Office of the Historian

738.39/254a: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Chargé in the Dominican Republic (Atwood)2

Washington, January 7, 1938—7 p.m.

2. It has been learned that the Associated Press is sending a despatch stating that the Dominican Minister here has confirmed that his Government is seeking a solution to the dispute with Haiti through direct negotiations to be submitted to the Permanent Commission. Pastoriza3 confirmed a previous report from “persons who claim to be well informed”, which stated as follows:

“Solution of the incident between Haiti and Santo Domingo is the object of negotiations now being conducted that will lead, within a short time to complete settlement of the case, not only to solve the present difficulties, but trying to assure that in the future, no difficulties arise.

“This explains the apparent discontinuance of the proceedings which have been carried on since the Gondra Pact of 1923 and the Convention of General Conciliation of Washington, of 1929,4 were invoked by Haiti as a means of placing an end to the difficulties with the Dominican Republic over the events of October, last year.”

Please cable at once any information you can obtain with regard to these alleged discussions.

M. Abel Léger5 and Mr. Hoffman Philip6 addressed the Permanent Commission in a note dated January 6, 1937 which has as a purpose the exercise by the Permanent Commission of its conciliatory powers [Page 179] in the Haitian-Dominican dispute as provided in Article 3 of the Conciliation Convention until such time as the Commission of Investigation is constituted. The note notified the Commission of their appointment as commissioners and enclosed certified copies of their full powers, authorizing them to act in conjunction with the Permanent Commission in its conciliation functions, as well as on the ad hoc commission with respect to investigation and conciliation. The Haitian commissioners concluded by requesting to be informed when the Permanent Commission intended to convoke them with their Dominican colleagues for an exchange of full powers and for the opening of the labors foreseen in both Peace Instruments.

Hull
  1. Sent, mutatis mutandis, to the Minister in Haiti, as Department’s No. 3, January 7, 7 p.m.↩
  2. Andres Pastoriza, Dominican Minister in the United States.↩
  3. The Treaty between the United States and other American Republics, signed at Santiago, May 3, 1923, Foreign Relations, 1923, vol. i, p. 308, is known as the Gondra Treaty. This treaty was supplemented by the General Convention of Inter-American Conciliation, signed at Washington, January 5, 1929, ibid., 1929, vol. i, p. 653.↩
  4. Former Haitian Minister for Foreign Affairs; Haitian member of the Commission of Inquiry before the Permanent Commission in Washington.↩
  5. Former American Ambassador in Chile; member for Haiti on the Commission of Inquiry before the Permanent Commission in Washington.↩