Minister of
Foreign Affairs Tittoni from the mayor, from societies, etc., of this
garrison, expressing the people's keen desire to be annexed to Italy.

A copy of said telegram should be transmitted to me.

THE MAJOR: THE MAJOR-GENERAL:
FORESI. SQUILLACE.

To return to the events at Blato--while we were waiting for the
Yugoslavs a woman made her way as far as the corridor, flung herself
down on her knees and entreated us to protect her. Major Verdinois gave
us his word of honour that no Yugoslav with whom we spoke would, for
that reason, be arrested. Perhaps he was overruled by his superior
officers--at all events he arrested and deported to Italy, in the night
of June 19, no less than ten persons, that is, all the Yugoslavs who
spoke to us at Blato, with two exceptions. [We cabled this to the Paris
Conference, and after some delay the unfortunate men were repatriated.]

WHAT THE MAJOR SAID

For what happened before our arrival I am indebted to the chemist
Radimiri, from whose report the following is an extract: "At ten in the
morning Major Verdinois had summoned to his office the communal doctor,
Moretti, and the secretary, Draguni['c], both of them Yugoslavs. He told
them that two Englishmen who were cruising about in the _Porer_ would
very likely be coming up that afternoon to Blato and he would permit no
sort of demonstration. The doctor, he said, would be held responsible
for any disorder; and as Moretti was about to make this known to the
people, who were just coming out of church, the Italian adjutant
approached him with a paper and ordered him to read it to the Yugoslavs.
This document--it has been preserved--is in the Serbo-Croat language and
was given to the doctor because the adjutant, who did not know the
language, mistook it for another one. It was an exhortation to the
people, urging them to have nothing more to do with the Yugoslav
_intelligentsia_, which had made a great deal of money during the War.
'And you have given your blood for four and a half years and what has
been your benefit?' Dr. Moretti made a personal appeal for the
maintenance of order, and the people, having called out 'Long live
Wilson!' went their divers ways in peace. Nevertheless three platoons
appeared, each with one officer and one N.C.O. The adjutant's platoon
distinguished itself, for while the arditi attacked anyone they saw,
including women and children, with the butt end of their muskets, Lieut.
G