[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 140 (Friday, September 30, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 30, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
            THE FORBES COMMISSION'S REPORT OF MARCH 30, 1930

                                 ______


                          HON. THOMAS E. PETRI

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 30, 1994

  Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, nearly 65 years ago, on February 7, 1930, 
President Hoover named a Commission under the chairmanship of W. 
Cameron Forbes of Massachusetts, to study and review conditions in 
Haiti. The Commission reviewed our 15 years of occupation of Haiti, and 
made a series of recommendations it hoped would contribute towards the 
Haitianization of Haiti.
  I submit the Forbes Commission's report of March 30, 1930, for the 
Record in hopes its greater availability will assist students and 
policymakers in understanding the history of our involvement in Haiti 
and in assessing the prospects for the success of our current adventure 
there.

   Report of the President's Commission for the Study and Review of 
                  Conditions in the Republic of Haiti

       On February 7, 1930, the President named the following 
     members of the Commission for the Study and Review of 
     Conditions in Haiti:
       W. Cameron Forbes, of Massachusetts, Chairman.
       Henry P. Fletcher, of Pennsylvania.
       Elie Vezina, of Rhode Island.
       James Kerney, of New Jersey.
       William Allen White, of Kansas.
       On February 4 the President had set forth the purpose and 
     powers of this special Commission as follows:
       The primary question which is to be investigated is when 
     and how we are to withdraw from Haiti. The second question is 
     what we shall do in the meantime. Certainly we shall withdraw 
     our Marines and officials sometime. There are some people who 
     wish for us to scuttle overnight. I am informed that every 
     group in Haiti considers that such action would result in 
     disaster to the Haitian people. On the other hand, our treaty 
     of 1915, under which our forces are present in that country, 
     in the main expires in 1936, or six years hence. We have no 
     mandate to continue the present relationship after that date.
       We have an obligation to the people of Haiti, and we need 
     to plan how we will discharge that obligation. There is need 
     to build up a certainty of efficient and stable government, 
     in order that life and property may be protected after we 
     withdraw. We need to know, therefore, what sequent steps 
     should be taken in cooperation with the Haitian people to 
     bring about this result.
       The answers to these questions must be worked out in broad 
     vision after careful investigation of the entire subject by 
     men of unbiased minds. It is for this reason that I have 
     proposed to send a commission to Haiti to determine the 
     facts, to study and survey the whole problem in the light of 
     our experience in the past 15 years and the social and 
     political background of the Haitian people, to confer with 
     all sides, to recommend the sequent and positive steps which 
     will lead to the liquidation of our responsibilities and at 
     the same time assure stable government in Haiti.
       As I have stated before, I have no desire for 
     representation of the American Government abroad through our 
     military forces. We entered Haiti in 1915 for reasons arising 
     from chaotic and distressing conditions, the consequence of a 
     long period of civil war and disorganization. We assumed by 
     treaty the obligation to assist the Republic of Haiti in the 
     restoration of order; the organization of an efficient police 
     force; the rehabilitation of its finances; and the 
     development of its natural resources. We have the implied 
     obligation of assisting in building up of a stable self-
     government. Peace and order have been restored, finances have 
     been largely rehabilitated, a police force is functioning 
     under the leadership of Marine officers. The economic 
     development of Haiti has shown extraordinary improvement 
     under this regime. It is marked by highway systems, 
     vocational schools, and public-health measures. General 
     Russell deserves great credit for these accomplishments.
       We need now a new and definite policy looking forward to 
     the expiration of our treaties.
       The President announced on February 7 that after 
     consultation with the chairman of the commission, he had 
     requested Dr. R.E. Moton, president of the Tuskegee 
     Institute, on behalf of the Institute and such other 
     educational affiliations as he might suggest, to undertake an 
     exhaustive investigation into the educational system of Haiti 
     with a view to recommendations for the future.\24\ Doctor 
     Moton selected the following members of his committee:
       Dr. Mordecai Johnson, President of Howard University.
       Prof. Leo M. Favrot, Field Secretary of the General 
     Education Board.
       Prof. Benjamin F. Hubert, President of Georgia State 
     Industrial College.
       Dr. W.T.B. Williams, Dean of the College, Tuskegee 
     Institute, and Field Agent of the Jeanes and Slater Funds.
       The commission extended an invitation to Doctor Moton to 
     accompany them on the U.S.S. Rochester, but in view of the 
     fact that Doctor Moton had not had time to complete his 
     plans, it was announced that he would proceed at a later 
     date. Pending the receipt of Doctor Moton's report the 
     commission has dealt only incidentally with educational 
     matters.
       The President's commission assembled at Palm Beach, Fla., 
     February 20-24, 1930, preparatory to its departure for Haiti.
       On February 25, 1930, the commission embarked at Key West, 
     Fla., on the U.S.S. Rochester, which had been placed at its 
     disposal. It arrived at Port authority Prince on February 28 
     at 3 o'clock in the afternoon and immediately called upon the 
     American High Commissioner, General John H. Russell, and His 
     Excellency Louis Borno, the President of the Republic. The 
     commission then issued the following statement:
       In order to be readily accessible the commission will 
     reside at the Excelsior Hotel, where the offices of the 
     commission are likewise to be located. Beginning tomorrow 
     (Saturday) morning, the commission will hold open sessions 
     every day, except Sunday, from 9 a.m. until 12 o'clock noon, 
     to which all citizens are invited. The offices of the 
     commission will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for 
     receiving information and for the making of appointments with 
     those who care to appear in person before the commission. It 
     is the desire of the commission that all elements of the 
     Haitian people shall be heard freely and frankly. Citizens 
     who for any reason may desire to have private interviews will 
     be welcome, and their communications will be treated as 
     confidential. Following our meetings in Port au Prince the 
     commission will visit other important points in the Republic 
     and pursue the same course as to hearings and interviews. The 
     purpose of our mission is to gather as completely as is 
     humanly possible all facts concerning the situation.
       The commission took up its residence in the Excelsior 
     Hotel, where it established offices the following day and was 
     in session daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. It gave public or 
     private audience, as desired by those who appeared before it. 
     Briefs were also filed. No one was deprived of the 
     opportunity of presenting his views.
       The opposition to the Borno administration had manifested 
     itself in the formation of eight groups or political leagues, 
     the names of which were:
       L'Union Patriotique
       La Ligue des Droits del'Homme et du Citoyen
       La Ligue d'Action Sociale Haitienne
       La Ligue Nationale d'Action Constitutionnelle
       La Ligue de Defense Nationale
       La Ligue de la Jeunesse Patriote
       Le Parti National Travailliste
       L'Union Nationaliste
     The presidents of these leagues had set up a committee which 
     they called ``The Federated Committee of the Associated 
     Groups of the Opposition.'' this committee was the central 
     organization directing the movement against the American 
     Occupation and the Borno administration, and took charge of 
     the presentation of the opposition case before the 
     commission. The Federated Committee had selected George N. 
     Leger, a prominent Haitian, to assist in the presentation of 
     their case. Mr. Leger attended all of the public sessions 
     held by the commission at Port authority Prince and acted as 
     counsel for all those who appeared before the commission for 
     the purpose of presenting the claims of the opposition.
       Many plans were submitted both verbally and in writing, 
     most of which related to the withdrawal of the American 
     Occupation, the reestablishment of a representative 
     government by the election of the Legislative Assembly and 
     the abolition of the Council of State. Various courses were 
     suggested, some very extreme and one going so far as to 
     advocate that the affairs of the Republic of Haiti should be 
     managed by the President's commission until such time as the 
     legislative body could convene. Another plan would replace 
     the Council of State with a legislative body composed of 51 
     members, of which 26 members were to be appointed by the 
     President of the Republic.
       After holding sessions at Port au Prince from the 1st of 
     March until Saturday evening, the 8th of March, the 
     commission left on March 9, by automobile, for a trip through 
     the northern half of the Republic, stopping at Pont Beudet, 
     Mirebelais, Las Cohobas, and Thomonde and spending that night 
     at Hinche. At each of the towns gatherings of citizens met 
     the commission to present complaints and petitions.
       On Monday the 10th the commission proceeded to Cape Haitien 
     by motor, stopping at Maissade, St. Michel, Ennery, 
     Plaisance, and Limbe. Large crowds greeted the commission, 
     and speeches were made by the opposition leaders. At Cape 
     Haitien the town had turned out in very large numbers, and 
     throngs of people lined the road, displaying signs and 
     banners. That night the commission attended a reception given 
     by the members of the Union Club, a Haitian social 
     organization.
       The following morning hearings were held by the commission 
     at the American Consulate and briefs were presented. A visit 
     was also made to the sisal plantation of the Haitian 
     Corporation of America.
       The commission embarked that night on the Rochester for 
     Gonaives, which they reached the following morning at 8 
     o'clock. A large crowd with banners met them at the dock and 
     followed them to the Hotel de Ville, where hearings were 
     held.
       The commission left Gonaives on the Rochester at noon and 
     arrived at Port au Prince that evening. Hearings were resumed 
     there on the 13th and continued until the evening of Saturday 
     the 15th. The commission sailed on the Rochester the morning 
     of the 16th, arriving at Miami Thursday, March 20.


