CHAPTER XXXIX
THE HUNGARIAN {231}
'Then you are a countryman of Tekeli, and of the queen who made thecelebrated water,' said I, speaking to the Hungarian in German, which Iwas able to do tolerably well, owing to my having translated thePublisher's philosophy into that language, always provided I did notattempt to say much at a time.
_Hungarian_. Ah! you have heard of Tekeli, and of L'eau de la Reined'Hongrie. How is that?
_Myself_. I have seen a play acted, founded on the exploits of Tekeli,and have read Pigault Le Brun's beautiful romance, entitled the 'Baronsof Felsheim,' in which he is mentioned. As for the water, I have heard alady, the wife of a master of mine, speak of it.
_Hungarian_. Was she handsome?
_Myself_. Very.
_Hungarian_. Did she possess the water?
_Myself_. I should say not; for I have heard her express a greatcuriosity about it.
_Hungarian_. Was she growing old?
_Myself_. Of course not; but why do you put all these questions?
_Hungarian_. Because the water is said to make people handsome, and,above all, to restore to the aged the beauty of their youth. Well!Tekeli was my countryman, and I have the honour of having some of theblood of the Tekelis in my veins, but with respect to the queen, pardonme if I tell you that she was not a Hungarian; she was a Pole--Ersebet byname, daughter of Vladislaus Locticus, King of Poland; she was the fourthspouse of Caroly the Second, King of the Magyar country, who married herin the year 1320. She was a great woman and celebrated politician,though at present chiefly known by her water.
_Myself_. How came she to invent it?
_Hungarian_. If her own account may be believed, she did not invent it.After her death, as I have read in Florentius of Buda, there was found astatement of the manner in which she came by it, written in her own hand,on a fly-leaf of her breviary, to the following effect: Being afflictedwith a grievous disorder at the age of seventy-two, she received themedicine which was called her water, from an old hermit whom she neversaw before or afterwards; it not only cured her, but restored to her allher former beauty, so that the King of Poland fell in love with her, andmade her an offer of marriage, which she refused for the glory of God,from whose holy angel she believed she had received the water. Thereceipt for making it and directions for using it, were also found on thefly-leaf. The principal component parts were burnt wine and rosemary,passed through an alembic; a drachm of it was to be taken once a week,'etelbenn vagy italbann,' in the food or the drink, early in the morning,and the cheeks were to be moistened with it every day. The effects,according to the statement, were wonderful--and perhaps they were uponthe queen; but whether the water has been equally efficacious on otherpeople, is a point which I cannot determine. I should wish to see someold woman who has been restored to youthful beauty by the use of L'eau dela Reine d'Hongrie.
_Myself_. Perhaps, if you did, the old gentlewoman would hardly be soingenuous as the queen. But who are the Hungarians--descendants ofAttila and his people?
