File No. 763.72113/462
The Secretary of State to Messrs. Briesen & Schrenk, New York City
Gentlemen: The Department acknowledges the receipt of your letter of February 18, 1918,1 in which you request to be informed as to the procedure which Mr. Paul Hagspihl, an enemy alien, at present interned at Fort Oglethorpe, Ga., must follow in order to draw upon the personal funds at present deposited with the Equitable Trust Co., of New York City.
In reply the Department begs to inform you that it has been advised by the Alien Property Custodian that in the cases of interned enemy aliens who come within the proclamation of the President of February 5, 1918, he is requiring to be turned over to him only the property of such enemies as may be in excess of $5,000. Furthermore, the Department understands that the War Trade Board is shortly to issue a general license to this class of interned aliens to draw for relief on such of their personal property as may not be taken over by the Alien Property Custodian.
In view of the above, the Department believes that inasmuch as Mr. Hagspihl appears to have on deposit with the Equitable Trust Co. only about $1,500 or $1,600, he will be authorized to draw upon this amount as soon as the above-mentioned general license shall have been issued by the War Trade Board.
I am [etc.]
Second Assistant Secretary
- Not printed.↩