No. 323.
Mr. Schuyler to Mr. Frelinghuysen.
Athens, July 25, 1883. (Received August 18.)
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your dispatch No. 33, dated May 28, with reference to the prohibition by the Greek Government of American pork. I have not failed to give this subject my earnest attention, but I have not yet obtained the exact replies to the circulars sent out by the Greek Government, as mentioned in my dispatch No. 29, dated May 17.
I do not despair of obtaining a modification of the order in question.
It must be observed, however, that southern peoples are very susceptible to anything that concerns public health, and although almost no pork is imported into Greece from any country, yet the fact that such importation has been prohibited or restricted in other countries would be a sufficient reason in the minds of many for a similar restriction here without the necessity of suggestions from outside to that effect. This susceptibility may be particularly observed now, when a quarantine of twenty-one days has been imposed on account of the cholera in Egypt. As the quarantine in Turkey on similar vessels is only ten days, it is proposed to impose a quarantine of eleven days on all vessels coming from Constantinople.
In the mean time I respectfully ask you to inform me briefly as to the status of American pork in all the other countries of Europe, whether freely admitted, with restrictions, or entirely prohibited. I have some general knowledge of the subject, but do not know positively the present state of the case, except as regards Germany and Austria.
I shall also be glad to receive several more copies of the pamphlet entitled “American Pork,” inclosed in your No. 33. If there is a translation in French it would be more useful for distribution.
As concerns the prohibition of pork in Roumania, of which I informed you by my dispatch No. 86, dated September 22, 1881, the case is different, and I do not consider it possible to obtain any modification whatever. The fact is that the sanitary and veterinary regulations between Austria Hungary and Roumania are very severe and are enforced on the part of the Hungarian Government with great vigor on very slight pretexts. Roumania exports pigs and pork, and does not generally import them, and unless it maintain the restrictions against the pig products of other countries its exportation to Austria-Hungary will be forbidden.
I have, &c.,