                          political agitation

       Announcement that President Hoover had appointed a 
     commission of inquiry and review to proceed to Haiti was 
     enough to excite a volatile population. When President Borno, 
     a few days before the arrival of the commission, removed four 
     members of the Council of State, agitators spread the rumor 
     that this was done to afford President Borno a pliable 
     majority in the council through which he might execute a coup 
     d'etat, electing a new president for a six-year term. The 
     night before the commission arrived in Port au Prince, 
     crowds thronged the streets and masses gathered in the 
     ``Champ de Mars,'' which might easily have become a 
     dangerous mob. The Haitian Garde used their clubs in 
     breaking up the crowd. The entrance of the commissioners 
     to Port au Prince the next day was dramatic. People 
     thronged the streets from the wharf to the hotel and 
     remained cheering while the commission made its ceremonial 
     calls. The crowd paraded before the hotel of the 
     commission and displayed flags and banners calling for 
     legislative elections and the end of the American 
     Occupation. They were variously worded but all of one 
     tenor: Opposition to the Borno government and the 
     Occupation.
       These banners and the crowds were clearly the work of 
     organization. In a country with a low rate of literacy the 
     mob is a form of political expression, and revolution, which 
     is the mob in action, seems to be a part of the evolutionary 
     process. Wherever the commission went in Haiti, evidence of 
     this technique was conspicuous. The same banners--scarcely 
     varying a word from Port au Prince to Cape Haitien--waved 
     everywhere. Women, singing the same songs, thronged the rural 
     highways. The same paper flags, darkened with black paper 
     bars to indicate a state of mourning for lost liberties, 
     greeted the commission in a dozen widely separated parts of 
     the Republic. The same agitators were often seen in the 
     crowds in distant parts of the Republic. Having said this, it 
     is only just to say that the politicians of the opposition 
     did their work so thoroughly that no counter demonstration 
     was attempted by citizens favorable to the Borno government. 
     It is fair to assume that public sentiment in Haiti was more 
     responsive to the opposition than to the government.


