The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE TUESDAY, JULY 13, 1915. THE BALKAN STATES.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 250, 13 July 1915, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

TUESDAY, JULY 13, 1915. THE BALKAN STATES.

(With which is incorporated The Taihape Post uni Waimarino News.)

At this stage of tlie war one of the most perplexing questions, one that gives particular concern to the Entente, is the attitude of the Balkan States. Just recently various short cables on this subject have reached us and there£ is little that comes daily from Europe the most thoughtful intelligences amongst us more anxiously reach out for, more greedily devour.and inwardly digest, than the fragmentary news from that quarter. It seems that neither Statei is willing to surrender neutrality without the others; when war is decided on it will be collective action, and tha* aspect is what Brtain has always regarded as likely to be the correct on-. Yesterday we were advisd that Bulgaria, Eoumania, Greece, and Servia were in close conference with the object of evolving a basis of action that would be satisfying to all concerned. It has appeared all along that Bulgaria ' has been the outstanding party and that country has, in consequence, received closest attentions from our enemies. The underlying motives for prolonged neutrality has been ably discussed by men who possess a most Int?mate knowledge of these States, botn politically and socially. In a recently published book, Messrs. C. and R. Buxton discuss the position of the neutra* Balkan States generally. They say no one State is likely to move without the others, and at present Bulgaria is holding Roumania and Greece back. They find the real obstacle to any agreement in the refusal of any BalI kan State to surrender an inch of tefI ritory that has once come into Its hands. Each is afraid of the numbers of its neighbours and sticks to every handful . of population—of whatever nationality —which it can appropriate. This being the case, the only hope of a settlement lies in vigorous action t>y the Powers. Th» key to the whole position is simple. What is now the gonth-eastern corner of Serbia should have gone to Bulgaria as a result of

the first Balkan war, ami until it goes back to her Bulgaria will remain irreconcilable. Germany has availed lieself of the trickiness of the situation, has offered money and arms, but always to Bulgaria, for she alone is an

j injured party from the struggle that arose as an aftermath’of. the war with | Turkey. The writers, however, have I studied the questions so colscia actua.yI ing the Balkan States, and they pro-

pound a scheme for inducing Bulgaria to give way. German negotiations have failed and now, the writers say. the Entente should be prepared to offer all the States concerned a guarantee concerning the ultimate settlement, hit as the gains by the conquest of Turkey arc likely to be consdorable, there ought to be small difficulty in framing an attractive offer. “The outline of the settlement is clear enough,” Messrs 'Buxton say. "Bulgaria would obtain the lost Macedonia from Serbia, Kavalla from Greece, part of the Dobradja, taken from her after the second Balkan war, from Boa mania, Adrian* oplo from Turkey.. Greece would receive Smyrna, Boumania would gain 'l Transylvania, Serbia would enter into Bosnia and much more. Each Government would be able to sweeten the proposed surrender of territory to its own people by showing what it. was to gain. And the settlement, while re-creating Balkan unity, would be founded in justice, and would furnish some hope of permament peace to a sorely distracted region.” The diplomacy of the Entente In the region has not been particularly successful, but if the reports now in circulation are -well-founded the prospects are brightening.