or to return re-turn there to protect their interests . have been taken,"' and the murderers have not been apprehended. It would be difficult to find in the annals of the history of Mexico conditions more deplorable than those which have existed ex-isted there during these recent years .of civil war. "The attacks on Brownsville, . Red-house Red-house Ferry, Progresso postoffice and Las Pcladas, all occurring during September Sep-tember last, are typical. In these attacks at-tacks on American territory Carranzista Carran-zista adherents and even Carranzista soldiers took part in tue looting, burning burn-ing and killing. Not only were these murders characterized by ruthless brutality, but uncivilized acts of mutilation muti-lation were perpetrated. "Since these attacks, leaders of the bandits well known to both Mexican civil and military authorities, as well as to American officers, have been enjoying en-joying with impunity the liberty of the towns of northern Mexico. "Meanwhile a party of unfortunate Americans started by train from Chihuahua Chi-huahua to visit the Cusi mines, after having received assurances from the ..Carranzista authorities in the state of Chihuahua that the country was safe and that a guard on the train was not necessary. On January 10, the train was stopped by Villa bandits and eighteen eigh-teen of the American party were stripped strip-ped of their clothing and shot in cold blood in what is now known as the 'Santa Ysabel massacre.' "Candor compels me to add that the unconcealed hostility of the subordinate sub-ordinate military commanders of the de facto government toward the American Am-erican troops engaged in pursuing, the Villa bands and the efforts of the de facto government to compel their withdrawal from Mexican territory by threats and show of military force, instead of aiding in the capture of the outlaws, constitute a menace to the safety of the American troops and to the peace of the border. "Whenever Mexico will assume and v" . effectively exercise that responsibility the United States, as it has many times before publicly declared, will be glad to have this obligation fulfilled by the de facto government of Mexico. If, on the contrary, the de facto government gov-ernment is pleased to ignore this obligation obli-gation and to believe that in the case of a refusal to retire troops there is no further recourse than to defend its territory by an appeal to arms, the government of the United States would surely be lacking in sincerity and friendship if it did not frankly impress upon the de facto government that the execution of this threat will lead to the gravest consequences." |