The Hungarian shook his head, and gave me to understand that he did notbelieve that his nation were the descendants of Attila and his people,though he acknowledged that they were probably of the same race. Attilaand his armies, he said, came and disappeared in a very mysteriousmanner, and that nothing could be said with positiveness about them; thatthe people now known as Magyars first made their appearance in Muscovy inthe year 884, under the leadership of Almus, called so from Alom, which,in the Hungarian language, signifies a dream; his mother, before hisbirth, having dreamt that the child with which she was enceinte would bethe father of a long succession of kings, which, in fact, was the case;that after beating the Russians he entered Hungary, and coming to a placecalled Ungvar, from which many people believed that modern Hungaryderived its name, he captured it, and held in it a grand festival, whichlasted four days, at the end of which time he resigned the leadership ofthe Magyars to his son Arpad. This Arpad and his Magyars utterly subduedPannonia--that is, Hungary and Transylvania, wresting the government ofit from the Sclavonian tribes who inhabited it, and settling down amongstthem as conquerors! After giving me this information, the Hungarianexclaimed with much animation: 'A goodly country that which they hadentered on, consisting of a plain surrounded by mountains, some of whichintersect it here and there, with noble rapid rivers, the grandest ofwhich is the mighty Dunau; a country with tiny volcanoes, casting uppuffs of smoke and steam, and from which hot springs arise, good for thesick; with many fountains, some of which are so pleasant to the taste asto be preferred to wine; with a generous soil which, warmed by abeautiful sun, is able to produce corn, grapes, and even the Indian weed;in fact, one of the finest countries in the world, which even a Spaniardwould pronounce to be nearly equal to Spain. Here theyrested--meditating, however, fresh conquests. Oh, the Magyars soonshowed themselves a mighty people. Besides Hungary and Transylvania,they subdued Bulgaria and Bosnia, and the land of Tot, now calledSclavonia. The generals of Zoltan, the son of Arpad, led troops ofhorsemen to the banks of the Rhine. One of them, at the head of a host,besieged Constantinople. It was then that Botond engaged in combat witha Greek of gigantic stature, who came out of the city and challenged thetwo best men in the Magyar army. "I am the feeblest of the Magyars,"said Botond, "but I will kill thee;" and he performed his word, havingpreviously given a proof of the feebleness of his arm by striking hisbattle-axe through the brazen gate, making a hole so big that a child offive years old could walk through it.'
_Myself_. Of what religion were the old Hungarians?
_Hungarian_. They had some idea of a Supreme Being, whom they calledIsten, which word is still used by the Magyars for God; but their chiefdevotion was directed to sorcerers and soothsayers, something like theSchamans of the Siberian steppes. They were converted to Christianitychiefly through the instrumentality of Istvan or Stephen, called afterhis death St. Istvan, who ascended the throne in the year one thousand.He was born in heathenesse, and his original name was Vojk: he was thefirst kiraly, or king of the Magyars. Their former leaders had beencalled fejedelmek, or dukes. The Magyar language has properly no termeither for king or house. Kiraly is a word derived from the Sclaves;haz, or house, from the Germans, who first taught them to build houses,their original dwellings having been tilted waggons.
_Myself_. Many thanks for your account of the great men of your country.
_Hungarian_. The great men of my country! I have only told you ofthe--. Well, I acknowledge that Almus and Arpad were great men, butHungary has produced many greater; I will not trouble you byrecapitulating all, but there is one name I cannot forbearmentioning--but you have heard it--even at Horncastle, the name ofHunyadi must be familiar.
_Myself_. It may be so, though I rather doubt it; but, however that maybe, I confess my ignorance. I have never, until this moment, heard ofthe name of Hunyadi.
_Hungarian_. Not of Hunyadi Janos, not of Hunyadi John--for the geniusof our language compels us to put a man's Christian name after his other;perhaps you have heard of the name of Corvinus?
_Myself_. Yes, I have heard of the name of Corvinus.
_Hungarian_. By my God, I am glad of it; I thought our hammer ofdestruction, our thunderbolt, whom the Greeks called Achilles, must beknown to the people of Horncastle. Well, Hunyadi and Corvinus are thesame.
_Myself_. Corvinus means the man of the crow, or raven. I suppose thatyour John, when a boy, climbed up to a crow or raven's nest, and stolethe young; a bold feat, well befitting a young hero.
_Hungarian_. By Isten, you are an acute guesser, a robbery there was,but it was not Hunyadi who robbed the raven, but the raven who robbedHunyadi.
_Myself_. How was that?
