|
| |
==============================================
MPC GRAM
==============================================
Covering the entire World of Military Numismatics
Series 003 -
Number 613 Friday - 03 MAY 2002
___________________
__301 days to Fest IV__
FEATURED ARTICLE
Oral History Interview with
BERNARD BERNSTEIN
July 23,
1975
by Richard D. McKinzie
part IV submitted by Fred Schwan [any
commentary in
square brackets]
They took us by plane from Foynes to
England and I
reported to General Eisenhower's headquarters.
My
instructions were that I was to report to General
Eisenhower. I asked
for directions to his office, and
I went to his office. There was a general
sitting at a
desk outside of the office, and I said, "Is this
General
Eisenhower's office?"
He said, "Yes, but you may tell me what your
business
is."
I said, "I was told to report to General Eisenhower."
And he said, "I'm General Bedell Smith."
I said, "Yes, sir, my name is
Bernstein." And that was
my first meeting with General Bedell Smith.
I
was turned over to General Sawbridge in G-1. I was
assigned a desk in an
office in the building. I began
working with Julius Holmes, who was a colonel
at the
time, and was an assistant to General Smith. At first
I was
instructed that I would go into North Africa at
D plus 30, with General
Eisenhower's staff that was
going to go in by way of Gibralter.
Secretary
Morgenthau came over to England at that time
and we had meetings together. We
were also talking
with officials of the British War Office and the
British
Treasury about the rate of exchange question.
This was a difficult problem
because in some areas,
some French colonial areas, where the British
were
with the Free French, the rate of exchange between the
pound sterling
and the franc was the equivalent of 50
francs to the dollar. We felt that
that rate gave too
high a value to the French franc and that in
economic
and financial terms a rate of 75 francs to the dollar
was a more
proper rate. The British were anxious to
accommodate the French so far as
possible on the rate
of exchange matter because they were working
closely
with the Free French. The U.S. were a little bit aloof
from the
Free French. I think there had been some bad
experience somewhere, of
information being released
through the French, to create in the Americans a
sense
of the French being a security problem.
While these discussions
were going on Colonel Holmes
told me that I was to go in on D-Day with the
invasion
fleet sailing for Algiers since I had to be on the
spot to deal
with financial questions as they arose.
I said, "Okay."
I sailed with
the huge invasion fleet that sailed from
Scotland. I was on a British-run
ship, mostly British
officers and troops. When we stopped near Algiers
on
the night of November 8, 1942, as you faced the land
Algiers was on the
left. I stood on the deck almost
the whole night watching our forces going
over the
side of the ship into landing craft. It was very quiet
on our
front, but in the harbor of Algiers you could
see gunfire. The French Navy
was attacking British
destroyers that were coming in and British
destroyers
were returning the fire.
Several of my Civil Affairs
colleagues and I were
scheduled to offload the next day, which was a
Sunday,
I think, but the seas were very rough and we couldn't
be offloaded
into the small boats. We sailed into
Algiers harbor, got there in the
afternoon before
sundown and shortly thereafter were attacked by a
number
of German stuka bombers. While we were at sea a
ship next to us on our port
side had been hit by a
submarine torpedo and had to proceed slowly and
fell
out of the armada.
They landed us Monday morning, I think that's
November
10, 1942. We got off at the dock. The scene at the
dock was a
beautiful bright sunlight summer's day. It
was as though we were arriving on
a vacation. I hired
a taxi--I knew the hotel I was supposed to go
to--to
go see Bob Murphy at the American Consulate. I wanted
to get a
picture of what we were facing and
information relevant to the financial
problems.
State and Treasury had always been working together on
these
things in foreign countries. I had never met Bob
Murphy, but I knew his role,
and he knew about me. So
I just took a taxi, and I said to the driver,
"Le
Consulat Americain."
