Minister Swenson to the Secretary of State
Copenhagen, October 24, 1901.
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your cablegram of the 18th instant, relative to the proposed sale of the Danish West Indies, and to confirm mine of the 23rd instant, in reply thereto, which deciphered read as follows: [Printed ante.]
I have had two long interviews with the Minister of Foreign Affairs since the receipt of your cablegram; but have been unable to secure any definite proposition looking towards the conclusion of a convention for the transfer of the islands. As indicated in my No. 221, of the 4th instant, the impression that the United States Government is very eager to buy is growing stronger every day; and the Ministry seems to act on the supposition that delay and apparent indifference on its part will result in securing more favorable terms than those asked by the former Government.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs says that until within the last three weeks he would have assumed the responsibility of signing a treaty conforming substantially to the draft last submitted by the Government of the United States, except as to amount of compensation; but that now he would feel constrained to insist on embodying in such convention provisions expressly conferring citizenship upon the inhabitants and granting the islands free trade, in the event of a cession.
This change of attitude, the Minister says, has been caused by recent unexpected manifestations of opposition to the alienation of the islands on the part of his colleagues as well as of Rigsdag members of the Ministerial party, on account of the unfavorable terms offered.
They are now convinced that the United States has a strong desire to possess these islands; they reason that the building of an Isthmian canal will make the harbor of St. Thomas more valuable to us than it would have been in 1867, when we offered $7,500,000 for two of the islands; that we can better afford to pay a good price for them now than we could then; that if it was within the competency of the Executive to confer citizenship by treaty then, it is so now; etc. Then also, the King considers the question of citizenship as the most important.
Such are the representations made by the Foreign Office. It is further argued that the negotiations were started on a wrong basis; it being assumed that because the transfer was not to be considered as a purely commercial transaction, the price demanded was in consequence a comparatively unimportant matter. Denmark ought originally to have asked for a greater compensation than was required to indemnify itself for actual losses sustained in administering these possessions. * * *
It is evident that a liberal money offer is the essential thing.
I have [etc.]