No. 359.
Mr. Foster
to Mr. Evarts.
Legation of
the United States,
Mexico, September 7, 1878.
(Received September 24.)
No. 778.]Sir: In my dispatch No. 767, in giving a report of
the interviews had with President Diaz and Minister Mata, with a view to the
punishment
[Page 593]
of the Indians raiding
in Texas, I noticed their reference to an expedition made by Mexican troops
and Kickapoos against the Lipans, and also to Indian raids from the United
States into Chihuahua.
The fact of my interview and its object have become known through Mexican
sources, and it appears the government is impressed with the necessity of
justifying its conduct before its own people. In evidence of this, I inclose
an article which appeared in the Monitor of the 5th instant, which I have no
doubt was substantially, if not entirely, prepared in the office of Foreign
Affairs, and may be accepted as the defense of the government on frontier
affairs, so far as it discusses the question.
The article and the copies of documents stated to be furnished from the
Foreign Office demand a few comments. The body of the article states that
the Indians who commit the murderous raids on Texas are Lipans, and it
indignantly denies that they are harbored or encouraged by the Mexican
authorities. Mr. Mata made the same declaration in our recent interview. But
General Ord and the military and civil authorities in Texas assert that they
have undoubted evidence that the Kickapoos also participate in the raids
into Texas. Both this article and Mr. Mata virtually acknowledge that the
Kickapoos are harbored and confederate with the Mexican authorities.
One object of the article is to show that the Mexican Government is making
exertions to punish the Indians raiding in Texas, and the report of a recent
expedition is published to prove this. An examination of these official
documents makes plain what has already been published in the newspapers, and
is well known here, that the expedition was undertaken to punish the Lipans
for recent raids and depredations upon Mexican citizens on Mexican soil, and
not for raids into Texas. And for this expedition the Mexican authorities
enlisted the Kickapoos, who are a part of the Indians charged by our
officials with raiding into Texas.
There is a marked discrepancy between the statements as to the result of the
expedition made by this article and the account given me by Mr. Mata. In our
first interview he said the authorities in Coahuila had reported the capture
of about one hundred Lipans; but the next day he corrected his statement,
after reference to the official documents, as he said, by fixing the number
of captives at seventy, who were then on their way to San Luis Potosi and
the interior. The official report of the expedition, for the first time made
public in the Monitor article inclosed, fixes the number of prisoners taken
at four men and eleven women and children, an infant twenty-five days old
being enumerated. And the newspapers of this capital have reported that all
of these, on their way to San Luis Potosi, have escaped but one old woman
too feeble to run away. The discrepancy shows that either the authorities in
Coahuila have grossly deceived the government here, or there has been
another expedition, and to this latter neither Mr. Mata nor the article has
referred, and it is fair to presume it has not oceurred.
A considerable portion of the documents published by the Monitor relate to
alleged cattle-stealing from Mexico by bands organized in Texas, to which I
have already referred in my No. 774, of the 4th instant.
Both the article and Mr. Mata in our interviews have made allusion to a
recent Indian raid in Chihuahua, alleged to have been made by Indians from
the American reservations in New Mexico; and the article also refers to the
Apache raids in Sonora, and publishes the official documents (No. 5) to
establish these charges. I looked with interest to the documents, hoping to
find some details of the devastation said to have been committed in
Chihuahua by Indians from the American reservations,
[Page 594]
in order that it might be made the basis of an
investigation by the War Department or Indian Bureau of our government.
Although the Chihuahua raid is said to have occurred three months ago, none
of the documents published make any reference to that event. If they have
been received by the government, it is strange that they were, not included
in the publication made ostensibly to sustain the charge. An examination of
the documents attached to the article shows that they refer only to the
depredations of the Apaches in Sonora. They make charges against the
American authorities in Arizona of the gravest character, which would well
deserve the prompt and summary punishment of the parties guilty of such
disgraceful conduct, if the allegations made in these documents were true;
but happily the facts are at hand, furnished by an accredited Mexican
official, to prove that they are not only totally unfounded, but that, on
the other hand, the conduct of the American authorities in Arizona with
respect to the barbarous Indians is in marked and favorable contrast to that
of the Mexican authorities in Coahuila. The statements made in the said
documents published by the Mexican Government regarding the bad conduct of
the American authorities in Arizona were sent by the governor of Sonora to
the Mexican consul at Tucson for investigation and report thereon. His
communication to the governor of Sonora, in answer to the charges, was
published in the official paper of that State on the 26th of July last, a
translation of which I now inclose. You will see that the consul’s report to
his own government is a complete refutation of the charges made and a
thorough vindication of the American authorities in Arizona. He states that
raids do not occur from Arizona into Sonora; that the Indians committing
depredations in the latter State are those who fled from the United States
many months ago and are permanent refugees in the mountains, a long distance
into the interior of Sonora; that some of them never have been on American
reservations; that those who escaped from the reservations are criminals
from justice; that a sure punishment awaits them if they return to the
United States; that General Wilcox desires much to recapture them, but is
prevented by the order issued by the Mexican federal government prohibiting
the crossing of the boundary by American troops; and that the American
authorities do not instigate or encourage the Indians on the reservations to
commit raids into Mexico, but, on the contrary, that their strict
surveillance and treatment is the very best means of preventing raids.
