Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, 1920, Volume III

882.51/1092

The Secretary of State to the Minister in Liberia ( Johnson )

Washington , April 17, 1920 .

(Attention of Mr. H. F. Worley, General Receiver and Financial Adviser to the Republic of Liberia)

Sir: There is enclosed herewith a draft of a Financial Plan to be submitted to this Government by the Government of Liberia as a preliminary to the making of advances under the loan credit established in favor of Liberia by the Treasury Department of the United States.

If Mr. Worley finds no objection to the draft plan you should call upon President King, accompanied by Mr. Worley, and present the text of the draft plan to the President advising him that before any advances can be made on behalf of the Liberian Government from the Loan Credit, this Government must receive from the President of the Republic a formal request therefor embodying the provisions of this draft of Financial Plan copied on the official stationery of the Liberian Government.

In connection with the foregoing, your attention is called to the Department’s telegram No. 18 of April 15, 6 p.m.,⁷ a copy of which is attached herewith. The Depositary Agreement,⁷ the Amended Reform Program,⁷ and the Agreement Regarding Functions and Authority of Receivership Officials in Liberia⁸ are in course of preparation and will be forwarded at an early date.

I am [etc.]

Bainbridge Colby

[Enclosure]

Draft of a Financial Plan To Be Proposed by the Republic of Liberia

The Republic of Liberia having made urgent representations, through the Department of State of the United States, to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, that being then engaged in war with enemies of the United States, it required as a war measure the establishment of a credit of $5,000,000, and this credit of $5,000,000 having been established by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States September 9, 1918, in favor of the Republic of Liberia upon certain conditions which it is understood were set forth by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States to the Department of State of the United States, the Republic of Liberia desires that funds be made available to it against said credit to be used to the extent and for the purposes set forth in such understandings.

Article I

The Republic, therefore, proposes the following Financial Plan and requests the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States to make to the Republic against the above-mentioned credit, the following advances for the purposes set forth below against the duly executed obligations of the Republic delivered as hereinafter provided.

1. $1,600,000 or such less amount as may be necessary for the purpose of enabling the Liberian Government to purchase or redeem all of its bonds now issued and outstanding, representing the 5% Sinking Fund Gold Loan, due July 1, 1952, under the Agreement for Refunding Loan dated March 7, 1912, between the Republic of Liberia, of the first part, and J. P. Morgan and Company, Kuhn, Loeb and Company, The National City Bank of New York and First National Bank of New York, acting for themselves and for Robert Fleming and Company, Banque de Paris et des Pays Bas, M. M. Warburg and Company, and Hope and Company, and for others, of the second part, including such payments of interest, costs of notices and other payments or deposits, including payments which may be due from the Republic under the Fiscal Agency Agreement dated March 7, 1912, between the Republic of Liberia, of the first part, and The National City Bank of New York, of the second part, as shall be necessary to terminate all obligations of the Republic under all of said bonds or under the Agreement for Refunding Loan or the Fiscal Agency Agreement above mentioned, and as shall entitle the Republic in accordance with the terms of said Agreements to the cancellation and destruction of all of said bonds held by the Fiscal Agents in the sinking fund mentioned in said agreements. Advances for this purpose to be made at such times and in such amounts as shall hereafter be agreed between the Liberian Government and the Secretary of the Treasury.

2. $15,000 or such less amount as shall be sufficient to enable the Liberian Government to pay forthwith the interest due and unpaid on the internal funded debt of the Republic, and the instalments due and unpaid of the sinking fund thereof.

3. $315,000 or such less amount as shall be sufficient to enable the Liberian Government to pay its internal floating debt.

