852.00/5118
The Consul at Valencia (Davis) to the Secretary of State
[Received April 10.]
Sir: I have the honor to refer to this Consulate’s Despatch No. 30 of February 25, 1937,48 reporting the case of A … C. R …, a deserter from the Spanish Army, and to report that since that date five others have come upon the Consulate, only one of whom now remains.…
[Here follow names of individuals and passport information.]
According to the best information this Consulate has been able to obtain, the total number of American citizens enlisted with the Spanish Government forces in Spain is approximately 1,700. It is believed that the greater part of these obtained American passports issued in December, 1936, and January, 1937. If the various statements made by these deserters, who were at or in contact with the Consulate about six or seven days, can be relied upon, the fatal casualties among the American volunteers have been exceedingly heavy, some statements placing total casualties in the “Lincoln Division” as high as 75 per cent. It is claimed that they are invariably used as shock troops with insufficient preliminary training and inexperienced and inefficient officers. They also said that practically all the foreign troops were ready to desert at the first opportunity.
[Page 496]There are a large number of French deserters, numbers of whom can be seen every day roaming the streets of Valencia. This led me to the belief that the Spanish Government was very lax in this connection, but inquiry of the French Consul revealed that an appreciable number of arrests had been made of his nationals of this category. At first, the French Consul was taking all that came to him and evacuating them on French naval vessels, following instructions of his Government. However, on March 3, the Spanish Government absolutely refused to permit the departure of any more, on the ground that due to the going into effect of the international control no new volunteers could be brought in. This was reported to the Department in my telegram of March 9, 4 p.m.
The case of R … is of particular interest, both because he divulged more than any of the others concerning the method of recruiting in the United States, and for the reason that his story of how the volunteers were brought from Paris into Spain was completely corroborated by the statements of the others. In conversations subsequent to the making of the statement already transmitted to the Department he asserted that the Communist Party has units, having the characteristics of cells but not so called, in all the colleges and universities in the United States, and that these and other Communist organizations have been very active in getting volunteers for the Spanish Army. He stated, however, that the Communist Party is careful to do nothing officially, but operates through agents who pretend to be acting entirely upon their own responsibility as individuals, and not in connection with any organization of any kind. It is apparent, however, that he knows very little of this phase of the matter except from hearsay.
From what could be gleaned from R … and the others there would appear to be a well-organized “underground railway”, leading from Chicago and New York, from which latter place the volunteers are handled almost as systematically as if under military command to Havre, Paris, Perpignan, Figueras, Barcelona, Valencia and Albacete. The transportation is effected by the usual means of transportation all the way, except from Perpignan to Figueras, which is made by motor convoy. These convoys crossed the French-Spanish frontier without any semblance of formality, but no doubt this practice was discontinued with the going into effect of the international control.
It would appear that once a volunteer is taken across the frontier with a convoy, he cannot thereafter escape enlistment. This conclusion is drawn principally from the statements of L … and C …. Their stories may not be true, but it was not possible to make them modify their first assertions that they had no intention of fighting in the Spanish Army when they left the United States, had not engaged to do so at any time, and had escaped to avoid doing so.
[Page 497]Albacete is the final concentration point for foreign volunteers. Here they are formally enlisted, issued uniforms, given a brief training and sent to the front. All uniforms worn by the deserters coming on the Consulate, except that of R …, were issued at Albacete. The uniform worn by R … is now at the Consulate, and, if in view of its having been issued in New York, the Department desires it, it can be forwarded. All agree that no oath is administered or promise exacted.
Respectfully yours,
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