the
re-occupation of the Sanjak by Austria, and a possible attack on
Montenegro: "What then? Anything would be better than the Government
we have down there!" and pointed Cetinjewards. Jovan Plamenatz
assured me emphatically that Austria would not attack them. And he
counted for certain on Bulgar support. The Turks, however, displayed
great restraint, and did not declare war. Veshovitch then told me
that as neither the efforts of Bulgaria nor Montenegro could force
them to it, Montenegro herself would begin. He had bombs ready to
spring another Turkish blockhouse, and so soon as he had finished
the big bread-oven for the army would do so, and cross the border.
Sniping, as I saw myself, was already going on daily.

A strange tale has been circulated that Montenegro mobilized but
four days before war broke out. The above facts show this to be
quite a mistake. Montenegro had been preparing over a year, and
could have begun in July.

I hastened to Cetinje to tell Count de Salis what was happening. He
replied that the Powers were doing nothing useful, and he feared it
was now too late.

I went to the Russia Institut. It was October 3rd. Sofia Petrovna
was happy and excited at the prospect of war; foretold the end of
the Turk and the triumph of the Holy Orthodox Church, to which she
was heart and soul passionately attached. While we were discussing
the situation, in hurried Yougourieff, one of the Russian officers
attached to the Legation, and superintending the Military Cadet
School financed by Russia, who, though she was no longer supporting
Nikola, was actively training young Montenegrins as cannon-fodder.

He stopped short on seeing me; hesitated; said something in Russian.
Seeing I was de trop, I rose to go. Sofia Petrovna bade me stay.
"Mademoiselle," she said, "knows the whole political situation. You
can speak before her."

He asked me doubtfully: "Will you promise not to send off what I say
to a newspaper?" I promised.

He sat down and began hotly in French to Sofia: "The Montenegrins
are absolutely mad! You must use all your influence to stop them.
They must not make this war! We have already told them so most
severely. They are mad, I tell you--we cannot and must not have war
now."

Sofia disagreed vehemently. All was ready. Things could not go on
like this. "But I tell you," said Yougourieff excitedly, "absolutely
there must be no Balkan war without Russia. And we are not ready."
Sofia persisted: "My fr