But, after the War, Italy’s situation suddenly changed.  The War had aroused in the minds of all Europeans a certain sentiment of violence, a longing for expansion and conquest.  The proclamations of the Entente, the declarations of Wilson’s principles, or points, became so contorted that no trace of them could be found in the treaties, save for that ironic covenant of the League of Nations, which is always repeated on the front page, as Dante said of the rule of St. Benedict, at the expense of the paper.

For Italy a very curious situation came about.  France had but one enemy:  Germany.  She united all her forces against this enemy in a coherent and single action which culminated in the Treaty of Versailles.  France had but one idea:  to make the Entente abandon the principles it had proclaimed, and try to suffocate Germany, dismember her, humiliate her by means of a military occupation, by controlling her transports, confiscating all her available wealth, by raising to the dignity of elevated and highly civilized States inferior populations without national dignity.

Austria-Hungary was composed of eleven peoples.  It was split up into a series of States.  Austria and Hungary were reduced to small territories and shut up in narrow confines.  All the other countries were given to Rumania, to Serbia, or more exactly to the S.H.S.  State, to Poland, or else were formed into new States, such as Czeko-Slovakia.  These countries were considered by the Entente as allies, and, to further good relations, the most important of the Entente nations protected their aspirations even against the wishes of Italy.  The Italians had found themselves in their difficult theatre of war against Galatians, Bosnians, Croats, Transylvanians, etc.  But by the simple fact of their having changed names, and having called themselves Poles, Jugo-Slavs, Rumanians, they became friends.  In order to favour some of these new friends, it has happened that not only have Italy’s sentiments been offended, but even justice itself.  Montenegro was always mentioned in the declarations of the Entente.  On January 10, 1917, Briand, speaking in the name of all the Allies, united at that time pour la defense et la liberte des peuples, put forward as a fundamental programme the restoration of Belgium, Serbia and Montenegro:  Montenegro was in this on an equality with Belgium.  Just a year afterwards, January 8, 1918, Wilson, when formulating his fourteen points, had included in the eleventh proposition the duty of evacuating the territories of Rumania, Serbia and Montenegro, and restoring them.  The exact reason for which it was established that Montenegro should be absorbed (even without plebiscite) by the S.H.S.  State, thus offending also Italy’s sentiments, will remain one of the most melancholy pages of the New Holy Alliance that the Entente has become, along with that poor prestigeless organism, the League of Nations.  But let us hope this latter will find a means of renovating itself.