side of the stream small rafts were in course of construction, and the
trunks of the trees were being placed in position to make the descent of
the stream. The woodman's axe was heard in the forest, and many a
picturesque hut or group of huts were to be seen by the roadside, where
the woodmen and their families live, to be near their work. The labour
of getting the timber along these tortuous mountain streams is very
great. A ready market is found at Galatz, where a great deal of this
wood is sent.
I remained the night at Tölgyes. The whole place was in a state of
excitement about brigands; every one had some fresh rumour to help swell
the general panic. A company of soldiers were kept constantly patrolling
the roads in the neighbourhood. I should say they were pretty safe not
to encounter the robbers, who are always well informed under those
circumstances.
In studying my pocket-map, I found that there was clearly a short cut
over the mountains to St Miklos. On inquiry I extracted the confirmation
of the fact with difficulty, and I had still more difficulty in inducing
anybody to go with me as a guide. At length I secured the services of a
fellow who was willing to go for a tolerably substantial
"consideration." I was afraid to work my way entirely by the map, for
roads are apt to be vague in these parts. Ten chances to one whether
you know a road when you see it; it might be a green sward, or the
rubbly dry bed of a mountain torrent, or a cattle-track; it may lead
somewhere or nowhere. Unassisted you may wander all manner of ways.
I made my start very early in the morning, for I had a long way to go,
and my guide was on foot; there was not much use in being mounted,
considering the pace that the roughness of the road forced us to take.
Before leaving Tölgyes I had a row with the innkeeper. He made a most
exorbitant demand upon me, at least three times over what was properly
due. I told him at once that I declined to pay the full amount he asked.
I knew perfectly well what the charge ought to be, and I said I should
pay that and no more. Hereupon he got very angry, and informed me that
he should not saddle my horse or let me go till I had paid him in full.
I immediately went into the stable and saddled the horse myself; I then
put down on the window-seat the money which I considered was due to him,
giving a fair and liberal margin, but I was not going to be "done"
because I was a foreigner. I ordered my guide to proceed, and I myself
quickly rode out of the place. The innkeeper worked himself up into a
tremendous rage, and declared he would have me back, or at least he
would have his cold meat and bread back that I had ordered for the
journey. I gave my horse the rein, and left the fellow uttering his
blessings both loud and deep.
We had ten miles of as bad a road as any I had yet seen in my travels.
The mud in some places was two feet deep. We followed the windings of a
stream called the Putna Patak, and came presently to a wayside inn
frequented by foresters. Here we made a short halt, got a bottle of
decent wine and a crust of bread. Immediately on quitting this place we
turned into a less frequented path, and began a stiffish ascent. It was
a superb day, and I enjoyed it immensely, not having been much favoured
by weather lately. Our route was through a thick forest, the trees, as
usual in these, magnificent, with their gigantic girth, and
widespreading branches. At times I got a glimpse of the snowy mountain
summits standing out against the intensely blue sky.
At mid-day I told the guide to look out for the next spring, for there
we would dine. We did not find a spring for some time, at least not by
the wayside, and I was reluctant to lose time by wandering about. At
length when we had secured a water-tap - viz., a little trickling rill
flowing between some stones and spongy moss - we found ourselves in a
difficulty about the fire. There was plenty of wood, but it was all
soaking wet and would not burn. Luckily a fir-tree was spied out, which
provided us with a good quantity of turpentine, and with this we
persuaded the fire to blaze up a bit. We cooked the dinner, had a smoke,
a short rest, and then _en avant_ - always through the forest.
Later in the afternoon, emerging from the wood, we came upon a grassy
plateau which commanded a glorious view of the Transylvanian side of the
Carpathians. I was glad to see the familiar valley of Gyergyó away
westward, with its numerous villages and green pasturage. The same
physical peculiarity pervades the whole of Hungary. Whenever you get a
vale of any extent, it is as flat as if it were a bit of the great
plain. Everywhere you have the impression that formerly the waters of a
lake must have covered the level verdure of the valley. As soon as I
caught sight of St Miklos I dismissed my guide, for his services were no
longer required, and I could get on quicker without him. I had still a
long distance to go, for I was not far below the summit. I was extremely
anxious to get into safe quarters before dark, so I made the best of the
way, leading my horse down the steep bits, and mounting again for a
short trot where it was possible.
