I called at the Foreign Office on the morning of August sixth and
delivered your message to Doctor Durón, who was acting Minister for
Foreign Affairs during the temporary absence of Doctor Ulloa, and at
his request I left with him a copy of the message. In behalf of
Doctor Ulloa, Doctor Durón expressed thanks for the message and
stated that it would be brought to the attention also of the
President of the Republic without delay. It will be noted that in
the first paragraph of the Foreign Office reply the copy of the
verbal message left with Doctor Durón is referred to as a
“Confidential note”.
I understand that the reply of Doctor Ulloa has received the approval
of the Cabinet in Council.
I have had several private conversations with President Mejía
Colindres, since my return, but aside from expressing an earnest
desire for the early settlement of this boundary question, he has
been noncommittal.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[Enclosure—Translation]
The Honduran Minister for Foreign
Affairs (Ulloa) to the
American Minister (Summerlin)
Tegucigalpa, August 16,
1929.
Mr. Minister: I have the honor of
directing myself to Your Excellency in order to inform you that
I have read with the greatest interest the courteous
confidential note which, upon your arrival in Tegucigalpa, on
the 5th instant, you were good enough to hand to me
personally.
I am extremely grateful for the cordial greeting which His
Excellency the Secretary of State of the United States of
America was good enough to present to me in that note, and I am
delighted to return it.
I see with profound satisfaction the statements of His Excellency
Mr. Stimson, that he has particular interest in favor of the
Central American countries, in promoting prosperity and peaceful
relations among them, to which there is no other obstacle than
that presented by the still unsettled boundary questions, and
his ardent desire that they be settled as soon as possible to
the complete satisfaction of all parties.
The statement of His Excellency Mr. Stimson, that he feels happy
to note that there appears to be a reasonable prospect of a
definite settlement of the boundary question between Honduras
and Nicaragua at a not distant date is equally satisfactory to
me.
[Page 953]
And in expressing that he very much hopes that the Honduran
Government will again consider most carefully all matters
connected with the boundary dispute with Guatemala, with a view
to arriving at a prompt solution of that question also, feeling
that it will be to the great advantage of both countries to
dispose of this matter as rapidly as possible, and will
consequently welcome any suggestions my Government may have to
make with this end in view, offers Honduras a fine opportunity
to carry forward its proposals which are in harmony with those
of His Excellency the Secretary of State.
In effect, Mr. Minister, the Government of Honduras, which
believes, with His Excellency Mr. Stimson, that a satisfactory
solution of the boundary question with Nicaragua will soon be
arrived at, in view of the statements which its distinguished
Governor [Gobernante] made to the effect
that it should comply with the Award of H. M. the King of
Spain,26 and which
to judge by the message I am answering have merited the
approbation of the Department of State, [the Government of
Honduras] cherishes the most ardent desire that the question of
the Guatemalan frontier may be settled also as soon as possible;
and now, taking advantage of the generous offer of His
Excellency Mr. Stimson of receiving any suggestions which it
might make to him in this respect, [the Government of Honduras]
has much honor in informing Your Excellency, through me, that
its proposal is for its part to take at once, the necessary
steps that the question may be solved by arbitration, the
arbitrator being His Excellency the President of the United
States, as Honduras and Guatemala have already agreed in the
Treaty of 191427 and in
statements which His Excellency Charles Evans Hughes, Secretary
of State, made public solemnly on February 7, 1923, in
Washington, in the closing session of the Conference on Central
American Affairs;28 since my Government believes
that the Chief of the most powerful nation of America,
interested in the peace and harmony of the other American
nations, being the arbitrator, would have to be confided in on
account of his proverbial sense of right and justice, the
Decision which he pronounces will be recognized by the
contesting parties as rights which by equity and justice belong
to them, taking into consideration the documents and other
proofs which each of them may have produced in favor of their
pretensions, and in this way Guatemala should have complete
faith that it will not be prejudiced in any way. So that, if by
means of the good offices of the United States, Guatemala should
adopt the same attitude as that of Honduras, my Government will
be ready to sign the protocol of [Page 954] arbitration and to do whatever is
necessary to obtain the decision.
If His Excellency Mr. Stimson does Honduras the honor of
accepting the suggestion relative to the good offices of the
Department of State with Guatemala in order that the arbitration
may be constituted, and if he moreover lends his cooperation in
the question with Nicaragua, he will incur the gratitude of the
Hondurans and will see realized his ardent desire of promoting
prosperity and peaceful relations to which, as he so aptly says,
only the unsettled boundary questions are opposed.
Begging Your Excellency to be good enough to transmit the above
to His Excellency the Secretary of State it gives me pleasure to
reiterate assurances of my highest and most distinguished
consideration.
