339.115 General Motors Export Co./149: Telegram
The Minister in the Dominican Republic (Schoenfeld) to the Secretary of State
[Received 7:45 p.m.]
70. My telegram No. 60, May 15.20 Dominican Minister to Washington who arrived here by air yesterday called on me this morning. [Page 501] He told me he had preliminary talk with President Trujillo and other members of the Government yesterday regarding subject of his conversations with the Secretary of State on May 14. He said President Trujillo had every disposition to accommodate the United States in matters of interest to us and intimated that the President might wish to have a conference with him and with me to discuss pending issues affecting American interests. I said I was entirely at the President’s disposal for such conference. As I have not received copy of the memorandum referred to in your No. 25,21 I mentioned no specific cases. He moreover mentioned some of the matters which seem to have been listed in your memorandum and repeated general assurances regarding the President’s desire to settle them.
Brache spoke also of other matters including Article 3 of convention22 and port works contracts, activities of Morales,23 monetary convention, Dominican National Bank, recent murder of Bencosme24 in New York and visit of Under Secretary Espinola to the United States, though his remarks as to these matters characteristically lacked precision and are not of special interest.
Regarding Barletta case Brache seemed not to be well informed having just arrived here but he made a point of saying that the attitude of the Secretary of State and other officers of the Department of State had been most considerate and courteous and was much appreciated. He added however that President Trujillo’s character would not permit him to yield to “fear,” this evidently being a reference to reports of possible military measures on the part of the Italian Government. I spoke to Brache in the sense of your telegram number 25 and suggested possibility of withdrawing from the courts charges against Barletta. He was not encouraging as to the possibility or as to releasing Barletta without bail.
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- Not printed.↩
- May 14, 7 p.m., p. 498.↩
- Convention between the United States and the Dominican Republic signed December 27, 1924, Foreign Relations, 1924, vol. i, p. 662.↩
- Angel Morales, political exile living in New York; Dominican Minister in the United States, 1926–30.↩
- Sergio Bencosme, associate of Dr. Morales and living with him in New York; shot by assassin April 28, 1935; died April 30.↩