AUSTRIA-HUNGARY (Jeff Grzybowski)
A(Bud) - Vie; A(Gal) s A(Mos) - War; F(Smy) - Con (FAILED); A(Rum) - Bul; A(Ser) s A(Rum) - Bul; F(Tri) - Ven (FAILED); A(Sev) Stands; A(Mos) - War; F(AEG) s F(Smy) - Con

ENGLAND (Pete Smith)
F(Nwy) - Swe; F(IRI) - Lpl; F(MAO) - Por (FAILED); F(SKA) s F(Nwy) - Swe; F(NTH) Stands

FRANCE (Christopher Smith)
F(NAO) - Cly; F(ENG) c A(Bel) - Wal; A(Bel) - Wal; F(Spa) sc - Por (FAILED); A(Mar) s A(Gas) - Spa; A(Gas) - Spa (FAILED)

GERMANY (Andy Scott)
F(Swe) - BAL; A(Den) - Swe (FAILED); F(HEL) - NTH (FAILED); A(Hol) Stands; A(Tyr) - Tri (FAILED); A(Sil) - War (FAILED)

ITALY (Gavin Coles)
A(Gre) s AUSTRIAN A(Rum) - Bul; F(Tun) - NAf; A(Pie) - Ven (FAILED); F(GoL) s F(WMS) - Spa sc; F(WMS) - Spa sc (FAILED)

TURKEY (Harvey Jones)
A(Con) s A(Bul) (CUT); A(Bul) s A(Con) (CUT, DISLODGED - DISBANDED NRP); F(BLA) s A(Con)

PRESS

Vie-Ber: Sure, go ahead and tick both Austria and Italy off. So much for agreements I guess. Did your central command read you, Mr. Crown Prince, that war with the Austrian gov't is eminent since your recent attack on Austrian 'controlled' territory?

Vie-Par: Trust me! I found official documents in the Russia diplomatic headquarters based here in Moscow concerning the 'Mad Marco' which read; "To my lovely mistress (Gerchwin Tychofsky), Should my reign as Tzar of the glorious Russia fall, I will be taking an over-extended vacation to my favourite land in Brest sipping on the fine French wine. I am sorry my love, but French wine and women (not necessarily in that order) have such an appeal to me that it is hard to resist the alluring temptation of my little trip.

Best wishes,

Mad Marco

Tzar of Russia"

So it seems to me that Mad Marco is running around your countryside at large. Please apprehend him as quickly as possible so that he may be put on trial for war crimes at once. I also managed to bump into Gerchwin and believe me she is all torn up about this.

Vie-Con: Excuse me but you wouldn't happen to have any vacancies at your famous Turkish bathhouses would you?

Par: IMPORTANT - Chris will be on holiday for the next two deadlines and has appointed a proxy player. Stuart Bennett (stumac2d@tinyworld.co.uk) will be acting for France up to and including the 3 September deadline.

Reports rife in Paris that Mad Marco, ex-Tsar of Russia is still alive and working in a chip shop. Others say that he was abducted by aliens. The general consensus is that he was always on another planet anyway. The matelots of the Northern Fleet are looking forward to sampling Mars Bars fried in batter. The Army of Belgium has its doubts as to whether English ale is better than Flemish beer, but has decided to give it a try anyway. Little do they know that the pubs close at 10 o' clock sharp in Wales and

the sheep wear chastity belts. Late breaking news: the Italian Prime Minister was awarded First Prize in the European Brown Nose competition for services rendered to the Emperor of Austria. The prize (a wheelbarrow full of nose-browning mixture) will be forwarded to Rome as soon as possible so that the recipient can perform self- browning while maintaining an independent foreign policy.

Autumn 1905 deadline: 19:00 BST, 27th August 2002.