File No. 763.72112/2678
The Ambassador in Great Britain (Page) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 13, 9.42 a. m.]
4448. Your 3385. An answer has not yet been received whether it will be agreeable to Foreign Office to have a lawyer come here representing the trade advisers; but when this question was asked it was made evident that the Foreign Office would prefer that the cases concerning goods coming out of Germany should not again be taken up here by that method. They may reluctantly consent to such a proposal out of courtesy to us, but such reluctance will not make a wholly favorable atmosphere for the work of such a lawyer.
Consequently I venture respectfully to make the following suggestion—that the full papers in these cases be sent to me. I will myself go over each case thoroughly, and if necessary for technical reasons, I will call in Higgins McCondach here. I can personally directly present them to Lord Robert Cecil who is the member of the Cabinet in whose department such cases fall. He is fair-minded and most favorably disposed to us and will meet our wishes as far as the Cabinet itself will permit. It would be a concession, as you will understand, for the Government to permit me to discuss such cases directly with the Cabinet Minister concerned, and I feel safe in saying that this privilege would not be accorded to anyone who should be sent here.
A lawyer would be obliged to take these cases up with a committee or a series of committees. Then the committee reports would have a long way to travel before they came before a Cabinet officer, and the longer this journey and the more men involved, the greater the dangers and difficulties.
If this suggestion commends itself to you, I will ask permission to carry it out; and I think the request will be granted. Such an arrangement would avoid any course of action that is not received by the Government, as well as the introduction of a new personality in our dealings with them. Much time and sometimes much wearing effort by both sides are spent in such new adjustments.