740.00119 EW/10–1148
The Administrator of the Economic Cooperation Administration (Hoffman) to the Acting Secretary of State 1
My Dear Mr. Lovett: I have just received the cable from London which gives the text of a letter dated October first from Mr. Bevin to the Secretary of State in which he makes certain observations and proposals [Page 817] concerning reparations.2 Needless to say I am profoundly disturbed at what Mr. Bevin says in this letter. Despite his statement that he fully understands the obligation which Section 115 (f) of the Economic Cooperation Act places upon me, it is clear that he has failed to grasp the extent and nature of that obligation and the intent and purpose which Congress had in passing that section of the law. Unless this misconception on the part of Mr. Bevin can be corrected and unless the British can be persuaded to accede to our going forward with the examination which I have proposed that the ECA Industrial Advisory Committee make, we shall be faced with a most serious threat to continuation of the European Recovery Program. The American public and the Congress would never understand or accept a situation in which the British Government had acted to prevent our making a review of the reparations program as stipulated in the Act.
I am particularly concerned with Mr. Bevin’s flat statement that he “cannot offer to stop or to interrupt dismantling at any of the plants where it has already begun”. Immediate stoppage of dismantling of the plants on our list is absolutely essential. Otherwise the ECA Industrial Advisory Committee will be denied an opportunity to perform the task for which it was appointed. Continuing dismantling would preclude my carrying out of my responsibilities under Section 115 (f) of the Act. For this reason we must move immediately to bring before Mr. Bevin and the British Government the seriousness of the situation, to give him a full understanding of the threat to the European Recovery Program inherent in his proposals and thus to clear the way for an adequate examination and determination of which German plants should be retained in Germany in the interest of the recovery of Western Europe.
I consider the matter so urgent that I am leaving today for Paris where I hope Secretary Marshall will be able to join me in a meeting with Mr. Bevin to see whether we cannot reach a prompt and satisfactory settlement of this question.
I am not discussing in this letter any of the other serious questions which Mr. Bevin’s letter raises such as, for example, his point 4 which proposes the release very soon (presumably before we have had an opportunity to make our examination) of a further substantial list of plants for allocation. This and other proposals contained in his letter arise out of the fundamental fact of his misconception of the purposes [Page 818] of the Congress and of my responsibilities and can all be ironed out if only we can succeed in correcting that basic misconception.
Sincerely yours,
- In a reply dated October 13, not
printed, Acting Secretary Lovett wrote in part as follows: ↩
“The Department of State fully shares your concern and it was for this reason that it was suggested that you join General Marshall on his flight back to Paris so that you would have an opportunity to discuss the matter in person with Mr. Bevin. We very much hope that in the course of your personal discussions, which we are informed Ambassador Douglas has made arrangements for, it will be possible to reach a satisfactory settlement of this question.” (740.00119 EW/10–1148)
Secretary Marshall had flown from Paris to Washington on October 9 in order to confer with President Truman, and he returned to Paris on the evening of October 10.
- For the Bevin letter referred to here, see p. 814.↩