4. The amounts, as certified as of March 31 and September 30 of each of the five fiscal years of the Republic ending on or before September 30, 1924, by the Financial Adviser by which the revenues and receipts of the Government of Liberia whether collected by the Government or by the Receivership mentioned below for the half fiscal year ending on each of said dates arising from all sources (other than advances from United States Treasury) together with any available surplus funds held by or for the Government of Liberia shall be less than the aggregate amount for such half fiscal year of (a) the costs and expenses of the collection, administration and application by such Receivership as shall have been established of the revenues and receipts collected by such Receivership, (b) the costs and expenses of such Receivership Administration, (c) the current administrative expenses of the Government of Liberia, including the interest and sinking fund of the internal funded debt above mentioned, in accordance with the Budget and Appropriation Acts of the Government of Liberia, approved as provided in this plan and (d) the interest due, as hereinafter provided, from the Government of Liberia to the Government of the United States on Liberia’s obligations heretofore delivered to the United States. For the purpose of ascertaining the amount of any advance to be made by the United States Treasury, under the provisions of this paragraph, the total expenditures by the Government of Liberia for any fiscal year under clauses a, b and c above shall not in any event be reckoned at a sum greater than $400,000.

5. Such amounts within the authority of the Treasury to advance the same as may be necessary to enable the Government of Liberia with the approval of the Financial Adviser above mentioned to make necessary improvements in transportation facilities, etc., as may be agreed upon between the Government of Liberia and the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.

The Republic requests that advances under clauses 2, 3, 4, and 5 above be made at such times, in such amounts and for such purposes as shall be agreed upon between the Government of Liberia and the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. All requests from the Government of Liberia for advances hereunder, will have the approval of the Financial Adviser above mentioned. Requests for advances under clauses 2 and 3 above will be contained in certificates made by the Secretary of the Treasury of Liberia, bearing the counter-signature of the said Financial Adviser, and setting out the amount of the advance requested, the purpose for which requested, the names of the creditors to be paid, the amounts of principal and interest proposed to be paid them, that such indebtedness is a valid debt of the Government of Liberia, that said Financial Adviser has made inquiry into the circumstances of the creation of such debt and is of the opinion that the amount proposed to be paid by the Government of Liberia in discharge thereof is the lowest amount for which said Government can justly settle the same. Requests for advances under clause 5 above, will be contained in certificates of the Secretary of the Treasury of Liberia, countersigned by said Financial Adviser setting out the amount of the advances requested, the goods or services for which the advances are required, and that the same have been delivered or rendered or will have been delivered or rendered by the dates respectively on which advances are so requested to be made, or that payment in respect thereof in the amount requested will be due on such date under a contract for the same made with the approval of said Financial Adviser.

Article II

The Government of Liberia requests that advances hereunder be made against delivery of obligations in a form approved by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States in a corresponding amount and bearing interest at the rate of 5% per annum. Such obligations will be executed by a person duly authorized to execute such obligations in the name and on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Liberia. The form and execution of such obligations will be satisfactory to the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. The Government of Liberia has heretofore delivered to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States such an obligation duly executed in the name of the Republic of Liberia in the amount of $2,500,000, on the understanding that interest upon said obligation will not be charged until advances are made to Liberia in accordance with the requests and certificates above mentioned, so that interest shall be collected on such obligation only on amounts which the Secretary of the Treasury shall advance, and only from the respective dates when such advances are made. The Republic of Liberia requests that on October 1, 1924, if the full face amount of said obligation shall not have been advanced to the Republic, either the obligation be endorsed with a notation stating the total amount of the advances so made, and that not more than said sum is payable on said obligation, or said obligation be exchanged for another obligation of the Republic, duly executed in its name and of like tenor, except as to the amount which shall be the amount of the advances made to the Republic less such sums as shall have been repaid. If the principal and interest of all the advances made to the Republic against any obligation of the Republic held by the United States Treasury, shall have been repaid on or before October 1, 1924, the Republic requests that said obligation on said day, or as soon thereafter as may be, be cancelled and surrendered to the Republic or its duly accredited agent. At any time the Government of Liberia will at the request of the Secretary of the Treasury exchange for any obligations of said Government held by the United States Treasury, an equal aggregate face amount of other obligations duly executed in the name of the Republic in such form as shall be agreed upon by the Republic and the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.

The Republic of Liberia requests that advances made hereunder be paid in the United States to such Fiscal Agent as shall be designated to the Secretary of State of the United States, by the Republic of Liberia, as being authorized on behalf of the Government of Liberia and in its name to receive such advances and to dispose of the same.

