Evening star., 1940-07-28
Roosevelt Sets Up
Organization for
Refugee Relief
Red Cross Is Designated
To Handle Transportation
And Distribution
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press
President Roosevelt established an
organization yesterday to undertake
the task of buying $50,000 900 worth
of relief supplies, getting them
through the British blockade and
seeing that they reach war refugees
instead of falling into German
hands.
The money for the undertaking
was appropriated by Congress re-
Gently at Mr. Roosevelt's request.
In an executive order. the Presi-
dent designated the Secretary OF
Agriculture to purchase farm prod
ucts and the Secretary of the
Treasury to buy other supplies under
the program. What will be pur-
chased is to be determined by these
officials and the American Red
Cross.
The Red Cross was designated as
an agency to transport the pur-
chases abroad and distribute them
to refugee men, women and chill
dren who have been driven from
! their homes or otherwise rendered
destitute by hostilities or invasion"
Other agencies may be designated
later to carry on similar work
Distribution Job to Red Cross.
Stephen Early. presidential press
secretary. made public the order.
Questioned by newsmen as to
whether Great Britain had agreed
to let the supplies through her
blockade, he replied that distribu-
ton was 100 per cent the Job OF the
Red Cross.
1t was believed that the Red Gross
might negotiate with the British
and German governments through
the State Department.
Norman Davis, chairman of the
American Red Cross conferred with
the President later in the day. He
told reporters afterWard that his
agency would operate only where
it had complete control over dis
tribution. so that it would know its
supplies went to those for whom
| they were intended.
Whether Germany would permit
Red Cross representatives to control
relief activities in German occupied
France, and whether Britain would
permit food shipments to German
occupied territory even if the Nazis
promised to leave Americans in
charge of distribution, were matters
of conjecture.
Mr.. Davis declined to discuss this
or other questions raised by inaugu-
ration of the Government-fi financed
relief program.
One suggestion which has been
put forward is that relief in the
unoccupled portion of France be
limited to children. 1t is understood
that the question of providing relief
in the occupied part of France has
not yet been taken up with German
officials by the Red Cross.
, Red Cross officials are attempt
4 ing no estimate at present of the
/ need for food and clothing in the in
vaded countries of Europe next
winter because they have not yet
made survey of the situation.
The s50o0O,0O0 appropriated by
Congress for war relief supplements
Red Cross funds raised by gifts.
! Mr. Davis said the American Red
Cross was not conducting relief
activities in any portion of France
occupied by German troops with the
exception of Paris and immediate
vicinity, where it is giving assist
ance to French sick and wounded
particularly children.
He termed academic" the whole
question of whether any American
relief should be given to Holland.
Belgium and the occupied portion of
France
The difficulties Of transportation
blockade and the lack of protective
controls make any satisfactory re-
lief work in these countries prac-
| tically impossible at present. he
said
| In any case, We may reasonably
assume that the blockading author
tiles will not grant safe conduct to
any relief supplies unless they are
satisfied that they will reach those
for whom they are intended and will
not be of assistance to their enc
mics"