File No. 763.72/2439
The Ambassador in Great Britain (Page) to the Secretary of State
[Received May 17, 8 a. m.]
2104. Commendation of the note to Germany and gratification are universally expressed privately and in the press. The Times says: “It is a note that both in substance and expression recalls the best traditions of American diplomacy. The stand taken by President Wilson is something more than a declaration of national policy. Nothing less than the conscience of humanity makes itself audible in his measured and incisive sentences.” The Times editorial ends in these words: “The moral interests of the United States and the Allies are henceforward indissolubly linked.” The Westminster Gazette says: “We count this note as from all human and moral points of view the greatest event of this war.”
The following to the President and the Secretary:
Among the men whose private expressions of praise have come to me are most members of the government, as well as Lansdowne, Balfour and Bonar Law, of the opposition.
I think the practically unanimous expectation here is that the German Government will give an evasive answer and decline to abbreviate the use of submarines against merchant ships.
The representatives of other neutral governments here privately express pleasure and gratitude. The Americans in London about whose impatience I telegraphed feel ashamed of their hasty fears.
May I be allowed to express my personal congratulations on the note?