763.72111/2065
President Wilson to the Secretary of State
My Dear Mr. Secretary: I have thought a great deal about this case.
I do not think that we can assent to such a use of our territory for the supply of war ships at sea.
There was a not dissimilar case when vessels sought to obtain coal in England during the Russo-Japanese war which they were to carry to the Russian fleet which was on its way to Japan from the Baltic.
Moreover, the application for a clearance is, there is a strong presumption, fictitious, and that alone would seem to me to render the granting of it irregular.
I had a talk with Mr. Lansing to-day about the case, and feel pretty clear in the propriety and wise policy of these conclusions.
Faithfully Yours,