Paris Peace Conf. 184.01102/63
Professor A. C. Coolidge to the Commission to Negotiate Peace
[Received February 12.]
Sirs: I have the honor to report that on my recent visit to Prague I have had the opportunity to hear the opinions of President Masaryk, Mr. Stepanik, Director of Foreign Affairs, and several other people on the question of the recent conflict between the Czechs and Poles in Austrian-Silesia. The Czechs dwelt particularly on the historic rights, on the violation by the Poles of their agreement, on the necessity for heightened production, on the danger of Bolshevism and other arguments well known to the Commission. On the other hand they said little of the reasons that prompted them to take action at the time they did, except to make the general remark that they could stand the situation no longer. It is pretty clear that they hoped, to put it colloquially, to bluff the Poles out of the contested region without fighting, and were surprised as well as troubled by the Polish resistance. While carefully avoiding any official statement which could be construed as a claim that they were acting with the consent of the powers of the Entente, the Czech Government made use of legionaries, that is to say, soldiers who have actually fought in the Entente armies, who wear the French uniform and are often popularly called Entente soldiers. President Masaryk admitted to me that these men were sent in the hope that the Poles would not oppose them. It was also with the same idea, I feel sure, that a group of foreign officers, including one from our own army, were allowed and probably encouraged, though they may not have been authorized, to summon the Poles to retire; and also post, over their own signatures, proclamations exhorting the population not to resist. When contrary to expectations the Poles did resist, though the fighting itself was trifling, and when there [Page 329] followed great excitement in Poland and stir elsewhere the Czechoslovak Government seems to have become alarmed. A little over a week ago President Masaryk told Lieut. Foster that the Czechs were determined to push matters to the end and indeed not to stop until they reached the frontier of Galacia [Silesia?]. They have now by the terms of the armistice accepted and contented themselves with their first gains, and their attitude is that they had not intended to go any farther. President Masaryk went so far as to say that though Eastern Silesia historically belonged to Bohemia it was not of much importance nor did the Czechs lay great insistence on its possession. I believe that Mr. Stepanik, Director of Foreign Affairs, was opposed to the action taken by his government, but he did not betray this in the conversation I had with him.
I inclose herewith a copy, taken from the Narodni Listy of February 4, of the military conventions signed for cessation of hostilities. President Masaryk’s secretary assures me the terms given in the paper are correct.
I have [etc.]