New-York tribune., 1919-07-13


the Germans and the Magyars COM
bined would outnumber the Ruma-
mans. Moreover, the southwestern
districts are Serb, the northwest
ern Magyar, but to give these dis
tricts to the Serbs and the Magyars
would be to deprive the Rumanians
living in the uplands of their
natural and necessary means of
communication to the Thesis and
Danube rivers, by whichs they eN
port their produce.
Rumania Claims
All of the Banat
Now the Rumanians claim all the
Banat and have to support their
claim separate, secret treaty with
the Western allies. 1t was a part
of the reward promised them for
entering the war. But when they
entered they were betrayed, de-
feated and compelled to make a
separate peace. Does this invah-
date the. pledge given by the
Western allies? At least the Ru-
manians deny it. But the Serbs
assert this to be the case, point to
the fact that the population of the
districts claimed is Serb, and would
vote for union with the new Jugo-
Slav state, and argue that Mr.. Will
son does not recognize secret trea-
ties anyway. Then the Magyars
claim the district about Szegedin.
which is Hungarian, on the same
ground of self-determination. AS
for the Germans, close to half a
million in number, they seem re-
signed to losing in any case.
If the Western Allies recognize
Serbian claims and fail to accept
| Rumanian claims in Bessarabia, Ru-
mania will make an alliance with
Italy, which has a dispute with the
Jugo-Slavs on her hands. More
over, Bulgaria, despite her quarrel
with Rumania over the Dobrudja,
might easily be placated by prom
Use of the Macedonian territory
she has waged three wars to &C
quire, and then we should have "A
new Balkan problem on our hands
at once. To suppose that the West
ern powers would go to war again
to save Serbia is to suppose the
impossible, but this is exactly what
would be necessary if the league Of
nations we're to be preserved at all,
Problem to Atone
For Wrongs Done
But if the Serbs are denied their
part of the Banat, if this injury is
added to the wrong, the palpable
wrong, already done in the hinter-
lands of Trieste, where half a mil
lion Slavs have been turned over to
Italy, and to the probable wrong to
be done, under the terms of the
Anglo-F secret treaty
affecting Dalmatia, then we shall
have exactly the same menace to
world peace that Serbia constituted
from the Congress of Vienna down
to the assassination at Serajevo,
when the whole world was en-
broiled. Moreover, Italy and Ruma-
MIA, two Latin states, with strong
sympathies and a common enemy,
might easily find basis of agree
ment with Germany, locking for al
lies and necessarily prepared to
trade upon the differences and profit
by the mistakes of the Paris Peace
Conference.
There is also Greek complication
to be reckoned with. The Greeks
and Serbs have treaty of alliance
against the Bulgarians and Greece
claims the old -15gean coast of Bull
garia in western Thrace. In addi-
ton, Greece has a quarrel with the
Italians affecting northern Epirus,
the Dodecanesus Islands, with
Rhodes and the western shore of
Asia Minor, including Smyrna.
Northern Epirus is Greek by right,
but Italy has prevented Greece from
occupying it, and now, as the
mandatory of Albania, occupies it
herself. The Dodecanesus and
Rhodes are Greek speaking, but
Italy has held them since her Tri-
politan War. Finally, the western
powers promised Smyrna to Italy,
but have recently permitted Greece
20 occupy it.
Thus the Balkans are beginning
to divide again, with Greece and
Jugo-Slavia in ore camp and Italy
and Rumania in a second, with Bull
garia destined, it would seem. to
join the Latin powers. But this
makes new Eastern question and
gives Germany a chance to select
partners from one side or the other.