Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Address of the President to Congress December 7, 1915

File No. 812.00/15215.

The Confidential Agent of the Constitutionalist Government of Mexico to the Secretary of State ad interim.

Washington, June 12, 1915.

Mr. Secretary: I am directed by my Government to bring to the attention of His Excellency the President of the United States, the enclosed copy of a declaration issued by Mr. Venustiano Carranza, in his capacity of First Chief of the Constitutionalist Army and Depositary of the Executive Power of Mexico, addressed to the people of the Mexican Republic. I shall, therefore, appreciate it very much if your excellency will have the kindness to cause the same to be brought to the knowledge of His Excellency the President.

Thanking you sincerely in anticipation of your kindness,

I avail [etc.]

E. Arredondo.

[Inclosure—Translation—Extract.]

manifesto to the nation.

At last, after five years of warfare * * * the revolution is about to end. * * * The struggle has been a long one because the impatience of the revolutionaries to attain victory in 1911 gave room to the compromise with the elements of the old régime. * * * Then I, as Governor of the State of Coahuila, in obedience to Articles 121 and 128 of the Constitution, assumed the representation of the Republic in the terms in which the Constitution itself vests me with this right, and supported by the people who rose in arms’ to regain their liberty. The above-mentioned articles provide the following:

Every public officer without exception, prior to his taking possession of his charge, shall make oath that he will sustain the Constitution and the laws emanating therefrom. This Constitution shall not fail in force or vigor, even though on account of rebellion its observance may be interrupted. In case that pursuant to a public disturbance a government contrary to the principles sanctioned by the Constitution be established, as soon as the people regain their freedom its observance shall be reestablished, and according to it and to the laws which by virtue of it may have been enacted, those who may have figured in the government emanated from the rebellion shall be tried as well as those who may have cooperated in the movement.

After the rebellion and usurpation of Huerta had been overthrown and before the Constitutionalist Army reached the City of Mexico, the reactionaries, faithful to their old procedure, began to mingle in our ranks and corrupt those who ought to have given their support to this Government; the result was the repudiation of this Government by General Villa and the formation of factions whose chiefs felt encouraged by the presence of the foreign representatives who were with them.

When our forces left the City of Mexico pursuant to a military and political plan, it was thought that the Constitutionalist Government had lost the support of the people and with it its prestige and force, and that it would follow the course of previous trespassers on public power. But the apparent victory of the reaction headed by Francisco Villa, was still more ephemeral than the one obtained by the usurpation of General Huerta; and today, after the greatest and most definite victories militarily obtained by the army of the people in various parts of the country, I can say to my countrymen that the Constitutionalist Government has control of over seven-eighths of the national territory; that it is organizing public administration in twenty out of the twenty-seven States of the Republic and in more than half of the other seven States; that it controls all the ports on the Gulf and the Pacific Ocean with the exception of Guaymas, and all the ports of entry on the northern and southern frontiers with the exception of Piedras Negras, Ciudad Juarez, and Nogales; that more than thirteen million of the fifteen which represent the population of the country, that is to say, nine-tenths of the total population of the Republic, are governed by the administration over which I preside; that day after day the factions are being routed and dispersed, their offensive action being limited at present to acts of brigandage; and that within a short time the occupation of the City of Mexico will contribute to make the action of the Constitutionalist Government more harmonious and efficient in all the territory of the Republic. Therefore, our country is nearing the end of its revolution and approaching the consolidation of a definite peace based on welfare and justice.

In the midst of the greatest difficulties the Constitutionalist Government has extenuated the hardships of war, either forbidding the exportation of articles of prime necessity or adopting measures of practical effect to facilitate the acquisition of the same for the benefit of the poor; it has afforded guaranties and given protection to the inhabitants within the territory controlled by the Constitutionalist forces, all of whom live a life of normal activity; it has prevented and punished the faults and abuses growing out of the state of social disturbance.

With regard to our foreign relations, notwithstanding that one of my first acts was to address a note by telegraph to the State Department of the United States of America apprising it of my situation in confronting the rebellion and usurpation, one of the difficulties which has retarded our labors has been the lack of understanding between the Government I have the honor to represent and the Governments of other nations, especially that of the United States.

