711.38/146
The Haitian Chargé (Blanchet) to the Secretary of State
The Chargé d’Affaires ad interim, of Haiti presents his compliments to His Excellency the Secretary of State and has the honor to confirm to him the following communication which he recently made to the State Department in pursuance of instructions from his Government.
Referring to the note of the State Department of September 27 last49 in regard to the interpretation of the agreement of August 24, 1918, on the duty of the Haitian Government to communicate to the Legation of the United States, for the information of the American [Page 814] Government and, if necessary, for the purpose of a discussion between the two Governments, any proposed legislation bearing on one of the objects of the treaty of 1915, before such legislation is submitted to the legislative body, the Haitian Government feels obliged to declare that no modus operandi was concluded between it and the Legation of the United States in November 1918, and that there is no agreement in existence subsequent to the aforesaid one of August 24, 1918.
On the occasion of the passage of the budget of 1919–1920, an interview took place in the National Palace, about August or September of last year, between the President of the Republic, assisted by the Cabinet officers, and the United States Minister, assisted by the Financial Adviser.
With a view to preventing the enactment by the Council of State of amendments to bills on which an agreement had previously been reached between the Government and the American Legation, the United States Minister suggested the following procedure: That the bills should first be submitted to the Council of State in its administrative capacity, that the amendments recommended by that body should be examined anew, and that as soon as the final agreement had been reached among the three parties (Chief Executive, American Legation, and Council of State), the bills should be submitted to said Council in its legislative capacity, which would prevent any new amendments.
The Government promised to examine the practicability of this procedure. No action has been taken on it since.
Under these circumstances, the Haitian Government considers that it would be advisable, in order to obviate any difficulty in connection with the interpretation and enforcement of the said agreement of August 24, 1918, for the State Department to determine its scope and specify, together with the Haitian Government, the points of the treaty contemplated in the agreement.
The opinion of the Haitian Government is that the bills comprised within the terms of the agreement of August 24, 1918, are those which, under the very terms of the treaty of 1915, require a previous understanding between the two Governments, that is, those which involve articles 8, 9, 11, and 13. As regards all other bills which bear upon the treaty owing to their economic or financial character, the Financial Adviser, who is specially devoted to this service, is the one to whom the Department of Finance should communicate them for any necessary recommendations.
Furthermore, the Haitian Government thinks that whenever it may have to communicate proposed legislation to the United States [Page 815] Legation for the purposes indicated in said agreement, only those provisions should be so communicated which bear upon one of the aforesaid articles of the treaty, the communication of the other provisions being unnecessary.
Nevertheless, as the Haitian Government is sincerely desirous of avoiding any violation of the terms of the treaty, it will make it its duty to transmit to the United States Legation all bills whatsoever which imply an interpretation of one of the articles of the treaty of 1915.
The Haitian Government sincerely hopes that the State Department and itself can agree on this interpretation and this mode of execution, which, while insuring the cooperation of the contracting parties, will guarantee the fulfillment of the purposes of the treaty of 1915.