- 38 - subsequent post-war rehabilitation. There is this to be noted. Tito asked me emphatically, and more than once, to convey to the United States Government his desire, and that of the Na- tional Committee, that whatever material assistance we give to the Partisans should be recorded under Lend-Lease procedure and will be repaid ander these'procedures by the Partisans. Tito stated that even if the United States were willing to sup- ply material ex Lend-Lease and without any expected payment in return, that would be distasteful and unacceptable to the Jugo- slav people. The Partisans would like to think that they exemplify the self-help school of economics and that their requests for help will be kept within modest limits and less than their known needs might suggest. Their ultimate total requests may bulk small compared to the same situation in other countries; but there is every indication that they have been so looted and despoiled that even minimum estimates of the help they would like to get from somewhere will probably amount to no small figare. I think the amount they will need to keep them alive will actually be very small because they will need to be tided over only between harvest seasons. Their soil is rich, their harvests are almost always good, and after one peace-time |