"We wish to live in peace and friendship with America," he began, "but undoubtedly there is bitter feeling here because American supplies and ammunition enable our enemies to continue the war. If America should succeed in forcing England to obey international law, restore freedom of the seas and proceed with American energy against England's brutalisation of neutrals, it would have a decisive influence on the political situation between the two countries. If America does not do this then we must do it with our submarines." In October I was invited by the Foreign Office to go with a group of correspondents to Essen, Cologne and the Rhine Valley Industrial centres. In Essen I met Baron von Bodenhausen and other directors of Krupps. In Dusseldorf at the Industrie Klub I dined with the steel magnates of Germany and at Homburg-on-the-Rhine I saw August Thyssen, one of the richest men in Germany and the man who owns one-tenth of Germany's coal and iron fields. The most impressive thing about this journey was what these men said about the necessity for unlimited warfare. Every man I met was opposed to the Chancellor. They hated him because he delayed mobilisation at the beginning of the war. They stated that they had urged the invasion of Belgium because if Belgium had not been invaded immediately France could have seized the Rhine Valley and made it impossible for Germany to manufacture war munitions and thereby to fight a war. They said they were in favour of an unlimited, ruthless submarine warfare against England and all ships going to the British Isles. Their opinions were best represented in an inspired editorial appearing in the _Rhieinische Westfälische Zeitung_, in which it was stated: "The war must be fought to a finish. Either Germany or England must win and the interests here on the Rhine are ready to fight until Germany wins." "Do you think Germany wants war with America?" I asked Thyssen. "Never!" was his emphatic response. "First, because we have enemies enough, and, secondly, because in peace times, our relations with America are always most friendly. We want them to continue so after the war." Thyssen's remarks could be taken on their face value were it not for the fact that the week before we arrived in these cities General Ludendorf, von Hindenhurg's chief assistant and co-worker, was there to get the industrial leaders to manufacture more ammunition. Von Falkenhayn had made many enemies in this section because he cut down the ammunition manufacturing until these men were losing money. So the first thing von Hindenburg did was to double all orders for ammunition and war supplies and to send Ludendorf to the industrial centres to make peace with the men who were opposed to the Government.