123 Dodd, William Edward/24: Telegram
The Chargé in Germany (Gordon) to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received July 1—11:05 a.m.]
116. Department’s 80, June 30, 4 p.m. Foreign Office has shown me a telegram just sent to its Embassy in Washington which I hope will provide a solution of this question satisfactory to you. In it the Foreign Minister states that he will receive any and all communications signed by the Ambassador as “appointed Ambassador”. This marks a distinct step in advance upon the Foreign Office’s position as given to me yesterday and I understand that it was only decided upon this morning, consequently your action vis-à-vis the German Chargé d’Affaires appears to have been most helpful, however, I must say frankly that my impression has not been that the Foreign Office wished to be unhelpful but merely that the problem presented was completely new to it and that it was trying to feel its way as witness this latest decision.
In the Foreign Office’s instruction to its Embassy in Washington it is also stated as a “probability” that the President will come to Berlin towards the end of July which, as the Department will note from my telegrams, provides a more satisfactory prospective than had at any time previously been held out to me.
As regards the protocolary side of the question the Foreign Office’s statement reported in my telegram No. 114 as to the Chargé d’Affaires [Page 385] acting in such official representation of the Embassy as might arise, was only intended to refer to the existing state of fact in the Berlin Diplomatic Corps. This has just recently received fresh application in the case of one of the envoys here waiting to present his letter of credence by the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps specifically requesting him to send no cards and to make no official calls upon his colleagues and refraining even from returning this envoy’s call until he shall have presented his letter of credence. However, it does not seem to me that this constitutes any such obstacle as to prevent the Ambassador from sailing on schedule and I imagine the Department will concur in this view.
I do indeed appreciate the importance of settling this problem in order to prevent embarrassment and it was with this in mind that I have sent my various telegrams beginning with my 108 of June 24, 1 p.m.,42 and had frequent interviews at the Foreign Office, inasmuch as it was apparent that it had not envisaged the program in the light that you had. I very much hope that this latest exchange of views provides a satisfactory solution and should appreciate it if you could so inform me.
- Not printed.↩