811.0141SW2/189
The Under Secretary of State (Welles) to President Roosevelt
My Dear Mr. President: The Government of Honduras has on a number of occasions addressed communications to this Government asserting a claim to sovereignty over the Swan Islands. The Swan Islands were occupied in 1857 by American citizens for the purpose of extracting guano and on February 11, 1863 a guano certificate was issued by Secretary of State Seward under the Act of August 18, 1856.4 This certification had the effect of making the islands appertain to the United States, which has since that time maintained effective occupation and has continuously asserted sovereignty over the islands.
The Swan Islands (17°25´ No., 83°56´ W., H. O. Chart 5170) are situated ninety-seven miles from the eastern coast of Honduras. The Honduran claim to the islands rests almost entirely on the fact of their discovery by Spanish navigators. However, no evidence has been advanced that Honduras has ever occupied the islands or exercised sovereignty over them. At the present time the islands are uninhabited except for a lighthouse tender employed by the United Fruit Company. For the past two years a meteorological station has been operated on the islands during the hurricane season by the United States Weather Bureau with the aid of United States Navy personnel.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
In view of the active interest of this Government in the amicable settlement of territorial disputes in this hemisphere I feel that it is highly desirable for us to endeavor to reach a solution of the controversy with the Government of Honduras over the sovereignty to the Swan Islands. The opinion is held in the Department of State that the most desirable method of procedure would be to endeavor by direct negotiation to effect an amicable settlement of the question, and if this effort is not successful, to propose to the Government of Honduras the conclusion of a treaty to provide for submission of the dispute to arbitration. It is believed that for reasons of broad policy this Government should extend full support to the principle of resort to arbitration wherever usual diplomatic negotiations have not succeeded in resolving controversies between the governments in this hemisphere.
[Page 652]Furthermore, this Government and the Government of Honduras are parties to the Treaty of Inter-American Arbitration signed at Washington on January 5, 1929,5 which provides that:
“The High Contracting Parties bind themselves to submit to arbitration all differences of an international character which have arisen or may arise between them by virtue of a claim of right made by one against the other under treaty or otherwise, which it has not been possible to adjust by diplomacy and which are juridical in their nature by reason of being susceptible of decision by the application of the principles of law.
“There shall be considered as included among the questions of juridical character:
- “(a) The interpretation of a treaty;
- “(b) Any question of international law;”
- Et cetera, et cetera.
This treaty was ratified on the part of the United States with the understanding, made a part of such ratification, “that the special agreement in each case shall be made only by the President, and then only by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, provided two-thirds of the Senators present concur”. Your authorization is therefore respectfully requested to propose, if necessary, to the Government of Honduras, that the Swan Islands controversy be submitted to arbitration.
If there is any additional information with relation to this question which you desire to have, I should be pleased to present it to you.
Faithfully yours,
- 11 Stat. 119.↩
- Foreign Relations, 1929, vol. i, p. 661.↩