311.5654 Wilhelmina/20
The Secretary of State to the Netherlands Ambassador (Loudon)
The Secretary of State presents his compliments to His Excellency the Ambassador of the Netherlands and has the honor to refer to previous correspondence with respect to the S.S. Wilhelmina and particularly to the Department’s note of June 9, 1943 in which the following provision of the Act of June 16, 1942 amending the Act of June 6, 1941 was quoted:
[Here follows text of the provision.]
The Ambassador was advised of the statement of the War Shipping Administrator that should the Netherlands Government indicate that it desires him to make a determination such as that contemplated by the foregoing provision of law, converting the requisition of title to the Wilhelmina to requisition of use, he is prepared to give consideration to such proposal provided that he is furnished with satisfactory evidence of the “consent of the owner” thereto as required by the statute and provided further that satisfactory arrangements can be made both with respect to the expenditures for the repair of the vessel and also for the disposition of the pending liens and libels.
A further communication has been received from the War Shipping Administrator in which he states that libels filed on behalf of the seamen and officers who were on board the Wilhelmina at the time of requisition are in a state of suspense because no deposit has been made with the Treasurer of the United States on account of just compensation for the requisitioned title; that it is impracticable to make such a deposit pending a consideration of the views of the Netherlands Government regarding the suggestion of the War Shipping Administrator mentioned above; that in view of the present unsatisfactory status of the matter it is desirable that the Netherlands Government furnish as soon as possible a definite expression of its views and that unless such an expression of views is received within the near future it will be necessary for the War Shipping Administrator to proceed on the assumption that a conversion from requisition of title to requisition of use is not desired and to make a deposit on account of just compensation for the requisition of title.
[No further correspondence on this case has been found in Department files.]