Nogales, Arizona: Orozquista inspired rioting in Nogales, Mexico during the first week of April resulted in many deaths, including several American citizens caught in the violence. Mexican authorities were incapable of maintaining order as revolutionary violence spread from the neighboring state of Chihuahua and swept through the streets of the populous border town. Federal troops, Rurales, and Municipal Police responded to the rioting mob action, but their efforts were woefully inadequate. Unruly rebels and drunken renegades raged through Nogales, beating innocent passersby and firing at anyone suspected of supporting the Madero regime or of being a foreigner. Mobs were heard chanting "death to the Gringos!"

The Nogales rioting encompassed part of Chinatown, with patrons of the local opium dens joining the throngs in the narrow streets. Several observers agree Chinamen were seen throwing sticks of dynamite into the fray, although no one can identify the intended targets. Indeed, it is unclear on whose side the Chinamen were fighting, that is if their actions constituted anything more than gratuitous violence. Although reporting is only fragmentary and conflicting, witnesses agree dynamite explosions were heard coming from the direction of the Rurale barracks.

In response to the anti-American violence, the "Jizum Rangers," a volunteer unit of Arizona "irregular cavalry" crossed the border, ostensibly to assist Mexican authorities and to protect American lives. While the exact details of what transpired remain murky at best, it appears millionaire rancher "Colonel" John Jizum's irregulars contributed more disorder than order. According to several witnesses, much of the shooting consisted of exchanges between Mexican authorities and the "Rangers." Some are even speculating the "Jizum Rangers" may have crossed the border in support of Orozco and his rebels. Orozco is known to enjoy the support of a number of wealthy Americans with financial interests in Mexico, millionaire publisher William Randolph Hearst amongst others. Jizum, himself, and Orozco are not without some personal history. As one Arizona businessman observed, "we should not forget that not long ago Orozco and his bandits were in the employ of John Jizum and fought alongside his ranch hand ruffians when they murdered a number of Arizona Rangers."

Indeed, our readers will well remember the bloody February 1911 "Rustler's Massacre" when legendary Arizona Ranger John Quincy Vanderbilt III and his deputies were gunned down during a shoot-out with Orozco and his brigands. Reports circulating at the time implicated one of John Jizum's ranch hands in the shooting of Vanderbilt.

This outrage paled in comparison, however, to what followed during the first week of March 1911 when Jizum and his band of ruffians and Mexican bandits rampaged through the very streets of our own fair Bisbee. Remember how Arizona Ranger Spanky McFarland and Silver City Sheriff Devlin "Dex" McGraw were both butchered by the fanatical Orozquista bandit Cohones Camacho while Arizona Ranger Lash LaRue was gunned down in cold blood by Jizum employee Mrs. Doc Holiday. Jizum himself shot down stalwart Rob McGraw who was attempting to defend the citizens of Bisbee from the rampaging gang.

Responding to this latest violence in Nogales, Mexico, Arizona Governor George W. P. Hunt and the Taft administration in Washington DC have disavowed any knowledge of Jizum's cross-border foray. A Justice Department spokesman pointed to the incident as an example of the sort of mercenary activity the US government was trying to discourage. He pointed to earlier warnings [reported in our last issue], regarding the consequences of American citizens interfering in Mexican internal affairs. The Attorney General is reportedly considering freezing all Jizum Ranch assets until a full investigation is completed. This decision may be complicated by the recent disclosure Jizum himself was killed during a subsequent action at the Nogales Municipal Jailhouse. Governor Hunt stated categorically that no Arizona law enforcement authorities or state officials have been involved in the fighting in Mexico and promises a full inquiry into any cross-border hostilities involving Arizona private citizens.

The question remains, however, can the Mexican authorities protect Americans and American interests in Mexico? If not, what is to be done? Federal forces are already stretched to the breaking point in northern Mexico as entire units are siphoned off to reinforce General Huerta's division del norte in Chihuahua. There are reports former revolutionary commander Alvaro Obregon, rumored killed in a desperate fight with legendary Rurale Colonel Emilio Kosterlitzkiy outside Guaymas last year, is actually alive and is being appointed a colonel in the federal army. Obregon is reportedly to be sent north to maintain order and prevent Orozquista violence from taking root in Sonora. If this is true, it may represent a small coup by the Madero regime, as Obregon is known to enjoy the trust and almost fanatical admiration of the Yaquis Indians. His appointment could serve two purposes, reestablishing federal authority in northern Sonora and quelling the increasingly turbulent Yaquis unrest around Guaymas.

Through an exceedingly fortunate, and completely unexpected, turn of events Mr. W.A. Pffankuch is able to announce that the Illustrated London News will be providing international reporting for The Bisbee Review. We hope that our readers will enjoy the exhaustively researched, and comprehensively reported, coverage of world events.

The loss of these islands is a major blow to the Turkish war effort as they lie astride the resupply route being used to support the isolated and overextended Turkish army in North African. The clearly outnumbered and outclassed Turkish navy will be hard pressed to maintain the trickle of arms and munitions previously known to be moving via coastal waters to Turkish Syria for further transfer via small boats through Egyptian waters to the scene of action in the Tripolitanian desert. Correspondents in Constantinople note Turkey's only operational cruiser, Hamidiye, has been moored in the roadstead for more than a week, interrupting what was generally acknowledged as a regular clandestine arms delivery schedule. Hamidiye's captain, the American former Merchant Marine officer Bucknam Pasha, has recently been noticed spending more time frequenting waterfront nightclubs than he has pacing Hamidiye's quarterdeck.

Concern has been expressed over the ease with which Italian forces seized the islands in the eastern Aegean and along the Anatolian coast, seemingly aware of Turkish coastal defense installations and defense plans. Sources in the Turkish admiralty and general staff have refused to speculate whether the mysterious disappearance of a confidential secretary, Mr. Mustafa Riza, in the documents section of the main naval staff might be related.