On arriving at the house of my Armenian friends at St Miklos, happily
before sundown, I was greatly disappointed to find that there would be
no bear-hunt the next day. Those detestable robbers had turned up again,
and the people who were to have formed part of the sporting expedition
were obliged to go robber-hunting, a sport not much to their taste I
fancy.
It appeared that the fellows had entered an out-of-the-way inn, or
rather wine-shop, and boldly ordered the owner to procure for them a
certain amount of gunpowder, which they required should be ready for
them the next day, and failing to carry out their orders, they
threatened to shoot him. He was obliged to promise, for there were five
of them, and except women he was alone in the house. They drank a
quantity of his wine, and asked for no reckoning, saying they would pay
for it the next day along with the gunpowder.
Directly they had left the premises, the innkeeper set off as fast as
his legs could carry him to St Miklos to ask for help. The robbers
seemed to be such bunglers that one would judge them to be new to the
business; but the innkeeper's terror knew no bounds, and he declared
they were awful-looking cut-throats. Two of the men were caught the
next day. I saw them brought into the village heavily manacled; they
were harmless-looking Wallacks, not very different in appearance from my
guide over the mountain. Though armed with guns, they made no
resistance; and when they were discovered they had called out lustily to
the soldiers not to fire, for they would give themselves up. I expect
they were let off with imprisonment, but I never heard the end of the
story. I owed them a grudge for spoiling my bear-hunt, which I missed
altogether, for I could not wait until the following Sunday.
I left St Miklos with an introduction to some rich Armenians at
Toplicza, where I intended making my next halt.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Toplicza - Armenian hospitality - A bear-hunt - A ride over to the
frontier of Bukovina - Destruction of timber - Maladministration of
State property - An unpleasant night on the mountain - Snowstorm.
At Toplicza I was very hospitably received by the family to whom I took
the letter of introduction from my friends at the last place.
Unfortunately I could not converse with the elders of the family, for
they spoke no German, and my Hungarian was limited. However, there was a
charming young lady with whom I found no difficulty in getting on; she
understood not only the language but the literature of Germany.
A bear-hunt was soon proposed in my honour. The headman of the village
was brought into our council, and he quickly sent round orders that
everybody was to appear the following day - which conveniently happened
to be _fête_ day - for a hunt. Those who had guns would be placed at
different "stands," and those who had no guns were expected to act as
beaters.
The _Richter_, or headman, was a fine specimen of a Wallack; he was six
feet three, broad chested, with flowing black hair - a handsome fellow of
that type. I told him I should not like to fight him if he knew how to
use his fists. He was pleased at the little compliment. The next day the
Wallacks came pouring in from all the outlying parts of the village. It
was really a very picturesque sight. The men wore thongs of leather
round their feet in place of boots; and those who had no guns were armed
with the usual long staff surmounted by the formidable axe-head.
A great deal of time was wasted in preparations. The Wallacks are the
most dilatory people in the whole world. It was nearly three o'clock
before we got to the forests where we hoped to give Bruin a rendezvous.
The guns that some of the party carried were "a caution" - more fit for a
museum of armoury than for anything else. The Wallacks try to remedy the
inefficiency of their guns by cramming in very large charges of powder,
at least two bullets, and some buckshot besides. I often thought the
danger was greater to themselves than to the bear. They never fire over
twenty-five yards, and in fact generally allow the bear to come within
twelve yards, when they pepper away at him.
At last we were in position. It is usual to have a second gun, but I
had only my rifle and revolver; unfortunately my gun was with my baggage
at Maros Vásárhely. After waiting for some time without hearing anything
but the creaking of the pine-trees in the wind, the advance of the
beaters was at length audible. You hear repeated thuds with their axes
on the trees, and you know that they are beating up your way. All at
once I heard the unmistakable tread of some heavy four-footed beast. I
held my breath, fearing to betray my presence. Nearer and nearer came
the heavy tread, the branches cracking as the animal broke its way
through the thicket. It must be a bear of the largest size, thought I,
with a glow of delight warming up my whole frame at this supreme moment.
