Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-03-22
ALLIES JEALOUS
|. STATES R0SELLI
Nations at Peace Table Should
Grant Modest Request OF Italy
and Give Fiume.

Jealousy among European ma
tions is responsible for the present
attitude of allied nations at the
peace conference towards Italy,
said Lieutenant Bruno Roselli, for
mer professor at a New York col
lege and recently of the Italian
army, in an interview with an
Argus reporter today.
Premier Orlando of Italy yeSter-
day declared that if the city of
Fiume were not granted to Italy
that nation would withdraw from
the peace conference
Lieutenant Roselli is at present
occurring at the University of Chi
cago and in middle western states.
He defends the attitude of Italy
and says other nations at the
peace conference should grant the
very modest" request of Italy for
the city of Fiume.
"If compelled to sever connec-
tions with the peace conference
Italy will have to stand by the
terms of armistice with Austria
Hungary, said Lieutenant Roselli.
Under the terms of the armistice,
signed when Italy practically had
Austria at her mercy, Italy will be
occupying more ground than she
would if the peace conference
granted her present demands"
Lieutenant Roselli pleaded for
seIf-determination. He contends
that the people of the city of FL
ume have already voted for annex
alton to Italy.
Seventy per cent of the people
of F'iume," he declared, "are Ital-
ian. And five days before the Ital-
ians entered their city the people
by a large vote voted to join Italy.
: 1.-THE Italians have lost all pa
tience. They have been extremely
patient. The present situation
proves that the people who are the
most patient are the most jumped
upon.
THE peace conference is treat
ing Italy worse than enemies of
the allies. The Jugo-Slavs were
our biggest opponents during the
war. Whenever kustria-Hungary
wanted to make a strong offensive
against US she sent in the Jugo-
Slav troops.
And now the conference wants
to give to this enemy a city that
was originally Italian and that
now wants to be part of Italy.
THE first act of the league of
nations, in case Italy sewers con-
nections with the peace confer
ence, will be to forcibly expel Italy
from the territory that she now oc-
cupies.
in other words the league of ma
tions will have as its first act the
denial of self-determination to FL
ume, a city that is 20 per cent Ital-
ian And one of the principles of
the league of nations is self-de-
termination for all peoples."
The Italian soldier declared
there is a subtle Jugo-Slav propa-
ganda at work in the United States
which is attempting to make the
people believe that Italy is selfish.
Italy Selfish?" asked Lieuten-
ant Roselli and be became red
with anger at the thought. eff It
ally had fought this war only for
material gains she would have
joined with Germany and received
many times the territorial gains
she is now asking.
IF Italy had Joined Germany she
would have added 100000 troops
to the German armies and Paris
would have been captured and the
war lost to the allies a long time
ago.
Italy threw 100000 men in on
the side of the allies and she kept
100000 Austrians and Germans
busy who otherwise might have
been hurled against the British
and French armies on the western
front"