1873-March-27: Secretary of State Hamilton Fish delivered a blunt diplomatic rebuff to the Haitian government regarding their request for arbitration over Na…

1873-March-27: Secretary of State Hamilton Fish delivered a blunt diplomatic rebuff to the Haitian government regarding their request for arbitration over Navassa. Fish informed Minister Preston that there was “nothing to arbitrate or indeed to discuss,” as Haiti had failed to produce any evidence of possession prior to the American discovery of guano in 1857. When Preston persisted with what Fish deemed an “impertinence,” the Secretary forced him to withdraw the remark and declared the discussion officially closed in June 1873.