No better or more complete vindication of the American authorities in Arizona
could have been made, and it ought to silence all charges from that quarter.
Our consul at Guaymas writes that the governor of Sonora, General Mariscal,
is in favor of a reciprocal crossing of the boundary in pursuit of Indians,
as the practice in this regard in years past has proven its efficiency, but
that he is prohibited from agreeing to it by the strict instructions of the
federal government at this capital.
I am inclined to believe that if the depredations spoken of in Chihuahua have
occurred, the authors of them are these thirty-three refugee Indians in
Sonora whom the Mexican Government will not allow General Wilcox to capture,
and thus far it has itself not had the ability to do it.
I am, &c.,
[Inclosure 1 in No.
778.—Translation.]
Differences between Mexico and the United
States.
[From the Monitor Republicano, September 5,
1878.]
The depredations and the acts of cruelty of the barbarous Indians on the
frontiers of Mexico and the United States have awakened a just sentiment
of indignation among
[Page 595]
the
inhabitants of the neighboring republic, which wily speculators are
fostering in favor of their ambitious projects. For the realization of
these schemes they do not hesitate to provoke two friendly nations to
war, disfiguring the facts, exaggerating the evils, converting the
patriotic susceptibilities of the Mexicans into hatred toward the
Americans, and denying, in short, even the efforts of the Mexican
authorities to suppress the depredations. They have gone so far as to
invade the sphere of the press, in order to lead public opinion astray,
some advising, as the only remedy for the lamentable situation of the
frontier inhabitants, the violation of international law, the invasion
of our territory, and pecuniary indemnification; others advising war and
conquest. For lack of reasons they base their advice upon injuries. We,
understanding the noble mission of the journalist, do not return injury
for injury; we do not permit ourselves to be led away by passion, and,
with a clear mind and with abundance of data, we will set forth the
truth of the facts.
In order to give to our statements a trustworthy character, we have asked
for certain documents to sustain them from the Departments of Foreign
Affairs and War; these have been furnished us, and we publish them at
the close of this article.
A lamentable event, which occurred in last April, has favored the views
of those who are interested in provoking, at any cost, a conflict
between the United States of America and the Republic of Mexico.
A band of Lipan Indians, equally prejudicial to both countries, coming
out of the mountains of Coahuila, where these enemies of civilization
have their abode, made a raid into the State of Texas, and, as always
happens, murdered eighteen persons, stole such animals as they could,
and returned to their place of refuge.
It is impossible to be informed of the acts of barbarity committed by the
savages without experiencing a feeling of horror, and without having a
desire that their authors should be exemplarily punished. But this
feeling and this legitimate desire are encouraged by those who believe
that a conflict between the two countries will be a favorable occasion
for accumulating fortunes at the cost of blood, and of the desolation
and ruin of thousands of victims who would be sacrificed to an ambition
as insatiable as criminal. They are encouraged, we say, in order to
convert them into germs of hatred and animosity against the people and
the Government of Mexico, whom it is desired to make responsible for
acts which, however lamentable they may be, are neither due to their
will, nor are they exclusively confined to one side of the boundary
line.
It is known, from the nature of the circumstances, that upon both sides
of the boundary line there is a portion of the population who, actuated
by their bad character, employ themselves in committing depredations
upon the property of the peaceful and honest inhabitants of the
frontier; it is known that upon both sides of the boundary line are
tribes of savage Indians who from time to time descend like ferocious
animals upon the defenseless inhabitants, killing persons and robbing
the animals and objects which are found in their path.
Would it be just that these evils, which the frontier of Mexico has to
suffer as well as that of the United States, occasioned by a handful of
criminals and Indians, relatively insignificant compared with the
population of each country, should constitute a reason for war between
the two countries? When the great majority of the populations of both
countries is interested in preserving peace, in order to cultivate under
its benign influence the relations which give development and prosperity
to commercial transactions and to agricultural and mining enterprises,
would it be just, would it be proper, would it be humanitarian, to
sacrifice the great interests of peace, of commerce, and of industry to
the unbridled ambition of certain circles, which, instigated by a spirit
of bastard speculation, wish to provoke a disastrous war between two
nations which, united already by the tie of identical institutions,
should also be united by reciprocity of interests?
