AUSTRIAN TREATY.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 June 1919, Page 5

AUSTRIAN TREATY.

1 REQUCED TO SMALL, TERRITORY, Inhabitants Only 6,000,000. General Features Similar to German Treaty. By Wire.—Government Memo. London, June 2. The conditions of the peace of the Allied and associated Powers, with the exception of the military reparations, financial and certain boundary clauses, Were handed to the Austrian plenipotentiaries at St. Germain on June 1. Those clauses, which are not yet ready for presentation, will be delivered as soon as possible, the Austrians in the meanwhile having the opportunity to begin Work on the greater part of the treaty, in aa effort to facilitate the final decision. The Austrian treaty follows exactly the same outline as the German, and in many places is identical with it, except for the change in name. Certain specific clauses which applied only to Germany are of course omitted, and certain new clauses of particular applicability to Austria are included, especially as Tegards the new States created out of the former Austro-Hungarian finpite. Austria is left by this treaty a State Of ahout 6,000,000 people, inhabiting a territory of between 30,000 and 00,000 Bquire miles. AUstria recognises the complete independlnce of Hungary, and Czechoslovakia, and the Serbo, Croat, Slovene State, and cedes other territories which previously were in union with her and composed the empire of Austria-Hun-gary.

Austria agrees to accept the League of Nations covenant and the labor charter, and to renounce all her extraEiirOpean rights; to demobilise her Whole naval and aerial forces; to admit the fijrht by trial by the Allied and associated Powers of her nationals guilty of Viol&tion of the laws and customs of v.'fir. and' to acept the detailed provisions similar to those in the German treaty as to the economic relations and freedom of transit. . In the following summary, nart. one,

containing the covenant of the League of Nations, Mid part twelve, containing the v r.ahor Convention, are identical with those in the German treaty, and are therefore omitted. Part six, dealing with prisoners of war and graves, and part ten, dealing with aerial navigation, fire identical, with the substitution of Austria and Austrian for Germany and German, and are also omitted. Part thirteen of the German treaty, containing* guarantees for execution, is not incindkt ih the Austrian treaty. Part % the Frontiers of Austria.—The northern frontier, facing Tehecho-Slo-Vakia, the existing administrative boundaries formerly separating the provinces of Bohemia and Moravia from those of upper and lower Austria, subject to certain minor rectifications, notably in the region of Gouid and Feldsberir and along the river Moravia. The southern frontier, facing Italy and the -Slovene State, is to be fixed t-v the prmeroal Allied and associated PoWeri at a later date. ftt tile eastern part the line passing jiist east of Blieberar crosses the Drave just above its continence with the LaVatri, and thence will pass north of the Brave so as to leave the Serbo-Croat-Slovene State Marburg and Radkersburg, jtut to the north of which latter Jitace it will join the Hungarian frontier. The Western 'aid north-western frontiers, facing Bavaria, the western frontier facing Switzerland, and the eastern frontier facing Hungary, remain unchanged. Part 3, Political Causes.—The high contracting parties recognise and accept the frontiers of Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Roumauia, the Serbo-Croat-Slovene State, and the Tchecho-Slovak | State as at present or as ultimately determined. Austria renounces in favor of the principal Allied and associated all her rights and titles ovel Territories formerly belonging to het vhich, though outside the new frontiers if Austria, have not at present been issigned to any State, undertaking to icrept the settlement to be made in regard to'these territories. THE TCHECHO-SLOVAK STATE. Austria recognises the complete independence of the Teh echo-Slovak State, including the autonomous territory south of the Carpathians, in conformity with the action already taken by the Allied . and associated Powers. The exact bound-1 ary between Austria and the new State is to be fixed by a field commission of | seven members, five nominated by the principal Allied and associated Powers j and one each by Austria and TchechoSlovakia- Tchecho-Slovakia agrees to embody in a treaty with the principal 'Allied and associated Powers such provisions as may be deemed necessary to j protect racial, religious, or linguistic minorities, and to assure freedom of transit and equitable treatment for the commerce of other nations. THE SERBO-CROAT-SLOVENE STATE Austria similarly recognises the independence of the Serbo-Croat-Slovene State, , and renounces her rights and titl"". A similarly appointed field commission, including a member nominated bv the Serbo-Croat-Slovene State, is to fix the exact boundary. The question of the basin of Klagenfurt is reserved. The State agrees to a similar,treaty for the protection of minorities and. ths freedom of transit. ROUMANIA. Roumania agrees to a similar treaty for the protection of minorities and fwdnro of transit. RUSSIA. Viistria is to recognise and respect the full independence of all the territories which forared part of the former Russian OTnmre; She is to accept definitely the annulment of the Brest-Litovsk treaty, and of all treaties or agreements of all kinds concluded since the revolution of Kn ember, 1917. with all governments nv rnlitical groups on territory of the former Russian empire. The Allies reFervn all rishts on the part of Russia for restitution and satisfaction to be obtained from Austria on the principles of the present treaty. GENERAL ARRANGEMENTS. Austria •is to consent to the abrogation of the- <rtatiw of which

