ad most carefully the
many defences offered by your Chancellor, your Minister of Foreign
Affairs, your Under-Secretary of Foreign Affairs, your official
spokesmen sent to this country, and your Ambassador here; and in the
notes sent officially and directly to our Government by your
Government. We have formed an opinion of the moral standards of the
Government which makes and approves of such defences.

I believe you must, in sincerity and frankness, admit that the American
public has had many sources of information open to it in forming its
opinions about Germany. Indeed, with a free press, a large German
population absolutely free from censorship or restrictions of any kind,
and a Government which does not need to suppress facts for military or
political reasons, we are in a far better position to learn the whole
truth about Germany than are the German people themselves.

III.

Having outlined some of the many sources of information upon which
Americans have relied in forming their opinions of Germany and her
actions in this war, I now will state what the American opinion is in
regard to some of the vital issues which have been raised. In doing
this, I will not endeavour to explain that opinion, to criticise it, nor
to defend it. Neither will I give you my personal opinion on the several
points, for my own personal opinion is of slight consequence when we are
discussing the attitude of an entire nation. If you desire, I will be
glad to tell you, on some other occasion, just how far my own opinions
coincide with the collective opinion of the country at large, and just
where I differ from that opinion. My object at present is simply to
interpret American opinion to you as it exists to-day. When I say
"American opinion," I mean, of course, the opinion of the vast majority
of our people. A significant proportion of the German-born population
and a very small proportion of native Americans (usually those married
to Germans or otherwise connected with Germany) disagree with the
opinions cited. But over 90 per cent. of our population may safely be
said to hold the views described as "American" below.

In the first place, Americans, in general, make a distinction between
the German Government and the German people. They realise that certain
features of the Prussianised Government have never appealed favourably
to the Bavarians, the Saxons, and other elements of the German
population. I do not mean by this that Amer