Those who desire war at all hazards appeal, in order to excite the
opinions of the people of Texas, to popular reports, some exaggerated
and others false, having for their principal object to cause it to be
believed that the marauders and Indians are not only tolerated but even
protected by the Mexican authorities. A dispatch appears in the Times of
New York, addressed from San Antonio, Tex., on the 21st of June last, in
which it is said that General Ord had received a letter from a gentleman
residing in Santa Rosa, State of Coahuila, in which it is asserted that
the incursion made by the Indians in April last into the State of Texas
was publicly organized in the streets of the town of Santa Rosa; that
the Indians publicly returned to the same place and there made the
distribution of their booty; that the Kickapoos, being offended at the
part of the booty awarded to them, fell upon the Lipans, killed six of
them, and made prisoners of the rest, making a new division of the
spoils, in which the authorities of the place took part. (Document No.
1.)
It can hardly be conceived how so gross a calumny has been invented.
Whoever says that the Indians publicly organize expeditions does not
know them. The Lipans who made the incursion into Texas do not live in
Santa Rosa, but in the Carmen Mountains. When the incursion made by them
was known to the Mexican authority, it ordered an attack to be made upon
a band whose resorts were known.
[Page 596]
The chief of the expedition took with him, as auxiliaries, the Kickapoo
Indians, mortal enemies of the Lipans; upon being attacked in their
lurking place, six of the latter were killed in the combat, and the
remainder, numbering fifteen, of both sexes, were made prisoners and
taken to Santa Rosa, whence the expedition set out; they remained there
a number of days until orders were received to intern them. (Document
No. 2.)
In regard to the booty taken from the Lipans, document No. 3 shows what
disposition the Government of Mexico has made of it.
Very well, then; it is only necessary to read both documents in order to
understand to what an extent the author of the first dispatch, blinded
by his passion for vilifying Mexico and of exciting the opinion of the
people of the United States against Mexico, resorts to the invention of
calumnies which, on being presented as true facts, he hopes will
accomplish the desired end; that is, that a collision between the two
countries may be occasioned.
Many times it has been said that the evils suffered on the frontier as
the result of the incursions of the marauders and Indians are common to
both countries; but as great publicity is given to acts of this nature
which occur in American territory, they are exaggerated and commented on
in a thousand ways in order to give them notoriety and attract public
attention to them; while those which occur in Mexican territory are
hardly noticed, because the victims of the outrages suffer them with
stoic resignation. This has given rise to the idea, very common in the
United States, that while the marauders and Indians living on the
Mexican side cross the boundary to commit depredations on the American
side, depredations never occur on this side of the said boundary
committed by marauders or Indians from the American side. So general has
been this belief, that Mr. Fish himself, Secretary of State, said
emphatically, in answering a note from the Government of Mexico in which
it was stated that the evil of the incursions was common to both
countries, that Mexico suffered no incursions proceeding from Texas, and
challenged Mexico to present proof to the contrary. Mr. Foster, the
representative of the United States in Mexico, has repeated the same
thing at different times, basing his action, without doubt, on the
circumstance that the Government of Mexico had neglected to furnish the
proofs demanded.
In order to demonstrate that Mr. Fish as well as Mr. Foster have been in
error, and that the assertion that the evils are common to both
countries is exact, we annex certain proofs from the many which can be
presented to the effect that the same evil complained of by Texas is
suffered on the Mexican side. (Document No. 3.)
Even without these proofs, the simple consideration that twenty years ago
the plains of Tamaulipas and Coahuila, bordering on the Rio Grande, were
covered by innumerable bands of cattle and horses, which constituted the
wealth of their inhabitants, and that to-day, in consequence of the
depredations committed by the marauders, they are deserts, the owners
having to resort, in order to save what remained, to drive their animals
to distant points in the interior beyond the reach of the rapacity of
the marauders, would be found sufficient to the eyes of an impartial
observer. (Document No. 4.)
With regard to Indian incursions, if the raid made by the Lipans into
Texas in April last is sad and lamentable, that made into the State of
Chihuahua in June last by Indians from the reservations of New Mexico is
also sad and lamentable, and those frequently made by the Apaches of
Arizona into the State of Sonora are of the same character. (Document
No. 5.)
In such a state of affairs, humanity, modern principles of civilization,
and the well-understood interests of the two nations advise that,
instead of launching into a war, which is nothing more than the
expression of what remains with us of the customs of a barbarous age, a
means of ending the present calamity should be looked for by both
governments, animated by principles of justice and equity; a settlement
by means of common and reciprocal action, which may result in the
efficient pursuit and punishment of the marauders and the repression of
the Indians, placing them in such condition that they cannot commit the
acts of extermination and rapine which they now perform.