The Alerians were burning a substitute fuel in
the
autos. The ride from the port up to the Consulate was
up a steeply
inclined street. Every few hundred yards
the car would stop, the Arabs would
gather around and
I'd hand out cigarettes to the men and chewing gum
and
candy to the kids. I finally arrived at the Consulate
and had lunch
with Mr. Murphy. He told me the story of
what had happened in Algeria during
the night, the
famous night of the 8th of November, 1942 and a couple
of
days before when he worked out arrangements with
most of the French to
cooperate. The only ones whose
cooperation he couldn't get was the French
Navy. Then
there was that touch-and-go situation about Admiral
Darlan. The
Frenchman we were counting on was [General
Henri Honore] Giraud. Murphy and
General Eisenhower
decided to try to work out something with
Darlan
because our desire was to occupy as much of North
Africa as quickly
as possible and with as few
casualties as possible. I think in the long view
of
history General Eisenhower and Murphy were right in
dealing with Darlan
although there was vast criticism
of the Darlan episode, in the British
especially as
well as the American press. The British were very
bitter
about Darlan because Darlan was very
anti-British because of his French Navy
background. I
think it's probably fair to say that our dealing with
Darlan
facilitated the occupation of North Africa at a
reduced casualty total, and
also facilitated the
occupation of French West Africa. French West
Africa
was very important for American and British naval
interests because
the great bulge into the Atlantic
gave the Allied navies important control
over the
whole South Atlantic. Our air movements to North
Africa were also
facilitated by our being in French
West Africa.
Well, I continued with
civil affairs and military
government in its various stages. I had been sent
back
at the direction of Generals Eisenhower and Smith in
January of 1943
to make reports to the Treasury and to
the War Department about problems that
we were dealing
with in North Africa, especially the rate of
exchange
question. The French kept hammering at us to get us to
reduce the
rate from 75 francs to the dollar to 50
francs to the dollar. My French
opposite number on
this thing oddly enough, for a little while,
was
Admiral Fenard. But then quickly Couve de Murville
came in and a
couple of Inspecteurs des Finances from
the French Treasury arrived and they
dealt with the
economic and finance problems for the French.
I flew back
to Washington, six days in flight, by way
of North Africa, West Africa, and
South America. I
reported back to the Treasury in Dan Bell's office.
I
began talking to him about the rate of exchange
question and an odd kind
of look came over his face.
At this very time a summit meeting was taking
place in
North Africa at Anfa near Casablanca, Morocco.
President
Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill were
discussing among other things,
believe it or not, the
rate of exchange of the U.S. dollar and the
French
franc. After commenting that it's kind of easier for
the soldiers
to calculate 50 francs to the dollar than
75 francs to the dollar, they
decided it just like
that, 50 francs to the dollar. Dan said, "Well,
that's
already been decided at a very high level." He told me
about the
cable advising of the decision.
==============================================
EDITORIAL
As you can tell, we have been
having problems here at sending out Gram. I will be trying to catch up to
the proper issue. Forgive the wastful layouts of text in this gram, I just
wanted to get it out quickly.
==============================================
MAIL CALL
Hello marcus,
You make a very good
point and I have one idea. I
think that the three (or first three)
scholarships
awarded this year should be names the Crapanzano,
Seelye, and
Mr. 691 scholarships. To make this
effective we need to jump on it and send
out news
releases about this. Of course the best and most
important place
for this is in the Gram. It is too
late for the print media to publicize this
naming
before the awarding, but it can be done at the same
time as the
recipients are announced.
At this time, I do not see these three as
being
permanent namings. I my opinion for this a donation
should be in the
$5-$10K range such that it becomes
something of an endowment.
Thanks
for your good ideas and good work. I look
forward to your
responses
Dear Gram,
I was interested to read the review of the
M*A*S*H
episonde about the conversion. I have seen the
conversion episode
once, I think. The description
hardly sounds familiar, but then my memory is
not what
it used to be.
My point today is that the episode is the result
of a
keen MPC collector! Edd (yes, two Ds) Page submitted
the story idea
to the producers. Furthermore he is
acknowledged at the end in the scrolling
credits. I
believe that he was also paid something like $200 for
the idea
AND for lending the show a 611 $1 for use as
a model.
Edd also received a
few of the MASH dollars and one is
illustrated on page 185 of the MPC book
where Edd is
again given credit.
Is there any MPC topic about which I do
not have a
story?
Thanks for a great issue of the
Gram!