_Hungarian_. In this manner: Hunyadi, according to tradition, was theson of King Sigmond, by a peasant's daughter. The king saw and fell inlove with her, whilst marching against the vaivode of Wallachia. He hadsome difficulty in persuading her to consent to his wishes, and she on
lyyielded at last, on the king making her a solemn promise that, in theevent of her becoming with child by him, he would handsomely provide forher and the infant. The king proceeded on his expedition; and on hisreturning in triumph from Wallachia, again saw the girl, who informed himthat she was enceinte by him; the king was delighted with theintelligence, gave the girl money, and at the same time a ring,requesting her, if she brought forth a son, to bring the ring to Budawith the child, and present it to him. When her time was up, thepeasant's daughter brought forth a fair son, who was baptized by the nameof John. After some time the young woman communicated the whole affairto her elder brother, whose name was Gaspar, and begged him to convey herand the child to the king at Buda. The brother consented, and both setout, taking the child with them. On their way, the woman, wanting towash her clothes, laid the child down, giving it the king's ring to playwith. A raven, who saw the glittering ring, came flying, and plucking itout of the child's hand, carried it up into a tree; the child suddenlybegan to cry, and the mother, hearing it, left her washing, and runningto the child, forthwith missed the ring, but hearing the raven croak inthe tree, she lifted up her eyes, and saw it with the ring in its beak.The woman, in great terror, called her brother, and told him what hadhappened, adding, that she durst not approach the king if the raven tookaway the ring. Gaspar, seizing his cross-bow and quiver, ran to thetree, where the raven was yet with the ring, and discharged an arrow atit, but, being in a great hurry, he missed it; with his second shot hewas more lucky, for he hit the raven in the breast, which, together withthe ring, fell to the ground. Taking up the ring, they went on theirway, and shortly arrived at Buda. One day, as the king was walking afterdinner in his outer hall, the woman appeared before him with the child,and, showing him the ring, said, 'Mighty lord! behold this token! andtake pity upon me and your own son.' King Sigmond took the child andkissed it, and, after a pause, said to the mother, 'You have done rightin bringing me the boy; I will take care of you, and make him anobleman.' The king was as good as his word, he provided for the mother,caused the boy to be instructed in knightly exercises, and made him apresent of the town of Hunyad, in Transylvania, on which account he wasafterwards called Hunyadi, and gave him, as an armorial sign, a ravenbearing a ring in his beak.
Such, O young man of Horncastle! is the popular account of the birth ofthe great captain of Hungary, as related by Florentius of Buda. Thereare other accounts of his birth, which is, indeed, involved in muchmystery, and of the reason of his being called Corvinus, but as this isthe most pleasing, and is, upon the whole, founded on quite as goodevidence as the others, I have selected it for recitation.
_Myself_. I heartily thank you, but you must tell me something more ofHunyadi. You call him your great captain; what did he do?
_Hungarian_. Do! what no other man of his day could have done. He brokethe power of the Turk when he was coming to overwhelm Europe. From theblows inflicted by Hunyadi, the Turk never thoroughly recovered; he hasbeen frequently worsted in latter times, but none but Hunyadi could haverouted the armies of Amurath and Mahomed the Second.
_Myself_. How was it that he had an opportunity of displaying hismilitary genius?
_Hungarian_. I can hardly tell you, but his valour soon made him famous;King Albert made him Ban of Szorenyi. He became eventually waivode ofTransylvania, and Governor of Hungary. His first grand action was thedefeat of the Bashaw Isack; and though himself surprised and routed atSt. Imre, he speedily regained his prestige by defeating the Turks, withenormous slaughter, killing their leader, Mezerbeg: and subsequently, atthe Battle of the Iron Gates, he destroyed ninety thousand Turks, sent byAmurath to avenge the late disgrace. It was then that the Greeks calledhim Achilles.
_Myself_. He was not always successful.
