661a. 119/3: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Morris), temporarily at Omsk, to the Secretary of State
[Received August 10, 5:33 p.m.]
I submit the following report on commercial assistance: The commercial needs of Siberia do not differ from those reported by me last fall; only more urgent. In a series of conferences with Government officials and Allied representatives the Minister of Supplies submitted a list of the absolutely essential commodities required for immediate consumption, of the implements and materials required to continue the three main occupations of the people, agriculture, [Page 406] hunting and fishing. The following is the list of minimum requirements with their value estimated in American dollars.
Consumption—1st, clothes. Cotton goods 30,000,000, woolen goods 8,000,000, thread 1,000,000, shoes 9,000,000, galoshes 2,000,000, sole leather 1,500,000, fixings, two [sic]. 2d, Sugar 4,500,000; 3d, paper 45,000,000; 4th, stationery supplies 2,000,000; 5th, typewriters 300,000; 6th, sewing machines 1,000,000; 7th, tobacco 450,000; 8th, pepper, cocoa, chocolate and coffee 200,000; 9th, paints and varnishes 1,000,000; 10th, drugs, medicines and pharmacy supplies 10,000,000; 11th, kerosene oil 9,000,000; 12th, petroleum products 1,500,000; 13th, lubricating oils 4,000,000; 14th, candles, lamps and wicks 200,000. Agriculture—implements 58,000,000, spare parts 800,000, binding twine 3,400,000, machinery oil 5,250,000, tractors, excavators, etc., 1,000,000, outfit for agricultural repair shops 600,000, hardware 4,000,000, fishing supplies 1,250,000, hunting goods 1,500,000: total 206,850,000.
The above list has been carefully compiled by commercial representatives from different parts of Siberia who have gathered here to urge some action by the Government. I have checked it up with the British and French commercial agents and have also had the benefit of Doctor Tuck’s34 advice. Doctor Tuck during his investigation in peasant villages has gathered some valuable data in regard to agriculture needs and conditions. He reports that the unrest and discontent of the peasants is due to the failure of the Government to make any provision for supplying their needs and has been accentuated by the consideration [sic] of the Government in conscripting the young men and requisitioning livestock. It is certain that if some means are not devalued [devised?] to meet these requirements the population of Siberia will be largely without clothes, shoes, paper, light, drugs and the implements of production during the coming winter and spring. Neither the Kolchak nor any other government can hope to succeed unless the importation these articles is begun at once. I am convinced that we cannot rely on private enterprise and the normal operations of trade, because the ruble has lost all exchange value, and direct barter has been tried and has been proved impracticable. The primitive conditions of the productivity in Siberia are such that even the raw materials, wool, hides, bristles et cetera, are not sufficiently graded or classified to permit any direct exchange of commodities except to a very limited extent.
The only solution offered by the Council of Ministers is the establishment of an Allied credit. The amount suggested is $75,000,000 [Page 407] (seventy-five million dollars). It is proposed that a commission of Russian and Allied representatives should be created with authority to allot credit among responsible firms and organizations in Siberia who have negotiated contracts in the Allied countries; that the commodities delivered under these contracts should be consigned directly to the Siberian firms and organizations selected; but that the joint commission should supervise, through a corps of Allied inspectors, the sale and distribution of the commodities. The Russian Government will guarantee the repayment of the credits thus advanced. It will be observed that the amount of the credit suggested is about one third of the total value of the imported articles required. It is not intended by this plan to create any government monopoly over imports or to exclude private or even speculative operations; on the contrary the government will undertake to remove all existing restrictions on imports or exports to encourage private enterprise. It believes however that credit of the amount suggested is essential to begin the movement of goods, strengthen the value of the ruble and thus open the way for private transactions. I recognize that the operation of such a plan will involve difficulties and complications but after extended discussions with the Ministers of Supplies, Finance, and Agriculture, as well as representatives of the Co-operative Societies, I am unable to suggest any better one. I [submit?] it to the criticism of those at Washington who have been studying the problem.
- Charles H. Tuck, agricultural expert sent to Siberia by the Ambassador in Japan.↩