File No. 367.114M69/157.
No. 243.]
American Embassy,
Constantinople,
July 12, 1912.
[Inclosure 3.]
The American Ambassador
to the Minister for Foreign
Affairs.
No. 111.]
American Embassy,
Constantinople,
July 10, 1912.
Excellency: I have the honor to inform
your excellency that the American Consul General at Smyrna
telegraphs that a trial of Spiro Macris, Captain of the steamship
Texas at the time of her sinking, [has]
commenced in the Ottoman criminal court at Smyrna.
[Page 1326]
In an interview which I had the honor to have with your excellency on
the 11th of May last, and which I confirmed by a memorandum bearing
same date.1 reserving explicitly the question of
jurisdiction, I requested that the Imperial Ministry furnish me with
a chart showing the location of the wreck, the buoys, the courses,
and the ships at the date of the sinking, these data being:
absolutely necessary to determine the facts of the case. I further
stated that before the above chart was furnished and the facts of
the case were fully known, the local authorities should not be
permitted to proceed further in the matter.
By its note verbale of the 8th of June, 1912,2
this Embassy had the honor to point out that as the Texas was an American vessel, the property of
an American corporation and flying the American flag, and as its
captain was held for a crime alleged to have been committed by him
while aboard that American vessel and in his capacity as master of
the same, he is subject to the same jurisdiction as would be an
American citizen serving in like capacity. The Embassy therefore
specifically requested the surrender of the said Spiro Macris to the
custody of the American Consul General at Smyrna, to be tried by the
American Consular Court for such charges as might be properly
brought against him on account of any act committed by him while
performing his duties as master of the said American vessel.
By its note verbale of the 27th of June 1912,3 this Embassy, while reiterating its above-mentioned
requests, found itself obliged to protest against the action of the
Ottoman authorities at Smyrna, who had removed the said captain from
the hospital prison and thrown him into the common prison of
convicted persons.
I cannot conceal my surprise that notwithstanding the requests
contained in the above-mentioned memorandum and two notes of this
Embassy, all of which remain unanswered, the local authorities
should have acted as stated above, and, reserving all rights, I am
constrained to enter hereby a most formal protest against the
attempt on the part of the Ottoman authorities to try the said Spiro
Macris pending the determinaion of the questions submitted by this
Embassy to the Imperial Ministry in its above-mentioned
communications.