We can with all assurance affirm that no administration has been so
solicitous as the present in giving security to the frontier; and this
is so certain, that General Ord himself has acknowledged that on the
Lower Rio Grande, bordering on Tamaulipas, the incursions have
completely ceased. And when the favorable change which has been effected
in the condition of the frontier exists and is acknowledged, should the
remedy for the evils yet to be rooted out be looked for in a war? This
would be as inhuman as senseless, and for this reason we appeal to the
sense of justice of the people and government of the United States, in
order that, disregarding the distempered cry of those who for selfish
ends are interested in instigating a conflict between the two countries,
they may put into action means of pacification which, while correcting
the evils which are suffered, may serve to strengthen the bonds of
harmony and friendship which should unite the two nations.
[Page 597]
[Document No.
1.—Translation.]
the outrages of the frontier.—indian invaders
instigated by mexican authorities.—how the marauders are protected
on returning to mexico.
San
Antonio, Tex., July
21.
[Special dispatch to the New York Times.
General E. O. C. Ord, chief of the Department of Texas, has received a
letter from a gentleman who resides in the city of Santa Rosa, Mexico,
which fully corroborates the statement made so frequently that the
Mexican authorities protect the incursions from Mexico into Texas. The
letter states that the recent and disastrous incursion was discussed in
the streets of Santa Rosa at the same time that the Indians left their
camp close to that city.
The band of marauders was composed of Lipans, Kickapoos, and Mexicans,
who stole about five hundred saddle-horses, murdered about thirty men
and boys in Texas, besides having committed robberies of importance. On
their return to Santa Rosa, they traveled by the public road, talking of
their incursion and its results. On arriving at the city the horses and
effects stolen were divided; but the Kickapoos, not being satisfied with
their share, attacked the Lipans, killing six of them and capturing the
rest, and then divided the spoils anew among themselves and the
authorities of Santa Rosa, with the exception of a number of horses
which were taken on account of a loan imposed by the troops of Diaz, and
which the latter took advantage of to mount.
The Lipans captured by the Kickapoos were delivered to the Mexican
authorities and put in prison. This was done in order to show that the
authorities punished raiders, in case there should be any complaint on
the part of the United States, and also in order to prevent the Lipans
from making any attempt to recover their part of the booty stolen during
the raid. Mr. Juan Golan, one of the principal citizens of Santa Rosa,
daily supplies provisions to the families of the savages which were
encamped near the city during the absence of the latter.
What is stated in the letter appears to be trne, and it is, besides,
corroborated by other proofs in possession of General Ord.
Col. W. H. Shafter is in this city, and General Mackenzie is expected
to-morrow, in order to consult with General Ord in regard to the
disturbances on the frontier.
On Thursday another company of artillery was sent to the frontier.
[Document No. 2.]
section of america.—national army, division of
the north, general-in-chief.—section 2, no. 705.
I have the honor to inclose to you a copy of the communication in which
are given the details relating to the capture of the barbarous Lipans,
in order that, on being informed of it, you may be pleased, in view of
its contents, to decide upon what you may deem proper.
Liberty in the constitution.
Monterey, June 28,
1878.
G. TREVIÑO.
To the citizen Minister of War and Marine,
Mexico.
section of america.—mexican army, division of the
north, general-in-chief.
Under date of the 3d instant, the citizen José Maria Golan, chief of the
expedition against the Lipans, says to me as follows:
“As I promised you in my dispatch to give a detailed account of the
assault which I made upon the town of the Lipans, I comply with my duty
in stating to you that with a force of twenty-two men of this town, ten
organized by the citizens Ignacio and Indalecio Elizonda, and twenty
from the hacienda of San Francisco, organized by the citizen Atilano de
la Garza, I commenced the march from the said hacienda about eight
o’clock at night oil the lst instant, going in the direction of the hill
of Buena Vista, where part of theLipan tribe was encamped, which,
according to your orders, I was to capture, and I arrived in their
neighborhood a little before daybreak of the 2d, my march being delayed
by the heavy wind and rain which fell on that
[Page 598]
night. I then waited for Mesepácito and Mejica,
chiefs of the Kickapoos, whom I had ordered with their warriors to
attempt to handcuff the Lipans on the first opportunity which should be
presented, an operation practicable only for them, as the Lipans did not
mistrust them. On being advised by Mejica that they had executed my
orders, I surrounded the town in order to prevent the flight of the
families and receive the handcuffed Indians; but far from this taking
place, I was redeived on my arrival by the fire of the Lipans, which
caused me to change my plan of operations, throwing out guerrillas to
cover the passes of the river, and with the rest of my force I charged
upon the enemy, whom it was necessary to exterminate, as not even the
wounded would surrender; the said movement resulting in the death of six
Lipans, one prisoner who was surprised where he hid himself, and eight
wounded, with two young boys. It is satisfactory for me to inform you
there was no accident on our part, and that the chiefs of the guerrillas
and the rest of the force conducted themselves with as much valor as
prudence.
