Fiume: the only possible solution : a lecture delivered in Glasgow under the auspices of the West of Scotland ... Commercial College

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FIUME:
tie Only Possible Solution

A LECTURE DELIVERED IN GLASGOW UNDER

THE AUSPICES OF THE WEST OF SCOTLAND

COMMERCIAL COLLEGE

BY

ERNESTO GRILLO, M.A., D.Litt.

1 The Italian war must not cease as long as a single foreign flag
waves this side of the Alps, from the mouth of the Var to Fiume."

—M&zzini, 1848

"The Italian war must end only with victory in the Trentino,
Venezia, Trieste, and Fiume."— Idem, 1856

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PREFACE
To MY BRITISH FRIENDS

As you are all lovers and admirers of Latin and Italian
culture and civilisation, I hope you will forgive me if
I address to you this small booklet, in which you will
find condensed the whole of the Fiumian dispute.

Being one of those who made every effort to induce
Italy to throw her lot in with the Allies, I feel that it
is my bounden duty to give a clear exposition of Italy's
point of view at this critical moment.

Whatever the final fate of Fiume may be, please be
;i->mvd that Garibaldi's ideal —

"Britain is <i i/rcat and /toircrful notion, foremost
in human progress, enemy to despotism, the only
safe refuge for flic c.rilc, friend of tlte oppressed; and
if ever she should he so circumstanced as to require
the help of an ally, cursed be the Italian who would
not step forward in her defence,"

will ever be the ideal of the Italian Nation.

ERNESTO GRILLO.
GLASGOW, May, 1919.

2045143

ROBERT ANDERSON, PRINTER, GLASGOW.

FIUME:
The Only Possible Solution

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,— I am neither diplomatist nor
politician, and, if I come here to-night to speak about
politics, it is by the express desire of the Governors of
the West of Scotland Commercial College, who most
nobly have taken the initiative to inform the public of
what is going on, in order that " the man in the street "
may appeal from the badly informed community to the
more enlightened one.

Viewing the matter in this light, I hope you will listen
to me with the very same benevolence with which you
listened to me at the time of the Italian war against the
Turks, and at the beginning of the world war, when
I explained to you the line of conduct Italy would be
bound in honour to follow. Being fully aware, that what
I told you on those occasions was perfectly justified by the
threads of the events, I trust you will deem me worthy
of your attention while I discuss the various aspects of
lh is complicated problem.

History of Fiume. — The City of Tarsatica was
founded by the Romans during the first century of the
Christian era. In the year 800 it was destroyed by
Charlemagne, and, soon after its destruction, was rebuilt
and renamed Fiume.

From the eleventh century to the middle of the
sixteenth century it became, successively, a fief of the
Bishops of I'odcna, of the Bishops of Pola, of the Lords
of ])uino, and of the Lords of Walsee. In 1530 a decree

of the Emperor Ferdinand rhe First recognised tlie
independence of the city, so that Fiume remained an
autonomous commune for over two centuries.

In 1752 it came under the Government of Trieste, and,
in 1776, a decree of the Empress Maria Theresa annexed
it to the Hungarian crown as part of Croatia, but the
union of Fiume to Croatia caused a great revolt on the
part of the people, and the Queen three years after,
recognising the Italian character of the city, withdrew
her decree and annexed Fiume to Hungary as a separate
body.

In 1848, when the Hungarians and the Italians took
up arms against Austria, the Croatians, instead of
championing the national liberties of the rising masses,
became the tools of the Hapsburg tyranny, and largely
contributed to quench in a river of blood the aspirations
of both the Italian and Hungarian patriots. For these
services the Croats were highly rewarded by the Emperor,
who sanctioned the union of Fiume with the banat of
Croatia, but Bunjevaz, the Croatian commander of Fiuine,
at once acknowledged the Italian nature of the city,
and ordered that the use of the Italian language in the
schools and municipality should not be abolished.

In 1867 Fiume, at last, was separated from Croatia and
once again enjoyed its autonomy under the Hungarian
crown. On the 18th of October, 1918, three weeks before
the armistice, the people of Fiume, availing themselves
of the right of self-determination, through their unani-
mously elected deputy in the Hungarian Parliament
solemnly declared: " That the City of Fiume, Italian of
race, langiiage, and culture, must be reunited to its
Motherland."

