Austria’s chief aim in Servia is to estrange the people from their King, to create as much discord and discontent as possible to crush the trade of the country and to keep her poor. As long as she believed that Servia was in a bad position economically and financially, things were allowed to go from bad to worse. But as soon as an improvement was observed in the national prosperity, a hostile policy was adopted, which has rendered trade between the two countries impossible. Careful inquiries of the Servian Cabinet Ministers and many statesmen of both political parties show that even in the present position, with Austria closed against her, Servia is nevertheless progressing, and prospering more than the outside world ever dreams. The last commercial treaty between Austria and Servia expired in 1904. There was a desire on the part of Servia to at once renew it, but this Austria-Hungary was unable to do, as she was rearranging her treaty with Germany. When, however, the first negotiations were started, Austria made very severe complaints regarding the Serbo-Bulgarian Customs Union, and asked that the treaty in question should be annulled before negotiations for the new treaty were started. The Servian Government, desirous of pleasing Austria, replied that in the Serbo-Bulgarian Customs Union there was a clause to the effect that if one of the Great Powers raised a protest, amendments might be introduced. They therefore suggested the postponement of this question, hoping that Austria was satisfied, and would begin the _pourparlers_. But no such thing. Austria had other aims, for very soon they coolly declared that if the commercial treaty were renewed, Servia must buy her new armament for the artillery of the Scoda works in Austria. This is peculiar, inasmuch as the cannon in question is not that in use by the Austrian artillery! The reason for this has been explained by the fact that certain members of the Austrian Imperial family were financially interested in the works in question. This, however, was not the real reason. There was one far more subtle. The true political reason, indeed, was that the Austrian Government wished to get a seat in the “Autonom-Monopol” administration—the body which controls the loans, and which consists of six members, namely, one French delegate, one German, and four Servians. France and Germany were both friendly, but Austria, had she gained a seat there, could at once have created internal dissension and difficulty. Nominally, the annual income from this “Monopol” is about thirty million dinars, or francs, of which twenty million go to the creditors, leaving ten million at the free disposal of the Government. Now had Austria obtained a hand in this administration, she would have been able to exercise a prerogative and a right of intervention in many matters affecting the good government of the country—a danger that will at once be apparent.