The Turkish situation in Tripolitania is desperate, with repeated attempts by regular Turkish troops and irregular Bedouin tribesman to retake the coastal fortress town of Derna resulting in failure. The wadis surrounding Derna are filled with the bloated and rotting corpses of Turkish troops. Tripoli, the only coastal port city of significance has been firmly in Italian hands since October 5th of last year. The Italians continue to reinforce and redeploy their forces along the coast at will. The vast Tripolitanian desert remains the principal obstacle to their conquest of the interior. The following observations from the noted commentator, Mr. William T. Ellis, aptly describe the action in Tripolitania following the initial Italian landings and successes:

"The strife that followed had its opera-bouffe aspect in the utter helplessness of far-off Turkey, incapable of reaching the seat of war; but it had also its tragic scandal in the accusation of cruelty made against Italian troops….The actual operations of the war were too one-sided to be interesting from a military viewpoint. Turkey had no navy which could compete for a moment with that of Italy. Hence the Turks could dispatch no troops whatever to Tripoli, and its defense devolved solely upon the native Arab inhabitants. These wild tribes were brave and warlike and frantically Mohammedan in their opposition to the Christian invaders. But they were wholly without training in modern modes of warfare and without modern weapons. Their frenzied rushes and antiquated guns were helpless in the face of quick-firing artillery."

The Italo-Turkish conflict may well have repercussions beyond North Africa and the Mediterranean region. Other Balkan nations are watching closely and beginning to marshal their forces for the opportunity to pounce on a weakened Turkey. Greece recently joined the alliance of Bulgaria, Serbia, and Montenegro. Seasoned Balkan observers believe a declaration of war against Turkey cannot be far off. Larger players are waiting and watching from the wings. Germany has suffered a major setback in its relations with Turkey. Having courted the Turk, Wilhelm II was unable to rein in his alliance partner, Italy. Britain stands patiently, hoping to step into the potential void left by Turkish alienation from Berlin. British diplomats and businessmen hope to wrest railway concessions for the new line to Baghdad away from the Kaiser. Russia hopes to see German influence with the Turk dealt a decisive blow and must be pleased that Italian expansion in the eastern Mediterranean, and potentially the Adriatic, will discomfort the Hapsburg Emperor. Vienna is increasingly concerned with the nationalistic chaos brewing in the void left by the collapse of traditionally iron-fisted Ottoman control in Balkan territories bordering the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Austrian admiralty is watching with apprehension as the Italian fleet is managed with skill and gains wartime experience. A potentially dangerous chain of events is in motion. What many consider "the great game" is seemingly afoot.

Mexico City: In a brilliant holding action at Parral in early April, former revolutionary commander Francisco "Pancho" Villa and his irregular cavalry force bought the Madero regime critical time to mobilize and redeploy federal troops in response to the seemingly unstoppable Orozquista rebellion in Chihuahua. Villa and his men withstood an initial attack by a vastly superior force of Orozquistas under Orozco's principal lieutenant, General Jose Ines Salazar, delaying the rebel advance upon Mexico City and forcing an Orozquista concentration of forces before Parral. In doing so, Villa also prevented Orozco from seizing the federal arms and munitions depot at Torreon, thereby denying him desperately needed weapons and supplies.

Carlos Roth, the Imperial German representative in Parral, described the action:

"We were awakened around 4 A.M. on April 2 by heavy cannon fire: Orozco had sent 1,000 men, two machine guns, and a cannon, expecting that it would be easy for him to take the city. The garrison of the city nevertheless offered a desperate resistance and attempted to keep the fighting on the outskirts of the city as far as possible, so that their families and uninvolved civilians would not suffer in the battle.

"By 8 A.M., it seemed as if the Orozquistas were on the verge of winning. Six mules with their cannon were halfway up the mountain that dominates the city, and the intention probably was to bombard Parral, when a machine gun of the Rurales manned by an American named Tom Fountain began to shoot with deadly results. Fountain concentrated all his attention on the cannon, and he must have been a very good shot, for once the fighting had stopped, the six mules were found to be dead, and the artillery officer had been hit in the head and was lying beside the cannon, which his men had left behind.

"The inhabitants of Parral, who were watching the fighting from the roofs of their houses with field glasses, were relieved when the cannon suddenly came to a halt and could not be brought up to the mountain top; it was clear to everyone that if the Orozquistas had bombarded the city from the top of the mountain, not much would have remained of Parral…."

"In the morning, the Orozquistas began to withdraw. Most of them did so in an orderly fashion toward Jimenez, while some groups that were cut off from the main column had to fight their way out with every means at their disposal. Shots could still be heard by 6 P.M., although the fighting was further and further away from the city."

Although Villa and his men successfully repulsed the first Orozquista attempt to capture Parral, they were only too aware Orozco would not permit such an obstacle to remain in his path for long. According to Roth, "Orozco absolutely had to take Parral before he could march further south….The days following the 2nd of April were the saddest that I have witnessed. Most stores were closed. No one dared to go into the streets. Everyone who had something to lose was full of fear for his property, even for his families' lives; the most terrible rumors circulated in the town concerning the way Orozco would take revenge on Parral."

As the citizens of Parral expected, a larger Orozquista force of 2,500 troops and artillery arrived in front of the town's defenses by the afternoon of April 4th. Facing such odds, Villa chose to evacuate his troops under cover of darkness, leaving Parral to its fate. The "liberating" Orozquista force lost no time in living up to the worst fears of the citizens of Parral. Roth reported, "Like ants the Orozquistas entered the city, constantly firing their guns without seeing a single enemy."

The German consul has provided us with a vivid and lurid account of the Orozquista rampage at Parral:

"Everyone who had been fighting Orozco had fled, and only unarmed citizens and families remained in town.

"Once they had entered the city, the Orozquistas split up into small groups and ran yelling through the city, constantly firing their guns. Their first work of destruction was to break into every store in which they believed alcohol could be found, and after the troops were drunk, things really began to warm up.

"It was around 10 P.M. We were in our apartment, which is somewhat distant from the downtown area, and where fortunately there are no stores. The bells of the church were tolling. We all became panicky, since rumors had been spread that Orozco, because of the defeat he had suffered before, would burn down Parral….

"The bells continued tolling eerily in the night. The streets were dark, since most electric wires had been cut in the fighting. All doors and windows were closed, there were no lights in any house. Sometimes one could still hear cannon firing; the Orozquistas were shooting at the fleeing enemies from the mountains. And from the downtown part of the town, noises of shouting and revels could be heard as far as our house, as if hell had broken loose. Hundreds of shots were fired, and at the same time, one could hear the explosion of hand grenades and dynamite bombs.