“The Kickapoos stated after the attack, in which they showed themselves
as active as they were valiant, that it had been impossible for them to
comply with my first orders because the Lipans were suspicious.
“With respect to the spoils of the enemy, with the exception of the
animals, the number of which is given in the list annexed, nothing else
was taken, for which reason the official whom I left in charge of the
huts of the town could not prevent the Kickapoos from falling upon them
and taking possession of what little they contained, which I considered
of so little value that I did not require its delivery, but I determined
to inform you of it, as I now do, in order that you may decide as to
what is proper.
“It remains for me to inform you that the blood shed and the capture made
will be useless if the supreme government does not assist us, ordering
the apprehension of the Lipans in the Carmen Mountains of this State,
and that of the Mescaleros in San Carlos, Chihuahua, since they are the
ones which constantly threaten us whether at peace or at war.
“It will be a great calamity for these towns, ruined by the continuous
struggle which they have maintained with the savages from before the
independence, if the supreme government does not duly attend to the
amelioration of their condition. The recent robbery and wounds suffered
by a man in the jurisdiction of Lampazos and Juarez, acts perpetrated by
part of the Lipans which have just been destroyed and those which reside
in the Carmen Mountains or in San Carlos, and not by the Kickapoos, as
has been erroneously stated by the citizen alcalde of Juarez, as is seen
in the No. 31 of the official paper of the State, will be considered, as
I consider it, as the commencement of a new war of extermination with
these hordes of savages, and in which the towns will suffer most. It is
just, then, that we should not be abandoned to our own efforts.”
And I have the honor to transcribe it to you for the information of the
general-in-chief of the division of the north, as the result of the
operation against the Lipans which he was pleased to intrust to the
presidency under my charge, and I pray you to be pleased to state to him
that I think it unnecessary to expatiate upon the very just and sensible
observations made by the citizen J. M. Garza Golan in his foregoing
dispatch, to which I will simply add, by way of information, that the
establishment of a permanent force in this municipality, as was always
had by the Spanish Government in the old post of the Bavia, which point
of great military importance was not lost sight of nor neglected by that
government, would relieve the districts of Monclova and Rio Grande in
the state of Nueva Leon from the incursions of the barbarians, because
it is the key to their entrances and departures.
Liberty in the constitution.
Musquiz, June 10,
1878.
INDALECIO ELIZONDO. (A rubric.)
To the Chief of the Line of the North.
republic of mexico, department of foreign
affairs.—section of america.—department of war and marine.—d. e.
m. (?) 762. m. (?) 2d.
The President of the republic being informed of your communication dated
June 28 last, with which you accompany a copy of the communication
giving the details relative to the capture of the Lipan Indians, and in
which it is suggested that the apprehension be ordered of those in the
Carmen Mountains of your State, and also that of the Mescaleros in San
Carlos of Chihuahua, they being the ones which constantly threaten that
State, and in which the establishment of a permanent force in the
municipality of Musquiz is asked for in order to free the districts of
Monclova, Rio Grande,
[Page 599]
and the
State of Nueva Leon from the incursions of the barbarians, has been
pleased to decide that yon be informed in reply that when the active
operations cease against the disturbers of the public order you shall
provide a force of your command for the objects referred to in the said
communication, employing in preference the rural forces under the
command of Colonel Cisnero.
I inform you of it in reply to your said communication.
Liberty in the constitution.
Mexico, August 15,
1878.
GONZALES.
To the General-in-Chief of the Division of the
North, Monterey.
I inclose it to you for your information.
To the chief of the military colonies of Chihuahua, Ojinaga.
section of america.—a seal which says “national
army.”—division of the north.—general-in-chief.—section 2.—No. 746.
I have the honor to bring to your superior knowledge that on yesterday
the Lipan Indians mentioned in the inclosed list, conducted by an escort
of the residents of Santa Rosa, under the command of the citizen Abraham
de la Garza, arrived in this city. I also have the honor to inclose to
you two certified copies of the expenses incurred on this account, to
the end that, if you think proper, you may be pleased to approve of
them. The said Lipan Indians are at present in the barracks of a corps
of infantry, and I hope you will inform me in reply where and how I
shall dispose of them.
Liberty and constitution.
Monterey, July 4,
1878.
G. TREVIÑO.
To the Secretary of State and of the Department of War and Marine,
Mexico.
(On the margin): Extract. Incloses list and certified copies of the
expenses incurred in conducting the Lipan Indians.
Approved July 15, 1878. Receipt and its
accompaniments.
