The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1914-05-16

corps in Vienna, when asked recently
about the relations between Austria
Hungary and Russia, bluntly an
swered hat there we're none. For
the past two years there practically
has been no Russian ambassador at
the court of Vienna. Nominally of
course, there has been an ambassa-
dor, but he has always found some
pretext for being absent from his
post, leaving the official duties to a
councillor of embassy who has care
fully abstained from doing anything.
Similarly, Austria-Hungary's diplo-
matte representation at ST. Peters,
burg has been almost equally per-
functory. County Szapary was ap-
pointed ambassador to Russia last
October but up to the present has
spent only three weeks at his post;
his absence being vaguelys described
to family reasons.
For some time past there has been
considerable tension in the relations
between the two empires, the precise
reasons for which are difficult to ex-
plain. The whole situation is full of
complications. There are religious
and racial questions involved affect
ing primarily the two countries alone.
Then there is the old rivalry for pre-
dominance in the Balkans and final
ly the many differences between the
Triple Alliance and the Triple En-
tente which exert a most important
influence on the relations existing be-
tween the individual countries in
each group.
Up to the time of the Austrian
annexation of Bosnia n Herzego-
vina in 1908, the relations between
the two countries had been apparent
ly quite friendly. They had made
a working arrangement in the Bal
kans regarding conditions in Mace
donia, and although it had not &C
complished much, everything was
moving along smoothly. But the
precipitate move of the late Austrian
foreign minister, Count Aehrenthal,
in the annexation of Bosnia, upset
everything. The Russian minister
Iswolsky felt that he had been duped
by his Austrian colleague and never
forgave him. Since then Iswolsky
has been Austro-Hungary's bitterest
enemy, and since he is one of the
most Influential ~personages in the
Russian national committee he has
beer able to make things very dis
agreeable in many respects for the
dual monarchy. Indeed there is very
good authority for believing hat an
Austro-Russian war was very near
just before the Balkan war broke out
in the fall of 1912. 1t was only
through the strong personal efforts
of the venerable Austrian Emperor
Francis Joseph that such a catastro-
phe was prevented. 1t is thought that
Emperor Nicholas was just as much
opposed to a war, but he is no poll
tician and by no meal strong
enough to hold back the firebrands
in the Russian national committee.
The personal relations between
the two imperial families are of the
most cordial character. 1t is some
times ever said that the Hapsburgs
are really ~pro-Russian. The late
Archduke Charles Louis, brother of
the emperor and the father of Arch
duke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to
the throne, was always a great friend
of Russia and his sympathies in that
direction are believed to have been
to some extent inherited by his son.
Archduke Charles Louis. who was
the patron of the principal Austrian
industrial associations and a very
far-sighted man, perceived the i'm
portant role that commerce and in
dustry would one day play in inter-
national relations, at least twenty
years before European statesmen had
begun to pay any attention to these
factors. He knew very well that
Russia would never be likely to in
jure Austria's foreign commerce very
much, while Germany would some
day ruin it. Russia, besides having
an enormous home market to sup
ply, has practically no great indus
tries, while Germany is constantly
on the look out for new markets to
conquer.
Events have proved the correct
ness of the archduke's views. Twen-
ty-five years G Austria-Hungary al
most mOnOpolized the trade of the
Balkans and Turkey and Egypt. To-
day the bulk of the trade in these
countries has gone into the hands of
the Germans. Indeed the aggressive
methods of German merchants in try
ing to capture Austria's commerce in
the near east are bitterly resented by
their Austrian rivals.
The %sympathies and feelings of the
two governments and the two peoples
are very different from those prevail
ing between the rulers. The So
called national committee in Russia
is most violently anti-Austrian and
is straining every nerve to gain absO-
lutte control of the Balkans. The
fight is largely a religious one, Rus
STA wanting to bring all the Balkans
under the sway of the Orthodox
church and to force the Roman Cath
Ollie part of the populations. as we'll
as the Musselmans to acknowledge
the supremacy of the Russian church.
1t is this which explains Russia's
hostile attitude to King Ferdinand of