the revolution of 1910

the year 1910 marked the completion of one hundred years of mexican independence. in september of that year this event was celebrated with all the pomp and pageantry customary in latin countries. nearly the whole month was given up to public functions in various parts of the republic, and especially in the city of mexico, the national capital. representatives of all the great nations of the world were sent there to assist in the ceremonies incident to the celebration. dedications of public buildings, magnificent balls, public fêtes and exercises commemorative of independence and of the national heroes, who led the struggle against the spaniards, were numerous. the 15th and the 16th of september were the great gala days of this centennial anniversary. the further fact that added lustre to the event was the eightieth anniversary of the birth of president diaz, who had established[397] a substantial government after the many years of strife through which the country had passed between the years 1810 and 1876. in all the speeches made by foreign representatives the great work of this man was extolled, as well as the progress that had been made by the nation itself.

the culmination of the centennial ceremonies was on the night of the 15th, just a little while before midnight. by half past ten o’clock the immense plaza, which faces the national palace, was filled with an immense crowd of mexican dignitaries, distinguished foreigners and the population of the city. it was a mass of living, breathing, expectant humanity. the many coloured lights formed veritable rainbows of colour, and this added an additional attraction to the teeming, seething crowd. the door leading to the central balcony on the front of the national palace opened, and president diaz appeared. an intense stillness fell upon the crowd. in his right hand the president carried the national flag of mexico, and immediately on his appearance the red, white and green lamps (the national colours) surrounding the old bell with which hidalgo first sounded the call to liberty, and which has found a permanent resting place here, flashed[398] into a radiant glow. as the strains of the national anthem floated out on the breeze, the president waved his flag, rang the bell and shouted “viva mexico!” the great crowd went wild with excitement. the cry of “viva mexico!” was taken up by the crowd near to the president, and then by those farther away, until the great shout might have been heard all over the capital. the bells of the grand old cathedral pealed forth their loudest tones, the factory whistles shrieked, sky-rockets were sent up in the air and every noise-making device was turned loose. pandemonium reigned. “viva diaz!” and “viva el presidente!” were mingled with the cry of “viva mexico!”

in the light of later events this wonderful celebration seems to have been a sham, or at least only on the surface. at that time a political volcano was simmering all over the republic, and was just ready to break forth into violent eruption. diaz had already been re-elected for the eighth term, but the inauguration was not to take place until the fifth of december. in november the first outbreaks against the civil authorities occurred. an abortive rising occurred in puebla in which blood was shed. armed bodies appeared in the states of chihuahua and sonora, in the northwestern part[399] of the republic. these bodies attacked the outlying haciendas, robbed the owners of horses and foraged at will to secure supplies for themselves and their horses. the country in which these outbreaks occurred is ideal for the guerilla warfare that followed. both of those states are mountainous and thinly settled, so that it was comparatively easy for even a small band of armed men to make a great deal of trouble and escape from a much larger force that might attempt to pursue them.

government troops were promptly dispatched to the scene of trouble, but it was difficult to catch up with the marauders and engage them in battle. their outbreaks would first be heard of in one neighbourhood, and a few days later reports of trouble would be received from sections quite remote. additional armed bodies appeared in other sections, and it was not many weeks until the trouble began to present a serious aspect. many of the government troops sent against the insurrectos were either cowardly or were in secret sympathy with those opposed to the government. whenever actual engagements did occur the outcome was generally in favour of the federal troops, but the defeated ones were always able to escape into the country, where it was difficult for them to[400] be followed. the first battle of any note was fought at mal paso, when the federals were routed, but a battle at ojinaga a few days later was a decided defeat for the revolutionists. the failure of the government to stamp out the trouble promptly gave encouragement to all the disaffected ones, and the old spirit of lawlessness that once prevailed seemed about to break forth with all its animus and disregard of the rights of private property.

