Mistaken British Views Of Our Duty In Mexico.

New York Times 100 years ago today, February 25, 1913:
    The opinion so freely expressed by some of the London newspapers that it is the duty of the United States Government to invade Mexico, avenge the murder of Madero, and restore order, may also be the opinion of some large proportion of the readers of those newspapers. In that case our English friends would do well to study the case with a little more deliberation. It may be that their minds are so greatly occupied with their own troubles, including the widespread discontent in the British Isles, the turmoil caused by the shrieking sisterhood, and the complicated European situation, that their opinion in regard to the duty of the United States Government has been too hastily formed.
    So far as we have learned, neither Great Britain nor any other European country has yet made known to Washington any ill-treatment of its citizens in Mexico that would justify intervention. Our State Department, as is well known, has been kept well informed of all losses of life and property among American residents of Mexico. That the condition of Mexico is viewed in Washington with grave apprehension is well understood, but false statements have been printed regarding the relations of the State Department with the Provisional Government of Gen. Huerta, and it is quite possible that the English newspapers fail to comprehend the situation.
    While a part of our army is now ready for an emergency call, there is no present likelihood of intervention by the United States. The latest advices indicate that the country is more quiet, and that there is a general willingness to help in the restoration of order in all the Mexican States except Chihuahua, Sonora, and Yucatan, where revolution, in a small way, seems chronic. Perhaps with the persistent tendency to make mischief observable in so many of our own newspapers we ought not to marvel at the inclination of London journals to fan the flame of discord, but we have been led to expect, wisdom and moderation from The Daily News and The Daily Chronicle, and to expect English judgment to be founded on a thorough knowledge of facts, and to be tempered by sobriety and prudence.