                          the electoral crisis

       The commission found the situation in regard to the 
     election of a new president critical. The evidence submitted 
     to it, not only by the witnesses who appeared in the public 
     and private hearings, but also in the reports of American 
     officers charged with the maintenance of order, was so 
     complete that the commission was convinced that the election 
     of a new president by the means practiced in the last two 
     elections, namely, by the Council of State, would not be 
     accepted quietly by the populace. Conditions became so tense 
     that, after discussing the matter with General Russell, the 
     commission called in the leaders of the opposition, 
     representing the so-called patriotic groups. After persuading 
     these leaders to issue a note asking the public to be calm 
     and await with patience its report, the commission suggested 
     the possibility of the selection of some neutral, 
     nonpolitical candidate for the presidency who would be 
     acceptable both to President Borno and his party and also to 
     the opposition. Serious objection was raised by the 
     opposition leaders to any election by the Council of State 
     which, they declared, would not be acceptable to the 
     people. They finally assented to a compromise by which 
     delegates elected by the patriotic groups should select a 
     neutral candidate who would later be elected President by 
     the Council of State.
       After protracted negotiations carried on by members of the 
     commission with the opposition, and, through General Russell, 
     with President Borno, a definite plan was drawn up which was 
     approved by President Hoover.
       This plan provided that as soon as possible after assuming 
     office on May 15, the temporary president would call an 
     election of the Legislative Assembly consisting of two 
     chambers which, when convened, would proceed to elect a 
     permanent president of the Republic for a full term of six 
     years, the temporary president having agreed to present his 
     resignation at that time and not to be a candidate for 
     election.
       Five names were submitted by the opposition, of which that 
     of Eugene Roy was accepted by President Borno. On the day 
     preceding the departure of the commission from Port au Prince 
     it had the satisfaction of announcing to the public and, by 
     wireless, to Washington, that the plan providing for the 
     election of Mr. Roy as temporary president had been accepted 
     by both sides.


                         American Intervention

       The reasons which impelled the United States to enter Haiti 
     in 1915\25\ are so well known that they need not be set forth 
     in this report.
       Conditions were chaotic; means of communication were 
     largely nonexistent; the peasant class was impoverished; 
     disease was general; property was menaced; and the debt of 
     the government, indeterminate in amount, had risen--at least 
     on paper--to staggering proportions.
       Having landed a force of Marines, thus restoring public 
     order and protecting the citizens of the United States and 
     other countries from violence, the United States by treaty 
     obtained control of a variety of governmental agencies with a 
     view to assisting in the reestablishment of a stable 
     government. There was not and there never has been on the 
     part of the United States any desire to impair Haitian 
     sovereignty.
       There is no room for doubt that Haiti, under the control of 
     the American Occupation, has made great material progress in 
     the past fifteen years.
       Indeed, the greater part of what has been done has been 
     accomplished in the past eight years, because it was not 
     until the disastrous and involved financial situation could 
     be straightened out by the flotation of the loan of 1922\26\ 
     that a constructive policy could be carried out.
       Peace and order were restored by the Marines by 1920 and 
     road building was begun under Marine auspices. The essential 
     primary steps for the reform of the administration were taken 
     as soon as peace was restored by the elimination of banditry, 
     but the American officials were working at cross purposes and 
     progress was hampered. It was therefore decided to entrust 
     General Russell, of the United States Marine Corps, who had 
     served in Haiti almost from the beginning of the Occupation, 
     with the duty of coordinating and directing the efforts of 
     the treaty officials. In order that he might also have the 
     highest civilian rank it was decided not to appoint an 
     American Minister, and he was given the title of High 
     Commissioner.\27\ As such he is the representative of the 
     United States near the Haitian Government.
       The commission desires to record its high praise of General 
     Russell's whole-hearted and single-minded devotion to the 
     interests of Haiti as he conceived them, his unremitting 
     labor, and his patient and painstaking efforts to bring order 
     out of chaos and to reconstruct a governmental machine which 
     had been largely destroyed by years of abuse, incapacity, and 
     anarchy. Since the Occupation the Haitian Government, 
     especially under President Borno, with the guidance and 
     assistance of the American officials in its service, has a 
     fine record of accomplishment. Eight hundred miles of 
     highways have been built. Before the intervention the road 
     between Port au Prince and Cape Haitien, the two principal 
     ports and cities of the Republic, was practically impassable 
     except on horseback. The journey of 180 miles took three 
     days. Now it is done in six hours by automobile. A most 
     involved financial situation has been liquidated and the 
     entire fiscal system renovated and modernized. In a word, 
     order has been created where there was only disorder in the 
     collection and disbursement of the Government funds. An 
     efficient constabulary has been organized and trained and has 
     maintained peace and order. Few are the instances where the 
     assistance of the United States Marines had to be called upon 
     in the past eight years. A Public Health and Sanitary 
     Service, which is a model of devotion and efficiency, has 
     been organized and maintained.
       Under the treaty of 1915 the assistance of the United 
     States was not provided for in the matter of education, and 
     it has been only recently and indirectly that the American 
     Occupation has interested itself in this field. Since the 
     Occupation an efficient Coast Guard has been organized, 
     lighthouses have been built and navigation rendered much 
     safer, agriculture has been encouraged, and hospitals, 
     public buildings, and parks have been constructed.
       Figures indicative of progress have been submitted showing 
     an increase in the registration of automobiles in seven years 
     from 400 to 2,800. The number of linear feet of bridges built 
     has been multiplied by three. There has been a notable 
     increase in the number of permits issued for private building 
     construction and a wholesome increase in the gross trade as 
     measured by the value of exports and imports. The automatic 
     lighthouses have been increased from 4 to 15; telephone 
     subscribers have increased from about 400 to nearly 1,200 and 
     the number of telephone calls a year from about 1,000,000 to 
     over 5,000,000.
       There is attached to this report as an appendix, a series 
     of graphs which makes it easy to visualize the notable 
     material progress achieved.\28\
       The commission was disappointed at the evidence it received 
     by the lack of appreciation on the part of the educated and 
     cultured. Haitians of the services rendered them by the 
     Occupation and their own Government. Out of many dozen 
     witnesses only one or two made favorable mention of the 
     achievements of their administration.
       It is to be hoped that the Haitian people will come in the 
     course of the next six years to realize that an enlightened 
     self-interest will require that this rate of progress be 
     maintained, particularly in the matter of public health and 
     public works, especially roads.


