882.01 Foreign Control/817
The British Ambassador (Lindsay) to the Under Secretary of State (Phillips)
Washington, May 14, 1934.
My Dear Mr. Under Secretary: In connection with the present position of Liberia vis-à-vis the League of Nations, Sir John Simon asks me to let you know that, at the forthcoming meeting of the Council, the representative of His Majesty’s Government will be instructed to take the following line:
After outlining the Liberian Government’s responsibility for the present scandalous state of their administration, he will make the following two points:—
- (a)
- that the League will be entitled to consider the expulsion of Liberia under Article 16, paragraph 4, of the Covenant.15 (It would not be possible to propose her expulsion forthwith, since this would [Page 797] require notice, and Liberia would be entitled to be heard: nor is it considered altogether likely that every member of the Council would favour expulsion.)
- (b)
- that His Majesty’s Government do not propose leaving this matter in abeyance; but intend to address the United States Government on the subject.
Believe me [etc.]
R. C. Lindsay
- Treaties, Conventions, etc., Between the United States of America and Other Powers, 1910–1923 (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1923), vol. iii, p. 3336.↩