462.00 R 296/95
The Ambassador in France (Herrick) to the Secretary of State
496. L–44. In reply to your 43645 I desire to invite your attention to the following considerations. Refer to paragraphs 1, 2, and 7. The reason why you received no information from the French Foreign Office was that the present committee proposal was intended to be a new and independent proposal coming from the commission itself acting in accordance with sovereign powers delegated by article 234, hence the conversations were conducted between the commission and the several governments directly and not between any two or more governments. This is the reason why France has not communicated with you. Nor has France communicated with Great Britain.
[Page 103]Refer to your third paragraph. Formal invitations have not been transmitted. Only the cordial but preliminary invitations have been transmitted through Department, since the Reparation Commission desires to arrive at a plan which will be suitable to the Department before it sends the formal invitation. It does not desire to send a formal invitation which would not be acceptable. If proposal below appears to be adequate, Department will receive an official invitation immediately.
Refer to your fourth paragraph. I received today the following note from Barthou which defines the scope and objectives of the work of the committee. Latter without doubt will be unanimously approved by the delegates. If you so desire it can be incorporated in the formal invitation.46
“Paris, December 5th, 1923. My dear Mr. Logan: I have just had a conversation with our colleague, Monsieur Delacroix, upon the observations which you have exchanged. In order to give you more definite information and to clear up points which might leave doubts in your mind, we desire to furnish you with more precise details.
The first committee of experts will endeavor to find (a) the means of balancing the budget, (b) the measures to be taken to stabilize the currency. Concerning the stabilization of the currency the experts would be invited first of all to determine the conditions to be realized in order that a currency could be stabilized and then the measures to be progressively taken so as to realize all of these conditions.
As the stabilization of the currency necessitates budget equilibrium the experts would similarly be invited to study in detail the receipts and the expenditures of the Reich as well as of the different states.
The Reparation Commission would ask the experts to give it in all sincerity their professional opinion on the questions submitted to them.
Monsieur Delacroix and I hope that it may lead your Government to acquiesce in the acceptance of invitations by American experts to participate in the labors of the committees. Furthermore, if you accept this suggestion, I am quite prepared to submit it to the Reparation Commission. (Signed) Louis Barthou.”
Refer to your fifth paragraph. This note eliminates all elements of secrecy. Its terms are broad and it permits unrestricted expert advice with regard to every detail of German receipts and expenditures. It permits the necessary steps to stabilize the German mark. It certainly permits the discussion of any relevant subject. Among these is the volume of German indebtedness which inevitably must be important. It eliminates absolutely the past controversy over the word “actuelle”. It also omits every restriction to any set period of years to which the inquiry shall be limited.
[Page 104]The French realize the breadth of this plan. This is shown by the fact that Barthou informally has advised that the representatives of France might disassociate themselves from a plan to reduce Germany’s debt although they will make no attempt to bar the discussion of the same. It is my understanding that Bradbury communicated this to the British Foreign Office. If the question of reducing the capital debt comes up, this might result unless during the discussion the French delegates were convinced in a minority and majority checked committee.
Reference to your paragraph 6. Department’s statement that it was not intended to have United States designate technical representatives on the inquiry commission but instead should merely indicate its acquiescence in the acceptance of invitations by the American experts decided upon by the commission accords with my understanding of your views. The Reparation Commission understands your statement in the same way and it represents the action that they would like to see you take.
Reference to your paragraph 8. The position of the Reparation Commission is now developed, and if the foregoing formula is agreeable formal action will be taken including commission’s official invitation.
The drafting of the formula has been very difficult because of conflicting points of view between the British and French. For this reason the formula is necessarily somewhat general in its terms. In connection with this the first note which Barthou sent was so indefinite that I told Delacroix that I personally thought it to be so vague as not even to justify the expense of cabling. The result was that the note quoted above was immediately substituted. The general atmosphere is such that an additional modification of the formula, not to involve any specific reference to the reduction of the capital debt, could be obtained if the Department were to indicate its desire. Logan.