Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1944, General, Volume I

340.1115A/10–1644: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the American Representative on the Advisory Council for Italy (Kirk)

Washington, October 16, 1944—8 p.m.

289. For Huddleston.⁷² Department is extremely anxious to have the work of affording financial assistance to destitute American nationals in liberated areas taken over by its diplomatic and consular officers. You will be authorized to extend such assistance to eligible destitute American nationals in the Rome consular district⁷³ and temporarily, pending the reopening of other offices, in all other liberated areas on the Italian mainland lying outside the Naples consular district.

After consultation with Swiss representatives telegraph estimate of the amount which will be required for financial assistance by your office for the period ending December 31, 1944, stating expected number of recipients divided into adults and minors and estimated amount required monthly for each. Upon receipt your estimate Department will give you instructions on how financial assistance will be extended and will allot funds to you with instructions regarding accounting.⁷⁴

Financial assistance will be extended under the general principles of Department’s instruction 1202, February 14, 1942, to American Legation, Bern (copy of which was enclosed with Foreign Service Serial 109, January 22, 1944⁷⁵) but as modified by instruction which will be issued to you and by omission of references to Swiss authorities or American Legation, Bern.

If your office is not in a position to begin making financial assistance loans upon the receipt of an instruction from the Department so directing, report by telegraph what is needed.

Bring substance of this instruction to attention of all officers who are temporarily assigned Rome but who are destined to Milan, Genoa, Florence, Turin or Trieste.

Naples and Palermo have been instructed to submit estimates of allotments required for financial assistance in their consular districts and to begin extending such assistance upon receipt of allotments.⁷⁶

Hull

72. John F. Huddleston, Consul at Rome.

73. The Consulate at Rome (reestablished on September 26) was opened to the public on October 16, 1944.

    The protection of American interests in certain liberated Italian territory was transferred from the Swiss to the American authorities by a memorandum of October 16, 1944.

74. Telegram 348, October 28, 1944, 11 p.m., granted allotment to the Rome office for financial assistance and repatriation during November and December 1944 (340.1115A/10–2344).
75. See footnote 3, p. 1192.
76. Allotment was granted to the offices at Naples and Palermo, in telegrams 648 and 58, October 28, 1944, 7 p.m. and 10 p.m., respectively, for financial assistance and repatriation for destitute American nationals in those consular districts during the months of November and December 1944; the consular officers were instructed to take over on November 1st, if possible, from the Allied Control Commission the work of extending financial assistance to American nationals (340.1115A/10–1244;/9–144).