clamations by the deputies, Soukup and Daszynski, demanding that the nations themselves, and not merely the Emperor, should have a decisive voice in the peace negotiations, the terms of which must be based upon the principles of self-determination.
Czernin was perturbed by this move. He feared that it might weaken the Empire at the peace negotiations, which he now believed to be close at hand, and accordingly, on June 27th, he caused Seidler to deliver a declaration in Parliament, which aroused great attention both within the Empire and abroad, and proved of no little service to our propaganda. The declaration ran as follows: “The assumption expressed in the interpellation made by Deputy Daszynski, implying that the Imperial and Royal Government would acknowledge the right of self-determination as a basis for a permanent peace, is an error. The Imperial and Royal Government takes its stand upon the basis of Article V. of the Constitutional Law of December 21, 1867.”(46)
At the moment when a severe struggle on this subject was being waged in Russia between the Government and the extremists, at the moment when President Wilson was solemnly proclaiming this principle of self-determination, when it was gaining influence and strength in the Allied countries, Czernin’s proclamation served admirably to throw light upon the state of the Empire and the intentions of the Government at Vienna and the Central Powers in general. And in this respect Vienna was considered to be far more moderate than Berlin. The Allied Governments, when speaking about the freedom of nations, had in mind not merely the nations within Austria, but chiefly Belgium, Poland, Serbia, and Rumania, who at that time were in the hands of the Central Powers. The Seidler-Czernin proclamation was taken as indicating what the Governments of the Central Powers would do in this respect if they were to remain masters of the situation.
The Czech deputy, Dr. Baxa, made a speech on June 28th, in which he pointed out that as a logical result of this policy the Czech question and the other racial problems would not be settled in the Empire itself, but at a general peace conference which would decide the future of the small nations. Then came a new declaration by Staněk, published in the newspaper Az Est, emphasizing the programme of Czech
