Jews
and especially emphasising its international dangers as a stimulus of
undesirable immigration in other countries.[41] At the same time he
brought all his great influence to bear privately on individual members
of the Government. From Lord Lansdowne he received the warmest sympathy,
and the Foreign Office at once set inquiries on foot with a view to
ascertaining whether combined action by the Powers signatory of the
Berlin Treaty would be practicable. The responses, however, were not
encouraging.[42] Meanwhile the action of the London Jews had been
communicated to Mr. Oscar Straus in New York, and he persuaded Mr.
Schiff to bring the question to the knowledge of President Roosevelt.
The President, deeply moved by Mr. Schiff's story, acted with
characteristic energy. In July 1902 the Secretary of State, Mr. John
Hay, under the guise of a despatch giving instructions to the United
States Minister at Athens in regard to certain negotiations then pending
for a Naturalisation Treaty with Rumania, formulated a powerful
indictment of the persecutions. Three weeks later the American
Ambassadors in London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, St. Petersburg, Rome, and
Constantinople were instructed to communicate this despatch to the
Governments to which they were accredited, and to ascertain from them
whether it might not be possible to take some steps to secure from
Rumania the fulfilment of her obligations under Article XLIV of the
Treaty of Berlin.[43] Thus supported, Lord Lansdowne no longer
hesitated. In September he despatched a Circular to the Great Powers
definitely proposing combined representations at Bucharest.[44]

As soon as this _demarche_ got wind Rumania hastened to annul the
offending law, and otherwise to restrain her anti-Semitic zeal. Nothing
more was heard of the proposed collective intervention, but it is now
known that Lord Lansdowne's proposal never took final shape because the
Russian and German Governments refused to associate themselves with it.

DOCUMENTS.

* * * * *

DISPATCH FROM MR. JOHN HAY (U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE) TO THE U.S.
MINISTER AT ATHENS.

DEPARTMENT OF STATE, WASHINGTON,

_July 17, 1902_.

_Charles S. Wilson, Esquire, etc., etc., etc., Athens._

SIR,--Your legation's despatch No. 19, of the 13th of February last,
reported having submitted to the Roumanian Government, through its
diplomatic representative in Greece, as the outcome of conference had by
M