The intimate papers of Colonel House arranged as a narrative by Charles Seymour.

ENTERTAINED BY THE KAISER

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House and Gerard, in their black evening dress suits, provided a grotesque sombreness quite out of keeping with their
surroundings - 'like two black crows,' as the Kaiser himself
described them with more pungency than politeness.
'June 1, 1914: Gerard and I [recorded House] set forth for
Potsdam at half-past nine. We arrived too early and wandered about until nearly eleven, and then entered the Palace.
We found ourselves to be the only guests invited to the
Schrippenfest.
'We were taken through a beautiful sweep of rooms,
running across the park front, until we came to a side entrance. Here we waited a few minutes until the Kaiser was
announced. He came up and shook hands and passed out
with his suite into the park. We followed after the royal
party, which consisted of the Emperor, the Empress, and
the Princes and their wives. We were given a position near
the royal family.
'After religious exercises came the parade, then the decorations were given, and afterward we went across to the other
Palace, where the soldiers were having their lunch. During
this time I was largely with Herr Zimmermann, UnderSecretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Acting Secretary
while von Jagow is absent [on his honeymoon]. I found
him quite responsive to my ideas concerning a sympathetic
understanding between Great Britain, Germany, and the
United States. We discussed every phase of the present
European situation.
'We lunched in the famous Shell Hall ['probably the
ugliest room in the world,' remarked Gerard].1 The table
was crescent-shaped and was beautifully decorated. Gerard
and I were seated directly opposite the imperial party. On
my right was the Minister for War, General von Falken1 The walls of the room were composed of sea-shells which encrusted
the plaster.