[Enclosure]
Memorandum by the Chairman of the United States
Technical Committee on the Inter-American Highway Reconnaissance
Surveys (Forbes)
The Costa Rican Minister to Panama called at the office of the
Inter-American Highway Reconnaissance Surveys, Technical Committee,
on Saturday, November 15th, 1930 during my absence. Upon return to
the office, I immediately proceeded to the Costa Rican Legation in
order that I might ascertain the reason for the call.
The Costa Rican Minister said that his Government had authorized him
to inform the Technical Committee that his Government was anxious to
render all assistance necessary in furthering the reconnaissance in
Costa Rica, and that they would cooperate with us in all
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ways and are most desirous
of furthering the work of the Inter-American highway.
The Costa Rican Minister said that he had been in conversation with
the American Minister to Panama, Hon. Roy T. Davis, previous to his
departure to the United States, about this matter. The Costa Rican
Minister inquired into the details of our work in order that he
might familiarize himself with what we would wish to do in Costa
Rica.
I explained to the Costa Rican Minister that our work would consist
of a reconnaissance in Costa Rica in order to ascertain a feasible
route for the proposed Inter-American highway and make an estimate
of the cost of construction of the same. That we were also
particularly interested in the country adjoining the Panama and
Nicaragua borders insofar that we would be unable to complete our
work in northern Panama until we had made a survey of the frontier
region of Costa Rica in order that the proposed Inter-American
highway in the two countries would join at a common point on the
border.
The selection of the junction point at the border between Costa Rica
and Panama will necessitate a study of the terrain in both countries
adjacent to the border in order to select a feasible route of equal
advantage to both Panama and Costa Rica.
Since the Costa Rican Minister had been one of the delegates from
Costa Rica to the conference held here in Panama in the fall of
1929, I was sure that he was familiar with the procedure necessary
to arrange for the services of the Technical Committee in Costa
Rica. I stated to the Costa Rican Minister that it would be a
pleasure to cooperate with the authorities of Costa Rica in a
reconnaissance survey within their borders, and that I assumed that
he was fully informed as to the proper procedure before our
cooperation could be given, namely that his Government through the
Pan-American Union in Washington, would make a request or signify a
desire to have the cooperation of the Technical Committee to the
United States State Department. The State Department would after
receiving such request, promptly notify the Technical Committee, who
would then immediately make plans to offer their services to Costa
Rica.
I told the Costa Rican Minister that during rainy season we had been
forced to abandon our reconnaissance in northern Panama and were
working at present in Honduras. However within a month or six weeks
we expected to return to northern Panama to complete the
reconnaissance there, and it would be of particular advantage to us
if we were able to reconnoitre the country in Costa Rica adjacent to
the Panamanian border in order that we might select a proper
junction point on the border.
