File No. 3691/49.

The President of Honduras to President Roosevelt.

[Telegram.—Translation.]

I have received, with sentiments of profound gratitude, your excellency’s expressive cablegram, which brings forth fresh evidence of the altruistic purposes that guide your excellency and your enlightened Government in your relations with the other countries of America for the good of humanity and civilization. The tribunal of arbitrators [Page 618] established on my motion to take cognizance of the incident that took place between Honduras and Nicaragua unfortunately had to separate by reason of the repeated refusals of the Managua Government to observe the dispositions which the tribunal deemed expedient to order as a previous condition to the rendering of its award. The Government of Honduras, on the contrary, yielded from the beginning and without restriction to every disposition the tribunal saw fit to make, and accepted the resolution of that body touching the disarmament and disbandonment of the army. If this was not carried into effect, it was because of the systematic opposition offered to that measure by the ruler of Nicaragua. The policy of my Government has always had for its ultimate object the maintenance of peace; all its efforts have constantly been devoted to that end, and if it now finds itself constrained to make armed preparations against an unjustifiable war, the cause is in the persistent aggressions of the Nicaraguan Government, after exhausting every recourse, for my part, to secure an honorable peace, failure in which was undoubtedly through no lack of good will on the part of my Government, but due to the obstacles that the Government of Nicaragua was bent on opposing at all costs. Under the circumstances I can but receive with deep gratification your excellence’s initiative and accept the newly offered arbitration which might be intrusted to either of the Governments of Salvador and Costa Rica, the situation of the contending parties being previously guaranteed while peaceably awaiting the decision of the arbitrament in the form that may be agreed to that effect, and the treaty of Corinto having been declared nonexistent, the dissolved tribunal could not be reorganized again. My Government awaits the decision that may be reached in this respect and is disposed to accept with pleasure as arbitrators either of the Governments I have permitted myself to name.

I am, etc.,

Manuel Bonilla.