_Hungarian_. Who could be always successful against the early Turk? Hewas defeated in the battle in which King Vladislaus lost his life, buthis victories outnumbered his defeats threefold. His grandestvictory--perhaps the grandest ever achieved by man--was over the terribleMahomed the Second, who, after the taking of Constantinople in 1453,said, 'One God in Heaven--one king on earth;' and marched to besiegeBelgrade at the head of one hundred and fifty thousand men; swearing, bythe beard of the prophet, 'That he would sup within it ere two monthswere elapsed.' He brought with him dogs to eat the bodies of theChristians whom he should take or slay--so says Florentius. Hear what healso says: The Turk sat down before the town towards the end of June,1454, covering the Dunau and Szava with ships; and on the 4th of July hebegan to cannonade Belgrade with canons twenty-five feet long, whose roarcould be heard at Szeged, a distance of twenty-four leagues, at whichplace Hunyadi had assembled his forces. Hunyadi had been able to raiseonly fifteen thousand of well-armed and disciplined men, though he hadwith him vast bands of people, who called themselves Soldiers of theCross, but who consisted of inexperienced lads from school, peasants, andhermits, armed with swords, slings, and clubs. Hunyadi, undismayed bythe great disparity between his forces and those of the Turk, advanced torelieve Belgrade, and encamped at Szalankemen with his army. There hesaw at once, that his first step must be to attack the flotilla; hetherefore privately informed Szilagy, his wife's brother, who at thattime defended Belgrade, that it was his intention to attack the ships ofthe Turks on the 14th day of July in front, and requested hisco-operation in the rear. On the 14th came on the commencement of thegreat battle of Belgrade, between Hunyadi and the Turk. Many days itlasted.
_Myself_. Describe it.
_Hungarian_. I cannot. One has described it well--Florentius, of Buda.I can only repeat a few of his words: 'On the appointed day, Hunyadi,with two hundred vessels, attacked the Turkish flotilla in front, whilstSzilagy, with forty vessels, filled with the men of Belgrade, assailed itin the rear; striving for the same object, they sunk many of the Turkishvessels, captured seventy-four, burnt many, and utterly annihilated thewhole fleet. After this victory, Hunyadi, with his army, enteredBelgrade, to the great joy of the Magyars. But though the force ofMahomed upon the water was destroyed, that upon the land remained entire;and with this, during six days and nights, he attacked the city withoutintermission, destroying its walls in many parts. His last and mostdesperate assault was made on the 21st day of July. Twice did the Turksgain possession of the outer town, and twice was it retaken withindescribable slaughter. The next day the combat raged without ceasingtill mid-day, when the Turks were again beaten out of the town, andpursued by the Magyars to their camp. There the combat was renewed, bothsides displaying the greatest obstinacy, until Mahomed received a greatwound over his left eye. The Turks then, turning their faces, fled,leaving behind them three hundred cannon in the hands of the Christians,and more than twenty-four thousand slain on the field of battle.'
_Myself_. After that battle, I suppose Hunyadi enjoyed his triumphs inpeace?
_Hungarian_. In the deepest, for he shortly died. His great soulquitted his body, which was exhausted by almost superhuman exertions, onthe 11th of August, 1456. Shortly before he died, according toFlorentius, a comet appeared, sent, as it would seem, to announce hiscoming end. The whole Christian world mourned his loss. The Popeordered the cardinals to perform a funeral ceremony at Rome in hishonour. His great enemy himself grieved for him, and pronounced hisfinest eulogium. When Mahomed the Second heard of his death, he struckhis head for some time against the ground without speaking. Suddenly hebroke silence with these words, 'Notwithstanding he was my enemy, yet doI bewail his loss; since the sun has shone in heaven, no Prince had everyet such a man.'
_Myself_. What was the name of his Prince?
_Hungarian_. Laszlo the Fifth; who, though under infinite obligations toHunyadi, was anything but grateful to him; for he once consented to aplan which was laid to assassinate him, contrived by his mortal enemyUlrik, Count of Cilejia; and after Hunyadi's death, caused his eldestson, Hunyadi Laszlo, to be executed on a false accusation, and imprisonedhis younger son, Matyas, who, on the death of Laszlo, was elected b
y theMagyars to be their king, on the 24th of January, 1458.
_Myself_. Was this Matyas a good king?
_Hungarian_. Was Matyas Corvinus a good king? O young man ofHorncastle! he was the best and greatest that Hungary ever possessed,and, after his father, the most renowned warrior--some of our best lawswere framed by him. It was he who organized the Hussar force, and it washe who took Vienna. Why does your Government always send fools torepresent it at Vienna?
