837.513/70: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Cuba (Howell)

91. Your September 4, 9 a.m.20

You may state to Diaz Albertini21 informally and as your own personal view that the Government of the United States has viewed with apprehension the obstacles which the moralization program has encountered during the last six months, and that the resolution accompanying the passage of the Lottery Bill over the President’s veto was of course most offensive. Referring to your previous conversation with him, you may say that he spoke of a possible repeal of the new lottery law, a measure which is undoubtedly within the competency of the Cuban Congress. You may say that it is unnecessary to remind him of the interest which the United States has felt in the program for the reform of the Cuban Government, or to tell him that the repeal of the new lottery law would be gratifying to the United States, facts already sufficiently attested in the correspondence between the two Governments and notified to the people [Page 850] of both countries through the public press. The United States has advised Cuba in this and other matters because of its desire to see in Cuba a stable and efficient government, able to fulfill all of its obligations under the treaty. If the Cuban Congress rejects its advice, and if their course results in a situation where a stable and efficient government does not exist, they must accept the responsibility for this situation.

Hughes
  1. Not printed.
  2. Cuban lawyer, who had discussed the political situation with the Chargé on behalf of the Liberal leaders in the Cuban Congress.