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LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.

COUNCIL OF NATIONAL DEFENSE,
Washington, May 1, 1919.

The Hon. NEWTON D. BAKER,

Secretary of War and Chairman

of the Council of National Defense.

MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY:

SIR: This report, prepared by the Reconstruction Research Division, of which Herbert N. Shenton is chief, contains extracts from and digests of articles concerning readjustment and reconstruction activities in foreign countries which have appeared in recent publications. The material selected consists, mainly, of accounts of governmental activities in the organization and administration of readjustment and reconstruction work and of similar activities of important national industrial, commercial, and welfare organizations. In making this selection the following publications were consulted:

Commerce Reports, Daily, August 1, 1918, to April 16, 1919. Published by the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, United States Department of Commerce.

Other United States official publications.

Board of Trade Journal, Weekly, October 10, 1918, to February 13, 1919. Published by the British Board of Trade.

The Bulletin of the Federation of British Industries, Weekly, November 21, 1918, and January 2 and 16, 1919.

British Labor Gazette, Monthly, November, 1918, to January, 1919. Italy Today, Fortnightly, vol. 1, Nos. 1 to 8.

Reviews of the foreign press, published by foreign Governments. American newspapers and other periodicals, of which an extensive clipping file on the general subject of readjustment and reconstruction is maintained in the office of the Council.

In arranging the items for each of the countries, no attempt has been made to bring related subjects together, the items being arranged in chronological order according to the dates of publication of the sources consulted.

The information given is necessarily incomplete and fragmentary, but it is believed that all the important readjustment and reconstruction activities in foreign countries, at least those which have occurred since the date of the signing of the armistice, were mentioned in the sources used in the preparation of this report.

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Although the utmost effort has been made to check the actuality of the reported activities in enemy countries, the limited facilities for verification have restricted the possibilities of these efforts. It is possible that some of the statements to which reference is here made were issued primarily as propaganda. However, even if this be the case, the statements have been issued and the issued statements are themselves active factors which can not be ignored.

The digests of the various reported activities, although they are put in the declarative form and are not regularly preceded by some such phrase as "it is reported," are to be considered merely as digests and not as statements of the Council of National Defense.

Faithfully yours,

GROSVENOR B. CLARKSON,

Director of the Council of National Defense.

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EXTRACTS FROM AND DIGESTS OF ARTICLES IN OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE PERIODICALS CONCERNING READJUSTMENT AND RECONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

ALSACE-LORRAINE.

Civil Government under French Administration.

According to a decree of November 28, 1918, Alsace-Lorraine will be administered as follows:

Until the signing of peace, civil government remains under the direct authority of the secretary of the council of the war ministry, who, in so far as he may judge fit, shall delegate it to the under secretary of state.

A representative of each ministerial department (and, if necessary, in each ministerial department, a representative of each important public service) is temporarily appointed for the purpose of coordinating and controlling throughout the recovered territories of Alsace and Lorraine the operation of the services of the ministerial department which he represents; to provide for proper connection with the services of that department and to study the conditions of final administrative organization after the signing of peace. A Chief Council of Alsace-Lorraine will assist the under secretary of state, who is by right its president. It will be composed of the president and vice president of the Alsace-Lorraine Conference and the presidents of the six sections appointed by the decision of August 22, 1917, for the purpose of examining and studying the conditions of Alsace-Lorraine.-[Temps, Nov. 28, 1918.]

Economic, Political, and Social Problems.

The economic, political, and social problems involved in the restoration of Alsace-Lorraine to France have formed the subject of a recent meeting of the Societé d'Economie Politique de Paris. The paper read before that society November 5, 1918, deals with the solu tion of the problems of citizenship and property, and those involved in the general adjustment of the economic life of the restored provinces to France.-[Commerce Reports, U. S. Dept. of Commerce, Jan. 21, 1919, p. 321.]

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