"The Orozquistas were busy in the center of the city. By 11 P.M., there was not a single Mexican store that had not been broken open. The branch office of the Banco Minero was burning, shots were fired at the church tower…since the soldiers believed that Villa's men were hidden there. They soon began to enter the houses asking for money, arms, jewelry, alcohol; they destroyed the furniture and caused panic among families. To underline their demands, these drunken men entered the living rooms with the safety catch pulled off their rifles….Without hesitating much, the Orozquistas forced many rich Mexicans to kneel in their own houses in the presence of their families and told them that they would be shot, since they were friends of the government. Finally, they released them if they had paid a certain sum of money. There were cases where money did not help. Two wealthy brothers called Martinez were dragged into the street by the Orozquistas and shot down like dogs.

"By the next day, the city looked as if a hurricane had swept over it. On the Plaza Hidalgo, where the Palacio Municipal is located, things looked terrible. Nothing remained intact; all the stores located on the squares had been completely plundered, all doors and windows broken in, and pieces of the stores' furniture littered the streets….The cement of the square had been sprayed with red wine, which looked like blood."

Witnesses, including the German Roth, report General Salazar admitted having lost control of his troops upon taking the city. The drunken orgy of violence by the Orozquista rebel troops contrasts starkly with the orderly occupation by Villa and his government irregulars. Many are asking whether the Orozquista rebellion has gotten totally out of hand and increasingly, voices are being raised in support of Madero and the federal forces of order. What only weeks ago seemed to be a popular uprising on an orderly and irresistible triumphal progress toward Mexico City, now appears to many as a savage anarchical revolution aimed at nothing more than senseless and uncontrollable violence.

Bisbee: The southwest is reeling after reports were confirmed last week regarding the violent death of millionaire rancher and self-styled "Colonel" John Jizum in Nogales, Mexico. Jizum was apparently gunned down during an assault upon the Nogales Municipal Jailhouse in April. Specifics are only now coming to light and much remains shrouded beneath a cloak of disinformation and secrecy in Nogales and at the Jizum Ranch. The legendary boss of much of Arizona and owner of one of the southwest's most powerful ranches crossed into Nogales at the head of his irregular cavalry unit, the "Jizum Rangers," during the April riots in the Mexican border town. Exactly why Jizum intervened in the revolutionary violence south of the border remains the subject of much debate and conjecture. The US Government and the state of Arizona both insist he was acting entirely on his own and without official sanction.

At least part of the reason for the Jizum raid on Nogales may be gleaned in the circumstances surrounding his death. Mexican authorities, while refusing to elaborate, confirm Jizum was shot multiple times by officers of the Nogales Municipal Police. They also confirm Jizum was leading an assault by his "rangers" on the Nogales Municipal Jailhouse, apparently in a effort to free one or more of the inmates. Our correspondent in the field has learned Jizum was felled by gunfire from no less than six municipal policemen defending the jail. Perhaps the Orozquista riot in Nogales was instigated to give Jizum an excuse to cross the border with his mercenary cavalrymen in order to free one of Orozco's henchmen or a Jizum crony.

In a final irony, given Jizum's long-standing war with the Arizona Rangers, the only prisoner known to have escaped during the confusion was Arizona Ranger "Doc" Johnson. Johnson had been languishing in Sonoran jails since January 1911, when he was captured during a tragically flawed cross border operation to bring the notorious Mexican bandit Efumio Vaquero to justice. Johnson was held for nine months before finally being brought to trial and was then convicted in what was universally considered north of the border to have been a kangaroo court trial. During the confusion created by the Jizum Rangers' April assault on the Nogales jailhouse, Johnson reportedly reached through the bars of his cell to retrieve a revolver dropped by one of the guards. He then shot out the lock on his cell door and made good his escape as the municipal police guards abandoned their posts and fled. There are rumors he was assisted by an unidentified individual, but this cannot be confirmed and it is unclear whether the individual was part of the Jizum gang. Nogales officials refused to confirm Doc Johnson's escape, citing their long-standing policy not to comment upon correctional facility internal matters out respect for the prisoners' privacy. For his part, Doc Johnson is refusing comment beyond a statement he is looking forward to getting back in the saddle. The Arizona Rangers have confirmed they expect he will soon rejoin their much-depleted ranks.

Hamburg, Germany: Kaiser Wilhelm II narrowly escapes serious injury or possibly even death as a falling timber narrowly missed his head during the launching ceremony for Hamburg-Amerika's (HAPAG) new monster luxury liner, Imperator, on May 23rd. The Kaiser's near miss was only the first of two near catastrophes for HAPAG that day. Coming little more than a month after the Titanic disaster, many in the crowd must have secretly wondered whether this latest leviathan of the North Atlantic liner trade was beginning her career with an ill wind.

The German Kaiser arrived at the Vulkan Werke shipyard by special train on the morning of the 23rd. Having chosen to personally officiate at the launching of the world's largest ship, Wilhelm II toured the dock area, examining the monstrous hull from every angle and acknowledging the heel clicking of naval and military dignitaries in attendance. He then ascended a wooden staircase leading to a specially constructed two-tiered ceremonial structure. The first covered pavilion level, occupied by an impressive array of German and European dignitaries, was twenty feet above the crowd. From there the Kaiser continued his climb another thirty feet to a raised gazebo perched above the pavilion. Above him, towered the mighty prow of Imperator, bedecked with evergreen garlands. Thousands looked on as the German ruler, in the gold-laced uniform of a Gross-Admiral, stepped forward to trigger the mechanism that would release a bottle of wine on a metal arm. Just then, a loose timber in the scaffolding surrounding the prom clattered to the ground. Many in the crown thought the Kaiser had been struck as he lurched back from the railing of the gazebo. A general murmur of relief was audible as he returned to the rail and released the bottle, which shattered on cue against the prow of Imperator as she began her long slid down the building ways toward the welcoming waters of Hamburg harbor.

