Morning journal and courier., 1894-05-15
pHI nRrA KappA LRorURE.

Parke GodWfn EloquentJy Dis.
 courses Regarding KOssuth Be-
 fore . Large and ApprecIattve
 Audience.
 The last of the series of Phi Beta Kappa lectures was delivered last evening in Os- born hall by Psrke Goodwin, formerly editor of the New York Evening Post. The subject was "Louis Kossuth." Judge Rowland of New York introduced the speaker, and in speaking of Kossuth called him an oratorical meteor. MT. Goodwin said that it is difficult to connect the events of the birth and death of Kos suth, so widely are they separated, nearly scsntury intervening. By far the greater number who saw him on the actual stage of action have preceded him to the tomb.
 We who live after him to do him honor seem his successors rather than centem- poraries. His death, although in solitude, yet was like the fall of 8 majestic oak which awAkens the echoes of the surround ing hills. The speaker then described tho landing of Kossuth at Staten Island, how he kneeled down and kissed the soil of liberty, then made an address of gratitude to the American people for his refuge. He seemed to be not 8 demagogue, stirring up discontent from which to secure personal advantage, but to be devoted to the single great cause of the liberty of his country and to great constitutional reforms. In the year in which Kossuth was born, 1902, Eu- rops was shaking with tumulte, Napoleon Bonaparts was still at the height of bis power. New Influences were beginning to be felt. Koseuth, 8 student of information al relations, devoted himself to the study of the philosophy of the nineteenth cen- tury, ,and instead of extolling the supposed immortal characteristics of government he broke from methodicsl government and considered man as the measure of political power. Educated in the midst of the breaking forth of these modern ideas, he folio wed also the traditions of his family, seventeen members of which had been ex- ecuted for their political views. Kossuth himself was early interested in the affairs of his own country, which from being for merly independent has now become part l of the Austrian empire. His first initia- | he was sent to the upper diet | a proxy for a landed proprietor. Here, although he had no vote, it finally became | evident that his voice was worth 8 thou sand votes. At that time no debates Of
 the diet were printed, but Kos-uth and his l friends wrote out protests of unjust meas ures and handed them around. This ex. 1 cited the wrath of the Austrian government SO that Kossuth was arrested one night in bed, was finally tried and sentenced to four l years in prisOa. This aroused ths intense | sympathy of the people, and the diet wss ! petitioned for his release. So overwhelm | Ing was the feeling aroused that the peti tion was finally granted after it wss seer
 that it must bs dons to prevent great
 popular rising. The young reformel
 emerged from prison, no more {
 comparatively unknown young man, bu
 6 great leader of the people. It wa
 then he reused the people to action
 disciplined the peasantry in arms, placed
 himself at their head and fought for twt | long years the imperial armies, and finally
 laid down his arms bafors a superior foe
 He followers were thrown into prison snt
 great numbers executed, but be escaped t,
 Turkey, where he was protected by tn
 government until he was finally invited t,
 the United States as an asylum from hi
 enemies.
 He Is said to have been one of the great
 est orators that ever lived and his com
 mand of English was wonderful, althoug'
 ali he knew of 1t was learned in prisol
 from King James, translation and iron
 Shakespeare.
 MT. Godwin's audience was large an,
 keenly appreciattve, as was shown by tn
 frequent applause.