851.48/111
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State
The French Ambassador called at his request. I first inquired about the situation of his mother, who is residing near Versailles, and who is some ninety years of age. He replied that she was in considerable [Page 555] need of coal, et cetera, which indicated the fuel situation in that area. No further statements were made which threw any light on other conditions there.
I then inquired as to the number of French prisoners held by the Germans and he said there were 1,800,000, of which 1,000,000 were at work in Germany. He added that they were paid in German marks and the sums received did not avail them much in terms of foodstuffs or other necessities. In answer to still further questions, he said that the tens of thousands of people who were ordered out of Lorraine by the Germans were only allowed to take what they could carry with them and that the property they left behind was seized by the German Government. The credit resulting from the appraisal of this property was applied to the expense of maintaining the German Army in France, or to help maintain French prisoners.
In reply to another question, the Ambassador said that there were 3,500,000 refugees from other nations in unoccupied France. I inquired further as to whether the Germans had taken over large quantities of foodstuffs, including milk and other commodities, in occupied France, and he replied that they had taken over immense quantities of food for the German soldiers, and some of which they professed to send into Germany to feed French prisoners.
He very earnestly and almost vociferously set forth the extreme need for appropriate foodstuffs for the children and others of the population in unoccupied France. He said that some wheat and sugar had been sent by the Germans to the free zone of France from the occupied zone. This was the only qualification made to the general situation which he had already described, chiefly in answer to my questions. He went on to say that the President had assured him that he was earnestly in favor of supplying the babies in unoccupied France at least with condensed milk, et cetera. I expressed the deepest sympathy with suffering such as he described and stated that for many weeks this Government has been giving every attention to the matter of getting such foodstuffs to the children in unoccupied France; that the late British Ambassador himself very earnestly urged this upon his Government (this I told him privately); that we, of course, cannot be certain as to the outcome but we are hoping in view of the distressing situation presented that the British may be prevailed upon to relax their blockade; that we shall at all times give the matter every possible attention. He said that, of course, winter was passing rapidly and there would not be time a little later in which to administer such relief.
He then referred to his talk with Mr. Welles about gold exchange, which he said he would not repeat since Mr. Welles and I would be conferring about the matter. He did add that if this arrangement [Page 556] could be worked out, the food in question could be purchased with gold in the United States, except in cases where such goods were not available in this country and then they would be purchased from South America.