File No. 812.00/13864.
Vice Consul Silliman to the Secretary of State.
General Blanco assumed charge here last night and says he has sufficient troops to amply protect this capital. He at once completed provisional organization by appointing necessary sub-officials.
At a conference of generals here yesterday afternoon an independent movement was initiated which will probably have approval of all generals here including possibly González and Obregón. The conference determined to protect the city in spite of the order for complete evacuation, and formally decided: (1) To sustain the [Page 626] Aguascalientes Convention up to the point of the repudiation of Carranza and the election of Gutiérrez as Provisional President; (2) to repudiate the appointment of Villa as Commander in Chief, inasmuch as the Convention had previously determined on his retirement; (3) to appoint commissioners to immediately see if the retirement of Villa and Carranza cannot still be honorably effected and suitable commissions abroad given both of them; (4) to arrange for reconvening the Convention here to reconsider or to ratify election of Gutiérrez and to form a provisional government with programme for pre-constitutional period and to name the date of its termination; (5) to appoint provisional governors for those States which appear to need a change of personnel. They pledge themselves to unite with the Division of North in directing the retirement of Carranza if the condition regarding retirement of Villa is complied with. The intimation is that they will resist the Convention and Villa with arms if their proposition is not accepted. If no agreement can be reached, their plan will probably be not to make any serious resistance here but to retire, allow Villa to come in, and then attempt to isolate this city and dominate the remainder of the country.