It was at this point that the second near disaster occurred. Imperator was carrying both her anchors and the port anchor was "let go" as part of the process of arresting her progress once she entered the water. Unfortunately, and to the intense embarrassment of HAPAG and Vulken-Werke, the biter end of the anchor chain had not been attached to the pad eye in the anchor chain locker. The anchor dropped on cue and fathoms of newly painted chain thundered out of the hausepipe after it, disappearing from the bow of the liner into the water at the foot of the ways. Fortunately for all concerned, the hull eventually came to rest about three hundred yards from the Kaiser Wilhelm Quay on the opposite shore amidst a good many furtive looks. An inauspicious beginning for so mammoth a vessel with such great expectations attached to it. Nevertheless, Wilhelm II and HAPAG's guiding genius, Herr Albert Ballin, put a brave face on the events of the day.

HAPAG has announced fitting out for Imperator will be delayed in order to incorporate a number of new safety features in the wake of Titanic's loss in April. An inner skin is being installed, creating a five-foot gap between the inner and outer hull plates. In the forward compartments, this inner hull plating will extend well above the waterline. According to Vulkan-Werke officials, an even more complex change to the liners original configuration will be the addition of sufficient lifeboats for every soul embarked. This will be no small task. Imperator's massive complement of passengers and crew has been calculated as:

Crew - 1,100
Passengers
First Class - 700
Second Class - 600
Third Class - 940
Fourth Class - 1,750

With 5,100 souls embarked, eighty-three lifeboats will be required, more than four times the number carried by RMS Titanic. Engineers are still working out stability calculations and options for distributing this added topside weight. HAPAG promises their newest ship will incorporate all the safety lessons learned as a result of the White Star Line's disaster. Imperator's two sisters, Europa and Bismarck, presently building at the Hamburg yard of Blohm & Voss are already incorporating these latest safety features. The Germans expect to have the largest and safest ships afloat.

Jimenez, Mexico: Despite recent victories over the Orozquista rebel army, there is increasing talk of discord between the regular and irregular branches of the Government army. In particular, rumors are circulating about a deepening rift between the federal commander, General Huerta, and the hero of Parral, "General" Francisco "Pancho" Villa. Staff officers in the division del norte confide the two flamboyant leaders may be headed for a confrontation. Several of Huerta's generals appear openly nervous when the subject of Villa and his irregulars comes up in staff meetings. In particular, generals Guillermo Rubio Naverrete and Antonio Rebago assume pained expressions when Huerta commences one of his rants about the "bandit" Villa. Rebago, a capable cavalry commander himself, is known to have forged something of a friendship with the irregular cavalry commander following their joint operation to liberate Parral after 2nd Rellano.

Tensions between the two prominent commanders increased in early May when Huerta ordered the arrest and execution of one of Villa's principal lieutenants, Tomas Urbina. The arrest order came as a result of Urbina's occupying and plundering a large estate owned by Anglo-American interests. Urbina seized horses and arms from the Tlahualilo Company estate and then ransomed several company employees for 1,500 pesos per head. His actions were clearly inconsistent with government forces rules of conduct, even those of the irregulars. Villa himself had been careful in Parral to provide receipts for property and revenue requisitioned in the name of the Madero regime and, as foreign representatives in Parral have attested, he instructed his troops to respect the property of foreigners.

US Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson reacted violently to news of Urbina's actions against the Tlahualilo Company and, even though British interests owned the majority interests in the company and the British Ambassador had refrained from taking any action in the matter, Wilson protested in the strongest possible terms to both the Madero administration and to Huerta directly. Huerta responded to Wilson, promising he would have Urbina executed. On May 6th, Wilson applied in writing to the Mexican Foreign Ministry, demanding Villa's arrest and trial for the Tlahualilo Company affair. He even went so far as to demand a personal audience with President Madero, insisting on Villa's arrest and court-martial. When Madero responded that Villa was a "patriot and an honorable gentleman," Wilson resorted to threats of US intervention to protect American citizens and interests in Mexico. When Madero observed that would mean war, Wilson reportedly responded, "When soldiers in the uniform of the government attacked persons and property of a friendly government, and reparation was denied by the offending government an act of war had been committed." No other details of the interview are presently available.

In the meantime, General Huerta was frustrated in his intention to execute Urbina. Villa and the other irregular volunteer unit commanders threatened to withdraw their forces if the execution was carried out. In the face of such solidarity amongst the irregulars, Huerta was compelled to back down and release Urbina. Given the situation in early May, prior to the battles of Conejos and 2nd Rellano, Huerta still desperately needed the cooperation of the irregular cavalry in his campaign against Orozco. Nevertheless, the Urbina incident has opened a gapping wound in the already fragile relationship between Huerta and his former revolutionary irregular cavalry commanders, particularly Villa. He will not soon forget this challenge to his authority or the embarrassment at his not being able to keep his promise to the American ambassador. Now that Orozco is on the run and his forces have been dealt a serious reversal at 2nd Rellano, it remains to be seen whether Huerta will feel quite so compelled to back down the next time there is a confrontation with the troublesome irregulars.

As for Villa, his star continues to rise, as does his popularity with the troops. He is counting upon their loyalty and upon the support of President Madero, for whom he has provided such valuable service.

Berlin, Germany: Officials at the Institute for Physical and Electrochemistry at Berlin-Dahlem are privately expressing concern at the unexplained disappearance of a senior staff chemist in late-March. The chemist, Dr. Max Todt, is senior assistant to the institute's director, the renowned Dr. Fritz Haber. His resume includes research work in Chile before joining Dr. Haber at the institute.

Following news of Dr. Todt's sudden disappearance, a team of Abwehr officers were dispatched to the institute to conduct an investigation. Imperial General Staff sources refuse to speculate about the doctor's disappearance. No one at the institute will discuss the nature of his research. Dr. Haber is known for his groundbreaking work in the field of combustion chemistry. His 1905 work on the thermodynamics of technical gas reactions is considered a landmark in the field. His present research activity is cloaked in secrecy.

Torreon, Mexico: General Victoriano Huerta, recently appointed commander of federal forces in the north, is advancing in a relentless campaign to retake the state of Chihuahua from the rebel forces of General Pascal Orozco. In a series of victories during the month of May, he has succeeded in pushing the Orozquista forces back and now stands on the threshold of retaking the capital, Ciudad Chihuahua.

