Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Address of the President to Congress December 8, 1914

File No. 812.00/14031.

Mr. Arredondo to the Secretary of State.

Confidential Agency of the Constitutionalist Government of Mexico,
Washington, December 16, 1914.

Mr. Secretary: I have the honor to enclose herewith copy in translation of a decree issued on the 12th instant by Mr. Venustiano (Carranza as First Chief of the Constitutionalist Army in charge of the Executive Power of Mexico, with headquarters at Vera Cruz.

In sending you this document I am prompted purely by the desire to acquaint you with the political program of the Constitutionalist Government, which by virtue of this decree has become the supreme rule of action under which all future acts of the Constitutionalist military and civil authorities will be conducted.

No efforts will be spared to accomplish the prime object of the Constitutionalist movement, which is to restore the country to peace and to establish a government based on the law and emanating directly from the will of the people of Mexico. Mr. Carranza, as well as every man under him, proposes to live up to each and every provision contained in the aforesaid decree, inasmuch as the experiences of the past have proved that no government can endure when it fails to keep its promises and diverges from the channel of the law.

I avail [etc.]

E. Arredondo

.

[Inclosure—Translation.]

Declaration and Decree issued by General Carranza at Vera Cruz on December 12, 1914

declaration.

I, Venustiano Carranza, First Chief of the Constitutionalist Army and Depository of the Executive Power of the Republic of Mexico, taking into consideration:

That on the arrest of the President and Vice President, on the 19th of February, 1913, by ex-General Victoriano Huerta, and the usurpation of public power by the latter on the 20th of the same month, and immediately thereafter depriving the above-mentioned public officers of their lives, the constitutional order of the Republic was interrupted and thus the country was deprived of a lawful government;

That the undersigned, in his capacity as constitutional Governor of the State of Coahuila, had solemnly taken the oath to observe and cause the General Constitution to be observed, and that, complying with this duty and the above oath, he was inevitably obliged to rise in arms to oppose the usurpation of Huerta, and to restore constitutional order in the Republic of Mexico;

That this duty, furthermore, was imposed upon him in a precise and express manner by a decree of the Legislature of the State of Coahuila, by which he was categorically directed to repudiate the government of the usurper Huerta and to oppose it by force of arms until it would be completely overthrown;

That in view thereof the undersigned called all patriotic Mexicans to arms, and with the first ones who followed him he framed the Plan of Guadalupe, on March 26, 1913, which has served to this day as the banner and bylaw of the Constitutionalist Revolution;⁷²

That of the military groups which were formed to oppose Huerta’s usurpation, the Divisions of the Northwest, Northeast, East, Center and South operated under the leadership of the First Chieftainship, perfect harmony existing and complete coordination of the means of action to accomplish the desired purpose; that the same did not occur with the Northern Division, which, under the command of General Francisco Villa, showed from the beginning private tendencies and finally severed its connections with the Headquarters of the Constitutionalist Revolution, acting according to its own initiative to such extent that the First Chief does not know to this day, in a great measure, the means by which the above-mentioned general has secured funds and sustained the campaign, the amount of such funds and the use he may have made of them;

That upon the arrival at the City of Mexico of the victorious revolutionary army, it endeavored to properly organize the Provisional Government and was getting ready, besides, to meet the demands of public opinion by a satisfactory solution of the imperative social reform needed by the people, when it was confronted with the difficulties preparing in the Northern Division in order to frustrate the triumphs reached by the efforts of the Constitutionalist Army;

That the First Chieftainship, anxious to organize the Provisional Government in accordance with ideas and tendencies of the men who, with arms in hand made the Constitutionalist Revolution, and who, therefore, were intimately cognizant of the ideals which were pursued, called a general convention to be held in the City of Mexico, composed of generals, governors and officers in command of troops, to the end that all of them together should decide on a program of government, indicate in a general way such reforms as seemed indispensable for the accomplishment of the social and political redemption of the nation, and establish the form and time when constitutional order should be restored.

