Paris Peace Conf. 871.0144/7
The Chargé in Bulgaria (
Wilson
) to the Acting Secretary of
State
No. 24
Sofia
, January 10,
1919.
Sir: Referring to the Legation’s confidential
despatch No. 23, of the 9th instant, in regard to the situation in the
Dobrudja, I have the honor to enclose herewith a copy of a memoire presented to the Brigadier General commanding the British
forces of Silistra, signed by the Mayor of that town in the name of the
inhabitants.
I would call attention to the fact that Silistra is the largest town in the
Southern or Bulgarian portion of the Dobrudja.
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A copy of this memoire has been sent to me by the
Mayor of the town in a letter, copy of which is enclosed herewith,14 of which I have merely
acknowledged the receipt.
I have [etc.]
P. S. A copy of the above despatch has been forwarded to the American
Peace Mission, Paris.
[Enclosure]
The Mayor of Silistra to
the Officer Commanding the British Forces in
Silistra
Sir: Yesterday the proclamation signed by
General Berthelot was made known to the inhabitants of our town, by
which the population of Dobrudja is notified that in virtue of the
decision of the Inter-Allied Council, the Bulgarian civil administration
will be replaced by Roumanian civil administration throughout the
Dobrudja, under the protection and control of the Allied Troops. We obey
the decision of the Inter-Allied Council with full confidence that the
ruling of the Roumanian authorities, being under the control of the
Allied Forces, will not degenerate into a real injustice, to the like of
which we were witnesses in the course of 3 years.
Pointing out our faith in the efficacious control which will be exercised
by the British Troops, we wish at the same time to call your attention
upon the following questions in which our people are very much concerned
and which cannot be considered as settled by the proclamation in favour
of the Roumanian point of view for a full replacement of the authorities
in general.
- I.
- According to the proclamation, to the occupied Dobrudja may come
only civil Roumanian authorities and not military. In our case we
see that a general, a military person, comes as a prefect. The
Chiefs of the gendarmery are military persons, and the very
gendarmery is according to the Roumanian laws a pure military
institution, recruited by active soldiers.
- II.
- Dobrudja is an occupied territory by the Anglo-French Troops, the
fate of which will be decided at the peace conference. Neither
Bulgaria, nor Roumania have sovereignty over it. The Roumanian
judicial and financial authorities do not have raison d’etre, because through the lack of Roumanian
sovereignty no justice could be administered and no taxes imposed.
The judicial and financial authorities cannot work and their
presence is unnecessary burden to the population.
- III.
- The municipal authority is a local authority and is absolutely
independent and free from any state authority. Each interference of
the State Authority is a violation to the principle of the
self-government of the municipalities, therefore the interference of
the Roumanian
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state
authority in the proceedings of the municipalities must be removed.
The privilege of a separate policy belongs to the
municipalities.
- IV.
- In the proclamation is expressly pointed out that no inhabitant,
no matter what his nationality, may be, should be, deprived of his
rights in any way. The right to learn and pray in our mother
language is the most sacred privilege of each individual. We see
already the coming in of teachers who are preparing themselves to
replace the Bulgarian teachers and take away the Bulgarian schools
built at the expense of the local Bulgarian citizens, for which we
have also formal documents. The times of 1913 are being repeated.
Then the Bulgarian schools were taken away by the Roumanian
authorities and the schoolboys were compelled to leave their homes
in the course of 3 years in order that they may continue their
education in their mother language. We beg for your guarantee of our
rights; in the town and district. There are no Roumanian inhabitants
in order that the coming of the Roumanian teachers be
justified.
- V.
- The Committee for food-supply is in a very critical state. Any
change of the present state will expose the inhabitants to
starvation, that is why we beg of you the preservation of its
present state and take it under your protection.
By pointing out the above facts, we request you, Sir, for
intercession.
For the population of Silistra
L. Ribatch
Mayor of the town