In the wake of the disastrous defeat of government forces commanded by General Gonzalez Salas, the former minister of defense, at the battle of 1st Rellano in March of this year, Huerta was named to command the division del norte in Chihuahua. Capitalizing on Villa's brilliant and audacious delaying action at Parral, Huerta gained time to reorganize and reinforce federal forces at Torreon, with its vast stores of arms and munitions. Throughout April, Huerta assembled an impressive force at Torreon, having been instructed by President Madero to crush the rebellion, "cost what it may." In particular, Huerta has siphoned field artillery from other federal army districts, amassing a considerable artillery park. He has taken Madero at his word and "hang the expense!" has become the motto of the division del norte.

After a number of delays, during which General Huerta continued to concentrate forces on Torreon, in early May the division del norte finally took the field against the Orozquistas. With this deployment, all initiative has shifted to the federal forces and Orozco has subsequently been reeling from one withdrawal to another. Huerta's force consists of roughly 7,500 troops, over twenty field pieces and roughly thirty heavy machine guns. Fully eleven troops trains, each numbering between forty-to-sixty railcars, are being used to transport the federal host and its almost 7,000 camp followers, sutlers, and assorted noncombatants. The troop trains stretch continuously for four miles along the single-track railway. The logistic operation is ponderous and further complicated by the requirement to transport enough drinking water for the assembled horde as it moves north through the desert. "Hang the expense," indeed; the Mexican government is reportedly spending 350,000 pesos per day to keep this force in the field! Repeated repairs to the damaged Mexican Central Railway line have further complicated and delayed the sometimes exasperatingly slow advance.

Nevertheless, after almost two weeks of ponderous movement, Huerta's division del norte brought the Orozquista forces to battle on 12 May at the rail junction of Conejos, near a branch line running toward the American mining interests at Mapimi. In a brief action, the heavily outnumbered Orozquistas surrendered the field to the federal forces, making good their escape northward via six troop trains of their own and destroying bridges and culverts in their wake. This began another round of painfully slow northerly movements by the federales, complicated by the ubiquitous damage to the rail line upon which Huerta's advance is anchored.

Finally on May 22nd, Huerta's forces caught up with Orozco and his rebels at Rellano, near the sight of the federal debacle in March. This time, however, the correlation of forces was decidedly in the government's favor. Huerta enjoyed an almost 2:1 ratio of superiority in troops and fielded more than three times as many field guns as the Orozquistas. The battle of 2nd Rellano commenced with a massive long-range artillery barrage by

the federals, lasting almost two days and driving the rebels back along the rail line. On the 24th, an initial federal infantry assault attempting to turn the rebel flank was followed by a desperate counterattack by the Orozquistas. Francisco Villa, now promoted "honorary general" in the federal army, broke up the Orozquista counterattack with his irregular cavalry, striking the rebel right flank and thereby facilitating an attack on the rebel rear by General O'Haran's regular federal cavalry. This was followed by a flanking attack on the rebel left by General Trucy Aubert's regulars. The rebel line was shattered, with the last Orozquista redoubt falling during the 1400 hour on the 24th.

Reports of the engagement and the magnitude of the government victory are contradictory and somewhat vague. According to federal reports, the rebels lost more than 850 troops, all their cavalry, several field guns and much equipment. Our correspondents in the field have confirmed combined losses in dead and wounded on both sides of at least 200. One correspondent observing from a position on the rebel side during the battle reports federal troops did not reach his position until fully two days after the rebels had abandoned their trenches on the crest. This would tend to support General Orozco's account of the conclusion of the action. Some observers have criticized General Huerta for failing to order a cavalry pursuit of the withdrawing rebel forces. Had swift moving mounted units secured the rail lines north of the rebel position, Orozco would have been cut off from his line of retreat and the government victory decisive.

As it is, Huerta and his forces are regrouping before resuming their slow northerly movement toward Orozco's next defensive position before Ciudad Chihuahua, believed to be somewhere near the deep cut at Bachimba. General Villa's irregular cavalry and the Rebago Brigade of regular federal cavalry were detached from the main force to retake Parral, which they accomplished on May 30th. General Huerta now occupies General Orozco's former headquarters at Jimenez.

A great many Orozquistas are reportedly becoming disaffected with the rebellion and with Orozco himself. Rumors of his having sold out to the powerful ruling families of Chihuahua are rife. Many now question his sincerity regarding social reform and land redistribution. The outrages at Parral in April cost him much popular support and there is a growing sense of exhaustion among the common people. The fate of Orozco's rebellion may very well hang on the outcome of his next action.

According to General Huerta's official after-action report, 2nd Rellano was "more terrific than any battle that had been fought in the Western Hemisphere during the last fifty years." He reported to President Madero that the Orozquistas had been driven from the heights by a final fierce bayonet charge and the federal "bugle blasts of victory could be heard even then from the crest.

Orozco, for his part, described the action in a report to the revolutionary junta in El Paso, reporting he had ordered the withdrawal in the face of superior numbers. According to Orozco, the disengagement and withdrawal was accomplished in good order and the rebel forces boarded their waiting troop trains, steaming slowly northward toward Ciudad Chihuahua, destroying all bridges and culverts in their wake (by now a familiar tactic).

Translated From the May 23 Edition of
The Neue Berliner Zeitung

Berlin, Germany: The Foreign Ministry has reported that Kurt Jahnke, a cultural attaché to Mexico, was seriously wounded on the afternoon of May 4 during a raid by American bandits on the Mexican border town of Nogales. Two junior members of the embassy, Gunther Freiheit and Martin Freunde, were brutally murdered at the same time. The three diplomats had been working with veterinarians along the Mexican - United States border as part of Germany's efforts to help the Madera administration improve freight transportation in northern Mexico. According to Mexican Federal authorities, the raid on Nogales was organized by notorious American cattle baron John Jizzum of New Mexico. Jizzum had originally obtained the bulk of his property through the murder of Irish immigrants in the 1880's. It was apparently common knowledge that Lew Wallace, the governor of what was then the territory of New Mexico, was on the Jizzum payroll and acquiesced to all manner of illegal activities. However, with New Mexico's pending admission as a state, Herr Jizzum and his army of cut throats had to turn to Mexico to satisfy their insatiable lust for rapine and pillage.