_Myself_. I really cannot say; but with respect to the Hussar force, isit of Hungarian origin?
_Hungarian_. Its name shows its origin. Huz, in Hungarian, is twenty,and the Hussar force is so called because it is formed of twentieths. Alaw was issued, by which it was ordered that every Hungarian nobleman,out of every twenty dependants, should produce a well-equipped horseman,and with him proceed to the field of battle.
_Myself_. Why did Matyas capture Vienna?
_Hungarian_. Because the Emperor Frederick took part against him withthe King of Poland, who claimed the kingdom of Hungary for his son, andhad also assisted the Turk. He captured it in the year 1487, but did notsurvive his triumph long, expiring there in the year 1490. He was soveracious a man, that it was said of him, after his death, 'Truth diedwith Matyas.' It might be added, that the glory of Hungary departed withhim. I wish to say nothing more connected with Hungarian history.
_Myself_. Another word. Did Matyas leave a son?
_Hungarian_. A natural son, Hunyadi John, called so after the great man.He would have been universally acknowledged as King of Hungary but forthe illegitimacy of his birth. As it was, Ulaszlo, the son of the Kingof Poland, afterwards called Ulaszlo the Second, who claimed Hungary asbeing descended from Albert, was nominated king by a great majority ofthe Magyar electors. Hunyadi John for some time disputed the throne withhim; there was some bloodshed, but Hunyadi John eventually submitted, andbecame the faithful captain of Ulaszlo, notwithstanding that the Turkoffered to assist him with an army of two hundred thousand men.
_Myself_. Go on.
_Hungarian_. To what? Tche Drak, to the Mohacs Veszedelem. Ulaszloleft a son, Lajos the Second, born without skin, as it is said, certainlywithout a head. He, contrary to the advice of all his wisecounsellors--and amongst them was Batory Stephen, who became eventuallyKing of Poland--engaged, with twenty-five thousand men, at Mohacs,Soliman the Turk, who had an army of two hundred thousand. Drak! theMagyars were annihilated, King Lajos disappeared with his heavy horse andarmour in a bog. We call that battle, which was fought on the 29th ofAugust, 1526, the destruction of Mohacs, but it was the destruction ofHungary.
_Myself_. You have twice used the word drak, what is the meaning of it?Is it Hungarian?
_Hungarian_. No! it belongs to the Mad Wallacks. They are a nation ofmadmen on the other side of Transylvania. Their country was formerly afief of Hungary, like Moldavia, which is inhabited by the same race, whospeak the same language, and are equally mad.
_Myself_. What language do they speak?
_Hungarian_. A strange mixture of Latin and Sclavonian--they themselvesbeing a mixed race of Romans and Sclavonians. Trajan sent certainlegions to form military colonies in Dacia; and the present Wallacks andMoldavians are, to a certain extent, the descendants of the Romansoldiers, who married the women of the country, I say to a certainextent, for the Sclavonian element both in blood and language, seems toprevail.
_Myself_. And what is drak?
_Hungarian_. Dragon; which the Wallacks use for devil. The term iscurious, as it shows that the old Romans looked upon the dragon as aninfernal being.
_Myself_. You have been in Wallachia?
_Hungarian_. I have, and glad I was to get out of it. I hate the madWallacks.
_Myself_. Why do you call them mad?
_Hungarian_. They are always drinking or talking. I never saw aWallachian eating or silent. They talk like madmen, and drink likemadmen. In drinking they use small phials, the contents of which theypour down their throats. When I first went amongst them I thought thewhole nation was under a course of physic, but the terrible jabber oftheir tongues soon undeceived me. Drak was the first word I heard onentering Dacia, and the last when I left it. The Moldaves, if possible,drink more, and talk more than the Wallachians.
_Myself_. It is singular enough that the only Moldavian I have knowncould not speak. I suppose he was born dumb.