The Government of Liberia agrees that all advances so paid to the Fiscal Agent shall be used for the purposes for which such advances were made and that the Fiscal Agent will be directed to remit to the Depositary hereinafter mentioned in Liberia, except as hereinafter provided, all funds advanced in accordance with requests made under Clauses 2, 3, 4 and 5 above, insofar as the advance so requested shall be necessary for use in Liberia. To the extent that advances so requested are required for use in the United States, the Fiscal Agent will be directed to apply the same to payments in the United States for which such advances shall have been requested. If to any certificate above mentioned requesting an advance shall be added the certificate of the General Receiver that he has in his hands in an amount specified in such certificate funds which under the terms hereof he is bound to remit to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States and requests that the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States credit the corresponding amount in dollars as interest or principal upon obligations of the Republic held by the United States, as the case may be, the Republic of Liberia requests that the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States credit the amount in accordance with such request and charge the same as an advance to the Republic under the provisions of this plan. Upon receipt by the General Receiver of advice from the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States that said sum has been credited in accordance with his request the General Receiver shall deposit the corresponding amount with the Depositary to be applied as an advance from the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States made in accordance with the certificate of the Secretary of the Treasury of the Republic. The Government of Liberia will as nearly as may be on the first day of each month, pay to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States an amount equal to the interest accrued and unpaid to the end of the preceding month on advances made to it by the Secretary of the Treasury of United States, and at the same time will also pay to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States on account of the principal of such advances, one half of the remainder of all revenues and receipts of the Liberian Government whether collected by such Government or said Receivership from whatever source arising after the payment as they arise, of all costs and expenses of collection and administration of the revenues and receipts of the Government of Liberia, including the salaries of said Financial Adviser and General Receiver, and his American Assistants, the salaries of the employees of the revenue service, either customs or internal, and costs and expenses of maintaining a frontier force, and any other expenditures whatsoever connected with the administration of any Receivership of Revenues approved by the Government of the United States, and after the setting aside of such sums as may in the judgment of said Financial Adviser be necessary to enable the Liberian Government to pay as they become due the current administrative expenses of the Government including the service of the internal funded debt, (but not in any year more than the sum provided for current administrative expenses of the Government in the Budget and appropriation acts of the Government of Liberia prepared and adopted in a manner satisfactory to the Department of State of the United States) and the payment of interest on United States advances as above mentioned.

The obligations representing the United States Loan will always be payable in United States gold and will be exempt, both as to principal and interest, from all taxes already established by or within the Republic or that may in future be established by or within the Republic by any authority.

Article III

The United States Loan shall constitute a direct liability and obligation of the Republic, which pledges its good faith and credit for the punctual payment of the principal and interest of the United States Loan, and agrees to incorporate in its annual budget of expenditures each year an amount which shall be sufficient to meet in full, for such year, all amounts required for, or incident to, the service of the United States Loan, which term wherever used herein, shall be deemed to include the payment of all amounts which under the obligations at any time representing the United States Loan or under this Plan the Republic undertakes or may undertake, or is, or may be, required to pay in connection with the United States Loan, and whether for interest payments or on account of principal (hereinafter called “Redemption Payments”) or expenses.

Article IV

The principal and interest of the United States Loan and the Redemption Payments and all other amounts required for, or incident to, the service of the United States Loan shall be and are hereby secured as a charge, on all customs revenues received by the Republic on and after the first day of January, 1920, whether such customs be imposed on imports or exports, and on all revenues receivable on and after said date from the rubber tax and head moneys, and on all other revenues, dues, fees, commissions, taxes, fines, penalties, forfeitures, reimbursements, refunds, royalties, rents, proceeds of sale of public land or other property and all other receipts of the Republic from whatever source arising and all sums which are now or which may hereafter become due and payable to the Republic arising out of claims which now exist or shall hereafter arise against individuals, associations, corporations or Governments or otherwise, and on all the rights of the Republic in or to the property of enemy aliens of the Republic or the proceeds of the sale of such property (hereinafter called collectively the “Assigned Revenues and Receipts”). The Republic grants, assigns and transfers the Assigned Revenues and Receipts and all thereof as security for the United States Loan.