I had just raised the rifle to my shoulder, when - judge my disgust - when
emerging from the thicket I saw a stray ox make his appearance! I could
hardly resist putting a bullet into the stupid brute's carcass, but I
remembered that I should have to pay for that little game.
We moved on to another part of the forest, and the same programme of
taking our positions and arranging the course of the beaters was gone
through; but we met with no success. This was the more provoking,
because on our return we found the fresh slot of a bear. He had
evidently just saved himself in time; the marks of his claws were quite
visible in the soft mud.
These footprints were all we were destined to see, for evening was
drawing on, and it was impossible to pursue the sport any farther. Of
course we commenced operations far too late in the day; it was simply
ridiculous to begin at such a late hour in the autumn afternoon. It was
very disappointing; but there is so much of mere chance in bear-hunting,
that where one man has the luck to kill four or five in a season,
another may go on for two years following without getting as much as a
shot.
The sportsman will be glad to hear, though the farmer is of quite
another mind, that bears, wolves, and wild-boar are increasing very much
in the Carpathians generally. I have mentioned this fact before, but I
allude to it again because it was everywhere corroborated. On all sides
this increase is attributed to the tax on firearms, which deters the
peasants from keeping them down. They are often too poor to pay for a
shooting licence and the gun-tax.
Toplicza has some warm mineral springs. Warm water seems to be turned on
everywhere in Hungary. One of these springs is situated close to the
river, where a simple kind of bath-house has been constructed. The water
contains iodine. While at Toplicza I heard that somewhere up in the
mountains on the Bukovina side there is a large deposit of sulphur. The
accounts were very vague, but I thought I should like to have a look at
the place. The district was pronounced to be so unsafe, and so many
robbers had appeared on the scene lately, that I thought proper to take
two men with me; one as a guide, for he had been there before, and a
forester armed with a gun.
My friends the Armenians kindly insisted on providing me with everything
necessary in the shape of food; and one day, the weather being fine, I
started at noon on this expedition along with my attendants. We soon got
into the forest again. The size of the trees was almost beyond belief;
but, alas! many of them had been destroyed in the same ruthless manner
that I have so often alluded to in my travels. Here were half-burned
trunks of splendid oak-trees lying rotting on the ground in every
direction, showing clearly that the forest had been fired. The attempt
at a clearing, if that was the object, was utterly abortive; for when
the trees are down a thick undercover grows up, more impervious by far,
and there is less chance of obtaining pasturage than ever, but the
Wallack never reasons upon this. The State reckons the value of its
"forests" at something like 27,000,000 florins, and yet there is no
efficient supervision of this property, which, from the increasing
scarcity of wood in Europe, must become in time more and more valuable.
The mines of Hungary are estimated in round numbers at 210,000,000
florins, and here again there is a lamentable absence of wise
administration. The mining laws, I understand, are at present under
revision. Foreign enterprise is not discouraged, but I cannot go so far
as to say that the adventure would not meet with difficulties from local
obstructions of an official or semi-official nature.
We had started from Toplicza in beautiful weather, but before sunset a
complete change came on, and heavy rain set in. This was a very
uncomfortable look-out, for we could see nothing that offered us
anything like a decent shelter for the night. The guide urged us to go
on, for he said there was a hut at the top of the mountain; so we beat
our way along through the driving rain, and eventually came to the top.
We soon found the hut, but it was a mere ruin; it might have been in
Chancery for any number of years, indeed one end had tumbled in. It was
as uninviting a place to spend a night in as could well be imagined.
Fortunately one corner was still weather-proof, the fir bark of the roof
yet remaining intact. We had to be careful, however, about the roof,
which consisted of stems of trees supported longitudinally. It was easy
to see that a very little incautious vivacity on our part would bring
the whole structure down on our heads. Water was found not far off, and
we soon had a fire, which blazed up cheerfully. Its warmth was very
necessary, for it was bitterly cold and damp. I had brought with me a
hammock made of twine; this I slung in the driest corner, and after
supper I turned in and was soon asleep. The faculty of sleep is an
immense comfort. A man may put it high up on the credit side in striking
the balance of good and evil in his lot.
