seemed about to be established between Vienna and St. Petersburg,
is characteristic of her warlike policy."

It looks as if she desired war on her own account.

M. Viviani, Minister for Foreign Affairs, notified the ambassadors
at London and Berlin and the Minister of Brussels of his pledge to
respect Belgian neutrality as given to Great Britain.

Ambassador Barrere reported from Rome an interview of the German
Ambassador with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, in which Herr von
Flotow had asked the intentions of Italy in the present crisis.

"The Marquis di San Giuliano answered that as the war undertaken
by Austria was aggressive and did not fall within the purely
defensive character of the Triple Alliance, particularly in view
of the consequences which might result from it according to the
declaration of the German Ambassador, Italy could not take part
in the war."

M. Viviani reported to the ambassadors at London, St. Petersburg,
Berlin, Vienna, Rome, Madrid, and Constantinople the visit to him at
11 a. m. of German Ambassador Schoen.

"After having recalled all the efforts made by France toward an
honorable settlement of the Austro-Serbian conflict and the
difficulty between Austria and Russia which has resulted from it,
I put him in possession of the facts as to the _pourparlers_
which have been carried on since yesterday [in reference to
Austro-Russian dispute].

"I drew attention to the attitude of Germany who, abandoning all
_pourparlers_, presented an ultimatum to Russia at the very
moment when this power had just accepted the British formula
(which implies the cessation of military preparations by all the
countries which have mobilized) and regarded as imminent a
diplomatic rupture with France.

"Baron von Schoen answered that he did not know the developments
which had taken place in this matter for the last twenty-four
hours, that there was perhaps in them a 'glimmer of hope' for
some arrangement, that he had not received any fresh
communication from his Government, and that he was going to get
information. He gave renewed protestations of his sincere desire
to unite his efforts to those of France for arriving at a
solution of the conflict. I laid stress on the serious
responsibility which the Imperial Government would assume if, in
circumstances such a