800.51 W 89 France/507

Memorandum by the Secretary of State of a Conversation With the French Ambassador (Claudel)

[Extract]

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He then said that he had no instructions but that he had talked with Briand about the treaty outlawing war and wished to know if Mr. Herrick had talked with me about it. I told him Mr. Herrick brought the proposed Briand treaty and gave it to me but that I had very little chance for conversations with him about it; that he then went home to Cleveland and was operated on and I had no opportunity to see him since; that at that time the President was in the West and I had no chance to discuss it with him; that since he had returned I had been very busy with matters exceedingly pressing and I did not think I would be able to discuss the matter with the President until after my return from the West, which would probably be within a week or ten days—certainly before the first of October.