17 April 1957: "The Fires of Controversy"

By 17 April, there is still no reply from the Americans. Arnold Heeney, the Canadian ambassador in Washington, attempts to obtain answers from Robert Murphy, the Deputy Under Secretary. The response to the 10 April letter will not be forthcoming, apparently, because the “moment [i]s not opportune” and “would be improved by waiting a few days.” The primary factor in favour of delay is the US view that any response would become a publicized issue that would feed “the fires of controversy” in the United States. The Herbert Norman case—a Canadian diplomat accused of Soviet espionage—is a controversial issue in Canada and Heeney suggests that the Eisenhower administration move as quickly as possible to get ahead of it.