In accordance with this declaration, the National
Council of the city and its territory voted the following
proclamation, which wras posted on all the walls of the

city, and. after the Italian victory, was communicated to

all the Powers throughout the world : —

" The Italian National Council of Fiume, assembled
to-day in full session, declares that, by reason of
that right whereby all the nations have attained
independence and liberty, the City of Fiume, which up
to now was a 'separate body,' constituting an Italian
National Commune, also claims for itself the right of
self-determination. Taking its stand on this right, the
National Council proclaims Fiume united to its Mother-
land, Italy. The Italian National Council considers
as provisional the state of things that commenced on
October 29th, 1918, and it places its right under the
protection of America, the mother of liberty and of
universal democracy. And it awaits the sanction of this
right at the hands of the Peace Congress."

An Italian City. — Fiume is an Italian city ; the
architecture of the houses, of the churches, and of all
public buildings is Italian. The streets, the museums, the
churches, the theatres, the banks, the cafes bear Italian
names.

All the mayors, the deputies, the clergy, the officials,
the shipowners, and the people connected with shipping
trade have been Italian and want to remain Italian.

From the time of its foundation up to the present they
have spoken no other language but Latin and Italian.
All the official documents which have been preserved,
whet her of princes, kings, and emperors, whether of
bishops, archbishops, dukes, archdukes, and even those
of the Croatian Government, are all written in Italian;
while, even in the reinet erie-. the tombstones and the
inscriptions show t hat thrOUghoul t he cent in i<-> t he Italian
element has always been predominant.

Indeed, the language of Dante ha- al \\a\- I n used in

the municipality, in the tribunals, in the Chamber of

6

Commerce, in the literary societies, in the schools, and
in all daily affairs. The inhabitants of Fiume are so
much attached to the Italian tongue that they insist that
all the people living; in the immediate neighbourhood of
the town should learn it. An American writer justly
remarked about the inhabitants of the city " that the
books they read were Italian, the clergy preached to the
people in Italian, the officials addressed their con-
stituents in Italian, so that within the walls of the city
the Italian spirit and language found a congenial soil."

Population. — The following figures show the real
state of affairs regarding the Free City of Fiume and
its territory. The total population numbers 46,264
inhabitants; of these, 31,094 live in the municipal
district and 15,170 in the sub-communes of Plasso,
Cosola, and Dreiiova. You will notice that I have left out
the little borough of Susack, situated further south, which
is inhabited chiefly by Croats, but even if Susack
is included, the compact Italian element would still out-
number all the rest of the population formed of Croats,
Slovenes, Serbs, Hungarians, Germans, &c., without
taking into consideration that the Hungarians, along with
the rest of the non-Slav population, prefer an Italian to a
Jugo-Slav Fiume.

The following tables will give all the particulars that
the public require in order to understand the question of
the mixed population : —

I. — POPULATION ACCORDING TO NATIONALITY.

Total. Percentage.

Italians, - 28,911 62-5

Croats, - 9,092 19-6

Slovenes, 1,674 3-6

Serbs, - 161 0-4

Hungarians, - 4,431 9-6

Germans, 1,616 3-5

Others, - ... 379 O8

Town District.

Total.

Percentage.

Italians, -

19,684

63-4

Croats, -

5,529

17-8

Slovenes,

919

2-9

Serbs, -

128

0-4

Hungarians,

3,178

102

Germans,

1,353

4-3

Others,

303

1

Sub-Communes.

Total.

Percentage.

Italians, -

9,227

60-8

Croats,

3,563

23-5

Slovenes,

755

5

Serbs,

33

0-2

Hungarians,

1,253

8-3

Germans,

263

1-7

Others, -

k . .- - 76

0-5

II. — POPULATION ACCORDING TO AGE AND RESIDENCE.
Over 20 years of age and 5 years' residence.

Total. Percentage.

Italians, - 16,597 65-0

Croats, 4,596 17-7

Slovenes, 937 3-7

Serbs, 65 0-3

Hungarians, 2,324 9-1

Germans, 844 3-4

Others, 193 0-8

III. — NATIVE-BORN, OF FIUMIAX PARENTAGE, ACCORDING
TO NATIONALITY.

Town District.

Total.

Percentage.

Italians, -

9,891

90-0

Croats,

490

4-5

Slovenes,

46

0-4

Serbs,

6

0-1

Hungarians,

324

2-9

Germans,

202

1-9

Others, -

27

0-2

Sub-Communes.

Total. Percentage.

