TO THE FORMATION OP THE NEW SYNDICATE 157
7. On Friday afternoon Sir E. Oppenheimer offered and offer was accepted on Saturday.
8.
I, on behalf of my firm, had no share direct or indirect in this
offer nor in any other contract belonging to the Anglo American
Corporation except as a Syndicate member.
9.
Sir E. Oppenheimer, when stating that his offer had been
accepted, offered the business to the Syndicate and was refused.
10.
Although in honour bound to support the Syndicate, I, all
through, stated my view that insistence on additional clause for
protection against adverse legislation was a mistake, also that
Syndicate could meet producers in regard to stocking of common goods.
11. Sir E. Oppenheimer definitely stated that he thought producers' terms were acceptable.
12.
On Wednesday the 21st a Syndicate meeting declared action Anglo
American Corporation made Corporation's membership of the Syndicate
unacceptable and Sir E. Oppenheimer thereupon withdrew.
13.
Further, Syndicate declared that A. Dunkelsbuhler and Company's
expression of opinion that Sir E. Oppenheimer was right made their
membership equally impossible, whereupon my partner and I withdrew.
14.
On Thursday morning Sir Ernest Oppenheimer and I consulted
Messrs. Morgan, Grenfcll and Company, and, as a result, made an
independent offer for De Beers and Premier diamonds on terms which Sir
E. Oppenheimer had all along considered reasonable.
15.
On Friday the chairman of De Beers cabled that offer would be
considered in consultation with London and asked that it be kept open
till say Wednesday.
16. A reply was sent saying offer would be kept open.
17.
On Tuesday last the offer was refased no reasons being given in
spite of our having sent subsequent cables giving assurance that, apart
from South West production, we were able to offer additional advantage
of bringing in and limiting all Congo productions, thus again creating
closed market for all producers.
The
above is a statement of the facts and from the statement made by the
vice-chairman of De Beers I can only assume that he and his committee
accepted the evidence of the remaining members of the Syndicate, while
denying us the opportunity of stating our case.
Statements
made on the strength of this one-sided evidence seriously affect the
honour of Sir Ernest and myself and on his and my own behalf I strongly
protest.
