Such a salute General Huerta has refused, and I have come to ask your
approval and support in the course I now purpose to pursue.
This Government can, I earnestly hope, in no circumstances be forced
into war with the people of Mexico. Mexico is torn by civil strife. If
we are to accept the tests of its own constitution, it has no
government. General Huerta has set his power up in the City of Mexico,
such as it is, without right and by methods for which there can be no
justification. Only part of the country is under his control. If armed
conflict should unhappily come as a result of his attitude of personal
resentment toward this Government, we should be fighting only General
Huerta and those who adhere to him and give him their support, and our
object would be only to restore to the people of the distracted Republic
the opportunity to set up again their own laws and their own government.
But I earnestly hope that war is not now in question. I believe that I
speak for the American people when I say that we do not desire to
control in any degree the affairs of our sister Republic. Our feeling
for the people of Mexico is one of deep and genuine friendship, and
everything that we have so far done or refrained from doing has
proceeded from our desire to help them, not to hinder or embarrass them.
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