Italians, - 4,303 71'0

Croats, 1,604 26-5

Slovenes, 127 2-1
Serbs,

Hungarians, 14 0'2

Germans, 7 0-1
Others, 60-1

IV. — NATIVE-BORN, OP FIUMIAN PARENTAGE,

AGED OVER 24

YEARS.

Total. Percentage.

Italians, - *• 7

8,316 85-8

Croats,

1,036 10-7

Slovenes,

62 0-7

Serbs,

4

Hungarians, ...

139 1-4

Germans,

121 1-2

Others,

14 0-2

V.— NATIVE-BORN, OP NON-EIUMIAN PARENTAGE, RESIDENT

SINCE BIRTH AND AGED

OVER 20 YEARS.

Total. Percentage.

Italians, - V.: V -

9,612 85-5

Croats,

1,294 11-5

Slovenes,

123 1-1

Serbs,

9 0-1

Hungarians,

103 0-9

Germans,

92 0-8

Others, - - ' -

8 0-1

This census,, which was published by " Modern Italy,"
was taken by order of the Fiumian National Council. It
shows that the whole population of Fiurne in November,
1918, consisted of 46,264 inhabitants, while the official
Austro-Hungarian census, taken eight years ago, gives
the whole population at, roughly, over 41,000, the
majority of whom were Italians.

It will be seen that there is a mere difference of four
or five thousand between the Fiumiaii and the official
Austro-Hungarian census. To an unprejudiced observer

tin's difference, after eight years, will not appear so extra-
ordinary when it is considered that we are dealing with
u prolific southern race. Even the statistics of the dead
from the fifteenth to the twentieth century prove
the Italian character of the city; they show that 80 per
cent, of the dead were Italians and only 7 per cent Croats.

Significant Incidents. — The mixed population and
the hatred which exists between the Croatians and the
Italians very often give rise to serious popular outbursts.
A very remarkable incident is related by a correspondent
of the Westminster Gazette, at which he was present.
"I remember," he says, "an extraordinary incident
happening in Fiume when I was staying there in 190G,
which brought home to me the fierce passions aroused by
the racial cross-currents in that city. We were sitting at
a restaurant facing the sea, when suddenly a crowd came
down the street with shouts of ' Long live Croatian
Fiume.' They were immediately answered by defiant
cries of ' Long live Italian Fiume,' and in a minute men
were at one another's throats, revolver shots rang out,
and tables and chairs were overturned. I was told that
Hungarians, enraged at the claim that Fiume should
belong to any country but Hungary, also joined in the
fray. I know that we hastily took refuge in an hotel."

Why Fiume was not included in the Treaty
of London. — Much has hitherto been said about Fiume
having been omitted from the Treaty of London. Amidst
the conflicting explanations which have been brought
forward none of them gives the Italian side of the question .
Tin- tact that Italy did not insist on the annexation of
the city in that Treaty redounds to the credit of the Hal in n
statesmen. They never contfin plated <h<> complete
disruption of the Austrian Empire, and justly thought
that Austria. Hungary, and Cxcdio-Slovakia should not

10

be cut off from the sea. Fiume being the only natural
outlet for these countries, it was fair that their claims
should not be overlooked, when we take into consideration
the fact that the Italian population of Fiume enjoyed
many privileges and favours under the Austro-Hungarian
rule.

At present, however, circumstances have completely
changed. There is the self-determination of Fiume to be
considered. Croatia is no longer part of the Austro-
Hungarian monarchy, but will be united to a greater
Serbia, enjoying not only the benefits of the ports of
Spalato, Ragusa, Metcovic, Cattaro, but also of the five
ports of Buccari, Porto Re, Novi, Segna, Carlopago, just
below Fiume, leaving, on the other hand, Hungary,
Austria, and Czecho-Slovakia without any outlet what-
soever to the Adriatic Sea. We cannot emphasise too
much the fact that the Croatian trade through Fiume
represents only a very small part of the entire tonnage of
the city, and that 93 per cent, of the whole tonnage goes to
or comes from Austria and Hungary. We must keep in
view the fact that not Croatia but Hungary built, at the
expense of nearly 50,000,000 crowns, the harbour, moles,
and warehouses; and that, if the ethnic laws were to be dis-
regarded, it is Austria-Hungaiy who should have the
benefit of the port. Under the changed conditions, would
the Croats and the Slovenes allow the neutralisation of
two strips of land in the midst of their territory in order
to give Austria and Hungary access to the sea?

