Evening star., 1918-02-03

PEELED Austria to play a humiliating
role for many years. but Austria. speak
ing for the ruling classes, had an old
and honorable history. looked at mere-
ly from the side of power and influence
IN European affairs. for centuries be~i
Nbre Prussia came to supremacy IN.
Germany. after defeating Austrian
armies at Sadowa. scant half-centurys
ago.
Threatened on the one side by Russia"
and on the other by Italy, the Haps~s
burgs have had no choice but to march
with and under the Hohenzollerns; oue
they have not enjoyed the thing and
they have not failed on occasion to
give evidence of their resentment. while
Bismarck and his successors have hards
ly concealed their contempt for the rul~
ing family in Austria. But today Rus~
sia has collapsed and Italy has been =
defeated; Austria has nothing to fear
outside of her frontiers; her sole fears
come from within, where domestic dis
man ally. who still demands provinces
and prizes of the war. and thus pro-
longs the eXhausting contest.
Austria Drifting From Germany.
In this situation is it too much to
believe that despite all exaggerations
we are beginning to see the drift or
Austria away from Germany? For
months there has been new tone in
Austrian newspapers. certain tone OF
independence in the declarations OF
Austrian statesmen. and the whole
German press has revealed its inn
patience and indignation with the evi-
dent willingness of the Austrians 10
make peace before Germany has at
tanned her war aims. To be sure, IL,
smacks of ingratitude for Austria to
refuse to support Germany now. when
she owes her existence to repeated resSs
cue expeditions of German aImies in '
all the past dark days of the struggie,
hut grateful to tlelH.F
allies? When, too. did even an ofhclai
readiness to make proper return for
past favors prevail over a domestc
danger?
Let us discount these Austrian rue
mors as much as possible-they are.
certainly premature and they are PROB
ably exaggerated; but none the less We
are bound to recognize that the pro: !:
longation of the war has different
meaning for the German than for the.
Austrian. Austria has achieved her
ends. at horrible. perhaps a 1atai.
cost, and her only immediate aim now
is peace She can gain no more: she
can lose much in money if not in life II
the struggle is prolonged. VIII she.
then. for many months continue to nshty
and to suffer solely for German ends, 70
obtain for Germany the Courland or the
Lithuanian lands? 1t seems unlikely
if the danger of domestic revolution is
a consequence q.
The alliance against Germany has SO
far been held together. except in the
case of Russia. which has collapsed in
ternally, because of the equal peril to
ian the partners of the German pro- (
gram and the German purpose. The
alliance of the central powers has beenss
held together by the fact that Austriaec
Bulgaria and Turkey could not defend
themselves against immediate perils.
or in the case of Bulgaria, attain ma.
tionaI ends without German aid Getk
many exercised complete military cop-
troll in all the councils of the central
powers. because if German commands
swere not obeyed, German troops could
be recalled and then ruin would fo1loW.'s
Their Interests Now Differ.
But this situation no longer endures. !,
Austria does not need German military.
aid: she will not need il again. unleSs,sf
as seems now unlikely, ltafy snail De
in a position to destroy Austrian forces".
next summer. Therefore Austria aS,,
bound to look more and more to her
own interests. which are not those OK
the Germans. She does not care to se0
Germany annex large portions of RUS
sia her own domestic situation will .nofss
be improved if she annexes ten or
twelve million Poles for this will buts
give the Slav an overwhelming mastery5s
in her own house. OF fifty millions OF >
people in the Austro-Hungarian em-
pire at least half are Slavonic now
and it is only with extreme difficulty,
that the German and Magyar minorities
are able to keep control, always with
the aid of and at the price of conces-
SionS to the Poles.
Not even the desire to annex Serbia is ~
to be found in the current Austrian
press. for this would also bring cons
siderable fresh Slay element in and add
to the difficulties of dealing with tho
southern SiaVS. who are now Austrian
subjects. Austria has immediately Y
inperialistic ambitions. She is tefG- T
.porariIy freed from all the dangers tha1h
led her to risk war nearly four years
ago. Any annexation on ans frontief'e
would weaken her. and ner ssauesmenE
recognize this Save on the iraiian.x
side no real claim is now made on any
of her territory by her eneInies-ard =
the Italian claim has been measurably :
weakened by recent Italian disasters.
If Austria is to continue the itat
must be solely for German encS. Grant,
ed that her statesmen are willing. will Il
they remain so? And will her people 10
for long endure their present agonies?
Breach With Berlin Probable. ID.
1t seems hardly likely. Rather it issz
to be expected that there will be a ars
slow but sure drifting apart of German
and Austrian policies if the war party
in control in Berlin. Austria
has regaiued her independence. in fact,qs
by deliverance from peril. She is -
bound in her own interest TO disagree
more and more with German insisteace 70
on a prolongation of the conflict IN
the end nothing rs more prODaDie lnan
that there will be real breach be- "a
tween Vienna and Berlin oyer the ques-
ito of the war if Berlin p@.sues its
present course. s.
But such breach would transform
the whole war situation. 1t would deSa@
stroy Mitteleuropa because it would end,sf
the physical contact of Germany with 1,
the near east. L. would leave Germany =
Isolated in the presence of he4 great =.
foes. France. Britain and the UniteS
States. and it would terminate ali pos-sS
sible chance of any great gain for Ger
many in the war, except at the ex-
pense of Russia. 1t would mean that q
Turkey, and even Bulgaria. would have
TO make terms with the sea powers and
all of the larger ambitions OF GerlnanX4ss
would be destroyed.
This is the great fact in the Austrian
situation. ii seems to me. Russian events &
md recent campaigns have freed Austria
rom the German yoke. She can GET
along by herself. She needs no Germa n. -
lelp. The alliance with Germany becomes
low clear liability: there is no great
Austrian issue at stake. save so far as
italy is concerned. and with this Austria
,as the resources to deal. holding Italian
erritory as she does. Clearer and clearer
every day becomes the evidence that the
Austrian people demand pe,ce And -.-h,-, & {
aoCoptinued on agntn-tage.l