Your telegram of 2nd September. [1] Fully appreciate your
feelings. Position, however, from midnight yesterday to noon today
was no new development owing to the whole period being occupied
with conversation in close contact with the French as to the
period which should elapse before actual state of war created
between Germany and the United Kingdom and France. Since my
telegram No. 387 [2], Position has further developed, see
Dominions Office cable No. B.319 [3], in that the French have
indicated that they desire the period of delay should be forty-
eight hours and not few hours indicated by me. Grounds given for
this are that the General Staff like it in order to enable the
evacuation of big towns and mobilisation to take place unhindered.

Cabinet now sitting to consider this.

Most confidential. Impossible to interpret exact significance of
French attitude but doubt exists here as to whether the French
suggestion of forty-eight hours genuinely due to reasons given or
whether it may not be based on reports as to German disaffection
and indecision making them reluctant to bring the situation to an
unalterable position by acts declaratory of war.

BRUCE