File No. 812.63/462
Ambassador Fletcher
to the Secretary of State
No. 89
American Embassy,
Mexico,
April 21, 1917.
Sir: Referring to my telegram No. 113, April
20, 5 p.m., I have the honor to enclose text and translation of a
circular relative to mining properties in the State of Oaxaca, Mexico,
issued April 3, 1917 by Pastor Rouaix, Secretary of the Department of
Fomento. Since this circular was issued, matters relating to mining
properties have been transferred from the Department of Fomento to the
new Department of Commerce and Industry.
The meaning not being plain for that portion of paragraph 1 wherein
reference is made to documents “of a date prior to June 3, 1915 or
[Page 1055]
after that date”, I
requested the Secretary of Commerce and Industry to clear up this point,
and I have received his answer as follows:
By documents executed “prior to June 3, 1915” are meant those put
in process of execution before the date stated by
Constitutionalist authorities, but continued at a later date by
authorities acting without legal right.
By documents executed “after that date” (June 3, 1915) are meant
those started in process of execution after June 3, 1915 and
before March 3, 1916 by authorities acting without legal right,
whose acts are considered null and void.
To continue the proceedings for the first class of documents, the
interested parties should ask “confirmation” (revalidación) and for the second class they should ask
“reposition” (reposición).
I have [etc.]
[Inclosure—Translation]
circular of the department of fomento relative
to mining properties in oaxaca
On September 29, 1915, by instructions of the First Chief of the
Constitutionalist Army, all acts and decisions which were or may
have been made effective with regard to matters under the
jurisdiction of this Department, by the so-called Departments of
Agriculture and Fomento, of Industry and Commerce, or by any other
office not forming a part of the Constitutionalist Government, were
declared null and void. In virtue whereof, and considering the well
known fact that the State of Oaxaca refused obedience to the
Government from the 3d of June 1915 to the 3d of March 1916, be it
declared:
- 1.
- Those interested in denouncements of mining properties,
who during the period mentioned may have had transactions
with any of the mining agencies established in the State of
Oaxaca not forming a part of the legal Government of the
Republic, and who desire a continuance of proceedings in the
said transactions in connection with which documents appear
of a date prior to June 3, 1915 or after that date, are
obliged to undertake confirmation or reposition of such
transactions, and in doing so they will observe the
requirements of Circulars 2, 3 and 7 issued by this
Department on September 15 and October 20, 1914 and March
31, 1915 respectively.
- 2.
- In order that the preceding paragraph may be complied
with, a period of time is granted, beginning to-day and
expiring on the 15th of June next, at the expiration of
which the rights of the concessionaires will cease in the
case of those who do not comply with the requirements of
this circular, and in such cases the cancellation of these
rights will be ordered, the property in such cases being
open to a new denouncement without the necessity of its
previous publication on the bulletin board of the respective
agency.
Constitution and Reforms