At the precise time of the attack on Nogales, Kurt Jahnke and his two assistants were helping to tend to sick horses in the Carne Grande Stables on the outskirts of town. Because of the stable's obscure location, no one in the German party was at first aware of the cross border incursion. However, this situation quickly changed when one of Jizzum's salacious underlings, a hulking thug known as Adam Phudd, quietly entered the stable. Based on his reputation, Phudd may have originally entered the stable to satisfy some unsavory frontier cravings. However, the sight of unarmed Germans with expensive veterinary equipment undoubtedly brought out the killing lust in the feculent Phudd and, without any warning, he shot Kurt Jahnke in the back. Fortunately, the wound was not fatal and both Gunther Freiheit and Martin Freunde attempted to reason with the greasy American gunslinger. Whether or not negotiation would have succeeded is open to conjecture, for, at this point, another member of the Jizzum gang, Frau Doc Holiday, entered the stable. Frau Holiday, the widow of a failed American dentist turned assassin, was known as the most bloodthirsty of the desperadoes employed by John Jizzum. This raw boned harridan, originally known as Myrna Grutz, callously ignored any pleas for compassion and rapidly gunned down both Herr Freiheit and Herr Freunde. In typical American fashion, both she and Phudd then began to loot the pathetic corpses. However, while this outrage was being perpetrated, Kurt Jahnke was able to drag his nearly paralyzed body out of the stable and crawl to a nearby house.

Subsequently, Herr Jahnke made a remarkable recovery and is now fully ambulatory. At the recommendation of the chancellery, he has been promoted and transferred to the Imperial Consulate in San Franciso, California. The American State Department has sent assurances to Chancellor von Bulow that this raid had no association with their government policies.

In the only positive event to come from this tragedy, it appears that John Jizzum was actually killed before he could make his escape from Nogales. According to a report published by Mexican Chief of Staff General Huerta, Herr Jizzum was shot by Nogales police while attempting to loot the city jail. Apparently, he took an embarrassing amount of time to finally expire and spent almost 20 minutes flopping and thrashing about in the muck and mire of Nogales' main street while whining and crying in a high pitched soprano voice. The excrement smeared carcass was then dragged back across the border by the remnants of the raiding party.

Thus die all enemies of His Imperial Germanic Majesty!

Guaymas, Mexico: German consular officials in Guaymas are refusing to comment regarding reports Herr Kurt Jahnke, Imperial German Cultural Attaché at the legation, was seriously wounded and two of members of his staff were actually killed in the Orozquista-inspired rioting in Nogales during April. Independent reporting from Nogales, in northern Sonora, confirms Herr Jahnke was wounded by a shotgun blast that killed his two companions. Beyond this, details are murky. The German diplomat and his heavily armed companions had apparently taken shelter in a barn to avoid the crowds of rioters searching the streets for foreigners upon whom to vent their pent up rage. A number of unidentified gunmen broke into the barn and a desperate gun battle ensued. It appears Jahnke and the other two Germans were able to hold their own against this initial assault. At a critical moment, however, when it seemed most likely the Germans would be able to make good their escape from the shoot-out in the barn, a shotgun was discharged at close range through a window. Jahnke's two companions were killed outright and the Cultural Attaché himself fell to the ground wounded. His collapse may have actually saved his life, for it appears the rioters believed him dead and moved on in their search for other foreigners to molest.

The identity of the assailant with the shotgun has not been established, but there is an interesting eyewitness account placing the notorious Mrs. Doc Holiday in the vicinity at the time and she was seen sporting a shotgun. If so, this would suggest a deeper purpose to the attack upon the German diplomats. Mrs. Holiday is a known confederate of "Colonel" John Jizum and may have been amongst the "Ranger" contingent that crossed the border into Nogales and participated in the violence surrounding the Orozquista riots. Could it be this was no random act of senseless violence? Were Jahnke and the other German diplomats specifically targeted? Were the riots used to cover a deeper purpose and did the "Jizum Rangers" cross the border as part of a larger scheme? No one at the German legation is talking.

Indianapolis: "Big Bill" Haywood and the International Workers of the World (IWW) labor movement suffered an enormous defeat at the Socialist Party of America's national convention held in Indianapolis between May 12th and 19th. On day two of the convention, conservative labor elements in the party leadership scored a victory when they secured passage of a party amendment expelling "any member of the party who opposes political action or advocates sabotage or other methods of violence as a weapon of the working class."

Haywood entered the convention riding a wave of momentum following the successful IWW backed strike against the woolen mills in Lawrence, Massachusetts earlier this year and he hoped to secure formal recognition for the IWW by the Socialist Party. He was taken completely by surprise by the conservative wing's maneuver, engineered by Wisconsin's Socialist Congressman, Victor Berger. Berger, with strong ties to the relatively conservative American Federation of Labor, opposes a Socialist Party alliance with agrarian radicals, purist Marxists, and hard core labor radicals like "Big Bill" Haywood and the IWW. In particular, Berger and the conservatives within the party are alarmed over the IWW's adherence to a policy of direct action against capitalism. Instead of securing Party endorsement of the IWW movement, Haywood was voted off the Socialist Party National Executive Committee, effectively purging the "Wobblies."

There was little surprise when Eugene V. Debs was formally named the Socialist Party candidate for president. Debs has run as the Socialist candidate in every presidential election since 1900. Nevertheless, his influence in the party seems to be on the decline. While not supporting Haywood's policy of direct labor action and violence, Debs is no friend of Berger and the conservative wing of the party. Despite this, the convention named Berger allies Emil Seidel for Vice-president and J. Mahlon Barnes as Debs' campaign manager.

While the Socialist Party has garnered an ever-increasing percentage of the popular vote in each successive election since 1900, there is growing concern that in this election Progressive Party candidate Theodore Roosevelt may attract significant segments of the electorate who have voted Socialist in the past. Nevertheless, the combined Socialist Party and Socialist Labor Party national total of 641,789 votes in the 1910 congressional elections gives many in the mainstream political establishment cause for concern as we approach the 1912 election. This is particularly so because of the potential split of the traditional Republican Party vote between Taft's conservatives and Roosevelt's liberal progressives.

