738.39/255: Telegram
The Chargé in the Dominican Republic (Atwood) to the Secretary of State
[Received 4 p.m.]
2. Department’s telegram No. 2, January 7, 7 p.m. The direct negotiations reported in my despatch No. 136 of December 29, 19377 were on Thursday said by Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs to be proceeding apace and he was confident that a direct settlement with Haiti would soon be made. He later qualified this assertion when he admitted that the Haitians were still asking for an indemnity of “millions” and that agreement had not as yet been reached on the amount of reparations to be paid the Haitian Government. I was informed last night by a source close to President Trujillo that the President had made a personal offer of $300,000 to President Vincent to drop the whole controversy. If this deal is accepted by Vincent the Dominican judicial investigation of the incident… which has thus far resulted in arrest of about 70 vagrants and has netted no member of the Dominican armed forces, will apparently be closed.
In past 10 days President Trujillo is reported to have been recruiting 500 men to increase Dominican armed forces to 3,700 effectives. It is therefore feared that if Vincent refuses to accept the deal, Trujillo may make troop demonstrations along frontier to intimidate Haiti into acceptance.
The illness of Roberto Despradel, Dominican Commissioner to the Commission of Inquiry, appears to have been a diplomatic one as the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs on Wednesday intimated that there was no need to incur the expense of sending Despradel [Page 180] to Washington when a direct settlement of the Haitian controversy was imminent.
In a broadcast to the country at eleven this morning President Trujillo announced officially his decision not to be a candidate for reelection and nominated Dr. Jacinto B. Peynado, Vice President of the Republic, and Dr. Troncoso de la Concha, special Dominican envoy to Washington, as candidates for President and Vice President of the Republic, respectively, in the constitutional elections to be held on May 16 next. The President said, however, that he would remain in the country and retain a watchful eye over the new administration.
Repeated to Port au Prince.
- Not printed.↩