File No. 763.72/2958
The Ambassador in Great Britain (Page) to the Secretary of State
[Received October 19, 8 a. m.]
5041. Lord Grey in a purely private conversation informs me that his speech last night in the House of Lords was an effort to hold back the almost fierce public feeling here against our Government till we shall officially make known the facts about the German submarine U–53. He expressed the hope that we may very soon publish the facts.
The newspapers have reported that the submarine was given an opportunity at Newport to ascertain the movements and whereabouts of British and neutral ships and went forth at once and sunk them. Lord Grey said to me:
I do not know whether that be true or not, but if it be true let me put this question to you. Suppose a British cruiser had gone into Newport and got similar information and had gone out and stopped neutral ships and searched them for contraband in these same waters, would we not have received a protest immediately?
Then he added:
If a German submarine be allowed by the American Government to sink neutral ships so near American waters, British Prime Minister will push the British Government to search neutral ships for contraband in the same waters.
While he confessed to strong feeling about the matter himself, he declared he would not make any judgment till the official facts were made known, but that he could not prevent premature judgment by others and that a very strong public feeling was fast rising because of our Government’s silence.
There is abundant confirmation of this fierce public feeling. The subject is the prevailing topic of conversation everywhere. The public discusses the phase of the subject mentioned by Lord Grey, but they are asking particularly whether it be true that our destroyers obeyed the German commander’s order to get out of his way so that he might sink neutral ships. On this phase of the subject Earl (not Viscount) Grey made a speech in the House of Lords last night, contrasting with the reported action of the commander of our destroyer the conduct of the British commander at Manila as Admiral Dewey himself explained it to Grey. They talked also of Bernstorff’s reported declaration that Germany was keeping her pledge to us while her submarines are constantly sinking merchant ships without warning and with loss of life in the far North Sea and the Mediterranean.
The British public are disposed to construe our longer silence as an unwillingness even to protest to Germany about the exploits of the U–53.