840.48 Refugees/1476: Telegram
The Chargé in Germany (Geist) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 4—12:45 p.m.]
153. The following from Pell: I handed Mr. Rublee’s letter reporting the intentions the Intergovernmental Committee with regard to the organization and financing of a settlement program to Wohlthat and had a 3-hour conversation with him last night. Wohlthat after reading the letter said that it seemed to furnish a sufficient basis for a continuation of conversations with the Committee. He suggested that these conversations should take the form of periodical meetings between us and that the program of emigration on the German side as stated in the “confidential memorandum” and the program of settlement of the Committee should be put into effect pari passu.
As a beginning Wohlthat believed that it would be useful if he were furnished with a detailed memorandum instruction of the projects which were now on foot for the settlement of involuntary immigrants in British Guiana, the Dominican Republic, the Philippines and [Page 96] Northern Rhodesia with such supplementary details regarding infiltration as could be given. This would enable “his principals” to put into operation certain of the measures which were outlined in “confidential memorandum”. He suggested that I should bring this memorandum back to him next week.
Wohlthat expressed the view moreover that steps should be taken simultaneously and immediately to set up the trust on the inside of Germany and the private corporation with regard to which he questioned me at length on the outside.
In this connection and at the request of Winterton I asked Wohlthat whether he could furnish me with any further details regarding the status of the third, the foreign trustee. He said that he would have a study made of the position of the foreign trustee immediately and would give me all the necessary details. I then on the authority of Winterton put forward the name of Professor Bruins of the Hague as a candidate for this position stressing that [he?] had not so far been consulted. Wohlthat said that he would submit this name to his principals but that on first sight the choice seemed highly acceptable. He thought that there were definite advantages in having the third trustee in a country neighboring Germany and German speaking and he also thought that it was preferable that he should be a citizen of a small neutral country.
Wohlthat asked me to explain at length the reasons for Mr. Rublee’s resignation which he personally and Marshal Goering too very much regretted. I told him in detail why Mr. Rublee had felt it necessary to retire. He then asked me why Sir Herbert Emerson who was the League High Commissioner had been chosen as his successor. I gave him the full information together with a glowing account of Emerson’s efficiency and stressed that there was only a personal union in Emerson that the Committee and the League Commission would remain separate and distinct; that they would have separate offices; and that in short, the arrangement would make for greater efficiency on the settlement side which would be of direct advantage to Germany. Wohlthat then expressed the belief that there would be no serious objection to this arrangement as long as Sir Herbert was not required to engage in the conversations with the German side. He thought it wiser to explain if an explanation were needed that Sir Herbert was my principal as Marshal Goering was his. There was no need for our principals to come together.
I then raised with Wohlthat the question of German ships carrying Jews without adequate papers and attempting to land them in ports in various parts of the world and pointed out this activity seriously hampered the efforts of the Committee to open up places of settlement. He denied that the German Government was responsible for this practice [Page 97] and placed the blame on the Jewish organizations. He agreed, however, that the practice should be discouraged and said that he would bring it to the attention of the highest authorities at once. He did not know what the authorities could do to put a stop to the activity but doubtless there were some measures which they could take.
I next pointed out to Wohlthat the absolute necessity of giving the Committee a breathing spell in which to organize settlement projects and said that it was difficult to reconcile this obvious necessity with the recent activity of the Berlin police in instructing the leaders of the Jewish community to prepare persons for emigration at the rate of 100 per day.
I described to him the conditions in the countries of refuge, told him of the irregular crossing of frontiers of large numbers of people and emphasized that the financing of these peoples in the countries of refuge was eating into the capital from private sources which might be applied to settlement projects. I observed that if the rate of emigration from Germany were to be increased suddenly now the problem would become unmanageable, that in short it was essential to introduce order into the emigration as soon as possible.
Wohlthat said that he appreciates frank speaking, that his and his principals’ object was to introduce order into the emigration and that he would see what might be done to improve existing conditions.
In conclusion there was some discussion of the way Mr. Rublee’s conversations had been handled in the press and it was agreed that there should be a further meeting within the next fortnight.
I am returning to London tonight. [Pell.]