The Republic represents and directs as hereinafter set forth:

(a) That for the purpose of securing the United States Loan the control during the life of the United States Loan of the administration and collection of all the Assigned Revenues and Receipts and the application of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts in accordance with this Plan of rehabilitation and development shall be vested irrevocably in a General Receivership of Revenue (hereinafter called the “Receivership Administration”), which shall be administered by a General Receiver and Financial Adviser, and under his direction by a Deputy General Receiver, two or more Receivers, an Auditor, a Commissioner General of the Interior, four or more District Commissioners, three or more military officers of the Liberian Frontier Force, hereinafter mentioned and also such other officials and officers as shall be necessary, (hereinafter when referred to collectively, called the “Administrative Assistants”). All officials and employees of the Receivership Administration shall be designated by the President of the United States and appointed by the President of Liberia, but the General Receiver may suspend without pay or temporarily appoint any of such officials or employees of the Receivership Administration, and such temporary suspensions or appointments shall remain in effect until said officials or employees are permanently removed or appointments are made as herein provided.

The General Receiver, through the Receivership Administration, shall collect, without the intervention of any Liberian official or citizen, and administer during the life of the United States Loan and in accordance with the terms of this Plan all the Assigned Revenues and Receipts. The General Receiver shall have power to prescribe for the Republic and for any subdivision thereof or general or local governmental authority therein, such methods, rules and regulations for the collection, protection and administration of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts and of the revenues and receipts of any subdivision of the Republic or any general or local governmental authority therein as he may deem necessary and may fix penalties not inconsistent with the constitution and law£ of Liberia for the violation of such rules and regulations.

The Republic, to assure the collection of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts and the enforcement of the laws, rules and regulations pertaining thereto, will place and maintain at the disposal of the Receivership Administration an adequate revenue guard and patrol service, both on land and sea, and will provide by law for the establishment of such revenue guard and patrol service and in the event of the failure on the part of the Republic so to provide, the General Receiver shall have power to establish such revenue guard and patrol service and may pay the expenses thereof out of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts. The duties of the revenue guard and patrol service may, with the approval of the General Receiver, be performed by the Frontier Force hereinafter mentioned. The Republic will also provide by law for the payment of all the Assigned Revenues and Receipts to the General Receiver and give to him all needful aid and assistance to the full extent of its power. All salaries and arrears of salary and expenses incident to the collection of revenues and maintenance of the Frontier Force will continue to be disbursed by the General Receiver on his sole order.

No customhouse may be opened or closed without the assent thereto of the General Receiver. The General Receiver shall make to the Secretary of the Treasury of the Republic and to the Secretary of State of the United States quarterly and annual reports of the Receivership Administration and of the collection and administration of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts. Such reports shall contain the accounts of the Receivership Administration in detail, and the accounts of the Receivership Administration shall be subject to examination and verification by the Republic at all reasonable times. The Republic will not in any manner interfere with the General Receiver or the Receivership Administration in the exercise of powers or the performance of duties as in this Plan provided.

(b) That the Assigned Revenues and Receipts shall, during the life of the United States Loan, be payable only in gold and the rates and amounts thereof shall not be decreased without the approval of the General Receiver, but may be increased so as to meet the expenses of the Receivership Administration, the service of the United States Loan and the expenses of the administration of the Republic. The General Receiver is authorized forthwith, and from time to time hereafter, to prepare and to submit to the legislature for enactment into law a draft of a Bill revising the customs duties and other revenues and receipts of the Republic for the purpose of increasing the revenue and distributing more equitably the incidence thereof.

(c) For the further security of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts, the Republic will maintain a Frontier Force sufficient for the maintenance of internal peace within the territories of the Republic. All salaries, wages and other expenses of the Frontier Force shall be paid under the direction of the Republic by the General Receiver in discharge out of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts and shall be deemed a part of the expenses of the Receivership Administration.

