Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-01-15
Louis Kcssuth-Oid and Poor.
From the Frsnkfor, Gazette Germany.

The following advertisement ap
pears now and then in the Corriere d
T0rino.
Lessons in German. English and Hungarian give
at moderate prices, by L. KossuTH,
16l strsds NnovG
The advertiser is none other thar
the once celebrated dictator of Hunga
ry. He is now almost utterly forgot
ten, even in Hungary. He has growr
very old, and is now so poor that BIZ
will give you lesson for single
franc with evident joy. This would
seem to be very humiliating for him
and yet he appears proud of his pow
erty.
| He says: "Three years ago my
friends at home, in Hungary, offered
me present OF $4,000 forms. / re-
jected the offer, and never have re-
GREETED it, even when | was hungry,
and had not the money to pay for a
fire.
had occasion the other day, to call
upon him. | was no stranger to Kos
suth. Twenty years ago he had given
me, i'll London great deal of valua-
BILE information for my Look "Hungs-
ry in l849." found him in a very
small room, in the fourth story of a
dingy old building. He sat alone in
an easycbalr, porng over an old vol
ume. When entered he did not rec.
ognize me. | recognized him, and
was shocked. What change these
twenty years had produced in his
once handsome and interesting face {!
His hair was entirely white, his cheeks
wan and hollow, and his eyes utterly
dimmed. His form, once erect and
proud, was painfully bent. He almost
groaned as he raised himself to bid
me welcome. He was deeply moved
when l informed him who / was. His
face frightened as he warmly clasped
my hand.
"Oh, yes; oh, yes" he said In Ger
man; Il know you nov. Everybody
forgets me; no one calls upon me; no
one cares any more for me. Why
should | remember those swho were
once my friends?'
To this l objected l asked him
how he could be forgotten when his
friends in Hungary wanted him TO
return, and take again an active part
in its affairs.
Kossuth smiled very bitterly. ooh
yes" he said in German; "return to
Hungary dishonered, with an oath of
allegiance to the Hapsburgs, who
murdered my friends and klnsmen,
and who set price upon my head.
/ am neither Deak nor an Andres.
sy."
asked him how he got along.
SWELL" he said sadly, "were my
good children and my poor wife
yet alive, I would be happy, even in
my old age and poverty. But they
are all dead and am very lonesome.
That is what renders my exhlle here,
where people are so kind to me, so dis
tressing. 1t would be no better in
Hungary. ! have no kinstolk but in
the Old World.
"Why not go to America again,
where your name is still revered?"
asked
"Oh," he replied, az have often been
sorely tempted to go back to America
but there are two obstacles IN the way
In the first place it would cost more
money than l have to spare; and next,
| am almost sure that in my present
enfeebled condition, could not bear
the sea voyage"
All this was very melancholy and |
FASTENED to change the subject of our
conversation. / showed him the proof
sheets of the chapter on Andrassy in
my new work on Austria. He put on
his spectacles and holding the paper
in his trembling hand, read what / had
written.
Meanwhile / had time to look around
in the room. Against the rear wall
stood narrow, plain bed. On the
walls hung portraits of Mazzini, Bixio
Kisz, and strangely enough, of Louis
Napoleon. On the book shelf by my
side l noticed Victor Hugo's "Annee
Terrible" KingIake's "Crimea," and
ten or twelve well worn grammars
On the LaDl6 CLOSE 10 tue Utu 10y
loaf of bread and plate of dried
meats.
To my dismay / found that my look.
ing round the room lad attracted his
attention.
eyes" he said with smile, "you
see for yourself now, that / am very
poor; and yet when | left Hungary in
l849, l was charged by all the mean
organs of the Hapsburgs with having
enriched myself at my country's ex'
pense. My whole income last year was
within a fraction of 500 lire!" (Less
than s200)
l shook my head sorrowfully. He
told me what he thought about the
chapter on Andrassy, gave me plenty
of valuable and interesting informa-
ton on the subject. and then dismiss
ed me, saying that it was time for
some OF his pupils to make their APP
pearance.