811.504 Mexico/8–647: Airgram
The Secretary of State to the Embassy in Mexico
A–653. Reference is made to your exchange of notes of March 10, 1947,53 with the Mexican Foreign Office, making effective an arrangement for the recruiting of Mexican workers, illegally in the United States, by American growers through recruiting centers established at three border points in Mexico. The Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization, Department of Justice, has requested the Department under date of July 29, 1947, to approach the Mexican Government with a view to arranging, if possible, for the recruitment of 10,000 additional Mexican agricultural workers for employment in the border states as cotton pickers during the coming season. Mr. Carusi states that the conditions of admission would be those applicable to aliens now admitted under contract pursuant to the agreement contained in the exchange of notes under reference. He further states that the original period of admission would not extend beyond December 31, 1947.
You are requested to make representations to the Mexican Government with a view to securing its agreement to the recruiting of these additional 10,000 workers through the presently operating recruiting stations and under the pertinent conditions set forth in your notes no. 673 and 675 of March 10. Please inform the Department by telegram or telephone of the reply since the workers specified will need to be recruited beginning shortly after September 1. The workers requested [Page 828] are in addition to the so-called “wetbacks”, the recruiting of which will continue; the additional workers requested are not the so-called “wetbacks”. Recruiting of “wetbacks” will continue as long as they are available, but their numbers are not considered sufficient.
- TIAS No. 1857.↩