The Acting Secretary of State to the Secretary of the Treasury (McAdoo)
Washington, November 1, 1914, 9:30 a.m.
[Telegram]
With reference to Italian S. S. Amistà , British Ambassador states that she was chartered by the Berwind-White Coal Mining Company of. New York arid loaded with coal and stores at Newport News, where she cleared October 17 for Montevideo via Barbados. It is asserted that she never arrived at Barbados where at the slowest speed she should have made port October 24. With a view to determine bona fides of destination, Department would be glad to have any information regarding name and address of consignee of Amistà cargo, in order that the Department may ascertain by telegraph to the nearest consul as to whether consignee expects such shipments.
While one instance of furnishing supplies to belligerent war vessels at sea may not be sufficient to constitute United States ports a base of supplies, yet Department suspects that certain concerns are chartering a series of vessels which are loaded with coal and stores and despatched at well-timed intervals to supply warships at sea. It is conceivable that such operations may easily make United States ports a base of operations. It seems necessary, therefore, to take precautions to ascertain by an investigation of each vessel the name of the owner or charterer and the firm supplying the cargo, as well as the name and address of the consignee, in order that the data so determined may be checked up with a view to ascertaining the nature of a firm’s transaction as whole. This Department will use the name and address of consignees for the purpose of telegraphing to the nearest consul for information, as will be done in the case of the Amistà.1
- The information requested above was thereafter transmitted regularly in regard to vessels clearing from American ports. In cases open to suspicion, the consuls at ports named as destinations were asked to report as to whether the cargoes were expected by the consignees. For further instructions building up the Department’s service of information regarding the movements of vessels carrying cargoes of coal and other supplies useful for belligerent warships, see post: Letter to the Secretary of the Treasury, November 14, p. 631. Circular telegrams to all seaport consuls, November 22, p. 634; November 25, p. 639; November 28, p. 641. Telegrams to the Secretary of the Treasury, November 28, p. 641; December 2, p. 642. Circular telegram to all seaport consuls, December 3, p. 642. For the restriction of reports to suspicious cases, see: Telegram to the Secretary of the Treasury and circular telegram to all seaport consuls, January 11, 1915, p. 651.↩