racies are not exactly
instruments of precision. But they are at least human. But personal
and human neglect of one another by these two governments over so
long a period is an astonishing fact in our history. The wonder is
that we haven't had more than two wars. And it is no wonder that
the ignorance of Englishmen about America and the American
ignorance of England are monumental, stupendous, amazing, passing
understanding. I have on my mantelpiece a statuette of Benjamin
Franklin, an excellent and unmistakable likeness which was made
here during his lifetime; and the inscription burnt on its base is
_Geo. Washington_. It serves me many a good turn with my English
friends. I use it as a measure of their ignorance of us. Of course
this is a mere little error of a statuette-maker, an error,
moreover, of a hundred years ago. But it tells the story of to-day
also. If I had to name the largest and most indelible impression
that has been made on me during my five years' work here, I should
say the ignorance and aloofness of the two peoples--not an
ignorance of big essential facts but of personalities and
temperaments--such as never occur except between men who had never
seen one another.

But I was writing about Mr. Baker's visit and I've got a long way
from that. I doubt if he knows himself what gratification it gave;
for these men here have spoken to me about it as they could not
speak to him.

Here is an odd fact: For sixty years, so far as I know, members of
the Administration have had personal acquaintance with some of the
men in power in Salvador, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Peru, etc., etc.,
and members of the British Government have had personal
acquaintance with some men in authority in Portugal, Serbia,
Montenegro and Monte Carlo; but during this time (with the single
exception of John Hay) I think no member of any Administration had
a real personal acquaintance while he held office with any member
of the British Government while he held office, and vice
versa--till Mr. Balfour's visit. Suspicion grows out of ignorance.
The longer I live here the more astonished I become at the
fundamental ignorance of the British about us and of our
fundamental ignorance about them. So colossal is this ignorance
that every American sent here is suppose