AF files, 58 D 459, “Dakar, Correspondence With”
Jerome R. Lavallee of the Office of African Affairs to the Consul General at Dakar (Ferguson)
official–informal
Dear Fergy: Your letter of October 18, 1954,1 concerning Don Lamm’s reporting on events in French Togoland has just arrived.
I suppose I should have made clear that these arrangements are the very same which had been established during Cole’s tour of duty at Accra.
Don is to collect certain information at Accra which might not be available at Dakar. There is no plan to have Lamm visit Lomé. He will submit only that information which may come to his attention at Accra.
You are quite right when you point out that Cole’s reports represented, to a large degree, the nationalist point of view. Cole himself made this clear and the interested officers in the Department have always appreciated that fact. They have continually evaluated the material with that in mind.
As stated in your letter, some time ago the French refused to grant permission for the Consulate General at Accra to accept jurisdiction over French Togoland. There is no reason to believe that they would acquiesce today to such a request.
As you know, during the last few years, AF has requested the opening of a Consulate at Abidjan. Again this year this request is included in the Department’s “over estimate” budget for 1956. Although the chances of getting Abidjan this year appear slight, it is our hope that opening a Consulate in that City will become a reality within the foreseeable future.
As for your budget for FY 1955, I have been given the following information. Allotments were prepared early during the first quarter of this fiscal year, but they were not sent out because of uncertainties regarding the amounts to be reimbursed for services rendered by the Department to other Agencies. You may expect your allotment within the next few weeks. It cannot be determined at this time the amount which will be granted to you for purposes of travel; however, from my understanding of the situation, the funding situation still appears to be tight.
I trust this letter will help clarify my original letter to you. I have again discussed this problem with Don Lamm and I am certain that a discussion between you two, during his short stay in Dakar sometime in November, would be of mutual benefit.
Sincerely,