The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1916-05-11


he sent his aid-de-camp to the Aus
trian lines with request that he
wanted to confer with the late mill
tary attache at Centinje, Major Hup-
ka. The major happened to be on
the Isonzo fighting the Italians, but
he was summoned at once and he
motored all the way from Goritza to
Cattaro, where he conferred with
Prince Peter
1.-The news that a conference had
been solicited by the prince originat-
ed the report that an armistice had
been concluded, but this report was
utterly unfounded," the former
Montenegrin premier declared, al
though since then the Austrians omit
ted to drop bombs over Montenegro.
1t is more probable that Italy,
whose representative at Cettinje
played poker atrociously, by the way.
knew all about this conference, which
subsequent events proved to have re-
lated to something more important
than bomb dropping. This may ex-
plain why no guns were sent from
here to replace the French ones on
the Lovcheu. Still, King Nicholas
continued to invoke help from the al
lies and he even went so far as to
issue a proclamation to his heroic
people exhorting them to fight to the
bitter end and affirming his determi-
nation to defend Montenegro until
the last cartridge was fired and the
last man was killed. Montenegrins,
he said, prefer death to surrender
and he said he was going to lead
them from mountain to mountain and
that the national traditions of hero
ism were going to be renewed.
Allies Send Help.
King Nicholas's merits as a states
man certainly are worthy of recogni-
ton, as his proclamation had the de-
sired effect, and the allies decided to
send help, including guns, for the
Lovcheu. The guns were accordingly
sent, unfortunately on, Greek ship
owned by an Austrian, who, when in
mid-Adriatic signalled to an Austrian
submarine which was in waiting to
sink the ship with her cargo after
naturally giving ample time to the
crew to take to the boats. Other
ships with munitions and provisions
were similarly sunk by the Austrians,
thanks to valuable information sup
piled by the Montenegrins, who even
tolerated their port of Antivari to be
closed with Austrian mine fields.
The Italians, however, succeeded in
landing provisions, especially flour,
at San Giovanni di Medua, both for
the Serbians and the Montenegrins,
and asked the latter to have them
transported to Cettinje and Scutari.
Despite the fact that the Montene-
grins had 200 transport carts and
1000 draught horses, presented to
King Nicholas by the czar of Russia,
they refused to carry the provisions
inland and neglected to repair the
road between Medua and Scutari.
The provisions were partly looted by
the Montenegrins, who sold them to
the Albanians, and partly allowed to
deteriorate.
Instead the road between Jacova
and Scutari, which the Austrians will
in all proba bility use in advancing to
Scutari, was thoroughly repaired by
the Montenegrins Immediately after
they occupied this city with Austria's
tacit consent.
There is every reason to believe
that a secret agreement was conclud-
ed between Montenegro and Austria
last August during the conference be-
tween Prince Peter and Major Hup-
ka, at which the late Austrian minis
ter at Cettinje, Baron Otto, is be-
lieved to have been present. Accord
ing to this agreement, Austria prom
ised Montenegro territorial compen-
sations in Novibazar and Albania, in
cluding, of course, Scutari, which the
Montenegrins had to occupy at once
against the cession of Mount Low
cheu, which the Austrians prepared
to capture at an early date soon after
crushing Serbia with the help of the
Germans and Bulgarians. Evidently
some provson was made for the re-
storation of the Prince of Wied as
Mpret of Albania, who in fact has
been at Prisrend more than month
waiting to advance toward Durazzo.
The agreement was conditional on
the success of the Austro-German in
vasion of Serbia and in fact it was
confirmed or rectified last October
News of it was brought to Rome by a