No. 270.
Mr. Evarts to Mr. Outrey.
Washington, November 29, 1880.
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 8th instant, informing me that you have recently received, by telegraph, from the minister of foreign affairs of your government, a dispatch stating that the Submarine Cable Company, whose line connects France with the United States, asks to be authorized to make with the English company arrangements which would constitute a kind of fusion, and that before adopting a decision your government would be glad to know what are the intentions of this government.
In the correspondence on the subject which preceded the granting of the concession by the Government of the United States to the French company, certain conditions were proposed by this government, and amongst them the following:
That the company shall not consolidate or amalgamate with any other line, or combine therewith, for the purpose of regulating rates.
These stipulations were entered into before permission to land the cable was given, and were required by this government after deliberate consideration, and in accordance with a policy which had been already applied in another case. This government felt the more confident assurance that the obligation thus distinctly assumed would be faithfully kept, because the action and policy of France had imposed a similar stipulation in the instrument of concession under which the cable was to be laid. The Government of the United States finds no reason to favor any waiver or modification of the obligation, and will expect a faithful adherence to it on the part of the cable company.
In thus explicitly stating to you the position of this government, which at the instance of your government you have opened to me, I have the honor to request to be informed as early as may be in your power what the disposition and purpose of your government are in the premises.
Accept, &c.,