Mr. Douglass to Mr. Blaine.
Port-au-Prince, February 9, 1891. (Received February 26.)
Sir: I have the honor to inform you that on Monday afternoon, the 2d instant, in company with Rear-Admiral Bancroft Gherardi, special commissioner to Haiti, and Lieut. Huse, of our war steamer Philadelphia, who acted as interpreter on the occasion, I had a lengthy interview with Mr. Firmin, the Haitian minister of foreign affairs, during which interview the question of the hardships imposed on American sailing vessels according to the existing law and practice of the Government [Page 652] of Haiti, by which those vessels are often detained and held in Haitian ports until the duties on their inward cargoes are all paid, was fully discussed.
The evil complained of has of late seemed much aggravated. Vessels that should, in a fair condition of things, be able to depart within ten or fifteen days after their arrival here have been detained in this port thirty and even forty days, thus fouling their bottoms, opening their seams, endangering the health of their officers and crews, and inflicting needless loss upon their owners.
Our complaint was ably presented during the interview by Rear-Admiral Gherardi. One feature in the matter is that the law is made to apply only to sailing vessels and not at all to steamers. It was accordingly insisted upon by us that there should be no discrimination either for or against either class of vessels; that the law should be as liberal toward sailing vessels as toward those propelled by steam; and that if the cargoes of the one class of vessels should be deemed sufficient security for the payment of the customs duties, the same should be sufficient in the other class of vessels.
Mr. Firmin stated in reply that the subject had already been brought to his attention by myself, and he again made substantially the same explanation that he had made to me several weeks ago.
He declared that much of the delay complained of was due to the failures of the persons to whom the goods brought by sailing vessels were consigned to promptly pay the duties on those goods; that sailing vessels not infrequently come to Haitian ports without being consigned to anyone; that this condition of things often affords opportunity for evading the payments due from the vessels; that between steam vessels and sailing vessels there is in this respect a wide difference, inasmuch as steam vessels have responsible agents permanently located in Haiti, and these agents can be held to account for any violation of law, whereas the departure of a sailing vessel may end all her responsibility toward the laws of this country, as she may never return to any port in Haiti.
Nevertheless, as on the former occasion already referred to, when, as stated in my No. 120, of the 26th ultimo, I called his attention to this serious complaint made in the interest of free commerce, Mr. Firmin assured us that he would study the subject with the view to the proper correction of the evil.
I am, etc.,