Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-12-25
RESCUED PEOPLES
PLEAT0M WILSON
Memorial Presented Reciting
Aspirations Of Provinces
Redeemed From Austria.
SERBIAN HOPES OUTLINED
By the Associated Press.

by tne Associated treSs.
PARIS, Tuesday. December "a
Italian deputies of the redeemed prov
inces. who represented their districts
in Vienna and Budapest parliaments
and came to Paris expressly for the
purpose of submitting their case to
the American mission. have been re-
ceived by Col E. NJ. House. Through
Col. House the deputies presented
memorial to President Wilson. The
deputies are Pitacc for Trieste, Ben
natl for Istria. Zanelia for Fiume, and
Ohigle Anovich. for lara.
The memorial recites that their
country has been for two thousand
years Italian; that Trieste has suffer-
ed under Austrian oppression for hVe
centuries, and Dalmatia since 1897 has
stood all kinds of persecution to de-
fend it's nationality. The people of
fought in all wars for Italian inde-
pendence and participated in the pres
ent war with 1000 men.
Annexation Issue Discussed.
Regarding the annexation of Tren-
tino, Trieste and Istria. the memorial
says there is no question that can be
raised, but adds that Fiume being
free city, similar to Bremen and Lu-
beck, has the right to decide its own
government and any contrary decision
would be against the principles pro-
claimed by President Wilson Fiume
already has shown by plebiscite her
determination to be united with Italy.
Dalmatia has 80 miles of coast. of
which Italy claims less than 100
miles, comprising the cities of Zara,
Sebenico and Spalato. besides the
greatest part of the Dalmatian Isles.
Austrian statistics, says the me-
mortal, show that the majority of
the population are Slavs in Spa1ato
and Sebenico, but they are actually as
markedly Italian as the population is
predominantly French in those districts
of Alsace-Lorraine where German
statistics show 81 per cent OF the
population as German. Besides the
ports of Antivari and Duleigno'
negro, and eventually that of Scutari.
the districts will have the excellent
ports OF Portore, Buccari, Segni,
Metcouich, Ragusa, Gravesa and the
military port of Cattaro. capable of
sheltering the entire American fleet.
with Mostar, Serajevo, Belgrade and
Asram, thus assuring to Serbia.
Croatia, Slavonia, Bosnia and HerZe-
govina direct communication to the
sea- Furthermore, it says in conclu-
sion, that Italy is ready to make
Trieste and Fiume free ports for
every country.
Serbian Aspirations Explained.
! The aspirations of the Serbian gov
ernment for the future of it's coun-
| try were explained tonight to the
correspondent by DR.. NJ. r. Vesnitch,
Serbian minister to France, who, in
all probability, will be one Of the
Serbian delegates to the peace con-
ference. NJ. Vesnitch was the head of
the Serbian mission to the United
States in the winter of 1917. DR..
Vesnitch said:
LAS the Mcntenegrins have decided
to become a part Of Greater Serbia,
we being of the same race. the from
tiers of our country are Greece, Bull
garia, Rumania, Hungary and the Ad-
riatic. That is our conception of the
future Serbia as a racial whole-the
realization of our race aspirations
which have survived through CEN
turies of war, division and suffering
But what of the Italian claims to
the Adriatic coast?" the correspondent
asked,
.'ItalyS' replied DR.. vesnitch. "ac-
cording to the convictions of the
| Serbian government, has no just claim
/! to the eastern Adriatic coast. The
governments of Great Britain, Rus
sia and France arranged by agree
ment with Italy to give her that coast
| or large part of it, at the London
conference in April, 1915. Had Rus
sia the right to dispose of the Ad-
ratio coast? Or England? Or
France? They were each giving away
what had not belonged to them. We
do not recognize the title of Italy un-
der that agreement to any part of the
eastern Adriatic."
| 'Not to Trieste:" inquired the cor.
respondent.
sNo," declared the Serbian minis.
! ter. Not to Trieste; but 1 will not &c
into that question at this moment
The Italian claims to Trieste have beer
| so persistent and continuous for {
| long period that We are willing ts
leave that question apart.
Approves President Wilson's Plan
"The Serbian government and peo
pie stand squarely upon the basis O.
| President Wilson's principles. Thos'
! principles have been accepted by tn.
governments of Great Britain, Franc
and Italy.
I'VE assume and trust absolutely i,
the agreement made by Italy. Franc
| and Great Britain with the govern
:nent of the United States in the appli
cation of those principles in arrang
ing the boundaries of nations an'
| races. There being relatively few
Italians on the eastern Adriatic coast
| as compared with SlavS, the Italian
government must consider this as
political question, while we conside
it racial one.
'"The Dalmatian Slavs desire to re
main serbs and not become Italians
our peoples living on the Adriatic de
sire to become a part of the Serbian
nation and not by verdict of Russia
France and Great Britain come unde
the alien control of Italy. The easter
shore of the Adriatic is lined witt
towns and cities where the Slav ele
ment strongly predominates. OF tn
| 100000 Inhabitants only Is. 900 declar
themselves to be Italians
MAI CEN pHOnES I16nnnunn