Gentlemen of the Council of State: On account of unforeseen
circumstances it has not been possible for the Government of
the Republic to present to you in the course of the session of
your high assembly which closes today (August 4) the general
accounts of the receipts and expenditures for 1918-1919 and the
budget for 1920-1921, in accordance with the Constitution.
It is certainly an exceptional case, the gravity of which will
not escape you. You will learn the full details from the report
which the Secretary of Finance and Commerce will submit to you,
in which it will be shown that the responsibility for it does
not fall on the Executive Power....
In the life of every people there come moments when it must
know how to be resigned and to suffer. Are we facing one of
those moments? The attitude of the Haitian people, calm and
dignified, persuades me that, marching closely with the
Government of the Republic, there is no suffering which it is
not disposed to undergo to safeguard and secure the triumph of
its rights.