The Ambassador, I am afraid, said nothing for which I can demand his recall." They, of course, don't care thrippence about me; it's you they hope to annoy.
Then after beating them at their own game of daily little courtesies, we want a fight with them--a good stiff fight about something wherein we are dead right, to remind them sharply that we have sand in our craw[26].

I pray every night for such a fight; for they like fighting men.

Then they'll respect our Government as they already respect us--if we are dead right.
But I've little hope for a fight of the right kind with Sir Edward Grey.

He is the very reverse of insolent--fair, frank, sympathetic, and he has so clear an understanding of our real character that he'd yield anything that his party and Parliament would permit.

He'd make a good American with the use of very little sandpaper.