765.84/5038: Telegram
The Minister Resident in Ethiopia (Engert) to the Secretary of State
[Received 6 p.m.]
557. The Department doubtless received my 554, September 14, 1 a.m. [p.m.] shortly after its 353, September 14, 6 p.m. was despatched.
I regret very much that the tone of my letter to Marshal Graziani [Page 312] caused you anxiety and I need hardly assure you that only the most exceptional circumstances seem to warrant it. As indicated in my 551, I had been careful to mark it “personal” but was fully conscious of its unusual nature and therefore wished the Department to know the most salient statements it contained. As on many occasions in the past, several of which I never even reported, I was anxious to avoid involving the Department officially. The Marshal was, of course, aware that I was not acting under instructions but was merely giving vent to personal feelings which had been outraged.
Even so I should have hesitated to send him the letter had not my relations with him been such that I felt almost certain he would understand and even that he has appreciated it. He has been extremely rude to some of my diplomatic colleagues—notably the French Minister—and has treated me comparatively decently only because he realized from the very beginning that I would not permit him to bully me. He is a bluff soldier and quite impervious to diplomatic niceties but I have so far always found him responsive to frankness and fair comments. I admit, of course, it would have been safer to take the matter up orally but I was frankly too shocked by the occurrence to be able to discuss it with any degree of calmness. I had said nothing when Bishop Petros was executed only about a quarter of a mile from the Legation and I now felt it was high time something was done about these public executions at odd street corners.
As I anticipated the Marshal saw at once that unnecessary offense had been caused not only to the Legation but to my family and myself personally and was ready to make amends. Colonel Mazzi told me the Marshal was so upset by my letter that he could not eat his dinner and again and again referred to the incident as “inexcusable stupidity”.
I shall soon call on Graziani on some other business and shall give him to understand how much I appreciate his courteous attitude toward the Legation.