                           political aspects

       Under the American Occupation--and with its consent--the 
     legislative chambers were dissolved in 1981, and by an 
     interpretation of a new constitution, adopted under its 
     egis,\29\ they have not since been reassembled. The country 
     has been ruled by a President and Council of State 
     exercising, under the direction of American officials, the 
     legislative authority. Local self-government has also largely 
     disappeared. The important municipalities and communes are 
     ruled by commissioners appointed by the President. The 
     members of the Council of State itself have been appointed 
     and removed by him. The Council of State under the 
     legislative authority vested in it by the 1918 constitution 
     has exercised the powers of a National Assembly in electing 
     the President.\30\
       The people of Haiti, since the dissolution of the National 
     Assembly by President Dartignave, have had no popularly 
     elected representatives in control of their Government. The 
     American Occupation has accepted--if not indeed encouraged--
     this state of affairs. Certainly reforms could be instituted, 
     and governmental measures carried through more easily in 
     these circumstances, and were.
       The acts and attitude of the treaty officials gave your 
     commission the impression that they had been based upon the 
     assumption that the Occupation would continue indefinitely. 
     In other words, their plans and projects did not seem to take 
     into account that their work should be completed by 1936, and 
     the commission was disappointed to find that the preparation 
     for the political and administrative training if Haitians for 
     the responsibilities of government had been inadequate.
       The commission is under no delusions as to what may happen 
     in Haiti after the convocation of the elected legislative 
     assembly and, to a greater extent, after the complete 
     withdrawal of the United States forces. The Government of 
     Haiti before American intervention was, so far as the 
     commission could learn, more democratic and representative in 
     name than in fact. The Deputies and Senators were, the 
     commission was informed, more often chosen by the President 
     than elected by the people.
       The commission is not convinced that the foundations for 
     democratic and representative government are now broad enough 
     in Haiti. The educated public opinion and literate minority 
     are so small that any government formed in these 
     circumstances is liable to become an oligarchy. The literate 
     few too often look to public office as a means of livelihood. 
     Until the basis of political structure is broadened by 
     education--a matter of years--the Government must necessarily 
     be more or less unstable and in constant danger of political 
     upheavals.


                            treaty relations

       The commission is of the opinion that the progressive steps 
     looking toward the withdrawal of the assistance now being 
     given by the American Occupation should be taken on the 
     theory and understanding that the present treaty will remain 
     in force until 1936, it being understood that such 
     modifications as circumstances require and the two 
     Governments agree upon may be made at any time. It is too 
     early to suggest in what form the American Occupation should 
     be liquidated upon the expiration of the treaty or in what 
     form such further aid and assistance as the Haitian 
     Government might desire from the United States should be 
     provided. This can be more wisely decided in the light of the 
     experience of the next few years.
       The question of the withdrawal of the marine Brigade which 
     acts as a stabilizing and supporting force in the 
     preservation of order, is one which the commission has 
     carefully considered. Very little complaint was heard of the 
     presence of the Marines except as they formed part of the 
     American Occupation. They are not much in evidence. All 
     except about one hundred and fifty are stationed in Port au 
     Prince; the rest are at Cape Haitian. The commission 
     considered the question of removing the Marines from these 
     two centers and putting them in barracks a short distance 
     from these cities, but concluded that this was impracticable 
     and unwise. The commission recommends the gradual reduction 
     of the Marine Brigade if and as in the judgment of the two 
     Governments, the political situation warrants. No reduction 
     of the Marine Brigade should be made without consultation 
     with the commandant of the Garde. It should also be 
     remembered that in case of riots and uprisings this force 
     might be necessary to protect the lives of American families, 
     both private and official, and of foreigners residing in Port 
     au Prince and other cities.
       The money spent in Haiti by the Marine Brigade, consisting, 
     as it now does, of about eight hundred officers and men, is 
     an important factor in the economic life of the country, 
     especially in the present depression of trade. The expense of 
     the Marine Occupation is borne entirely by the United States 
     Government.


                             law and order

       By article 10 of the treaty the Haitian Government is 
     obligated to create a constabulary, composed of native 
     Haitians and organized and offered by Americans, for the 
     preservation of domestic peace, the security of individual 
     rights, and the full observance of the treaty.
       It is also further provided that these American officers 
     will be replaced by Haitians as they are found qualified by 
     examination conducted by a board to be selected by the senior 
     American officer of the Constabulary (Garde) and in the 
     presence of a representative of the Haitian Government.
       These treaty provisions have been supplemented by 
     agreements between the two Governments (known as the 
     Gerdarmerie Agreements) fixing salaries, duties, etc. In 
     addition to their police duties, district and subdistrict 
     commanders of the Garde have also been charged with the duty 
     of communal advisers in connection with the collection and 
     disbursing of the communal revenues and have charge of the 
     Coast Guard and lighthouses.
       It is obvious that after the withdrawal of the American 
     forces, the orderly functioning of the Haitian Government 
     will depend in large measure upon the efficiency and 
     discipline of the Garde.
       The primary and principal duty of the Garde--the 
     maintenance of law and order--has been well and 
     conscientiously performed. The replacement of American 
     officers of the Garde by Haitians, contemplated by the 
     treaty, has not been carried out, however, as rapidly as, in 
     the opinion of the commission, it should have been done. 
     There is not now and there never has been a Haitian officer 
     of the Garde above the grade of captain. There are now but 2 
     Haitian captains on duty with troops out of a total of 23, 17 
     Haitian first lieutenants out of a total of 58, 19 Haitian 
     second lieutenants out of a total of 57, and 28 aspirant 
     officers (cadets), all of whom are Haitians.
       At the request of the commission the commandant of the 
     Garde has submitted tables (see Appendix, Tables Nos. 1 and 
     2) showing the program now proposed by the High Command for 
     the progressive Haitianization of the Garde over the period 
     from 1930 until 1936. It should be noted that these plans 
     have not yet been approved and ordered to be put into 
     operation.
       The commission believes that no change in the treaty or the 
     Gendarmerie Agreement nor increase in the funds voted for the 
     Garde, is necessary to effect a more rapid Haitianization. 
     The commandant of the Garde testified that American officers 
     serving with the Garde could be transferred back to the 
     Marine Corps at any time to make room for the promotion of 
     Haitians, and this should be done where vacancies occurring 
     in the ordinary course are not sufficient to give the 
     opportunity for a faster promotion of Haitians.
       Notwithstanding the fact that there are a number of 
     American noncommissioned officers serving as company officers 
     in the Garde who have rendered fine service for from eight to 
     fourteen and one-half years, not one of them has ever been 
     promoted above the grade of captain in the Haitian Garde. The 
     commission believes that some of these men are at least as 
     well fitted by training and experience to be promoted to 
     field rank as Marine officers who have not had their 
     experience in Haiti.
       The Haitianization program rests with the Navy Department 
     and Marine Corps headquarters in Washington, which can, by 
     recalling the Navy and Marine officers on service with the 
     Haitian Garde, make room for the promotion of Haitians. The 
     selection of the officers recalled and promoted should be 
     left to the commandant of the Garde in Haiti. Even if 
     discipline and efficiency suffer temporarily, the commission 
     feels that they will undoubtedly suffer more by delaying this 
     reform.
       The Ecole Militaire, temporarily closed at the end of last 
     year, is an important factor in the training of Haitian 
     officers, and it should be immediately reopened and should 
     receive support from now through the period of American 
     control.
       The commission believes that when the Garde is Haitianized 
     it would be advisable that some provision be made for orderly 
     promotion and retirement and for protection against promotion 
     by political influence.


