811.34544/461: Telegram
The Chargé in the United Kingdom (Johnson) to the Secretary of State
[Received January 21—1:10 p.m.]
225. Personal for the Secretary. My 212, January 20, 7 p.m.76 With reference to my interview yesterday with the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and to the memorandum I left with him at that time based on your 175, January 17, 8 p.m., I have just received from the Foreign Office the following memorandum regarding the Newfoundland situation:
“There has been no desire on the part of the Newfoundland Government to adopt other than a helpful attitude with regard to the initiation of construction work on the bases to be leased to the United States in the Island, in spite of the inevitably short time available for making arrangements in regard to the local inhabitants. The memorandum of the 20th January refers to the question of procedure for compensation to those owners who are dispossessed in order to provide sites for the bases. The sole concern of the Newfoundland Government in this connection has been to find a procedure which would be equitable alike to them and to the owners and acceptable to the United [Page 62] States Government. The question of procedure is of course one which has to be considered in relation not only to Newfoundland but also to all the colonies concerned and it is proposed to discuss it generally at the forthcoming conference in London. In the meantime, in order that there may be no delay in beginning construction work in the Island, the Newfoundland Government have agreed that, without prejudice to the general discussions, compensation should be paid to a certain number of owners who are being dispossessed immediately in the compensation being provided out of a fund supplied for that purpose by the United States authorities. In order to enable this interim procedure to be rapidly put into effect, they are arranging to provide at once, at considerable expense to themselves, alternative accommodation for the persons concerned.
In the circumstances, the immediate question appears to be satisfactorily disposed of, and it is assumed that the United States Government will not think it necessary to discuss in detail the course of events referred to in the memorandum of the 20th January.”
I am seeing an official of the Colonial Office this afternoon regarding Bermuda and will telegraph separately.
- Not printed.↩