611.626/27: Telegram
The Commission to Negotiate Peace to the Secretary of State
[Received August 24—10:48 a.m.]
3870. Department’s 2908, August 21, 5 p.m. The Mission concurs in your views that under the treaty dye-stuffs may be secured by American consumers directly from the Reparation Commission and without the intervention of the old German agents in the United States. Mission is further of the opinion that it will be possible for American consumers to negotiate for and purchase vat colors directly from the German producers either in unoccupied or occupied Germany although it may facilitate such purchases if authorization of Committee on Organization of Reparation Commission is first obtained, particularly if purchases are to be made in occupied area. It is believed that it would be easily possible to have an allotment [Page 448] of dye-stuffs for the United States added to the amounts authorized for France, Italy and Belgium as reported in Mission’s 3601, August 10, 1 p.m. The Dulles report therein referred to, which was rewritten [approved] by your Committee on Organization of Reparation Commission, contains a declaration secured by Dulles reading as follows:
“The delegates of France, Italy and Belgium further volunteer to assist in the acquisition by Great Britain and the United States of German dye-stuffs in the event that the two latter countries should desire to participate in purchases thereof.”
There appears to be no disposition on the part of German Government to prohibit exports of dye-stuffs pending the coming into force of the treaty. It is not in Germany’s interests so to do for the reasons:
- 1.
- That dye-stuffs sold other than by treaty provisions can command a higher price and,
- 2.
- Dye-stuffs sold at the present time will operate to diminish the stocks on hand at the time of coming into force of treaty and which stocks will serve as basis for treaty option. Polk.