File No. 13116/2.
Minister Furniss to
the Secretary of State.
American Legation,
Port au
Prince, April 9,
1908.
No. 355.]
Sir: I have the honor to inclose herewith
copies of the correspondence between this legation and the Haitian
department of foreign
[Page 448]
relations relative to certain Haitian authorities refusing permission to
Americans to land at Haitian ports.
It would seem from Secretary Borno’s reply that there will be no further
difficulty. However, I am not unmindful of the fact that I have several
times informally discussed this matter with the Haitian Government and
have been promised that there would be no further annoyance, yet there
has been no amelioration until now.
I have, etc.,
[Inclosure 1.]
Minister Furniss to the Minister for
Foreign Affairs.
American Legation,
Port au
Prince, March 31,
1908.
No. 266.]
Sir: I have recently had numerous
complaints from American tourists and business men because they have
been refused permission to go ashore at the different ports in Haiti
where the boats on which they were passengers have touched. While I
do not wish to question the right of your excellency’s Government to
refuse permission to foreigners to land in Haiti, yet, if it is your
Government’s orders that certain ports are closed against all
foreigners who have not tickets for the particular ports at which
they wish to land, I am desirous of being made acquainted with that
fact, that I may so inform my Government.
If no such orders have been issued, then I desire to call to your
excellency’s attention that summary and repeated refusal to permit
American tourists to land in Haiti for the few hours the steamers
which they are on are in Haitian ports, can not help but subject
your Government to adverse criticism and create feeling which I am
sure can not be your Government’s desire to cultivate.
In the case of business men who have come to Haiti to transact
legitimate affairs, refusal to permit such to land becomes a more
serious matter. In several cases my attention has been called to the
fact that such have been refused permission to go ashore at various
ports in Haiti, though they were American and Haitian passports in
due form and could prove that they were representatives of
legitimate American firms and desired to go on shore in Haiti to
attend to their legitimate business. There have been several such
cases here, and though your excellency’s Government has in some
instances finally allowed the parties in question to come on shore
after this legation had called the matter to your department’s
attention, yet it has always occasioned a delay of several hours,
which means considerable loss to a business man when his stay here
is only to be of some hours’ duration. Other than the delay
mentioned, it occasions this legation great inconvenience and loss
of time in having personally to follow up the matter that I may
finally ascertain what disposition your Government has toward
it.
In some of the other ports in Haiti the difficulty for an American
business man with proper credentials to go on shore is even greater.
Permission is often seemingly arbitrarily refused by your officials.
Particularly is this true at Jacmel. A case in point is that of Mr.
Von Jenny, an American, who was here for some weeks prior to the
17th instant, when he took passage on the S. S. President for Santo Domingo. Mr. Von Jenny will be
remembered as the one who conducted the sale of the yacht Columbine to your excellency’s Government. He
had American and Haitian passports. Upon the arrival of the President at Jacmel, on the 21st instant, he
desired to go on shore on business. The “chef du port” refused him
permission to land and sometime later he succeeded in calling his
case to the attention of the consular agent, who communicated with
the commandant de l’arrondissement. I inclose herewith copies of
this correspondence.
Another case is that of Mr. Guyol, an American, who was passenger
from Venezuela on the Dutch S. S. Prins Willem
III, arriving here on the 28th instant. He has American and
Haitian passports, properly viséed, yet he was refused permission to
go on shore at Jacmel on the 24th and has suffered considerable
business prejudice thereby. At Jeremie, St. Marc, and here he was
allowed to land at once.
[Page 449]
I would thank you, Mr. Secretary, to bring this matter to the
attention of the proper officials, with the request that I be
furnished with a prompt reply as to the stand which your
excellency’s Government takes relative to the matter.
Please accept, Mr. Secretary, the renewed assurances of my high
consideration.
[Inclosure
2.—Translation.]
The Minister for Foreign
Affairs to Minister Furniss.
Foreign Office,
Port au
Prince, April 6,
1908.
No. 42.]
Mr. Minister: I have the honor to
acknowledge to your excellency the receipt of your letter No. 266,
relative to the complaint of several tourists and business men from
the United States, to whom permission had been refused to land at
certain Haitian ports, although they had both American and Haitian
passports.
I can but sincerely regret, Mr. Minister, that the authorities of the
ports in question have so badly interpreted, in applying them, the
orders that the Government has had to issue to them sometimes
concerning certain persons whom the police had serious reasons not
to permit to debark. The exaggerating of these orders is more
regrettable, since the Government has at heart particularly to
facilitate the access into our territory of all foreigners to give
them thus the means of rendering to themselves an account of our
situation, convinced as we are that an exact knowledge of the
country can not but be advantageous, notably in the considerable
possibilities that it offers to capitalists.
It is sufficient to say to you that the Government could not fail to
give to your letter the attention which it merits, and I have the
satisfaction to assure you that by instructions which have just been
issued to the authorities at those ports, your legation will never
again see renewed the acts of which these peaceful voyagers have
complained.
Please accept, etc.,
