Mr. Foster to Mr. Partridge.
Washington, February 8, 1893.
Sir: Referring to Mr. Bartleman’s No. 375, of the 5th ultimo, inclosing a copy of a decree issued by the Venezuelan Government on December 30, 1892, imposing, on and after March 1, next, a differential duty of 30 per cent on merchandise from the United States and Europe destined for the western ports of the Republic, but transshipped at Curaçao, I desire to call your attention to the correspondence exchanged between this Department and the legation at Caracas in 1881, 1882, and 1883, and published in the volumes of Foreign Relations for the years 1882 and 1883.
This correspondence related to the act of the Congress of Venezuela of May 27, 1881, imposing a similar differential duty of 30 per cent on all merchandise imported into the Republic which had been transshipped at any of the ports of the West India islands.
The act in question was found to be prejudicial to the interests of this country, and upon the representations of our minister was modified by executive decree of January 26, 1883, in a manner satisfactory to our business interests. (See Foreign Relations, 1883, pp. 897–900.)
You are instructed to make similar representations against the present decree, which, though more limited in its operations, is none the less objectionable.
I am, etc.