Office of the Historian

811.114 Belgium/257

Memorandum by the Assistant Chief of the Division of Western European Affairs (Hicherson) to the Under Secretary of State (Phillips)

[Washington,] May 27, 1936.

With reference to the prospective call of the Belgian Ambassador tomorrow morning to discuss alcohol smuggling from Antwerp, you may wish to hand him, as of possible interest, the attached translation of the decree of the French Government requiring landing certificates for shipments of spirits from St. Pierre-et-Miquelon, and of the decree recently issued by the Mexican Government containing a similar requirement.16

Furthermore, you may wish to say to the Ambassador that we have been officially informed by the Netherland Government that legislation has been drafted and will soon be introduced into the States General amending the present law in force in the Netherlands with regard to licenses or permits to export alcohol in order to exercise better control over shipments originating in the Netherlands and destined for fraudulent importation into the United States.17

Details regarding cooperation received from other Governments have already been furnished the Ambassador, particularly in the memorandum dated February 29, 1936,18 which was handed to Baron Beyens, of the Belgian Embassy.

J[ohn] D. H[ickerson]
  1. For French decree of April 9, 1935, see Journal Officiel, May 15, 1935; for Mexican decree of March 9, 1936, see Diario Oficial, March 12, 1936; attachments not printed.↩
  2. See enclosure to despatch No. 403, April 18, from the Chargé in the Netherlands, p. 437.↩
  3. Not printed.↩