211.71/41
The Minister in Rumania (Jay) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 18.]
Sir: Referring to my dispatch No. 616 of June 9, 192468a in reply to the Department’s Instruction No. 282 of April 11,68a on the subject of the extradition treaty to be concluded between the United States and Rumania, I have the honor to transmit herewith this convention, in French and English parallel texts which the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. I. G. Duca, and I signed on July 23rd at 6 o’clock in the afternoon at the Foreign Office, Bucharest,69 as reported in my telegram No. 50 of July 23.68a
Just before signing the treaty the Rumanian legal authorities asked to have the words “à être” added in Article XIV, so that the clause “il continuera en vigueur” would read “il continuera à être en vigueur”. As this change amplifies, without altering in any way, the sense of the passage, I readily assented to its addition to the text, and [Page 671] I feel hopeful that the Department will be pleased to approve this decision.
In order to meet the Rumanian Government’s objection to the application of the death penalty to criminals it might extradite to the United States, I have, in accordance with the Department’s instructions, annexed to the Treaty a protocol, in the form of a note, similar to the one forming part of our extradition convention with Portugal.70
The signing of this treaty, as a result of the unremitting efforts of the Legation since the receipt of the Department’s instruction of April 10, 1923,71 is particularly gratifying to me as this achievement has been the object of unsuccessful negotiations carried on with the Rumanian Government since 1892 by at least four of my predecessors.
In this connection, I desire to point out that the conclusion of the Treaty would have been impossible without the French translation thereof which was prepared by Mr. Dennis and submitted by him to the Rumanian authorities, during the two months he was in charge of the Legation last winter. Mr. Dennis also secured the acceptance by the Rumanian Government of this French draft with certain minor modifications. Slight changes were subsequently made in it by the Department. This text, with the parallel English version originally furnished the Legation by the Department, was signed yesterday.
In the last stages of the negotiations, taking advantage of the effect produced on the Rumanian Government by the Department’s firm attitude towards this country, recently manifested in connection with other questions, I was able to hasten the signing of the Treaty. Thus the conclusion of the Treaty was greatly expedited when I explained to Mr. Duca that Rumania was one of the very few remaining countries with which the United States had not yet been able to sign an extradition treaty, and that I felt that prompt action on their part in this matter would make a very favorable impression at Washington.
I have [etc.]