The Secretary of State to the French ambassador.

No. 12.]

Excellency: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 22d instant, whereby you inform me that Mr. Polo de Bernabé, before leaving Washington and in fulfillment of the instructions of his Government, intrusted to you, and at the same time to the Austro-Hungarian minister, the protection of Spanish subjects and interests in the United States. To the end of simplifying in practice the accomplishment of this commission, which your respective Governments have accepted, you and the Austro-Hungarian minister have agreed upon certain convenient arrangements, which you are pleased to communicate to me, as follows:

  • “First. The archives of the Spanish legation in Washington will remain stored in the legation of Austria-Hungary.
  • “Second. The care of the consular archives and the protection of Spanish interests will be confided to the consulates-general of Austria-Hungary in New York and Chicago, and to the consulates of France in New Orleans, San Francisco, and Philadelphia.
  • “Third. In those localities where only one of the two countries has a representative, he will assume the protection of Spanish interests; in those places where the two countries are only represented by consular agents, such protection will be exercised by the French agent.
  • “Fourth. Questions the adjustment of which may necessitate representations to the Department of State will be dealt with either by the minister of Austria-Hungary or by me [the French ambassador], [Page 787] accordingly as the Austrian or the French consul shall have had the initiative therein.
  • “Fifth. In all other cases I shall charge myself [the French ambassador] alone with the steps to be taken with respect to the Government of the United States.”

In reply, I beg to inform you that the Government of the United States admits your friendly action in assuming charge of the protection of Spanish subjects and interests in the United States, and that the scheme which you and the Austro-Hungarian minister have devised for the practical division of the charge you have simultaneously assumed is provisionally accepted so long as experience shall show its convenience in practice. It is, of course, understood, in conformity with the international usage which obtains in circumstances like the present, that the arrangement contemplates only the friendly offices of yourself or of your esteemed colleague, as well as of the consular representatives of your respective nations, should occasion therefor arise, with regard to Spanish subjects and their interests actually within the jurisdiction of the United States, and embraces no representative office by either of you on behalf of the Government of Spain, between which and the Government of the United States a condition of war unhappily exists.

I shall communicate to the competent authorities copies of the notes thus addressed to me by yourself and the Austro-Hungarian minister, to the end that they may give all due heed to such representations as the agents of either country may feel called upon to make in behalf of Spanish subjects and interests in fulfillment of the friendly office of protection thus assumed and admitted. In order, however, that no confusion may exist as to the distribution of protective functions among the respective consulates, I beg that you will favor me with a list of the French consular officers who have been designated to act in the manner stated in your note.

Be pleased to accept, etc.,

John Sherman.

The Secretary of State to the Austro-Hungarian minister.

Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 22d instant, whereby you inform me that Mr. Polo de Bernabé, before leaving Washington and in fulfillment of the instructions of his Government, intrusted to you, and at the same time to the French ambassador, the protection of Spanish subjects and interests in the United States. To the end of simplifying in practice the accomplishment of this commission, which your respective Governments have accepted, you and the French ambassador have agreed upon certain convenient arrangements which you are pleased to communicate to me, as follows:

  • “First. The archives of the Spanish legation at Washington will be left on deposit in the Austro-Hungarian legation.
  • “Second. The custody of the archives and the protection of Spanish interests in New York and Chicago will be intrusted to the local Austro-Hungarian consuls-general, and in New Orleans, Philadelphia, and San Francisco to the French consulates.
  • “Third. In those places where only one of the two countries has a representative, the latter will assume the protection of Spanish interests; in those places where both are represented only by consular agents, such protection will be exercised through the French agents.
  • “Fourth. Questions, the settlement of which may call for representations to the [Page 788] Department of State, will be acted upon either by the French ambassador or by me [the Austro-Hungarian minister], accordingly as the initiative thereof shall have been taken through a French or Austro-Hungarian consul.
  • “Fifth. In all other cases the French ambassador will take exclusive charge of the proceedings with the Government of the Union.”

In reply, I beg to inform you that the Government of the United States admits your friendly action in assuming charge of the protection of Spanish subjects and interests in the United States, and that the scheme which you and the French ambassador have devised for the practical division of the charge you have simultaneously assumed is provisionally accepted so long as experience shall show its convenience in practice. It is, of course, understood, in conformity with the international usage which obtains in circumstances like the present, that the arrangement contemplates only the friendly offices of yourself or of your esteemed colleague, as well as of the consular representatives of your respective nations, should occasion therefor arise, with regard to Spanish subjects and their interests actually within the jurisdiction of the United States, and embraces no representative office by either of you on behalf of the Government of Spain, between which and the Government of the United States a condition of war unhappily exists.

I shall communicate to the competent authorities copies of notes thus addressed to me by yourself and the French ambassador, to the end that they may give all due heed to such representations as the agents of either country may feel called upon to make in behalf of Spanish subjects and interests in fulfillment of the friendly office of protection thus assumed and admitted. In order, however, that no confusion may exist as to the distribution of protective functions among the respective consulates, I beg that you will favor me with a list of the Austro-Hungarian consular officers who have been designated to act in the manner stated in your note.

Be pleased to accept, etc.,

John Sherman.

The French ambassador to the Secretary of State.

[Translation.]

Mr. Secretary of State: In your acknowledgment, dated April 25, of a note which I had the honor to address to you on the 22d of the same month, in regard to the steps which I had taken, in concert With the minister of Austria-Hungary, for the purpose of insuring the protection of Spanish subjects and interests in the United States, which our Governments have simultaneously assumed, you were good enough to express to me the desire to receive the list of French consuls and consular agents designated to exercise such protection, under the conditions indicated in my above-mentioned note.

In order to comply with your request, I hasten to transmit to you, as an inclosure, the list of these agents, and I avail myself of this occasion to thank you for the instructions intended to facilitate their mission which you propose to issue to the competent authorities.

Pray accept, etc.,

Jules Cambon.
[Inclosure.]

List of French consular posts charged with the protection of Spanish interests.

Consulates.—New Orleans, San Francisco.

Vice-consulates.—Philadelphia, Galveston.

Consular agencies.—Cincinnati, Detroit, Kansas City, Louisville, St. Louis, St. Paul, Brownsville, Dallas, El Paso, San Antonio, Baltimore, Boston; Charleston, S. C; Norfolk; Portland, Me.; Apalachicola, Baton Rouge, Birmingham, Mobile, Pensacola, Savannah, Los Angeles; Portland, Oreg.; San Jose.

[Page 789]

The Austro-Hungarian minister to the Secretary of State.

[Translation.]

Mr. Secretary of State: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note No. 218, of April 25 instant, and in compliance with the desire expressed therein to advise you, Mr. Secretary of State, that, in addition to the Austro-Hungarian consulate-general in New York and Chicago, the imperial and royal consulates at Pittsburg, Pa., and Richmond, Va., at which places the French Government maintains no consular representation, have been intrusted with the protection of Spanish subjects.

The list of names of the Austro-Hungarian officers thus called to the exercise of this friendly protection is:

  • New York, Consul-General Franz Stockinger.
  • Chicago, Consul Max von Proskowetz.
  • Pittsburg, Consul Thomas von Dessewffy.
  • Richmond, Consul Christof. Borchers.

Accept, etc.,

Hengelmüller.