If Fiume were to change hands and be given to any
other nation, it would become evident that the commerce
of the hinterland would be far better guaranteed under
Italian than under any other rule. It is worth noting
that the Ukrainians, the Austrians, and the Hungarians
themselves declared they would rather see the port ruled
by the Italians than by the Croats.

11

Croats' Claims.— The Croats base their claims to
the city and its surroundings on economic and commercial
more than on national grounds. They assert that, without
the port of Fiume, their new state will be unable to exist,
because it will find itself cut off from access to the sea.

This argument, however plausible to a superficial on-
looker, becomes utterly untenable, not to say ridiculous,
to a keener and unprejudiced observer. First, because the
commercial reasons which are invoked as decisive do not
really exist; the commerce of Croatia only represents
a very insignificant percentage of the commercial move-
ment of the port, and even the official Austrian statistics
show that, hitherto, the Slavs have only made very little
use of the port of Fiume. Secondly, because the new
kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia, and Serbia (Jugo-Slavia)
has been provided with excellent outlets and harbours
along the whole Adriatic coast.

Fiume not needed by the Slavs. — The possession
of Fiume is not a vital economic necessity for the new
State. This statement finds its irrefutable confirmation
in the commercial statistics of the port. They show that
the great part of the trade of Fiume comes from
territories which are not within the political and
geographical agglomeration of the people who now
constitute Jugo-Slavia. The trade of the new State of
Croatia, Slavonia, and Serbia is not directed towards
Fiume, for the simple reason that this town is pot in
the centre of the country, and is not accessible without
great expenditure and a long railway journey.

Professor Civijic, the eminent Serb geographer and
politician, in a moment when party politics ;m<l passions
had not as much sway as they have to-day, advised
Serbia to turn her economic life towards the South, not
towards the North. " Southwards will henceforth be

our motto. The bitter economic experiences we have had
in the -North separate us from this hated North."

If to the difficulties of the topographical conditions of
the port we add the racial antagonism which exists
among the mixed nationalities of the place, Italians,
Hungarians, Slavs, Germans, &c., we solve the problem
why the port should not be handed to the Slavs.

Commercial Statistics. — During the last ten years
before the war the commerce of the Slavs through Fiurne
only amounted to 7 per cent, of the whole movement.
The total tonnage being 2,700,000 tons, it is clear that
7 per cent, represents only 189,000 tons. If we deduct
from these figures 160,000 tons of lumber, which is the
chief article exported by the Slavs, there remain less
than 30,000 tons of other exports. The theory then
that Fiume should be given to Croatia on economic
grounds is absurd. In 1909 the French Consul-General
at Fiume published in the Moniteur Officiel du Commerce
a report of the commercial movement of the city, in
which he stated " that Croatia and Slavonia have only
one important article of export — lumber, of which only
a part is shipped to Fiume." It goes on to state that the
total tonnage brought to Fiume from Austria, Hungary,
Croatia, and Slavonia in 1889 amounted to only 330,679
tons, and that this amount, coming from three different
parts of the Austrian Empire, had been considerably
reduced in the last ten years. We may note incidentally
that this lumber traffic has undergone a continual decline
ever since, as the forests, whose products were sent to
Fiume, have been largely cut down.

We might be asked, — what about the other forests of
Jugo-Slavia? Well, they do exist; but they are situated
further south, and their export trade can only be carried
on from the Dalmatian ports, some of which have a

13

tonnage yearly which surpasses that of many other first-
class ports.

Change of Conditions.— But the Jugo-Slavs say :—
The conditions are now changed, since before the war the
Jugo-Slav countries, being a part of the Austro-Hungarian
monarchy, turned their trade towards Budapest, Vienna,
and Germany, while now they will not be able to trade
any longer with Austria and Germany, and must turn
towards Italy, France, Great Britain, and America. An
Italian writer, to whom this question was put, replied that
" if Budapest, Vienna, and Germany found it convenient
to buy from and sell to Jugo-Slav countries before the
war, there is no reason why they should not continue to
buy and sell after the war. Among Western countries
Italy is certainly the largest natural buyer of agricultural
and woodland products of Jugo-Slavia, and it is there-
fore to her interests to favour Jugo-Slav exports through
Fiunie as an Italian port."

