Dr. Eduard Meyer has contributed an article to the Sueddeutsche
Monatshefte (Munich) on "Ancient Italy and the Rise of the Italian
Nation." Dr. Meyer is professor of history in the University of
Berlin, and is a brother of Dr. Kuno Meyer who recently attracted much
attention in this country by severing his connection with Harvard
University because of a prize "war poem" written by one of the
undergraduates. A postscript reflects Dr. Meyer's present feeling
toward Italy's defection:
The views which I have presented in this article are the
fruit of long years of study and research; and I feel myself
constrained to state explicitly that they are in no wise
influenced by the events which we have experienced during
the last few weeks. But it may be that a short postscript is
necessary.
Italy has not won her present national unity by reason of
her own strength; she owes it to the combinations of the
changing world-situation and the victories of foreign
powers, which her statesmen have known how to use to the
best advantage.
According to Dr. Meyer, Italy's claim to be one of the great powers is
not based on any actual ability to uphold that claim; it merely
happens that her assertion has not been challenged.
She has claimed for herself the status of a great power on a
par with the other large nations of the world; but she has
not possessed the inner strength of herself to support such
a claim without the help of stronger powers.
In August, 1914, Italy had the opportunity to decide her
fate. If she could have made the choice then, if she could
have gone into the world-war with all the might that she
possessed and, staking her whole existence, have fought
toward the highest goal, she might have won for herself a
powerful and self-sufficient place in the world.
On account of his many utterances since the outbreak of the war,
Ludwig Thoma's Maerz (Munich), a weekly founded by him, has attracted
much attention. An article entitled "Italy's Defection," in a recent
issue, is most bitter in tone, accusing Italy of long-standing
intrigue and treachery.
We know that Italy went still further from the fact that at
the renewal of the alliance in 1912 in Paris she expressly
announced that she would not march against France. It will
be remembered how quick the French army command was to take
stock of relations on the southeastern border, with the
result that in the very first days of mobilization their
troops were called from the Savoy Alps and by the eighth of
August were giving battle on the Alsatian border.
But Italy still guarded the neutrality which she had
proclaimed and with apparent reasonableness she was able to
hold that the letter of the Triple Alliance did not compel
her to enter the conflict. Laughing in her sleeve she could
even give it out that her sympathetic neutrality would
sufficiently guarantee to her allies certain suspended
contracts of an economic nature. Neutral Italy furnished
Germany to a considerable extent with products of its own
land and others which were not unwelcome.
That the mobilization of an Italian army on France's borders
might have been able to decide the war as far back as
September, is a consideration which, in the face of this
hypocritical neutrality, one cannot face without driving
one's nails into one's flesh!
It was through the connivance of England that Italy weakly found
herself forced to enter the war against her former allies.
Sir Edward Grey found the way to do it. Italy learned that
England was no longer in a situation to hold the Straits of
Gibraltar and the Suez Canal open and was obliged to take
over the control of Italian imports. Even before this
British agents had control of the port of Genoa and there
was no doubt that through most irritating measures on
England's part which skillfully concealed the motive behind
them, a blow would be struck at the very roots of Italy's
existence and famine would set in. Presently the Italian
politicians and the crown were confronted with a dilemma
which left them the choice only between war and
revolution....
Not every people has the political government which it
deserves; the Italian people are the victims of a
government, essentially undeserved but traditionally
faithless.
But Mars is now shaking the dice and behind the curtain of
the future Revolution stands waiting.