the predominant figures among the insurrectos were the maderos, a wealthy family that owned great estates near the city of torreon. in the presidential campaign that had just passed, francisco madero had been a candidate for the presidency. he was thrown into prison, as that family asserted, simply because he dared to oppose the dictator who had held power for so long. the reason given out by the government was, of course, far different. nevertheless all the disaffected factions of the republic rallied around this family, which did the principal financing of the revolutionists. a propaganda was conducted in the united states by the maderos, and they obtained a great deal of encouragement from the majority of the newspapers of the united states, which had recently taken a position extremely antagonistic[401] to the diaz government. francisco madero established a revolutionary junta in el paso, and large quantities of ammunition were sent across the border. a warrant for his arrest having been issued because of violation of the neutrality laws, madero with a handful of followers crossed into chihuahua and entered actively into the campaign.

“no re-election” and “effective suffrage” were the two catch-words of madero. it was very similar to that of porfirio diaz when he swept everything before him. at no time were there, according to the best reports that can be obtained, more than a few thousand men enrolled under the madero banner. these troops were scattered throughout northern mexico, from ciudad juarez to the pacific ocean. into their ranks were drawn many soldiers of fortune from the united states, as well as from europe. a part of these men were no doubt really patriotic in their motives, while others simply grasped the chance of engaging in an exciting campaign because of the freedom of action which was offered, and also partly because of the rewards that were promised by those at the head of the revolution. an eye-witness of the engagement at tia juana says that not over ten per cent. of the insurrectos[402] who captured that town were mexicans, the remainder being made up of americans, including some negroes, germans, english and other nationalities. this engagement occurred on may 8th and 9th, 1911. the federals threw up breastworks of bags of sand, and the women and children were sent out of town to the american side. the fighting was severe and many were killed on both sides. on the second day the government forces yielded, and the rebels immediately pillaged the town and stores.

most of the engagements took place at towns near the border, at ciudad juarez, nogales and douglass, as well as tia juana. two reasons were probably responsible for this fact. one was that it gave the insurrectos, in case they were defeated, an easy escape across the border, and another was that they were anxious to capture the custom-houses in order to secure the revenue from that source. this would also enable them to set up a de facto government, which might secure for them recognition from countries that looked upon them with favour. because of these fights on the border, and the reckless shooting by the combatants, no fewer than twenty citizens of the united states were killed and twice that number[403] wounded upon the american side, including men, women and children, none of whom had taken any part in the conflict. the camps of the maderistas at all times contained numerous american correspondents, and the reports of the majority of them were favourable to the cause of that faction. the battle of casas grandes was all but decisive. in this engagement madero took part and was slightly wounded, while the opposing leader lost an arm. but madero was soon in the field again at the head of his forces. the movement had likewise spread, and the government faced trouble in the country even as far south as the isthmus of tehuantepec.

the aim of the maderistas was to secure recognition as belligerents from the government of the united states, and it was also the desire of the government to put down the insurrection in order to prevent action by the united states to suppress the trouble because of the complaint of many americans whose property had been destroyed, or was in danger of destruction. railroad tracks were torn up, mines were tampered with and much other interference with the property of foreigners followed. european governments did not dare to interfere because of the monroe doctrine, and pressure[404] was brought upon the government at washington to restore order. on may 8th there was great excitement in the united states following orders issued by the department of war for the mobilization of american troops along the mexican border. almost twenty thousand troops were sent to texas and centralized at san antonio. from there they were sent to various places along the international border, but with positive instruction to take no part in the trouble on the other side of the rio grande. the press looked upon this action as preliminary to armed intervention, but no such result followed. this movement of troops was no doubt actuated by the motive of showing what the united states could do, and of impressing both sides to the conflict that foreign property must be left undisturbed and the rights of neutral parties carefully observed.

several attempts were made by the maderistas to capture ciudad juarez, the prosperous city directly opposite el paso. the federal troops in the city were under the command of general navarro, while the insurrectos in the final siege were commanded by gen. pascual orozco. after a battle of several days, including considerable street fighting, general navarro surrendered his command of fifteen[405] hundred men to general orozco on the 10th of may. shortly after this madero himself entered the city as victor, and immediately set up a provisional government, giving himself the title of provisional president. this gave the insurrectos control of the important custom house at ciudad juarez, and was a great victory for their cause. “on to mexico” then became the popular cry, and preparations began to be made for that long march. torreon had fallen, and pachuca, only forty miles from the capital, had been taken possession of by the revolutionists. chihuahua and a number of other cities were besieged by them.

