817.51/2507
The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Nicaragua (Dawson)
Sir: Referring to your despatch No. 358, dated July 25, 1934, enclosing the Spanish and English texts of the report of the Collector [Page 580] General of Customs of Nicaragua, for the calendar year 1933, you are informed that the matters covered therein have been the subject of an extensive examination in the Department, and the conclusion has been reached that since the so-called Knox–Castrillo Convention8 failed of ratification there is no basis in law under which Mr. Lindberg could be required to furnish to the Secretary of State either the annual report or the monthly reports on funds handled by the Collector General of Customs. This conclusion seems inevitable since this Government is not a party to any of the agreements or contracts under which these reports were made, and there is, of course, no question of intervention at this time by reason of which the filing of these reports with the Secretary of State could be required.
In view of the foregoing, I concur in your recommendation that as a matter of policy it would be unwise to forward the reports in question to the Secretary of State as this might give a false impression concerning the attitude of the United States with respect to the Government of Nicaragua. You are authorized to inform Mr. Lindberg of the substance of this instruction.
Very truly yours,
- Signed June 6, 1911, Foreign Relations, 1912, p. 1074.↩