h responsible Austro-Hungarian
officials but was proclaimed publicly by Italian statesmen on the floors
of Parliament.

Therefore when Austria-Hungary ignored the usual practices and menaced
Serbia by sending her an ultimatum without in any way notifying the
Italian Government of what she proposed to do, indeed leaving that
Government to learn of her action through the press rather than through
the usual channels of diplomacy, when Austria-Hungary took this
unprecedented course she not only severed her alliance with Italy but
committed an act inimical to Italy's interests.

The Italian Government had obtained trustworthy information that the
complete program laid down by Austria-Hungary with reference to the
Balkans was prompted by a desire to decrease Italy's economical and
political influence in that section, and tended directly and indirectly
to the subservience of Serbia to Austria-Hungary, the political and
territorial isolation of Montenegro, and the isolation and political
decadence of Rumania.

This attempted diminution of the influence of Italy in the Balkans would
have been brought about by the Austro-Hungarian program, even though
Austria-Hungary had no intention of making further territorial
acquisitions. Furthermore attention should be called to the fact that
the Austro-Hungarian Government had assumed the solemn obligation of
prior consultation of Italy as required by the special provisions of
Article VII. of the treaty of the Triple Alliance, which, in addition to
the obligation of previous agreements, recognized the right of
compensation to the other contracting parties in case one should occupy
temporarily or permanently any section of the Balkans.

To this end, the Italian Government approached the Austro-Hungarian
Government immediately upon the inauguration of Austro-Hungarian
hostilities against Serbia, and succeeded in obtaining reluctant
acquiescence in the Italian representations. Conversations were
initiated immediately after July 23, for the purpose of giving a new
lease of life to the treaty which had been violated and thereby annulled
by the act of Austria-Hungary.

This object could be attained only by the conclusion of new agreements.
The conversations were renewed, with additional propositions as the
basis, in December 1914. The Italian Ambassador at Vienna at that time
received instructions to inform Count Berchtold, the Austro-Hungarian
Minister for Foreign Affairs, that the Italia