Blackmail

Baroness von Beck claimed that her husband Baron von Beck had lost his life in the Viennese Revolution, and thought that Mr Pulszky did not deserve the high position he filled in London Society, as his conduct had been questionable in Vienna.

She also criticized his private life as well

Pulszky was forewarned of the attack about six weeks before the publication of the book.

A man called, or using the non de plume of Ferdinand de Carl wrote to Pulszky on 16 January 1851 that unless he makes a generous pecuniary contribution to the authoress, he will be attacked in the German language edition of her work, all the more, as Pulszky had succeeded in 1850 to persuade the publisher of the English edition to suppress her criticism of his person
                                   (237)

The Press

The prime mover behind the Welsh sympathy for the Hungarians was Arthur James Johnes who appeared in the columns of the Herald as "Cambrensis"
He was a judge in the County Court of North West Wales, a radical, a disciple of Bentham, a great believer in education and freedom of the press
It was he who organized the first meeting of sympathy at Liverpool in mid November 1849 which was followed by other meetings in rapid succession at Bala, Aberystwyth and Bangor
Judge Johnes regarded the meetings not merely as beneficial to the unfortunate Hungarians, with whom he most sincerely sympathized, but also as offeering proof to the English that the Welsh were alive to the cruelties of the Autocrats, quick to feel in the name of humanity and Christianity for the Hungarians, and progressive enough to make full use of press and platform to register their opinion on the matter
                                  (237)

Impostors

Another example of such great impostors was Ephrem Leo Jacob Koricosz "prince of Armenia" who claimed to have descended from Mary of Hungary, daughter of Louis I of Anjou and from Jacob VI Prince of Armenia
Koricosz turned up in London in the autumn of 1849 when the sympathy for the Hungarians was at its height and claimed that he was an implacable enemy of the Czar, who had disinherited him as Armenian ruler and oppressed his "brothers" the Hungarians
Koricosz won favors for a long time but was unmasked as the son of a Dutch merchant called Joannis
                                      (237)

Immigration 1850

Some of the Hungarians, indeed, found employment and made a living from themselves in Britain.  Their former army commanders Klapka and Szabo in particular were in favor of their staying together or as closely connected with one another as possible as was possible, in the hope that if a new insurrection were to start in Hungary they should be ready to join in.  Others could not get used to the idea that emigrants were expected to work, and so waited either for a pension similar to what the Poles had received in the thirties or had blamed Pulszky, who had been the best connections, for not having found work.
                                              (237)


Doesn't this sound familiar today?  It also gives a reference that human activity and beliefs have not changed much over the last 160 years or so.  I am not referring to a class or race here, but only the human as the example.  The mentality of the human and the survival "skills" that are being portrayed is what draws my attention to this passage.  The conditions and reasons why these people were emigrants were basically identical as well






DLB

Post 2/8/14

The Lazi People:

The huge temperate rain forest which still covers the mountains of the eastern Pontos has wild animals: boar, bear and deer.  The Lazi, or perhaps only the older Lazi in their more remote villages, think that it also contains monsters.  The Germakoci, for instance, is a giant creature, human in form but covered with fur, which sometimes approaches hunters in the high forest.  Slow-witted, the Germakoci reacts to human beings with curiosity rather than aggression, and likes to imitate whatever they do; the way to be rid of him to set fire to a twig and wave it around, so that the giant seizing the burning brand, sets light to his own fur.  Roaring with alarm, he plunges downhill and runs until he reaches the Black Sea and leaps into it.
                                              (394)

Post 11/30/13

The Krajina Serbs believe that they are the truest and purest Serbs, uncorrupted by whatever may happen in Belgrade, standing guard against the "Germanized" Croats and the imaginary onslaught of fundamentalist Islam.
        (394)

Post 11/21/13

The Afrikaners have in the past understood themselves as custodians of "Western Christian values" stationed among the barbarians on the direct instructions of the Lord of the Old Testament
                             (394)