Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1916-05-05
This Is Belief in Washing ton Before Official Text of
 Note Received.
WILSON STANDING
 ON FIRST DEMAND
Officials Find Hopeful Note in Press niSpatcheN from Berlin, Which Men. lions Perturbation Over Effect
 There of Concessions.

w WdoiiiIlS IOIl, May 4.-(IefmanyS reply to the demands of the United States for the immediate abandon ment of present methods of submarine warfare, as delivered to Ambassador Gerard, was awaited by officials of the Washington government tonight with eXpectant tension.
 They were without any definite idea of what the communication con- tained. A brief message from MT. Gerard, as well as press reports, has created the impression that the inn perial government would propose conditions that the United States could not accept.
 It was reiterated that President Wilson stood unalterably by the posi- tion declared in the note to Germany, that the abandonment of present sub marine methods must be declared and effected immediately, or the United States must sever diplomatic rela- tions.
 This demand was designed to per- init of no argument. High officials repeatedly have asserted that any, thing. short of literal compliance would be followed by a diplomatic rupture.
 The official copy of the note hard ly will reach Washington before to- morrow night, but the document was given to the press in Berlin late to- night, and the@'unofficial text was expected to reach the United States early tomorrow morning.
 Ambassador Gerard's message was sent before he had examined the note itself. Its meaning was not entirely clear, because of errors in transmits sion of the diplomatic cipher. Secre- tary Lansing declined to comment on the message or make it public, be- cause he feared it was garbled or that MT. Gerard, not having seen the note itself, might have made inaccurate deductions.
 Further, the ambassador had indi- cated that this message must be re- garded as highly confidential. .Secre- tary Lansing sent the dispatch to the white house for the information of President Wilson. At the same time an effort was made to have the errors of transmission corrected. It ap- peared tonight, however, that the con tents of the note would be known be- fore the corrections could be made.
 An Omin0us Note.
 Officials gave special consideration to press dispatches, saying that the German chancellor would have the German public behind him in the ef- fort to avoid break of relations with the United States, "so far as can be done without sacrificing princip.,, enunciated in the German manifesto of February g." The manifesto of February announced to the world Germany's intention of treating as warships armed merchant ships of hostile nations, on the ground that they were armed for purposes of of- fense, and that commanders of Brit ish merchantmen had instructions to attack German submarines. The posi- tion of the United States is that mer- chants ships have a right to arm for defensive purposes.
 Some officials tonight found hopeful indications in press dispatch which states that considerable perturbation was apparent in Berlin over the effect which "concessions" to be made might have on German public opinion.
 President Wilson and Secretary Lansing prepared to remain late to- night to receive the unofficial text of the reply, forwarded and carried in press dispatches, but abandoned the idea when it became known that the dispatch would not be available before 
 A snecial corps of operators was kept on duty at the state department to receive the official text, though at midnight the word had not come from Ambassador Gerard that he was ready to start the document.
 New York, May 4.-Count von Bernstorff, the German ambassador who is here, denied himself to inter- viewers tonight. However, his secre- tary said that he did not believe the ambassador had been apprised of the contents of the new German note. The secretary added that Count von Bern storff desired to make no statement. The ambassador, he said. probably would return to Washington tomor- row.