Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1903-11-24
CONSULAR SERVICE
SECRETARY PIERCE FINDS UNIT
ED STATES coNsuLATEs IN 4
GOOD CONDITION..

Washington, Nov. .23-Having re-
turned to the United States from a
tour of consulates III England, Hol-
land, Belgium, France and Germany,
Third Assistant Secretary of State
Pierce has submitted to the secretary
a report.
He says that United States consul
ates in Europe are on the whole in
excellent condition and that the SER
vice compares faVorablv with that of
any other country. The system of re-
muneration of consuls can be found
to be unequally distributed. but OH
| the whole he finds hat our consuls
are td4eapateiy colTlIsasated The fee
! system OF compensation he regards as
| an unfortunate failure, Introducing an
( element OF uncertainty into the con-
| sul's remuneration which is embar-
RAISING and disquieting to him in the
| performance of his duties.
However remote may be the temp
/ tation to abuse the privileges under
which q consul retains for himself GER
| tain fees, says Mr.. Pierce, still the
existence. of such possibility cannot
| be beneficial to the morals of the
service"
He says there is no little strife
among neighboring consuls for inclu-
Esion of territory into their respective
districts, in order to secure notarial
fees, the result being that in place of
i that harmony and esprit de corps and
/ the salutary exchange of views be-
| tween consuls which should exist, he
\ found the consuls not only out of har-
mony, but hardly having relations with
i one another. He recommends the
4 abolition of all compensation to the
4 consul by fees of whatever sort or ma
ture, that all fees be converted into
1.-THE treasury and that adequate salar-
"a ms Ia rnn lS
/ Mr.. Pierce regards as unfortunate
1.-THE appointment of naturalized Amer
4 ican citizens to the country of their
II origin in consular capacity. not
alone from the point of view of the
II government to whom they are accred-
tied which seldom regards such APP
!, pointment With satisfaction, but the
point OF view of efficiency
\ Mr.. Pierce calls attention to the
<; abose which he says has grown up
;. in the certiflcation of the invoice of
merchandise shipped to the United
States under the law Which limits the
invoice to q shipment of goods
amounting to $500 or more, whereby
what really constitutes single ship
ments are split up into many of less
than $l00 each. Another abuse COM
planned of is that forwarding houses
and agents of American firms unite
! bills of goods into one shipment, at
,
!. Voice which is brought to the consu-
late for certitication. In this way, he
! says, for the small fee of $3.50 con-
: sular services are obtained. consum-
+ ing a considerable part of the officials
pay. In fact, he says, the shipper OF
= goods invoiced at 500 PAYS the same
> fee as the shipper Of goods to the
Z value of $l5G,000, He therefore sug-
gests that the minimum requiring an
invoice to be certified should be $25
instead OF S100 as al present. and the
fees charged either should be upon a
Isliding scale, with a minimum fee OF
%. cents and maximum of 90 cents
on invoices of $1,000 or more.
The report deals with the subject OF
J immigration and the duties of consuls
, in connection herewith, saving that
: they are excessively arduous. involv-
: ing irregular hours, and exposure not
, only to the weather but to contagious
! and infectious diseases. BY the terms
, of the recent law, Mr.. Pierce says
! the emigrant passenger manifest is ~
| longer signed by the consul or any
body at the port of embarkation bnt
by the immigration inspectors al The
port of arrival. The actual labors o1
the consul. however, in connection
a with the bills, of health and the in
spection of immigrants, remains the
same. Consequently, he says. aftel
S delivering to the captain of q vessel
;. clean bill of health. it is entirely pos
3 sible for rejected enigraRts OF Others
who have not been examined 10 b,
? taken aboard after the consul has left
G thus vitiating the entire bill OF health