In transmitting this favourable answer, Germany did not entrust it to the same neutral Power that had brought the message, but for some unknown reason confided it to a trusted messenger from another neutral country.

This latter appears to have been guilty of some indiscreet dealings, and when rumours of the affair reached Paris it caused some anxiety.

It was probably thought there that England was more interested in the Belgian than in the Alsace-Lorraine question.
The messenger sent from Berlin thought that his task had failed, and sent word to Berlin that, owing to his errand having been made known, the opinion among the Entente was that every step taken by Germany was condemned beforehand to failure.
The Government which had employed the messenger took up the case on its own initiative, and transmitted the German reply to London.

No answer was ever received from England.
This is the account as given to me _post festum_ by Berlin, and doubtless reflects Berlin's views.

Whether the incident in detail was exactly as described, or whether many more hitherto unknown events took place, has not been proved.
During the war all happenings on the other side of the trenches were looked upon with dim and gloomy eyes as through a veil, and, according to news received by me later, it was not clear whether England had sent an answer.