The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1895-01-07

his residence in COnsta ntinople TO study
oriental languages. Under the disguise Oh d
dervlsh he travelled through the hnaDates Vi
Central Asia. visiting Khlva, Bokhara anu
Samercand. His Travels and Adventures III
Central Asia" the result OF this journey, were
published In London in 1864. For many years
he has been professor of oriental languages at
The University of Buda Pesth, Hungary. He mas
written many letters TO English papers warning
England Of the designs OF Russia. Among his
more recent works are: "Cagatai Language.
"WanderiDgs and Adventures in Persia, "
''SkeIches of Central Asia" "Uigur Lin guisti-
cal Monument" "Mohammedanism III the
Nineteenth Century," primitive Civilization
of the Turco- Tartar Peoples"
There is, perhaps, no man in southeastern
Europe so thoroughly Informed as Professor
Vambery upon all the complicated influences
affecting national or racial progress among The
Magyars, Serbs, Roumanians and the scores Oh
other people which go to make up the dual
monarchy, and the prncpalitles recently
erected into Kingdoms, after being carved from
the Sultan's dominions by the Russian sword
Hungary, his own land, differs from all the
ad jacent states. Its blood Is largely Turanian,
and its people have the bitterest hatred Tor
everything Sav. while they pi ofess TO hold Inc
German in contempt. Hungarians look upon
America and England as the two great ex'
ampes which nations should copy.
Professor VambeTy in letter to The
GALL gives an interesting description of
the difficulties which beset the land
which KOssuth sought to free in its march for
ward to something like government OF the
people, for the people and by the people, as
known TO EngliSh-speaking nations
| find it very natural that the inha bit-
ants IF the turthest West Of our civiliZa-
ton should be anxious to hear about the
social and political conditions of the east
ern limits of their world of common ideas
and thoughts. The assumption that we
have before US two extremes of one politi-
cal and social life can hardly be justified.
for neither has the far West attained the
highest degree of our Western civilization
nor does Southeastern Europe occupy the
lowest standpoint. The spirit which ami
mates both is decidedly the same, and the
eventual difference manifests itself only in
the historical development and geographic
cal position Of the respective communities.
There Is no msgivlng about the fact that
the southeastern portion of Europe still
bears TO great extent The print of by
gone, antlquated views and customs aud
that 1t is still hampered in its progress by
what we generally denote under the COM
mon appeIation of Asistism.
There is a great variety of features by
which the man In Eastern Europe differs
from his fellow man in the West. To begin
with, we have to quote the utter want Of a
strong individuality and the constant lean
ing to the so-called paternal care of the
Government Self help, so marvelousiy
well described by Smiles, does but rarely
exist in this part of our world. This def
cheney gives rise to timidity in action, and,
whereas, the undannled spirit Of enter
prise has so greatly assisted the Anglo
Saxon race, the real prototype of, the
Western world, in the acquisition of their
splendid position-the Eastern European,
be it German, Hungarian or Slav-s just
now beginning to look around and, so to
say, to stand on his own feet.
With US it is still descent and origin,
and not merely honest work, which en-
mobiles the man and gives him position
in life. The continual spreading of litera-
ture, the occasional breeze coming from
the advanced West, cause sometimes an
exception to the general rule, but on the
whole we are still laboriEg under many
anomalies, superstilions and abnormities
of the middle ages. Here where the num-
Der of noblemeu, barons, counts, dukes.
ETC., amounts 20 hundreds of thousands,
equality, although sanctioned by law, be-
comes a mere fiction. The title of well
born" ranks higher than that of a self
made" man, and however trifing and in
significant this feature of our social exist
cree may seem to you ID the distant West,
1T is nevertheless the main disease from
which we are suffering and which cripples
the most strenuous efforts of man in this
part of the word.
You may say that we Hungarians have
at present at the head of our Government
man of what is called low origin, for
our Minister President, DR.. Wekerle. cal mot
boast OF titled ancestors, nOr is our Minis
ter of the Interior of noble extraction
but these exceptions to the general rule
| indicate only modest desire for change
| and become quite valuelesS if we consider
the great struggle with which the intro
duction of the civil marriage bill and OF a
| few other modern institutions were met.
The strict alliance between church and
nobility forms an insurmOuntable barrier
| against the aspirations of the more en-
| ligh ened classes In hungary and in Aus
| tria-a barrier which can be only pulled
down by gradual advance in the path of
| public instructi0n-the only light which
| will clear up the darkness of bygone ages
| and which will lay the foundation OF solid
| liberty.
| You, the citizens of the great Republic,
| you have hardly an idea Of the difficulties
! and hardships with which social and po-
| litical progress is still connected in the
eastern half of Europe, where the benight-
| ed shadow of Asiatc absolutism is still
] lowering over the masses, and where the
| liberal achievements of the Anglo-Saxon
race are in PRODUCED without the preliminary
cearage of the obstructed soil. Parlia-
ment, the result of many hundred years OF
! hard struggle of the popular Will against
| aTistocrary, has been imported on the Eu-
ropean Continen in the hope and with the
intention to engender those liberal ideas.
through which Anglo-SaXons have OBJ.
| tanned this manifestation of the public
will. Hence the very awkward and help
| less condition of our mock parliaments,
| and il is tor this reason that it will take a
| long time before our representative body
will deserve the title OF unbiased and free
legislators. and will constitute as such the
outspoken will of the people. We are fan
| from believing that American and English
| parliaments are the very model OF pure
representative bodies. But your constitu-
tional life Is solid and sterling and your
notions of liberty and equality ars fal
ahead of those of the rest of mankind. Il
| is from this point of view that we envy
Americans and Englishmen and that We
try our best to Initiate them.
! or course such things are not moments
| work nor was Rome built up in one day