Mr. Leishman to Mr. Hay.
Constantinople, August 23, 1902.
Sir: I am just in receipt of your cable of yesterday, and am pleased to note that the settlement reached in regard to the recent difficulty meets with the Department’s approval.
The idea conveyed in latter part of your telegram is exactly in accordance with the line of action I pursued, i. e., having concluded a number of small questions with the imperial minister of foreign affairs, who notified me officially of their settlement and also of the fact of orders having been issued to the several departments putting them into execution, I waited a reasonable length of time for these orders to be carried out, but finding that the local authorities had not received the promised instructions, owing to conflicting orders issued by the grand vizier, I called the attention of the minister for foreign affairs to the fact, who seemed very much annoyed and promised to have the trouble [Page 1048] corrected at once, afterwards showing me a copy of renewed orders to minister of the interior, minister of posts, etc., instructing them to immediately put former orders into execution, but the same result followed. I then endeavored on four different occasions to see the grand vizier with a view of having him correct the trouble, but he repeatedly declined to see me on one excuse or another, at the same time referring me to the minister for foreign affairs.
Finding myself thus completely blocked, the minister for foreign affairs, despite his apparently good intention, appearing incompetent to put his orders into execution, owing to superior orders of the grand vizier, who declined to see me, there was no other diplomatic remedy left but to appeal the matter to the Sultan. So, consequently, I notified the minister for foreign affairs that the position I found myself in was incompatible with the dignity of the United States Government, and that until such time as the questions which had been settled were put into execution and proper explanations made that I could not continue my ordinary relations with the Sublime Porte, at the same time demanding an audience with His Imperial Majesty.
The outcome you are already made familiar with by previous communications, and I can only hope that the apparently good results will prove lasting. I am of the opinion that the action taken by His imperial Majesty will assure more respectful and considerate treatment at the Porte in the future, and that the position assumed will have a good effect generally.
I have, etc.,