Correspondence of Stale

Japanese Ambassador Hanihara wrote a letter to Mr. Hughes, concluding:

As the representative of my country, whose supreme duty is to maintain and, if possible, to draw still closer the bond of friendship so happily existing between our peoples, I honestly believe such effects as I have described to be "grave consequences." In these words, which I did quite ingenuously, I had no thought of being in any way disagreeable or discourteous and still less of conveying "a veiled threat." . . .

In view, however, of what has transpired in the course of the public discussion in the Senate, I feel constrained to write you, as a matter of record, that I did not use the phrase in question in such a sense as has been attributed to it.

I am, my dear Mr. Secretary, Yours very truly, (Signed) M.* HANIHARA. To this Mr. Hughes replied: My dear Mr. Ambassador:

I am gratified to receive your letter of the 17th instant with your frank and friendly explanation of the intent of your recent note in relation to the pending immigration bill. It gives me pleasure to be able to assure you that, reading the words "grave consequences" in the light of their context, and knowing the spirit of friendship and understanding you have always manifested in our long association, I had no doubt that these words were to be taken in the sense you have stated, and I was quite sure that it was far from your thought to express or imply any threat. I am happy to add that I have deeply appreciated your constant desire to promote the most cordial relations between the peoples of the two countries.

With high esteeem, I am, my dear Mr. Hanihara.

Very sincerely yours, (Signed) CHARLES E. HUGHES.

From Tokyo it was reported that the Japanese Government would cer- tainly not recall Mr. Hanihara for his ingenuous juxtaposition of the words "grave" and "consequences."

*M. for Masanao.