The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1904-09-23
HUNGARY's INDEPENDENCE.
Historical Sketch Of the Ancient Mag
var Kingdom and Its Po-
litical Struggles.

Ancient Pannonia was occupied by
Romans, Huns, Goths, Avars and
Slavons, but these peoples did not sue
coed in holding it long. The Magyar
Prince Arpad founded there 1000 years
ago the constitutional Hungarian state,
which, says Emil Zerkowitz, editor OF
the Budapest Export Review, became
in the year 1000 the apostolic Kingdom,
which has held together all it's terri
tories and populations through ten
centuries in the same boundaries. the
same national character, nay the same
political organization. Until 1926 this
kingdom had an independent life, and
under the kings, Saint Stephen, Louis
the Great and Matthias Corvinius it was
a leading state of Europe. In the six
teenth and seventeenth centuries the
invasion of the Osmanlis compelled the
country to ally itself with Austria, but
1t never abdicated it's national indie
pendence sanctioned by treaties and
laws. In the war of Rakoczy, the Mag
vars rallied to the princes of Transyl-
vania and fought against Austria for
religious freedom. From 1890 to 1848
the whole nation struggled for polit-
ical reforms, and the glorious war of
Kossuth in 1S48 and 1849 was fought
for the liberal constitution obtained
by those struggles. The offensive pow
err of Kossuth was broken down by
Russian intervention, but until 1866
the nation displayed an indomitable
passive resistance, and succeeded in
1867 by the wisdom and prudence of
Francis Deak, in restoring it's indie
pendence.
In that year the relations between
the Austrian empire and the Hunga-
rian kingdom were fully regulated by
the compromise of 1867. According to
this agreement the two states are per-
fectly independent of each other, pos
sessing each it's Legislative power and
it's executive departments.
The close political connection sub
sists through the identity of the SOW
ereign and the community of foreign
affairs, military and naval affairs and
finances relating to these common af-
fairs
In the sense of the compromise the
two states freely agreed to have the
same system of coinage, of weights and
measures, joint issue and common
commercial representatives (consuls)
abroad. Legislative power relating to
common affairs is exercised by the par
liaments of both states, the delegations
being only committees of the two par
liaments, having the right to fix the
expenditure for common affairs.
In all other matters Hungary is an
Independent state, living under the
reign Of it's own king, having it's own
government, its own parliament; this
latter being not diet, but legislature
coordinate to the Austrian reichsrath.
The customs union with Austria is
the freely consented treaty of two in
dependent states, similar to the GUS
toms union which the German states
had before 1866. The Austro- Hunga-
riaH customs union, freely renewed ev-
cry year, failed to be contracted anew
in 1899 and has ceased in principle.
For certain political and economical
reasons it has been in fact maintained,
as It seemed not wise in the present
critical state of the general economi-
cal relations to try the bold experiment
of placing Hungarian economical life
upon wholly new terms.