Nov 21 at 10:30 AM - Sale 2687 -

Sale 2687 - Lot 274

Estimate: $ 800 - $ 1,200
(HAITI.) Misrule and Maladministration in Haiti. 2 pages, 10 x 6½ inches, on one folding sheet, signed in type only "The Haitian People," blank on verso; folds, wrinkling, moderate wear. No place, June [1926]
Request Condition Report Set Alert for Similar Items

Additional Details

A desperate appeal to the American people for relief from one of the more regrettable episodes in Haiti's tragic history.

This tract was issued in the heart of the repressive United States occupation of Haiti, which lasted from 1915 to 1934. It protests the regime of President Louis Borno, regarded as an American puppet. Borno had been chosen as president in 1922 by a special "Council of State" in violation of the Haitian constitution. In conjunction was the American commander General John Henry Russell, he had suppressed the 10 January 1926 popular elections, was selected by the Council for a second term, and was planning to visit Washington to lobby for additional military support. This leaflet argues: "He is a usurper. . . . All the false interpretations given by the said Borno . . . are intentionally made to deceive public opinion in the United States and abroad. . . . The county, a Republic, is without any popular representation and is under the dictatorship of these two men. . . . The people of Haiti are getting poorer every day by the continual increase of the taxes and customs duties. . . . How can a man live with such a low salary? It is why they are leaving the country for Cuba and Santo-Domingo. More than 300 thousand have already left. Russell and Borno are responsible for this sad state of things. Nobody is allowed to raise his voice and condemn the despotic and ruthless policy of these two men. During the last three years, all the journalists who protested against their undemocratic regime were arrested and brutally thrown into dungeons without trial. The Haitians . . . ask the people of the United States to help them to get rid of the frank despot that General Russell has forced upon Haiti."

This leaflet was produced to influence American opinion, but its distribution must have been very limited. Not traced in OCLC, at auction, in newspapers, or elsewhere.

Also in This Catalogue