837.00/3623: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Cuba (Welles)
69. Department’s No. 66, August 9, 6 p.m. Ambassador Cintas called at the Department this morning and had an interview of nearly 2 hours with the Secretary and Under Secretary. He went over the whole situation and insisted that our method of approach had been wholly wrong and was decidedly pessimistic as to the outcome. The Secretary said that he hoped General Machado would agree to cooperate in the endeavors that are being made to prevent a situation of anarchy and chaos in Cuba. He said that the chief purpose of Ambassador [Page 353] Welles’ mission to Cuba is to avoid a condition which would call for our responsibilities under the Permanent Treaty. In reply to the Secretary’s query as to what suggestion he had to offer in the circumstances, the Ambassador said that it would be helpful if the Department would ask you to come to Washington for consultation; the Ambassador felt that in this way President Machado would be freer to make concessions which it was impossible for him to make while he was in the position of being pressed to do so through you by the United States Government.
Later in the day Ambassador Cintas asked the Under Secretary to transmit this suggestion to the President, which the Under Secretary felt obliged to do this afternoon by telephone. With the President’s authority the Under Secretary conveyed the following reply to Ambassador Cintas:
“That the President had received the message and had given it consideration, but that he was not disposed to ask Ambassador Welles to come to Washington for consultation, that once more he desired it to be understood that he had the utmost confidence in Ambassador Welles and felt sure that the Ambassador was doing everything possible to be helpful in the circumstances; furthermore the Under Secretary conveyed, at the President’s request, the message that obviously the next move was up to President Machado and that that move was a simple one, that certain suggestions had been presented to President Machado by representatives of the various political groups, that President Machado had turned down two of the five suggestions and that it was, therefore, now up to him to offer some counterproposal in place of these two, that the President was waiting for action by President Machado and that time was the essence of the whole problem.”
Ambassador Cintas told the Under Secretary, on receiving this message, that he was leaving for Cuba this evening and that he desired to be helpful. The Under Secretary assured him that he had an opportunity to be of immense help and that he was counting upon him for such assistance.