protection of the frontier by the reciprocal distribution of troops along the boundary. This proposition was made by General Obregon a number of times, but each time conditioned upon the immediate withdrawal of American troops, and the Mexican conferees were invariably informed that immediate withdrawal could not take place; and, therefore, it was impossible to discuss the project on that basis."
The publication of Mr. Lansing's Note was regarded by the Mexican people in general as an ultimatum. It created no excitement and but little comment, and the Press adopted a tone of serene confidence and exalted patriotism, a good specimen of which was the leading article of El Democrata (a widely-circulated journal) of June, 1916, which voiced public opinion as follows—
"Whatever may be the outcome of this conflict, all the time more complicated because of bad faith, there will always remain the clear evidences that the President has not provoked or precipitated the situation; but, on the contrary, he employed all the conciliatory measures compatible with dignity to reach that situation which would most conform to justice and the interests of both Mexico and the United States. The punitive expedition into our territory no one could justify—taking into account the thousand subterfuges of the United States Government, not only that it has not at once withdrawn the troops; but, with the pretext of pursuing the foragers who attacked Great Bend, has sent a new force (which latter has been withdrawn) without previously advising the Mexican authorities, thus showing that they were deceiving, and not trying to comply with the mission of punishing the marauders.
"These aggressions, and others more flagrant, are inexplicable, taking into account the anti-interventionist protests of Mr. Wilson before Latin-America and particularly what he has said to the Mexican Chancellery. It is known that they have held back shipments of arms which our Government has bought, and the machinery for manufacturing war