(d) The General Receiver shall also exercise the functions of the Financial Adviser to the Republic and as such he is authorized to communicate directly with any official or branch of the Government of the Republic. The Secretary of the Treasury of Liberia and the Financial Adviser will cooperate to bring order and system into the finances of the Republic. Before the opening of each regular session of the Legislature of the Republic, the Secretary of the Treasury will prepare an itemized budget for the year which will contain a statement in detail of the probable receipts of the Republic for the ensuing fiscal year from all sources; of the amounts required during such fiscal year for the service of any outstanding government loan and all other amounts chargeable under existing laws or outstanding contracts or engagements of the Republic, or otherwise, in any manner against such receipts, and of the residue of governmental receipts estimated to be available for appropriation by the Legislature and of the items for which such residue is proposed to be appropriated. The budget when so prepared and approved by the Financial Adviser will be submitted to the Legislature of the Republic by the Secretary of the Treasury. No budget or appropriation act will be effective without the approval of the Financial Adviser. Inasmuch as the Republic hereinbefore requests the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States to meet the deficit of the current expenses of the Republic during a period of five years, the Financial Adviser shall not without the consent of the Secretary of State of the United States approve any budget or appropria ion act in which the current expenses of the Republic, including the expenses of the Receivership administration and of the collection and administration of the assigned revenues and receipts and the service of the internal funded debt, shall exceed in the aggregate the sum of $400,000 per annum.

The Republic will make annually appropriations for the costs and expenses of collecting the Assigned Revenues and Receipts, including expenses of the Receivership Administration, the service of the United States Loan and the administrative expenses of the Government, including the service of the internal funded indebtedness, of sums which shall be sufficient to meet in full for such year all amounts thereof which the Republic is required or ought to pay. Within ten days after the enactment of the budget, the Secretary of the Treasury will deliver to the Financial Adviser a copy thereof as enacted and a statement of all appropriations, regular and special, which shall have been made. The Financial Adviser, himself, or by such person as he may designate, and the Auditor shall have the right at any time and from time to time to examine and audit the books and accounts of the Republic and of any subdivision thereof or general or local governmental authority therein and may prescribe from time to time methods of accounting for public money and public property, and the Republic will forthwith adopt or cause to be adopted the methods so prescribed.

(e) All receipts and revenues of the Republic except as hereinafter provided will be deposited in a bank designated as the Depositary. All deposits made with said depositary and all payments made therefrom shall be in accordance with an agreement supplementary to this Plan, to be known as the Depositary Agreement.

(f) The General Receiver and Financial Adviser and the Administrative Assistants are hereby granted all power and authority necessary for the performance of their duties hereunder. The Republic will forthwith enact all legislation necessary to confirm said power and authority in the General Receiver and Financial Adviser and such Administrative Assistants and will give them all needful aid and support and full protection.

(g) Upon the termination of the life of the loan represented by the Five Per Cent Bonds, referred to in clause numbered one (1) of Article I of this Plan, the General Receiver and Financial Adviser hereunder shall be entitled for the benefit of the United States Loan to exercise all the powers and duties of the General Receiver and Financial Adviser as provided in the Agreement for Refunding Loan of 1912.

(h) The Assigned Revenues and Receipts shall be applied by the General Receiver as follows:

• First: To the payment as they arise of all costs and expenses of collection and administration of the Assigned Revenues and Receipts, including the salaries of the General Receiver and the Administrative Assistants, the salaries of the employees of the revenue service, either customs or internal, the cost and expenses of maintaining the Frontier Force and any other expenditures whatsoever connected with the Receivership Administration and all amounts incident to the service of the United States Loan except as to payments on account of principal and interest for which provision is hereinafter made.
• Second: Thereafter to the payment as nearly as may be on the first day of each month for account of the Republic to the Depositary of such sums as in the judgment of the General Receiver may be necessary to enable the Republic to pay as they become due the current administrative expenses of the Republic including the service of the internal funded debt of the Republic, but not in any year more than the sum set forth as the estimate of current administrative expenses of the Republic in the budget of the Republic prepared and adopted as hereinabove provided.
• Third: Thereafter to the payment as nearly as may be on the first day of each month to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States of an amount equal to the interest accrued and unpaid up to the end of the preceding month on the United States Loan.
• Fourth: Of the remainder, one-half shall be paid as nearly as may be on the first day of each month to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States on account of the principal of the United States Loan.
• Fifth: The other half of said remainder shall be applied so far as may be necessary to the payment of any other amounts which may through further agreement between the Government of the United States and the Republic of Liberia be provided to be paid by the General Receiver.
• Sixth: The sums that may remain after the aforesaid payments have been made shall be applied as follows:—One-half shall be credited by the Depositary to an account hereinafter referred to as the Surplus Account, and the remaining one-half, to an account hereinafter referred to as the Improvements Account. Except as herein otherwise provided, the Surplus Account shall be subject to the sole order of the Republic. Moneys in the Improvements account shall be applied in so far as possible only for the improvement of Public Education in the Republic and for Public Works. Moneys shall be paid from this Account only with the consent of the Financial Adviser, and whenever and for so long a period as the General Receiver shall be of the opinion that the assigned revenues and receipts will be insufficient to meet the payments required to be made by Clauses First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth of Article IV of this Financial Plan, the Depositary shall cease paying out the moneys from either the Surplus Account or the Improvements Account and such funds may be applied by the General Receiver to meet the payments provided in Clauses First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth of Article IV of the Financial Plan.

