File No. 763.72112/2923

The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Great Britain ( Laughlin )

[Telegram]

3860. Your 4828, September 4, 5 p. m. You are instructed to express to Foreign Office unofficially Department’s keen disappointment that measures offered apparently in amelioration of hardships produced by change in practice regarding unrestricted shipment of tobacco to Holland and Scandinavia have given no relief to tobacco interests in this country seriously affected by the change. You will [Page 518] point out in addition to what was said in Department’s 4828 of September 4, 5 p. m. regarding impossibility for shippers to book, ship from interior, and put aboard steamer their tobacco between August 23 and August 31; that condition that tobacco be bought and paid for by European consignees is most unreasonable and is doubtless due to misunderstanding of true condition, as it is contrary to the custom and practice of tobacco merchants, as practically no tobacco is bought for continental Europe in this way. Local brokers receive foreign orders and buy from farmers with their own funds and ship under c. i. f. arrangements. As dealers who bought old crop under contracts of this kind have invested large sums of money in dark fire-cured tobacco which can only be marketed in a restricted area which is now closed to them, seriousness of question is apparent. Furthermore the relaxation of conditions in case of tobacco bought and paid for by consignee would have been only beneficial to European buyer. The Department continues to hope that the British Government will reconsider its decision in view of these statements and relax restrictions in regard to all bona fide contracts entered into prior to July 15 in the spirit manifested in its reply to representations reported in your 4744 of August 22, 2 p. m.1

Lansing
  1. Not printed.