When I awoke the next morning, I found that the weather was worse than
ever. The mist was so dense that the Wallack guide said it was perfectly
impossible to go on, in fact we might consider ourselves lucky if we
were able to get back without mischance. Not to be daunted, I waited
till nearly noon, thinking it was possible that the mist might rise, and
restore to us the bright skies of yesterday. A change came, but not the
one we hoped for. The cold rain turned into snow, so it would have been
sheer madness to think of going on.
We were in a wretched plight, crowded together in the corner of the
ruined hut, and snow as well as "light" came in "through the chinks that
time had made." Owing to a change in the wind, the smoke of the fire
outside drifted in; and there was evidence of a worse drift - that of the
snow, which before nightfall I daresay may have buried the cottage out
of sight.
I now gave orders for returning, and just as I stepped out of the hut,
or was in the act of leaving, one of the heavy beams from the roof fell
upon me; it caught me on the back of my head - a pretty close shave! The
ride back, with the consciousness of having failed to attain the object
I had in view, was depressing. Nothing could be more unlovely than these
once glorious forests. In parts we had to pass through a mere morass,
into which my horse kept sinking.
At last we got back to Toplicza. The forester and the Wallack thought
themselves amply compensated by a few paper florins. I daresay they kept
off the rheumatism by extra potations of _slivovitz_. As for myself,
having been dipped, yea, having even undergone total immersion in the
morass, I felt like those extinct animals who have left their
interesting bones nice and dry in the blue lias, but who in daily life
must have been "mud all over." I presented such a spectacle on my
return, that I consider it was an instance of the greatest
kindness - indeed it must have been a severe strain on the hospitality
of my friends to give me house-room.
As my garments had not the durability of those of the Israelites in the
wilderness, it became a very desirable object to effect a junction with
my portmanteau, which was sitting all this time at Maros Vásárhely. The
weather, too, had calmed my ardour for the mountains, and I resolved to
strike into the interior of Transylvania, and see something of the
towns.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Visits at Transylvanian châteaux - Society - Dogs - Amusements at
Klausenburg - Magyar poets - Count Istvan Széchenyi - Baron
Eötvos - 'The Village Notary' - Hungarian self-criticism - Literary
taste.
I must now drop the itinerary of my journey and speak more in
generalities; for after leaving the wilder districts of the Szeklerland,
I took the opportunity of presenting some of the letters of introduction
that I brought with me from England.
For the succeeding six weeks or more I spent my time most agreeably in
the châteaux of some of the well-known Transylvanian nobles. For the
time my wild rovings were over. The bivouac in the glorious forest and
robber-steak cooked by the camp fire - the pleasures of "roughing
it" - were exchanged for the charms of society.
And society is _very_ charming in Transylvania. Nearly all the ladies
speak English well, and are extremely well read in our literature. To
speak French is a matter of course everywhere; but they infinitely
prefer our literature, and speak our language always in preference when
they can.
The works of such men as Darwin, Lyell, and Tyndall are read. I remember
seeing these, and many other leading authors, in a bookseller's shop in
Klausenburg. It is true this last-named place is the capital - viz., the
Magyar capital - of Transylvania, but in most respects it is a mere
provincial town.
A friend and myself happened to be lunching one day in the principal
inn - it was in the _salle à manger_ - and we were talking together in
English. Presently I noticed a remarkably little man at the next table,
who looked towards us several times; finally he got up from his chair,
or rather I should say got down, and making a sign to us equivalent to
touching his hat, he said, "Gentlemen, I am an Englishman; I thought it
right to tell you in case you should think there was no one present who
understood what you were talking!" It was very civil of the little
fellow, for we were talking rather unguardedly about some well-known
personages. I then asked him how he came to be in this part of the
world, and he told me he was a jockey, and had been over several times
to ride at the Klausenburg races; but he added he was very sorry that
they always took place on a Sunday! There is certainly no "_bitter_
observance of the Sabbath" in Hungary generally. Offices are open, and
business is conducted as usual - certainly in the morning.