That this purpose had soon to be deferred, because the generals, governors and officers who attended the Military Convention in the City of Mexico considered it advisable that there should be representatives at all the meetings of the elements which had taken part in the fight against the usurpation of Huerta, as some of them had abstained from attending, giving as a pretext a lack of guaranties and because of the rebellion which Francisco Villa had already started against the Chief’s Office; and on this account they expressed their desire to be transferred to Aguascalientes, the place they considered more appropriate and having the conditions of neutrality sought by the Military Convention for the prosecution of their work;

That the members of the Convention adopted this determination after they had reiterated to the undersigned their confirmation of his functions as First Chief of the Constitutionalist Revolution and Depository of the Executive Power of the Republic, which investiture he had then relinquished formally, in order to show that he was not animated by undue sentiments of personal ambition, but that in view of existing difficulties his cherished aim was that revolutionary action should not be divided, and thus frustrate the fruits of the victorious revolution;

That this First Chieftainship made no opposition to the transfer of the Military Convention to the City of Aguascalientes, although it was intimately persuaded that, far from obtaining the conciliation sought, the separation between the commander of the Northern Division and the Constitutionalist Army would become still deeper, because the First Chief did not wish to make the impression that he had the deliberate intention of excluding the Northern Division from the discussion upon matters of the greatest importance; also because he did [not] wish to appear as refusing a last effort toward conciliation, and because he believed that it was imperative, for the good of the revolution, that the true motives of General Villa should be disclosed in an evident manner before the national conscience, relieving from error those who in good faith believed in the sincerity and patriotism of General Villa and the group of men who surrounded him;

That as soon as the labors of the Aguascalientes Convention were initiated, the machinations of the Villista agents were laid bare, they having performed the principal role at the Convention; the system of threats was felt and unbridled pressure was put in practice against those who, on account of their sense of honor and spirit of independence, opposed the impositions of the commander of the Northern Division to direct the works of the Convention to suit his pleasure;

That on the other hand, many of the chiefs who attended the Aguascalientes Convention, did not grasp the importance and true mission of the Convention, and as they were men of little or no experience in political matters their good faith, abused by the malicious agents of Villa, dragged them to second inadvertently the maneuvering of the Northern Division, without regard to the cause of the people or even outlining the general thought of the Revolution and the program of the pre-constitutional government, which was generally desired;

That for the purpose of avoiding a controversy of a purely personal character and the further shedding of blood, the First Chieftanship made every possible effort to reach a conciliation, offering to withdraw from power provided a government capable of carrying into effect the social and political reforms demanded by the country should be established. But having failed to satisfy the thirst for power of the Northern Division, notwithstanding the successive concessions made by the First Chieftainship, and in view of the well-defined attitude of a great number of Constitutionalist leaders who, repudiating the resolutions adopted by the Aguascalientes Convention, ratified their allegiance to the Plan of Guadalupe, this First Chieftainship was constrained to accept the challenge to fight the reaction led at present by General Francisco Villa;

That the groups on which General Villa is banking, the same that prevented Madero from directing his policy, are therefore politically responsible in a radical sense for his downfall. On the other hand, the express declarations made on several occasions by the commander of the Northern Division advocating the establishment of constitutional order before the social and political reforms demanded by the country took place, clearly demonstrate that the insubordination of General Villa is of a strictly reactionary character and contrary to constitutionalist activities, and has for a purpose to frustrate the complete success of the revolution, preventing the esablishment of a pre-constitutional government entrusted with the enactment and enforcement of the reforms which have been the subject of the struggle which has been raging for the past four years;

That therefore, it is a duty in behalf of the Revolution and the fatherland to continue the revolution started in 1913, pursuing the fight against the new enemies of the liberty of the Mexican people;

That it being imperative that the interruption of constitutional order should subsist during this new period of the struggle, the Plan of Guadalupe should therefore continue to be in force until the enemy shall have been overpowered completely;

That it having been impossible to carry into effect the purposes for which the Military Convention of October, 1914, was convened, and the purpose of the new fight being, on the part of the reactionary troops commanded by Gen. Villa, to prevent the realization of revolutionary reforms demanded by the Mexican people, the First Chief of the Revolution is obliged to enforce, at the earliest possible moment, all the laws covering the political and economic reforms which the country requires, enacting the same during the struggle that is to be commenced;

That therefore, it being necessary for the Plan of Guadalupe to remain in force in its essential part, it is imperative that the Mexican people and the Constitutionalist Army should clearly know the military ends pursued in the present fight, which are the annihilation of the reaction creeping up with General Villa at the head, and the establishment of the political and social principles which inspire this First Chieftainship, which are the ideals for which the Mexican people have been fighting during the last four years;

That therefore, in accordance with the general sentiments of the leaders of the Constitutionalist Army, of the Governors of the States and of other collaborators of the Revolution, and interpreting the needs of the Mexican people, I, Venustiano Carranza, have seen fit to decree the following:

decree.