Article V

None of the provisions of this plan shall be deemed or construed to create any trust or obligation in favor of any holder of any of the outstanding obligations or indebtedness of the Republic or in favor of any owner of any coupons or claim for interest of or in respect of any thereof or in favor of any holder of any claim against the Republic.

Article VI

Wherever the term, “United States gold” is used in this Plan, such term shall be understood as meaning gold coin of the United States of America of or equal to the standard of weight and fineness existing at the date of this Plan. Wherever the term “United States” is used in this Plan, such term shall be understood as meaning the United States of America. The words “United States Loan” wherever used herein shall mean all advances, collectively, which the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States has heretofore made or which he may hereafter make to the Republic pursuant to this Plan. For the purpose of this Plan, the expenses incident to the service of the United States Loan shall include the remuneration and expenses of the Depositary and of the Fiscal Agent and the cost of remittances from the United States to the Republic and from the Republic to the United States, as the case may be, of funds for any of the purposes of this Plan, including the cost of shipping coin and currency to the Republic from the United States. The word “administer” as used in this Plan or in the Agreement for Refunding Loan of 1912 is intended to mean the effective control of the collection, deposit and expenditure of all Government revenues or property, in a preventive rather than in a corrective manner and, if necessary to effect economies, the disbursing of the same. The words “under direction of the Republic” as used in said instruments are intended to mean in accordance with the budget or Appropriation Act for such purpose. The words “in discharge” as used in said instruments are intended to mean that the money shall be paid directly to the person or firm to which such money is due or payable.

In construing this Plan, the life of the United States Loan shall be deemed to be the period from the date hereof until all of the advances at any time by the United States Treasury shall have been fully paid with interest and all other undertakings on the part of the Republic in the obligations representing said advances and in this Plan contained shall have been satisfied.

Article VII

1. During the period of its indebtedness under this Financial Plan the security for the repayment of the United States Loan, as expressed in the territory and potential assets and utilities of the Republic, will not be impaired or reduced.

2. No act will be committed or omitted by Liberia which will tend to impair the independence of that Republic.

3. The Republic will not enter into any treaty, contract or agreement to alienate or convey title, jurisdiction or right to or over any territory or property of the Republic without the written assent of the Financial Adviser.

4. Until the Republic has paid the whole amount of the advances and other expenses incident to the service of the United States Loan, its funded or floating debt will not be increased except with the written approval of the Financial Adviser.

5. No concession will be granted by the Legislature of the Republic or by any other branch of the Government of the Republic until after it shall have been favorably reported upon by the Financial Adviser.

6. Applications for concessions will be forwarded promptly to the Financial Adviser for investigation at the same time that copies are sent to the members of the Legislature or the Houses of the Legislature, whichever shall be first.

Article VIII

The Republic hereby consents that the terms of the Agreement for Refunding Loan of 1912 and of the Fiscal Agency Agreement of 1912 shall be deemed modified in accordance with the terms of this Plan.

Article IX

The Republic will procure all such Legislation as may be required for the complete authorization and legalization of this Plan and of all action called for by this Plan on the part of the Republic or necessary or convenient to carry it into operation.

In witness whereof the Republic of Liberia has caused this Plan to be signed on its behalf by the President of the Republic thereunto duly authorized by a Joint Resolution of the Liberian Legislature, approved January 22, 1919.

President of the Republic of Liberia

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8. See telegram no. 31, July 12, 1920, to the Chargé in Liberia, p. 71.