en unrestricted submarine
warfare. We had always made the mistake of dealing in half-hearted
concessions. In my opinion it was essential for us to strive for
a complete understanding with America if we were not prepared to
carry on the submarine campaign without regard to consequences.

No attention was paid to my suggestion in Berlin at the time. Admiral
von Tirpitz had just resigned and the decision had been taken against
the continuance of unrestricted submarine warfare. I do not know
why the dispatch of an official Note was preferred to the oral
negotiations I had suggested, but I think that the deciding factor
was consideration for public opinion in Germany.

A few days later I cabled the following to Berlin:

TELEGRAM IN CIPHER

"Washington, 8th April, 1916.

"House gave me a very gloomy view of the position with regard to the
_Sussex_. At the White House the situation is regarded as hopeless
because the view is held that, in spite of Tirpitz's resignation,
the German Government, with the best will in the world, cannot
curb the submarine campaign. It has hitherto been merely due to
good luck that no American has lost his life and any moment might
precipitate a crisis which would be bound to lead to a break. The
American Government are convinced that the Sussex was torpedoed by
a German submarine. A repetition of such mistakes would be bound
to drive the United States of America into war with us, which Wilson
would greatly regret, as he is anxious--as I have already reported--to
lay the foundations of peace in a few months. If the United States
were drawn into the war all hope of an early peace would be at
an end.

"I request to be furnished with instructions on the basis of which
I can pacify the Government here, which now has doubts of our _bona
fides_."

After Mr. Gerard, apart from other questions concerning doubtful
cases of torpedoing, had also submitted a similar inquiry to the
Foreign Office on the subject of the _Sussex_ incident, an official
reply was handed to him on the 10th April which read in the following
terms:

"A decision as to whether the Channel steamer _Sussex_ was damaged
by a German submarine or not is made extraordinarily difficult
owing to the fact that no exact information is known as to the
place, time and accompanying circumstances of the sinking, and
moreover a picture of this ship could not be obtained until the
6th April. Consequently the inquiry has had to be exte