Have the Jugo-Slavs been denied Access to
the Sea? — The treaty concluded in 1915 by Britain,
France, Russia, and Italy treated the Jugo-Slavs most
generously. It allotted to them nearly a thousand kilo-
metres of the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, with
excellent ports both in the northern and southern
Adriatic, all connected with the Balkan hinterland. To
Hie norih of Fiume their new possessions on the Croatia 11
coast extend for at least 160 kilometres, on which are
the ports of Buccari, Porto Ke, Novi, Segna, Carlopago.

Hue-can, which is connected both with Fiume and with
the railway system of the hinterland, enjoys the benefit of
a unique position. Mr. Pavicic, the Croatian deputy,
himself recognises its importance; he says that Buccari
become a strong rival of Fiume; while no less

14

an authority than Napoleon wrote that it is the most
important military port of the Adriatic. Segna, too,
further south, where the sea has a depth of 70 fathoms, is
another great natural outlet of Croatia capable of great
development.

Similarly, in Dalmatia, Italy, hoping to come to a
friendly understanding with the Slavs, under the
formidable pressure of Russia, who at the time of the
treaty acted as the trustee of the Slavs, reduced her
demands to the very minimum. She waived her rights
to the whole coast of the Adriatic south of Sebenico,
and agreed to give to the Jugo-Slavs the ports of Spalato,
Metcovic on the Narenta, Ragusa, and that superb port
of Cattaro, which is 13 miles long and 10 miles wide,
together with all the -coast from Punta Planca to Spizza
near Antivari.

Why did Italy make these Renunciations ? —
These renunciations, which meant a great sacrifice on
the part of Italy, were made partly because the Jugo-
Slavs might have their own outlets to the sea, and
partly because Russia pledged herself to conduct the war
with the utmost energy, and to maintain a certain number
of divisions in the field against Austria to prevent her
from throwing her whole might against Italy.

It is well known how Russia kept her pledges, and
how Italy had to stand alone against the whole might
of the Austrian Empire, often stiffened by many German
and Bulgarian divisions.

It is superfluous to enumerate the losses both in men
and material that Italy underwent through the treachery
of Russia. Three-fourths of the Italian wealth was spent
on the war, two-thirds of the Italian mercantile fleet was
destroyed, many battleships were blown up, and the
invaded country pillaged by those very Croats and

15

Slovenes who now call themselves Jugo-Slavs. 494,000
men killed, half a million disabled for life, one
million and over three hundred thousand wounded, with-
out mentioning those who died through illness contracted
in the field or those who perished of starvation.

It is well for our antagonists to know that had pure
Italian blood not been freely shed for the common cause,
or had Italy accepted the bribes of Germany, to-day there
would neither be a Jugo-Slavia nor a conference sitting
in Paris to dictate peace to the Huns.

The Pound of Flesh. — Yet on the eve of the
final settlement Italy has been likened to Shylock, and
the small recompense for her enormous sacrifices to the
pound of flesh. What is the situation which has caused
such criticism ? It may be summed up under two heads —

First — Italian cities in race, in culture, and in
language have asked to be reunited to the Italian Mother-
lsmd.

Secondly — Italy asked for strategic security.

The Italian Adriatic coast being flat, low, and deprived
of natural harbours from Venice to Brindisi, Italy
demands the possession of some strategic strongholds on
the opposite coast. Is there any wonder that the Italians
are anxious, when we consider that the opposite coast
is rocky and full of natural harbours surrounded by
innumerable little islands, which admirably succeeded in
sheltering the Austrian fleet during the war? Can there
really be any wonder at this just demand, when \ve
think that the Italian defenceless coast is about four
hours' distant by steam in its widest part and two
hours in the narrowest? Apart from any other « on-
siderat ion, ihe question for Italy i- purely strategic;
and, whatever my British friends may say, they are the
-aine which entitle Britain to claim ami hold ( i ilti altar,
Malta, Sue/, &c.

16

As to the pound of flesh, let me remark that great
services are always repaid with the utmost generosity.
Many pounds of flesh have in the past been paid without
a murmur to ensure the national welfare. I may only
recall to my friends that little Piedmont in 1859 handed
to Napoleon III without the least grudge, not one but
two pounds of bleeding Italian flesh in the shape of
Savoy and Nice, the one the cradle of the Italian Kings,
the other the birthplace of Garibaldi, our national hero.
Both were unhesitatingly handed over to France for the
generous help she gave us to shake off the Austrian yoke.

