April 4, 1919. Spring fashions, European Bison, and American Horses.

The Casper Daily Tribune published two editions on Friday, April 4, 1919.  The first one was all news, and with a Communist seizure of Bavaria on this day, the ongoing crisis with Hungary, and Lenin attempting to dictate terms to the Allies, a lot of that news was distressing, to say the least.

The second, edition, however, was on new spring fashions, now that the war was over.

The 1919 fashions didn't look much different than the 1910 fashions actually.

But as we'll soon show all that was about to change, at least for women.

What is claimed by Bavarian radio to be the last finding of a wild wisent, the European bison, was made on this day in 1919.  You can read and listen to the story here:

4. April 1919Der letzte Wisent gefunden, Ur-RindBuckel nach oben, Hörner gesenkt. Einem Wisent will man nicht unbedingt in freier Wildbahn begegnen. Wird man auch nicht, weil Wisente so selten sind. Am 4. April 1919 galt das freilebende Ur-Rind sogar als ausgestorben.

FWIW, the "last" claim here is disputed.  Others say that Polish wisents were still in the wild in the very early 1920s.  There are wild wisents today, actually, in Poland.  Their story is similar in a way to that of American bison in that they are in a national park where their numbers have increased, although not to the extent that they have in the United States to where there are so many, they're a bit of a problem where they are. That's why, in the U.S., buffalo hunting has returned.

In Europe the last wisents, if that's what they were, were the victims of the German army like so many other things in Europe.  German soldiers at the end of the war killed most of them for food prior to pulling out of Poland.

Closer to home, the Wilson administration was showing its odd predilection for favoring the Carranza regime in Mexico again.

The entire episode of the United States going into Mexico in 1916 arose due the Wilson Administration allowing the transportation of Carranza's troops across southern Texas so that they could go into battle against Villa's forces in northern Mexico.  That, as we've already dealt with, lead to the frustrating and inconclusive American campaign against Villa that nearly ended up with the United States and Mexico going to war.

Now, in 1919, the Wilson Administration was at it again as it sold 1,000 cavalry mounts and, according to this article, 5,000 rifles to Carranza's government.  Mexico was still in revolution at this point and would continue to be for quite some time thereafter.  By providing these military resources, no doubt now surplus to American needs in light of World War One having ended, the US was effectively favoring one side against another.

John Berryman cartoon from April 4, 1919.

That side was questionable at best, being a heavily leftist regime headed by a man, Carranza, who had a strong distaste for the United States itself.  This may have all passed by Wilson, who had favored Carranza before, as no doubt our main threat from Mexico probably seemed to be the resurgent Villistas.  That being said, less than two years prior the United States had been seriously worried about the Mexican federal government of Carranza's declaring war against the U.S. and siding with the Germans.

Mexico never seriously considered that move, although Carranza did have it studied (governments tend to study everything) and a vague, and very ineffective Mexican fifth column formed in anticipation of such an event along the southern U.S. border with Mexico.  Even the heavy handed treatment Mexican civilians and Mexican Americans along the border had received by American law enforcement didn't inspire very many to look at that however.  At this point, perhaps Wilson saw U.S. military aid to Mexico as a reward for not acting rashly during World War One, or perhaps he was fixated on Villa, or perhaps he was simply wanting to do something to get the Mexican Revolution over with once and for all.  At any rate, it can be questioned how wise that move was.