838.00Electoral Law/16: Telegram
The Chargé in Haiti (Gross) to the Secretary of State
[Received September 24—9:54 a.m.]
122. Department’s 78, September 21, 6 p.m. Regarding article 18, the text of the article is changed to make “registry” plural instead of singular and in article 25, the text is changed to read “the localities where the lists are on file” instead of the “locality where the list is on file”. In every other way the text is identical with the law of 1919.
Article 26. The President now informs me that this has been struck out of the proposed law and therefore the Department’s views in this regard appear to be satisfied.
Article 62. Regarding this article the text beginning with the words “those who” is necessary according to the President’s ideas. He states that he has simply copied the text of the existing French law. In this regard the President assures the Department that there will be no abuse but he maintains the conviction that the obstacle to election day frauds is one that must exist in order to prolong [prevent] the circulation by the opposition of last minute falsehoods such as reports that the Government has ceded territory or that it has passed certain onerous laws. The President states that such a clause prevents the commission of the very acts for which it provides punishment.