State and her frontiers fixed, accept in advance any convention with which the Allies may determine to re> place them. Austria adheres to th»abrogation of the neutrality of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, and accepts in advance all international agreements aft to it reached by the Allied and associated Powers. Austrian nationals belonging to racial, religious, or linguistic minorities are to enjoy the same protection as other Austrian nationals, in particular with regard to schools and other educational establishments, and in districts where a considerable proportion of Austrian nationals of other than German speefch are resident facilities are to be giveii in schools for the instruction of children in their own language, and an equitable flhnre of public funds is to be provided for the purpose. These provisions do not preclude the Austrian Government from making the teaching of German obligatory. They are to be embodied by Austria in her fundamental" law as a bill of rights, and provisions regarding them are to be under the protection of the League of Nations.

Part 4. Austrian Rights Outside Europe.—Cmteide Europe Austria renounces all rights, titles and privileges as to her own or her allies' territories to all the Allied and associated Powers, and undertakes to accept whatever measures are taken by the principal Allied Poteen in relation thereto. Austria accepts all arrangements which the Allied and associated Powers moke with Turkey and Bulgaria With reference to any right', privileges, 0 r interests claimed in those countries by Austria or her nationals, and not dealt with elsewhere. Austria accepts all arangemehts which the Allied and associated Powers make with Germany concerning the territories whose abandonment was imposed upon Denmark by the treaty of 1864. i PROTECTION OF MINORITIES.

In a series of special olauses Austria undertakes to bring her institutions into conformity with the principles of liberty and justice, and acknowledges that the obligations for the protection of minorities are matters of international concern over which the League of Nations lias jurisdiction. She assures complete protection of life and liberty to all inhabitants of Austria without distinction of birth, nationality, language, race, or religion, together with the right to free exercise of any creed. All Austrian nationals, without dVtinction of race, language, or religion, are to be equal before the law. No restrictions are to be imposed on the free use of any language in private or public, and reasonable facilities are to be given to Austrian nationals of non-German speech for the use of their language before the courts. The clauses as to Egypt, Morocco, China, and Siani are identical, after the necessary modifications, with those of the German treaty, except that, especially in the case of China, there is not need for so great detail. Part 5, Military, Naval and Air Clauses.—The military clauses are reserved. All Austro-Hungarian warships, submarines, and vessels of the Danubs flotilla are declared to be finally surrendered to the principal Allied and associated Powers. Twenty-one specified auxiliary cruisers are to be disarmed and treated as merchant ships. All warships and submarines under construction in ports which belong or have belonged to Austria-Hungary shall be broken up, the salvage not to be used except for industrial purposes, and not to be sold to foreign countries. The construction or acquisition of any submarines. even for commercial purposes, is forbidden. All naval arms, ammunition, and other war material belonging to Austria-Hungary at the date of the armistice shall be surrendered to the Allies. The Austrian wireless station at Vienna is not to be used for naval, military, or bolitical messages relating to Austria or her late allies without the assent of the Allied and associated Governments during three months, but only for commercial purposes under supervision. During the same period Austria is not to build any more high-power wireless stations. The air clauses are practically the same as in the Gennas treaty, except for the 100 seaplanes and their personnel which Germany is allowed to retain till October to search for mines. General: Austria agrees not to accredit or send any military, naval, or air mission to any foreign country, nor to allow Austrian nationals to enlist in the armv, navy, or air service of any foreign Power.

Part 7. Penalties—This is identical with the German treaty, except the omission of any provision similar to that callin? for th<; trial of the ex-Kaiser of Germany. Part R. on reparations, is reserved.

Part 9, Financial Claims.—These are also reserved. Part 10, Economic Clauses.—Tsese are, except in certain details such as shipping, similar to those of the German treaty. Special provisions are added, however, for former Au stro-Hun gari an nationals acquiring an Allied nationality, siinilar to those in the German treatv relating to Alsace-Lorrane. The contracts are maintained, subject to cancellation by the governments. Austria undertakes to recognise any agreement or convention made by the Allies to safeguard the interests of their nationals in any undertakings constituted under AustroHungarian law which operate in territories detached from the former Austrian empire, and to transfer any necessarv documents and information in regard ta them. Part 10. Safeguarding Freedom of Transit—The clauses as to freedom of transit are the same in the Austrian as in the German treaty, except for the omission of provisions affecting Germany alone and the insertion of specific clauses granting Austria transit privileges through former Austro-Hungarian territory, in order to assure her access to the Adriatic. Part 14, "Miscellaneous Provisions. — These are, after necessarv substitutions, virtually identical with those of tse German treaty. The Ireaty is to come into force when signed by Austria, and three principal Powres, and to be effectitve for the j individual States on the deposit of their specific ratifications.