CHAPTER I.

THE COUNTRY AND THE PEOPLE OF HUNGARY.

ALEXANDER PETÖFI, THE GREAT HUNGARIAN poet, in one of his beautiful poems, sings thus of his native land:

“If the earth be God’s crown

Our country is its fairest jewel.”

And truly were we able to ascend the airy heights and obtain a bird’s-eye view of Hungary, we would fain admit that it is one of the fairest and most blessed spots on the face of the earth.

In the Northwest of Hungary, on the banks of the Danube, begins the mountainous region known under the name of the Carpathian range, which for beauty is not surpassed by the Alps, and in extent fairly rivals them. This mountain range, encircling like a gigantic evergreen wreath one half of the country, extends all along its northern boundary and, after enclosing the eastern portion of it, stretches westward to where it is intersected by the waters of the Danube, not terminating there, however, but branching off into the countries lying along the lower course of that river.

The whole range of the Carpathians is characterized throughout its immensely long course by considerable breadth, forming at some places quite a hilly country and high plateaus, as, for instance, in Transylvania which, although properly belonging to Hungary, formerly enjoyed a sort of independence under its own name. This territory is covered almost entirely by the Carpathians, but, of course, designated here by different names.

We shall proceed now in due order.

In the Northwest, there where the Danube enters Hungarian territory near Dévény, the mountain chain begins, under the name of the Northwestern Carpathians; these, describing the shape of a half moon, extend from Presburg (Pozsony) to the Hernád-Tarcza valley. Formerly three groups only were mentioned in connection with this section: namely, the Tátra, Fátra, and Mátra, a representation of which, as well as of the four rivers, the Danube, Theiss, Drave, and Save, is embodied in the arms of the country, whence Hungary is designated as “the country of the three mountains and four rivers.” The Northwestern Carpathians are, however, a gigantic mountain mass of immense bulk, subdivided into several distinct ranges. Of these one, the Northwestern border mountain-range, starting near the Danube in Presburg County and extending in the shape of a wide arch in a northeastern direction as far as the sources of the Árva river, divides Hungary from Moravia, Silesia, and Galicia. This ridge is constantly rising, and reaches the highest elevation at its northern edge. Another range is the Little Kreván, which begins in Árva County, and extends through the flatlands between the Vág and Nyitra rivers. East of this are the Gömör mountain-range, famous for its stalactitic caves, including Aggtelek; the Mátra range, extending from Miskolcz to Vácz; and the loftiest of all, the High Tátra, whose highest peaks are those of Jégvölgy, Gerlachfalva, and Lomnicz, rising to an altitude of between 8,000 and 9,000 feet. The mountains belonging to this group are snow-covered, and what renders them peculiarly interesting are the so-called tengerszemek (eyes of the sea), limpid lakes of unfathomable depth, which, according to popular belief, are connected with the sea, and about which a good many old-time legendary tales are current amongst the people. These lakes are met with at the height of 1,900 metres above the level of the sea.

That range of mountains which extends eastwards from the Hernád-Tarcza valley to the southeastern angle of Mármaros County is called the Northeastern Carpathians. It includes the Wooded Carpathians and the Eperjes-Tokay range, in the southern part of which, the Hegyalja, the king of the wines, the famous Tokay wine, is produced.

The southeastern chain of the Carpathians divides where Mármaros County, Transylvania, and Bukovina converge into an angle, forming several main lines which enclose the territory of Transylvania in an almost quadrangular shape and give it the character of a high plateau.

The name of this group is the Southeastern Carpathians. Parts of it are the Transylvanian northern and eastern border ranges; the Hargita range, with the remarkable Mount Büdös, containing several caves from which issue strong gases, and the beautiful lake of St. Anna at a height of 950 metres; the southern border range, the largest and most massive portion of the Carpathian mountains; the mountain group of the Banate and the mineral mountain range of the Banate, the latter owing its name to the gold, silver, and other ores as well as the coal abounding in it. This group projects as far as the basin of the Danube and forms there the passes known as the Iron Gate, which greatly impede navigation. To the Transylvanian Hungarian range, extending north from the Maros river, belong the mineral mountains of Transylvania, rich in gold and other ore, and the mountain called Királyhágó, which marks the frontier between Hungary and the independent Transylvania of old.

