Plumb to William H. Seward, January 24, 1868

Mr. Plumb to. Mr. Seward.

Sir: On the 13th instant the telegraphic announcement, of which a translation is inclosed herewith, was published in the papers of this city that a large number of the leading and most respectable merchants, chiefly foreigners, of San Luis Potosi had been arrested, under an order condemning them to imprisonment for three months for their failure to pay a forced loan, or anticipation of contributions, summarily levied upon them by the governor of that state.

The event created great alarm and anxiety in foreign commercial circles here, and was apparently viewed with regret by many leading Mexicans.

After the pledges made with regard to foreigners, both by the executive and by the Mexican congress, I did not doubt that immediate action in the matter would be taken by the general government.

In this I have been disappointed.

On the 20th and 21st instants letters stating the facts reached here from San Luis and were placed in my hands, and I was appealed to to make some interposition in behalf of the foreigners so thrown into imprisonment.

As the only foreign representative in this country, I felt that I should be wanting in my duty if I permitted such an occurrence to pass without some notice at my hands.

At the same time, under the tenor of the correspondence that has taken place with this government regarding the protection to be extended by the United States to foreigners in a condition of non-representation in this country, and your latest instructions in that regard, I did not feel at liberty to address this government officially upon the subject, nor to assume to make any demand, but I thought it to be my duty at least to lay before it the information that had reached me to recall to their attention their own pledges and their own laws, and to show that such acts could not pass without notice, but that they would be officially laid before the judgment of the world.

I therefore addressed to Mr. Lerdo de Tejada, on the 22d instant, the unofficial note of which a copy is inclosed herewith.

Yesterday, the 23d instant, a further telegraphic communication from San Luis Potosi was published here, of which I annex translation, which shows that the merchants who have been arrested are still in prison.

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

[Extract from a letter from Messrs. Davies & Co.]

Here the excitement about the new law is as great as ever, and business quite at a stand. Our authorities seem determined to carry the law into effect, and if they do so all the houses will have to liquidate and go to some other State.

The quotas for first class houses we hear have been reduced from $18,000 to $6,000, but even this we cannot pay, as it would be simply so much money lost.

Because we decline to pay a loan on account of the new contributions, our Mr. Endara was arrested on the 12th instant, and thrown into prison, together with nine other merchants, and is still in confinement.

In addition to the above, we were embargoed on the 15th instant, and the sum of $1,000 forcibly taken out of our chest.

This is the way in which our authorities understand constitutional liberty.

We have petitioned our State congress, asking for the derogation of the new law, but they have refused to take our petition into consideration. We have also applied to the judge of the district for protection, both against the law and the imprisonment.

As regards the first request, he has not yet replied, but about the latter he has decided “that there is ground for the petition,” and the prisoners are to undergo some kind of a trial to-morrow.

We have telegraphed to the President on the subject, but as yet have received no answer. We are now preparing a petition to the general congress.

It seems that our government is determined to get the first third of the new law out of us, even if it has to abrogate the law afterwards; and to insure this, a resolution of our congress was published yesterday imposing a fine of $500 on any person who closes his house of business in order to evade payment of the tax.