(Saturday) at 1 p. m.

"I shall confine myself to telling him that France will have
regard to her interests. The Government of the Republic need not
indeed give any account of her intentions except to her ally.

"I ask you to inform M. Sazonof [Minister for Foreign Affairs] of
this immediately. As I have already told you, I have no doubt
that the Imperial Government, in the highest interests of peace,
will do everything on their part to avoid anything that might
render inevitable or precipitate the crisis."

Minister Klobukowski telegraphed from Brussels that _L'Agence Havas_
having announced the proclamation of "imminence of war" in Germany,
he had assured M. Davignon, Minister for Foreign Affairs, that
France would respect Belgian neutrality.

"The Russian and British Ministers appeared much pleased that in
the circumstances I gave this assurance, which further, as the
British Minister told me, was in accordance with the declaration
of Sir E. Grey."

_Belgium._ M. Davignon reported the above interview to the Belgian
Ministers at Berlin, Paris, and London, giving the exact words of
the French Minister:

"No incursion of French troops into Belgium will take place, even
if considerable forces are massed upon the frontiers of your
country. France does not wish to incur the responsibility, so far
as Belgium is concerned, of taking the first hostile act.

"I thanked M. Klobukowski, and I felt bound to observe that we
had always had the greatest confidence in the loyal observance by
both our neighboring states of their engagements toward us. We
have also every reason to believe that the attitude of the German
Government will be the same as that of the Government of the
French Republic."

M. Davignon telegraphed to all the Belgian Legations abroad:

"The Minister of War informs me that [Belgian] mobilization has
been ordered, and that Saturday, August 1, will be the first
day."

He telegraphed to the Belgian Ministers at Berlin, London, and
Paris, that the British Minster had reported Sir Edward Grey's
inquiry to France and Germany if they would respect Belgian
neutrality, and now formally states that he presumes--

"that Belgium will do her utmost to maintain her neutrality, and
that she desires and expects that the other powers will respect
and maintain it.

"I than