McKELLAR, United States Vice-Consul to Thomas O. Osborn, April 2, 1879

Mr. McKellar to Mr. Osborn.

Sir: Since my communication of the 27th ultimo, I have been informed by the house of J. T. Ramos, esq., at this port, that the barks Mathilde and Monroe, barkentine Franklin, and schooner Cobija, which during the year 1866 had been sold to an American citizen resident in this port, and flew the American flag until December 5, 1876, made voyages during that period to Eten and Cobija, always stopping at Callao, Iquique, and Arica on an average of three times a year at least, without their right to that flag being disputed by any of the United States consular officers at any of those ports or by the United States minister to Peru.

The bark Monroe sailed with that flag to Bordeaux and returned with a valuable cargo of sugar, and neither the consular, ministerial, nor naval authorities of the United States, nor the authorities of France, interposed a doubt as to her right to wear the flag of the United States.

Since the difficulty made by the United States minister to Peru, and the United States consul at Callao, instances are daily furnished to this consulate which show that those gentlemen are alone in the views they have, at last, suddenly taken as to the right of vessels wholly owned by United States citizens to bear the American flag to any part of the world, save those of the United States, according to the exceptions made by the consular regulations and acts of Congress. I refrain from mentioning them, however, as I should needlessly prolong my already lengthy argument.

I have, &c.,