The Life and Times of Pancho Villa

Carranza in Power

With the surrender of most of what had once been the powerful Division del Norte, Carranza had every reason to feel optimistic. He had defeated the only army that had for a time seemed powerful enough to challenge his grasp on national power. A reluctant U. S. president had been forced to grant him recognition. This meant that his faction would now be the only one that could secure arms and supplies in the United States. American banks and the U. S. government were contemplating the possibility of granting a large loan to his faction. American mining companies were planning to resume work in Mexico. As a result of the wartime boom in the United States, Mexico's raw materials, particularly oil and henequen, had sharply risen in price, and Carranza hoped that this would increase the revenues of his government. He now had reason to feel that he could implement the main points of his agenda. The first had been to secure the independence of Mexico.