Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1939, General, Volume I

740.00/1212: Telegram

The Chargé in Germany (Geist) to the Secretary of State

Berlin, April 28, 1939—7 p.m.
[Received April 28—4 p.m.]

297. The Associated Press Bureau here informs the Embassy that it has cabled the verbatim English translation of Hitler’s speech furnished by the Propaganda Ministry as well as translations of the German notes to Great Britain and Poland denouncing respectively the naval agreement⁴⁷ and the 10-year pact.⁴⁸

For the time being the address must perhaps be left to speak for itself, the immediate reaction in diplomatic circles being that the portions dealing with Great Britain and Poland were intended to be the main burden of the speech whereas the passages referring to the President’s message represented what might be called a form of sarcastic raillery. This impression was borne out by the reaction of the Reichstag itself which shouted with indignation at the references to Great Britain and Poland and acclaimed by rising from their seats Hitler’s statement of his case against these countries. On the other hand the attacks upon the President’s message elicited chiefly cries of derision and malicious laughter.

I consider that Hitler in contradistinction to the manner in which he generally handles international problems attempted to deal with the President’s message and with the international problems as far as America was concerned in a lighter vein of oratory. I had the impression that the general intention was not to augment any feeling of hatred in the United States and not to single out the Administration as an object of vicious attack and that he attempted rather in the manner of delivery and the handling of the audience of deputies to cast ridicule not only upon America’s present role in international politics but also on America’s role in the past. In my opinion Hitler judging his manner of delivery felt less sure of himself and was for this reason probably less convincing to his audience as he enumerated the successive points in answer to the President’s message. The attempt was so consistently in the humorous vein as to lack the convincing weight of sincerity. Nevertheless, he attempted to destroy the message and the effect of it on the German people and on the world by ridiculing it by alleging contradictions in its various points with the actual situation and America’s own record.

Geist

47. Signed June 18, 1935, British Treaty Series No. 22 (1935); see also Foreign Relations, 1935, vol i, pp. 162 ff.
48. Signed January 26, 1934, British and Foreign State Papers, vol. cxxxvii, p. 495.