File No. 861.85/42
The Division of Operations of the United States
Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation (Steele) to the Assistant of the Counselor for the
Department of State (Auchincloss)
Washington, August 16,
1918.
[Received August
17.]
Dear Sir: We beg to hand you herewith copy
of memorandum under date of August 9 addressed to Mr.
Munson of the War Trade Board, also copy of
cable from the Governor General of the Philippine Islands which only
reached us August 15.1 You will note the Governor General of the
Philippine Islands requests that necessary steps be taken with the
Japanese Ambassador to have vessel [Simferopol] return to Manila with coal where legal
proceedings may determine questions involved.
We are passing this matter on to you, and will appreciate your taking
it up with the Japanese Ambassador along the above lines, at the
same time keeping us advised.
Very truly yours,
Division of Operations
By
Semmes Steele
[Enclosure—Extract]
Memorandum to Mr.
Munson regarding the Russian
steamer “Simferopol”
… Under date of May 24, we cabled the Governor General of the
Philippine Islands in accordance with your instructions to grant
license, permitting the vessel to proceed from Manila in
Kamchatka trade.
The vessel later asked for the permission of calling at Shanghai
or Kobe to drydock, prior to proceeding in the Kamchatka trade,
which permission was cabled to the Governor General of the
Philippines under date of June 6. The captain later stated that
the vessel had missed her season for the Kamchatka trade, and
requested permission to operate in inter-island Saigon rice
trade between the Philippine Islands, China, Japan and
Australia, which permission was granted in accordance with your
instructions under date of June 27, subject to guarantee that
vessel would not touch at any Russian port. At the request of
the State Department this guarantee was waived and the vessel
was allowed to report to the manager of the Volunteer Fleet in
Japan, and then proceed to Vladivostok. On arrival at Kobe the
vessel was seized by the alleged manager of the Russian
Volunteer Fleet, claiming that the captain was without authority
to charter. …
L. L.
Richards
Bureau of Transportation
J. A.
Robinson
