There were a few matters of principle or opinion in which I noticed that Dr. Kramář showed a marked disagreement with Masaryk. He indicated to me his absolute confidence in the part which Russia would play and the success which she would achieve in the struggle for our independence. He also told me what he thought about the political international tendencies of the future independent State, and of the close constitutional and political relationship between our State and Russia. He also said that it would be Russia who would decide the whole matter of the war for us, and that it would therefore be necessary for him to be at Prague and to direct matters in a fitting manner at the moment when the Russians reached us. He therefore hinted at this very first meeting that while it was a good thing for Masaryk to be abroad, his own place was not abroad but at home.
This attitude bewildered me. I began to raise objections, mentioning what Masaryk had told me and what Svatkovsky had confirmed. I pointed out to him the guarded attitude of Paris and London towards Russia, whose expansion was the cause of alarm, and I showed that we must therefore be cautious in our dealings with Western Europe. I repeated Masaryk’s doubts about the relationship of Russia to us and the Jugoslavs, and also Svatkovsky’s criticisms of the unprepared and backward state of affairs in Petrograd. Dr. Kramář disposed of my fears very briefly, expressing the view that when the time came, his personal intervention with Izvolsky on the subject of our cause would put matters right.
I saw that the divergence of views could not be eliminated in the case of Dr. Kramář by any further discussion, and I therefore deferred to his authority. It was enough for me that Dr. Kramář had heard the whole message, had given his consent to our work, had accepted the scheme of organization, had expressed a desire to keep in touch with us, and had agreed that we should hold further meetings as soon as fresh news came from Switzerland, or in case it were necessary to make any important resolutions. He also expressed his agreement with the suggestion that another one of our politicians should proceed abroad. I at once visited Dr. Scheiner and informed him of the main points in my conversation with Dr. Kramář. I also arranged with him and Dr. Šámal the final form which our organization and activities should take.