                        The Financial Situation

       The financial achievement of the American administration is 
     noteworthy. A modern and up-to-date budgetary system has been 
     established with preaudit, which is one of the latest and 
     most effective devices for accurate, economical, and 
     expeditious management of accounts.
       Some witnesses who appeared before your commission 
     criticized the financial management of the Government and 
     even went so far as to charge improprieties in connection 
     with it. Many complained that they were kept in ignorance as 
     to how their money was collected and how spent. This shows 
     that they had not read the careful reports issued by the 
     Financial Adviser in both English and French. Nor did any of 
     the witnesses mention the fact that six auditors from the 
     United States Comptroller's Office had made a thorough 
     analysis of all accounts of the Government, which were found 
     correct except for certain very minor errors and adjustments, 
     since rectified.
       The revenues and expenses have been carefully balanced with 
     a conservative margin of revenues in excess of expenditures, 
     resulting in a steadily increasing treasury surplus. (See 
     Appendix.)
       The Service of the Public Debt has been cared for and 
     several million dollars of the principal thereof paid off out 
     of revenues in excess of the amount called for by the 
     amortization plan. The wisdom of this course is open to 
     question; it might have been better to have reduced the 
     taxation, especially the export tax, and left the debt to 
     work itself out during its normal term, thus keeping more 
     money in the country where experiences has shown it was badly 
     needed.
       Little by little the American Occupation has extended its 
     intervention in the financial operation of Haiti, until 50 
     per cent of the revenues are now expended under American 
     supervision, including the Service of the Public Debt.
       The commission believes that the 5 per cent maximum allowed 
     out of the Government revenues to cover the cost of the 
     General Receivership should not be considered a flat 
     allowance, but a limitation within which the receiver must 
     operate. The commission recommends that appropriations 
     disbursed by the twenty services in Haiti should be budgeted 
     with the same detail as are the appropriations for the 
     regular public services of the Haitian Government.


                       health and medical relief

       At the time of the American Occupation in 1915, it has been 
     estimated, fully 70 per cent of the people of Haiti were 
     afflicted with dangerous and incapacitating diseases; yaws 
     and syphilis were prevalent. Except for a little aid in a few 
     of the towns no relief was available. In the country 
     districts the population suffered without knowing that 
     remedies could be had. The doctors of the country showed no 
     willingness to bring relief to remote places. To-day, thanks 
     to an efficient United States [Navy] Medical Service, there 
     are 153 rural clinics to which 1,341,596 visits were made in 
     1929. The few inefficient hospitals were rebuilt and new ones 
     established so that there are now 11 modern hospitals with a 
     capacity of over a thousand beds, where before there were 
     only a few hundred of the alms-house type.
       In Haiti practically the entire burden for medical care 
     falls upon the Government. Private hospitals and volunteer 
     aid are almost entirely lacking.


                             lack of census

       It is greatly to be regretted that no census was available 
     in 1915 which would have made possible an accurate 
     measurement of benefits that have been conferred by the 
     American Occupation. There are, however, census figures for 
     small groups made by the Rockefeller Foundation in 1924 which 
     justify the belief that an unquestioned benefit has resulted 
     to the health and well-being of the people of Haiti.


                                malaria

       Malaria has sapped the vitality of the population for 
     several centuries and has had an important influence in 
     retarding agricultural development. With the advent of the 
     American Occupation modern measures for the control of the 
     diseases are being invoked as rapidly as the resources 
     permit. Much progress has resulted. Port au Prince and other 
     large towns are now practically free of the disease, and 
     there is little likelihood of controlling it. In many rural 
     areas malaria is being brought under control, but much 
     remains to be done which will probably have to wait until the 
     economic conditions improve.


                             other diseases

       There are not sufficient data to judge of the importance of 
     tuberculosis. The records of the Gendarmerie show that the 
     incidence of the disease is very high. In 700 autopsies at 
     the General Hospital of Port au Prince 26 per cent of the 
     deaths were due to tuberculosis. On the other hand, 
     hospital experience in many places shows a small admission 
     rate.
       Typhoid fever, which has a high rate in Port au Prince, has 
     been nearly eliminated by chlorinating the water supply. 
     According to recent records there is a remarkable relative 
     freedom from many diseases. The great waves of dysentery that 
     sweep over tropical countries and are responsible for so many 
     deaths have not occurred in Haiti for many years.
       Hookworm causes very little serious disability. Diabetes 
     and stones of the gall bladder, kidney, and urinary bladder 
     are rare. Heart disease and pneumonia are relatively 
     unimportant,.


