The Secretary of State to the Ecuadorean Minister.

No. 15.]

Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your kind note of the 26th instant expressing the regret felt by your Government at my inability to visit Guayaquil during the recent trip which I made to South America.

May I venture to ask you to be good enough to convey to your Government an expression of my sincere appreciation of its courtesy and my deep regret that circumstances rendered it impossible for me to visit Ecuador and to meet its distinguished statesmen?

Accept, etc.,

Elihu Root.