New-York tribune., 1920-06-19

By Frank II. Simonds

Italy was at last able to begin that
march to victory which she had conf
IDENTIFY expected to take place in 1915
-Four terrible campaigns, with enormous
losses in men and attended by the in
vasion and devastation of most Of
Venetia, separated Italy from the fruits
which she had set out to pluck, believing
them already ripe, in the spring of 1915.
But when victory was achieved Italy
confidently expected that her great sac
| rifices would be appropriately rewarded
France and Britain had agreed by the
terms of the Treaty of London signed
in 1915 that Italy was TO have frontier
following the crests Of the Alps to the,
Brenner Pass and including Trieste and
Istria as we'll as the northern half of
Dalmatia. In view Of her great suffer
ings and the far larger burdens she had
borne, Italy asked that to what had been
promised in the Treaty of London there
should be added the italian city of
Fiume
CTToSf ana Chaos
This request was promptly rejected
by President Wilson, who declined to
recognize the Treaty of London, as we'll
At Paris Italy found France and Brit
ain more or less tacitly supporting Pres
ident Wilson, and, 40 far from obtaining
F;ume, discovered that she could get
In Inns Ia MI %h> n~4o - I,
| the Jugo-Slavs, for whom the Americans
and British displayed unconcealed SYM
pathy and toward whom tho French only
less openly uttered approving words.
AS consequence, there has followed
the long period Of unrest and chaos, the
d'Annunzio dash to Fiume, the success
sive falls Of the Italian Cabinets, tho dis
appearance first Of Orlando and then Of
Nitti The domestic political situation
has become more and more difficult, and
at the same time Italy finds herself in
volved with the Jugo- -Slavs, the Alba
mans and the Turks. The promise of a
new position in the Near East has been
unrealized, and not alone the Jugo-Slavs
but the Greeks have found support In
their rivalry with italians among the
recent allies Of italy.
Small cause for surprise, then, that
Giolitti Is close to a return to power.
His prophecies have been realized The
policy Of his opponents has led Italy
into terribly costly adventures, with no
compensating profits. The Central Pow
ers have been beaten, Austria has dis
appeared, Germany is for the moment
powerless. But Italy finds herself aban-
doned by her Franco British allies, de-
MED her share Of the promised gains Of
a successful war, weaker, not stronger,
as a consequence Of enormous sacri-
fees.
For Britain and even more acutely for
France the revival of Giolitti's influence
must have sinister significance Be-
tween France and Italy to-day there ex-
lists bitterness comparable with that
which existed between France and Ger
many six years ago. Nor Is there much
less resentment over British and Ameri-
/ Ndii pOilSS lc IIdllduS Iecl themselves
betrayed. They cannot now strike back,
but in the future there is little reason to
doubt that Italy will seek new alliance
with Germany, an association with some
new Central European group which will
include Rumania and German-speaking
Austria, and may not impossibly draw
! Hungary in ultimately.
All of these things are natural conse-
quences Of the course Of the United
States. Britain and France at Paris.
But it is France which will have to bear
the burden, rs usual. And for France
the return Of Giolitt is menace which
can hardly be exaggerated, looking to
| the future.
Copyright. 1870. by Tho Mcclure News
| paper syndicate)