(A rubric.)
Approved July 16, 1878.
In compliance with the approval, let it be passed to the D. of E. M.
in order that it may give an opinion respecting the latter part.
July 24, 1878.—In view of the approval of
the 19th instant, the disposition of the general of the division of
the north is approved, to the end that the Lipan Indians may be
conducted to San Luis Potosi, and it was decided that from there
they shall come to this capital, for which reason let this matter be
put on record.
Nominal list of the barbarous Lipan
Indians conducted to this capital by the residents of the town
of Muzquis.
Sandave, 29 years old, married to Coshyechá; Jesus Martin, 28 years
old, married to Mela Alanchs; Viejo Blanco, 35 years old, married to
Poine Teyéz, and he has a daughter 25 days old; Valentine Trazas, 26
years old, unmarried, cousin to Chepita; Martin Rodriguez, 14 years
old, nephew of Dahl Caco; Tasco Datzel, 13 years old, son of Lesé
Coshyecha, 26 years old, squaw of Sandavé; Mela Alanchs, 16 years
old, squaw of Jesus Martin; Sesé, 50 years old, nurse of Tasco
Detzel; Chepita, 48 years old, cousin of Valentine Trazas; Dahl
Caco, 70 years old, grandmother of Martin; Mariquita, 68 years old,
grandmother of Jesus Martin; Joine Tezez, 43 years old, squaw of
Viejo Blanco, and mother of a baby 25 days old, named Et. Etc; Che
The, 82 years old, Indian.
[Note.—Here follow two documents giving
a detailed statement of $444 expended in bringing the Indians to
Monterey.]
[Document No. 3.]
mexican republic, department of war and
marine.—section 1.
To-day I state the following by telegraph to the citizen General Gerónimo
Treviño:
“The President of the Republic directs that the horses and other objects
which were
[Page 600]
taken from the
Lipan Indians and belonging to Mexicans or Americans be recovered from
those having possession of them at present, although they may be
soldiers, and that they be delivered to their owners, if Mexicans, or to
General Ord, or other American authority, if Americans, to the end that
through the medium of the latter they may reach their original
owners.”
Which I have the honor to transcribe to you for your information.
Liberty in the constitution.
Mexico, August 30,
1878.
GONZALES.
To the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Present.
[Note.—Document No. 4 contains
substantially what was remitted in inclosure 1 to my dispatch No.
774, of the 4th instant, and relates to cattle-stealing on the Rio
Grande For its contents reference is made to said inclosure.]
[Document No. 5.]
federal guard of the state of sonora.
General-in-Chief: The Apaches have taken
possession of the districts of Sahuaripa and Oposura, and daily commit
their customary depredations, for which reason the prompt organization
of two colonial companies is indispensable, in order to place one in
each district.
It is painful, Mr. Minister, to witness with calmness what is taking
place in the said districts, and recognizing the fact that certain
difficulties will be presented in the prompt organization of the
companies of which I have spoken, I would desire that the supreme
government should authorize me to situate two companies of the forces
under my command in the principal towns of the invaded districts, and
with these, while the colonial troops are being organized, and
notwithstanding the difficulties presented in following the Indians with
infantry troops of the army, I will endeavor to follow up the barbarians
in their haunts, and even attack them, endeavoring to drive them out of
the State.
I think it opportune to inclose to you the No. 19 of the Era Nueva,
calling your attention to the exhaustive article treating the question
of theApaches.
I have already officially addressed the Department of War, proposing the
organization of the two colonial companies of which I have spoken, and
asking as to the powers of the federal chief of arms in the military
colonies, in order that this command may thus, in compliance with its
duty, dispose of the said forces in such manner as the supreme
government may indicate.
I fear I am making myself officious in informing your department of what
has occurred in regard to Indian invasions with the circumstances having
relation to international questions pertaining to your jurisdiction; but
as you had recommended me to do so, I comply with such duty.
I assure you, Mr. Minister, of the consideration of my particular
esteem.
Liberty in the constitution.
Guaymas, April 3,
1878.
B. DAVALOS.
To the Citizen Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Mexico.
[La Era Nueva.]
Hermosillo, March 30,
1878.
There is not a single number of the Boletin Oficial which does not
chronicle the robberies and murders perpetrated by the Apaches. The
theater of their bloody exploits is the unhappy district of Sahuaripa.
Some months ago they established themselves there to outrage humanity
and civilization.
The savage of to-day is not the same that fought several years ago. In
other times he preferred to resort to the war of ambuscade. In our days,
he does not disdain the struggle open faced; he looks for strategic
points, fortifies himself well, resists with energy, and when he judges
proper even takes the initiative. All these circumstances clothe the
present straggle with the character of fear.
