825.6374/1206
The Ambassador in Chile (Sevier) to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received December 14.]
Sir: I have the honor to refer to this Embassy’s despatch No. 1580 of November 15, 1933,85 reporting the status of the nitrate legislation and to inform the Department that the project was reported out of the Senate Finance Committee some days ago and is now being debated on the floor of the Senate. As this is being written the bill is still being subjected to a general debate, the Senate not yet having started to vote on the measure article by article. As the Department will recall, the amendments made by the Senate Finance Committee were remedial in correcting the unworkable features which had been introduced in the Lower House. The trend in the Senate is of course more conservative than in the Chamber of Deputies and in addition the Government has a larger working majority so that it seems now as though the law will perhaps be fairly acceptable to private interests when it reaches its final form.
The efforts of the American interests to obtain favorable legislation have been recently seconded by the British. The British of course were active with us in making representations when the 60 pesos per ton guarantee was arbitrarily done away with by the Chilean Government. Since that time, however, when it appeared as though private interests were working out some sort of solution in co-operation with the Government, they, like us, have refrained from very active participation in the matter. Recently British and American interests in Chile have made some effort to induce the British Government to bring some pressure to forestall the passing of an unsatisfactory nitrate law. The British Chargé d’Affaires has informed me that he recently received a cable from his Government instructing him to say to the Foreign Office that his Government is watching with great interest the course of the nitrate bill and that while it appreciated the great difficulties of drafting this legislation it hopes that the objectionable features which now appear in the bill will be removed so that it will make it unnecessary for the British Government later on to make any representations. As of possible interest to the Department there is enclosed a strictly confidential memorandum furnished the Embassy by the American interests in the Cosach in Liquidation,85 giving the texts of certain cables and memoranda dealing with the efforts being made to prevent the enactment of hostile nitrate legislation.
[Page 216]It is still too early to feel certain as to the final form in which the law will be passed, but it appears now as though private interests will be resourceful enough to work out with the Government a project which it will be possible for them to accept. I shall continue to keep the Department currently informed concerning developments.
Respectfully yours,