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attitude of the press toward this crime. These press extracts breathe a very hostile feeling toward Austria, but no one of them attempts to justify the murder. The statements that come nearest to a justification of this act are the following:

The Piemont of July 1 said:

The fact that Princip [one of the assassins] carried out his act of vengeance on the sacred national holiday of Vidovdan [St. Vitus Day], the day fixed for the carrying on of maneuvers, makes the desperate deed of the young martyr appear more intelligible and natural.

[The paper was confiscated by the police because of this article, but the confiscation was annulled on the following day by the Belgrade court of first resort.]

The Pravada of July 4 said:

All murders and attacks heretofore committed in Austria have had one and the same origin. The oppressed peoples of the monarchy were obliged to resort to this kind of protest, because no other way was open to them. In the chaos of a reign of terror it is natural and understandable that the era of murderous attacks should become popular.

The Mali Journal of July 7 said:

A scion of the Middle Ages was murdered in Sarajevo a few days ago. He was murdered by a boy who felt the suffering of his enslaved fatherland to the point of paroxysms of emotion-the suffering which the despoilers of the lands of his fathers had inflicted upon it. What has official Austria-Hungary done thereafter? It has replied with general mas7 A. R. B., 19, enclosure 9.

sacres, plunderings, and destruction of Serb life and property. By such exploits only those who are worthless distinguish themselves. The cowards are always great heroes when they are certain that nothing will happen to them. Only compare Princip and Gabrinovitch with these heroes, and the great difference will be noted at once. Civilization and justice in Austria-Hungary are a great, gross falsehood.

In defense of his Government, M. Pashitch, Prime Minister of Serbia, pointed out that "as soon as news of the crime arrived the Serbian 8 court and the Government expressed not only their condolence, but also their heartfelt reprobation and their horror at such a crime. All the festivities that were to take place that day in Belgrade were suspended." M. Pashitch further declares that the abhorrence of this unfortunate event was not confined to the governmental circles but was shared by all classes of the people, as the commission of this crime was against the best interests of Serbia. In a telegram (July 14) to all the royal legations the prime minister said, in part:

Absolute calm rules in Belgrade; no demonstration has taken place this year; nobody has had the intention of provoking any disorder. Not only do the Minister of Austria-Hungary and the members of his

8 In quoting from the documents, I have frequently changed "y" to "b" in the spelling of "Serbia" and "Serbian." This liberty has been taken in the interest of uniformity; for the different state papers do not employ the same method in the spelling of these words.

9 S. B. B., 30, 8.

staff walk freely in the city, but no insult either through acts or through words has been offered to any Austro-Hungarian subject, as the newspapers of Vienna claim, and no Austro-Hungarian subject has seen his house attacked or its windows broken; no Austro-Hungarian subject has had any motive to lodge the slightest complaint. All this false news is spread only with the object of disturbing and irritating public opinion in Austria-Hungary against Serbia.10

Insist on the fact that public opinion in our country is relatively calm and that on our side nobody wishes to provoke or wound Austria-Hungary.11

The Serbian minister at London also called attention to the fact that both the assassins were Austro-Hungarian subjects; that one of them had been suspected by the Serbian authorities who desired to expel him; and that he had been protected by the Austrian authorities who considered him innocent and harmless.12

Serbian documents virtually concede that feeling in Austria-Hungary was inflamed by utterances of the Serbian press. On July 1 the Serbian minister at Vienna wrote to his home Government as follows: "I beg you to do what is necessary in order that demonstrations be prevented at home, and that the utterances of the press of Belgrade be restrained as much as possible." 13

The minister referred to the subject again on July 6 in the following words: "The feeling

10 Ibid., 21.

11 Ş. B. B., 20,

12 B. W. P., 30.

13 S, B. B., 9.

against Serbia continues to increase in military and governmental circles, in consequence of articles in our papers which the Austro-Hungarian Legation at Belgrade zealously exploits."

99 14

The Serbian officials, however, contended that the hostility of the Serbian press was provoked by the attitude of the Austrian and Hungarian newspapers which "began the polemic" and had for two years "been wounding the Serbs and Serbia in their most delicate sensibilities"; that Austria was intentionally giving undue publicity to the radical utterances of rather irresponsible publications; and that, as the press is free in Serbia, the Government has no means other than the courts to employ in curbing the press, though it has advised the press of Belgrade "to remain calm and limit itself to the denial and the refutation of false and distorted news." 15

Serbia also brings serious counter-charges against the Austro-Hungarian press. She complains that the newspapers of Vienna and Budapest sent out false news in order to arouse feeling at home and to hold up Serbia in a false light before the nations of the world. They accused Serbia, it is alleged, of the crime of Sarajevo in order to rob her of the good name that she had with the European powers. As an ex

14 Ibid., 15.

15 S. B. B., 12, 30.

ample of unfair treatment by the news service, the Serbian minister at Vienna cites an account of the assassination given by the Vienna dailies on June 28. These papers, he said, "announced in big type that the two perpetrators of the crime were Serbians, in such a way as to make the people believe that they were meant for Serbians from Serbia." 16

The British White Paper also speaks of the storm of anti-Serbian feeling which swept AustriaHungary after the Sarajevo murders.

Anti-Serb riots took place at Sarajevo and Agram. The members of the Serb party in the Provincial Council of Croatia were assailed by their colleagues with cries of "Serbian assassins." Mobs in Vienna threatened the Serbian Legation. The Austrian Press, almost without exception, used the most unbridled language, and called for the condign punishment of Serbia. There were signs that the popular resentment was shared and perhaps encouraged by the Austrian Government.17

Austria-Hungary contends that Serbia could have "averted the serious steps she had reason to expect" from Austria, "if she had spontaneously begun within her own territory proceedings against the Serbian accomplices in the murderous attack of the 28th of June, and [had disclosed] the threads of the plot, leading, as it has been proved, from Belgrade to Sarajevo. Until to-day (July 23), the Serbian Govern17 B. W. P., iii-iv.

16 S. B. B., 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 16.

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