Extract from a letter from Timothy A. Smiddy to Desmond FitzGerald (Dublin)

Dear Mr Minister:

I have just returned from the Middle-West where I gave a series of lectures and talks on the Irish Free State: its economic, financial, agricultural, conditions and problems; achievement of its Government; some of the High Lights of Irish History; comments on the Constitution of the Irish Free State; International Status and its political relation to Great Britain and the Dominions.

I lectured at the following:

1. The University of Michigan. This university has ten thousand full-time students on its roll. I was entertained by the President - Mr Little - and members of the Faculties who were subsequently present at my lecture.

2. The North-western University, Evanston, Illinois; it has fourteen thousand registered students. The President - Mr Walter Dill Scott - many professors, students and public were present.

3. The University Club, Evanston. The audience was composed of graduates of the North-western University and other universities who are resident in Evanston. President Scott was present as also the Mayor of Evanston. Subsequent to the lectures many questions were asked. Such questions showed an interest in the Gaelicization of Irish education and its philosophy; in the Constitution; in our universities and educational standards.

I think some surprise was occasioned by the knowledge of the liberal attitude of the Government towards non-catholics as illustrated by the personnel of the High Court and Supreme Court.

The North-western University is the centre of Methodist education in the U.S.A.

4. Reception at Evanston by the Ancient Order of Hibernians at which the State Secretary and National Secretary of the Order were present as also the Mayor of Evanston who made a very appropriate talk on the Irish Free State.

5. Reception by and address to the Catholic Ladies' Club of Evanston. Evanston is the best residential suburb of Chicago.

6. Reception by and address to the Irish Fellowship Club at the Palmer Court Hotel, Chicago. It was a distinguished gathering of 465 people. The Mayor of Chicago, Mr Dever, was among the guests and made a laudatory short speech on the Irish Free State. The members of the Supreme Court were much in evidence. Among the general audience were people representative of different views and attitudes towards Irish affairs, from the indifferent to men like John McGarry, Joseph O'Donnell and two old Fenians, a Mr Byrne and Mr O'Callaghan: the latter travelled forty five miles for the occasion, and their ages are respectively eighty five and eighty six.

7. Reception by and address to the Mid-day Club of Springfield, Illinois, which is the State Capital. The Mayor of Springfield and State Senator Hay made appropriate speeches. I visited the shrine of Abraham Lincoln[,] laid a wreath on behalf of the Government and said a few words suitable to the occasion.

8. On my return to New York I attended the reception and banquet given by Sir James and Lady Elder (Commissioner to the U.S.A. from Australia). In my capacity as Minister Plenipotentiary I was guest of honour. Six hundred were present. I was one of the speakers. The gist of my remarks was the international status of the Irish Free State; the existence of seven sovereign entities within the British Commonwealth of Nations was a stabilizer of peace, to the maintenance of which none would contribute more by her moral influence than the Irish Free State.

The outstanding impression derived from the reaction to my addresses, questions and conversations with the various types of people I met was their surprise to learn of the 'sovereign status' of the Irish Free State and that its Minister at Washington had the same diplomatic status as that of any other sovereign nation, and that he was in no way subservient to the British Embassy in so far as purely affairs of the Irish Free State were concerned. Even among many real sympathizers of the Irish Free State I have already witnessed this ignorance of our real status. In fact, they cannot realize that the Irish Free State could possibly have attained to the international status which the presence of its Minister at Washington indicates; and were under the impression that an Irish Free State Minister must be somewhat of a fiction or minister 'in air'. Even this belief existed in the minds of many in Washington until recently, when in consequence of the publicity afforded by lectures, talks, etc., our status is now fully appreciated.

It may be of interest to know that at a recent reception given by the President to the members of the diplomatic, myself and the staff of the Legation took precedence of fourteen other legations whose chiefs of mission were appointed subsequently to me. Further, as the Ambassador of Great Britain was absent the British Legation was preceded by the legations whose chiefs of mission were present. This bears out what I pointed out in a previous communication that the British Chargé d'Affaires, though a Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy Extraordinary, is regarded by the U.S.A. State Department only as a Minister 'in air' and cannot function as a real Minister.

You might remember an article written by Sir Maurice F. Lowe, correspondent for the Morning Post, in the Baltimore Sun, November, 1924, in which he emphasized the steps adopted by the British Foreign Office to ensure that the British Embassy would at no time 'take the dust' from the feet of the Minister of the Irish Free State.

From the above you can see that his statement did not come true.

During the last few years I have observed the increasing sympathy of Americans, especially those from whom the governing classes are derived, with Great Britain. In the leading universities the vast majority of all the teaching staff are strongly pro-British both politically and socially, and very active in their endeavours to promote the entrance of the U.S.A. into the League of Nations. The same remarks apply to the influential press except the Hearst, and even the latter quite recently remarked that Great Britain gave a moral lesson to the world by the way in which she honoured her bond. Great Britain is regarded by them as the power on which the stability of Europe depends, and there is the feeling, which is freely expressed, that an 'entente cordiale' - though informal - between the peoples of the U.S.A. and Great Britain is the best guarantor of world peace.