Letter

              INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS
9, Avenue d'Orsay, Paris-VIIe
IFTU
TELEGRAMS: INTERFED—PARIS 
TELEPHONE: INVALIDES 45-88
AFFILIATED COUNTRIES: ARGENTINE AUSTRIA BELGIUM CANADA CZECHOSLOVAKIA DANTZIG DENMARK DUTCH EAST INDIES ESTONIA FINLAND FRANCE GREAT BRITAIN GREECE HOLLAND HUNGARY INDIA LUXEMBURG MEMEL TERRITORY PALESTINE POLAND ROUMANIA SOUTH AFRICA SOUTH-WEST AFRICA SPAIN SWEDEN SWITZERLAND YUGOSLAVIA
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: 
President W. M. Citrine, Great Britain; 
Vice-Presidents: H. Jacobsen, Denmark; L. Jouhaux, France; E. Kupers, Holland; Corn. Mertens, Belgium; R. Tayerle, Czechoslovakia;
General Secretary: W. Schevenels.
Letter
No.
4th May 1938.
Mr. Walter M. Citrine,
LONDON.
Dear Comrade Citrine,
Further to the letter of the 29th April, sent to you by Comrade Stolz, I should like to give you the following supplementary information, regarding the relief campaign for Spain.
At the end of 1937 there was a balance in hand in the International Solidarity Fund of roughly 1,948.000 French francs, since when we have received up till now further contributions amounting in all to about 430,000 francs (including the £2,000 from the TUC) , which thus brings the total up to about 2,378,000 francs.
Up till the end of 1937 our policy was, of course, to meet the requirements of the Spanish population, but only as far as our official Spanish Committee made definite proposals. We always bore in mind that the greatest possible reserve should be kept in hand, to meet the contingency of a possible sudden and large-scale emigration of Spanish Republicans. This view was, of course, never expressed publicly, but was agreed to, in confidence, among the closer circle of our Executive members and the leaders of the LSI.
Since the 1st January, 1938, appeals have been received for new means of transport, lorries and spare parts, to maintain the transport service between Valencia and Madrid. A very urgent appeal was also made for tobacco, which is sometimes as important for the morale of the militia and the civil population as is food itself. At the same time, of course, we continued to meet our commitments arising from the Onteniente Hospital, and to distribute to the dependants of Italian volunteers the money earmarked for this purpose which was received from USA.