April 20—French military authorities decide to abandon the charge of setting fire to La Touraine preferred against Raymond Swoboda, because of lack of evidence.
April 21—The Government replies to the recent memorandum from Ambassador von Bernstorff on American neutrality; the American answer regrets use of language that seems to impugn our good faith, and it restates our position; it declares that we have at no time yielded any of our rights as a neutral, and that we cannot prohibit exportation of arms to belligerents, because to do so would be an unjustifiable breach of our neutrality; the State Department has cabled the American Consul at Warsaw to report fully on the present situation of Jews in Poland.
April 23—The Telefunken wireless plant at Sayville, L.I., through which the German Government and its embassy at Washington chiefly communicate, has been trebled in power for the purpose of overcoming climatic conditions likely in Summer to be unfavorable for the handling of messages; Secretary Bryan is refusing to issue passports to Americans who wish to visit belligerent countries in Europe for sightseeing purposes.
April 28—Secretary Bryan replies to the German note on the sinking of the American ship William P. Frye; the answer declares that the destruction of the vessel was "unquestionably" a violation of existing treaties between the United States and Prussia; the answer states that the American Government does not believe the matter should go before a prize court, as suggested by the German note.
April 29—Samuel Pearson, who was a Boer General in the Boer war and is an American citizen, begins an action in Wisconsin aimed at preventing shipment of munitions of war from the United States to the enemies of Germany; a complaint is filed on Pearson's behalf under the so-called "Discovery" statute of Wisconsin, to obtain information whether the Allis-Chalmers Company and others have entered into a conspiracy with the Bethlehem Steel Company and others to manufacture and ship shrapnel shells to European belligerents contrary to Wisconsin law.
April 30—Directions are given by President Wilson for an investigation to be made of the Pearson bill of complaint; German Embassy at Washington publishes an advertisement in the newspapers declaring that "travelers sailing in the war zone on ships of Great Britain or her allies do so at their own risk."
RELIEF.
April 1—American Red Cross sends 200,000 pounds of disinfectants to Serbia for use in the fight against typhus.
April 2—Mme. Lalla Vandervelde, wife of the Belgian Minister of State, sails from New York after collecting nearly $300,000 for relief in Belgium.
April 3—Henryk Sienkiewicz, the Polish writer, appeals to the United States for help for Poland; it is stated that an area seven times as great as Belgium has been laid waste, 5,000 villages have been destroyed, 1,000,000 horses and 2,000,000 cattle are dead or seized by the enemy, and damage to the extent of $600,000,000 has been done; Serbian Agricultural Relief Commission of America announces that Walter Camp will take charge of Serbian relief in the colleges and universities of the United States.