Letter from Joseph P. Walshe to Robert Brennan (Washington)
(Secret)

My Dear Bob,
I have been talking to Denis¹ about the continued unfitness of David Gray for promoting good relations between this country and the United States. It would be quite inconceivable for any other country in the world to send and maintain a Minister who has been doing so much harm to his country as this gentleman. He has never missed an opportunity of showing his anti-Irish spleen and of encouraging anti-Irish elements in this country to take an attitude hostile to the State. This applies, not merely to our neutrality, but to the whole ambit of our relations with Great Britain, including especially the partition of the six counties from Ireland.

Until about a year or so ago, as you are aware, he brought over to Ireland from London every few months a troupe of journalists whom he conditioned on each occasion with anti-Irish venom, the consequences of which you have had so often the duty to report. For some strange reason, we are no longer pestered by this visiting menagerie, but Gray finds other means of doing us harm at home and abroad, and I have no doubt that, so long as he is here, he will miss no opportunity of making matters worse.

The general attitude of the Irish people towards David Gray is one of complete astonishment that the representative of the democratic United States of America should pass at least four days out of every seven with a group of effete nobles who are more violently anti-Irish than the worst John Bull in Britain. He is a toady of the very worst type, and the ordinary man-in-the-street is of the opinion that the Irish section in the State Department has gone completely daft or has deliberately set out to make America detested in Ireland. It is well that it should be said – however unfortunate the fact may be – that the people are inclined to take David Gray as a complete representative of the ruling class in America, and they are absolutely bewildered because in the past they have been taught that America is the freest, most liberty-loving and most democratic country in the world. It would not matter very much if David Gray confined himself to his Notes and diplomatic splutters addressed to our Minister (to many of which we send no reply), but his all-consuming hatred for the country is unfortunately known to the great majority of the population.

What is the result of all this? The country, (on the official side at any rate), with which we should have the closest of most friendly relations and which has always been first in our affections is being pushed out of the minds and hearts of the Irish people by the frustrated hatred of David Gray.

It would be comic, if it were not tragic, to consider that we have arrived at the stage at which the British Legation in Dublin is hugely enjoying Gray's campaign against this country, because at last they hope to be able to get us to share their own views of the United States. Maffey has actually declared in moments of excessive frankness that Gray was doing his (Maffey's) job better than he himself.

On the occasion of the war criminals Note sent to us by the American Government, Maffey told me in the most casual way, after lunch in his own garden, that without making much account of it, they were supporting Gray's Note, clearly indicating by this extremely informal procedure that they wanted to place the entire onus on the Americans. When Gray left an aide-mémoire of a conversation with the Taoiseach on April 30th of this year, it was made clear to us that neither the Canadians nor the British were in favour of his action. Indeed, they thought that the tone of the aide-mémoire, especially the insinuation about the submarines, was in extremely bad taste. They did not express the slightest approval or acquiescence in the sending of this aide-mémoire or in Gray's démarche. (I enclose a copy of this last document).²

I told Gray on the telephone two days after he had left the aide-mémoire that he must have misread his instructions as the war was not over and there was not yet any surrender of Germany. He muttered some kind of protest, but he came in the following day and apologised for his rudeness. I then told him that, as soon as the present authority had come to an end by a complete surrender, we should be glad to hand over the offices of the Legation, having beforehand received from him a formal statement that the authority had passed to the United States and the other Allied Powers. He was very disappointed, but he felt powerless because he had not the backing of Maffey and Kearney.

What can you do about all this? The official side appears to be still adamant and to be quite indifferent to America's good reputation suffering in this country. Perhaps you could talk strongly to some influential politician who would put an end to Gray's career. It is not very consoling to reflect that in the relatively few years during which we have had diplomatic relations with America, three of their representatives have been incurable social snobs and quite indifferent to America's interests (Sterling,³ Owsley⁴ and Gray). Would it not be possible to get them to send us a man of Irish Catholic origin who would have real zeal for America's interests and who would understand the difficult conditions here? It is a very poor commentary on American democracy that three representatives out of four developed into bloated aristocrats with all the airs and prejudices of that class the moment they arrived in Ireland. It would be interesting, too, for your political friend to hear that the American diplomatic representatives have been the only members of the diplomatic corps in Ireland who completely fall for the anti-Irish ascendancy. You should know that, taken as a whole, the consular staff have been both helpful and friendly. That is especially true of Styles⁵ and McEnelly.

I am confiding this secret document to the tender care of Denis. We are looking forward to seeing you very soon. No doubt, you will be glad to have a trip home to see your friends and to discuss with our Minister and the Department the line of our future policy in regard to the United States.