Fred
==============================================
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
2002
ANA Seminar: 29 June to 5 July
W.W. II
numismatics seminar at ANA Summer Seminar, July 2002
Session I (Saturday, 29 June through Friday, 5 July, 2002)
Session II (Sunday, 7 July through Thursday, 11 July, 2002)
general events will return
WESPMEX: 27 - 28 July
Westchester Paper Money
Exposition - 175 Dealers
Westchester County Center, White Plains,
NY
WESPMEX: 11 - 13 October
Westchester Paper Money
Exposition - 100 Dealers
Westchester County Center, White Plains,
NY
WESPMEX: 29 November - 1 December
Westchester
Paper Money Exposition - 160 Dealers
Westchester County Center, White Plains,
NY
2003
CPMX 9: 20 - 23 February,
MPC Fest
IV: 28 Feb - 2 March, Port Clinton, OH
Fest Registrants: Doug Bell, Joe Boling, Guido
Crapanzano, Dick Freyser, Philip M. Goldstein, Gary
Hicks, Harold Kroll,
Jack Lippincot, Kevin Maloy,
Leo May$$, Fred Schwan, David Seelye, Nick
Shrier, Larry Smulczenski, Warner Talso,
Marcus Turner, Tom
Warburton
$$ = Paid
Running total: 17
ANA: 19-22 March, Charlotte, NC
===================================================
SCHOLARSHIP DONATIONS
Reminder: The deadline for scholarship applications is
May 15.
Please get them in soon.
Donations are now
being accepted for scholarships to the 2002 "Military Money" course at the 2002
ANA Summer Seminar. Inquiries and donations should be sent to:
Military
Numismatists
c/o Marcus Turner
8103 East US Highway 36
Suite 163
Avon, IN 46123
maturner@indy.rr.com
Donors to 2002 Scholarship Fund:
Dave
Amey
Gail
Baker
Keith and Sue Bauman Doug
Bell
Bay Bows
Angus
Bruce
Carlson
Chambliss
Ort
Cowles
Guido Crapanzano Mike
Cummings
Howard A. Daniel,
III Sam
Feeback
Steve
Feller
George Fitzgerald Dick
Freyser
Al
Glaser
Philip M.
Goldstein
Wes
Hardy
Rod
Hardy
Gary Hicks
Ed
Hoffman
Tom
Koch
Harold
Kroll
Tim
Kyzivat
Jack Lippincott
Kevin
Maloy
Ian
Marshall
Leo
May
R. A.
Medina
Marv Mericle
Mr.
691
John
Pettit
Bruce
Potter
Gene
Ryan
Unknown Subscriber
Fred
Schwan
David
Seelye
Joel
Shafer
Neil
Shafer
Larry Smulczenski
Warner
Talso
Marcus
Turner
Russ
Walsh
Tom Warburton Mark
Watson
Pam
West
John & Nancy Wilson Bill
Yanchick
===================================================
HOT CONTACT LIST - DEALER &
RESOURCE LIST
Below is the BNR
Press Hot Contact List. This list serves several functions. Obviously it is an
outreach by the dealers listed for your business. Most of them buy and sell MPC.
Others organize shows or publish periodicals, or furnish information dedicated
to this field. They have supported the new Comprehensive Catalog of Military
Payment Certificates with their advertising.
They deserve
your support and patronage!
Name
phone
fax
email
Allens
(614)
882-3937 (614) 882-0662
info@allens.com
American Coins &
Collectibles (800)
865-3562
American Numismatic Ass'n
(800)
367-9723
ana@money.org
Guy
Araby
(562) 945-7891 (310)
508-0018
guyaraby@earthlink.net
Bob Baker
(713)
864-3122
Ken Barr
(408)
272-3247
ken@kenbarr.com
Fred Bart
(810)
979-3400
Dick Balbaton
(508)
699-2266 (508) 643-1154
RJBalbaton@aol.com
Keith and Suzanne
Bauman
(248)
262-1514
tnaksbauman@earthlink.net
Joe Bissell
(602)
440-0442 (602) 494-9103
BNR Press
(419)
732-6683 (419) 732-6683
fredschwan@yahoo.com
Remy Bourne
(800)
789-7070 (763) 789-4747
Ed Carne
(614)
882-3937 (614) 882-0662
info@allens.com
Champion Stamp
