The miners' express. (Dubuque, Iowa) 1849-1854, 1851-11-26

which have now lasted for about twenty ely
years We decided that our best saferun
would be to inspire all the people with the SC
t'ments o. patriotism, BY giving all an equa! i
forest in constitutional rights. loud cheers
That was the direction of public opinion
Hungary in 1925. We felt the necessity IL
more, because, although we had board
council OF government; which, by law was RI
spoas'oie 10 the country, and were bound n
70 carry INTO execution any order, even OF th
sovereign, which was contrary to our law
sun we knew that there was real respons
b'ity in this council, because no corrupt bod
can be made to feel responsibility. individual
may be made responsible, but when the govern
ment becomes collective responsibility vanish
es, We cav, therefore, that enr rights an
privileges were vanishing under the mach ina
tions of the Austrian government i'm wbic
Metternich was then all in all and fee ling tina
100000 mobiles could not effectual!y resist suc
'encroachmenis; we proposed 10 give the whole
fifteen millions OF our people an interest in con
stitutional rights, and motive for defending
them The peasansry must form an importan
IN consideration in every country, but doublv 81
Hungary, which was and is chiefly an agricul
turai country. The condition of our peasantr,
became then, the FIRST topic with our rcformers
who felt that our country, so highly gifted BY
disc it ought to be except BY tree laborcrs enjoy
ing constitutional rights; and seeing that our
peasant had to work for his landlord one hun
dred and four days in the year, to which must
be added Sundays, festivals and winter, and
had to give the ninth of his produce to the sig
neur, the tenth to the bishop, We felt that this
was condition contrary to human rights and
the principles of justice. cloud cries of hear,
hear.) The first thing, then, we did, was to
emancipate the people. cloud cheers The
reform, however, was effected only BY slow de-
grees- In the long Parliament, which sat from
1881 to 1896. it was proposed IN the lower
house-which consists wholly of elected men,
bers-that every peasant should have the right
to make himself free of his feudal and scgnn.
rial burdens by paying off the capital of his
dues. AT first we proposed that this power
should be independent of the will of the land
lord, but were opposed by the House of Lords,
until at last, it was reduced, by the influence of
government, to the privilege of purchasing free
dom with the consent of the landlord. That
modified measure was carried by the Commons
and Lords, but was refused by the Regent, who
was thus at issue with the people on this great
question in 1886. | should state that The mem
beers OF the Commons voted as they were in
structed by the comitats, and therefore it was
towards the latter that the ntrlgues of the gov
eminent were principally directed. They could
not corrupt them by means of the Count Pala.
tine, who, being by office, the President of the
House of Lords, could not intrigue with the
country meetings., and therefore other persons
were selected to carry into the country meet
ings every species of corruption. (IIear, hear)
They appointed an administrator in every coun-
II, who should never leave the county, but be
present at every meeting, control every act, and
corrupt every troublesome member, in order
that the comitats might become at last the mere
instruments and tools Of government. II was
this system we opposed with all our strength of
mind and body, but with no narrow view to the
privileges of our own class. We wanted these
institutions to be independent in order that wa
might reform our system for the benefit of the
entire people. cloud cheers.) But the more
we developed our views of reform, the more
actively the government set their administrators
to work throughout the country, and that was
our condition up to the Diet of October or No
vember, 1S47, year or so before the French
revolution. | wish to show that in Hungary
we were not revolutionists-l am not blaming
revolutions-but the Hungarians were engaged
IN no secret conspiracy, but held meetings in
an open and constitutional way, and struggled
manfu!ly for their rights. (Hear, hear) | my
self had the honor to be elected to this Para-
ment of l547, for the metropolitan county of
Pesth, when the government of the day did
every thing possible to prevent my election
The good sense of the mobiles however, carried
me in triumph. (Cheers) The first question
proposed, according to my instructions, was
that our municipal institutions should be re-
stored to their original purity, that the system
of administrators should be abolished, and that
until these measures should be carried, no tax
es should be voted. The houses of Lords and
Commons were at issue on this question, discus
sing it for upwards of two months, and remain
ed in disagreement. l should mention that it
was necessary that both houses should agree
upon measure before it was laid before the
King, but there was no limit to the communca-
ton between the two houses. The measure
had not a majority in the Lords, because it con-
tanned SO many func,ionaries appointed by gov
eminent, and persons aspiring to be functiona-
res; but still have the qualification of know
ing that it was supported by many of the most
independent of the Lords of Hungary; among
whom was my lamented and unfortunate friend
Louis Bathyany. Still corruption went on, and
! felt at last that our only course was to apply
ourselves at once to the chief source Of evil.
On the head of,he King of Hungary rest two
crowns-the one constitutional and the other
absolute-and these two could never agree to-
gether. Which ultimately prevails in the strug-
gle history tells in many dark page l pro-
posed, therefore, that, as the house Of Hapsburg
declined to restore the rights of Hungary out Of
Difference to the people of Vienna, it was our
duty, as the-elder brother in the national family,
that the people Of Vienna should also get fran
chises. believe that no just man will say |
was wrong in that proposition, which was uni
versally accepted. was not planning revolu-
ton; that is ar accusation which know will
find no echo in the breast Of any just or gene
rous man. Loud cheers.1 MY speech on the
subject was read in all the coffee houses of vi
emma, news of the French revolution arrived,
and the Viennese rose. That was the Austrian
revolution and must frankly own that i'm
mediately decided not to be carried away by the
excitement of the time, but to take the reins of
government into my own hands, and to avail
myself of the opportunity that God had given,
not Hungary made. Cheers The first thing
l proposed was the emancipation of the peasan-
try, and Of course, under the circumstances, it
was carried unanimously by both houses
(Hear, hear Still was anxious not to hurt
The interests OF any person, but rather to spare
those who. although not quite national in their
origin, had yet in course of time become inter-
laced with the fortunes of great many people.
l proposed-and my proposal was adopted-that
peasants should be free from all Guties-free
without paying liberty is not thing to be paid
tor. lCheers.) But l proposed at the same
time that the seigneurs should get rndemnitca-
ton, not from the peasant, but FROM the land
Our country has large resources, which, by
good management, would be more than enough
TO give full and entire compensation to the no
bles. Iensaged my honor and my oath 10 give
this decentralization, and it was carried in Par
lament. Heart As / stated before, the poor
people had every duty, but no rights and
proposed that rights should at once be conced-
ed, and that every man possessing the franchise
should, according to his means, contribute to
the public necessities. This was carried unani-
mously. The third plan was, that the people
should be admitted Immediately to all rights of
franchise, not only as to the election of men,
bers of Parliament, but also for magistrates and
other public functionaries. But now, when att
the people were admitted to the franchise, half
million Of persons could not be convoked on
our plan, and therefore proposed that every
community should select a person to represent
them. These were my principles Cheers
l made no encroachment on men rights, either
in their family or in communities. wished
that the government should be sufficiently
powerful for the public necessity, and to enforce
obedience to the law, but not to interfere with
the social or municipal rights of men, We
proposed, further, that, as councils of govern
ment could not be made resnonsible the execu