                              Malnutrition

       No one need go hungry in Haiti. Mangoes, yams, rice, beans 
     and other products of the soil occur in abundance and can be 
     had with a minimum of effort
       There is a however much reason to believe that the diet is 
     deficient in proteins. In other words there is a great lack 
     of eggs, milk, meat, and other food that contain substances 
     that are essential to a balanced ration
       In the past there have been serious outbreaks of disease 
     due to improper nourishment. Owing to the dense ignorance 
     which prevails, public-health education is difficult.


                         professional training

       After the Occupation it soon became obvious that if health 
     and medical effort were to be successfully continued by 
     Haitians, means must be provided for adequate training. A 
     nurses' training school was started at the Port au Prince 
     General Hospital which has produced nearly one hundred 
     graduates, many of whom are already rendering excellent 
     service throughout the country. Practical courses are in 
     operation for training laboratory technicians. Hospital-corps 
     men for the Gendarmeric are trained by its medical officers 
     and the General Hospital.
       Upon the recommendation of the Navy Medical Service the 
     antiquated inefficient medical school was transferred to the 
     National Public Health Service and appropriations secured for 
     proper buildings and maintenance of essential services. A 
     philanthropic organization of the United States donated 
     equipment and provided fellowship to train Haitian doctors to 
     become teachers of modern medicine.
       In 1929 a modern health center was started in Port au 
     Prince. This not only demonstrates the benefits of health 
     measures but also serves as a training base for health 
     workers. A Haitian graduate nurse is now at Columbia 
     University, N.Y., for special training in public health 
     and is soon to return to open classes for nurses in the 
     same subject at Port au Prince.
       The direct and indirect effect of these measures is 
     everywhere apparent. Four of the 10 health districts are now 
     in charge of Haitians, and others are to follow as rapidly as 
     trained personnel becomes available. Briefly, there are 2,225 
     persons employed in the National Public Health Service, of 
     which 2,120 are Haitians. The balance is made up of 20 Naval 
     medical officers, 14 Navy hospital-corps men whose salaries 
     are paid by the United States, 63 French Nuns, 2 French 
     Priests, 4 American Red Cross Nurses, 1 French librarian, and 
     1 Jamaican plumber. Of the 159 Haitian doctors in the country 
     40 percent are employed in the Government service.


                           general deductions

       There is abundant evidence that great improvement has taken 
     place in the health of the people since the Occupation. The 
     National Public Health Service enjoys the confidence and 
     approval of the public to an unusual degree. The streets of 
     the towns are well swept; garbage and refuse are removed; 
     slaughter houses are inspected; and an earnest effort made to 
     control soil pollution and to provide safe drinking-water. 
     The Gendarmerie has a good medical service. The jails are 
     clean and sanitary, and the average health of the prisoners 
     has been greatly improved. The hospitals are well 
     administered, and high-grade medical and surgical skill is 
     provided. Machinery is available for the control of epidemics 
     and to prevent the introduction of disease from abroad. 
     Medical relief through the vast rural clinic system can be 
     had by everyone, even in the most remote sections of the 
     country. Diagnosis based on laboratory findings is available 
     for all necessary cases. The health and medical work has been 
     directed and largely done by the United States Naval medical 
     officers, ably assisted by Haitians and the French nuns.
       Steps have been taken to provide training to enable 
     Haitians to take over the entire National Public Health 
     Service. In view of the importance of building up the 
     disease-weakened Haitian people, it is recommended that it be 
     made possible for the Government of Haiti to avail itself of 
     United States Naval medical officers to serve as advisers 
     after the present treaty expires. It might also be desirable 
     to employ a few American medical men other than naval 
     officers to insure longer tenure and continuity of service. 
     In the meantime the assignments of the United States Naval 
     medical officers and hospital-corps men should be lengthened, 
     so that the experience gained in language, customs and 
     conditions may be available to the people of Haiti for the 
     greatest possible period.
       Unless these steps are taken, it is feared that the Medical 
     Service may deteriorate and that ground will be lost which 
     has been won with so much sacrifice and effort.


                       the state church in haiti

       The relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the 
     Government of Haiti since 1860 are governed by a concordat. 
     Two additional conventions entered into respectively in 1861 
     and 1862 and a statute referred to as the ``Loi des 
     Fabriques'' provide for the carrying out of its terms.\31\ 
     There is no confusion of civil with ecclesiastical authority; 
     there is no union of church and state, as the term is 
     generally understood. The Government of Haiti, believing that 
     the church and religion are essential to the well-being of 
     the Haitian people, agrees to cooperate with the clergy and 
     makes provisions to subsidize the church; and the church 
     undertakes to establish parishes and missions throughout 
     Haiti and to establish, in the words of the concordat, 
     ``those orders and institutions which are approved by the 
     Catholic Church,'' including schools, hospitals, asylums, 
     orphanages, etc.
       The clergy, which came to Haiti in 1864, consisting of an 
     Archbishop, a band of 40 Priests, and a small group of 
     Brothers and Sisters, found religion in a lamentable 
     condition; everything still had to be done. With but one 
     exception, every church building in Haiti has been 
     constructed since 1860.
       Now, at the beginning of 1930, the organization of the 
     church is as follows:
       There are one archdiocese and four dioceses corresponding 
     to the five departments which constitute the political 
     subdivisions of Haiti. These dioceses with their respective 
     populations as furnished by the church authorities, are as 
     follows:
                                                             population
Archdiocese of Port au Prince...................................942,700
Diocese of Cape Haitien.........................................453,000
Diocese of Aux Cayes............................................628,000
Diocese of Gonaives.............................................475,000
Diocese of Port de Paix.........................................153,400

