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MEXICO SWARMING WITH BANDITS BANDITSMexico Mexico is swarming with bandits remarked Alonzo Ilarter a resident of New York who spent the best part of the last two years in that country at the AVashiugtou There is of course a distinc ¬ tion between the bandits who made up the socalled revolutionary forces of Villa and other leaders Villa is now operating in Chihuahua and Soiiora but his followers have dwindled until they do not number more than 1 00 In the southern part oi Mexico Zapata has a greater force than Villa with Morelos as his headquarters while in Oaxaca Felix liaz is feebly attempting to create a revolution witli several hundred Mexicans The situation is much better than it was and the government is really in control of the country with the excep ¬ tions I have mentioned There are some other small bands of bandits not affiliated with any of the organized bands such as Villas and Zapatas but are oitcnitiiig on their own account accountIn In Michoacon Jose Inez Chavez is heading an ¬ other smallsized revolutionary movement The people however do not fear the followers of Villa Zapata and Diaz so much as they do the smaller parties of bandits who hold up travelers in the highways and frequently hold persons for ransom Not long ago an Englishman was captured and held for ransom and the highwaymen released him only when they got their booty Kailroad trains all run with armored cars fitted witli machine guns but even with this protection there have been frequent cases where trains have been stopped and the passengers robbed There is really only one safe railroad in Mexico that is from Mexico City to Laredo Tex Southward the conditions are bad and on the Isthmus of Tehauntepec insurance companies have refused to write further risks Trains run to that part of the country at regular intervals but the shipper takes the risk of de ¬ livery liveryIn In the cities fairly good order is maintained It is in the outlying districts that the bandits work For this reason agricultural operations have been curtailed The farmers have not dared to plant the fields where they would be a prey to the ban Vlits With all this however the harvest promises to be good There is no denying that there is a strong anti American feeling throughout Mexico mostly among the middle and lower classes and this has l een intensified by the German agents who hnve been highly successful in their propaganda The propa ¬ ganda is carried on through the newspapers at the moving picture houses and in every possible place Germans own four of five papers which are openly serving Germany Washington 1ost
