Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the President, December 3, 1888, Part II

No. 822.
Mr. Whitehouse to Mr. Bayard.

Legation of the United States,
Mexico, November 15, 1888. (Received November 23.)

No. 187.]

Sir: Yesterday afternoon I received your telegram of same date relative to the dams at El Paso.

On receipt of this telegram I went at once to see Señor Mariscal, and, in order to save tiresome delays inevitable with formal notes, I handed him at the close of our conversation an abstract of your telegram.

Mr. Mariscal assured me that the action of the Mexican engineer in charge of the work in voluntarily suspending it when he found that discontent was felt on the American side had been approved by the ministry of public works; but he insisted that the American authorities were in error when they stated that a “dam” was being built, as the works were merely breakwaters or wing dams to protect the Mexican banks from being washed away by the stream.

I remarked to Mr. Mariscal that even these “wing-dams” or “breakwaters” might be very detrimental to our side of the river, as they would almost of necessity cause on the left bank the very damage they were constructed to prevent on the right.

Although Mr. Connery addressed a note to Mr. Mariscal concerning these wing-dams on February 24 last, this legation has never received any answer to his note. I therefore requested Senor Mariscal to furnish me with the data in his possession, in order that I might become conversant with the Mexican side of the question, and this he promised to do.

When I asked if the Mexican Government was inclined to send impartial engineers to co-operate with our own in endeavoring to reach a satisfactory and neighborly solution of the difficulty, I was assured that such action would fully coincide with the views of the Mexican Government.

Furthermore, Mr. Mariscal informed me that he had already telegraphed Señor Romero to confer with you on the matter.

Consequently I sent you this morning a telegram, stating that the Mexican Government is willing to co-operate with the United States in regard to the Rio Grande dams, and that Mr. Romero had been directed by telegraph yesterday to confer with you on the subject.

On receipt of Mr. Mariscal’s promised note of data I will at once furnish the Department with a copy.

I am, etc.,

H. Remsen Whitehouse.

[Inclosure in No. 187.]

Memorandum left with Mr. Mariscal by Mr. Whitehouse.

November 14, 1888.

This legation is advised by telegram from Mr. Bayard that the mayor of El Paso has informed the Department of State that the Mexican Government is constructing a dam entirely across the Rio Grande opposite to and partly within El Paso City, part of dam being on dry land in Texas. Such work is evidently in violation of Article III of convention of 1884, and invasive of territorial sovereignty. It is understood the work has been suspended to permit investigation. It is proposed by the United States Government to send competent engineer officers to make examination, and it is hoped the Mexican Government will do the same, and that there may be friendly co-operation.