Office of the Historian

862.51/2872

Memorandum by the Under Secretary of State (Cotton)

[Washington,] April 4, 1930.

Mr. Ogden Mills of Treasury, Governor Young of the Federal Reserve Board, Mr. Roland Boyden26 and myself discussed Mr. Thomas Lamont’s letter to me of March 27th and Mr. W. Randolph Burgess’ letter to me of March 31st, with their enclosures.

It seemed to be the unanimous opinion of those present, subject to conference with Mr. Robinson,27 that they were willing to recommend that some participation in the proposed German loan be permitted but that consent to such participation should not be conditioned on any political agreement of any kind or any agreement for change in the Young Plan and that roughly, participation of not more than one-third seemed desirable.

The only point at which there was any doubt was as to the function of the Federal Reserve Board in acting on the final form of application when it was made by the Reserve Bank. It was suggested that the function of the Reserve Board in that particular was to be confined to the purely banking aspects of the situation and that suggestion seemed to find favor. The parties interested will be informed of further and final action.

J. P. C[otton]
  1. Formerly unofficial representative of the United States with the Reparation Commission.↩
  2. Presumably Henry M. Robinson of Los Angeles, California, unofficial adviser to President Hoover.↩