• Article 1. The Plan of Guadalupe, dated March 26, 1913, shall subsist until the Revolution obtains complete success; and therefore Venustiano Carranza shall continue as First Chief of the Constitutionalist Revolution and in charge of the Executive Power of the Nation until the enemy is overpowered and peace is restored.
• Article 2. The First Chief of the Revolution, in charge of the Executive Power of the Nation, shall issue and cause to be observed all the laws, provisions and measures tending to satisfy the economic, social and political needs of the country, carrying into effect such reforms as public opinion may consider indispensable for the establishment of a régime which shall guarantee: the equality of Mexicans among themselves; the enactment of agrarian laws to encourage the creation of the small land owner, dissolving the latifundia or expanding land holdings and restoring to the townships the lands unjustly taken from them; fiscal laws tending to secure an equitable system of taxation on real estate; legislation to improve the condition of the rural laborer, the artisan, the miner, and in general of the working classes; the establishment of municipal freedom as a constitutional institution; the bases for a new system of organization of the army; the amendment of the election laws in order to insure the efficiency of suffrage; the revision of laws relative to marriage and the civil status of persons; provisions to maintain the strict observance of the Laws of Reform; the revision of the civil, penal and commercial codes; the amendment of judicial procedure with a view to expedite and enhance the efficiency of the administration of justice; the revision of laws relative to the operation of mines, oil fields, water rights, forests, and other natural resources of the country, in order to destroy the monopolies created under the past regime and to avoid the creation of others in the future; political reforms to insure the true application of the Constitution of the Republic; and, in general, the enactment of all other laws which may be considered necessary to safeguard the effectiveness and full enjoyment of the rights of all the inhabitants of the country and their equality before the law.
• Article 3. In order to continue the struggle and to carry into effect the work of reform to which the preceding article refers, the First Chief of the Revolution is expressly authorized to convene and organize the Constitutionalist Army, and to direct the operations of the campaign; to appoint the governors and military commanders of the States and to remove the same freely; to decree the expropriations on the ground of public utility which may be necessary for the distribution of the lands; the foundation of townships and other public services; to negotiate loans and issue obligations against the National Treasury, indicating the assets by which they are to be guaranteed; to appoint and remove freely all federal officers of the civil administration of the States, Territories and the Federal District; to organize the departments of state and define the province of action of each one of them; to make, either directly or through the officers he may appoint to that effect, requisitions for lands, buildings, arms, horses, vehicles, provisions and other elements of warfare, as also to institute decorations and to decree rewards for services rendered to the Revolution.
• Article 4. Upon the success of the Revolution, the reinstatement of the Supreme Chieftainship in the City of Mexico and after the elections of the municipal councils have taken place in the majority of the States of the Republic, the First Chief of the Revolution, as the person in charge of the Executive Power, shall convene to elections for members of the National Congress, stating in the call the dates and terms in which such elections shall take place.
• Article 5. Upon the installation of the National Congress, the First Chief of the Revolution shall render an account before it concerning the use he may have made of the powers with which he is invested by this decree, and he shall especially submit the reforms decreed and put into effect during the struggle, to the end that Congress may ratify, amend or supplement them, and to adopt as constitutional precepts those which shall have been so maintained prior to the re-establishment of constitutional order.
• Article 6. The National Congress shall issue the proper calls for the election of President of the Republic, and as soon as this has taken place, the First Chief of the Revolution shall deliver to the President-elect the Executive Power of the Nation.
• Article 7. In the case of absolute default of the present First Chief of the Revolution and while the generals and governors proceed to elect the person who should take his place, the Supreme Chieftainship shall devolve transitorily upon the Chief of Army Corps in the place where the seat of the Revolutionary Government may be at the time the default of the First Chief may occur.

Vera Cruz, December 12, 1914.

Venustiano Carranza

.

72. For text of this plan, see footnote 58.