President Wilson's Argument. — President Wilson
argues that the strategic question does not exist any
more, for with the League of Nations all fortresses will
be destroyed and all armaments reduced. With due
deference to the President, Italy believes in his idealism
and in the League of Nations no more than France,
Britain, or America herself. We all know that while
we are discussing disarmament and League of Nations,
numerous formidable weapons of war, including a
number of the most powerful battleships in the world,
have been launched by Mr. Wilson's own countrymen,
and the President, with all his idealism, has done nothing
whatever to prevent them from being launched.

Italy demands nothing but strategic security, and the
removal of the pistol aimed at her heart; when this has
been done, the needs of other people will be met with the
greatest sympathy. As it is, we have just emerged
from a world war, and we are threatened with another
attack by a horde of barbarians, whose thirst for
aggrandisement produced not only the two Balkan wars,
but was even largely responsible for the world war:
the tragedy is not yet over, we are still in the middle
of the third act. Under these circumstances we feel

17

that, as a recent Swiss writer has said, " those who are
urging Italy to renounce her strategic security in order
to favour a set of unruly regicides, are not friends, but her
enemies, whose only scope is to betray her."

To Ward off a Great Danger. — Italy's attitude
must be considered in relation to the present conditions of
Europe. We do not know what the North and the North-
Eastern groups of nations are going to do, nor what the
future has in store for us all.

A Bolshevist Russia and a Republican Germany may
come to terms and set themselves up in opposition to the
Allies. If ever such a circumstance should arise, what
would the small nations do ? Would we not be perturbed
by the fear that the Southern Slavs might be attracted
to their Northern brethren? In that case who would be
able to bar the Germans and the Slavs from the way to
the South? Who would, in these circumstances, be able
to defend the Adriatic? And what would be the fate of
this sea if Italy had not the full control of it? And if the
Slavs had this control, or at least a powerful position, who
could prevent them from seeking again the way to
Constantinople, Mesopotamia, and Egypt?

Those are the facts that superficial observers should
bear in mind. I remember that, at the time of the Tripoli
campaign, when the whole Press was against Italy, I stood
alone in the defence of my country and asked : Had
the Turks in the future thrown in their lot with Germany,
whom would the British care to see masters of Tripoli ? I
hear you, perhaps, saying that we shall have a League of
Nations ! Let us not be deceived by the League of Nations.
Let us rather ward off the great dangers.

You know you have tested the friendship of Italy, but
have you done the same for those little peoples, who Imvr
often brought misery and slaughter upon Europe? The
lessons learned during the war are surely too recent to be
forgotten,

18

I feel most strongly that any attempt at weakening
Italy's position in the. Adriatic and in the Alps would be
a very great mistake on the part of the British and the
French statesmen, because it would mean not only the
political and military weakening of Italy, but that also
of both France and Britain. I must be very adamant
on this subject, for Italy cannot accept any com-
promise on the question of national security.

In Jugo-Slav circles it is argued that Italy has to yield
because she is dependent on America for food and
money. True, the Americans have been generous
enough to lend us money at 6 per cent, interest,
and to sell us food, but let us not forget that this money
will have to be repaid with due interest. Our
antagonists will make a grave mistake if they think that
the mighty dollar will reduce the Italians to subjection.
The country which more than any other has experienced
hunger and starvation; the land which rejected with scorn
and indignation the bribes of Von Billow and of the
German Kaiser; that same country will prefer death and
annihilation rather than submit itself to the whims of any
financial autocrat.

Financial Intrigues. — It has been often and per-
sistently asserted that at the back of the Fiume and of
the Dalmatian dispute there lies a sordid financial
intrigue, which prevents the Peace delegates in Paris
from coming to a friendly settlement. Mr. Herron's
declaration, published in the Epoca, and reproduced by
all the leading European papers, rather lends credit to
those rumours. Mr. Herron is a well-known American
author and lecturer, besides being a personal friend of
President Wilson, and the following is part of his
published statement, in which he says " that, being well
acquainted with the Italian Jugo-Slav question, he can

19

affirm emphatically that two opportunities occurred of
reaching an agreement, but were missed on account of
certain international financiers who are diplomatically
privileged."

To these people Mr. Herron attributes the present
crisis, and indeed all the failures, political and moral,
of the Peace Conference, and the responsibility for
what he describes as " the disaster now threatening
the world." " A financial group," he declares, " is now
seeking concessions at Fiume and the Dalmatian ports,
aiming at the purchase of the Dalmatian shipping
lines, thus encompassing the complete commercial ruin
of Italy, whose merchant flag would disappear from the
Adriatic, and whose commercial and political relations
with Rumania and the Balkans generally would be com-
pletely broken."

