The Lakeland evening telegram., 1917-02-27
King Constantine
interviewed By
Associated Press
Correspondent
(By Associated Press.l


Staf Correspondent of the Associated
Press. )-King Constantine received
The Associated Press correspondent
in audience this morning just before
he left for America
Il am sorry you are leaving us,
King Constantine began abruptly
= dent believe that there is man
or woman in Greece who does not
feel very profoundly what a great
thing it has been for us during this
most critical period in our national
history to have a correspondent of
The Associated Press here to tell the
world with absolute impartiality the
truth of what is taking place. They
tell me. however, that a good many
of Jour kilograms to The Associated
Press never get through the CEN
sors?" the king laughed a little rue
fully. You have nothing on me, ="
he added. neither do mine
THE most ridiculous, the most
Outrageous nonsense about what is
happening in Greece is published
Idlily in the European press, presum-
ably written by journalists who are
not even on the spot to see the facts
for themselves. And when my gov
eminent sends official denials Of
them the European newspapers will
not even publish the denials
After all, all we ask is fair play.
But it seems almost hopeless to try
It, get the truth out of Greece to the
rest CT the world under present cir
cumstances. We have been sorely
tried these past two years and We
don't pretend to have always been
Iangels under the constant irritation
of the ever-increasing allied controI
of every little thing in our own pri-
vate life-letters, kilograms. police,
e. erything
Moreover, by taking an active
hand in cur own internal politics,
England and France have succeeded
in alternating sympathy and devo-
ltion towards them on the part OF the
Greek people that at the beginning
of the war was virtually an ultimate
tradition / understand how those
responsible for such a revolt try to
lexcuse themselves by reciting the
difficulties they have to meet by
talking about Greek treachery and
the immense sinister organization OF
German propaganda that has foiled
them at every turn and so on. The
only trouble is that they make us
pay for the errCrs of their policy ;.
The people of Greece are paying for
them now in suffering and death
from exposure and hunger while
France and England starve us out
because they have made the mistake
of assuming that their man Venizelos
could deliver the Greek army and the
Greek people to the Entente powers
whenever they wanted to use Greece
for their advantage regarding 'sss of
pendent nation.
There are just two things about
cur desperate struggle to save our
selves from destruction that | am
going to ask The Associated Press 70
make clear to the people of America
The first point is this: We have
two problems on cur hands here in
Greece-,an internal one and an eX.
ternal one. The entente powers
, have made the fundamental mistake
, of considering them beth as one
Tney said to themselves: 'NeniRlo.
is the strongest man in Greece anC
is heart and soul with us. He car
deliver the Greeks whenever III
/ wants to. Let us back Nenizelo'
= WHtu We uttu lil'
e Greek army he will turn it over Il
, Ius >
2 We'll. they were wrong. as | thin
you have seen for yourself since yol
Lave been here. Venizelos WAS per
laps the strongest man in Greece a
they thought. But the moment n
tried to turn over the Greek army {
the Entente as if we were lot c
r,ercenaries. he became the weakes
: man in Greece and the most despiset
= For in Greece no man delivers th
= Greeks They decide their own de-
= TIMES as a free people. and not Ems
land, France and Russia put togethC
= can change them. neither by force {
: arms nor by starvation And the
= have tried both. AS for Venixelc