740.00112 European War 1939/5874: Telegram
The Consul General at Algiers (Cole) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 29—10:17 a.m.]
402. From Murphy. Your June 11. Steamer Aldebaran in Casablanca preparing for departure for New York under resumption of North African economic plan has on board 460 tons fuel oil. Secretary General Admiral Fénard states vessel will require 250 tons for trip to New York and suggests that the difference of 210 tons be unloaded and placed in depot at Casablanca for use in coastwise shipping of cork and other products destined for the United States as well as for American products arriving here. This would permit the resumption of coastwise traffic under the economic accord which has been paralyzed since the end of March.
In that connection Admiral Fénard showed me a telegram of June 13 from the French Embassy in Washington stating that the Department suggested as a condition for the shipment of 400 tons of fuel oil for the above-mentioned coastwise shipping that products received from the United States such as sugar, condensed milk, green tea, pharmaceuticals, et cetera, would bear an inscription on the packaging “De la Part de Vos Amis le Peuple Américain”. I should be grateful if the Department would comment on this statement. Admiral Fénard points out that the language is misleading. In the French language the statement would mean that the articles in question were donated by the American people. This is not true as the transaction is a commercial sale. He suggests that prominent [Page 318] inscriptions “Importé des États Unis d’Amérique” (by French customs law) in French and Arabic would be ample and would leave no doubt in the minds of the public as to the origin of the merchandise. On package goods such as condensed milk and other items which in normal commercial practice bear labels there would be no objection he said to American flags and other descriptive matter showing American origin. He urgently suggests that at least for the beginning we avoid unusual publicity effort which would arouse the opposition of the German Armistice Commission. The latter, as the Department is aware, controls the movement of ships in the Casablanca–New York traffic. He and other French officials emphasize that when American goods are received here that fact becomes known in a dozen subtle ways to the official and business communities and the general public.
Fénard states that there would be no difficulty regarding the shipment of a small quantity of wool from French North Africa as a counterpart for the shipment of agricultural machinery even though the French authorities are mystified as they do not believe there is need for additional wool supplies in the United States.
Fénard also said that he had arranged the matter of shipping 200 tons of olive oil for the second sailing from Casablanca. This will be taken from Algerian stocks as the Moroccan authorities at Rabat declined to release any Moroccan oil.
May I also have the Department’s advice regarding statements made in the French Embassy’s telegrams to the effect that no binding twine will be shipped from the United States but that Department agreed that a certain tonnage might be imported from Portugal.
Fénard also referred to an exchange of telegrams with Vichy regarding the shipment of 6000 tons of coal on the steamer Ile d’Ouessant destined for Tangier for the benefit of the Tangier–Fez Railway due to the lack of Spanish shipping. He said that the French authorities were glad to cooperate of course but that with the urgent need in French Africa it seemed unfortunate that the very first shipment should include a large portion of the small tonnage available for Spanish interests. He said that the suggestion was being made that this coal shipment be reduced to 3000 tons.
Repeated to Vichy, copies to North African offices. [Murphy.]