Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-22
BY FRANK n. sIMoNDS.

Copyright. 1915 by the New York Tribune.l
To the neutral observer the poetic
Justice of the present Balkan situation
is unmista kable. For generations Eu-
rope has played with the Balkan states
they have been the pawns to be moved
hither and thither as it pleased Lon
don. Petrograd, Berlin or Vienna. The
ambitions of the races that inhabit this
blood soaked corner of Europe, their
longings. aspirations, dreams have been
ignored. Condemned to live under the
Turk, to endure endless agonies be-
cause the policies of great powers
crossed in their territories, not only
have all these states suddenly become
masters of their own destinies. but all
Europe is facing Arma geddon because
of one of them, and cars. emperors
and kings are bidding for the favors
of those that still remain neutral.
To get an insight into the present
tangle, which is the Balkan crisis, it is
necessary to review hastily the more
important events in the history of Eu-
rope which concern the people of the
southeast, to note the conflicting claims
and purposes of the great powers con-
cerned, and finally, the even more an
taSonistic purposes of the little states
themselves.
From 1905 to 1918.
In Balkan history 1908 = date of
real Importance, because it marks the
ASA ssination of the King of Serbia. At
the moment the world saw in tins
crime only an act of unspeakable bar
barity. The unfortunate Alexander be-
came something of a royal martyr III
the eyes of a world which knew next TO
- Nf nrt- hl
the Danube.
Yet the crime had two great conSe-
quences. 1t was the beginning of the
regeneration of Serbia. it was the end
Slav state. Alexander had been the
tool of Vienna. He had been but the
creature that BallplaZ moved back and
forth to meet the Bulgarian pawn. SINH
larry operated by Russia. With the re-
turn of a Karageorgievitch to the Serb
ian throne the Slav state changed
sides and became a soldier of the czar.
Henceforth Austria had TO face foe
on the south.
The immediate consequence was Il
long series of trade wars. the famous
pig wars of other years. SO named
because Austria closed her frontiers to
Serbian pigs, and we'll nigh ruined the
little agricultural state. which derived
its chief income from its pork products.
While this petty quarrelng was go
ing forward. the Young Turkish revo--
luton broke out. Turkey, the ally of
Vienna and Berlin. the master of Mace
donna, was suddenly torn by an in
ternal revolution which sent Abdul
Hamid into exile and prison. destroyed
the Turkish army, left Turkey weak
and helpless. But in its conception, the
Young Turkish idea aimed at restoring
Turkish power. While this idea still
seemed realizab BILE. Austria, having oc
cupied Bosnia since the congress of
Berlin, and now fearing the revitalized
,,l, 70 nl.ip
il, solemnly annexed Bosnia, thus tear
ing up the great Berlin document.
The Annexation of Bosnia.
But the annexation of Bosnia de-
stroyed all the hopes of that greater
Serbia which all Serbs had cherished
for centuries. 1t placed definitely I'M
der Hapsburg rule the 100000 Serbs
living east of the Adriatic and west of
the Serbian kingdom.
Russia, France and Great Britain pro-
tested this act. There was a moment
in 1908 when it seemed likely that
Armageddon would come. but Ger.
many appeared in shining armor,"
ratified the saber, and the triple en-
tente gave up their protest. Austrian
success in the Balkans seemed as
sured, the eventual advance of Austria
through Serbia to Saloniki appeared
inevitable.
But two powers now. entered definite
ly into an antiAustrian campaign.
Italy, seeking a balance for Austrian
gains, promptly picked her quarrel
with Turkey over Tripon. and went to
war. Russia, defeated in the field, be-
gan to construct that Balkan confed-
eracy which was to precipitate the
Balkan wars.
the throes of a reorganization. dis
closed the weakness of the Osmanli.
No sooner had the peace of Lausanne
ended the Tripolitan war than Russian
diplomacy achieved the welding to-
gether of the three Slav states of the
south-Serbia, Bulgaria and Monte
negro-and the first Balkan war fol-
lowed. Greece was not party to this
alliance, but Eenizelos. perceiving the
propitious hour, sent the Greek army
against the Turk.
Austria, Germany, the whole states
manship of the central powers looked
uneasily out upon the opening conflict,
but were too satisfied in the strength
of the German trained Turkish army
to interfere. Their mistake was patent
to the world, when Lule Burgas,
Kumanovo and Saloniki had brought
swift destruction to the Osmanli.
Austria Intervenes.
When in 1912 the conquerors of the
Turk went to London to make terms of
peace IL was promptly dlScloSeQ tnat
Bulgaria. Serbia and Montenegro had
gone to war with a definite bargain.
The Serb states were to have northern
Albani to the Skumbi river and a thin
pairing of Macedonia, marked by a line
from the Serbo- Bulgarian frontier to
Lake Ochrida. The rest of Macedonia
was left to Bulgaria. Even a part of
the Serbian prospective profit about
Tskub was made conditional on the
decision of the car. AS for Greece. she
had not made any ante-bellum agree
quest.
Austrian diplomacy now seized upon
the rivalries of the Balkan states TO
destroy this Balkan confederacy which
Russia had constructed. First of all
Vienna declared that Albania could not
be annexed by Serbia and Greece, but
must be made a separate state. This
deprived Serbia of most of her pro-
spective gain under her treaty with
Bulgaria. Russia protested, but Ger
many again signifed her readiness to
go to war to support Austrian claims
and neither France nor Great Britain
was willing to back Russia in gen.
eral conflict over a few square miles
of Albanian wilderness.
Serbia was thus compelled to give
over Albania. the Montenegrins to
abandon Scutari. But Serbia had con-
Guered all of that portion of Mace
donia ascribed to Bulgaria in the pre-
1iminary treaty and now dema nd ed
that as compensation for her sacrifices
In Albania she receive her conquests
Greece, too. having beaten Bulgaria tc
Saloniki by short head, claimed this