Berlin July 31, 1945
Dear Bess:
It was surely good to talk with you this morning at 7:00 A.M. It is hard to think that it is 11:00 P.M. yesterday where you are. The connection was not so good this morning on account of the storms over the Atlantic.
We have been going great guns the last day or two and while the conference was at a standstill because of Uncle Joe's indisposition, the able Mr. Byrnes, Molotov, and Attlee and Bevin all worked and accomplished a great deal. I rather think Mr. Stalin is stallin' because he is not so happy over the English elections. He doesn't know it but I have an ace in the hole and another one showing--so unless he has threes or two pair (and I know he has not) we are sitting all right.
The whole difficulty is reparations. Of course the Russians are naturally looters and they have been thoroughly looted by the Germans over and over again and you can hardly blame them for their attitude. The thing I have to watch is to keep our skirts clean and make no commitments.
The Poles are the other headache. They have moved into East Prussia and to the Oder in Prussia, and unless we are willing to go to war again they can stay and they will stay with Bolshivki [sic] backing--so you see in comes old man reparations again and a completely German-looted Poland.
Byrnes, Leahy and I have worked out a program I think to fit a bad situation. We should reach a tentative agreement in the Big Three this afternoon and final one tomorrow and be on the way Thursday and surely not later than Friday.
We are leaving from Plymouth England which gives us 48 hours start of leaving from Antwerp. So if we get untied from the dock Friday afternoon by Thursday we'll be in Norfolk and Washington the next day in the morning. It may be possible of course to be a day sooner but I am giving you the extreme limit. The last pouch leaves here today and one will leave the boat when we get on it. But we'll receive mail right up to leaving time.
I'll sure be glad to see you and the White House and be where I can at least go to bed without being watched.
Kiss my baby, lots and lots of love, Harry
I've got to lunch with the Limey King when I get to Plymouth.