Walter Hines Page to Colonel House

Extract from letter of W. H. Page.

By far the most important peace plan or utterance is the President's extraordinary answer to the Pope. His flat and convincing refusal to take the word of the present rulers of Germany as of any value has had more effect here than any other utterance and is, so far, the best contribution we have made to the war. The best evidence that I can get shows also that it had had more effect in Germany than anything else that has been said by anybody. That hit the bull's eye with perfect accuracy; and it has been accepted here as the war aim and the war condition. So far as I can make out it is working in Germany towards peace with more effect than any other deliverance made by anybody. And it steadied the already unshakable resolution here amazingly.