United States Ambassador to Great Britain Walter Hines Page to Secretary of State Robert M. Lansing
TELEGRAM RECEIVED.
SPECIAL GREEN
FROM London,
Dated June 13, 1917,
Rec’d 8:00 p.m.
CORRECTED COPY
Secretary of State,
Washington.
6457, June 13, 9 p.m.
Your 4955, June 8, 4 p.m.
Strictly Confidential. I had principally in mind the following referring to your instructions: Cusachs who accompanied Captain Decker to Spain via England and about whom the British secret service knew before he left American although Decker tried to conceal the fact that Cusachs was traveling with him and the reasons for Cusachs proceeding to Spain.1 This called forth Admiral Sims’ telegram to the Secretary of the Navy My 3331, June 1, 8 p.m.2 Also Judson see Dell’s telegram to Harrison 6338, June 2, 11 a.m. who indirectly approached British Admiralty with a request to facilitate his journey from France to Holland via England.3
Sims agreed with me that if confusion and serious difficulties are to be avoided most complete cooperation should exist between our secret service if any in neutral European countries and services of the Allies who are extremely efficient and have the ground well covered. It is in the highest degree important that officer be assigned to cooperate with British secret service here.4
PAGE.
Source Note: Cy, DNA, RG 59, Entry M367. Routing information is stamped on the first page along with the typist’s initials. In the lower left-hand corner of second page is the identification number: “763.72/5161.” At the top of that page is the notation: “(Corrected Copy).”
Footnote 1: Carlos V. Cusachs, a language instructor at the United States Naval Academy for almost seventeen years, was sent to Spain to serve as assistant naval attaché under Capt. Benton C. Decker. Cusachs was so successful in wielding American influence in Spanish business and political circles that United States Ambassador to Spain Joseph E. Willard accused Cusachs of interfering in diplomatic affairs and demanded that he be recalled. Dorwart, Office of Naval Intelligence, 135-36.
Footnote 2: See: William S. Sims to Josephus Daniels, 1 June 1917. Because of security issues with American naval codes, it was sent via the State Department, which is why Page assigned it the number: “My 3331.”
Footnote 3: Leland B. Harrison was a State Department intelligence expert. Henry P. Judson was the President of the University of Chicago and author of an anti-German tract published early in 1918. He may have been trying to travel to the neutral Netherlands to conduct research for this book. “Dell” has not been further identified.
Footnote 4: See: Sims to Daniels, 1 June 1917, and Sims to Leigh C. Palmer, 11 June 1917.
