The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-12-05
LITTLE READJUSTMENT.
Even Though Congress Does Declare War
on Austria.

| Washington, ID. c., Dec 5.-Deelara
| tion of war with Austria Hungary in
wolves very little readjustment of af
| fairs between the United States and the
dual monarchy because the state of wal
which Congress is about to declare actu.
ally has been fact for many months
| There has been no such number OF
| depredatons on American lives and
rights by Austrian military forces as
has been the case with Germany, but
| Austria as the ally of Germany has
gradually come into a position where
officials of the American government
have realized more and more clearly that
she must be included with Germany as
an enemy. This was apparent even be-
fore the Teutonic invasion of Italy made
the Austro Italian front literally part
of the western front on which American
forces are operating.
There has been no outstanding covert
act on the part of Austria against the
United States; there has been rather
series of acts short of being classed as
cause for war. They 60 back to the be-
ginning of the European war
Long before Ambassador Dumba was
sent home as an instigator of strikes in
American manufacturing plants, the gov
ernment had evidence that the Austrian
diplomatic and consular service was be-
ing used in this country for Germany's
warlike purposes. The secret service
found how the Austrian diplomatic code
and officials of Austrian consuls were
being used for activities Germany could
not carry on in the United States with
her own officials. In some cases where
submarines sank unresisting passenger
liners with great loss of life, it appeared
that the U-boats themselves were Aus
trian. but there was little doubt that the
officers and crews were Germans and that
the submarines were acting under Ger
man orders. The most striking case of
that sort was the destruction of the Ital- |
ian liner Ancona, in which responsibility /
never was definitely established.
The first attack on an American ship |
which attracted the attention of the ma
ion was that upon the American tank |
steamer Petrolite. An Austrian subma-
rine fired on the ship, killed a member of |
The crew and forcibly took off supplies,
while the master was held as a hostage |
,n the submarine. Nothing but evasive
diplomatic correspondence ever came of
t. The American steamer Schuylkill,
,unk last week. is believed to have been
tent down by an Austrian submarine at
ack. German submarines in the Medi
erranean have been flying the Austrian
lag and Austrian submarines have been
lying the German flag. Apparently com
nanders of both navies have been inter
hanging flags TO avoid responsibility for
awless acts.
Quite aside from the question of
overt acts however, the principal con
Iteration of the government in decid-
ag on war with Austria Hungary was I
he nature of the alliance between Aus
ria and Germany which made it anoma-
ous to war with the latter and not with 1
he former. Difficulty piled upon diff J
ulty, and as much as he hoped to avoid 9
!. the president was forced to realize L
hat Austria was being used by Germany le
q the United States a. an active enemy :
nd that nothing less than a declaration r
I war would clear the situation and :
ave the government perfectly free 90 Il
airy on the war with Germany in the le
lost effective manner. a
The German spy system in the United y
tates to-day Is known to be manned q
rgely by subjects Of Austria Hungary. ?
any Of them members Of the Industrial
'orkers sf the World, and the recent at b