preciated the force of M. Skouloudis's arguments and, thanks to her,
diplomatic pressure ceased. But there remained another form of
pressure, from which France would not desist.

M. Briand angrily declared that, under the circumstances, there could
be no talk of a loan. M. Skouloudis pleaded that Greece had not asked
the loan as a price for the violation of her neutrality; she had asked
it on the supposition that the Entente Powers could not see with
indifference her military and economic paralysis.[8]

The plea made no impression; and, rebuffed by Paris, M. Skouloudis's
Government once more turned to Berlin. It received another credit of
forty million marks; but, notwithstanding this supply, day by day it
saw its expenses increasing and its revenues diminishing. Besides the
men under arms, there were crowds of destitute refugees from Turkey,
Bulgaria and Servia to be provided for, and the native population,
owing to the rise in the cost of living {90} and to unemployment, also
stood in urgent need of relief. At the same time, customs and other
receipts became more and more precarious owing to the Allies' constant
interference with the freedom of commerce.[9]

Truly, after the Allies' landing on her soil, the neutrality of Greece
became something unique in the annals of international jurisprudence: a
case defying all known maxims, except Machiavelli's maxim, that, when
placed between two warring powers, it is better for a state to join
even the losing side than try to remain neutral. By trying to do so,
Greece could not avoid, even with the utmost circumspection, exposing
herself to insult and injury.

One more corollary of the Salonica Expedition deserves to be noted.
Since the beginning of the War, Athens, like other neutral capitals,
had become the centre of international intrigue and espionage; each
belligerent group establishing, beside their officially accredited
diplomatic missions, secret services and propagandas. In aim, both
establishments were alike. But their opportunities were not equal.
The Germans had to rely for procuring information and influencing
public opinion on the usual methods. The French and the British added
to those methods others of a more unusual character.

From the riffraff of the Levant they had recruited a large detective
force which operated under the sanctuary of their Legations.[10] The
primary function of these gentry was to discover attempts at the
fuelling and victua