_Hungarian_. A Moldavian born dumb! Excuse me, the thing is impossible;all Moldavians are born talking! I have known a Moldavian who could notspeak, but he was not born dumb. His master, an Armenian, snipped offpart of his tongue at Adrianople. He drove him mad with his jabber. Heis now in London, where his master has a house. I have letters of crediton the house: the clerk paid me money in London, the master was absent;the money which you received for the horse belonged to that house.
_Myself_. Another word with respect to Hungarian history.
_Hungarian_. Drak! I wish to say nothing more about Hungarian history.
_Myself_. The Turk, I suppose, after Mohacs, got possession of Hungary?
_Hungarian_. Not exactly. The Turk, upon the whole, showed greatmoderation; not so the Austrian. Ferdinand the First claimed the crownof Hungary as being the cousin of Maria, widow of Lajos; he found toomany disposed to support him. His claim, however, was resisted byZapolya John, a Hungarian magnate, who caused himself to be elected King.Hungary was for a long time devastated by the wars between the partisansof Zapolya and Ferdinand. At last Zapolya called in the Turk. Solimanbehaved generously to him, and after his death befriended his young son,and Isabella his Queen. Eventually the Turks became masters ofTransylvania and the greater part of Hungary. They were not bad masters,and had many friends in Hungary, especially amongst those of the reformedfaith, to which I have myself the honour of belonging; those of thereformed faith found the Mufti more tolerant than the Pope. ManyHungarians went with the Turks to the siege of Vienna, whilst Tekeli andhis horsemen guarded Hungary for them. A gallant enterprise, that siegeof Vienna--the last great effort of the Turk. It failed, and he speedilylost Hungary, but he did not sneak from Hungary like a frightened hound.His defence of Buda will not be soon forgotten, where Apty Basha, thegovernor, died fighting like a lion in the breach. There's many aHungarian would prefer Stamboul to Vienna. Why does your Governmentalways send fools to represent it at Vienna?
_Myself_. I have already told you that I cannot say. What became ofTekeli?
_Hungarian_. When Hungary was lost he retired with the Turks intoTurkey. Count Renoncourt, in his Memoirs, mentions having seen him atAdrianople. The Sultan, in consideration of the services which he hadrendered to the Moslem in Hungary, made over the revenues of certaintowns and districts for his subsistence. The count says that he alwayswent armed to the teeth, and was always attended by a young femaledressed in male attire, who had followed him in his wars, and had morethan once saved his life. His end is wrapped in mystery, I--whosegreatest boast, next to being a Hungarian, is to be of his blood--knownothing of his end.
_Myself_. Allow me to ask who you are.
_Hungarian_. Egy szegeny Magyar Nemes ember, a poor Hungarian nobleman,son of one yet poorer. I was born in Transylvania, not far to the westof good Coloscvar. I served some time in the Austrian army as a nobleHussar, but am now equerry to a great nobleman, to whom I am distantlyrelated. In his service I have travelled far and wide, buying horses. Ihave been in Russia and Turkey, and am now at Horncastle, where I havehad the satisfaction to meet with you, and to buy your horse, which is,in truth, a noble brute.
_Myself_. For a soldier and equerry you seem to know a great deal of thehistory of your country.
