Memorandum from Secretary of War Robert Patterson to President Harry S. Truman

WAR DEPARTMENT WASHINGTON 17 February 1947 MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT: Subject: Rumanian Famine. This is to advise you of steps taken to alleviate the Rumanian famine, which you asked me at the Cabinet meeting on Friday to take in hand. The Cabinet Committee on Food met on Saturday morning and agreed on the following program: The War Department will make available to the American Red Cross one ship, now near Gibraltar and within ten days sailing time from Constanta, Rumania, which has a cargo of 4,500 tons of 10-in-1 U.S. Army rations and 2,500 tons of beans, originally intended for displaced persons feeding in Germany. Mr. Basil O'Connor has agreed to pay for the replacement in kind to the Army of this cargo at an approximate cost of $3,000,000, provided that assurances are received from Rumania that the Rumanian Red Cross and Government will assist in the internal distribution within the famine area of Rumania. The State Department has taken this question up with the Rumanian Government through our Minister in Bucharest. If the reply is favorable, Red Cross will proceed with this one ship program.