There is enclosed herewith a copy of a Memorandum of conversations
Secretary of Legation Hawks had with Mr. Rihl, on May 20, and also a
copy of a Memorandum by Commercial Attaché Bohan,97 regarding conversations he had with Mr. Balch on
May 21 and 22.
I also beg leave to report that Mr. Bohan has received a cablegram
from the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, dated May 21,
1929, 6:30 p.m., which reads as follows:
[Enclosure]
Memorandum by the Third Secretary of
Legation in Guatemala (Hawks)
Mr. George L. Rihl, Vice President of the Pan American Airways,
Incorporated, called at 2:30 this afternoon, Monday, to see the
Minister, who however, was not in. He informed Secretary Hawks
as follows:
On Saturday night, May 18, Mr. Rihl received a telegram from [Page 644] Mr. Trippe, President
of the Pan American Airways, Incorporated, from New York stating
that the Post Office Department of the United States had ordered
the Pan American Airways to extend, with the consent of both
Governments, i. e. the Governments of Mexico and Guatemala,
their air service from Mexico City to Guatemala, establishing a
regular weekly service. Mr. Rihl explained, that under the
contract which the Pan American Airways has with the United
States Post Office Department, for the Brownsville-Mexico City
line, the latter can demand, at any time, that the Pan American
Airways extend its service farther south. The telegram also said
that nothing would be done until Mr. Rihl could have a
conference with Mr. Trippe. Mr. Rihl hopes to leave Guatemala,
on May 22, Wednesday morning for Vera Cruz, taking the train
that night to Mexico City, telephoning the next morning to New
York and arranging for this conference, and proceeding there
probably Friday. Due to this order of the Post Office
Department, the Pan American Airways would now have to extend
its service from Tapachula, Mexico to Guatemala and this would
mean that the Compañía Mexicana de Aviación would be the
organization used for this purpose. He had told Mr. Geissler
that he would use an American company in Guatemala, which now is
impossible, due to the fact that commercially he could not have
an American organization simply for the trip between the city of
Guatemala and the Mexican border, since this would not be
profitable and also it would in reality be a local company and
would thus run into difficulties in connection with the Gordon
contract, et cetera.
In reply to a question by Mr. Hawks, he said that if the Post
Office Department of the United States ordered the Pan American
Airways to extend its lines farther South through Salvador to
Managua, then it would be possible to organize an American
corporation to carry on this service between the Mexican border
and Nicaragua.
When he and Mr. Balch of the Latin American Airways had come to
an agreement, that the Latin American Airways be allowed to have
the service on the West coast and the Pan American Airways would
come in from Tela or British Honduras, he had told Mr. Balch
that that agreement was subject to the approval of his
principals and that, of course, if the Post Office Department
ordered the Pan American Airways to extend the service which it
is now running between Brownsville and Mexico City and Vera Cruz
to Guatemala, then there would remain nothing for him to do but
endeavor to obtain a contract with the Government of Guatemala
for the Compañía Mexicana de Aviación for service from Mexico
City to Guatemala.
He had tried to find Mr. Balch this morning but had been unable
[Page 645] to do so, as the
latter was busy in conference with the Council of State but that
as soon as he saw him he would inform him of the abovementioned
telegram.
He stated that while Mr. English and Mr. King Gillette were
reliable people and while Mr. Balch had been very fair in
attempting to get an air mail contract here, nevertheless, it
was his, Mr. Rihl’s, absolute opinion that the Latin American
Airways would not operate its own service here, in the event
that it did get a contract. …
He said that he had given the Minister of Fomento a short flight
around the city this morning and had an appointment with him for
3:30 this afternoon, at which time the Minister had promised to
definitely conclude the contract with the Pan American Airways.
Despite this promise, he did not believe that the Minister would
settle this matter and, according to his feeling, his contract
would not be agreed upon in time to be submitted to the Assembly
prior to May 25, the last date upon which new business could be
brought before it according to a recent extension of time
ordered by that body. Also, that although the Latin American
contract might reach the Assembly before that date, he did not
think that it would be approved by that body.
The contract which Mr. Rihl is now proposing to the Government is
made out in the name of the Pan American Airways, Incorporated,
and its subsidiary companies. There is no definite route
prescribed for the service and, therefore, if this contract be
approved, the Compañía Mexicana de Aviación would be able to
extend its service from Mexico City and Vera Cruz via Tapachula
to the city of Guatemala. However, as he does not believe that
this contract will be approved, he said that he would probably
merely request the Government to give him a permit so that
planes of that Company could enter Guatemala and bring in
mail.
The Government had requested that he amend his contract so as to
make it read for four years instead of twenty; so as to enable
the Government to cancel it at any time it desired, and also so
as to allow the Government to take over the airplanes of the
Company in time of war or national disturbance. He said, that
while certain other points had been accepted by him, these last
three he had refused definitely to accept.
He did not know whether the Latin American Airways had accepted
these points or not. In his contract he agreed to carry mail for
the Guatemalan Government but added a clause under which he
would conclude a separate contract with the Guatemalan Post
Office Department providing that the mail would be carried but
only if it were paid for and if all the matter of the issuing
and sale of stamps were taken care of by the Post Office
Department.
[Page 646]
I saw Mr. Rihl in the lobby of the Palace Hotel at seven o’clock
this evening and he said that he had not yet seen Mr. Balch and,
therefore, had not told him concerning the telegram which he
said he had received from Mr. Trippe saying that the Post Office
Department of the United States had ordered the Pan American
Airways to extend its service to Guatemala.
He said that he and the Minister of Fomento had again discussed
the contract that afternoon and had agreed upon all points and
that he was having the final draft typed out tomorrow morning
and would give the Legation a copy of it. I asked him if my
impression was correct that the contract did not provide for any
specific route. He replied that the contract provided for a
connection with the lines of the Pan American Airways to the
North. I asked whether that would authorize him to connect at
his choice with Mexico or the Miami-Belize line. He said that
this had been his impression, but that now he had been told that
in Guatemala to the North does not mean Mexico, as this was
considered as being to the West and, therefore, it would only
mean the permission to connect with the Miami-Belize line. He
said that he had asked the Minister of Fomento concerning a
landing permit for the establishment of a weekly service with
Mexico, as ordered by the Post Office Department of the United
States, and that the latter had told him to apply for two
permits, one to bring in the planes and the other to bring in
the mail. He said that he would do so.
