740.0011 European War 1939/9052: Telegram
The Minister in Greece (MacVeagh) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 15—9:50 a.m.]
141. The following is the situation at Salonika: Most of the native-born Americans have already left the district and those remaining, in addition to Consul Johnson and Vice Consul Gullion are Miss Meverette Smith of the Near East Foundation, Mr. and Mrs. Gardner and two children of the American Farm School, Mr. and Mrs. Riggs of Anatolia College, Mr. Lanckton of the Socony Vacuum and Mr. Tilley of the Gary Tobacco Company. In addition to these persons there [Page 663] are approximately 150 naturalized Americans of Greek birth and their American-born children.
British subjects have apparently been instructed to leave Macedonia and Thrace and have already done so. This may explain the “transients”47 mentioned in my telegram No. 135, March 11, 5 p.m. There is considerable movement of the Greek population, some leaving Salonika for the small villages or the islands, some going to Turkey and others traveling southward. The towns are all crowded and room rents are high. The American colleges which were being used as military hospitals have been completely evacuated and turned back to the American directors. Of the 8 hospitals in the Salonika area only 2 are still functioning, the rest having been completely evacuated. All the wounded have been sent south apparently in part on ships. The nurses have been evacuated, also.
The Governor of Thrace and some of his principal assistants are said to have left for Athens on various pretexts. Kotzias, Minister-Governor of Athens, has been named provisional governor of Thrace and is endeavoring to discourage a mass exodus of the population. Railroad tickets are not sold at railway stations but at an office opened in each town especially for the purpose where all prospective travelers must register and wait several days before obtaining tickets.
Johnson reports that the evacuation of buildings and transfer of oil stocks to the south together with other developments lead him to believe that the attempt to defend Macedonia against a German invasion would be slight and that the real resistance would occur south and west of Salonika (see my telegram No. 106, February 27, 3 p.m.).
- In telegram No. 144, March 15, 4 p.m., the Minister in Greece reported a telephone conversation with the Consul at Salonika to the effect that a few British troops, apparently signal corps men with motor vehicles, had been seen in Salonika and that all foreign correspondents had been ordered to leave the city (740.0011 European War 1939/9059).↩