Indirectly those savages receive their military instruction upon the
American reservations. There they are instructed in the use and
management of arms; they are clothed, and fed, and provided with picked
outfits. Owing to a spirit of speculation sufficiently criminal, the
officers of those reservations permit the Apaches to go out for
[Page 601]
a certain length of time to
have a run. They obtain the necessary license, and under pretext of
obtaining cattle and seeds, which they sell at cheap prices to the
Americans, they remember their old instincts of barbarity, and invade
our State, robbing, plundering, and murdering, and afterwards returning
to the reservations.
Now that it is proposed to establish the basis of an international treaty
between our republic and that of the United States, its clauses should
provide for this grave evil, whose doleful consequences are felt to-day
more than ever.
mexican republic.—government of the state of
sonora.
I have received your communication of May 7 last, in which you are
pleased to inform me that the general-in-chief of the federal guard in
this State has informed your department of the strong invasion which the
Apache Indians, proceeding from the American Territory of Arizona, are
making in our districts of Sahuaripa and Moctezuma, he having inclosed
also a copy of No. 19 of the newspaper La Era Nueva, which is published
in Hermosillo, of March 31 last, in which it is said that those savages
receive, although indirectly, their military instruction upon the
American reservations, where they are taught the use and management of
arms, supplied with select outfits, and permitted, for criminal
speculation, to periodically abandon those reservations and practice
upon our people their sanguinary depredations, returning afterward to
the United States with their criminal booty, which is bought of them at
a low price, and concerning which acts you ask of me a true report, in
order to demand the remedy of these evils of the government of
Washington.
In my communication of May 30 last I have already had the honor to state
to your department, among other things, that the Apaches, with full
liberty, and perhaps instigated by the tolerance of that government, arm
themselves well in the neighboring Territory of Arizona, and come to
this State to practice all kinds of devastation, and when our
authorities attempt to follow them up, they take refuge in the said
Territory, where, owing to the interests of immoral speculators, they
enjoy the most scandalous impunity in the use and public sale of the
objects stolen within this State, without the inhabitants of Sonora
having other recourse than to mourn the death of their fellow-citizens
and regret the loss of their many ruined interests.
Such disreputable conduct observed toward the Indians in that part of the
United States could not be more pernicious and injurious to the
interests of Mexico, and although it is widely notorious on this
frontier, the government under my charge, desiring to render to your
department irrefutable proofs of it, transmits your said note to-day to
the consular agent of Mexico in Tucson, in order that he may inform me
of all that he considers conducive to the object desired, of the result
of which I will opportunely inform you.
I take pleasure on this occasion in being able to repeat to you my
protestations of particular consideration and esteem.
Liberty in the constitution.
Ures, June 12,
1877.
- V. MARISCAL.
- I. Quijada, Secretary.
To the Secretary of State and of the Department of Foreign Affairs,
Mexico.
[Inclosure 2 in No.
778.—Translation.]
Report of Mexican consul in Tucson.
Consulate of Mexico in Arizona,
June 22, 1878.
[From the Boletin Oficial, Ures, Sonora, July 26,
1878.]
Your attentive note of the 12th instant was received to-day in this
consulate, with which is inclosed that addressed to you under date of
May 7 last by the Department of Foreign Affairs, relating to the reports
issued by the general-in-chief of the federal forces in this State with
respect to the invasions of barbarous Indians into the districts of
Sahuaripa and Moctezuma, concerning which invasions the said general
incloses a copy of La Era Nueva, a paper published in Hermosillo, in
which it is said that the said invasions are due to a spirit of
speculation, instigated or induced by agents of the military reservation
in that Territory.
Concerning everything that your government is pleased to ask of me, he
transmits what may serve to duly sustain the report which the said
department has to make on the subject.
[Page 602]
The importance of the matter and the desires which you are pleased to
express to me oblige me to reply without losing a mail, transmitting to
you such matter as has reached my knowledge from reliable reports
relating to the grave matter under consideration.
As on my arrival at this place on the 5th of April last the invasions
referred to by the general-in-chief of the federal forces of the State
and the newspaper La Era Nueva had already taken place, my first
occupation was to investigate their origin and the means which might be
employed to prevent their repetition. The fact that the general-in-chief
of the forces of the Territory does not reside in this city has
prevented my having a conference with him concerning this important
matter, limiting me to the acquiring of such data as I could from other
military agents who have accidentally passed through this town, and from
many other private Americans and Mexicans of acknowledged reputation and
veracity.