     These population statistics are based on the statistics of 
     births covering more than fifty years and are probably the 
     most accurate estimate available.
       At the head of each diocese there is either an Archbishop 
     or a Bishop.
       There are in all 205 Priests in Haiti; of these 156 are 
     secular Priests engaged in active mission work, and in charge 
     of parishes. All parishes in the diocese of Port de Paix and 
     two in Port au Prince are in charge of regular clergy. The 
     others are doing educational work or are engaged in other 
     special services connected with the dioceses. Eight of the 
     Priests are Haitians.
       There are 105 Brothers of Christian instruction (83 French, 
     10 French-Canadian, 9 Spanish, and 3 Haitian).
       There are three congregations of Sisters as follows:
       St Joseph de Cluny, with 146 Sisters.
       Les Filles de la Sagesse, with 198 Sisters.
       Les Filles de Marie, with 22 Sisters.
       The Priests, and especially the Brothers and Sisters, have 
     devoted themselves, with such inadequate resources as they 
     have had, not only to the spreading of religion, but to the 
     founding of schools, parish churches, and mission chapels. 
     The Brothers at present conduct seventeen boys' schools in 
     the larger centers and rural districts and the Sisters have 
     an even greater number of girls' schools and primary schools 
     for both boys and girls.
       By a law of 1913 the Priests were authorized to establish 
     rural schools usually referred to as ``presbyteral schools.'' 
     The Filles de Marie are especially devoted to vocational and 
     industrial education and to the preparation of teachers for 
     the presbyteral schools.
       The church institutions in Haiti are as follows:
       112 parishes, usually one in each commune and several in 
     the larger centers.
       465 mission chapels
       153 presbyteral schools, with 10,623 pupils. These schools 
     are all taught by lay teachers, generally women who receive a 
     salary of about $6 United States currency per month. They are 
     the foundation of the educational system of Haiti and deserve 
     more generous support.
       17 Brothers' schools with 6,731 students; the instructors 
     are about half Brothers and half laymen and receive salaries 
     from the Government averaging considerably less than $40 per 
     month. The Brother Superintendent, who is responsible for the 
     supervision of these schools, receives a monthly salary of 
     $100.
       4 colleges with a total attendance of about 2,500.
       36 Sisters' schools.
       1 girls industrial school conducted by the Belgian Sisters 
     and under the Service Technique of the Department of 
     Agriculture.
       The Haitian Government subsidizes a seminary in France for 
     the special training of missionaries for Haiti. At Port au 
     Prince there is a seminary for the training of Haitian 
     Priests.


                           Judicial Procedure

       Friction between the Haitian courts and the American treaty 
     officials has arisen at various times because, on the one 
     hand, the courts have refused to enforce or have obstructed 
     the execution of certain administrative measures and because, 
     on the other, the treaty officials have refused to obey the 
     order of the court on the ground that the treaty is the law 
     of the land and its observance and the agencies set up by it 
     can not be obstructed or interfered with by the judiciary. 
     The question raised is delicate but goes to the heart of our 
     treaty relations with Haiti, and the commission recommends 
     that in case of future conflict of authority on this score 
     the matter be settle by direct and friendly negotiations 
     between the two Governments.
       The unsatisfactory administration of Haitian justice and 
     the necessity of reform of the system with more adequate 
     salaries and more modern methods, was pointed out to the 
     commission but as this is a matter for the Haitian people 
     themselves to decide, the commission feels it is without its 
     province to express any opinion. If a stable government is to 
     be assured after the withdrawal of the Occupation, the 
     question of the judiciary should receive careful 
     consideration.


                              constitution

       Much complaint was made to the commission of the manner (by 
     plebiscite) in which the present constitution of Haiti was 
     adopted in 1918 and amended in 1928\32\--and especially of 
     the manner in which the present Government of Haiti 
     interpreted its provisions relating to the powers of the 
     Council of State.
       One accusation persistently brought against the American 
     intervention concerns the inserting in the constitution of 
     1918 of an article granting to foreigners the right to take 
     title to Haitian land. It is evident that the change has 
     produced much irritation and suspicion. From the inception of 
     the Republic in 1804, the Haitian had consistently excluded 
     foreigners from owning real property, and in the face of such 
     a tradition it was unfortunate to have had the land policy 
     altered under American auspices. The commission recommends, 
     in case the Haitian people desire to amend this provision, 
     that our Government make no objection thereto, merely 
     limiting itself to seeing that rights and titles acquired 
     under the present constitution--which are comparatively few--
     be respected. The commission  found no instance of undue 
     advantage having been taken by Americans of the clause 
     enabling foreigners, under certain restrictions, to 
     acquire real estate.


                             race prejudice

       Race antipathies lie behind many of the difficulties which 
     the United States military and civil forces have met in 
     Haiti. The race situation there is unique; the Negro race 
     after more than a century of freedom has developed a highly 
     cultured, highly sophisticated, race-conscious leadership. 
     This group, which is proud to be known as the ``Elite,'' 
     forms the governing class. It is an urban group, comprising a 
     very small proportion of the population, probably less than 5 
     per cent, generally mulatto but shading from octoroon to 
     black, and because it is educated, comparatively wealthy and 
     highly privileged with leadership, this class is as careful 
     in maintaining its caste distinction as any other ruling 
     class. Their language is French. Their Catholicism is French. 
     The masses of Haiti are poor and ignorant. Generally 
     speaking, they are of pure African descent. Illiteracy keeps 
     the peasant masses politically inarticulate, except in case 
     of mobs or bandit gangs, which formerly infested the 
     countryside and often furnished the forces of revolution. 
     These bandit gangs have been broken up and have disappeared 
     under American rule, but the social forces that created them 
     still remain--poverty, ignorance, and the lack of a tradition 
     or desire for orderly free government. It has been the aim of 
     the American Occupation to try to broaden the base of the 
     articulate proletariat and thus make for a sounder democracy 
     and ultimately provide for a more representative government 
     in Haiti. Hence its work in education, in sanitation, in 
     agencies of communication such as roads, telephones, 
     telegraph lines, and regular mail routes. These things 
     naturally are deemed of secondary importance by the Elite, 
     who see in the rise of a middle class a threat to the 
     continuation of their own leadership.
       The failure of the Occupation to understand the social 
     problems of Haiti, its brusque attempt to plant democracy 
     there by drill and harrow, its determination to set up a 
     middle class--however wise and necessary it may seem to 
     Americans--all these explain why, in part, the high hopes of 
     our good works in this land have not been realized.


