711.152/3
The Secretary of State to the Minister in Honduras (Summerlin)
Sir: With reference to your telegram No. 44 of July 20, 1926, 5 p.m., and earlier correspondence concerning the negotiation of a treaty of friendship, commerce and consular rights between the United States and Honduras, there are enclosed herewith three copies of a draft of such a treaty.5 The copy which contains confidential comments explanatory of the provisions of the draft is solely for the use of the Legation and is not to be shown to any officials of the Honduran Government or to others. Of the copies which do not contain the explanatory comment, you will submit one to the Honduran Foreign Office; the other is for your convenience when discussing the provisions of the draft with officials of the Honduran Government.
The following statement is designed to make clear the position of this Government concerning the general features of the treaty, and respecting the various provisions thereof.
[Here follows a detailed explanation of the preamble and the 29 articles of the draft treaty, substantially the same as that contained in the Department’s instruction No. 189, Aug. 6, 1925, to the Chargé in Salvador, printed in Foreign Relations, 1926, volume II, page 924, except that the paragraph dealing with article XI in the present instruction reads:
“The provisions of Article XI will explain themselves. You will of course observe that there is definite statement to the effect that the coasting trade of both parties is exempt from the provisions of the treaty. The addition of the last sentence is due to the possibility that either contracting party might yield coasting trade privileges of some character to foreign vessels. Hence that contingency is covered. It will be observed that the coasting trade is specifically reserved for national vessels by Article II of the treaty of July 4, 1864, between the United States and Honduras.”]
In the treaty of friendship, commerce and consular rights signed by the United States and Salvador on February 22, 1926, certain provisions not contained in the enclosed draft were included in Article VII and Article XI at the request of the Government of Salvador.
At the end of Article VII an exception from the application of the stipulations in regard to most-favored-nation treatment was made as follows:
“…6 or to the treatment which Salvador accords, or may hereafter accord, to the commerce of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and/or Panama, so long as any special treatment accorded to the commerce of those countries or any of them by Salvador is not accorded to any other country.”
At the end of Article XI an exception from the application of the most-favored-nation treatment in regard to the coasting trade of Salvador was made as follows:
“…6a excepting that special treatment with respect to the coasting trade of Salvador may be granted by Salvador on condition of reciprocity to vessels of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and/or Panama, so long as such special treatment is not accorded to vessels of any other country.”
This Government does not ask the Government of Honduras to include such provisions in the treaty herein proposed. You are instructed, however, to bring them to the attention of the Foreign Office, and to state that this Government will be glad to include similar provisions in the Treaty if Honduras so desires.
The treaty between the United States and Salvador is printed in the Congressional Record of May 28, 1926, the date on which the Senate gave its advice and consent to ratification, beginning on page 10241.7 The Treaty is not yet in force as an exchange of ratifications has not been effected.
Please report to the Department by telegram the date on which you submit the draft to the Honduran Foreign Office.
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