Mr. Merry to Mr.
Moore.
Legation of the United States (Central
America),
San Jose, Costa
Rica, May 14,
1898.
No. 82.]
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the
receipt of your No. 82 and No. 83 of April 28, No. 84 of April 29, and
No. 85 of May 2; also yours of April 28, without number, inclosing
proclamation of April 26, instructing me to forward “one copy to each of
the Governments to which I am accredited,” which instruction I
immediately carried out. The Department cable of the 22d ultimo,
advising Cuban blockade, was also forwarded to each of the Governments
to which I am accredited, and I desire respectfully to call your
attention to the replies received from Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa
Rica (inclosed).
* * * * * * *
I am, etc.,
William L. Merry,
United States Minister.
[Inclosure 1 in No.
82.—Translation.]
Office of Foreign Relations,
San Jose, May 14,
1898.
Mr. Minister: The estimable note of your
excellency has been received, dated the 11th instant, in which, by
order of your Government, you communicate to mine officially the
existence of a state of war between the United States and Spain.
With the same note your excellency has been pleased to send to this
office a printed copy of the decree ordered by Mr. President
McKinley on the 26th of April last, and also a printed copy of the
correspondence passed between the cabinets of Washington and Madrid
on the 21st of said month and days immediately preceding.
By instructions of the President, I have the honor to assure your
excellency in reply that this Government, deploring that the United
States and Spain, nations with which Costa Rica has cultivated and
now cultivates relations of the most intimate friendship, have seen
the painful necessity to have recourse to the arbitrament of arms to
settle their differences, and that this Republic being, and not able
to be less than, neutral, will comply strictly with the duties which
as such it should observe.
Your excellency will accept, etc.,
[Inclosure 2 in No.
82.—Translation.]
Hon. William L.
Merry,
San Jose, Costa Rica:
I acknowledge the receipt of your excellency’s telegram dated
yesterday, which serves to inform my Government that a state of war
has been declared by North America with the Kingdom of Spain, from
the 21st of the present month. Regretting the painful situation
between two civilized countries, I declare the absolute neutrality
of the Mcaraguan Government in the conflict alluded to.
I am, etc.,
[Inclosure 3 in No.
82.—Translation.]
Señor Merry,
United States Minister, San Jose:
Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua are the three countries which form
the Greater Republic of Central America, recognized by all the
countries of Europe and America, and, as you know already, the Diet
is composed of the respective delegates who act
[Page 855]
in Managua, representing the transient
sovereignty of the States mentioned, and consequently having charge
of their foreign relations. For this reason the Government of
Salvador, as well as Honduras and Nicaragua, have no minister of
foreign relations, by virtue of which, in answering the information
in your telegram of April 30 ultimo, notifying this Government of
the state of war between the United States and Spain, for which
attention I am much obliged, I do so in personal form, not having
the faculty according to diplomatic usage, for the reasons which I
have explained.
With protests, etc.,
P. Alfaro,
Minister of the Interior, Charged with Foreign
Relations.