at this stage diaz and his advisers asked for an armistice in order that negotiations might be conducted. each side appointed commissioners, and efforts were made to agree upon terms for settling the trouble into which the country had been plunged. the maderistas refused to consider any terms which did not involve the resignation of president diaz, vice-president corral and the entire cabinet. president diaz, in order to avoid further bloodshed, the outcome of which would be very uncertain, finally acceded to these terms and agreed to resign before the end of the month. his resignation was delayed, however, for[406] some time, and disorder again broke out in several places. even in the city of mexico mobs formed, and practically took possession of the city on the 24th and 25th of may. before the close of the latter day president diaz handed in his resignation, as the vice-president had previously done, and the government was turned over to francisco de la barra, who had been agreed upon as the provisional president until a new executive could be chosen at a special election. president diaz secretly left the city of mexico, and embarked on a vessel at vera cruz for europe. a new cabinet was selected by acting-president barra, the majority of whom were suggested by francisco madero. a wiser selection than dr. de la barra it would have been difficult to make for such a troublesome position. he had represented mexico at washington just prior to the troubles of his country, and commanded great respect among the officials in that city.

with the downfall of diaz the real troubles of the maderistas began. it is almost always true that the victorious are impatient to secure the fruits of their victory. extravagant promises had been made by the leaders of the revolution, which included free land, lower taxes, higher wages and a decreased cost of living.[407] it was impossible for the leaders to do these things at once, as it would take several years to work out such a program. although francisco madero held no office, he had been designated as an adviser of the new government, and no appointments were made by the provisional president without his approval. this brought about jealousies among the ambitious leaders, and there has been more or less fighting in various sections of the republic in which much blood has been shed. a few generals deserted the standards of madero and have kept up fighting on their own account. a serious outbreak occurred in the city of puebla in which many were killed. many political parties followed, as it had been many years since there was a definite party organization in mexico. some of these were very small, being made up simply of factional groups. the church party again became prominent and started to take an active part in the approaching election. bernardo reyes, who had been sent on a mission to europe by diaz in order to get him out of the country, returned, and a strong party known as the reyesistas arose and wanted to nominate him for the presidency. he left the country, however, before the final elections, claiming to be in fear of his life.[408] this voluntary expatriation of general reyes on september 28th, when, disguised as an invalid, he walked up the gang-plank of a steamer at vera cruz, bound for new york, removed the only obstacle in the path of sr. madero. the election, which was held on sunday, october 1st, 1911, was as peaceful as such an event could be in most parts of mexico. it does not necessarily mean that they were not inclined to fight, but there was nothing to fight about. the result was that the electors chosen were almost unanimous for francisco madero.

to an american this election would seem almost farcical. for the purpose of the election the country was divided into districts, with one presidential elector for every five hundred inhabitants. before election day two officials were appointed in each district. one of these officials compiled a list of the voters in his little subdivision. when he had looked up the voters in his district, and the names were printed and posted on some convenient street corner, this official’s duties ended. any one whose name did not appear on the printed list had a right to go to the proper authorities and state his case. all those qualified to vote received a ballot on which they were to write the names of the electors they wished to vote[409] for. the second official appointed took charge of the election booth on the morning of the election, and these booths were generally placed at the entrance to business houses or even in the parks. the voting places were supposed to open at 9 o’clock. the first seven voters who appeared, with the one commissioner appointed, constituted the election board. in american cities one could imagine a great rush of voters to be among the first seven, but in many of the mexican booths that number did not arrive until half an hour or an hour after the time the booth was supposed to open. the commissioner in charge sat at the table with a list of the voters beside him, and, as the voters appeared, they indicated the names of the electors for whom they wished to vote, and the commissioner then communicated this information to the other members of the board in an audible voice. as a general rule there was no closed ballot box, but the ballots were merely laid in an open pasteboard box with a paperweight on top to hold them down. of secrecy or an attempt at secrecy there was none. some citizens sent their wives to vote for them with the information that they themselves were indisposed, and these ballots were accepted. it is claimed that the peons generally abstained[410] from voting, partly because of pride because they were not able to write, but more likely because of indifference since they had never been allowed such a privilege before.

