MEXICAN PRESIDENCY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15663, 17 July 1914, Page 7

MEXICAN PRESIDENCY.

RESIGNATION OF HUERTA,

SUCCESSOR SWORN IN.

AMERICAN SATISFACTION.

SETTLEMENT EXPECTED.

By Telegraph—Proas Association—Copyright.

(Received July 16, 9.35 p.m.)

Mexico City, July 15. The resignation of President Huei'ta from the- Presidency of Mexico was announced to-day.

Senor Francisco Carbajal, Foreign Minister, and formerly Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Mexico, succeeds him.

President Hucrta handed his resignation to the Chamber of Deputies, which referred the resignation to a committee to take action upon it.

Tho Washington State Department hardly conceals its satisfaction at the resignation. It is expected that Carbajal will make satisfactory arrangements to hand over tho office to the Constitutionalists when General Carranza roaches tho capital. The American forces arc remaining at Vera Cruz until a settlement has been reached.

Both Houses accepted President Hucrta's resignation and Senor Carbajal was sworn in as President. Afterwards he drove to the national palaco, being greeted on the way by tumultuous cheering.

Advices from El Paso, Texas, state that General Villa has arranged to start tho march for Mexico City within a week. A force of 15,000 men has been collected for the advance.

General Obregon announces that his forces will be able to move southward in a few days.

THE REAL HTJERTA.

To discover the true nature of Victoriano Huerta, who for many months has been £0 prominent a figure on tho stage of nations, wo must look into his history, not only since, but before he succeeded Madero as President. To begin with, he is of pure Indian descent, aiftl ho is proud of it. "Yo soy Indio," he declared at a dinner given by the British Club in Mexico City to celebrate the coronation of King George, and lie went on, in one of his bursts of intimate eloquence :—" My people are young compared with your Anglo-Saxon race, but in our veins there are the same red corpuscles as in yours.'

"By keeping in mind the fact that he is Indian," says a writer in tho Times, ■" we find the clue to many sides of his character, which in a Mexican of Spanish or even mixed origin, would be harder to explain. His ability, undoubtedly remarkable, is closely allied to cunning. His intelligence has strange limitations. While at times ho can behave with striking dignity, ho allows himself in moment* cf relaxation to forget his high position. By frequenting cafes, some of them classed as disreputable, he has offended tho tfsto of tho cultivated the more so since in this respect they comparo him unfavourably with President Diaz., who was always careful to uphold tho best traditions of his office It is universally believed in tho United States that he is a heavy drinker. Here there is exaggeration. That ho drinks a certain quantity of alcohol is true. I have been told by ono who visited him in the early morning that his breakfast consisted of a beatenup raw egg, a glass of claret, and a glass of brandy. But the habit is more easily excusable when it has so little effect, either mental or physical, as in General Hucrta's case. Ho is in his 69th year, a man of powerful frame and vigorous constitution. Alcohol seems to stimulate him, without having the same effect as it would havo upon tyo great majority of men.

" Born a poor Indian boy, ho might have lived and died in obscurity but for tho timely visit to his village of a force of fioldiers, commanded by a general. The general needed an amanuensis, and at that time Indians able to read and write were even scarcer than they are to-day. Young Huerta had made good use of such poor schooling as the village afforded. mo general employed him, was struck by hifi brightness, and took him to the capital, where, through tho interest of President Juarez, he was admitted .to the military school. This, of course, could not In) compared with similar institutions in Europe, but Victorian© Huerta took full advantage of his opportunities, and at the end of tho course of studies was declared a credit to the, college, and a young man marked out for high positions. Under General Diaz ho aid good service, but for some reason was neither liked nor trusted by his com-mander-in-chief, perhaps because Diaz considered in him a possiblo rival. "Yet when the old President fled the country Huerta behaved with staunch loyalty; saw to his safe conduct i even ordered a' farewell salute to bo fired. As soon as Madero came into office Colonel Huerta was placed on half-pay. Now he enpasred in business as a con-' tractor for building materials. I have spoken with many people who knew him in this capacity in Monterey. In his business transactions ho was honest and fairly capable; but as regards the payment of his household accounts he was lets punctilious. That was where the Indian character revealed itself. Not' even when he. became President did ho settle the small accounts which he left owing in Monterey."