Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Annual Message of the President Transmitted to Congress December 7, 1909

File No. 21558/15–16.

Ambassador Straus to the Secretary of State.

[Extract.]

American Embassy,
Constantinople, November 12, 1909.

No. 36.]

Sir: I have the honor to refer to my No. 19 of October 18 last, in the matter of Memar Rizk, his extradition and punishment. On the 22d of October, I sent a note verbale to the Porte upon the subject, a copy of which is inclosed. I followed this up with several conferences with the minister for foreign affairs, and he promised to have his Government immediately communicate with the Khediviate of Egypt, requesting the arrest and trial of said Rizk. Such request was subsequently sent; and I advised our diplomatic agency at Cairo so that it could follow the matter up. Mr. Iddings, our diplomatic agent, informed me by telegram on November 1, that up to 11 o’clock on that day no directions from the Ottoman Government had been received by the minister for foreign affairs in Egypt, but that Rizk will be sent to Constantinople. From investigations here it is clear that a telegram was sent to the Khediviate, and most probably in pursuance of this the Egyptian Government decided to send Rizk to Constantinople, as he is an Ottoman subject. I requested Mr. Iddings to inform me as soon as Rizk is put aboard, and I have just been advised that Rizk is being sent here by steamer due on the 14th.

Under your telegram of October 7, I understand it is your instruction to endeavor to have the Ottoman Government surrender Rizk, notwithstanding the provision of Article VII of the treaty of extradition, but with the express understanding that we could not reciprocate under a similar instance, because our courts have construed a similar clause as forbidding surrender by our Government of its own citizens. I shall do my best to bring about this result, as I appreciate how difficult it would be for us to produce the witness for trial here. The present régime is inclined to be much more technical and exacting in its legal rights than the old régime. However, I shall do my best. I appreciate from your telegraphic instruction, one of your main purposes was to have me clearly establish that our extradition treaty with Turkey of 1874 be applied to Egypt. In view of the fact that Rizk is an Ottoman subject and not an American citizen, you will probably agree with me that it is not a good case to bring up this question in a concrete way, especially, also, as I stated in my dispatch above referred to, the minister for foreign affairs holds to the claim which has been advanced in the past, that he regards the treaty as abrogated, which, of course, we do not admit, as notices given have not been regarded by our Government as sufficient, nor do we admit the claim made that this treaty depended for its validity upon the confirmation and the promulgation of the treaty of naturalization, for as I explained to the minister for foreign affairs, there is no reference in either of these treaties to the other; and without such reference no such connection can properly be predicated.

I have, etc.,

Oscar S. Straus.

[Inclosure.]

Ambassador Straus to the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

American Embassy,
Constantinople, October 22, 1909.

No. 3.]

Note verbale.

The embassy of the United States of America has the honor to inform the Sublime Porte that a short time ago, in the State of New Jersey, United States of America, an Ottoman subject by the name of Memar Rizk murdered another Ottoman subject and then fled from the United States to escape arrest and trial. The said Rizk has taken refuge in Egypt, and his whereabouts is known to the Egyptian authorities, who have him under surveillance at the request of the American consul general at Cairo.

The American Government, for the sake of law and order, desires to have the said Rizk tried and punished for his outrageous crime, knowing that the Ottoman Government is unwilling that one of its subjects, who has murdered another Ottoman subject, should be allowed to escape the proper punishment for so grave a crime.

As Rizk is an Ottoman subject a request for his extradition is not made. This embassy, however, urgently requests the Sublime Porte to make, as an act of international comity, the necessary communication to the Egyptian authorities to arrest the said Rizk and hold him for trial in accordance with the laws applicable to such crimes, and the embassy hopes that it will be possible for the Sublime Porte to take this action promptly, in order that the criminal may not escape his just punishment.