Legation of
the United States,
London, July 7, 1888.
(Received July 23.)
No. 795.]
[Inclosure 1 in No. 795.]
Mr. Phelps to the
Marquis of Salisbury.
United
States Legation,
London, July 3,
1888.
My Lord: In view of the desire expressed in the
protocole de clôture of the second session of
the international conference on the sugar bounties question, that the
opinions of the powers represented at the conference with respect to the
draught convention for the abolition of export bounties should be
communicated to Her Majesty’s Government before the 5th instant, I have
the honor, in accordance with instructions to that effect, to acquaint
your lordship of the conclusions at which my Government has arrived in
the matter.
You are aware that no legal bounty exists in the United States upon the
exportation of imported sugar, or upon the production and manufacture of
sugar; and the Secretary of the Treasury considers that the rate of
drawback which is now allowed by law upon the exportation of refined
sugars manufactured from imported sugars is not excessive, and does not
constitute an indirect bounty, as claimed, frequent investigations
having shown that the present rates of the said drawback are
substantially correct, and represent the duties collected on the
importation of the raw material, less the retention of 1 per cent.
The objects of the conference are, however, in the opinion of my
Government, foreign to the interests of the United States, and,
moreover, the question as to whether any bounty or subsidy should be
allowed in connection with the production or manufacture of sugar is one
which can not be determined by the executive branch of the United States
Government, Congress having sole and exclusive jurisdiction in such
matters.
Under these circumstances my Government considers itself precluded from
giving its adhesion, for the present at least, to the proposed
convention, or to any convention following the same lines, unless
Congress should take action of a nature to render such adhesion
possible.
I have, etc.,
[Inclosure 2 in No. 795.]
The Marquis of Salisbury
to Mr. Phelps.
Foreign
Office, July 5,
1888.
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the
receipt of your note of the 3d instant, stating the attitude of the
United States Government with respect to the proposed convention for the
suppression of sugar bounties.
I beg that you will be so good as to express to the Government of the
United States the thanks of Her Majesty’s Government for the promptitude
with which their views on the subject have been made known.
I have, etc.,
