File No. 841.731/44
The Ambassador in Great Britain (Page) to the Secretary of State
London, undated.
[Received October 13, 1914, 4 p.m.]
[Telegram]
826. Your telegram September 26. Sir Edward Grey informs me that some time ago instructions were given to discontinue the suppression of commercial telegrams between the United States and neutral countries. He states, however, that cases occur in which telegrams disclose what appears to be an attempt to establish trade with a country at war with Great Britain, but that even in these cases the telegrams are passed for transmission unless it appears that delivery would entail the effecting of some important transaction detrimental to British interests. He adds with regard [Page 512] to the question of notifying the sender of non-delivery of stopped telegrams that it seems clear that to do so in the case of telegrams above referred to would only be to defeat the object of censorship, and Sir Edward Grey hopes that the United States Government will agree with him in thinking that as only such telegrams are being suppressed no hardship is being inflicted upon legitimate trade between the United States and neutral countries.