Office of the Historian

825.6374/11–1645

Memorandum of Conversation, by Mr. Alexander Sehnee of the Division of North and West Coast Affairs

[Washington,] November 16, 1945.
Participants: Mr. Harold Stein—OWME50
Mr. James Wright—KFC51
Mr. Milton K. Wells—NWC52
Mr. Alexander Schnee—NWC

Mr. Stein revealed that OWME has agreed to pay the subsidy of $5 per ton on the 110,000 tons of nitrates shipped to the United States by the Chilean Sales Corporation after the expiration of the old public purchase contract, and that a letter directing the RFC to make this payment was awaiting the signature of John W. Snyder.53 (Mr. Stein phoned Mr. Wells later in the day and informed him that this letter had been signed.)

With reference to a statement by Mr. Stein to the effect that RFC was very reluctant to pay this subsidy, Mr. Wright said that this was a very effective means of ending discussion of the nitrate problem, excepting disposal of U.S. Government plants, once and for all.

  1. Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion.↩
  2. Reconstruction Finance Corporation.↩
  3. Division of North and West Coast Affairs.↩
  4. Director of the Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion.↩