Thirty-eight passes lead from this mountain-system of gigantic dimensions, partly into the countries adjacent to Hungary, partly into the regions divided by them. Of these the most important are: the Jablunka pass, communicating with Silesia and the valley of the Vistula; the Vereczke pass between Munkács and Stry, supposed to be the pass through which the Hungarians entered their present country; the Radna pass, leading into Bukovina; the Ojtóz pass, communicating with Moldavia; the Tömös pass, leading to Bucharest; and the Red Tower pass, leading into Little Wallachia.

Besides the Carpathian mountains Hungary also contains a less considerable portion of the Alps, belonging to the so-called Noric Alps. They lie in trans-Danubian Hungary, the Pannonia of old. They embrace the Austro-Styrian border-range, between the valleys of the Danube and Drave; the Vértes-Bakony ranges, of which the Bakony forest forms a part; and the group of the Buda mountains, producing the celebrated wines of that name.

Croatia and Slavonia, which are parts of the Hungarian realm, are also traversed by mountains belonging to the Alpine system.

We perceive from the preceding account that a large portion of the country is mountainous, but over a third part of it is level land, and so fertile that it may compare to the prairies in North America. The great Hungarian plain, the so-called Alföld (Lowland), boasts of the best soil for the production of wheat, and, stretching down from the offshoots of the Central Carpathians to the frontiers of Servia contains upward of 35,000 square miles.

The extent of the water system of a country and its distribution is always of the first importance. In this respect, too, Hungary has been blessed by nature. Of the sea she has but little; a small portion only of the Adriatic washes her shores, the so-called Hungarian Sea-Coast, where Fiume, the only important Hungarian seaport city, is situated. The country possesses also some interesting lakes; one, Lake Balaton, forty-seven miles long and nine miles wide, has the characteristics of the sea to such an extent that it is called the Hungarian Sea. In this extensive water is to be found the savory fogas fish, and on its shores is situated Balaton-Füred, one of the favorite watering-places of Hungary, and near this place is the famous echo of Tihany. Another large lake is the Fertö (Neu-Siedler), eighteen miles long and about five miles wide, which became perfectly dry in 1863, so that even houses were built on its bed, but the waters have returned to it within the last few years. Several smaller lakes, besides the two mentioned, are scattered throughout the country.

With rivers the country is abundantly supplied. Its mightiest stream is the Danube, after the Volga, the largest river in Europe. The whole of Hungary belongs to its basin. Its length in Hungary is 600 miles, and it leaves the country at Orsova, after having formed several islands in its course. The largest among these is the Great Csalló region, which contains two towns and over a hundred villages; and the most beautiful of them is Margit (Margaret) Island, near Buda-Pesth—quite a miniature paradise, frequented by a great many strangers, who come here to get the benefit of its excellent baths. Of the numerous affluents of the Danube the Theiss is the most important; it has its sources in the country and empties into the Danube on Hungarian soil, near Titel. It is navigable for steamships. The Save and Drave are after the Theiss the largest tributaries of the Danube. All these rivers send their waters, through the medium of the Danube, into the Black Sea.

Thus harmoniously is the soil of Hungary varied by mountains, valleys, plains, and high plateaus, and gratefully watered by rivers and lakes; and if we but add that the country lies between the forty-fourth and fiftieth degrees of northern latitude, that is, in the most favorable part of the temperate zone, we may readily infer the superiority of the climatic conditions prevailing there. There is, of course, great variety of climate. The winter is raw and cold in the Carpathian regions; spring sets in later, winter comes earlier, and the cold sometimes reaches —22° F. In the hilly and level country the climate is much more genial, the summers hotter, and storms of more frequent occurrence. Wheat, grapes, and maize do not ripen in the regions of the higher Carpathians, whilst the Alföld produces the best and finest wheat, and...