REPRODUCED AT THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES. DECLASSIFIED Aphority Stateletter Ihr eyme, NARA Da! 24 18 opposition which has dogged the footsteps of the local electric companies ever since they were purchased by the Electric Bond Share Company. Their management has has been criticized, their services ridiculed, their rates and property investments scaled down and any attempt to improve their services and situation has been thwarted. Some of this has been the inevitable result of a wholly understandable intention of the Electric Service Commission to prevent any extortion and abuse; the same is true of the desire of the Congress to assure the country of equitable treatment from a powerful organization such as the united Fruit Company. But over and above this logical factor of self interest and self protection, there has been an unnecessary series of picayune, short sighted acts which have led inescapably to the impasse in which the Fruit and Electric Companies find themselves today.
Another phase of the situation is furnished by the new and stringent exchange law which has just been promulgated. Subsidiaries of foreign companies operating in Costa Rica have been, for the most part, entirely unable for the past twelve months to transfer funds on interest and dividend accounts to their parent organizations. TWO American concerns, the Electric companies and the Republic Tobacco Company (BritishAmerican Tobacco subsidiary) are involved to the extent of about one million colones each. Nor is it necessary at this point to stress the havoc which this legislation has already caused, and will continue to cause business in