Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-05-24
"A BOURBON'S TRY
FOR THE THRONE
OF FRANCE
Special Foreign Correspondence Of
Evpry Evening and the u 3.
1cAture Service Inc. n. Y.
Copyrieht 1921.

Vienna, May 22.~-The memoirs of
Prince Sixtus OF Parma Bourbon. broth
er-in-iaws OF former Emperor Karl Of
Austria. have just appeared In Paris.
Count Wedel. at one time German am
bassador to Vienna, comments on Six
tus' literary venture in the following
manner.
"The Prince gives the verbatim con-
textua of documents which he asserts
To have In his possession relating to the
peace negotiations between his Imper-
al brother-in-law and the Paris gov
ernment respectively. He reproduces
annotations made by him at the time,
about his conversations with ex-Efnper-
or Karl and soule French statesmen and
goes on telling that he made two hur-a
ried trips to Vienna and that he had
five interviews with both Poincare and
Lloyd George and that he had any num-
ber of intimate conferences with Ribot,
then French Premier, the Cambon
Brothers and many others.
"No sooner had Franz Josef closed his
tired eyes than this Prince. so he says,
conceived the idea that the young Em-
peror should negotiate n separate peace
with France. Prince Sixtus very en-
phatically states that this idea of his
was based upon his Intimate knowl-
edge of Karl's attitude. Very shortly
after kari's accession To the throne
Sixtus was authorized to start nego-
tiations with Paris. On March 5, 1917,
he had his first interview with President
Poincare, which was followed by mar1y
other meetings. He was never alone
with Poincare, either Ribot or Cambon.
the former Ambassador to Austria or
both taking part in the discussions The
causes of the world war were never
touched upon and the story of Ger
many's guilt were thought TO have
weight only with such misinforrned
parties az the Nentrals and America.
According to sixtus. Poincare told
him that France had DO concern in the
ACKNOWLEDGMENT of Austria; on the con-
trary. France looked upon Austria as
her future ally. to be enforced by the
addition OF Siesia and Bavaria and
thus holding the balance against Ger
many, and the French President also
warned Sixtns and the others in the
know to keep Everything under the
thickest possible cloak of secrecy SO as
not to arouse Gerrnany's suspicion who
would surely douhlecross our plans.
The preliminaries must be arranged in
such fashion. that should Germany act
ually get wind of the whole thing AUS
tria should then grasp the psychological
moment to 'emancipate herself from
potsdam.
Lloyd George ia said to have been
exuberant over the prospects of a sep
arate peace with Austria-Hungary and
is quoted as having said that there was
great deal of genuine sympathy for
Austria but that 1t IL feared Germany
would want To come in.~on this sep
IL. 80 -. xfagI
Emperor Karl. at the end OF March.
orders Sixtus posthaste to VIENNA and
I.axenburg, handing him. Sixtus, the
very same letter which later on was
published by Clemenceau. Sixtus was
instructed to submit this letter to both
the French and British governments.
Vienna was kept guessing as to the
authorship of this famous letter at
which juncture the Parmese Prince
surprises the world by stating that he
was the author of this letter and none
else, Cnor less he adds) and that in
composing il he had used his own notes
| of men. things and matters.
"On May 3, f191D we find Sixtas
again at Laxenburg. receiving another
letter from Karl, with instructions to
communicate its contents to the Allied
Governments. He succeeds in convinc-
| ing the Allies of KarI's desire for q
separate peace. He was authorized, so
| he says, TO guarantee certain territorial
| cessations to Italy in return for which
/ the Allies promise him, ('himgo that
/ they win add another link TO the
! Austrian Empire in the shape of
Bavaria, Poland and possibly parts of
South Germany. lie feels compelled to
| admit that Karl would reject such in
/ situations as 'odious' and quotes Count
| Reyertera, Austria's agent as telling 10
the Allied Council: You are offering
| US territories over which you have no
| jurisdiction, which do not want to join
| us and which belong 10 our own ally