No. 219.
Mr. Foster
to Mr. Evarts.
Mexico, March 23, 1877. (Received April 7.)
Sir: The consul at Mazatlan, under date of the 20th ultimo, reported to me, through the consul-general in this city, that General F. O. Arce, military governor of the State of Sinaloa under President Lerdo, upon the occupation of Mazatlan by the forces of General Diaz took refuge in his consulate on the 15th of January last; that on the 18th of January the consul informed the commander of the Diaz forces, Colonel Ramirez, that General Arce was under the protection of the consulate, and received the assurance that the consulate should be respected; that, notwithstanding, on the 2d of February, a body of armed men forcibly entered the consulate, in the absence of the consul and without his knowledge and consent, and removed General Arce therefrom; that upon complaining of the act in writing to Colonel Ramirez, the latter called at the consulate and stated that he was satisfied that an outrage had been committed, and promised to restore General Arce and punish the officer making the arrest; and that General Arce was not returned to the consulate, nor any steps taken towards reparation.
The day after the receipt of the consul’s report, General Arce arrived in this city under his parole to report as a prisoner to the President. I called upon General Arce, and his statement of the facts corresponds with that of the consul.
On the 20th instant, in a call which I made at the department of foreign affairs, I left with Mr. Vallarta a copy of the report of the consul, herewith inclosed, stating that while I did not make it the subject of a formal note, I thought the facts stated would lead him to examine into the conduct of the Mexican officials. I expressly disavowed any claim of extra-territoriality for American consulates in Mexico, and called attention to the fact that our government discouraged the practice of political asylum in its legations. I admitted that the consul may have [Page 399] erred in giving General Arce refuge in the consulate, but that having reported the fact to the military commandant, and being assured by him that the protection extended to General Arce would be respected, I regarded the armed and forcible entrance of the consulate and the arrest of General Arce as an act of bad faith and a want of respect towards an official of my government, especially as I was informed that no demand of any kind had ever been made upon the consul for the surrender of General Arce.
Mr. Vallarta promised that the matter should have the early attention of his government; and to-day he informed me that instructions had been sent to the military commandant of Mazatlan to forward at once a report of the affair 5 and he assured me that the government would not fail to punish any officer who should be found wanting in courtesy to the consul or to his flag.
It is proper to state in this connection that, more than a month ago, I learned through the consul at Acapulco that General Arce had taken refuge in the consulate at Mazatlan, and that there was a possibility of trouble with the military authorities growing out of it. I at once wrote to him through the consul-general, February 20, using the following language:
It is to be borne in mind that the consulate does not possess the right of extra-territoriality, and that while it is an act of humanity to protect defenseless persons from mob violence and hasty revenge, during the transition of governments, it is advisable to avoid giving permanent protection to political refugees, and thus prevent conflicts with the local authorities.
I will await the receipt by the government of its report in the case, but will keep the case in view, hoping in the mean time to receive some instructions from you on the subject.
I am, &c.,