882.124A/37

The British Ambassador (Howard) to the Secretary of State

No. 368

Sir: I have the honour, under instructions from His Majesty’s Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, to invite the cooperation of the United States Government in the following matter:

The United States Government will no doubt have learnt, from their Representative in Liberia, of the outbreak of yellow fever which occurred in Monrovia early this year. The Acting British Chargé d’Affaires in Monrovia has reported that not only was there considerable delay in notifying him of this outbreak, but little, if anything has been done to remedy the exceedingly unsatisfactory sanitary conditions which were, without doubt, its primary cause.

In view of the real danger, constituted by these conditions, to the foreign residents in Monrovia, to the shipping calling at the port and to the inhabitants of adjacent foreign territories, His Majesty’s Government would be particularly gratified if the United States Government would instruct their Representative in Monrovia to cooperate with the British Chargé d’Affaires in a special effort to bring home to the Liberian Government their responsibilities and obligations in this matter and to induce them to take suitable measures for the improvement of the sanitary conditions in their Capital.

A similar suggestion has been submitted to the French Government; and the British Chargé d’Affaires in Monrovia has been instructed to take action in the sense indicated if and when suitable [Page 318] instructions shall have been received by his United States and French colleagues.

I have [etc.]

Esme Howard