KINGS V. PEOPLES

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2471, 26 May 1915, Page 3

KINGS V. PEOPLES

A CLEAR STATEMENT OP THE BALKAN SITUATION

(By Lovat Fraser in the "Daily Mail.") "Why don't the neutral Balkan kingdoms come in with us?" is a question which is being asked everywhere. Neither Rumania, Bulgaria, nor Greeco entirely trust Russia, for reasons of tnoir own based on past events, and they regard France as speaking in these matters with the voice of Russia. All three kingdoms repose much coniideneo in the honour and sincerity of Great Britain, but they complain that nowadays this country spoaks with an indefinite and uncertain voice. The complaint appears to be well founded, yet the immediate reason why none of those kingdoms declares itself oil one side or tlio other is of another kind. It is that there ia a veiled conflict of view between the threo Kings and the bulk of tlieir peoples. The Kings are one one side and most of the populace on the other. Two of the Kings are pro-German, and the third is pro-Ans-trian. They are at present strong enough to impose their wills on the policy of their respective Governments, because none of the three nations really wants to tight at all. One does not blame them. One simply records the fact. Birth and Marriage Ties. Kins; Ferdinand of Rumania is a German and a Hobeinwllern. Ho belongs to the family of HolienzollemSigmaringen, like his uncle the lato JLing Charles. His sympathies in this conflict are with his ancestral .House and with his race, and though they are by no moans so pronounced as those of the Jato Jiiiig, they dominate bis policy. King Ferdinand of Bulgaria is German uloo'd, lor he belongs to the House of Saxc-Coburg-Gotha, and Austrian by upbringing and sympathy. If he is Tsar of Bulgaria he is also a Hungarian magnate, and lie never forgets his estates in Hungary. living Constantiue of Greece was horn a Greek, but is Danish by descent, and his mother was a ftussiaft Urand Duchess. His sympathies aro coloured b.v the fact that ho is married to a Prine-ess of Prussia, who is Uie sister of the Gorman Emperor. He believes in the Gorman Army, and holds that •ie military reputation ho won in the last Balkan War is due to German draining. The consorts of the other two Kings are also German Princesses. With Che exception, of Serbia, therefore, ill the Balkan royalties are joined to the Germanic Powers by ties which they consider paramount. Quite apart from their local differences, not one of them moans to draiv the sword if he can help it unless there is a clianco of profit far outweighing the risks involved. As to the peoples concerned, there are cumulative proofs that tlio sympathies of the people of Rumania are overwhelmingly with the Allies. The nobles and the. upper classos generally are' specially French in sympathy, and aro bitterly anti-Magyar. The wliolo nation dreams of the acquisition of the Hungarian provinco of Transylvania, where half the population is Rumanian and greatly oppressed. "Whether the aspiration is entirely prudent is another matter, for the present western frontier of Rumania, 011 tho crest of a mountain range, is more easily defended. Rumania also looks longingly at the lJukovina. where about one-third of the inhabitants are of her race. Adrianople Anniversary. The attitude of the Bulgarians is less easy to define. They were badly punished by the Powers after the last Balkan War, and the recollection rankles. The Government now in power is Austropliile, but its friends make for it the odd, though quite understandable, claim that it is also Anglophile. Tho Opposition favours the Allies. Bulgaria is animated chiefly by a recollection of her own wrongs, as she conceives them. She cannot forgive Serbia for talcing a large slice of Macedonia, wherein the people are Bulgarian by blood and sympathy. She resents tho presence of Greece at Eavalla, a port on the Aegean, iu the centre of the valuable district where tho'finest cigarette tobacco in tlio world is grown. She is angry with Rumania for taking away part of the Dobrudsclia from her. Bulgaria will mot budge until some at least of her wrongs aro righted. On the other hand, he people celebrate next Friday their one great achievement in tho- last war, the taking of Adrianople. To them Adrianople, which they won and lost, represents their hearts' desire; and they know verf well they will never get it if they leave entirely to others the task of chastising Turkey. Greece is unstable as ever, and is living up to her old political reputation. Her one great statesman, M. Venizelos, who is heart and soul with the Allies has measured his strength against King Constantino and been temporarily overthrown. Her attitude is broadly this. Apart from questions relating to the local rivalries with Serbia and Bulgaria, the Greeks heartily favour the Allies, as every episode in their past history must impel them to do. They have dreams of obtaining Constantinople. They would certainly like Smyrna, with its great Greek population ; but they have not yet fully digested the large new territories they have recently won, and think the time is perhaps not yet rips to acquire moro. Their habitual irresolution gives King Constantino a chance to avoid a quarrel with his German friends (to whom he really owes his veiy title), while at the same time he remains on amicable terms with the Allies. There is yet another influence at work, which is too little understood in the West. Thes<* Balkan kingdoms are not yet finally convinced that the Allies are going to win. Above all, they are all waiting to see what Italy wiil do, and for them the action of Italy, should it ever come, will be deoisive.