File No. 812.00/15873.
American Consulate,
Vera Cruz,
June 30, 1915.
[Inclosure—Translation—Extract.]
[Untitled]
Vera Cruz,
June 30, 1915.
The Special Representative of the United
States:
I have the honor to refer to your notes relating to telegrams sent to
you by the State Department in regard to the protection of the
interests and lives of foreigners.
In reply, I must state to you that it is a well known principle of
international jurisprudence that every foreigner who leaves his own
country to settle in another and create interests there ipso facto
accepts both the good and the bad fortune of the country in which he
has settled; notwithstanding this, no complaint or claim has ever
been answered by an excuse based on this principle; on the contrary,
the Commander in Chief, being anxious to preserve good order and
enforce a respect for the law, has afforded guaranties to all
foreigners and in particular to the Americans who, to tell the
truth, have had the least ground of all for complaint.
If this were a normal period of our existence it would indeed be
unusual for the facilities afforded by the Department of Foreign
Affairs to the complainants not to yield a prompt remedy for the
evils sought to be prevented; but, as the United States, the State
Department and you very well know, we are engaged in a struggle for
the establishment of a free Government and the necessities of the
campaign have made it difficult for us to take care of small
settlements and isolated ranches, owing to the large numbers of
troops that have been required to fight the reactionaries, although
even this has not caused any of the places for which protection was
asked to be left unguarded.
I avail myself of this opportunity to state to you also that this
Department has in turn observed with not a little surprise the
unbecoming tone of the telegrams of the State Department which have
called forth this reply; for so far from reconciling the common
interest of the two Republics by bringing about as soon as possible
a complete understanding, a better will and a closer relation of
interests, the spirit of the messages appears very foreign to the
harmony and good will which ought to exist between the two
Governments. Of course, in making this remark to you I do so for the
purpose of requesting you to make it known to the State Department
in the manner which you deem most suitable, in order that our
intention to honor these claims as far as they are just may be given
the natural consideration due us, inasmuch as the Chief Magistrate
is disposed to prevent any injury if unfortunately, owing to the
struggle in which we are engaged, such may’ occur to foreigners, and
to remedy it as far as the claim is just and reasonable.
I have [etc.]
