812.00Sonora/478
Señor Gerzayn Ugarte to the Secretary of State
Excellency: I have the honour to acquaint your Excellency that General José Gonzalo Escobar, Supreme Chief of the Renovador forces encharged with the Executive Power of the Mexican Nation, has deemed it proper to confer upon me the appointment of High Commissioner in order to represent the interests of the Revolution near the Government of this country, such appointment having been made in accordance with the powers conferred upon him by the Plan of Hermosillo, dated the 3rd day of March, 1929.
The Mexican people have been obliged by various reasons, in order to defend their rights, to resort to arms. The Plan of Hermosillo shows by its terms that no other recourse was left but the employment of force to oppose the despotic regime which had imposed itself against the liberty of the people and which ruled my country. The man responsible for this situation is General Plutarco Elías Calles who promised faithfully to withdraw from public affairs at the expiration of his term, but who continued to influence the Governmental policies thru the Provisional President, Emilio Portes Gil.
The legality of the revolutionary movement, which is not a military mutiny, as unfortunately there has been an attempt to make it appear, constitutes a genuine protest of the Mexican people against the tyranny of General Calles, and is based upon the fact that the Constitutional State Governments of Sonora, Chihuahua, Durango and Sinaloa seceded from the Federal Pact, and broke their alliance with the Central Government, delegating their powers and their representation to General Escobar. In which concept it should also be borne in mind that a great number of members of the Federal Legislative Body adhered to the movement by signing the Plan of Hermosillo.
The revolution was initiated on the third day of the present month and already has had various military successes against the federal [Page 376] army, such as the capture of Monterrey, capital of the State of Nuevo Leon, Saltillo, the capital of the State of Coahuila, Ciudad Juárez, a border port important to United States, and many battles of significance in states controlled by the revolutionary party. The revolution has extended to the south into the States of Tepic, Jalisco, Guanajuato, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, Michoacán, San Luis Potosí, Mexico and Guerrero not to mention several other evidences of rebellion which have manifested themselves in the remaining States of the Mexican Republic.
The Supreme Chief of the Renovador forces felt it his duty to accept the mandate of the constitutional Governments above referred to, and has especially instructed me to extend assurances express and emphatic to the Government of the United States, that the revolutionary Government is inspired with high ideals of justice and will employ in its warfare the best principles compatible with humanity, as it has already done by abolishing the death penalty. The Revolutionary Party is also eager to fulfill its international obligations, and will strictly uphold the granting of full guarantees and protection to foreign lives and property, and will give due consideration to all just demands presented.
In having the honour to lay before your Excellency the purposes which animate the present revolution in Mexico, it is a pleasure to assure you that the lives and interests of American citizens will enjoy, as they have enjoyed to date, the most ample protection, in all places where the Provisional Government of Mexico shall be organized by the revolutionary forces, under the dictates of the Plan of Hermosillo.
I have further, the honour to enclose a copy of the appointment made in my favour by the Supreme Chief, General José Gonzalo Escobar,29 a copy of the declarations made by Dr. Gilberto Valenzuela, which set forth the general causes of the present revolutionary movement,29 and a printed copy of the Plan of Hermosillo30 together with the adhesion of the constitutional Governor of Chihuahua, General Marcelo Caraveo.29
I beg [etc.]