File No. 412.11/111.
The Secretary of State to the American Chargé d’Affaires.
Washington, June 7, 1912.
Express to the Minister for Foreign Affairs the Department’s gratification at the” early settlement of the border cases which is [Page 964] promised. Say that the Department has experienced great difficulty in postponing Congressional action until now, and has been able to do so only because it has given repeated assurances that the Mexican Government would make an early settlement.
You will informally suggest to the Minister for Foreign Affairs that in view of the fact that this Government has made no claim or, indeed, special point with reference to the clear violation of sovereignty involved in the most unfortunate transaction out of which the claims arise, and in view of the fact that the whole matter therefore is reduced to mere payment of damages which, from the standpoint of government, amount to a comparatively small sum, it would seem wise—and he will probably so decide upon further consideration—immediately to settle all these claims, which have such great potentiality for much embarrassment to, and even for differences between, the two Governments, and thus remove all cause for irritation, arising out of such claims and put the people of the border—who have been considerably agitated over the course of this matter, as have also the American people generally—in a better frame of mind.