In other passages Mr. Herron says: — "Italy is at
present fighting for her existence against international
concessionaries. She has no mines or mineral resources to
offer these concessionaries, while South-Eastern Europe
is ripe for exploitation. Moreover, according to'
the Treaty of London, it is only a very small
portion of Dalmatia which would be given to Italy.
To invoke the principle of self-determination
against the Italian claims alone is tantamount to con-
spicuous hypocrisy in face of the territorial gains of all
the other nations represented at the conference." Mr.
Herron says that Jugo-Slavia possesses nine ports, which
could well be developed. " Great Britain, France,
Poland, and Czecho-Slovakia," he continues, "see their
aspirations realised. President Wilson's Fourteen Points
were generously applied to all of them. Why apply
them very strictly only in the case of Italy, who saved
the Entente in the darkest hours, and to whom the Croats
and Slovenes owe their independence?"

20

We do not know how far we can rely on this remarkable
piece of news which comes from an American authoritative
source. The fact is that Mr. Wilson's theatrical move,
undertaken without finally consulting the British and the
French delegates, and at a moment when the Italian com-
mission was still discussing with a view to coming to a
friendly settlement, is still to be explained. We are,
however, gratified to feel that the. heart of France and
Britain is at the present moment with Italy; the whole
civilised world, openly and secretly, cannot but blame Mr.
Wilson, whose appeal to the Italian people over the head
of the Peace Conference and of the Italian Government
is a very dangerous innovation in modern international
politics. Had Mr. Wilson not published his spectacular
appeal to Italy, the matter would have been settled with-
out much anxiety.

The Only Possible Solution. — Before solving this
crucial problem, let us examine the various opinions of the
contending parties. Mr. Wilson, in his appeal to the
Italian people, declared that the port of Fiume cannot
be given to Italy, because it must meet the needs of
Hungary, Czecho-Slovakia, Ukrainia, Rumania, Jugo-
slavia.

This statement does not definitely say to whom he means
to give it. We may assume that he is in favour of handing
the Italian city to the Croats. But the port cannot be
assigned to the Jugo-Slavs on ethnic grounds, because of
its Italian population. It cannot be assigned to them on
economic grounds (1) because the commerce of Jugo-
slavia only represents 7 per cent, of the whole tonnage
of the port; (2) because south of Fiume the commercial
needs of Croatia have already been amply met with the
ports of Buccari, Porto Re, Novi, Segna, Carlopago; (3)
because Italy will never consent to hand the Italian
population of Fiume to those very Croats and Slovenes

who, for four years and a-lialf, have been the most cruel
and stubborn defenders of the Austrian Empire; (4)
because the Fiumians proclaim themselves Wilsonians,
and claim the right of self-determination in agreement
with his Fourteen Points.

Mr. Wilson's proposal has, therefore, to be abandoned
as impracticable. He cannot even impose' his will on
Italy on this subject, for the simple reason that his
juridical position is not very solid when we consider that
he is not the Ally, but a mere associate of Italy. America
never sent an army to fight on the Italian front, or a
fleet to block the Austrian navy in the Adriatic, her role
was confined to loans of several sums of money, which
have to be repaid with due interest. Moreover, when he
enunciated his Fourteen Points, whose application has
been very elastic in the case of France, Poland, Kumania,
Czecho-Slovakia, Servia, Japan, and America herself,
I understand that Italy and Britain both made their
reserve before accepting them implicitly.

Having thus eliminated the principal antagonist, there
remain the Franco-British and the Italian points of view.
The suggestion of Messrs. Lloyd George and Clemenceau
that Fiume should be made into a free and autonomous
city, however plausible, will not eliminate the bone of con-
tention. A small city like Fiunie left to itself will soon
become the prev of the neighbouring states, not excluding
the Germans. Lacking the means to develop herself, she
will either appeal to her Motherland to annex her, or she
will meet with disaster, causing new wars and new blood-
shed between the rival parties.

