891.51A/419
The Minister in Persia (Philip) to the Secretary of State
[Received October 5.]
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the Department’s cable instruction No. 47 of September 1, 5 p.m., and to refer to previous correspondence relative to my note of August 11, 1927, to the Persian Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs, which outlined the attitude of our Government as regards possible requests in the future for its assistance in the selection of American citizens as members of a financial Mission in Persia.
In my cable messages Nos. 56 and 59 of August 29, 2 p.m., and September 1, 10 a.m., respectively, I reported the gist of conversations, with the Persian Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs on this subject.
On the 28th ultimo, Mr. Pakrevan called upon me and represented the situation as reported in my No. 56.
In accordance with the authorization embodied in the Department’s No. 44 of August 29, 6 p.m., I prepared an Aide Mémoire, a copy of which I have the honor to transmit herewith, and which I handed to Mr. Pakrevan in the course of our subsequent conversation on the 31st ultimo.
I must say that Mr. Pakrevan did not seem impressed by this statement as an effective means of causing his colleagues to reconsider their decision to send a sharp and conclusive reply to this Legation’s note of August 11th. He reiterated the sincere hope that I would endeavor to obtain authorization to retire my note, remarking that the Legation will always be in a position to send this or any similar communication it may desire later on. The Acting Foreign Minister promised, somewhat reluctantly, to submit the Aide Mémoire to the Council of Ministers at its next session, which he thought would be held on the 3rd instant. He was most emphatic in his assurances that he is acting in this matter as one desirous of avoiding an incident which might seriously impair Persian relations with the United States [Page 562] and assured me that he had done everything in his power to assure the retention of Dr. Millspaugh.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As I had planned to leave town for a few days of much needed change, on the second instant, I instructed the Secretary of Legation to communicate verbally with the Acting Foreign Minister and (1) to ascertain from him if he had been able to use my Aide Mémoire to advantage, and (2) if not, and if the Department had authorized the withdrawal of the note, to inform him that I would do this temporarily.
The Department’s cable instruction No. 47, above acknowledged, being received during my absence, the Secretary of Legation called upon Mr. Pakrevan as arranged. The latter stated that my Aide Mémoire had seemed to further aggravate his colleagues. He was then informed that, since the note had been interpreted in a sense entirely foreign to my intention and on account of his urgent request, the note would be withdrawn pending my return to Teheran.
Since my return on the 6th instant I have not had an opportunity to see Mr. Pakrevan, but will do so shortly.
In the course of the conversation with the Acting Foreign Minister on the 31st ultimo, he spoke of the desire of the Government (and the Shah) to engage a prominent financial expert in the United States. In this connection, he said that the name of … had been suggested as successor to Dr. Millspaugh but that this suggestion had been rejected.
It has been rumored that … will be engaged as adviser to the Ministry of Public Works.
No comments have been made by me here as to the Department’s future attitude toward an American Financial Mission in Persia.
I beg to refer to the copy of my note of August 11th, transmitted with my despatch No. 414 of August 19, 1927, and to state that the first word of the third paragraph, line two, thereof, should read: “unofficial”, and not “official” as erroneously appears in the copy.
I have [etc.]