(212)
489-8130 (212) 581-8130
Cookie Jar
Collectibles
(301)
604-9225
cjcpi@comcast.net
Guido Crapanzano
[39]
2-8056228 [39] 2-4459856
Currency Dealer
Newsletter
(310)
515-7369
David F. Cieniewicz
(205)
852-7015
CGC
(602)
493-4758 (602) 494-9103
sales@gradedcurrency.com
Mike
Cummings
(863)
603-9899 (863) 603-9880
mpccoin@hotmail.com
Cygnet Charters
(419)
734-2422
Ray Czahor
(301)
604-9225
cjcpi@comcast.net
Doric Coins &
Currency
(508)
699-2266 (508) 643-1154
FUN
(407)
321-8747
Larry
Gibbs
(308)
635-7900
oth@prairieweb.com
Philip M. Goldstein
(845)
254-MPC1 [6721]
iwantmympc@aol.com or MPC Website
Great Lakes Bank Note
Company (419) 732-6683
IBNS
joeboling@aol.com
Essie Kashani
(909)
627-3996 (909) 627-2776
kashani10@aol.com
Lowel Horwdel
(765)
583-2748 (765) 583-4584
horwdel@inshightbb.com
Peter
Huntoon
Smithsonian Research
peter.huntoon@att.net
Lyn Knight
(800)
243-5211
Krause Publications
(715)
445-2214 (715) 445-4087
bnr@krause.com
Harold Kroll
(251)
649-5134
HARBONS@aol.com
Leo May
(305)
271-8391
LeoMayEnt@aol.com or Wide World of
Banknotes
Ian Marshall
(416)
445-0286 (416) 445-0286
iam@total.net
Memphis Coin Club
(901)
757-2515
MPCGram
(419)
732-6683
MPCGram@yahoo.com
Bob Reed
(504)
361-5684
bobreed@rrcoins.net
Fred Schwan
(419)
732-6683 (419) 732-6683
FredSchwan@yahoo.com
David Seelye
(585)
594-1987 (585) 594-2311
coinman@rochester.rr.com
Richie Self
(318)
868-9077
R. M. Smythe
(800)
622-1880 (212) 908-4047
www.smytheonline.com
Mel Steinberg &
Son
(415)
453-9750 (415) 457-4432
melsteinberg@mindspring.com
Military Trader
(800)
334-7165
Scott Winslow Associates
(603)
472-7040 (603) 472-8773
scott@scottwinslow.com
George Warner
(307)
672-3700
Pam West
[44]
0208 641 3224 [44] 0208 641 3224 pamwestbritnotes@compuserve.com
===================================================
POST / BASE
EXCHANGE (PX/BX/NEX)
Dump your dupes!
Your classified advertisement for items for sale, purchase or trade will be run
here for free. Send your ads to the gram. This service is for everyone, most
humble dealer or most advanced collector. The point is to make the gram more
interesting. In all cases confirm your order via email first.
FOR SALE SECTION:
For Sale ads will run for a period of up to 5 days, or until
sold.
ALLIED
MILITARY CURRENCY - AUSTRIA
Series
1944 25
Schilling P.108
SB.220a GEM
UNC
425-
Hospital Ship
Jutlandia 5, 25 Ore, 1, 5
Kroner
UNC 135.00
contact David Seelye at coinman@rochester.rr.com
(30Apr)
ALLIED MILITARY CURRENCY - FRANCE
First Issue, Serie
De 1944, Tri-Color Flag on back
P-114a 2
Francs
VF $1
XF$3 AU $5 CU $6
P-114b
2 Francs run
2 VF
$1 XF $3 AU
$5
P-115a 5
Francs
VF $2
XF$4 AU $6 CU $8
P-115b
5 Francs run
2 XF
$4 AU
$8
P-116a 10
Francs
VF $2
XF$4 AU $6
P-117a 50
Francs
VG $3 F
$5 VF $10 XF $20
AU$30
P-118a 100
Francs
F $5 VF
$8 XF $20
P-118b 100 Francs run
2
XF$30
Second Issue, Serie De 1944, 'FRANCE' on
back
P-122a 50
Francs
F $5 VF $8
P-122b 50 Francs run
2 F
$7
P-123a 100
Francs
VF $5
P-123b 100 Francs run
2 F
$5
P-123c 100 Francs run
3 F
$5
P-123c 100 Francs run
4 VG $3 F
$5 VF $10 XF
$15
P-123c 100 Francs run
5 F
$5 VF $7
P-123c 100 Francs run
6 VF $10 XF
$15
P-123c 100 Francs run
7 F
$5 VF $7
P-123c 100 Francs run
8 F
$5 VF $7
Please confirm availability at: hoffman@rabbitbrush.com
(28Apr)
Comprehensive
Catalog of Military Payment Certificates - 4th Edition
by Fred Schwan
Standard Edition (400 pages!)
