The Acting Secretary of State to Minister Brun.
Washington, May 7, 1906.
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 30th ultimo,a in which you inquire whether this Government would have any objections to the appointment of Mr. Jesus L. Henriquez, vice-consul of the United States at Maracaibo, who is temporarily in charge of the Danish consulate, as the permanent consul of Denmark at that port, without salary.
[Page 535]In reply I have the honor to inform you that the Constitution provides that “No person holding any office of profit or trust under them (the United States) shall, without the consent of Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title of any kind whatever from any king, prince, or foreign state.”
Under this clause the department has always held that no one could be appointed to a position in the American consular service who is already holding office under some other government, and that acceptance of office from another government vacated the appointment of this Government.
Therefore, if Mr. Henriquez accepted appointment as Danish consul, it would be necessary for this Government to appoint another vice-consul at Maracaibo.
Accept, etc.,
- Not printed.↩