_Hungarian_. All I know is derived from Florentius of Buda, whom we callBudai Ferentz. He was professor of Greek and Latin at the ReformedCollege of Debreczen, where I was educated; he wrote a work entitled'Magyar Polgari Lexicon,' Lives of Great Hungarian Citizens. He was deadbefore I was born, but I found his book, when
I was a child, in thesolitary home of my father, which stood on the confines of a puszta, orwilderness, and that book I used to devour in winter nights when thewinds were whistling around the house. Oh! how my blood used to glow atthe descriptions of Magyar valour, and likewise of Turkish; forFlorentius has always done justice to the Turk. Many a passage similarto this have I got by heart; it is connected with the battle on the plainof Rigo, which Hunyadi lost: 'The next day, which was Friday, as the twoarmies were drawn up in battle array, a Magyar hero, riding forth,galloped up and down, challenging the Turks to single combat. Then cameout to meet him the son of a renowned bashaw of Asia. Rushing upon eachother, both broke their lances, but the Magyar hero and his horse rolledover upon the ground, for the Turks had always the best horses.' O youngman of Horncastle! if ever you learn Hungarian--and learn it assuredlyyou will after what I have told you--read the book of Florentius of Buda,even if you go to Hungary to get it, for you will scarcely find itelsewhere, and even there with difficulty, for the book has been long outof print. It describes the actions of the great men of Hungary down tothe middle of the sixteenth century, and besides being written in thepurest Hungarian, has the merit of having for its author a professor ofthe Reformed College at Debreczen.
_Myself_. I will go to Hungary rather than not read it. I am glad thatthe Turk beat the Magyar. When I used to read the ballads of Spain Ialways sided with the Moor against the Christian.
_Hungarian_. It was a drawn fight after all, for the terrible horse ofthe Turk presently flung his own master, whereupon the two championsreturned to their respective armies; but in the grand conflict whichensued the Turks beat the Magyars, pursuing them till night, and strikingthem on the necks with their scymetars. The Turk is a noble fellow; Ishould wish to be a Turk, were I not a Magyar.
_Myself_. The Turk always keeps his word, I am told.
_Hungarian_. Which the Christian very seldom does, and even theHungarian does not always. In 1444 Ulaszlo made, at Szeged, peace withAmurath for ten years, which he swore with an oath to keep, but at theinstigation of the Pope Julian he broke it, and induced his greatcaptain, Hunyadi John, to share in the perjury. The consequence was theBattle of Varna, of the 10th of November, in which Hunyadi was routed,and Ulaszlo slain. Did you ever hear his epitaph? It is both solemn andedifying:
'Romulidae Cannas ego Varnam clade notavi; Discite mortales non temerare fidem: Me nisi Pontifices jussissent rumpere foedus Non ferret Scythicum Pannonis ora jugum.'
'Halloo!' said the jockey, starting up from a doze in which he had beenindulging for the last hour, his head leaning upon his breast; 'what isthat? That's not high Dutch; I bargained for high Dutch, and I left youspeaking what I believed to be high Dutch, as it sounded very much likethe language of horses, as I have been told high Dutch does; but as forwhat you are speaking now, whatever you may call it, it sounds more likethe language of another kind of animal. I suppose you want to insult mebecause I was once a dicky-boy.'
'Nothing of the kind,' said I. 'The gentleman was making a quotation inLatin.'
'Latin, was it?' said the jockey; 'that alters the case. Latin isgenteel, and I have sent my eldest boy to an academy to learn it. Come,let us hear you fire away in Latin,' he continued, proceeding to re-lighthis pipe, which before going to sleep he had laid on the table.
'If you wish to follow the discourse in Latin,' said the Hungarian, invery bad English, 'I can oblige you; I learned to speak very good Latinin the College of Debreczen.'
'That's more,' said I, 'than I have done in the colleges where I havebeen; in any little conversation which we may yet have I wish you woulduse German.'
'Well,' said the jockey, taking a whiff, 'make your conversation as shortas possible, whether in Latin or Dutch, for, to tell you the truth, I amrather tired of merely playing listener.'
'You were saying you had been in Russia,' said I; 'I believe the Russiansare part of the Sclavonian race.'
_Hungarian_. Yes, part of the great Sclavonian family; one of the mostnumerous races in the world. The Russians themselves are verynumerous--would that the Magyars could boast of the fifth part of theirnumber!
_Myself_. What is the number of the Magyars?
_Hungarian_. Barely four millions. We came a tribe of Tartars intoEurope and settled down amongst Sclavonians, whom we conquered, but whonever coalesced with us. The Austrian at present plays in Pannonia theSclavonian against us and us against the Sclavonian; but the downfall ofthe Austrian is at hand; they, like us, are not a numerous people.
