The Minister requested me to send him an official letter embodying the
views I had presented, and said he would bring it to the attention of
the President and give me a reply before leaving the city. He expects to
go soon—in fact expected to go last week but postponed his trip at the
time of the expulsion of General Calles—and I hope to secure a reply
shortly to the note I sent him this afternoon. I am enclosing a copy of
my note No. 1582 of this date, which embraces the subject matter I
called to the attention of the Foreign Minister.
[Enclosure]
The American Ambassador (Daniels) to the Mexican Minister for Foreign Affairs
(Hay)
No. 1582
Mexico, April 16, 1936.
Excellency: I have the honor to refer to
various conversations with Mr. Portes Gil and with Mr. Ceniceros,
when he was Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs, and particularly to
my conversation
[Page 693]
with the
latter on November 21 last year, during the course of which Mr.
Ceniceros informed me that President Cárdenas had instructed him and
the Minister of Hacienda to study the question of compensating
American citizens for lands expropriated under the Agrarian
Laws.
Mr. Ceniceros at that time asked that the American Government refrain
from pressing the matter of compensation for American citizens for
lands expropriated from them until after the New Year, because by
that time President Cárdenas would be prepared to make a proposal
which he believed would be satisfactory to American citizens and to
the American Government. Mr. Ceniceros furthermore assured me that
the interview as published in the New York
Times of October 24, 1935, in which President Cárdenas
stated that “The land taken in connection with the Government’s land
parcelling program today is being paid a just valuation in
Government bonds which the present condition of the budget and the
National Treasury render entirely sound, especially in view of the
declared intention of my Government to meet the indebtedness,”
represented the true policy of the Mexican Government.
Because of these assurances and in the expectation that a
satisfactory proposal would be made by the Mexican Government
shortly after the New Year, my Government has patiently awaited
these proposals and refrained from pressing a solution to this most
important question.
However, over three months have now elapsed since the time when these
proposals were to have been advanced by the Mexican Government and
the American Government does not consider that it would be justified
in longer withholding further representations in the matter. I am,
therefore, instructed by my Government to inform Your Excellency
that in accordance with the promise given by Mr. Ceniceros, while
Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs, it hopes soon to receive
proposals providing:
- 1.
- For the indemnification of American citizens for lands
already expropriated, and
- 2.
- Positive assurances that in the future no lands will be
taken from American citizens without the payment of prompt
and adequate compensation.
In this connection, may I call Your Excellency’s attention to a
conversation which took place on December 12, 1935, in the
Department of State, Washington, D. C. between Assistant Secretary
of State, Mr. Sumner Welles, and the Mexican Ambassador, Mr. Nájera,
in which Mr. Nájera gave Mr. Welles positive assurance that no
further American property of any kind would be taken over for
agrarian purposes other than 3,000 hectares from the Chihuahua
Cattle
[Page 694]
Company. In spite
of these categorical assurances, lands continue to be expropriated
from American citizens without any compensation whatsoever being
offered, contrary to the Mexican Constitution and to the Agrarian
Laws.
I need not assure Your Excellency that my Government considers a
satisfactory solution to this problem one of the most important
questions before our two Governments and I hope that you will be
able to give it the serious consideration which it requires and
inform me of your views at the earliest possible time.
Please accept [etc.]
