File No. 8130/6.
The Acting Secretary of State to the German Ambassador.
Washington, October 18, 1907.
Excellency: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 14th instant, by which you inform me that Dr. Harris, who holds the office of American consular agent at Tripoli, Syria, was recently appointed vice consul of the German Empire there, and that he has declared his readiness to accept, subject to the condition that he will be authorized thereto by this Government. You accordingly request, by direction of your Government, that this Government will grant to the consular representative of the United States at Tripoli permission to assume the office of German vice consul.
This department, desirous at all times of meeting the wishes of the Imperial German Government, regrets to state that it is inhibited by a provision of the Constitution of the United States from doing so in the present instance. Article I, section 9, of the Constitution of the United States forbids a person holding an office of profit or trust under the United States to accept an office from any foreign state without the consent of Congress. A consular agent is regarded as an officer of the United States within the constitutional inhibition.
Accept, etc.,