_Myself_. Who will bring about his downfall?
_Hungarian_. The Russian. The Rysckie Tsar will lead his people forth,all the Sclavonians will join him, he will conquer all before him.
_Myself_. Are the Russians good soldiers?
_Hungarian_. They are stubborn and unflinching to an astonishing degree,and their fidelity to their Tsar is quite admirable. See how theRussians behaved at Plescova, in Livonia, in the old time, against ourgreat Batory Stephen; they defended the place till it was a heap ofrubbish, and mark how they behaved after they had been made prisoners.Stephen offered them two alternatives: to enter into his service, inwhich they would have good pay, clothing, and fair treatment; or to beallowed to return to Russia. Without the slightest hesitation they, to aman, chose the latter, though well aware that their beloved Tsar, thecruel Ivan Basilowitt, would put them all to death, amidst tortures themost horrible, for not doing what was impossible--preserving the town.
_Myself_. You speak Russian?
_Hungarian_. A little. I was born in the vicinity of a Sclavoniantribe; the servants of our house were Sclavonians, and I early acquiredsomething of their language, which differs not much from that of Russia.When in that country I quickly understood what was said.
_Myself_. Have the Russians any literature?
_Hungarian_. Doubtless; but I am not acquainted with it, as I do notread their language; but I know something of their popular tales, towhich I used to listen in their izbushkas; a principal personage in theseis a creation quite original--called Baba Yaga.
_Myself_. Who is Baba Yaga? {245}
_Hungarian_. A female phantom, who is described as hurrying along thepuszta, or steppe, in a mortar, pounding with a pestle at a tremendousrate, and leaving a long trace on the ground behind her with her tongue,which is three yards long, and with which she seizes any men and horsescoming in her way, swallowing them down into her capacious belly. Shehas several daughters, very handsome, and with plenty of money. Happythe young Mujik who catches and marries one of them, for they makeexcellent wives.
'Many thanks,' said I, 'for the information you have afforded me. Thisis rather poor wine,' I observed as I poured out a glass. 'I suppose youhave better wine in Hungary?'
'Yes we have better wine in Hungary. First of all there is Tokay, themost celebrated in the world, though I confess I prefer the wine ofEger--Tokay is too sweet.'
'Have you ever been at Tokay?'
'I have,' said the Hungarian.
'What kind of place is Tokay?'
'A small town situated on the Tyzza, a rapid river descending from thenorth; the Tokay Mountain is just behind the town, which stands on theright bank. The top of the mountain is called Kopacs Teto, or the baldtip; the hill is so steep that during thunder-storms pieces of itfrequently fall down upon the roofs of the houses. It was planted withvines by King Lajos, who ascended the throne in the year 1342. The bestwine called Tokay is, however, not made at Tokay, but at Kassau, twoleagues farther into the Carpathians, of which Tokay is a spur. If youwish to drink the best Tokay, you must go to Vienna, to which place allthe prime is sent. For the third time I ask you, O young man ofHorncastle! why does your Government always send fools to represent it atVienna?'
'And for the third time I tell you, O son of Almus! that I cannot say;perhaps, however, to drink the Tokay wine. Fools, you know, always likesweet things.'
'Good,' said the Hungarian; 'it must be so, and wh
en I return to HungaryI will state to my countrymen your explanation of a circumstance whichhas frequently caused them great perplexity. Oh! the English are aclever people, and have a deep meaning in all they do. What a vision ofdeep policy opens itself to my view: they do not send their fool toVienna in order to gape at processions, and to bow and scrape at a basePapist court, but to drink at the great dinners the celebrated Tokay ofHungary, which the Hungarians, though they do not drink it, are veryproud of, and by doing so to intimate the sympathy which the Englishentertain for their fellow religionists of Hungary. Oh! the English area deep people.'
The Romany Rye Page 44
