ageous to foreign banks, will hardly be in the interest of American 
irms. 
‘After the last adverse decision of the United States Govern- 
ment on the question of the admission of Soviet gold for deposit, 
the German Garantie und Kredit Bank made a proposal to the 
American banks to reship this gold back to Germany. However, 
the American banks hesitated to comply with the request in view of 
the fact that the Bank of France had presented through the federal 
courts a claim to the gold on the ground that this consignment con- 
sisted, either wholly or in part, of the same gold which the French 
>ank had on deposit in the former Russian State Bank in the years 
[QIG-I1QI7. 
“This claim is entirely groundless inasmuch as the gold possessed 
by the State Bank of the U. S. S. R. was obtained by purchases 
from private parties, from gold-producing trusts, in the domestic 
market, and even abroad. With reference to this particular consign- 
ment of gold, it is definitely established by the stamp on the gold 
and by the books of the State Bank of the U. , S. R. and of the 
refining plants that this gold was produced in the years 1925 and 
1026. 
“A claim of this kind appears still more strange to the State 
Bank of the U.S.S.R. when it is considered that from May 1925, to 
February 1928, that is, in a period of less than three years, the 
State Bank effected a turnover with the international markets of 
gold imports and exports of 200 million rubles (over one hundred 
million dollars), two-thirds of which was with England. The Bank 
of France was, of course, well informed in regard to all of these 
shipments of gold belonging to the State Bank of the U. S. S. R. 
However, up to this time the Bank of France did not see fit to launch 
similar attacks either in England, Germany or in any other country, 
evidently recognizing that not a single country carrying on regular 
trade relations with the U. S. S. R. would regard its claims as having 
any foundation. 
“To this must be added that the State Bank of the U. S. S. R,, 
founded in October 1921, can in no way be considered the successor 
of the old State Bank. The Soviet State Bank inherited neither the 
assets nor the liabilities—not even the files—of the Imperial State 
Bank or of any other formerly existing bank. At the time of its 
establishment it received as initial capital an allotment from the 
budget of two trillion paper rubles. 
“How the State Bank was built and how the people of the