the Declaration of London?  The Monroe Doctrine will be shot through.  We shall have to have a great army and a great navy.  But suppose that England win.  We shall then have an ugly academic dispute with her because of this controversy.  Moreover, we shall not hold a good position for helping to compose the quarrel or for any other service.

The present controversy seems here, where we are close to the struggle, academic.  It seems to us a petty matter when it is compared with the grave danger we incur of shutting ourselves off from a position to be of some service to civilization and to the peace of mankind.

In Washington you seem to be indulging in a more or less theoretical discussion.  As we see the issue here, it is a matter of life and death for English-speaking civilization.  It is not a happy time to raise controversies that can be avoided or postponed.  We gain nothing, we lose every chance for useful cooeperation for peace.  In jeopardy also are our friendly relations with Great Britain in the sorest need and the greatest crisis in her history.  I know that this is the correct view.  I recommend most earnestly that we shall substantially accept the new Order in Council or acquiesce in it and reserve whatever rights we may have.  I recommend prompt information be sent to the British Government of such action.  I should like to inform Grey that this is our decision.

So far as our neutrality obligations are concerned, I do not believe that they require us to demand that Great Britain should adopt for our benefit the Declaration of London.  Great Britain has never ratified it, nor have any other nations except the United States.  In its application to the situation presented by this war it is altogether to the advantage of Germany.

I have delayed to write you this way too long.  I have feared that I might possibly seem to be influenced by sympathy with England and by the atmosphere here.  But I write of course solely with reference to our own country’s interest and its position after the reorganization of Europe.

     Anderson[92] and Laughlin[93] agree with me emphatically.

     WALTER H. PAGE.

II

The immediate cause of this protest was, as its context shows, the fact that the State Department was insisting that Great Britain should adopt the Declaration of London as a code of law for regulating its warfare on German shipping.  Hostilities had hardly started when Mr. Bryan made this proposal; his telegram on this subject is dated August 7, 1914.  “You will further state,” said Mr. Bryan, “that this Government believes that the acceptance of these laws by the belligerents would prevent grave misunderstandings which may arise as to the relations between belligerents and neutrals.  It therefore hopes that this inquiry may receive favourable consideration.”  At the same time Germany and the other belligerents were asked to adopt this Declaration.