The great interests of the old régime have created a system of falsehood and slander against this Government, spreading day after day through the powerful journals of the American “Científico” press which reach the ear of the press of the world, with the object of deforming before the opinion of other nations the procedure and the tendencies of the Mexican Revolution; the same interests have used their influence to have false reports rendered to the Governments of other countries, and especially that of the United States. The Constitutionalist Government has been deprived of the facilities to make any rectifications of such reports, because it has been denied the opportunity and the means incidental to diplomatic relations between one country and another.

We feel that we are at the present time in condition to overcome this last difficulty, because the Constitutionalist Government is now in de facto possession of the sovereignty of the country; and the legitimate army of sovereignty is the essential condition to be borne in mind when deciding upon the recognition of a government.

If, as we expect and desire in behalf of the Mexican people and of the foreign residents of this country, the Governments of other nations recognize the Constitutional Government, this act of justice will afford it an efficient moral assistance, not only to strengthen the friendly relations which Mexico has always maintained with those nations and to make possible the discussion of their common affairs but also to secure a more speedy consolidation of peace and establish a constructive constitutional government, supported by the reforms and the program of the revolution.

I am therefore of the opinion that the time has come to call the attention of the warring factions still in armed opposition to the Constitutionalist Government, to the futility of their attitude because of the recent definite victories gained by our army, as well as because of the conviction they must have of our sincerity and capability to realize the ideals of the Revolution. Therefore, I appeal to those factions to submit to the Constitutionalist Government in order to expedite the reestablishment of peace and to consummate the work of the Revolution.

With a view to realizing the above-mentioned purposes, I have deemed proper to inform the nation upon the political conduct to be observed by the Constitutionalist Government, in the performance of the program of social reform contained in the Decree of December 12, 1914.²⁵

1. The Constitutional Government shall afford to foreigners residing in Mexico all the guaranties to which they are entitled according to our laws, and shall amply protect their lives, their freedom and the enjoyment of their rights of property, allowing them indemnities for the damage which the Revolution may have caused them, in so far as such indemnities may be just, and which are to be determined by procedure to be established later. The Government shall also assume responsibility for legitimate financial obligations.

2. The first concern of the Constitutionalist Government shall be to reestablish peace within the province of law and order, to the end that all the inhabitants of Mexico, both native and foreign, shall equally enjoy the benefits of true justice and be interested in cooperating to the support of the government emanating from the Revolution. The commission of crimes of the common order shall be punished. In due time an amnesty shall be declared in keeping with the necessities of the country and the situation, which in no way shall exempt those under it from the civil responsibilities they may have incurred.

3. The constitutional laws of Mexico known under the name of Laws of Reform, which establish the separation of the Church and the State and which guarantee the individual right of worship in accordance with one’s own conscience and without offending public order, shall be strictly observed; therefore no one shall suffer in his life, freedom and property because of his religious beliefs. Temples shall continue to be the property of the nation according to laws in force, and the Constitutionalist Government shall again cede for the purposes of worship those which may be necessary.

4. There shall be no confiscations in connection with the settlement of the agrarian question. This problem shall be solved by an equitable distribution of the lands still owned by the Government; by the recovery of those lots which may have been illegally taken from individuals or communities; by the purchase and expropriation of large tracts of land, if necessary; by all other means of acquisition permitted by the laws of the country. The Constitution of Mexico forbids privileges and therefore, all kinds of properties regardless of who the owners may be, whether operated or not, shall in the future be subject to the proportional payment of a tax in accordance with a just and equitable valuation.

5. All property legitimately acquired from individuals or legal governments, and which does not constitute a privilege or a monopoly, shall be respected.

6. The peace and safety of a nation depend on a clear understanding of citizenship; therefore the Government shall take pains to develop public education, causing it to spread throughout the country, and to this end it shall utilize all cooperation rendered in good faith, permitting the establishment of private schools subject to our laws.

7. In order to establish constitutional government, the Government over which I preside shall observe and comply with the provisions of Articles 4, 5 and 6 of the Decree of December 12, 1914, which read as follows:

[Quotation of Articles 4, 5 and 6.]²⁶

V. Carranza,
First Chief of the Constitutionalist Army in charge of the Executive Power of the Nation

.

Vera Cruz , June 11, 1915.

25. See For. Rel. 1914, p. 629.
26. This decree is printed in For. Rel. 1914, pp. 632–633.