According to all these reports, which I no longer hesitate in calling
exact, the barbarous Indians which have invaded the State of Sonora
number thirty-three warriors, belonging to the Mountains of Huachuca,
and some of them have never yet been subjected or entered, up to the
present time, in any of the American reservations. The members of this
band who belong or have belonged to said reservations, far from being
instigated by agents of the same, have endeavored to intern themselves
as far as the Sahuaripa Mountains, from fear that the troops of this
Territory may pursue them and apply to them the punishment to which many
of them are condemned for crimes committed before their flight. Among
these is one Concepcion, a native of the district of Magdalena, whom
neither restraint nor good treatment has been able to subdue, but, on
the contrary, he surpasses each day in cruelty the savages
themselves.
Persons of importance, and whose sentiments in favor of our country
cannot be doubted, assure me that General Wilcox, chief of the forces in
this Territory, regrets his impossibility to cross the boundary in
pursuit of these Indians, and that he will carefully prevent the subdued
Indians from being informed of the notification given by the government
under your worthy charge, prohibiting the crossing of that boundary
under all circumstances.
Concerning the order or discipline observed upon the different
reservations established in the Territory, the data which I have
collected convinces me that the Indians upon them are not indulged in
any manner; but, on the contrary, they are governed with severity, being
obliged to answer roll-call twice a day and only being permitted to use
a few arms in hunting; an exercise in which they cannot engage except by
express permission, which is always conceded to a few, and for very
limited periods.
It is true that the government of this country has adopted the system of
combating the rebellious Indians with those which it has succeeded in
subjecting, and for this purpose it is customary to arm certain portions
temporarily; but they are subject in the service to military discipline
and always controlled by chiefs close by who do not tolerate the least
abuse. The expedition over, their arms are taken from them, and they
remain subject like the rest of their tribe to the discipline of the
reservation.
Experience has demonstrated that the Indians thus employed by the
government conduct themselves toward the rebels which they succeed in
capturing with such extreme cruelty, that not only early agreement among
themselves is made impossible, but all future reconciliation.
From the foregoing it is inferred that the lamentable evils which, in
consequence of the Indian invasions, are suffered by a part of the State
of Sonora, under your worthy command, do not originate in the system
which is at present observed upon the reservations of this Territory,
and in order to prove this it will be sufficient to note that the
invading Indians, in order to make their raids, endeavor to get as far
as possible from said reservations, and it may also be proved by the
very significant fact that the districts bordering on this country enjoy
the greater security and tranquillity.
The personnel of this consulate has just had the
opportunity to pass through several of those districts, and it has been
able to note with satisfaction that their inhabitants dedicate
themselves with all confidence to the labors of the field; it has seen
all the ranches peopled which a few years before were constant resorts
of the Indians; the same ranches covered with cattle and grain; and
their roads, which before caused actual fright, and where multitudes of
crosses are still distinguished indicating the place where so many
victims were sacrificed, now traversed in all directions by all kinds of
persons unarmed.
The assertions made by La Era Nueva have not, according to my conception,
other merit than that generally had by local newspaper paragraphers,
often originating in rumors or perhaps in the just indignation caused by
grave evils which it is desired to avert; if those acts were true, they
could not have been concealed any length of time from the government of
the State more interested than any other in ending them, as the
multitudes of Sonorenses (people of Sonora) residing in this Territory
would have hastened to inform against them without waiting for it to be
done by La Era Nueva, which is published in Hermosillo by a stranger. If
it were true that the Indians are instigated to rob in your State, they
would not go to the districts of Moctezuma and
[Page 603]
Sahuaripa, where there are no cattle of any kind;
but it would be sufficient to simply cross the line in order to provide
themselves in the bordering districts of Altar and Magdalena with all
that they could desire: and lastly, if it were true that these Indians
were sent into our State to rob, they would have returned already with
or without booty, and would not have stationed themselves in the
mountains of Sahuaripa, where, it appears, they have for some months
past established their haunts. These are truths with which the
intelligent editor of La Era Nueva is probably not acquainted, as he
seems to be uninformed even of the geographical position of each
district, and the special circumstances which occur in them.
The barbarians who lately invaded the districts of Sahuaripa and
Moctezuma cannot return to this territory where a sure punishment awaits
them, and it would be desirable that the general-in-chief of the federal
force in your State, or the person on whom it devolves to do it, should
follow up with due energy those few Indians who, fugitives from this
territory, have taken refuge in the mountains of Sahuaripa and
Moctezuma; that such pursuit should not cease until they are captured or
exterminated, and then those districts would enter upon the road of
progress and prosperity which is noted in the other districts composing
the State.
Perhaps I have made this communication too lengthy, which should simply
contain the report which you have been pleased to ask of me, but the
desire to establish the truth in the grave matter giving rise to it, has
caused me to enter upon considerations which are logically linked with
it, and which I have thought proper you should estimate according to the
true value they may have.
I improve this opportunity to reiterate to you the protestations of my
most respectful consideration and esteem.
The citizen Governor of the State of
Sonora, Ures.
