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notification, had, Mr. Engert tells me, been made by the Persian Post Office to the
American Post Office or to the Berne Bureau : everything had simply been retained
by the Persian authorities and, he believes, mostly destroyed. As a result of
strong representations made by Mr. Engert as to the illegality and futility of the
Persian action, American publications are again being delivered and the relations
between the two countries are to this extent improved.
3. In the case of France too it seems to have been decided that matters have
gone far enough. Senator Honorat is at present in Iran on what is, I believe, a
mission for the promotion of cultural relations. lie was first entertained at a
Government banquet at which the speeches by the Iranian Minister for Foreign
Affairs and the Senator were commendably short, merely recording the fact that
no shade has ever clouded or ever can cloud the cordial relations which have always
existed between the two cuntries. Subsequently Monsieur Honorat was received
by the Shah, delivering to His Imperial Majesty a letter from the President
of the French Republic and presenting the insignia of the Grand Cross of the
Legion of Honour. This was followed by an audience with the Valiahd. Finally,
after a week-end at Isfahan, Monsieur Honorat was made Honorary Doctor of the
University of Tehran, and entertained to dinner by the Minister of Public Instruc
tion, to w T hom he presented in return the Medal of the University of Paris.
4. I should like to think that these developments indicate a diminished sensi
tiveness to Press criticism, but it would in my opinion be over-optimistic to take
such a view. Any foreign Press comment which appears to reflect on the Shah
personally will, I fear, continue to produce the familiar reactions.
5. I am sending copies of this despatch to His Majesty’s Ambassadors at
Washington and Paris No. 472/2/37.
( 77 )
Letter from His Majesty’s Minister, Tehran, to Foreign Office, London,
No. 364, dated 18th September 1937.
I have the honour to transmit to you a translation of the speech made by the
Shah at the opening of the eleventh Majlis on the 11th September.
2. It will be seen that the speech was extremely brief and contained nothing
of an unexpected character.
3. Monsieur Hassan Esfandiary was re-elected President of the Majlis, despite
strong rumours that he would be superseded.
4. I am sending a copy of this despatch to the Secretary to the Government
of India in the External Affairs Department, No. 169.
Enclosure to Serial No. (77).
Minute Sheet.
Discours du trone
'prononce par Se Majeste Imperiale le Chahinchah le 11 Septembre 1937, d Voccasion
de Vouverture de la Xle legislature.
C est avec une vive joie que j’ouvre aujourd’hui la Xle legislature. La demiere
session s’est cloturee, comme on s’y attendait, apres avoir atteint d’importants buts.
Les reformes entreprises precedemment ont ete poursuivies et de nouvelles entre-
prises qui etaient ties necessaires pour le progres, I’education, I’economie et les
mceurs sociales ont ete realisees.
Dans la politique etrangere, absee, sur Tamitie et le respect mutuel, nos rela
tions avec les gouvernements etrangers en general et avec nos voisins en particulier
sont bonnes et solides.
Etant donne que la situation generale mondiale exigeait que nous aussi nous
fassions des efforts de plus en plus energiques pour la consolidation des bases de la
Paix et que nous developpions les moyens necessaires pour la solution pacifique
des differends, pour ces raisons, apres le reglement de desaccord frontalier avec
ITrak, Notre Gouvernement a conclu avec les Gouvernements amis et voisins
d’Afghanistan, de Turquie, et d’lrak, sous le nom de ‘ Pacte de Saadabad ’ un traito