With the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian army, the Serbs and Croats
and Slovenes saw that one other obstacle to their long-hoped-for union
had vanished. The dream of centuries was now a little nearer towards
fulfilment. But many obstacles remained. There would presumably be
opposition on the part of the Italian and Roumanian Governments, for it
was too much to hope that these would waive the treaties they had wrung
from the Entente, and would consent to have their boundaries regulated
by the wishes of the people living in disputed lands. Some individual
Italians and Roumanians might even be less reasonable than their
Governments. If Austria and Hungary were in too great a chaos to have
any attitude as nations, there would be doubtless local opposition to
the Yugoslavs. And as soon as the Magyars had found their feet they
would be sure to bombard the Entente with protestations, setting forth
that subject nationalities were intended by the Creator to be subject
nationalities. A large pamphlet, _The Hungarian Nation_, was issued at
Buda-Pest in February 1920. It displayed a very touching solicitude for
the Croats, whom the Serbs would be sure to tyrannize most horribly. If
only Croatia would remain in the Hungarian State, says Mr. A. Kovacs,
Ministerial Councillor in the Hungarian Central Statistical Office, then
the Magyars would instantly bestow on her both Bosnia (which belonged to
the Empire as a whole) and Dalmatia (which belonged to Austria). That is
the worst of being a Ministerial Statistical Councillor. Another
gentleman, Professor Dr. Fodor, has the bright idea that "the race is
the multitude of individuals who inhabit one uniform region." ...
Passing to Yugoslavia's domestic obstacles, it was impossible to think
that all the Serbs and Croats and Slovenes would forthwith subscribe to
the Declaration of Corfu and become excellent Yugoslavs. Some would be
honestly unable to throw off what centuries had done to them, and
realize that if they had been made so different from their brothers,
they were brothers still. For ten days there was a partly domestic,
partly foreign obstacle, but as the King of Montenegro did not take his
courage in both hands and descend on the shores of that country with an
Italian army, he lost his chance for ever.