ery effort to consolidate its
unity. True, the Balkan League had as its first task the robbing of
Turkey of her European provinces. But Turkey was herself in the position
of a robber; and it had come to be a matter of practical agreement among
the European Powers that the Christian provinces of Turkey would soon
have to pass from under the rule of the Sublime Porte. The only question
left was "how?" The Balkan League offered to answer that question in a
way satisfactory to all unselfish interests. But the selfish interests
of Europe were not served by the League. Austria, dreaming of one day
marching down to the Aegean, saw that that hope would be shattered if a
strong Balkan Federation held the Balkan Peninsula. Italy was afraid of
another Power on the Adriatic--an unwise fear, because her true national
policy should have welcomed a new check to Austria. Russia was not eager
to welcome a Balkan Federation, in which possibly the Slav element would
not predominate and which, in any case, would get to Constantinople
inevitably in the course of events. A bevy of eager jealousies set to
work to put obstacles in the path of the Balkan League. Those Powers
which were friendly to it were mildly friendly; those which were hostile
were relentlessly hostile.

It would be perhaps too much to say that if the European Powers had been
benevolently neutral to the Balkan League it would have survived and set
firm the foundations of a Balkan Federation. But it is reasonable to
believe that an actively benevolent Europe, acting with firmness and
impartiality and without seeking to serve any selfish aims, would have
succeeded in keeping the League together and saving the series of
fratricidal wars which began in 1913 and will be continued as soon as
the present exhaustion has been relieved. Instead of an actively
benevolent there was an actively malevolent Europe.

The plans of the Balkan League contemplated a division of the territory
which is now Albania between Greece, Servia, and Montenegro. The decree
of the Powers, issued because Austria made a "bluffing threat" of war if
Servia were allowed territory on the Adriatic, was that Albania should
be an independent kingdom. It had at the time no cities, no railways, no
roads worthy of the name, no civilised organisation, no basis at all of
national life. Several different racial types and religions found a
shelter within its area. The only useful purpose that could be served by
creating