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i9i6] M. SAVINSKY ON BALKAN AFFAIRS 391
attitude as the British Minister in Bulgaria—the same
one that I had had as colleague during the years 1911—
1913—did not take at all a gloomy view of things, and
reassured the Foreign Office as to the intentions of
Ferdinand and M. Radoslavov. In July, 1915, when the
Bulgarian loan of five hundred million francs negotiated
in Germany was effected under the very eyes of our
Minister who had predicted it, those in authority at last
listened to the cries of alarm uttered by Savinsky and
his French colleague, and began to consult as to the
best means of parrying the blow. It was just in the
middle of our disastrous retreat from Galicia, Poland and
Lithuania; coercive military measures were no longer
to be thought of; the problem was how to please the
Bulgarians without wronging the Serbians too much ;
whilst the latter, who saw the storm brewing, were
clamouring to be allowed to attack Bulgaria before she
had completed her mobilisation and her concentration of
troops—against which London protested vehemently.
The Rumanians did not appear to be going to carry out
the engagements contracted in Bukharest; Greece was
passing through the darkest days of the vassalage of
Constantine XIV. with regard to his Imperial
brother-in-law. The weeks went by; and while every one was
still engaged in evasions and hesitations the irreparable
deeds were done : Bulgaria mobilised and then entered
Serbia, whilst the Centrals attacked this unfortunate
country from the front.
That is what Savinsky told me ; and as a general
outline it was the absolute truth. Only my colleague
omitted to inform me of what had taken place in Sofia
between his arrival in January, 1914, and the spring of
1915. I think I ought to fill in the gap now.
At the first audience that my successor had with the
King of the Bulgarians, Ferdinand gave him a touching
welcome: " Your arrival, Monsieur, is as healing balm
to my lacerated heart!" However, in a few short
weeks, the relations between the Monarch and the
Russian Minister showed no signs of being particularly
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