Office of the Historian

711.242/6

The Minister in Bolivia (Cottrell) to the Secretary of State

La Paz, September 26, 1927.
[Received October 18.]
No. 1403

Sir: With reference to the Department’s Instruction No. 308, of August 19, 1927, in regard to the United States celebrating a general commercial treaty with Bolivia that would supersede “The Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Commerce and Navigation”, which was concluded by the two countries on May 13, 1858, I have the honor to report, upon discreet inquiry, that Bolivia would not at this time have any objection to such a treaty, so far as is known by the President and his Cabinet.

Just at this time, however, the Minister of Foreign Relations and Worship is regarded as hardly in position to take up such a matter immediately. Dr. Alberto Gutierrez, the Minister of Foreign Relations and Worship, and to whom the President has delegated consideration and action upon international affairs, is critically ill and has not been in the Ministry for more than two months.

Dr. Tomas Manuel Elio, the Minister of Hacienda and Industry, is temporarily in charge of the Portfolio of Foreign Relations. Dr. Alberto Cortadellas is Sub-Secretary and is in reality despatching all the work of this Ministry.

I am informed that if Dr. Gutiérrez does not recover soon, that a new Minister will be appointed and then the Bolivian Government will be pleased to consider the foregoing matter. Among those spoken of as the successor of Dr. Gutiérrez, in case he does not become physically able to assume his duties, is Dr. Daniel Sanchez Bustamente, the Bolivian Minister to Chile, and at present in Buenos Aires as President of the Mission that is seeking to arbitrate the boundary question between Bolivia and Paraguay as to the Chaco.9

As has been reported to the Department, Germany recently negotiated a treaty with Bolivia along the lines of the treaty that obtained [Page 480] before the World War, with certain modifications which can be regarded as bringing it up to date.10

I will keep in close touch with the situation, as regards Instruction No. 308, and will keep the Department fully informed.11

I have [etc.]

Jesse S. Cottrell
  1. See pp. 315 ff.↩
  2. Agreement signed at La Paz, Mar. 12, 1924, regarding the re-entry into force of the treaty of friendship and commerce of July 22, 1908; League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. lxxiii, p. 95.↩
  3. These negotiations did not result in the signing of any treaty.↩