ere the decisions of the
special commissions which he and Mr. Lloyd George so unceremoniously
brushed aside.

On the following morning Signori Orlando and Sonnino called on the
British Premier in response to his urgent invitation. To their surprise
they found Mr. Wilson and M. Clemenceau also awaiting them, ready, as it
might seem, to begin the discussion anew, curious in any case to observe
the effect of the declaration. But the Italian Premier burned his boats
without delay or hesitation. "You have challenged the authority of the
Italian government," he said, "and appealed to the Italian people. Be it
so. It is now become my duty to seek out the representatives of my
people in Parliament and to call upon them to decide between Mr. Wilson
and me." The President returned the only answer possible, "Undoubtedly
that is your duty." "I shall inform Parliament then that we have allies
incapable of agreeing among themselves on matters that concern us
vitally." Disquieted by the militant tone of the Minister, Mr. Lloyd
George uttered a suasive appeal for moderation, and expressed the hope
that in his speech to the Italian Chamber, Signor Orlando would not
forget to say that a satisfactory solution may yet be found. He would
surely be incapable of jeopardizing the chances of such a desirable
consummation. "I will make the people arbiters of the whole situation,"
the Premier announced, "and in order to enable them to judge with full
knowledge of the data, I herewith ask your permission to communicate my
last memorandum to the Council of Four. It embodies the pith of the
facts which it behooves the Parliament to have before it. In the
meantime, the Italian government withdraws from the Peace Conference."
On this the painful meeting terminated and the principal Italian
plenipotentiaries returned to Rome. In France a section of the press
sympathized with the Italians, while the government, and in particular
M. Clemenceau, joined Mr. Wilson, who had promised to restore the
sacredness of treaties[214] in exhorting Signor Orlando to give up the
Treaty of London. The clash between Mr. Wilson and Signor Orlando and
the departure of the Italian plenipotentiaries coincided with the
arrival of the Germans in Versailles, so that the Allies were faced with
the alternative of speeding up their desultory talks and improvising a
definite solution or giving up all pretense at unanimity in the presence
of the enemy. One important Paris journal fo