Into the merits of the specific quarrel between Servia and
Austria-Hungary we do not propose to go now, except to enter
a caveat against the too confident opinion as regards Beryls which one sometimes hears expressed in England. People are apt to say that the Servians are a treacherous and bloodthirsty little people, and that it is hardly to be wondered at that the Austrians are exasperated at their conduct. Even if they were not responsible for the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife, they are always, it is said, intriguing and conspiring against Austria-Hungary and rendering the situation intolerable. We do not want in the least to be con- sidered as thick and thin defenders of the Servians, and we quite acknowledge that they have aspirations which are intensely anti- Austrian, and are also by no means scrupulous in carrying out those aspirations. At the same time it must not be forgotten that there is a very heavy per contra account, and that Austria- Hungary has been both tyrannical and cruel, as well as unsuc- cessful, in her treatment of Servia. When the Servians say that every attempt on their part to establish their kingdom has been met by the sullen hostility of Austria-Hungary they have a great deal to put forth in support of their case. In particular they can point to the fact that at the end of the Balkan War it was Austria-Hungary who urged the Bulgarians to stab them in the back. Naturally Servia felt Austria- Hungary's action very bitterly, and is not inclined to forget or forgive.
