763.72119 P 43/4: Telegram
Colonel E. M. House to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received December 5—7 p.m.]
232. From Grew. In view of the delay in formulating an agreement among the Allies as to relief policies, it has not yet been possible to send political intelligence agents into the field accredited as representatives of Food Administration and there is at present no certainty as to when this can be arranged, although Hoover will again consider the question on his arrival London where he is now conferring with the British authorities. Since diplomatic secretaries are not available for this purpose, the only method I can suggest without further delay in establishing our organization in the field, is to obtain a release from the Army for such officers as we may select [apparent omission] the approval of the Department and to send them abroad in civilian clothes as representatives of the Department of State and I request a decision on this point. In the meantime, we have made further provisional arrangements with General Nolan as regards organization, codes, etc. and with Colonel Carty of the Signal Corps as regards communication by wireless and we have a long list of Army officers recommended by General Nolan and Colonel Van Deman for this work in the field to be sent abroad a few at a time. Our home office is now well organized and is prepared on the arrival of the Commission to issue daily printed bulletins containing digests of all political and economic intelligence and press reports received from such sources as are available but we shall of course be much handicapped by not having our own agents in the field.
In view of Gibson’s assignment to Hoover, whose plans are at present indefinite, his services are not available and other arrangements will have to be made for organizing our field work.
Hugh Wilson he [has?] stated that Dolbeare’s15 health would not prevent his doing light work in Paris and if he is not needed elsewhere he would be of material value to us in our home office here.
- F. R. Dolbeare, second secretary of legation in Switzerland.↩