Page:The guilt of William Hohenzollern.djvu/138

134 only if one was bent on war and at the same time wished to pose as the party attacked. Nor does he recommend the English proposal, he merely transmits it, and apologizes for the fact that circumstances oblige him to do so

To London, however, he telegraphs:

""We have at once undertaken mediation-movement in Vienna in the sense desired by Sir Edward Grey.""

The result of the "mediation-movement" was that Austria declared war on Serbia on July 28th.

England, nevertheless, made another effort to save the peace of the world. On the 29th Lichnowsky reported in a telegram which we shall deal with in detail in another connection:

""Sir E. Grey repeated his suggestion already reported that we should take part in a mediation à quatre, such as we had already accepted in principle. Should, however, Your Excellency undertake the mediation, of which I was able to show a prospect early this morning, he would be equally well-pleased.""

The two sentences printed in italics are missing in the copy of the telegram prepared for William. Can that have been accidental? It permits the assumption that it was desired to conceal from the Kaiser that this kind of mediation " had been accepted in principle." This would be quite in keeping with Jagow's policy, concerning which Szögyeny reported.

Whatever may have been the state of the case in regard to this report, at all events German policy in the