The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1849-04-19
What IRE the Hungarians Fighting For

The summary which we gave last week, of the
forces arrayed on the side of the Hungarian pa
triots, and the hints we there supplied to
the cooperation of all classes In the struggle, must
have surprised those who have suffered themselves
to be persuaded that It Is the result OF unconsldered
excitement or revolutionary lntrigues Those who
have chosen to represent Kossuth nothing more
than the raving apostle of subversive republican,
Ism, have yet to explain how he has conrlved to
array under his banner the representatives of the
noblest and wealthiest families. In fact, although
bloody war has now for three months been de-
vasating the productive corn lands of Hungary,
both the parties engaged in the contest, and the OBJ
Ject for which 1t is waged on either side, but
little understood in this country; and whatever
Judgment may be formed upon policy and probubi-
lties, we wish to make English politicians under
stand the grounds upon which the Hungarans act
For more than century, Austria and Hungary
have continued to maintain amcable union :
how does it now happen that we find the descen-
dants of those who rose one man to save the
throne of Maria Theresa-who turned deaf ear
to the offer OF separate and independent exist
ence from Napoleon-now arrayed in arms against
Austria :! The Austrian journals, which choose to
ascrbe this state of things to the sole influence of
Kossuh, in reality attribute TO his eloquence some
thing more than It merits; distinguished and a
remarkable man indeed he is but his eloquence
would not have driven nation into rebellion,
raised regular almles, nor maintained them in the
field. The struggle Is, in short, national one,
which, although he plays an important part in it,
does not depend solely upon himself. The Hun
garians fighting for their nationality, which
they hold to be threatened by the system of the
Austrian ministry. Nor is this nationality vague
and misty idea, the imaginative reconstruction of
persisted history, like that of the Irish or of the
Bohemians, who still dream of the great Moravian
empire of Svatopluk ; but 1t is the complex pro-
duct OF their national institutions hitherto guaran-
tied to them by every successive king IN his coro-
nation oath: in accordance with 1t, and IN ODE
dience to the law of the land, the whole admins
tration has been hitherto in the hands of native
Ilungarians. For nationality consists not as Scla-
German tear n oT
language, still less in identity of race, but in iden
tity of interests of habits, of institutions, and of
history. The Austrian ministry is struggling for
closer unity of the empire Hungary, not unnatu-
rally jealous of change, will not give up her an
Gent constitution.
1t should be borne in mind, that the struggle on
the part of the llungarlans, is not for the maine-
nance of class privileges the special interests of
a caste. This has been too often asserted here, in
defiance of the truth. That the mobiles pri-
vlleged class, will not be denied; but they were
not such a class as the olgarchs of Russia the
mobiles were the franchise bearing class-not small
fraction of the population, removed to an lmmeasu
rable distance above, and tyrannlsng the rest;
the passage from one division INTO the other was
neither difficult nor rare. STILL 1t must be admit
ted that there grievances in the inequality of
taxation, and drawbacks upon the national pros
perlty in the nature of the prevalent copyhold te
nurcs And It must ever be remembered to their
credit, that the privileged class themselvcs-the
only privileged class OF whom history make
such honorable mention = III succession of
diets, extending over the last quarter of CEN
tuy, have brought forward measure after
measure for the purpose of divesting them
selves OF those personal advantages which
they were convinced were opposed to the universal
welfare. The chief opposition that they met with
IN this career of Improvement was ever offered
by the Austrian government itself which In all
It's dependencies maintained the immoral mode OF
ruling by keeping alive hostility between the dit
feren classes of its subjects. All that remained OF
ancient abuses was finally swept away In the diet
which closed on the llth of April, lSiS, and whose
acts receivedthe solemn ratification OF the Empe-
ror Ferdinand in his capacity of King OF hungary.
Thus alone is it to be explained, that IN me camp
of DebrieZcn we representatives, OF all tne po-
pulations of Hungary, and OF every class OF soci
ETY.. The Servians, indeed, and the SaXons OF
TransyIvana form an exception when the enc
mics cf liberty gladly dwell upon but both these
races have had their separate institutions ana nave
therefore always stood more apart from the Mag
vars. But The Sclavonans the Germans of the
Icps and the Banat, the Waachians, all rushed to
aims when the Emperor Francis Joseph refused to
add to his titles the regal crown of Hungary, and,
instead of taking the constitutional oath in pre-
sence Of the Hungarian diet, assentcd to the plans
of the Austrian ministry, by which the constitu-
lion and fundamental laws OF Hungary were at
once aDIogdted.
Such is the Hungarian case and it is worthy Of
all consideration. But since the Austrian ministry