                            recommendations

       The personnel of some of the services are officers selected 
     from the Navy and the Marine Corps. The commission finds 
     certain inherent difficulties in this connection. Naval 
     officers are detailed for a period of three years; it takes 
     two years to learn the language and to become familiar with 
     conditions, and it is obvious that men subject to such short 
     details could not, in the nature of things, be the most 
     efficient.
       The commission recommends:
       (1) That the detail of Naval and Marine officers for all 
     Haitian services be made for a minimum of four years and that 
     an effort be made to secure Americans who will agree to 
     continue employment in these services, so that upon the 
     expiration of the treaty a force of American doctors, 
     engineers, and police officers will be available for 
     continued assistance to the Haitian Government, should it 
     then desire it;
       (2) That, if possible, some form of continuing 
     appropriation for roads be urged for expenditure by the 
     Haitian Government, with a policy that will provide enough 
     funds to keep all existing roads in suitable repair before 
     any new construction is undertaken; also, in regard to 
     further construction, that only roads most urgently needed to 
     develop regions now settled and under cultivation be 
     undertaken until the present economic depression has passed;
       (3) That the United States interpose no objections to a 
     moderate reduction of the customs duties, internal revenue 
     taxes, especially those imposed upon alcohol and tobacco, or 
     to a reduction or elimination of the export tax on coffee, if 
     the condition of the Treasury so warrants;
       (4) That it be suggested to the Haitian Government that it 
     employ one American adviser in each administrative department 
     of the Government to perform such work as the respective 
     Cabinet Minister may delegate to him, these officers to give 
     expert advice and assistance to the Haitian Government, 
     similar to that given by American officers in China, Siam, 
     and Nicaragua, for naval matters in Brazil, and for 
     educational matters in Peru;
       (5) That, as an act of graciousness on the part of the 
     United States, a moderate appropriation be made available 
     during the continuance of the treaty to defray the cost of 
     American civil officials in the Haitian Government service;
       (6) That an appointment of a military attache be made to 
     the Legation when the time shall arrive for a Minister to 
     replace the High Commissioner, as the question of the 
     preservation of order is of first importance and the Minister 
     should have the advantage of his advice on military and 
     police matters;
       (7) That an adequate Legation building be constructed 
     immediately by the Government of the United States in the 
     city of Port au Prince to provide a suitable residence for 
     the American Minister and appropriate offices.


                             sequent steps

       Complying with your instructions to suggest sequent steps 
     to be taken with respect to the Haitian situation your 
     commission offers the following:
       (1) That the President declare that the United States will 
     approve a policy, the details of which all the United States 
     officials in Haiti are directed to assist in working out, 
     providing for an increasingly rapid Haitianization of the 
     services, with the object of having Haitians experienced in 
     every department of the Government ready to take over full 
     responsibility at the expiration of the existing treaty;
       (2) That in retaining officers now in the Haitian service, 
     or selecting new Americans for employment therein, the utmost 
     care be taken that only those free from strong racial 
     antipathies should be preferred;
       (3) That the United States recognize the temporary 
     President when elected, provided the election is in 
     accordance with the agreement reached by your commission with 
     President Borno and the leaders representing the opposition;
       (4) That the United States recognize the President elected 
     by the new legislature, acting as a National Assembly, 
     provided that neither force nor fraud have been used in the 
     elections;
       (5) That at the expiration of General Russell's tour of 
     duty in Haiti, and in any such event [not?] before the 
     inauguration of the permanent President, the office of High 
     Commissioner be abolished and a nonmilitary Minister 
     appointed to take over his duties as well as those of 
     diplomatic representative;
       (6) That whether or not a certain loss of efficiency is 
     entailed, the new Minister to Haiti be charged with the duty 
     of carrying out the early Haitianization of the services 
     called for in the Declaration of the President of the United 
     States above recommended;
       (7) That, as the commission found the immediate withdrawal 
     of the Marines inadvisable, it recommends their gradual 
     withdrawal in accordance with arrangements to be made in 
     future agreement between the two Governments;
       (8) That the United States limit its intervention in 
     Haitian affairs definitely to those activities for which 
     provision is made for American assistance by treaty, or by 
     specific agreement between the two Governments;
       (9) That the new Minister be charged with the duty of 
     negotiating with the Haitian Government further modifications 
     of the existing treaty and agreements providing for less 
     intervention in Haitian domestic affairs and defining the 
     conditions under which the United States would lend its 
     assistance in the restoration of order or maintenance of 
     credit.
       Respectfully submitted,
     W. Cameron Forbes.
     Henry P. Fletcher.
     Elie Vezina.
     James Kerney.
     W. A. White.


                               footnotes

     \24\See Department of State, Latin American Series No. 5; 
     Report of the United States Commission on Education in Haiti 
     (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1931).
     \25\See Foreign Relations, 1915, pp. 461 ff.
     \26\See ibid., 1922, vol. ii, pp. 472, 515.
     \27\See ibid., pp. 461 ff.
     \28\For the appendix, see Department of State, Latin American 
     Series No. 2, Report of the President's Commission for the 
     Study and Review of Conditions in the Republic of Haiti 
     (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1930).
     \29\Constitution of 1918, Foreign Relations, 1918, p. 487; 
     amendments, ibid., 1927, vol. iii, p. 48.
     \30\See article D of title VIII, transitory provisions, 
     Constitution of 1918, ibid., 1918, p. 502.
     \31\See Hannibal Price, Dictionnaire de Legislation 
     Administrative Haitienne, (deuxieme edition) (Port-au-Prince, 
     Haiti, Imprimerie Cheraquit, 1923). pp. 441-447 and pp. 152-
     160.
     \32\See Foreign Relations, 1927, vol. iii, pp. 48-77, 
     especially footnote 20, pp. 77.

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