Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1878-07-12

COUNT BATHIANY, THE HUNGARIAN MARIYR,
ANpUIs WIDOW.

From the New Orleans Picayune's Paris Letter.
Nothing exhibited at the exposition is as
popular as the Hungarian gypsy musicians
who now daily play in the Hungarian build
ing called the csarda pronounced ckarda,
believe which is in the Champs de Mars.
There are lG musicians. They may be COM
pared to the negro mnstrels, that is, they
play the music of race ''the wood notes
wild" of an epoch when music was rather
tradition than an art but their music Is
neither the buffoonery nor the sad strains OF
Africa it is music of dancing, waltzing,
hunting, war. Their most famous work Is
"Rakoczy's march, the national air Of Hun
gary This march seems to have been COM
posed in the eighteenth century by some par
tisan of the Rakoczy (the Kossuth of his
day) then it fell into oblivion until Roz-
savology, gypsy. found it in some peasants
hovel (the pdgdni who never forget anything
about 1920 when the spirit of states rights
once more animated the Hungarians. This
march raised the widest enthusiasm where
ever it was heard in Hungary and it was
cherished as
THE SONG OF DEAR NATIVE LAND
until 1919 came, when it was heard above the
battles tiercest roar lit comforted the wound
ed and the dying in hours of defeat it kept
pressors ended in sea of blood. Austria
and Russia we're merciless Rakoczy's March
became reasonable. Count Bathiany, one
of the Hungarian ministers, during the
struggle was arrested, tried by court-martial,
and was sentenced to be hanged. Count
Bathianys death Il translate from French
newspaper was an epic. Sentenced TO be
hanged, he was granted last interview with
his wife They were left together alone that
he might write and also explain his Will to
her. He had no fear OF death. He shrank
from death by hanging like a common telon
| His wife understood him. She gave him
pepknife. the only weapon she had been able
| to introduce into prison. He cut the Jugular
| vein, but so awkwardly as to produce only
swooninC not death. The surgeon said 1t
was physically impossible to hang him in
| this condition. handkerchief was tied
around his neck. He was fastened to stake
| to support him. He was shot. The law
provided that the body of person executed
should remain four and twenty hours on the
| spot where the laws extreme penalty had
been paid During the following night Count
Bathianys corpse disappeared. Hungarian
franciscan friars bribed the guards to let
them remove the body. They buried it in
their converts garden that the patriot might
sleep in hallowed ground. There it remain
| ed till Francis Deak at last succeeded, with
out spilling one drop of blood. in securing
his country's independence then
| NOBLE STATE FUNERAL,
at which all Hungary followed as mouraers,
| made public acknowledgment of the debt his
couutry owed him. Hungarian gypsies they
had been the bands of Hungarian regiments)
fled and supported themselves abroad by
giving concerts. One evening | went to a
Hungarian concert in Germany. 1t was given
by the band of Kossuth's regiment. The
concert room was crammed from the topmost
tier of boxes to the pit even in the passage
people stood on chairs placed as thickly as
could be. The band played kossuth's march,
which is to Rakoczy's march as ''Le Chant
des Girondirs" is to la Marseillaise. Al
at once convulsive sobs were heard above the
music. In box q woman in deep mourning
agitated by an emotion which she could moi
command, writhed in an anguish of despair
Instantly the whole audience were on then
feet Every face, all eyes, were turned tc
the box whence THAT distressing wall came
Who was that woman Somebody recog'
nized her. Her name was whispered from
ear to ear. Everybody understood her an
guish how the sight of those exiled Hun
garians, how the melody of their music re-
called happy by-gone hours, her bleeding
country, her causes martyrs. She was Coun
Bathianys widow. That which then tool
place defies description. The audience hat
received, as twere, the shock of some grea
electrical battery. Pity, deep, inexpressibl'
pit, took possession OF every soul every heart
All were still turned to that box. All ap
plauded-how wildly with what frenzy
Every woman waved her handkerchit to tina
box. Lips quivered ; tears, torrents, stream
ed down every cheek. Then the cry ros'
madly, imperiously 'Rakoczy's march
Rakoczy's march = The Hungarian must
clans, even more excited than the audience
had seized their instruments and, giving the
military salute to their unhappy country
woman, they began their native lands hymn
Electrified by the public, frenzied by recol
lections Of all-home. battles, hopes, mar
tyrs, wrongs-they executed Rakoczy' marcl
as that march had never been executed
They
| CRUSHED THEIR BOWS,
so conclusively thrilled were their hands 10y
passion :; the strings walled under the will
pressure Rakoczys march became tn,
bowling of general indignation at the merci
less cruelties of the conqueror. Never IL
my life have felt such poignant emotion as
at that audience Countess Bathiany was nj
widow bereaved of all she had dearest oil
earth-she was Hungary, crushed, bleeding
trampled under foot by ruthless soldiery