July 18, 1955 
Air Mall 
Mr. Eobert 0. McGregor 
American Consulate General 
Leopoldville, Belgian Congo 
Dear fSr. McCSregorj 
I have carefully read that Foreign Service Despatch (Department’s 
CA-6593, March H, 1955) concerning the %ithsonlan Bredln l^edltlon 
and appreciate your forthrightness and plain speaking, I would that I 
could make amends for all the trouble I gave you in connection with our 
recent expedition and ite many problems of one kind or another, I ssy 
now as I have before and shall again that no one could have done more, 
and few would have attempted and accmplished as much, as you did in 
our behalf. 
The failure to see Mr, Vanhee, as you advised me wire to Lwiro, 
was Just one of those things, Tou have no idea how I felt inside when 
we were lining things up at Gablro, preparatory to crossing the border 
the next day, when it dawned on me ‘^at we did not have that transit 
paper. If it had been humanly possible to have gone back for it, it 
would have been done but it was two days back by auto and there was no 
plane to be had for love or money and the biweekly Nile steamer was 
leaving fuba on May 29. Xou did aaj th^Mr, Vanhee knew about us and ^ 
would be able to help us (I do not have your wire before me, it’s packed 
with papers yet to arrive by surface mail frm Cairo), From letters from 
the office, I had gathered that despite great efforts on the part of the 
State Depariiment clearance of our outfit could not be obtained. After 
all our exp®riences with Custcansy (and all connected with that service 
proved that they were as sympathetic and helpful within their means and 
regulations as could be) I did not expect to receive more than similar 
courtesy at Usumbura. Besides, everyone about ua was talking i&ikitumba 
where we would be crossing the border into Uganda, But that is not the 
reason I didn’t go. It may have produced a psychological block but there 
were moments, after I realised too late that I’d missed seeing Mr, Vanhee, 
that I would have given my right hand to have made good the oversight. 
As I wrote you the visit Dr, Sexton and I paid Dr, Harroy put the Vanhee 
call entirely out of ngr mli^ tr, Baker and young Sexton, who were left x' 
behind in Bukavu to follow ua to Uviro, switched signals and Joined us 
again at Astrlda. 