Many in Arizona are asking what this means for "Big Bill" Haywood and his violent policy of IWW direct labor action. Even as the socialists distanced themselves from the "Wobblies," Haywood has been busy mobilizing labor elements in the copper mines here in the southwest.

The Ultra Shoe for Men - $3.50
It makes Friends
A shoe that is easy at first, and holds its shape, keeping its comfort afterward, cannot help making and keeping friends.
Thorough lasting of fine leather, expert workmen, with every modern aid, and careful designing, combine to produce this perfect shoe.

Limited quantities and sizes available now at
McKecknie's Mercantile and Barbershop - Bisbee, AZ
Everything You Need - If We've Got It.

Bisbee: The powerful Jizum Ranch has been thrown into disarray by the sudden violent and untimely death of millionaire rancher John Jizum. Amidst rumors of potential Justice Department legal action to freeze the Jizum millions and a brewing power struggle within the Jizum empire, John Jizum's son and only legitimate heir, John W. Jizum, is reportedly being recalled from his Ivy League college on the east coast to plug the hole left by his father's death. Young Jizum will face considerable challenges in establishing firm control over the strong personalities in the Jizum organization.

As if the situation weren't murky enough, there are lingering questions about John W. Jizum's college career. Indeed, the Jizum Ranch has variously reported his prestigious college as Princeton and as Yale. The Bisbee Review attempted to confirm his enrollment at one or the other Ivy League institutions. Princeton categorically denies having any student or alumna with the unfortunate surname of "Jizum." A spokesman for Yale University pointed out that while there is no one with that surname enrolled in Yale College, there is a John W. Chisholm who suffered as the butt of unkind humor to this effect when he first arrived at his resident college, obviously sophomoric fraternity humor as no one named "Jizum" would expect to be admitted to Yale.

Whatever his recent college career, the Jizum heir is making haste out west to assume the reins of the Jizum fortune. He will reportedly briefly interrupt his journey to attend a commemorative service for his fallen father in El Paso, Texas. The Jizum machine is already in high gear, generating a legacy for the legendary "Colonel" John Jizum. The El Paso ceremony will reportedly characterize Jizum as a philanthropist and great American patriot. It is unlikely mention will be made of his violent and destructive range wars with Tommy Six Guns of the XXX Ranch or his protracted war with the Arizona Rangers.

As the Jizum Ranch is draped in black crepe and "Colonel" Jizum's heir makes his way to Arizona, the citizens of Bisbee must be uneasy about the future and the power vacuum left by the death of this giant of the Old West. Loved and respected, hated and feared, Jizum's like will not soon again bestride the southwest.

New York City: Citizens of the world are reeling from the tragic news of the loss of RMS Titanic with more than fifteen hundred lives in the icy waters of the North Atlantic. The White Star Line's newest and biggest luxury liner, on its maiden voyage from Southhampton to New York City, was touted as "unsinkable,"-- the safest ship afloat. At 11:40 P.M. on Sunday April 14th, she struck a killer iceberg off the Banks of Newfoundland and sank two hours and forty minutes later in almost two miles of ocean depth. Only roughly 700 of the over 2,200 souls on board were saved, making this the greatest shipping disaster in history. Her master, Captain E. J. Smith, White Star's senior Captain with more than thirty years service, chose to remain with his ship and was among those lost.

The maiden voyage of this luxurious floating palace was expected to be the social event of the season, with luminaries from the arts, business and the professions vying for a berth on the crossing. Among those booking passage were Colonel John Jacob Aster and his bride, Miss Madeline Force. Major Archibald Butt, military aide to President Taft was a passenger, as were Mr. Charles M. Hays, president of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railroad; Mr. William T. Snead, of the London Review of Reviews; Mr. Benjamin Guggenheim, of the celebrated mining family; Mr. F. D. Millet, the noted artist; Mr. J. Thayer, vice-president of the Pennsylvania Railroad; Mr. J. Bruce Ismay of the White Star Line's board of directors; and Mr. and Mrs. Isidor Straus. The list of those lost includes many luminaries.

In answer to Titanic's wireless operator's S-O-S call and distress message:

"Have struck an iceberg; badly damaged; rush aid; steamship _Titanic_;
41.46 N., 50.14 W.,"

ships for hundreds of miles altered course and increased speed in hopes of arriving in time to avert disaster. The liner Baltic, two hundred miles to eastward, reversed course and sped for the position given. White Star's RMS Olympic, still farther off, turned and sped toward her crippled sister ship. The German liners Amerika and Prinz Friederich Wilhelm also changed course and made all possible speed toward the sinking giant. The Cunard liner Carpathia was nearest at sixty nautical miles. Although her master did not know it, there was no hope of reaching Titanic before she slid bow first into the icy depths. When Carpathia arrived at the scene, all that was left of the "unsinkable" liner were a handful of lifeboats containing shivering women and children.

Questions regarding the tragedy abound and an admiralty court of inquiry has been convened. Charges have surfaced there were too few lifeboats, given the enormous size of the ship and the unprecedented number of passengers and crew. While White Star was apparently in compliance with existing safety regulations, many are asking why the standards were not adjusted to account for the new monster liners such as Titanic and her sister Olympic. Indeed, regardless of minimum regulatory standards, how could White Star have failed to adjust the number of lifeboats to accommodate all souls embarked. Another disturbing controversy surrounds the discrepancy in the disproportionately high number of first and second class passengers saved versus steerage passengers who survived. When RMS Titanic departed Southhampton on the previous Wednesday, there were 325 first class passengers, 285 second class passengers, 710 steerage passengers, and 899 crew.

While many brave and distinguished personages chose to remain with the sinking liner to permit as many women and children to be saved as possible, the percentage of first and second class women and children rescued among the roughly 700 survivors exceeds that of those from steerage. Emotions are running high over this point. Nevertheless, the fact most of the survivors were women and children from all classes, speaks well for the discipline of the crew and the heroism of the male passengers.

