Cristino Martos to Daniel E. Sickles, January 2, 1873

Mr. Martos to General Sickles.

Sir: I have the honor to inform you that, in order to diminish, so far as may be possible, the reclamations of foreign representatives growing out of the fines imposed by the customs authorities in the island of Cuba upon merchant-captains, the minister of ultramar has, under date of the 26th of December last, notified the general superintendent of the finances of the island of Cuba, (intendente-general de hacienda,) firstly, that ho fine imposed by the customs authorities upon captains or supercargoes of national and foreign vessels for errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in the sobordos or manifests they present, shall take effect without the previous approval of the general superintendent, the administrators and treasurers of the several custom-houses being required to exact on their own responsibility a sufficient guarantee to protect the interests of the treasury, in case the vessels put to sea before the final payment of the fines which shall have been incurred by their captains or supercargoes; secondly, that within as brief a period as may be practicable, he shall proxose such separation as can be made between the circumstances and details now required in the sobordos, leaving such as may be essential to the prevention of frauds subject to consular registry and certification, and exempting from such formality such as have no importance in a financial point of view; and, thirdly, that the fines imposed on the captains or supercargoes of vessels for errors in their papers, and subsequently revoked, as well as those condoned by the free act of the supreme government, shall be refunded within the fixed term of one year, counting from the date of the reception in the general superintendent’s office of the order directing such restitution, or declaring the penalty to have been improvidently imposed.

I avail myself of this occasion to repeat to you, sir, the assurances of my most distinguished consideration.