Germany’s Dirty Debt: Paying the Price in Dyes

September 28, 1922, marked a peculiar day in the history of international relations as the United States government announced a plan to pay Germany’s debt of $114,000,000 by shipping American dyes to the war-torn nation. Secretary of Commerce, Herbert Hoover, had worked tirelessly to bring this novel solution to life, but the proposal was met with skepticism, particularly from the Allied powers who had raised concerns that Germany would not be held accountable for its wartime actions.