Petersburg and Vienna, to the effect that
Austria and Servia
"should abstain from any act which might aggravate the
situation at the present hour."
By this was meant that there should be, pending further parleys, no
invasion of Servia by Austria and none of Austria by Russia. _To this
the German Foreign Minister opposed a categorical refusal._
On the same day the Russian Ambassador at Vienna had "a long and earnest
conversation" with the Austrian Under Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs. He expressed the earnest hope that
"something would be done before Servia was actually invaded.
Baron Machio replied that this would now be difficult, as a
skirmish had already taken place on the Danube, in which the
Servians had been aggressors."
The Russian Ambassador then said that his country would do all it could
to keep the Servians quiet,
"and even to fall back before an Austrian advance in order to
gain time."
He urged that the Austrian Ambassador at St. Petersburg should be
furnished with full powers to continue discussions with the Russian
Minister for Foreign Affairs,
"who was very willing to advise Servia to yield all that could
be fairly asked of her as an independent power.
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