Additional concerns are being raised over the high speed at which Titanic was passing through waters known to include large icebergs. On Thursday, three days before the tragedy, the Cunard liner Carmania encountered the ice-field and was forced to reduce speed and steer an evasive course past enormous bergs along her track. The master of Carmania finally reversed course and retraced his track to the northeast, out of the field. Warnings were issued and still Titanic raced on toward her rendezvous with destiny approximately eight hundred nautical miles southeast of Halifax. Many are asking whether the thirst for speed and records in transatlantic crossings is perhaps at the root of this disaster.

RMS Titanic was a marvel of size and luxury. At 45,000 gross registered tons and 66,000 tons displacement, she is the largest ship ever lost at sea. It is unlikely the board of inquiry will answer all the questions raised by this tragedy. We may never fully grasp the magnitude of the disaster. Some may well ask whether it is wise to build such giants, the loss of which account for so many lives in one awful instant. "…it will be long before man's overweening self-confidence rises from the shock which has been given to his belief in his mechanical ability. Nature is not conquered yet. Ocean has still a strength beyond ours. Ships are not unsinkable; and Death will still take his toll of bold men's lives in the future as he has done in the past. We know cowardice costs more than courage, but it is not so tragically costly as blind foolhardiness."

Bisbee: American authorities are expressing outrage over the wanton murder of an American citizen by Mexican revolutionaries under the command of rebel leader Pascal Orozco at Parral. According to a number of witnesses, Mr. Thomas Fountain was executed without trial by Orozquista troops acting under orders in clear violation of the rules of civilized warfare during the recent rape of the city of Parral in the state of Chihuahua.

Mr. Fountain was reportedly serving with Mexican government forces under the command of Colonel Francisco Villa, defending Parral during the Orozquista attacks on April 2nd and 4th. He reportedly played a prominent and heroic role in the successful defense of the city on the 2nd, manning a machine gun credited with breaking up an Orozquista attempt to shell the defenseless civilian areas of the town. When Villa withdrew his government troops in the face of overwhelming odds on the night of April 4th, Thomas Fountain was apparently left behind.

Our correspondent in the field obtained the following eyewitness account of what transpired from Herr Carlos Roth, the Imperial German representative at Parral:

"He hid in a drugstore that had a door going toward the mountain and hoped to find a moment when he could flee. When the owner of the drugstore came to his store Sunday morning, he found Fountain hiding, half dead of hunger. The poor man had not been able to eat anything for three days. The drugstore owner immediately told Salazar [the Orozquista General commanding the rape of Parral] of his discovery, and a group of Orozquistas was immediately sent to the drugstore to capture Fountain."

Upon Thomas Fountain's surrendering, the Orozquista detail "without any hesitation shot him immediately."

This latest outrage brings into sharp detail the brutal and chaotic nature of Orozco's rebellion. Despite the lobbying efforts of millionaire publisher William Randolph Hearst and New Mexico senator Albert Fall on Orozco's behalf, the murder of Thomas Fountain leaves no doubt Orozco is no friend of the United States and his cutthroats and thugs represent an immediate danger to Americans in Mexico and living along the border. Can there be any doubt in the wisdom of President Taft's decision to impose a selective American arms embargo on Orozco and his followers? The safety of our citizens in Mexico and our own southwest requires a stable Mexican government. Everything that can be done must be done to bolster the Madero regime and the forces of law and order.

The editorial staff of the Bisbee Review calls upon Mr. Hearst and Senator Fall to cease their back room politicking on Orozco's behalf. We ask Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson, our ambassador in Mexico City, what, if anything, he is doing to protect Americans and American interests in Mexico?

New York: Last week the theatre district heard the sad news of Mort Green's demise. Born Mortimer Greenhall, Mr. Green was one of the great successes of America's popular stage. His family had originally planned a career for him in accounting, but the draw of the theatre was simply too strong for this beloved artiste. When a mere boy he would sneak out of grammar school, hurry down to the local vaudeville palace and entrance the locals with the most amazing tricks performed by his dog Buddy. After leaving school at the age of 14 he perfected his craft of animal training, and brought America such remarkable acts as; "Murray's Musical Muskrats, Eddie's Educated Elkhounds, Doctor Sloanes Chimpanzee Accountants," and the truly unforgettable spectacle of "Jerry Juggles Squirrels." However, for the last decade he had delighted American audiences with his classic performances as "Abdul Hamid and his Roller Skating Grizzlies." He had embarked upon a tour of far western theatres, beginning at the Sazerac Saloon, shortly before his untimely demise, due to what local authorities describe as severe lead poisoning. He is survived by his wife Estelle and his retired partner Smokey.

Individuals with experience in the transport and use of dynamite for industrial purposes please send resume to
P.O. Box Uno Dos Tres
El Paso, TX USA

General Labor. Three positions still available. Apply to Roy Knabeshue.

$ 2,000.00

$ 30.00

"Busted" Gun = 25% of value

• If a you take a gun during a game, and live, you get to keep it
• If the other side concedes, and you tell the umpire that you want to loot the gun, you get a 1 in D6 chance of looting the gun.
• If you forget to mention 'looting' at the end of the scenario, "The Indians get the guns."

Remember: In order to cause an event that is part of a 'cunning plan' you must roll 8+ on 2D6. Your result may be affected by skills possessed by the character you have trying to make the event happen. So some of those 'useless strategic skills' suddenly aren't so useless.

Characters might consider the possibilities of a rewarding career in the fields of: Embezzling, Gambling, or Rustling. Each player may field only 1 'Gambler' character. Embezzlers and Rustlers are not limited, but inquire about the game mechanics.

The umpire has finally developed a strategic use for motor vehicles. Cars and trucks are restricted to driving on marked roads, or alongside railway lines (where it is assumed that there is an access road). Individuals traveling by motor vehicle move at the train rate of 2 towns per week. However, a die roll of a "1" on 1D6 means that the transport has broken down on that leg of the journey.

The umpire is still waiting for further suggestions about skill chits. I may develop an "Educated" chit that provides +1 advantages in; engineering, language=communication, deal making, etc.

Newly created skills: "Life is Cheap" does not entitle the bearer to 'backshoot' other characters, that would be a violation of "The Code Of The West," but it does allow bearers to shoot into crowds, or hand to hand combat disregarding the chance of hitting friendly characters. Hits are determined normally, then the actual victim in the crowd is determined by a random die roll which is influenced by the shooter's marksmanship skills.