So are we. But it is not for this
purpose that I now write to you. Sympathy is a sentiment and, as a rule,
not to be won by argument. What I want to discuss with you are the
causes of this war and the issues at stake.
The Cause of the War.
Undoubtedly the war broke out over our conflict with Servia, but this
conflict was not of our seeking. We had no wish of aggrandizement or
extension of power at the expense of Servia, but Servia covets territory
which belongs to us, and for years has pursued her ends by the most
nefarious and criminal means. The assassination of our heir to the crown
and his consort was not an isolated fact, but only the most glaring
link in a long chain of plotting and agitating against us. This
attitude of Servia toward us dates back to the day when the gang of
officers who murdered their own King came to power, and when it became
their policy to keep a hold over their own people by exciting their
ambitions against us. This policy reached its first climax when we
declared the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which we had occupied
and developed for thirty years. You were in office then, and the events
of the time are familiar to you.
Pages:
437
438
439
440
441
442
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461