There is some good coursing in the neighbourhood of Klausenburg, which
is kept up closely on the pattern of English sport. I had two or three
good runs with the harriers, and on one occasion got a spill that was a
close shave of breaking my neck. Count T - - had given me a mount. The
horse was all right, but not knowing the nature of the country, I was
not aware that the ground drops suddenly in many places. Coming to
something of this kind without preparation, the horse threw me, and I
was pitched down an embankment upwards of twelve feet in depth. Several
people who saw the mishap thought it was all up with me, but, curiously
enough, I was absolutely unhurt. A pull at my flask set me all right,
and I walked back the five miles to Klausenburg. The horse unfortunately
galloped away, and was not brought back till the next day, and then
minus his saddle; however, it was recovered subsequently.
In the present scare about hydrophobia the following is worth notice.
One day when walking in the principal street of Klausenburg I heard a
great barking amongst the dogs, of which there were some dozen following
a closed van. On inquiry I found that once a-week the authorities send
round to see if there are any dogs at large without the regulation
tax-collar. If any such vagabonds are found they are consigned to the
covered cart, and are forthwith shot. This excellent arrangement has the
effect of keeping down the number of dogs; besides, there is the
safeguard attendant upon the responsibility of ownership. The funny part
of the matter is that the tax-paying dogs are not the least alarmed at
the appearance of the whipper-in, but join with great show of public
spirit in denouncing the collarless vagrants.
Klausenburg has not the picturesque situation of Kronstadt, but it is a
pleasant clean-looking town, with wide streets diverging from the Platz,
where stands the Cathedral, completed by Matthias Corvinus, son of
Hunyadi. This famous king, always called "the Just," was born at
Klausenburg in 1443.
As Herrmannstadt and Kronstadt are chiefly inhabited by Saxon
immigrants, and Maros Vásárhely is the central place of the Szeklers, so
may Klausenburg, or rather Kolozsvár, as it is rightly named, be
considered the Magyar capital of Transylvania.
The gaieties of the winter season had not commenced when I was there,
but I understand the world amuses itself immensely. The nobles come in
from their remote châteaux to their houses, or apartments, as it may be,
in town, and then the ball is set going.
There is a good theatre in Klausenburg. I found the acting decidedly
above the average of the provincial stage generally. I saw a piece of
Moliere's given, and though I could only understand the Hungarian very
imperfectly, I was enabled to follow it well enough to judge of the
acting.
Shakespeare is so great a favourite with the Hungarians that his plays
are certainly more often represented on the stage at Buda-Pest than in
London. The Hungarian translation of our great poet, as I observed
before, is most excellent.
It was a band of patriotic poets who first employed the language of the
Magyars in their compositions. Hitherto all literary utterance had been
confined to Latin, or to the foreign tongues spoken at courts. The rash
attempt of Joseph II. to denationalise the Magyar and to Germanise
Hungary by imperial edicts had a violent reactionary result. The
strongest and the most enduring expression is to be found in the popular
literature which was inaugurated by such men as Csokonai and the two
brothers Kisfaludy, who were all three born in the last century. The
songs of Csokonai have retained their hold on the people's hearts
because, and here is the keynote - "because they breathe the true
Hungarian feeling." The insistent themes of the Magyar poets were the
love of country, the joys of home, the duty of patriotism. Such was the
soul-stirring 'Appeal' ('Szózat') of Varósmazty, the chief of all the
tuneful brethren, the Schiller of Hungary. Born with the nineteenth
century, and at once its child and its teacher, he died in 1855 - too
soon, alas! to see the benefits accruing to his beloved country from the
wise reconciliatory policy of his dear friend Deák. His funeral was
attended by more than 20,000 people, and the country provided for his
family.
Whenever the poets of Hungary are mentioned the name of Petoefy will
occur, and he was second to none in originality of thought and poetic
utterance. An intense love of his native scenery, not excepting even the
dreary boundless Alföld, afforded inspiration for his genius. His poetic