In reply to the President's most vital question, " whether
the Imperial Chancellor is speaking merely for the constituted authorities of the Empire who have so far conducted the war," the German Note said :—
" The present German Government, which has undertaken the responsibility for this step towards peace, has been formed by conferences and in agreement with the great majority of the Reichstag. The Chancellor, supported in all of his actions by the will of this majority, speaks in the name of the German Government and of the German people."
Any Chancellor might have said as much or as little, for the
Reichstag debating society has no power, as all the world knows. It is noteworthy that., while the first German Note was signed by the new Chancellor, this second Note was signed by Dr. Soli, the new Foreign Secretary, a typical Prussian official.
