Mr. Day to Mr. Hitchcock.

No. 69.]

Sir: I have to acknowledge the receipt of your No. 54 of the 30th ultimo, recommending that the first secretary of your embassy may be styled conseiller in the list of the diplomatic corps issued by the imperial department of ceremonies.

Calvo, in his Dictionary of International Law, states that—

The conseiller of embassy or of legation is an agent whom governments attach sometimes to diplomatic missions in order to assist with his advice the public minister in affairs of certain importance, or which demand special knowledge which the minister is not deemed to possess.

No diplomatic usage has fixed the attributes of the conseiller of legation. They are ordinarily determined by his government, and are merged into those of secretary of legation. It is the rule to-day, in the absence of formal instructions to the contrary, for the conseiller to supply the place of the chief of the mission, disabled or absent; and it is only in succession to the former, or in his absence, that this task is devolved upon the first secretary. The conseiller shares the privileges and immunities recognized in secretaries. Like the latter, he is named and appointed by the government itself, which gives notice of his nomination to the ministers of foreign affairs of the country where he is to reside. He is presented to the sovereign of this country by the chief of the post to which he is attached. He is clothed with a certain representative character enjoys immunities of his own, independently of the ambassador, or of the chief of legation, but has no right to any ceremonial. In Germany the title of conseiller of legation is conferred upon the conseiller of the department of foreign affairs.

The above definition shows that the conseiller is virtually a secretary of legation.

Clause 5 of section 1674 of the Revised Statutes enumerates the list of diplomatic officers of the United States, and excludes all others. In this list the office of conseiller is not mentioned.

Section 37 of Instructions to Diplomatic Officers, which is based upon the law above referred to, prohibits in spirit, if not in letter, the designation of the first secretary as conseiller. The Department is, therefore, of opinion that this can not be done except by statutory authority.

Respectfully, yours,

William R. Day.