Letter from John J. Hearne to Thomas J. Kiernan (London)
(Copy)

My dear Kiernan,

Mr. Walshe has asked me to write to you in the following sense. The Dominions Office should now be informed by you to the effect that there is and can be no change in the attitude of the Government of the Irish Free State on the question of the returns to be sent to the League of Nations in the matter of naval armaments. The Government strongly adhere to the view that separate returns be sent by each State of the Commonwealth which is a member of the League of Nations, that no collective return should be sent by the British Government and that there should be no adding up of the British Commonwealth total at all. Your letter of the 7th August¹ to the High Commissioner (at present in Ireland) has been sent by him to the Department. Mr. Walshe thinks that you should inform Vanier² that we do not consider it necessary to send any wire to the Canadian Government for the reason that they are already aware of our point of view through his good offices and those of the Canadian High Commissioner. He feels, moreover, that a wire at this stage might be misinterpreted. You could tell Vanier that.