New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-06-21
ITALY'S PART
To Fight for Civilization Against
Teutonic Tyranny.
To the Editor Of Tho Tribune.

AoutoHlC Tyranny
To the Editor OF Tho Tribune
Sir; | have read several letters In your
editorial page condemning Italy's justlfca-
tion in entering the war as being a perfdiou.
and treacherous act. Many letters justify
Austria liungarys attack on Serbia because
Of the Serbs having murdered their own
rulers and the Austrian Archduke.
II may be we'll to remind you that one
apparent reason why the Serbs murdered
their own rulers was because Of their in
ability TO collect the check framed by Ger
man and Austrian politicians and issued by
the latter TO Serbia, which pledged the pay
ment Of Bosnia and Herzegovina after a
period Of some twenty or thirty years, which
was forfeited. The paramount reason why
Austrian subjects murdered tho Archduke
was, as it goes without saying, that the Serbs
could not bear 10 have a new ruler from a
tyrant country that had betrayed them any
more than they could endure the rulers Of
their own who allowed themselves to be
betrayed.
The present war was TO be n punitive expe-
dition especially against Serbians for having
the impudence to sympathize with their Serb
and Croat brothers in Austria Hungary. At
tack was to have been made in August, 1913,
or one year previous to the murder Of the
Archduke this having been revealed recently
to the world by Signor Gioltu, but upon It
aly's refusal to join Austria in a war Of ag
gresson the matter was postponed for year
or so, when the murder of the Austrian
Archduke proved fitting occasion to wipe
Serbia and Belgium off the map.
The punitive expedition started in last
August Gas the world now knows) by Mag
vars and Teutons numbering two or three
thousand men, women and children Of the
Serbian Slavs. They have burned large
number of women and children alive and
gouged the eyes Of others. See DR.. Reiss's
article in the Revue de Paris" for April,
1915, and the Serbian official memorandum
and reports. The evidence of the memoran-
dunn was taken on the spot within few days
of the commission of the atrocities by DR..
Arious Won Tienhoven, Of The Hague, Hol-
land, and NJ. Jules Smidt, a Swiss engineer.
DR.. Reiss, of Lausanne, also took first hand
evidence and photographs viewing the
atrocities)
Precisely similar methods were adopted by
the Germans in Belgium and by the Turks
in Armenia, those on Belgium with greater
violence than any, and while performing this
sort OF savage brutalities upon unarmed and
unfortunate peasant civilians Germany and
Austria were urging Italy to join their side
though the treaty Of the Triple Alliance
pledged no aid in an aggressive war;, which
meant to uphold their course in having
taken the international code into their own
hands and help them to press on the barbara
ties with greater might. Any person of COM
mon sense can see that the Italian people
would have been perfect lunatics if they
ever attempted to enter the war on these
pretences and would have been condemned
by the world as such
The continuance of adopting these unscru-
pulous and insane methods of warfare on
a larger scale than as yet practised, namely,
the burning and destruction of cities, asphyx-
ating gases and chlorine bombs, Zeppelins
and the wholesale butchey at sea, showed
the Italian people the situation that con-
fronted them, which was to fall upon Italy
without a moments notice, as Serbia, Bel
GUM, Armenia and America have expert
enced. 1t was merely a question Of gaining
time by the central powers, which, from the
standard Of their business ethics lTeutons
and Magyars) have not shown that they
sleep with their head on a conscientious
pillow, and, therefore, the Italian people could
no longer rely on treaties or pledges from
Austria Hungary or Germany any more than
they could trust an insane man.
1t is true that Italy has a large number
of Italian brothers under Austrian tyranny
whom she aims to free as other small
nations do in behalf Of their subjects and
she will sacrifice miltarism against militar-
ism for the present in place of women with
children and babies clutched in their arms.
Just how far the miltarism will go remains
10 be seen by events, for the Kaiser and
Francis Joseph (the tiger and the wolff,
with their military caste, editors and dIplo-
mats have sworn vengeance in words Of
blood However if this crucial war will end
in the overthrow of the feudal Magyar and
Austrian tyranny, Turk infdel and Prussan
mlitarism, an immense step will have been
taken toward racial liberty and civilization
will be restored. Italy, however selfish is
therefore fighting for a noble and only cause
that her people could avail themselves Of,
a cause forced upon her by those who started
this war that brought forth the general
European confagration. A. WOLFE.
New York, June 10, 1915.