civil service, and deprived of public schools as well as of all private
educational institutions.

"The constitution to which the Austro-Hungarian representative refers,
nullified even the right of general suffrage by an artificial creation
of an over-representation of the German minority in the Reichsrat, and
its utter uselessness for the liberty of nations was clearly
demonstrated during the three years of unscrupulous military absolutism
during this war. Every reference to this constitution, therefore, means
in reality only a repudiation of the right of self-determination for
the non-German nations of Austria who are at the mercy of the Germans:
and it means an especially cruel insult and injury to the non-Magyar
nations _in Hungary, where the constitution is nothing but a means of
shameful domination by the oligarchy of a few Magyar aristocratic
families_, as was again proved by the recent electoral reform proposal.

"Our nation longs with all the democracies of the world for a general
and lasting peace. But our nation is fully aware that _no peace can be
permanent except a peace which will abolish old injustice_, brutal
force and the predominance of arms, as well as the predominance of
states and nations over other nations, which will assure a free
development to all nations, great or small, and which will liberate
especially those nations which are still suffering under foreign
domination. That is why it is necessary that this right of free
national development and of self-determination of nations, great or
small, to whatever state they may belong, should become the foundation
of future international rights, a guarantee of peace, and of a friendly
co-operation of nations, as well as a great ideal which will liberate
humanity from the terrible horrors of a world war.