Editorial Note
No American record of the discussion at this meeting has been found. The information set forth above is derived from the President’s appointment calendar (Roosevelt Papers), from an undated memorandum in the Hopkins Papers, listing certain functions attended by Hopkins during the First Washington Conference, and from the other sources mentioned below. The appointment calendar indicates that other persons (“et al.”) were also present. Since the meeting was referred to as a gathering of the “Supply Group”, the other persons present were probably among those listed as present at the similar meeting on December 29 (post, p. 135).
From a reference in Beaverbrook’s letter of December 27 to Roosevelt (post, p. 328), it appears that the discussion covered the production of certain items of military equipment and that Beaverbrook argued for far higher production goals for tanks, anti-tank guns, aircraft, and anti-aircraft guns. See also Roosevelt’s reference on December 27 (post, p. 110) to a meeting with Beaverbrook on aircraft production, and Beaverbrook’s reference on December 29 (post, p. 335) to “Mr. Knudsen’s suggestion” at a meeting in the Cabinet Room on December 26.
In response to an inquiry from the editors about this meeting, Mr. Batt replied by letter as follows:
“I remember the first formal meeting … It was in the Cabinet Room and although we had some inkling of what Beaverbrook was going to ask for in the way of major items such as planes, tanks, ordnance, and ships, this was the opportunity which the President provided for him to assemble this list of requirements.
“We took some hours, as I remember, listening to his what seemed shocking requirements; obviously nothing could be done there and the President suggested that Wallace … provide an office and work with those of us who had to decide what the answer to Beaverbrook should be.
“As to how much time we could have, the President suggested that he would address the Congress on a certain day not too far away—perhaps a week—and he would like us, that is Nelson particularly and those of us who were associated with him, to have our position firmly developed and ready for inclusion in his Message to Congress. If there were any minutes of that meeting, I don’t think I ever saw any and since we were never as meticulous in the observance of such formalities as the British, I doubt very much if there were any minutes. We all made our own notes and went to work on whatever part of the job seemed logical for us.” (Batt to Historical Office, May 15, 1963, PR 10)