$ 50
Collectors’s Edition (432 pages!)
$ 95
Researcher's Edition (432 page, 46 produced, limited to
availability) $125
All orders plus $4 shipping per
order (NOT per book). Send snail mail payment to:
BNR Press
132 E. Second Street
Port Clinton,
OH 43452
or PayPal using email:
fredschwan@yahoo.com
WANTED
SECTION:
Collectors may
submit lists of items wanted for their collections for listing here. Dealers and
collectors who have these items are then encouraged to list them for sale in the
above section as a reply. This is a trial, if you like it, send your list.
WANTED Souvenir Card 'MPC Fest I' from the first MPC
Fest. (4/18)
Collector wants All USAFFE and AUSA Free Samar
notes All 125th Infantry Regiment and Markings Guerrilla notes. I am also
interested in any and all Guerilla Municipal issues. (4/18)
WANTED TO
BUY: Bulk quantities of Afghanistan propaganda leaflets or related. (4/18)
Looking for a Series 641 MPC, any denomination with the
serial number J02283151J. (4/18)
===================================================
MPC CATALOG
CORRECTIONS & ENHANCEMENTS
Page 18, Bottom - Users of Military Payment
Certificates
Check marks were omitted from production copies of books.
Please check off the following:
Australia:
641, 661, 681, 692
Canada:
461 through
and including 591
Korea:
641,
661, 681, 692
New Zealand: 641, 661, 681, 692
Thailand:
641, 661, 681, 692
United States: All
(date listed: 02 APRIL 2002)
Page 201, Bottom Right - Very last sentence on this page
Two serial numbers listed for the second printing of
Series 472 .50 cent
notes. The first serial number listed is obviously in error as a nine
digit number: C040351392C
Correct Serial Number is:
C04035139C
D Freyser (date
listed 10 April 2002)
Page 207,
#833/4 - Series 481 .25 4th Printing (table listing serial number
breakdowns) line 5
Start Number is incorrect. It appears as:
(start)
D14784001D (end) D14784000D
Correct start number should
be: D09408001D
PK6 (date listed: 03
APRIL 2002)
Page
214, #855/r2 - Series 541 $1 Replacements,
Ending serial number is
incorrect
Correct number is F1112000
(date listed: 02 APRIL 2002)
Page 220, #884/2r - Series 641 .50
Replacements
On page 284, it is broken down into 2 printings. That's
correct, BUT, on page 220 he lists only (1) printing reported. It should "list"
both first and second printings.
Guy Araby (date listed 04 APRIL 2002)
Page 287, Series 661 Series Summary, 25 cent note: the
"list" shows "#CU as 10(7) . It should read, 8(7). As only 8 are known in CU.
Just recount P.289.
Guy Araby (date listed 08 APRIL 2002)
Page 398, Series #541 $10 on "UNC." price is
$2500, on P.214 the UNC. price is $3500. Also the rest of the prices don't match
all the way to "VG" on this issue. They should be the same
price.
Guy Araby (date
listed 08 APRIL 2002)
===================================================
MPC Gram
Staff:
Publisher:
Fred Schwan -
MPCGram@yahoo.com
Editor:
Philip M. Goldstein -
IWANTMYMPC@aol.com
Subscription
Manager:
Doug Bell
-
doug@papermoneyworld.net
Tuesday Columnist :
Joe
Boling -
JoeBoling@aol.com
Thurski Columnist:
Larry
"Ski" Smulczenski - skifla@prodigy.net
Friday
Columnist:
Fred Schwan -
MPCGram@yahoo.com
Critic:
Harold
Kroll -
HARBONS@aol.com
Distribution Manager:
Brad
Peacock -
bp22@swbell.net
Scholarship
Coordinator:
Marcus
Turner -
maturner@indy.rr.com
Index &
Back Issue Manager:
Ed Beaman -
ebeaman@sprynet.com
Webmaster & Technical Advisors: Doug Bell "Wiz" -
doug@papermoneyworld.net
Russ Walsh
-
russ.walsh@gte.net
Fact Checker:
Warner
Talso
-
Calendar
Coordinator:
John & Nancy Wilson -
The Boss:
Judy
Schwan -
|