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James Burness & Sons
138, Leadenhall Street

London, 12th June 1918
Messrs Worms & Co. - Paris

Dear Sirs,
Man Power Bill. We beg to acknowledge receipt of your favor of the 8th inst.
the contents of which have our best attention.
We are pleased to say your Grimsby House advise us that the letter which we addressed to them about Mr. F. Robinson had the effect of getting their Local Tribunal to adjourn the case for 14 days in order to enable the French Government to intervene in the matter.
We confirm our conversation by telephone this morning and are much obliged to you for all you have done to get your Authorities to move in connection with the calling up of our Mr. Hutcheson. You told us that the Director General of Transports maritimes had not been able to get hold of the official at the Foreign Office who attends to the matter so you suggested we should ask Mr. Pilliard to act in order that Mr. Hutcheson might be left free for a few days; you added that we might tell Mr. Pilliard that the needful is being done with your Foreign Office but it will take more than 24 hours.
We have had two long interviews with the French Commission today with the result that Mr. Pilliard agreed, although he said he had no authority to do so, to address a letter to the Ministry of National Service asking that Mr. Hutcheson's calling up notice might be postponed in order to give time for your Government to intervene in the matter. This letter was taken up by one of Mr. Pilliard's representatives and we are pleased to say we have heard this afternoon that the Ministry of National Service have agreed to postpone the calling up for a fortnight, but that they cannot do more than this.
We hope that in the meantime the French Government will be able to obtain the exemptions for which we have asked them.
We are, dear Sirs,
Yours truly,

James Burness & Sons

The Ministry of National Service make it clean to the French Commission that this is the extreme they can do and no further postponement can be granted.