Fiume was really the Hungarian port, as 93 per
cent, of its trade up to the outbreak of the war
in 1914 was Hungarian. The Hungarians, I may
repeat, built the railway connecting the port with
the centres of their country, and furnished the

22

harbour with moles and warehouses. If the ethnic con-
siderations should be overlooked, the only nation which has
a definite claim to the city is Hungary, as she has no other
access to the sea. But were the Allies willing to consider
Hungarian . claims, would the Jugo-Slavs concede or
neutralise a strip of land across their territory through
which the Hungarians could gain access to the sea? If
not, there is no other way to get out of the difficulties than
by a compromise.

I think that the Italians would not oppose the plan of
making Fiume a free port under the sovereignty of Italy,
which would guarantee the management of municipal
affairs and full liberty of trading for all the people who live
in the hinterland, whatever nation they may be.

Italy's Security. — Such a solution would not only
satisfy the people of Italy, but also those who live in the
hinterland, so that Austria, Hungary, Czecho-Slovakia,
and Croatia would continue their trade through Fiume,
just as they did before the war. For Italy the question is
not economic, but purely strategic. If only she could
feel secure within her natural frontiers, Italy, I am sure,
would not be unsympathetic towards the economic claims
of the other nations. Sir Gilbert Parker put the
question of the Italian security and control of the
Adriatic with that unanswerable logic which has gained
so much distinction for all his writings: — "Italy,"
said Sir Gilbert, " came into the war at its most critical
period, and by her neutrality alone before she entered it
released about half a million French soldiers for service
against the Central Governments.

" When she came in she occupied fully a great number
of Austrian forces, which otherwise would have been used
upon the Western front. In other words, Italy went a long
way to winning the war for us, not that we should have
given in had Italy not joined, but we should have had the

kind of thing that existed in the war against Napoleon,
which extended over a great many years.

"What does Italy ask for? She asks for a secure
frontier; that is to say, her natural frontier. When the
Congress of Vienna took away from her the Brenner Pass,
it opened the gate of Italy to many nations.

" Trieste also is purely Italian, and should belong to
Italy, and the Italians are there now. The Fiume people
have asked to be united to Italy, and the Italian population
of Fiume is greater than that of all the other nationalities
combined. Italy has never had any real protection for her
navy. The east coast of Italy from Venice down to Brindisi
is without naval harbours, but on the opposite shore there
are innumerable harbours protected by islands, where the
navy of Italy or any other nation could be secure."

Command of the Adriatic. — "The question then
is," Sir Gilbert continues, " who shall command the
Adriatic? It is a question of great importance to
England. Naturally it should be Italy, and naturally it
should not be the Jugo-Slavs, who are an unorganised,
half barbaric people.

" The Jugo-Slavs, it must be remembered, were in the
Austrian Army, and did great service there. Also it must
be remembered that Austria gave the Jugo-Slavs their
11:1 vy. It is absolutely essential that the command of the
Adriatic should be in the hands of the Italian people.

" Spalato should be Italian. You then would have
Italy on both sides of the Adriatic, which would be a
security, while the Jugo-Slavs would have many good
harlioui •> tor any ships or mivy they possess.

" We \\ill lake over certain (ierinan Colonies, South-
We^t Africa, (iermaii Kast Africa. Samoa, anil New
(iuinea. &C. It \\e take over I hose Colonies for our
territorial safety, \vliy should not Italy take over the
territories \vli icli are I la! laii 1"

24

Ladies and Gentlemen, we in Italy have always hailed
the British. Fleet; we do not forget that we owe to it many
debts of eternal gratitude, which include the safe landing
of Garibaldi in Sicily; the heroism which it displayed to
save the inhabitants of Reggio and Messina from the
effects of the earthquake in 1908; and, not the least, the
mighty deeds performed in reducing German barbarism to
powerlessness. We rejoice at the strength and beauty of
your men-of-war, and fully realise that they are necessary
for the protection of the British Isles, and for the safety of
the world.

Her natural frontiers and a secure position in the
Adriatic are to Italy what the British Fleet is to Britain.
To obtain our own security we have struggled for many
centuries against the common enemy. We sincerely hope
that the battles we have lately waged together will be the
last, and that, with the same ideals and the same faith, we
shall cross the seas and the oceans for the glory of man-
kind and the prosperity of our people.

Ladies and Gentlemen, in the name of those heroes who
have laid down their lives for their Fatherland; in the
name of those who for over four years have fought
against barbarism, I ask you to-night most fervently to
strengthen more and more the bonds which for many
centuries have united the British and the Italian peoples;
let us then for ever wave friendly together our glorious
flags, which are the symbols of tine liberty and justice.