sr. don francisco i. madero.

courtesy of the bulletin of the pan-american union.

the only real contest in the election was over the choice of a vice-president. dr. vasquez gomez, who had been the principal aid of sr. madero in the revolution, had been cast aside by him in favour of josé maria pino suarez. the cause of the disagreement between these two leaders of the revolution was in part over the name of the party. dr. gomez insisted upon the original name of the revolutionist party, which was anti-reelectionista, while sr. madero decided upon the name of constitutional progressive. dr. gomez continued as a candidate under the name chosen by him. many also voted for the acting-president, although he was not an active candidate. other names of parties with tickets in the field were pure liberal party, red liberals, evolutionist party and reyesistas. an active campaign was carried on by several of the candidates, and se?or madero visited many of the states in a speaking tour. everywhere he was received with respect and at many times with real enthusiasm. soldiers were present at the voting booths in many places on election day[411] to prevent trouble, but there was very little disturbance in any part of the country.

on the 6th of november, 1911, francisco indalecio madero was inaugurated president of mexico with elaborate ceremonies, and pino suarez was inducted into the office of vice-president. the new chief executive of the republic was born on the hacienda del rosario, in the state of coahuila, on the 4th of october, 1873, and is still a young man. he is the eldest of a family of thirteen children, and both of his parents are members of wealthy land-owning families. it is estimated that the revolution cost the maderos more than a million dollars, but they could well afford it. he married se?orita sara pérez, the daughter of a prominent mexican, in 1900. for several years president madero has been the leader of the opposition in the republic. his appearance is not that of a leader, for the new president is barely five feet four in height and weighs less than one hundred thirty-five pounds. his figure is slight, with small hands and feet, and he wears a full beard. by way of preparing for his campaign madero wrote a book entitled “the presidential succession in 1910,” which created such a tremendous sensation that it was finally suppressed by the diaz government. it was a[412] fearless arraignment of what he considered to be the evils of that administration. on june 7th, 1910, he was arrested at monterey and imprisoned for several weeks, not being released until after the election had been held. it was then that he published his political platform known as the “plan of san luis potosi,” which was issued from that city on the 5th of october. among the reforms advocated by him were a more equitable distribution of the lands of the republic, free restitution of lands wrested from the yaquis and a return of that tribe to their native state, and an abolition of the practice of admitting malefactors into the national army.

it is impossible to predict the outcome of the madero administration. if the people stand by him many needed reforms may be accomplished. the main difficulty to be overcome will be that personalism enters so much into mexican politics. if parties backed by real and genuine principles and not dependent for their strength upon a single personality, shall arise, then peaceful conditions will return and president madero will be permitted to work out his program. he showed himself humane and considerate during the revolution, although he did not distinguish himself especially[413] as a strategist or military leader. he broke all precedents in yielding the provisional presidency to dr. de la barra, instead of seizing that office himself as he might easily have done. in his speeches he has counselled moderation among his followers. he has a difficult task before him, but it is the hope of the writer that he will not disappoint those who have raised him to power.

president madero has been accused of being anti-american in his sympathies. as an answer to this i quote from an authorized statement by him in an american newspaper:

“i am glad at this time to have the opportunity to assure the american people of my great friendship and regard for them, and to assure them that i will do all in my power during my administration to strengthen still more the already strong friendly relations existing between the two nations. i feel very sure that during my administration the bonds which unite the sister republic will become far stronger than they have ever been. i am a great admirer of the american people, for i went to school in the united states and i have travelled much in your country. i will welcome americans to mexico at all times. i want to see american energy, american brains and[414] american capital come to this country and assist in its development and progress, and americans will always find a friend in me and my government.”