File No. 311.654At8/19
The Secretary of State to the Italian Ambassador ( Macchi di Cellere )
Excellency: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 12th instant in which you request that this Department apprize the United States judge at Norfolk who, you state, is about to decree the forced sale of the Italian steamship Attualità, that under the laws in force in the Kingdom of Italy the transfer of the flag of Italian steamers is prohibited.1
I regret that I do not consider that I am in a position to interfere in any way in this case in its present status.
According to my information the case was tried on its merits by a court of competent jurisdiction, and both parties litigant were given a full opportunity to present their cases to the court, which I understand has entered a decree finding that the steamer Attualità was wholly at fault in connection with the collision which took place between it and the steamer Mina. I am further informed that the case has been referred to a commissioner to ascertain the amount of damages resulting from the collision to the last-mentioned vessel and its cargo.
Accept [etc.]
- The ship was sold, Aug. 7, 1917, to an Italian company (File No. 311.654 At8/24).↩