861.00/3854: Telegram
The Commission to Negotiate Peace to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received February 14, 1:08 p.m.]
730. By direction of Ammission, field party left Paris for Odessa, February 12th, traveling via Rome and Constantinople, with orders to study and report on political, economic and military conditions in such parts of southern Russia and the Caucasus as its members may be able to visit. It is understood that, though every effort will be made to gather trustworthy information on the Bolshevik situation as on all other Russian affairs, no member of the Mission shall attempt to establish official or personal relations with Bolshevik organizations or individuals. Headquarters will be at Odessa and it is proposed that officers acquainted with the languages visit Bessarabia, Ukraine, Crimea, the Don provinces and the Caucasus. Communication will be kept by wireless via Salonica and by such mail facilities as are available through British, French and local authorities and will also be maintained with the United States Military Attaché at Bucharest and with Commissioner at Constantinople. A naval-communication party of five officers and six men [Page 751] is accompanying the Mission in order to handle wireless and cable telegraphy as well as coding and ciphering. The party will be in charge of Lieutenant Colonel E. F. Riggs, former military attaché, Petrograd, and following are other members of Mission excluding naval-communication party: Captains William R. Berry, James Steinberg, Ulysses M. Bachman, Simon Reisler, First Lieutenants Norman Whitehouse and H. H. Khachadoorian, Second Lieutenants Copley Amory, Jr., Evangelos J. Stamoules, and John H. Honore [Hynes], Mr. Benjamin Burgess Moore, Sergeant W. A. English, Corporal L. H. Wolf, Privates Samuel Weiss and Clement C. Cronin, stenographers, and Privates L. E. Boland and Walter Nichols, orderlies.