"Oh, no," spoke up one of the distinguished Frenchmen present. "I happen to know the contrary to be the fact, because some time ago I saw a long and comprehensive letter from Mr. Y. to a relative in Germany, in which he showed not only pronounced sympathy for the Allies, but a thorough understanding of their cause, and scathingly arraigned the German Government and policy." It appears that this letter had been singled out in the operation of the censorship of letters between the United States and Germany and had been brought to the attention of official representatives of the Allied Governments. It should be noted that at the time the letter was written, namely in the early part of 1915, the censorship of letters between the United States and Germany had not yet been officially established, and it was believed that only correspondence from and to suspected persons and firms was being opened, and the writer had no reason to expect that this particular letter would come under the scrutiny of the censor. The American lawyer, upon returning to New York, related to Mr. Y. the incident of the conversation and asked to be allowed to read a copy of the letter in question. Having perused it, he urged Mr. Y. to have it printed. In accordance with the suggestion, the letter, together with the correspondence which preceded it, is reprinted in the following pages. This letter was written in June, 1915, to a prominent business man in Germany. A few of the passages contained in the letter as here given are taken from an earlier letter (March, 1915) written to the same person. The original letters were in German. The following translation was made by the author. It is needless to inform the reader as to the identity of Mr. Y. August, 1918. LETTER TO A GERMAN _New York_, _June_ 28, 1915. DEAR X.: Many thanks for your very interesting letter of April 27th. The spirit which animates Germany is indeed a great and mighty one. It is a spirit of unity and brotherhood among her people, of willing sacrifice and heroic striving, coupled with the passionate conviction and faith that her cause is just and righteous, that it must and will win, and that not only is victory a necessity for national existence, but that in its train it will bring blessings to the whole of the universe. Wherever and whenever in the world's history such a spirit--born of the stirring of the profoundest depths of national or religious feeling--has manifested itself, it has invariably been attended by a more or less marked fanaticism among the people concerned; by a condition of mind easily comprehensible as a psychological phenomenon, yet acutely prejudicial to the ability to preserve an objective point of view, and to arrive at an impartial judgment.