882.124a/29
The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Liberia (Carter)
Sir: There is attached herewith a copy of a memorandum of conversation between Dr. Pierce of the Public Health Service and Mr. Moffitt of this office87 from which you may see that it is the intention [Page 417] of the Public Health to withdraw Dr. Smith when he has completed one year’s stay in Liberia and not to replace him by another Public Health officer.
As it will probably seem fitting to the Liberian Government to continue the work of sanitation in Liberia so happily inaugurated by Dr. Smith after the serious epidemic of yellow fever last year, the Government of Liberia may find it desirable to replace Dr. Smith with a private professional sanitary engineer and in such event the Department will be glad to use its unofficial good offices in furnishing, without responsibility, names of sanitary engineers who would be willing to accept the post. It is believed that it will not be possible to obtain the services of a competent sanitary engineer for a salary less than $6,000 with the perquisites as to rent allowance, travel and leave customarily accorded to foreign fiscal officers.
You will please address a communication in the sense of the foregoing to the Liberian Government and express the hope that if the Liberian Government decides to appoint a sanitary engineer to replace Dr. Smith, arrangement will be made for the new appointee to arrive in Liberia several weeks before the contemplated departure of Dr. Smith.
I am [etc.]
- Memorandum of conversation between Dr. C. C. Pierce, Assistant Surgeon General of the United States, and James P. Moffitt, of the Division of Western European Affairs, is not printed.↩