The Sun.
London, England, 1854-01-13 00:00:00

AN AMERICAN CLERGYMAN IN AUSTRIA.

- -
The Rev. James Cook Richmond, an American clergy-
man, gives the following account of his treatment by the
Austrian police while travelling in Hungary :
" Felegyhaza, Dec. 23.—This morning, between 4 and
o'clock, a gendarme intruded into my bedroom, or-
dered me up, and, in a violent snowstorm, compelled me
to leave Kecskemet in a jolting waggon, over frozen
roads. I arrived only two hours before the mid-day
train, by which I had voluntarily promised to leave, and
so exhausted that I could not continue my journey.
" Dec. 29.—Last night I hoped to rest. Three gen-
darmes, by order of the Hussar-Bittmeister, Herr Von
Falkenhayn, of Felagyhaza, broke down the door (which
was split into two pieces), and threatened to shoot me
dead' if I did not instantly arise. I arose, showed the
word America' in my regular passport, and told them
that you had declared that the rights of an American
citizen should not be violated with impunity, but
should be reverenced throughout the world. With
brutal, coarse, and disgusting minuteness and violence,
they proceeded to examine my dress, thrusting their
dirty hands into my bosom, and rifled my pockets of
lily papers and money. They told me I had never
fallen into the right hands before, and they would teach
me that my obstinacy (in refusing to answer their in-
sulting questions) would soon be diminished,' &c. The
officer of' the three then declared me under arrest, and,
taking me, at 1 o'clock in the morning, through another
snowstorm, showed me a soldier's dirty bed in the guard-
room, saying, 'There's a good bed at your disposal.'
Meantime, as they had forgotten to look under the pillow
in the room where I was arrested, and had asked per-
mission to take what they had left, with the under-
standing that I was not to be searched again ! I then
took out my watch and paper-money, which I did not
suffer them to see. As soon as I reached the guard-
room the officer, who had before commanded the gen-
darmes to feel for letters sewed under my clothes,'
undertook to examine me again. On my manifesting
surprise, he said to one of the soldiers, Cock
your gun' (Spann des Hahn.) He then thrust his
hands into my pantaloons pockets, rifled them of
my paper money, miscounted it, and put it away. With-
out undressing I lay down upon the
bed, a prisoner,
while the gendarmes in the guardroom playedataciaers
drank, quarrelled, and swore during the remainder
of the night. I asked permission in the morning
a
ingt
to telegraph or write to the American Ambassador
Vienna. Refused. At 10 a.m. I
was taken to the
Bittmeister (commander of Hussars), Herr Von
Falken-
hayn, who, meantime possi-
ble , had become alarmed by the
consequences of these proceedings executed
under
his orders. I must confess that the accused and the
judge rapidly changed places, and, on his questioning
me, I replied, the matter was now out of my hands, and
must be settled between the Austrian Empire and my
country. He promised to restore my papers and set
me at liberty, if I would immediately depart. I re-
minded him of the declaration of the Apostle Paul,
They have beaten us openly and uncondemned, being
Romans,' and told him it was easier to arrest an Ame-
rican citizen than to set him at liberty. It was
finally resolved on my part, that I should demand satis-
faction from Austria through the American Ambassador,
and, on his, that I should remain under police observa-
tion till the answer came down from Vienna. This last
was only a ruse to alarm me, for in an hour my papers
and passport Were sent to me, with a wish that I should
leave the place. This I shall do as soon as it suits my
convenience. I have not been invited to pay for the
broken door.
" It is absolutely necessary that this occasion should
be used to teach the Austrian Government that an inno-
cent American traveller, whose papers are almost
more than perfect (my passport is covered with sig-
natures of Austrian ambassadors, from Baron Hulse-
mann, through Paris, Italy, here, &c.), cannot
with impunity, between Christmas and December the
29th, be searched, ordered out, violently arrested
,
with and twice minutely searched agad,
in,
with exposure to an hourly and childish repetition of
these capricious and dangerous prose di
They must
learn that there is an important difference between their
subjects—exposed without remedy to all their whims--
and a freeman from the United States. Not doubting
that the President will take immediate and decided steps
in this important matter, I remain, with the highest
regard, as before,•44c.; • "J C